Why Are People Unhappy About The Upcoming "Haruhi" Anime?

So just recently, I saw some news for the new "Haruhi" anime, Nagato Yuki-Chan no Shoushitsu (The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-Chan). Some people were excited, but many were not. One commenter in particular was absolutely perplexed as to why so many people were not excited for more Haruhi. It's been 5 years since Haruhi's last anime debut and that was as a movie, so people should be more excited right? Well looking it at that way, yes. If this was another Haruhi series then everyone should be eagerly awaiting the March 22nd release of this new series. Unfortunately, this is NOT Haruhi therefore, there is nothing to feel excited about. I'd go so far as to say this series getting an anime is an insult, a slap to the face of all Haruhi fans.

When's the next REAL Haruhi?

Not Haruhi
So why am I calling this not Haruhi? Well aside from the fact that it does not actually center around Haruhi, it's a spinoff series of Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuutsu (The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya). What's worse is that it's a spinoff of Haruhi's arguably best story arc which got a kickass movie adaptation in 2010. The artist is completely different, the people behind it are completely different, it's anything but canon with Haruhi. Honestly, it might as well be a doujin, yet it's getting its own anime. Nagato Yuki-Chan no Shoushitsu is basically a slice of life moe series with characters not the same as their main series' counterparts. The series is very disappointing if you want more Haruhi but ok if you want to see the characters in a different setting with different personalities.

Unfinished Business
The second season of Haruhi ended in 2009 covering about 3 light novels worth of material. Then in 2010, Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu (The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya) debuted effectively finishing the fourth novel. Currently, there are 11 light novels for Haruhi and yet only 4 of them have been animated. That leaves 7 volumes of material at the most to be animated but even in spite of that, we get a spinoff series instead? I don't think any fan wanted that. Before starting a spinoff series, there should at least be some progress for an anime that hasn't seen any action in 5 years especially one as popular and renowned as Haruhi.

Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya

Character Designs
This will probably be the most debatable opinion I give this entire post. The character designs for Nagato Yuki-Chan no Shoushitsu are terrible. I really dislike the art for the series and I highly doubt that it will look much better in the anime. The character design for the series will be done by Itou Ikuko who you might know from Sailor Moon, Princess Tutu, and AKB0048. Aside from Princess Tutu, he doesn't have the most extensive or impressive track record so I'm not too excited to see what he'll do in this series. The animation will be done by Satelight who s best known for the Macross series and more recently for Madan no Ou to Vanadis and Log Horizon but also crap tier anime such as Symphogear. Most likely the animation will be passable but I doubt the character designs will improve too much.

Another Moe Blob
Probably one of the biggest reasons people might be angry about is the fact that this is just another moe blob. Some people appreciate moe blobs others hate them with a passion. I'm one of the people who are ok with them especially since some of them are great (Yuyushiki, K-on, etc) but I am not a fan of the characters from Haruhi becoming nothing more than moe blob characters. It's taking everything that made Haruhi unique and degrading it to something that's completely generic. This goes back to the feeling that this series is basically just a doujin and not a series on its own which makes it even more frustrating that the main series is not due for another season for who knows how long.

Will People Watch It and Should You?
Well I am one of the people who watch literally everything that airs until I really hate something then drop it, so I will probably watch it. I expect it to be an average or below average show that will serve a similar function to moe blobs. I just hope that any popularity that this generates will translate to a potential 3rd season for Haruhi. Will other people watch it? Probably. It's a light novel series that has been going on for about 7 novels so far therefore there is definitely some kind of fan base that will watch the anime adaptation. So should you watch it? Well if you like moe blobs and don't know too much about the Haruhi universe then you might enjoy it more than a Haruhi fan but even then, I don't think it's worth as much of your time as other shows that will be airing. If you have the time and haven't seen Haruhi before, go back and watch the episodes and the movie, they're practically classics at this point.