alt title(s): DC Da Capo
Asakura Junichi is a 15 year old boy who lives on the (fictional) island of Hatsunejima, where the sakura trees blossom all year through. He seems pretty ordinary, but he has magical powers, which he himself views as fairly limited. He can see the dreams of other people and produce Japanese sweets out of the blue. He has a sister, Nemu, with whom he attends the same class in middle school. Although people think they are twins, they are actually
not blood relatives. Their bond is very strong, inciting people to think that they are lovers.
One day a new transfer student is welcomed to the school: Yoshino Sakura, Junichi's cousin, who returns home after having been in the USA for six years. Sakura immediately stirs things up since she is hellbent on letting Junichi keep his childhood promise to her. This is especially troublesome, since things between Junichi and Nemu
have started to become much more serious in the time since Sakura left—and Junichi appears to have promised something to Nemu as well.
The story gets even more complicated when it is uncovered that the old, big sakura tree in the middle of Hatsunejima holds a magical grip on the island and its inhabitants. As the significance of its influence becomes clear, a dramatic story slowly unfolds, so what at first started as a lighthearted
harem comedy becomes much more serious and intense as the series progresses.
The anime, which is called in full
DC Da Capo, is based on a
Dating Sim that was released by Circus in 2002. The anime itself was aired in 2003. A sequel, called
DCSS: Da Capo Second Season, has been released in 2005 and yet another one, called
D.C.II ~Da Capo II~, set two generations later, was aired in 2007. The sequel's success incited
yet another sequel, called
D.C.II S.S. ~Da Capo II Second Season~. The name "Da Capo" is a musical term, meaning "from the top" and refers to the often looping story lines in the original game.
The series' success hinges largely on the well-balanced characters and interesting plot lines combined with nice, classically-tinted music, since the animation quality doesn't generally rise far above average. For viewers who like a good mix of silliness and well-written melodrama, the series is definitely worth a watch.
Tropes:
- Beach Episode
- The Beard: Mako asks Junichi's help to get rid of her female admirer.
- Be Careful What You Wish For
- Big Eater: Miharu. She especially likes anything with bananas in it.
- Bishoujo
- Bishonen: Suginami.
- Bittersweet Ending: Miharu's route. It'd practically be a downer ending if it wasn't for the fact that Junichi now appreciates Miharu a lot more than he did before.
- Boke And Tsukkomi Routine: There is one in he post episode trailer.
- Bokukko: Sakura refers to herself as "boku", although she is not exactly a tomboy.
- Brother Sister Incest: Well, they are not related by blood though.
- But Now I Must Go: Yoriko.
- Cat Girl: Yoriko.
- Chaos Architecture: In the DC anime, the Mizukoshis have a huge western-style mansion. However, in DCSS it suddenly has become a Japanese-style house.
- Cherry Blossoms: All year long!
- Clingy Jealous Girl: Nemu.
- Cloud Cuckoo Lander: Moe, who walks to school sleepwalking while playing a xylophone.
- Cross Popping Veins
- Dating Sim
- Die For Our Ship: There are quite a few vocal people who wish Nemu would just die so Kotori can move in.
- Most likely due to Nemu being Clingy Jealous Girl, up to about Level 9,000+ or so... (This Troper ships for Kotori, but mostly because a genuinely nice girl is getting harder to find in Harem Anime these days.)
- And then there's the alternate-universe OVA in which Kotori wins... in which it is heavily implied that Nemu did die, before the events of the OVA. So I guess these people got their wish?
- Discretion Shot: During Junichi and Nemu's kiss.
- And subverted one episode later ¬¬.
- Does This Remind You Of Anything
- Dojikko: Yuriko.
- Dream Sequence: Oh so many...
- Drop In Character: Sakura, who climbs through Junichi's bedroom window. Also Suginami, who can appear anywhere anytime.
- Fan Service
- Gag Boobs: Moe.
- Gainaxing: Moe is especially suspectible to this.
- Generic Cuteness
- Hot Springs Episode: Obligatory, no?
- I Thought It Meant: No, The Mafia is not involved.
- I Want My Beloved To Be Happy: The drama from the second season arises because of one character's failure to understand this concept.
- Ill Girl
- Japanese Pronouns: Sakura, the token loli, is a bokukko while the tomboyish Mako uses atashi.
- Lampshade Hanging: Liberally in the original Visual Novel. Junichi has an odd tendency to consider his life with thoughts like 'Sakura, people only call people they're in a relationship with oniichan in games' or comparing Mako's dislike of horror movies to one of the main heroines in a dating sim.
- Late For School: Junichi's daily habit.
- Leave The Camera Running: Applied in one dream sequence.
- Lethal Chef: Yoriko, and Nemu (at least for the original game and first season)
- Lolicon: Sakura hasn't grown for a couple of years.
- Love Triangle
- Meaningful Name: One of the characters is called Sakura. Coincidence?
- Measuring Day
- Meido: Yoriko.
- Memento Mac Guffin: The bell Junichi gave to Nemu as a kid.
- Moe: You have to ask?
- Mood Whiplash: Halfway through the first season the viewer gets a warning that things will become much more serious. And boy, do they ever...
- Mundane Fantastic
- New Transfer Student: Sakura.
- Non Human Sidekick: Utamaru, which is some sort of ... cat.
- Nose Bleed
- Not Blood Siblings: Nemu and Junichi.
- Ocular Gushers
- The Ojou: Mako, Moe.
- Panty Shot
- Parental Abandonment: The parents are mentioned, but are never seen.
- Pettanko: Sakura, who is quite bothered by it.
- The Promise: Junichi made one to both Sakura and Nemu.
- Pinocchio Syndrome: Miharu searches for her memories to become more human.
- Recap Episode: At regular intervals.
- Replacement Goldfish: Miharu, sort of.
- Ridiculously Human Robots: Did they really need to make Miharu capable of the sensation of losing her virginity? Wait, didn't the professor who made her base her on his daughter, the real Miharu?
- Robot Girl: Miharu.
- School Festival
- Schoolgirl Lesbians: Implied with Mako's female stalker.
- Skinship Grope
- Stalker With A Crush: Sakura, at least in the beginning. Nemu and Mako have their own pesky admirers.
- Tear Jerker: Comes with the utsuge territory.
- Tsundere: Nemu, Mako
- Unwanted Harem
- Utsuge
- Yamato Nadeshiko: Moe.
- Zettai Ryouiki: Worn by most girls as part of their school uniform.
