Barakamon

The art of Japanese calligraphy is a key topic in Barakamon, an anime series derived from manga comics. Protagonist Sei Handa, a young, hot-headed calligrapher, assaults a Tokyo art institute chief who disdains his gallery show. To escape disgrace and recover his muse, Handa is sent by his family to a seaside community (the real-life Goto Islands near Nagasaki), where the ascetic artist reluctantly becomes involved in the lives of townsfolk, particularly an outgoing little girl named Naru. The ensuing likeable comedy tilts to the tradition of city-slicker fish-out-of-water cultural comedies. Subplots feature some PG-level sex talk, as the temperamental outsider fascinates ink-minded local females (including one who is a closet "fujoshi," an otaku fixated on male homosexual relationships, real or imagined). An actual calligrapher receives special onscreen credit, as does the Goto Island's department of tourism. Incidentally, the prequel/spin-off Handa-kun (VL-1/18) borrows the Handa character for a broader anime spoof of high school life. Compiling all 12 episodes from 2014 in a dual-language Blu-ray edition, rated TV-14, extras include episode commentaries. Recommended. (C. Cassady)