gerson.ziemann - 2015-07-09 07:43:43

The ultimate goal of farming is not the growing of crops, but the cultivation and perfection of human beings. - Masanobu Fukuoka

All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us. We cannot do everything we want. But we can do small things with great love. What you see depends on how you view the world. To most people, this is just dirt. To a farmer it’s potential. 

Nourin also covers all aspects of Romance, Slice of life, Agriculture down to the core itself.

I'll get back to the main story in a minute. I want to clear this first.

The stories of Nourin tell us about how is it to be a farmer. At this point, we will go through a daily farmer life which it shows also to be something fun. Yes, the producers want us to be at least open minded. Skeptical view from the media side about a farmer life not really all the truth. Life as a farmer is not necessarily bad or worse than for example life of salary man. It actually can be fun and entertaining. But, most of us looking it with one side eye only. You can say ignorance yet try to defy and judge it.

Story 
This story is about Kousaku Hata who goes to Tamo Agriculture School. Hata is a huge fan of national idol Yuka Kusakabe. Suddenly, his national idol Kusakabe Yuka retired from the entertainment business and went quiet. This give a huge shock to Hata and made him depressed and unmotivated. After Hata successful past through those bad days, Kusakabe Yuka appears again in his life. Shockingly, she goes with a nickname as Kinoshita Ringo, a new transfer student to his school. Could this be a chance for him to know better the girl he once idolizes and love? This set a new hard life Hata will go through. You cannot rest yet Hata-kun! More hardship, love, and funny moments are yet to come! If you are wondering whether the series is worth to be watched I'll tell you in one beautiful phrase: damn good writing.

Art 
Simple but cute. It's good and not even worse or bad. Still the art play its part marvelously without blemish.

Sound
Fair enough but not memorable. Undulating rhythm plays in our ears without realizing it. 

Character
I love all the characters in this series. We get relationships we can invest in and we get characters that properly progress through beginning, middle and end. It might not be anywhere that deep but it is affecting, fun and deeply enjoyable. The main lead, Hata is a person who the shiny one among the character showed us his kind and caring personality up to the bitter end without hesitation. He proved that he is not some stupid Main lead who is just pushed over by everyone. Which results in a fresh scenes in anime series once in a while. His crush, Ringo who is also an idol does not disappoint us as the main girls of the series. Supporting Hata in her owns way. Ringo is undeniably a cute girl in inside and outside.

Enjoyment and Overall 
Right at the start, to be honest, I was surprised. I tried to think that this anime is just your base average type of anime. Rather, I found it amusing and fun to watch as I kind of enjoy the story and comedy. It's a really great series overall. Never let the appearance fooled you. It looks like this series is kind of boring one but actually opposite of what we've been thinking. I can assume at least that the series potential is more than meet the eyes.

arlene54 - 2014-03-28 21:12:20

By all accounts, No-Rin shouldn't be as good as it is. It's full of light novel conventions and tropes and is downright derivative in many aspects. But here's the thing: it works. And I think that's due to the sheer energy the show has. It takes those tired tropes and makes them seem fresh somehow. It's just having so much fun with itself that you can't help but get sucked in.

The story concerns a young rural farming boy who is obsessed with a famous pop idol, who ends up retiring to the countryside. The basic premise is her adjusting to farming life and him getting to know the real girl behind the idol facade. First off, I adore this premise. I can't exactly explain why, but for some reason it really clicks with me.

Despite how generic the characters appear to be on the surface, there's a bit more to them than that. By the end, they all feel somewhat rounded as characters even if they remain fairly simplistic. It feels very natural, you learn about these people and suddenly the way they act makes a bit more sense. They aren't amazing but for a show like this, they're pretty well-rounded and bounce off of eachother in entertaining ways.

While the show is very enjoyable, it is also a bit messy in terms of execution. As great as the premise is, you quickly learn that it isn't the highest point on the show's priority list. Many episodes are focused more on wacky comedy, which is going to divide a lot of viewers. It's pretty raunchy comedy too, there's probably more sex jokes than any other show this season. I personally found it very amusing but it definitely isn't for everyone.

The show is at its absolute best when it focuses on its main premise and themes. No-Rin is very good at relating life struggles with farming metaphors, but it doesn't come off as cheesy. Just like the farmwork it represents, the show is very earnest when it gets down to brass tacks. I actually ended up learning quite a bit about farm life from this show, as well as its applicability. When the character interaction and development takes center stage, that's when the show hits its stride.

The thing I feared the most was that there wasn't going to be a real conclusion, as it is based on a series of on-going light novels. And for the most part, yes, the conclusion is satisfying to a point but very open-ended. Which is always a frustrating situation for series based off of light novels. On the one hand, I can't blame the studio for being faithful to source. On the other hand, light novel translations are scarce as all hell so I may never end up following the series through to the end. Which is too bad really because I'm legitimately interested and where it goes.

The animation was done by Silver Link, and it has that same colorful, rough outline look than Prisma*Illya had last year. I don't even know what to call this artstyle but I like it. It really accentuates the farmland setting for some reason. The animation stutters in certain areas, mostly distance shots but is overall pretty good.

The music is typically comedy fare. It isn't bad, but it isn't particularly notable or memorable either. I like the OP and ED, especially since we get to hear Yukari Tamura and Hana Kanazawa singing together, which is always nice.

The show has flown under the radar for a lot of people, and I definitely see why. But I very much enjoyed it and saw its positive merits on a personal level. My main issues are that the show needed to focus more on its main premise and that the ending isn't as conclusive as I would've liked. I would definitely be interested in a second season.

Rewatch Value: Yes (Based on a Yes/Maybe/No scale)

von.betty - 2014-02-14 17:03:06

Nourin is a comedy about an idol stepping down the industry and transfers into an agricultural school.

The premise isn't very interesting, but it is unique. The problem is the plot has barely nothing going for it since it is going for comedy. The genre comedy is subjective but, from what I've seen so far it fairly entertaining and enjoyable.The characters here are really interesting on how they interact with one another but some also seem bland but great overall. My only problem with it is that it may lose some steam since it is a comedy can only keep it up until it becomes boring. I do recommend it for people wish to have a laugh with a little fan service here and there.