Medalist<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\t\t\t\t![\"\"](\"https:\/\/starcrossedanime.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Trix-Medalist-01v2-WEB-1080p-AV1-AAC-Multi-Subs-01A3022D.mkv00004-300x169.png\")
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<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\nShort Synopsis:<\/b> A young girl learns to figure skate against her mother\u2019s wishes while her coach lives his dreams through teaching her.<\/p>\n
Lenlo:<\/b><\/span> Been a while since our last figure skating anime, only one I can remember was Yuri on Ice. Where that was all about the highest levels of competition though, big flash moves and Olympic level events, Medalist takes a more traditional, ground up approach. We get to see a girl learn the sport from the start, growing and learning the whole way. Meanwhile her teacher gets to live his dreams vicariously through her. And it\u2019s that relationship that sets Medalist apart from other sports series for me. We\u2019re not just following kids, highschoolers, and their naive \u201cI will win at any cost\u201d attitude like we so often do. Her coach is just as important as she is, in fact he\u2019s the point-of-view character for basically the entire episode. His desire to see her succeed, to prove everyone wrong about it being too late to learn, to live that dream he gave up on in his youth, is just as important as her own story. And you know what? I bought it. I\u2019m not sure if the production will keep up, if their dynamic will work for an entire series or what kind of development and growth they will go through, but I want to see what Inori and Tsukasa can do.
Potential:<\/b> 60%<\/p>\nMario:<\/b><\/span> Let me start first by saying I believe Medalist has all the right ingredients to be a sleeper hit of this season, or at least to gather some passionate followers. This premiere does its job competently \u2013 introducing two lead characters who are different in personality and age but are passionate about figure skating, and laying a solid foundation for the girl Inori to be trained by Tsukasa. I\u2019m not entirely sold on the whole ordeal, though. First, I found the mix between melodrama and comedy doesn\u2019t really mesh well together. There are a few scenes, especially involving Tsukasa, that aim to lighten the mood right in the middle of a conflict, which gave me tonal whiplash. Also it tends to amp up its drama \u2013 Inori is on the verge of tears most of the time and I think the show will mine that. But most of all, as someone who has a high performance sports background, what sticks out to me \u2013 in a bad way \u2013 is Tsukasa\u2019s lack of qualification. He is unprepared to take on the coach\u2019s role and has no concrete plan whatsoever to coach his new pupil. The way he screams to make her mother accept his proposal, for example, is a big no-no in real life. On the positive spectrum, I quite enjoy the animation plus the choreography (not flashy, but does its job), and the chemistry between the two leads is solid. Yep, so despite some minor issues, I still think we ended up with a winner here.
Potential:<\/b> 50%<\/p>\nHana wa Saku, Shura no Gotoku<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\t\t\t\t![\"\"](\"https:\/\/starcrossedanime.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Hana-wa-Saku-Shura-no-Gotoku-1.1-300x169.jpg\")
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<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\nShort Synopsis:<\/b> After much convincing, a shy first year high schooler agrees to join the broadcasting club.<\/p>\n
Wooper:<\/b><\/span> Hana wa Saku is one of the only winter shows for which I had any real expectations, mostly on the basis of the source manga\u2019s authorship (it\u2019s by the author of the Hibike Euphonium novels). Unfortunately, it didn\u2019t live up to those hopes \u2013 this episode was about as simple as premieres get when it comes to high school club anime. In the words of sophomore student Mizuki, \u201cWhere there\u2019s a flower, you water it. Where there\u2019s a promising first year student, you recruit her.\u201d And that\u2019s just what Mizuki does, asking protagonist Hana (whose name means \u201cFlower,\u201d get it?) over and over to join the broadcasting club, sensing that she has a knack for their style of poetry recitations. The way the entire episode hinges on the question of whether Hana will accept her invitation is too simple by half. After expressing a dislike of her own lack of self-confidence during a sleepover with Mizuki, her doubts about her own abilities are washed away after the older girl demands that she join the club once more, but this time with picturesque sun rays peeking through the clouds. Even the inflexible ferry schedule that would have prevented Hana from joining gets adjusted for the sake of her membership. The direction dramatizes some of the recitations with visual metaphors like train tracks and grasping vines, which is nice, but it\u2019s not enough to elevate the rest of this episode.
Potential:<\/b> 20%<\/p>\nFrom Bureaucrat to Villainess<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\t\t\t\t![\"\"](\"https:\/\/starcrossedanime.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/From-Bureaucrat-to-Villainess-1.1-300x169.jpg\")
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![\"\"](\"https:\/\/starcrossedanime.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Trix-Medalist-01v2-WEB-1080p-AV1-AAC-Multi-Subs-01A3022D.mkv00004.png\")
<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\nShort Synopsis:<\/b> A young girl learns to figure skate against her mother\u2019s wishes while her coach lives his dreams through teaching her.<\/p>\n
Lenlo:<\/b><\/span> Been a while since our last figure skating anime, only one I can remember was Yuri on Ice. Where that was all about the highest levels of competition though, big flash moves and Olympic level events, Medalist takes a more traditional, ground up approach. We get to see a girl learn the sport from the start, growing and learning the whole way. Meanwhile her teacher gets to live his dreams vicariously through her. And it\u2019s that relationship that sets Medalist apart from other sports series for me. We\u2019re not just following kids, highschoolers, and their naive \u201cI will win at any cost\u201d attitude like we so often do. Her coach is just as important as she is, in fact he\u2019s the point-of-view character for basically the entire episode. His desire to see her succeed, to prove everyone wrong about it being too late to learn, to live that dream he gave up on in his youth, is just as important as her own story. And you know what? I bought it. I\u2019m not sure if the production will keep up, if their dynamic will work for an entire series or what kind of development and growth they will go through, but I want to see what Inori and Tsukasa can do. Mario:<\/b><\/span> Let me start first by saying I believe Medalist has all the right ingredients to be a sleeper hit of this season, or at least to gather some passionate followers. This premiere does its job competently \u2013 introducing two lead characters who are different in personality and age but are passionate about figure skating, and laying a solid foundation for the girl Inori to be trained by Tsukasa. I\u2019m not entirely sold on the whole ordeal, though. First, I found the mix between melodrama and comedy doesn\u2019t really mesh well together. There are a few scenes, especially involving Tsukasa, that aim to lighten the mood right in the middle of a conflict, which gave me tonal whiplash. Also it tends to amp up its drama \u2013 Inori is on the verge of tears most of the time and I think the show will mine that. But most of all, as someone who has a high performance sports background, what sticks out to me \u2013 in a bad way \u2013 is Tsukasa\u2019s lack of qualification. He is unprepared to take on the coach\u2019s role and has no concrete plan whatsoever to coach his new pupil. The way he screams to make her mother accept his proposal, for example, is a big no-no in real life. On the positive spectrum, I quite enjoy the animation plus the choreography (not flashy, but does its job), and the chemistry between the two leads is solid. Yep, so despite some minor issues, I still think we ended up with a winner here. Short Synopsis:<\/b> After much convincing, a shy first year high schooler agrees to join the broadcasting club.<\/p>\n Wooper:<\/b><\/span> Hana wa Saku is one of the only winter shows for which I had any real expectations, mostly on the basis of the source manga\u2019s authorship (it\u2019s by the author of the Hibike Euphonium novels). Unfortunately, it didn\u2019t live up to those hopes \u2013 this episode was about as simple as premieres get when it comes to high school club anime. In the words of sophomore student Mizuki, \u201cWhere there\u2019s a flower, you water it. Where there\u2019s a promising first year student, you recruit her.\u201d And that\u2019s just what Mizuki does, asking protagonist Hana (whose name means \u201cFlower,\u201d get it?) over and over to join the broadcasting club, sensing that she has a knack for their style of poetry recitations. The way the entire episode hinges on the question of whether Hana will accept her invitation is too simple by half. After expressing a dislike of her own lack of self-confidence during a sleepover with Mizuki, her doubts about her own abilities are washed away after the older girl demands that she join the club once more, but this time with picturesque sun rays peeking through the clouds. Even the inflexible ferry schedule that would have prevented Hana from joining gets adjusted for the sake of her membership. The direction dramatizes some of the recitations with visual metaphors like train tracks and grasping vines, which is nice, but it\u2019s not enough to elevate the rest of this episode.
Potential:<\/b> 60%<\/p>\n
Potential:<\/b> 50%<\/p>\nHana wa Saku, Shura no Gotoku<\/h2>\n
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Potential:<\/b> 20%<\/p>\nFrom Bureaucrat to Villainess<\/h2>\n
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