The appeal and reviews of "The Forest of Miyori": A thorough analysis of the moving story and beautiful visual world

Miyori no Mori: A story of emotional healing and growth

■Overview of the work

"Miyori no Mori" is a TV anime series that aired on Fuji TV on August 25, 2007, and is based on the Akita Shoten manga "Miyori no Mori" by Hidetsugu Oda. The series is a feature-length film with a self-contained story in each episode, lasting 106 minutes, directed by Nizo Yamamoto and produced by Nippon Animation. The story follows Miyori, a young girl who grew up between feuding parents, as she experiences something strange in the countryside while in her grandmother's care.

■ Story

Miyori (Aoi Yu) is an 11-year-old girl who grew up between parents who were not on good terms. As a result, she has a tendency to daydream, denies relationships with others, and has lived her life with her heart closed off. One day, her mother (Yoshizaki Noriko) leaves home, and her father (Ito Toshihiro) decides to leave Miyori in the care of her grandmother (Ichihara Etsuko) in the countryside. Upon arriving at her grandmother's house, Miyori immediately goes for a walk in the nearby forest. There, she feels extremely lonely, but encounters strange events, such as a cherry tree that was supposed to have been broken by lightning blooming and a tiger appearing, which should not have been there. These events were not just Miyori's imagination, but reality.

Soon, the spirits of the forest begin to appear before Miyori. Only Miyori can see the forest guardian Bokuriko (Takashima Aya), Kanoko (Amano Hiroyuki, Kyaeen), Wasirashi (Matsuo Midori), and the spirit of the single cherry tree (Moto Chitose). They ask her to protect the forest. This marks the beginning of Miyori's life in the countryside, where each day is filled with wonder and surprise.

Miyori gradually opens up through her life with her grandparents, her life at a new school, and her interactions with the forest spirits. She realizes that the forest heals her, and begins to think deeply about her parents, her friends, herself, and the forest. However, the forest is destined to be submerged under a dam in the near future. Upon learning this fact, Miyori takes action with her friends and the forest spirits to stop the dam construction plan.

■Explanation

"Miyori's Forest" tells the story of Miyori, who grew up between feuding parents, being sent to live with her grandmother in the countryside, where she encounters a mysterious forest. Miyori was a lonely girl who closed her heart and denied relationships with others, but she grows through her experiences in the forest. The story is based on the manga of the same name, which was serialized in Akita Shoten's "Mystery Bonita" and became a hot topic, and the fascinating world view of the manga has been made into an anime.

■Cast

・Miyori Mashima/Yu Aoi ・Kanoko/Hiroyuki Amano (Kyaeen)
・Grandma / Etsuko Ichihara ・The Fairy of the Lone Cherry Blossom / Moto Chitose (special appearance)
・Bokuriko/Takashima Aya・Wasirashi/Matsuo Midori・Father/Ito Toshihiro・Mother/Yoshizaki Noriko・Teacher Okako/Sasaki Kyoko・Grandpa/Tsuji Shinpachi・Daisuke/Numata Yusuke・Yoko/Kimura Akiko・Yuki/Saito Chiwa・Naoko/Kojima Kazuko・Sachiko/Koike Akiko・Kotaro/Kobayashi Yumiko・Hidetsugu/Shindo Naomi・Naoko's father/Sonobe Keiichi・Police officer/Hokagi Katsutoshi・Miyori (baby)/Koorogi Satomi・Grandpa Nego/Tsukada Masaaki・Fukurin/Nagashima Takashi・Yoshinaga Moe/Takaguchi Sachiko・Kobayashi/Koyama Takehiro・Suzuki/Sato Haruo・Nomura/Koseki Kazu・Man/Yamamoto Mitsuta, Murozono Takehiro, Yamaguchi Taro

■ Main staff

・Original story: Hidetsugu Oda (published by Akita Publishing)
・Planning / Kaneda Koji, Kato Michio・Director / Yamamoto Nizo・Character design / Saitana Shunji, Ishikawa Tetsuya・Screenplay / Okudera Satoko・Storyboard / Yamamoto Nizo, Ito Hideki・Chief animation director / Ishikawa Tetsuya・Animation directors / Sakuma Yasuko, Saegusa Saki, Ito Hideki・Color design / Koyama Akiko・Art director / Masuyama Osamu・Director of photography / Takeda Junichi・Editing / Natori Shinichi・Sound director / Hayase Hiroyuki・Music / Hatakeda Takeshi・Direction / Kidokoro Masaaki, Ito Hideki・Producers / Matsuzaki Yoko, Tanaka Nobuaki・Animation production / Nippon Animation・Production / Fuji Television, Nippon Animation

■ Theme songs and music

・OP1
・Miyori no Mori・Lyrics/Sadayoshi Okamoto・Composition/Sadayoshi Okamoto・Arrangement/Takeshi Hageta・Singer/Chitose Moto

■ Appeal and evaluation of the work

"Miyori's Forest" has captivated many viewers with its beautiful visuals and deep story. In particular, the scenes depicting Miyori's interactions with the forest spirits and her growth are heartwarming and moving. In addition, while faithfully recreating the worldview of the original work, the expressiveness unique to anime adds even more depth to the work.

Director Nizo Yamamoto carefully depicts the relationship between humans and nature, successfully inspiring viewers with his film. The character and color designs are also excellent, beautifully expressing the beauty of the forest and the fantastical atmosphere of the spirits. Furthermore, the music is also an important element in enhancing the atmosphere of the film, and Moto Chitose's singing voice adds depth to the story.

■ Recommendation points

"The Forest of Miyori" is a work that can be recommended to a wide range of age groups as it depicts the relationship between nature and humans and the growth of the soul. It is especially recommended for those who love nature and those who seek spiritual healing. Also, watching it with the family can be an opportunity to deepen communication between parents and children.

This work is a long story with each episode, but it deals with deep themes and will stay with you for a long time after watching. I hope you will have a mysterious experience in Miyori Forest and feel healing and growth in your heart.