Cap... as in peak. Why I run you ask? Because I can. Being able to stand and run... That alone is like a miracle to me. So even just running makes me happy. Thats all. https://c.tenor.com/I0mvXmQF8foAAAAC/tenor.gif In a world full of protagonists who aim to reach the top catch all the Pokemon be the king of pirates the number 1 hero the best at football basketball volleyball let it even be the best chef in the world I dont know you name it in a world chock full of those characters aspiring to reach some lofty and admirable goals sometimes you will find an outlier going against the norm among them. Someone who doesnt try to make it to a metaphorical finish line someone who doesnt need to be the best the most popular the most thoughtafter player in the business. Someone who is just content with what they have and what they can do. Someone who is not searching for a goal but the goal is searching for instead. Someone like for example Kotetsu Kaburagihttps://anilist.co/character/40851/KotetsuTKaburagi from the Tiger Bunnyhttps://anilist.co/anime/9941/TigerBunny/ series who doesnt do any of that hero business for some kind of big fame or money but just to make his daughter happy and think hes a cool dad he is btw. To put it in the words of the series itself Someone who youd feel like supporting with all your heart as if you see yourself in them. For Cinderella Grey what we have is nothing but a girl who runs. A girl who likes to run just because she can. That. 500https://c.tenor.com/PlveMu67WiIAAAAC/tenor.gif is Oguri Caphttps://anilist.co/character/96114/OguriCap. Behind her drive to participate and win in these races there is no big inspiration to be the best there is no huge motivator keeping her afloat that she can fully rely on or fall back to whenever she finds herself in a bind. There is no need for those for her in her life. What is instead spurring her on is an unbridled and unparalleled passion for the sport. She runs for no reason other than the fact that she is capable of doing so. Born frail and fragile with her knees so weak as if they were seemingly made out of glass barely able to even stand or walk at first she falls into the care of her mothers physical therapy with daily leg massages to make them more flexible turning her biggest weakness into her biggest strength until one day she is finally capable of moving ahead on her own. Until she like her actual mother before her I think that was implied in an earlier episode someone help me out here lol can finally run to her hearts content. All her accomplishments the goals she sets herself and aspires to reach together with her equally passionate trainer Kitahara Joneshttps://anilist.co/character/352505/JouKitahara and the other umamusume around her as her rivals and/or friends come after the fact. Those goals find her just as much as she finds them. She decides to reach out for the stars because the stars decided to reach out for her. Dont get me wrong her eventual goals she settles on along the way in itself still are the top of the nation and all that jazz but what takes priority over all of it first and foremost though is her love for running. Her love for the sheer fun she has while letting loose on the field and the adrenaline rush kicking in when pushing her feet to the ground for her last spurt of these races and feeling the wind pass by on her skin. A love so bright and blinding a quiet passion akin to magma bubbling beneath the surface ready to burst at any moment that inspires not only her trainer the other umamusume around her the audiences of the races on the tracks and in their homes cheering her on no... A love and passion that inspires you the viewers to not only root and cheer for her in these races but to also try to work on yourself and improve your life for the better. When she experiences a setback she doesnt let herself get down by it. She uses her passion and love for running and the connections she ultimately makes through those as a fuel to carry on and improve herself steadily the more and more experience she gains. Oguri Cap isnt loud isnt overly optimistic energetic or bubbly like you would expect from the usual cute girl protagonist or even just from what I am writing here. Instead her love and passion is a quiet more restrained one of few words and more actions that nevertheless manages to pull you in completely. Oguri Cap. Make this era this world your own. Let your races light a fire in your fans hearts. Give them the strength the courage to carry on. Become an Umamusume beloved by all. An Umamusume that can give all that love back. An Umamusume unlike any before her. Adn most certainly the love she will give back While this show sports an incredibly tightlywritten and compelling cast in the aforementioned trainer Kitahara Berno Lighthttps://anilist.co/character/290964/BernoLight Fujimasa Marchhttps://anilist.co/character/290963/FujimasaMarch and her goon squad Tamamo Crosshttps://anilist.co/character/211567/TamamoCrossespecially her as the perfect rival Oguri can have Symboli Rudolfhttps://anilist.co/character/140844/SymboliRudolf Sakura Chiyonohttps://anilist.co/character/305092/SakuraChiyonoO Roppei Ginjirou Musakahttps://anilist.co/character/363001/GinjirouMusaka Yaeno Mutekihttps://anilist.co/character/365172/YaenoMuteki and many many more she is what ultimately makes it what it is. What makes it as special as it is. Because at its heart... Cinderella Grey is Oguri Cap and Oguri Cap is Cinderella Grey. Or in other words: Oguri Caphttps://anilist.co/character/96114/OguriCap added to listed favoriteshttps://anilist.co/user/Animusswtor/favorites. 500https://c.tenor.com/yvjzZ4SflAAAAAC/tenor.gif Step aside Solo Leveling. THIS is what aura REALLY looks like. Umamusume Cinderella Gray: 9/10 This show scratched the itch my recent Run with the Windhttps://anilist.co/anime/101903/RunwiththeWind/ watch unfortunately wasnt fully able to reach... Not to mention the comedy in the show is JUST my type of humor too. This was my very first dive into the Umamusume franchise and if this is what I can expect out of it going forward then I might just be the happiest man alive right now Forget all the big emotional and hype climaxes epic battles or huge reveals of certain mysteries. The true beauty of a story lies in these small seemingly insignificant moments of interactions between the characters talking about their feelings or the most normal stuff out there and making those scenes effective and impactful. They are what enhances a show beyond being merely fiction and bring them to life they carry them right into your heart and soul. This is a show that I could very well see becoming part of my favorites with its sequel seasons. In my heart it already absolutely is onehttps://anilist.co/user/Animusswtor/animelist/Extended20Favorites. Ive read ahead a bit in the manga over the course of the last two weeks and by now Im sure the second cour for this in Fall this year is gonna be front favorites material So needless to say but I am HYPED It is undoubtedly my personal pick for new Anime of the Year so far. And I quite honestly think thats probably not gonna change anymore... And this was just the buildup to the big stuff coming afterwards...