As I re-watch Uta-Kata
, I am reminded that, no matter how mature we think we are, we really are no more than very large infants, driven by very basic needs. I realize this primarily because I have an ear infection and it is making me exceeding cranky. Which means that I approach the anime already predisposed to being unpleasant about it.And there is plenty to be unpleasant about in Uta-Kata. So much so, that I will confine myself to only a very few negative comments about it.
Let's start with the end. Saya says that "Mirrors reflect the true reality" or some such nonsense. This is not true on the face of it - we all know that mirrors reflect the opposite of reality. And if Ichika had been paying attention in science class, she'd have known that too. (C.p. What You Need to Know to become a Magical Girl)
Among all the truly problematic things in this anime the other standout problematic thing is that it's a complete waste of time. By which I mean that we know that at least two "tests" have failed to gain an answer from within the confines of the two stupid choices the tested offer. And a post-failed test discussion implies that other failures have occurred too. So, hey, if you keep conducting the same test with the same parameters and don't get either of the results you expect, sense would lead you to maybe question the validity of the test. Unless the real reason for the test is simply to make a child's life miserable to force them to grow the fuck up...how's that for a profound analogy for adolescence?
There is Yuri in the second half of Uta-Kata. This is undeniable. In episode 9, Keiko and Sayaka become a couple sort of not-really unexpectedly. Manatsu kisses Ichika in a not-friend kind of way at the end, and for the one or two BL fans out there, there's some BL, which had been implied between Sei and Kai pretty much from the beginning.
Ratings:
Art - Sigh. I just can't like it, because of the fanservice - 4
Characters - By the end, the only character I really liked was Michiru
Story - 4
Yuri - 5
Loser Fanboy - 9
Overall - 5
In conclusion my ear hurts, and Uta-Kata was not what it might have been had anyone cared.