Anime Review: Fune wo Amu - One’s Passion

Passion is something that drives us to do something because we enjoy it so much and we never get bored of doing the same thing over and over again. So, passion is very important in life, and I am 20 years old and still lacking passion to do something in life. Fune wo Amu presents an interesting perspective of an individual who has passion for books and words, and eventually the passion to create a dictionary. The anime allows me to view what it is like to be passionate, and while it may not change how I think about my passions in life, it is pleasant to view true passion from the sidelines.

Our main character, Majime, was originally working in the sales department, in which he is not suited for due to his inability to "read between the lines" and lacks communicative skills that one would expect a fine salesman to have. He also lacks the passion in being in the sales department, and goddamn does he remind me of myself. He is then recommended by a wondering worker in the same company, who works in the dictionary editing department. From there, Majime starts his journey and we see the rejuvenated soul and passion from him. I personally find the "dictionary" passion a bit stale and unrelatable, as would most people, but the main aspect I got out of this anime was the power of passion, and how it can drive one to do the same thing over and over again, and sometime for a long period of time. This is true in our MC's case, since the dictionary took an extremely long time to be finally completed, and how he looked in sales and in the editing department is like night and day. Goddamn was there such a big change - it really shows how important passion is for one to enjoy and do well in their job.

I also liked the use of a timeskip to show the progression of the anime, and how much time it took to complete a dictionary. I don't know the intricacies with the compilation of a dictionary, but I'm sure it wouldn't take that long in today's era. However, realism is not the main point of the anime, but rather it wanted to reinforce Majime's passion for words and books. Some can argue that the timeskip could have weaken this purpose, since we don't really see the struggles in real time. But in reality, do we ever see the struggles of a successful person - we don't and all we see is what they reaped. People can assume and be jealous, but the individual ultimately knows what they have grown through to achieve such greatness.

The characters in this anime are not that interesting, as expected from a dictionary editing crew. The only other interesting character is a chap, Nishioka, who is the one who initially recommended Majime to the dictionary editing department. He's the oddball in the department, who has no passion for words, and ultimately switches to another department. However, there was a redeeming factor - it was his respect for Majime's passion, and how he also wanted the "Great Passage" to succeed. 

Overall, this anime can be a bit of a hit-or-miss for some people. Some people can find this type of anime extremely stale and boring, and that is completely understandable since not many people can relate to having passion for words, let alone dictionaries. However, others may find this anime as a source of inspiration, or at least a different perspective on the importance of passion and the power of passion. Whilst this anime may not be life-changing or change your perspective in your passion, it's important to remember that sometimes observation and just settling down for a while can clear our mind and allow us to perhaps, find that passion in life.

Overall Score: 7/10

Story: 7/10

Characters: 6/10

Art: 7/10

Sound: 8/10

Enjoyment: 7/10