Kiniro Mosaic: Pretty Days
Well, this OVA wasn't exactly what I was expecting, and I mean that in the best possible way. Normally, OVAs are kind of time wasting bonuses, that are just a regular episode, yet I can't help but feel that Pretty Days is actually a very important episode for the Kiniro Mosaic franchise as a whole. As opposed to most regular episodes in the series, this OVA is overtly character focussed, centering around a flashback of Shino, Youko and Aya in Middle School and how Shino got into High School. Although it's clear through the series that all the girls are clearly great friends, I don't think a single episode managed to convey that as strongly as Pretty Days, as we see just how close they really are, with Aya opting out of going to a more prestigious High School to be with her friends, and the trio all helping each other to make sure they can all go to the same school. This flashback sequence is genuinely really heartwarming, and if you're invested at all in the characters, it'll just make you love them even more than you did already.
Although the OVA is centered around Shino, Aya and Youko, the real center of the story is Aya, and how she feels insecure about her friendship with Shino because she doesn't have anything special about her like Alice or Karen's blonde hair and she hasn't been a childhood friend like Youko has. This kind of character introspection is something that we haven't really seen from this series, and is something that I actually really appreciate. Worrying about that kind of thing seems really fitting for her character, being somewhat meek in comparison to the others. This also leads to one of the best scenes in the franchise towards the end of the OVA, that would've just been a comedic scene without the context of Aya's inner monologues, but ends up being incredibly endearing.
The only real downside to Pretty Days is that it was a bit lacking in the comedy department. Don't get me wrong, there are some really funny scenes here, but they feel a little more spread out and less frequent than the often laugh a minute gags in the series. I feel like this was probably a trade off for more character stuff, and given that we've had 2 whole seasons of comedy with not a whole lot in terms of character depth, I can't complain really. Due to the nature of the OVA being mainly in flashback, there's also rather little screen time for Alice and Karen, which is a bit of a bummer as such a huge Karen fan, although the School Festival play at the end gave her one of the funniest bits in the whole OVA.
So yeah, really loved this OVA. It was really different to the series, but in a way that I loved, as it gave more depth to the characters and really solidified their friendship. Maybe don't spend £60 importing the subtitle-less Japanese Blu Ray like some crazy people, but if this ever comes to home video or streaming in the west, definitely give it a watch if you're a Kiniro Mosaic fan.
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