I first watched Eve no Jikan back in early 2013. After working through all six episodes in one sitting, I quickly came to the conclusion that Eve no Jikan is a masterpiece. The story was fascinating, the narrative had some really touching moments, and the show was beautifully animated. The quiet story of the cafe became the setting for an emotional roller-coaster, an experience I still remember today. A show this good, I thought, deserves all the support  from its fans. After I got off the ride, I did what any responsible fan would do: spend money.

At first, Eve no Jikan was only released in Japan. Then in mid 2013, its creators started a Kickstarter project for an international release. It aimed for an original budget of $18,000 - over $200,000 was eventually raised. Eve no Jikan is the first anime project, I think, to have achieved such success on Kickstarter. It definitely paved way for subsequent Kickstarters, such as Little Witch Academia and the Clannad VN project, to find success among a Western audience. Kickstarter gives the creators direct contact with their fans, sidestepping licensing companies such as Funimation. I really think more projects should be funded this way.

Anyway, I pledged about two hundred dollars into Eve no Jikan, hoping that it won't take too long for my rewards to arrive. From the very start, however, the project experienced delay after delay. The art-books and Blurays had to be translated from scratch; it eventually turned into a grassroots effort when the creators asked the fans to do the translating work for them. The budget was very tight, and while the creators were masters of storytelling, they were no doubt a lot less adept with managing a global supply chain. In all, it took two years for the bits and pieces of the rewards to arrive. The last package - the art-book and a clear folder - arrived about a month ago.

In all, the rewards included a Blurays box (Blurays + OST + book), art-book, clear folder, a dozen cards, a coffee canister, and a cup/saucer set. Everything was well-packaged, and arrived in New Zealand in pristine condition. Of the rewards, I was most impressed with the art-book. The book appeared more like an architectural portfolio, which gave it a very slick, modern look. The content is packed with character designs, commentary and line art. It was also pleasing to see the OST and an additional book sheathed in a tight little package with the Blurays.

Everything else, I feel, is a bit lacklustre. Neither the clear folder nor the cards offer anything unique - you could print out the cards yourself, and clear folders are an anime merchandise staple - just check AmiAmi. The coffee canister and the cup/saucer are a bit more interesting. To be honest, however, they felt like overpriced versions of things I could buy at the supermarket, except they are printed with the words 'Time of Eve'. Since most collectors will never use these things to store or drink coffee, the items could've used a bit more effort e.g. packaging that allows the items to be displayed in a nice looking box. Overall, I felt that the rewards were a bit 'cheap'. Even as collectors items, they certainly are not worth $200.

It's pretty understandable why the rewards might have fallen short of expectations - at least for me. Of course, the whole point of Kickstarter isn't to function as a market - pledging X amount of money rarely rewards you with things that's worth X. The rewards are really supposed to serve a symbolic purpose, kind of like the badges you receive after donating to, say, the Red Cross. Overall, I'm actually quite pleased with how this turned out. Projects like this are certainly a lot more meaningful than buying, for example, licensed DVDs because the money is going straight to Japan. So I really hope there'd be more projects like this in the future. I'm definitely ready to throw more money at them.