Hanbun no Tsuki ga Noboru Sora

After contracting hepatitis A, Ezaki Yuuichi has been confined to a hospital, away from his friends and family, much to his displeasure. To relieve his boredom, he has taken to sneaking out of the hospital, usually putting himself on the receiving end of a beating from his nurse. Upon meeting a girl his age also staying in the hospital, he is immediately captivated by her beauty. Akiba Rika's personality is not quite as captivating as her beauty however. In fact, she is rather selfish, moody, and bossy. But as the two spend more time with each other, they become closer, sharing the ordinary joys and trials of a budding teenage romance, even when darkened with impending tragedy—for Rika's condition does not leave her much longer to live.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Akiba, Rika Main

Takahashi, Mikako Japanese

Ezaki, Yuuichi Main

Suzumura, Kenichi Japanese

Sekoguchi, Tsukasa Supporting

Kobushi, Nobuyuki Japanese

Tanizaki, Akiko Supporting

Kodaira, Yuuki Japanese

Natsume, Goro Supporting

Hirata, Hiroaki Japanese

Tada, Yoshizou Supporting

Yada, Kouji Japanese

Yamanishi, Tamotsu Supporting

Sasanuma, Akira Japanese

Mizutani, Miyuki Supporting

Matsuoka, Yuki Japanese

Kakushou, Chikamatsu Supporting

Kitagawa, Katsuhiro Japanese

Ishiguro, Tatsuya Producer

Kawando, Kenjirou Producer

Matsushita, Yukihiro Director, Episode Director, Storyboard

Yatabe, Katsuyoshi Episode Director

Reviews

Jan 15, 2024

za_hra

Recommended

It was such a bittersweet anime. At first, I thought that the doctor needed some beating to come back to his senses, but you will know once you check it out for yourself. All the characters were supportive. I like how the main female lead is stubborn yet strong. The mc did change though, because of her. It was comforting at the same time emotional (not too much) anime. I liked the art style as it wasn't one of those that people want now-a-days. Everything was simple yet beautiful. But I think this anime is not for everyone, but one thing is for sure if ... someone who has an eye for art will appreciate and like it.

Reviewer’s Rating: 8

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Nov 29, 2015

AmberAmethyst

Mixed Feelings

According to the synopsis I read on this website, I thought that this would be a sweet, touching story. After watching the first episode, my hopeful expectations were shredded. In short, Hanbun no Tsuki ga Noboru Sora had a lot of potential, but due to ridiculous characters, tropes, and moments, I found it to be disappointing.

Story (8):

To begin with, I am actually fond of the story. The premise is pretty original as far as anime series go. It's a slice of life, drama, and romance (with awful comedy bits thrown in the mix). It's only six episodes long, so if watching with minimal breaks, it ... can be viewed in its entirety in under three hours.

The story follows Yuuichi, a seventeen-year-old male who is infected with Hepatitis A, and therefore is currently residing in a hospital room. Despite his illness, Yuuichi sneaks out almost every night, and is often caught by his physically abusive nurse. He has hope knowing that it won't be too long until he is released and can return to his normal life.

One day when looking out the window he sees a girl his age name Rika. Rika has been hospitalized for most of her life and is aware that it won't be long before her disease claims her life.

Upon receiving encouragement from his nurse, Yuuichi visits Rika's room. He is told beforehand about her tastes in literature and lies about having the same interests. Rika is upset with his deceit and refuses to see him, causing Yuuichi to come up with creative ways to get her to forgive him.

By spending time together they become friends and eventually fall in love. However, their health proves to be a major obstacle time and again.

The basic story line is intriguing. It had a great setup for a marvelous love story. However there are too many unrealistic moments that occur within the six episodes that made me roll my eyes too often. For instance, I find it hard to believe that the hospital personnel would just let an underage patient leave whenever he wants, and if this is a nightly routine, why is there no one on guard to stop him?

I do like that this is a romance that does not take place inside a school setting. High school romances are so overdone in anime, and even though the two main characters are technically high school age, the change of setting does win this one some originality points.

Characters (3):

The characters are one of the major flaws in this anime. On the whole, I think I may only like two characters out of the whole cast, and one of them receives less than a minute of screen time.

The main problem with the characters is that there are so many cliches here it's ridiculous. You have your tsundere with a tragic past; you have your tough woman in a role of authority, who's lack of ethics would get her fired in reality; there's the perverted old man; there's the best friend who is there for comic relief; and then there is the pointless fan service character. I haven't even mentioned my least favorite character yet.

To begin with, there is the protagonist: Yuuichi. This character has been seen so many times in anime past and present. Yuuichi has compassion for others. However, he is too passive and lets everyone (literally) beat up on him. He follows the orders of a girl he has an interest in. When she is being abusive to him, he just takes it and apologizes for every single little thing that causes her temper to flare. I kept waiting for him to stand up to her at least once, but never. However, the move he pulls in the last episode does win him some awesome points.

Next in line is our female lead: Rika. I did not like her from her introduction. This is another character that has been seen countless times. She is rude, emotional, and lets her temper get the best of her. She gets upset over stupid things and blows them out of proportion--for instance she gets furious with Yuuichi for reading an adult magazine, even though they're not a couple at the time. I remember thinking to myself, "Why is she getting so upset? That's not even her boyfriend." Her tragic backstory of being chronically ill is used as a way to excuse her behavior, which I feel is poor writing. Then later it is mentioned she's had this personality since childhood. To her credit, she does undergo some character development by the last two episodes.

Next, is the primary nurse Akiko. In the first episode I was wondering how someone like this managed to be hired as a registered nurse. She's physically abusive to her patients and colleagues. I felt that this character's personality (even though I know it's a common character type in anime) ruined some of the realism, knowing that someone who behaved this way would not keep her job in a hospital. However, I think it's clear she does care about her charges, even if she has an unorthodox way of showing it.

Now onto my least favorite character in the entire series--the surgeon, Natsume. I just found him to be overall unpleasant. Like Akiko, I don't understand how he hadn't been fired by the end of the third episode. As we see with Rika, his tragic backstory is used as a way to explain his inappropriate behavior. Even if he did have reasons, I found them too weak to justify his actions.

The only character that I actually liked all the way through was Yuuichi's best friend Tsukasa. He is genuinely nice and willing to help out his friends without question. In fact Yuuichi mentions that it was him witnessing Tsukasa's kindness that prompted them to be friends. Sadly, he is a minor character and gets minimal screen time. The good news is when he is on screen he is entertaining.

Lastly, there is Akiko's childhood friend, Misako, who is there for no reason but fan service, and an awkward, unnecessary subplot. (I'm not kidding, this subplot just happens, has no effect on the overall story, and is never mentioned again.)

Pretty much all the other characters in this anime are pointless.

I feel that the characters can make or break a story, and the ones in Hanbun no Tsuki ga Noboru Sora, for the most part, are lacking.

Art (5):

I was not too impressed with the art in this anime. There is nothing that really stands out about any of these characters that would make them memorable. They look like any ordinary anime character. Sure Rika is designed to look cute, but even she wouldn't stand out among a lineup of ten or twenty other random anime females.

The settings are not that interesting to look at either. When Yuuichi and friends are taking Rika to school, I believe only a hallway, a locker room, and a classroom are seen, and not much of the location is used. In the hospital you see little of the character's rooms, or the rooftop. With the rooftop scenes, there are a few instances of seeing the view of the other buildings or nature, but that's one of the few exceptions.

The animation is minimal. The art itself is nothing breathtaking.

Music/Sound (8):

The opening and ending theme songs are calming. It's a nice mood setter for the story. Even if it is a drama, there isn't a lot of action, and for the most part the pacing is mellow.

The few times I noticed background music during the actual show, it was decent. Both songs I can remember are instrumental. One sounded like elevator music, so it wasn't too enticing. The second was guitar music during a more crucial moment, so it did add to the excitement, without being overbearing, which I feel matched the moment.

I believe that the music, while it doesn't necessarily stand out among amazing anime soundtracks, it does work for the scenes in which they are used. I feel that it is better to have less dramatic, but fitting music than excellent music that clashes with the scene at hand.

Overall, I have no complaints with the soundtrack.

Conclusion (5):

In all, I feel that the story itself could have been great, for it is original. Had it focused more on keeping that originality, instead of relying on tired tropes, I would have enjoyed it better. Also, the characters were too unlikable in my opinion.

The art is mediocre. While the sound is good, it couldn't make up for what all this series lacked.

5/10.

Reviewer’s Rating: 5

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Sep 17, 2024

fullmoon

Not Recommended

Hanbun no Tsuki ga Noboru Sora is an unfortunate exercise in mediocrity, managing to cram deep themes like illness and love into a woefully inadequate six episodes. The characters are barely more than tired archetypes, offering nothing beyond bland, predictable melodrama. Any attempt at emotional depth is laughably superficial, making it impossible to care about their shallow struggles. To top it off, the misplaced fanservice is a clear attempt to keep viewers engaged, but it only adds to the tonal disaster. In the end, it's two hours you'll never get back, leaving you to wonder why you bothered in the first place.

Reviewer’s Rating: 3

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