Indie rock and anime combine for a pitch perfect series: Beck. The series begins with teen guitar sensation Ryūsuke “Ray” Minami breaking up with his band so that he can go on and form the greatest band in the world. Meanwhile middle school student, Yukio “Koyuki” Tanaka, saves a strange dog from some kids that are picking on him. The dog, Beck, turns out to belong to Ryūsuke who becomes Koyuki’s idol after seeing him at a show. Ryūsuke continues to form his band and Yukio begins to practice the guitar. After becoming friends with Ryūsuke’s sister, Maho, it is discovered that Yukio has an incredible singing voice. Yukio eventually joins Beck and they begin playing shows. There are arguments in the band and situations arise that seem to derail the band including a homicidal American record producer that is after Ryūsuke because he stole a guitar while in the states.
Beck is a “slice of life” anime that is far more realistic than most. The fact that nothing comes easy to the band mimics reality rather than becoming over night sensations. The characters are often challenged with difficult decisions which gives viewers something to cheer for. All in all this a well conceived well drawn anime. An added bonus is that the songs are really really good, seriously.
