#FEATURE: Hope Survives Within the Heart of SCHOOL-LIVE!

“#FEATURE: Hope Survives Within the Heart of SCHOOL-LIVE!”

Fall is here, a new season is ramping up, but there's still plenty of opportunity for fans to catch up on the anime of yesteryear that they may have missed the first time around, and “Cruising the Crunchy-Catalog” is here to help. Our goal is to spread the anime love by connecting anime fans with catalog titles they're likely to enjoy.

This week, we celebrate the five year anniversary of a show that mixes a cute, light-hearted aesthetic with some serious subject matter and themes. So pack up your pencils and your books, beware of teachers' dirty looks, and get ready to camp out on campus, because we're looking back at SCHOOL-LIVE! 

What's SCHOOL-LIVE!?

Based on the Gakkō Gurashi manga written by Norimitsu Kaihou and illustrated by Sadoru Chiba, SCHOOL-LIVE! is a Summer 2015 TV anime with direction by Masaomi Ando and animation production by Lerche. Crunchyroll describes the story of the series as follows:

SCHOOL-LIVE! Focuses on the lives of 4 girls who decide to stay over at school: Yuki Takeya, Kurumi Ebisuzawa, Yuri Wakasa, and Miki Naoki. Along with the school adviser Megumi Sakura, they suddenly find themselves to be [REDACTED], and continue to live and survive at the school.

If you're wondering about the big [REDACTED] in the middle of that description, it's because I omitted part of the description that gives away a crucial reveal that occurs at the end of the first episode of the series. For maximum dramatic effect, it's best to go into the show without being spoiled. (If you must know in advance, you can read the full description here.)

Without being too specific, the premise of SCHOOL-LIVE! is that some major event has caused the School Living Club to begin living on the grounds of their high school, and unraveling the truth of the scenario is what makes SCHOOL-LIVE! such an outstanding example of survival horror storytelling.

Horror.

The sense of horror that SCHOOL-LIVE! seeks to evoke is not the typical variety you find in most Hollywood films, which are often dependent on gruesome special effects makeup or jump-scares that involve loud musical stings and the act of tossing a cat at the audience. Instead, SCHOOL-LIVE! is a more psychological experience. It aims for nail-biting dread rather than heart-pounding terror.

Through careful environmental story-telling and the use of dramatic irony (wherein the audience knows more than the characters do), SCHOOL-LIVE! ratchets up the tension by placing its characters in increasingly perilous scenarios. To borrow a phrase from The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, it poses the question of: "Who will survive, and what will be left of them?"

Survival.

SCHOOL-LIVE! is so effective at creating an anxious atmosphere for its audience because the show draws a clear, thematic distinction between truly “living” and merely “surviving.” The series dedicates lots of screen-time to exploring the interior lives of Yuki and her friends as their club activities sustain their emotional and psychological needs as well as their physical ones.

Many horror stories involving disaster scenarios focus on the worst aspects of human behavior in the face of societal collapse, but SCHOOL-LIVE! instead grounds itself firmly in the resiliency of the human spirit.

Tragedy and Hope.

SCHOOL-LIVE! is a sad show, and it puts both its characters and the audience through the emotional wringer. But even when the series amps up the tension to nearly unbearable levels, even when the characters are at their lowest points, and even when it seems like the darkness and despair will grow overwhelming, there is always a glimmer of hope.

Ultimately, SCHOOL-LIVE! is a story of how people care for the physical and mental well-being of those around them. It's about how people process grief, how people bear up under terrible circumstances, and how people begin to heal after being exposed to unspeakable trauma. If you're willing to take the harrowing journey, you'll find the message of the series is both rare and beautiful in the end.

Class Dismissed.

Crunchyroll currently streams SCHOOL-LIVE! in 98 territories worldwide, and the series is available in the original Japanese language with subtitles in English, Spanish, Latin American Spanish, French, Portuguese, Arabic, and Italian. The series is also available on Bluray and DVD in the United States from Sentai Filmworks and an English language version of the original SCHOOL-LIVE! manga is available from Yen Press.

SCHOOL-LIVE! is an intense show, and prospective viewers should definitely brace themselves for a viewing experience that spikes the anxiety and tugs at the heartstrings. If that sounds like your ideal entertainment this Halloween season — and if the series is available in your area — please consider giving SCHOOL-LIVE! a try.

Special thanks go out to Miu Amano and Cristin Rodriguez for recommending the subject of this week's installment of “Cruising the Crunchy-Catalog.” Be sure to join us next time, when we keep the spooky spirit of the Halloween season rolling with a look at a series where vampires are less frightening than the prospect of an overbearing roommate.

Is there a series in Crunchyroll's catalog that you think needs some more love and attention? Please send in your suggestions via e-mail to [email protected] or post a Tweet to @gooberzilla. Your pick could inspire the next installment of “Cruising the Crunchy-Catalog!"

Paul Chapman is the host of The Greatest Movie EVER! Podcast and GME! Anime Fun Time.

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