Summer Pockets

Summer Pockets is set on an isolated, rural, and peaceful island on the Seto Inland Sea called Torishirojima, which has a population of about 2,000 people. The protagonist, Hairi Takahara, grew up in an urban setting, but after an unpleasant incident, he uses the recent death of his grandmother as an excuse to come to the island to take care of her estate sale.

Once there, he gets to know four girls, who are the focus of the story: Shiroha Naruse, who forgot her summer vacation; Ao Sorakado, who is pursuing the legends of the island; Kamome Kushima, a high-class girl looking for a pirate ship; and Tsumugi Wenders, a younger girl trying to find herself.

(Source: Wikipedia via VNDB, edited)

Naruse, Shiroha Main

Kohara, Konomi Japanese

Kushima, Kamome Main

Hieda, Nene Japanese

Sorakado, Ao Main

Takamori, Natsumi Japanese

Wenders, Tsumugi Main

Iwai, Emiri Japanese

Takahara, Hairi Main

Chiba, Shouya Japanese

Katou, Umi ing

Tanaka, Aimi Japanese

Nomura, Miki ing

Ichimiya, Saku Japanese

Mizuori, Shizuku ing

Koyama, Sahomi Japanese

Mitani, Ryouichi ing

Kumagai, Kentarou Japanese

Kano, Tenzen ing

Hamada, Youhei Japanese

Oowada, Tomoyuki Producer

Aoi, Hiroyuki Producer

Kuroda, Kenji Producer

Okano, Touya Producer

Reviews

Apr 29, 2025

KanekoKTIA

Recommended

Preliminary (4/? eps)

So this is an adaptation of a Key Visual Novel, Key of which are known for mostly Jun Maeda's works - Kanon, AIR, Clannad, Little Busters!, Angel Beats!, Charlotte, The Day I Became A God, Heaven Burns Red. This is not one of those, it is primarily written by Nijima Yu known for the VN Hatsuyuki Sakura and Kai who is a long time writer at Key and did routes in works like AIR and Clannad etc.

First off this is a VN with a lot of mystery elements don't expect things to be explained to you before they happen, everything makes sense eventually (Ao's route ... specifically explains a lot). You're also not chucked into some insane story right off the bat, Key always wants you to care about the characters normal daily lives before that stuff happens so when it does it hurts.

So far it's mostly been true to the VN, prologue took 2 episodes and the stuff in Kamome's arc seems to be cutting some of the more mundane stuff (searching for the Key's takes about a week in the VN) in favor of adapting the best scenes in the route faithfully, which I hope and feel like they will commit to with the other girls. I have no doubt the true end will be done almost perfectly as that is the best part of all their other adaptations.

It also seems to have some plot elements of Reflection Blue (which added routes for side heroines, some OSTs and a new character as well as updating the ending) which is definitely the right choice with how the ending plays out. Although the side heroine routes most likely aren't going to be adapted I hope we get a Little Busters! EX situation or even like Tomoyo and Kyou OVAs in Clannad

But really even the 10/10 routes in the VN don't even come close to Alka and Pocket (the VN true routes), do not drop this until you finish those final 2 routes/arcs, they can easily make this anime of the decade

So if this adaptation continues the quality that it has up until this point will this reach the heights of Clannad as one of the highest rated drama anime? Well no but the VN it is the 2nd best piece of media I've ever consumed behind Clannad so yeah this is a much watch if the true end is done even half as good as the VN.

Oh yeah visual are really nice and the OST (which is just the VNs) is perfection

Reviewer’s Rating: 10

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Apr 29, 2025

PanzerIV-J

Mixed Feelings

Preliminary (4/? eps)

Summer Pockets really shows its visual novel roots—and not just in concept, but in execution. It doesn’t try to adapt or smooth things over like most visual novel-to-anime conversions do. Instead, it feels like they lifted scenes directly from the game with almost no effort to rework them for animation. Dialogue jumps around, transitions are abrupt, and it often feels like you're just watching someone click through the original game.

That doesn’t mean the anime is bad. It has a certain quiet charm—nice background art, a relaxing atmosphere, and music that fits the tone well. But it’s a strange viewing experience. It feels less like an ... anime and more like a visual novel on autoplay. There’s a disconnect between the medium and the way the story is being told.

One of the biggest issues is how static everything feels. The characters barely move. Outside of the occasional blink or mouth movement, there’s little animation to bring scenes to life. It gives off a PowerPoint-like vibe—characters standing around stiffly while talking, with very little expressiveness.
The pacing doesn’t help either. It’s slow—not in a thoughtful, atmospheric way, but in a way that makes scenes drag. You can tell important stuff is happening (or going to happen), but the show does very little to keep you actively engaged.
This might work better for fans of the original visual novel—it’s extremely faithful in tone and structure. But as an anime on its own, it feels awkward and underwhelming. It’s not a bad show, but it doesn’t take advantage of the medium it’s in.

7/10.
This one’s tough to rate—it really depends on what you’re looking for. If you enjoy the feeling of watching a visual novel play out almost exactly as it was, you will likely enjoy this. But if you prefer your anime to feel more streamlined and adapted to the medium, with smoother pacing and more natural scene transitions, this might not click with you quite as much.
And honestly, that’s what should help you decide whether to watch it—not just my score, but whether that kind of presentation appeals to you.
(Thanks for reading! Hope this helps you decide whether or not to watch Summer Pockets!)

Reviewer’s Rating: 7

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May 15, 2025

phum123

Not Recommended

Funny

Preliminary (6/? eps)

Spoiler

The story was interesting. I thought it would be light and chill, but I didn’t expect it to be so sad. Even though the anime tries to give a good ending and not a sad one, it’s clearly a sad ending in reality. I couldn’t handle this kind of story, so if you’re someone who can’t deal with sadness, I wouldn’t recommend watching it.

The characters were portrayed in an interesting way, but that’s the thing. I don’t like the idea that a story has to be sad to be good. I wish they focused on making it interesting without needing sadness. Because many people don’t ... expect a sad ending, but believe me, most viewers hope to feel happy at the end.

Reviewer’s Rating: 9

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