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Apr 6, 2012
"Do you know? The speed at which cherry blossoms fall… 5 centimeters per second. At what speed must I live... to be able to see you again?" -Tono Takaki
When talking about the similarities of Makoto Shinkai's stories,long-distance relationship and coming of age separation immediately comes to mind. Those seems to be the bread and butter core that are omnipresent in every one of Mr Shinkai's heartwrenching tales. Therefore,it is hardly surprising to notice the recurring themes in his works because in the end,it still worked like a charm. 5 Centimeter per Second is no exception. Some said it was because of Mr Shinkai's poetic style
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of storytelling,others mentioned his whimsical way of concluding a story while a few went as far as to saying Mr Shinkai continue to exploit human's sentimental side and tinker around emotions with sappy romance. You know what,I agree with them (even the 3rd) but still,those reasons aren't the biggest success factor.
Not to take away anything from the story which is heartwarming to say the least,the main reason why 5CPS was able to be successful is largely due to its stellar graphic presentation whereas the story and its execution are actually just the icing on the cake. It is inconceivable for one not to be fascinated by all the visual glitters in the scenic setting of 5CPS. The art is to the extent where one may be more interested in admiring the background than say..reading the storyline. This is ultimately what Mr Shinkai does best,producing superb quality animation with mesmerizing graphics that makes for an enthralling experience completely different from your normal vapid animation style.
If you're new to Makoto Shinkai's film or Japanese animation in general,chances are you'll gonna love this film to bits. Not only because of its visual masterpiece but also the bittersweet nature of the story. But if you did already watch Mr Shinkai's previous works,it is unfortunately not a whole lot different originality-wise. I happen to enjoy Voice of the Distant Star more myself.
P.S I kind of rushed this so take this review with a grain of salt. (:
"The things I had to tell her... and the things I hoped she would listen to. There were so many of them.." -Tono Takaki
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Mar 27, 2012
"The you in me was always crying. I wanted to wipe away those tears of yours."
From the onset,True Tears have already sent a message to viewers that they're gonna be in for a theatrical treat. True Tears is a rollercoaster ride that starts slow but catches up fairly quickly with every plot twist. There was hardly any dull moment you can nitpick as the story itself is actually fast-paced and interactions between the characters were usually engaging and heartfelt,partly thanks to the great chemistry within the cast. Most of the day-to-day banters are light-hearted,with slight touches of dry humor.
But strictly to say,True Tears is not
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a comedy,makes little attempt at being one and definitely does not offer in the fanservice department. Instead,this anime swings its focus towards portraying a more realistic and less-flashy scope of what you can call high school romance in Japan. But don't quote me on that if it's untrue because True Tears is undeniably,one of the more down-to-earth type of anime to come out from its genres. Every now and then,there are instances where you can relate to,be it an event,situation or even decision-making. Well,if any of what I said above already interest you,don't hestiate to stop reading and get right on to watching it.
I'm not a fan of the character design,it didn't appeal to me and took me awhile to get used to. But I have to say that the way the characters are drawn, it is easily capable of contorting any emotion-inducing expressions it wants to convey and this alone,more than makes up for the lack of eye candies. But still,it is not the reason why I rated the animation category so high. Might I mention that the fluidity and flow of basically everything mobile in True Tears are just top-notch. The amount of details exercised in True Tears makes for a very natural and smooth experience that is simply non-existant in many animes. Talk about a realistic approach,True Tears is already a big step ahead.
Both the opening and ending song are very catchy and pleasant to the ears. It's those happy pop song you may find yourself humming along. Voice acting suits their respective character's persona. I especially love the voices of Aiko and Noe. The developers did a decent job amplifying any important moment with relevant music. You might also notice that the general atmosphere in the anime to be somewhat quiet since background musics are few and far between. Overall,I have no qualms sound-wise. If anything,maybe the male lead's voice.
Story-wise,True Tears utilised a couple of metaphoric themes which I found a little too cheesy or maybe poetic for my taste but that's just me. The others loved it and chances are,so will you. This anime revolved solely around characters that make the story,thus little emphasis or screentime was given to anything superfluous or unrelated. True Tears is after all only 13 episodes long. Overall,I would say the storyline is solid but nothing groundbreaking. It may be predictable for anyone who has watched a fair share of dramas but still,that takes nothing away from a brilliantly executed ending.
The cast are lovable and believe me,they will grow on you. The premise and setting of True Tears may be kind of cliche but the characters' personalities as well as their actions and reactions are very believable at the very least. It is one of the few animes where there really is no semblance of a villian but it definitely is not the first time watching our hero receiving ample affections from the heroines..you know what I mean.
Now it's been a while since an anime made me lose track of time. From my standpoint,it simply showed how hooked I was as I actually managed to finish True Tears in 2 days. Therefore I'm more than convinced that I thoroughly enjoyed this anime and hence,the high ratings. True Tears is the kind of anime that makes you admire and wanting for more. While not a tearjerker for sure,I believe the story is emotional enough to render one's heart heavy. It's a mixed bag of feelings actually but don't worry,it will leave you in good spirits in the end. I guarantee that.
For starters,True Tears will make your time spent worthwhile but to anyone who's seeking for a romantic story,this is a gem not to be missed. Highly recommended not only from me but also,by many many others :)
"And I finally was able to do it."
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Mar 19, 2012
Tomoyo After ~Dear Shining Memories~ is a 4 chapter-manga spin-off of the original Clannad series based on the events of the visual novel Tomoyo After~It's A Wonderful Life~ narrated from Tomoyo's perspective.
As the title suggests,Tomoyo is the main heroine here and gone are the original Clannad cast excluding our main hero Tomoya. The story takes place after their dramatic reunion under the sakura trees where they decided to be lovers once again (Episode 24 of Clannad or if you've read the Clannad visual novel). And so,their new life begins.
Now that the long-winded intro is done,here's how I feel about the manga and how
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I found it. Yeah,I know I'm late..
*Slight spoilers ahead,continue only if you've read the manga or the Tomoyo After VN*
Prior last week,I've been in a long hiatus in regards to anime-related stuffs. To make things short,I chanced upon a visual novel (Saya no Uta).It was my first VN,I enjoyed it and went to search for more. Then,I found Clannad which I have vague memories of. I started with Nagisa's and Kotomi's storyline first and thought it was good but not groundbreaking. It wasn't until when I started Tomoyo's path that finally my emotions started kicking in. I loved every bit of it,as much as After Story. Needless to say,I went to check if there is a continuation and so,here I am. Of course,there's the Tomoyo After VN as well.
Aforementioned above,this is a manga adaptation of the visual novel -Tomoyo After~It's A Wonderful Life~-. All I could say is that it did its VN counterpart no justice by trying to clump everything into 4 mere chapters. I've only read the point-form summary of the VN and some raw parts of it but even so,I honestly felt that the manga lefted out ALOT of stuffs. It's still a good read though and yes,the Tomoyo After VN has yet to be fully translated. While I didn't like the art,anything decent would suffice for a great story.
Overall,it was a short bittersweet continuation for the Tomoyo-Tomoya fans/hopefuls and for those who fancies a twist away from the original plot. I won't exaggerate much but if this manga already got you teary,be prepared for a cry-fest when you read the VN. You know the deal with these Key's stories.
P.S I would also recommend you to not read this manga if you haven't read the Clannad VN or watched episode 24 of Clannad. For those who's interested or understand Japanese w/o english subtitles,you can search in youtube for the raw version of the VN or just google in general. Just type "Tomoyo After" and there you have it.
P.P.S If you already read the Tomoyo After visual novel,you might not want to read this watered down manga version. Just how I feel.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Aug 24, 2011
To begin with,School days is best to be watched without having any background information of it being a H-game adaptation that is infamous for many things if you want to enjoy this anime to the fullest. With that said,there was so much hype going around School days when it was broadcasted that one had to give it a watch. I did and then realised why all the buzz. Never have I saw an anime coming out from this genre so well-executed,so emotionally-draining.
School days seems like your usual teenage romance drama. Not only does the sypnosis suggests that,it even starts like one. But what you
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don't know is School days is in fact an absolute train-wreck in disguise,and a very sly one at that. By making you believe that school days is your typical cliche,the producers could then proceed to 'surprise' you with some nasty stuffs which will most likely catch you off guard. Before you begin realising the anime's true colours,you are already in the roller-coaster ride that is about to depart ( 2nd half of series ). Now that is where the anime starts getting uncomfortable and disturbing. No longer can kissing or touching satisfy the overwhelming lust of our main lead anime. He wants to experience things at the next level and he'll go for any girl who's willing to offer that. All hell breaks loose. Watch how he bangs and lie his way to the point of no return,hurting one girl after another during the process. How will it end? I'm not going to spoil the last 2 episode in case you have not watched.
The fact that characters in School days do suffer real consequences of their actions is a refreshing sight. If you touch a girl's butt,chances are you'll get slapped and end up in the police station. No,she isn't going to like it or yadda yadda. Actions in school days don't go unpunished. This is what makes this anime so distinct from its peers and deserving of all the hype because very few anime actually relates to the reality so harshly.
Contrary to a bunch who branded this anime as sh!t,I have nothing but glowing praises for school days. The execution of the story was to perfection and the flow of events was basically that of an ephemeral incurable disease. To put it simply,it was a slow,grueling process to watch. It never gets better and gradually,it drags you to your last gasp. Animation was decent and with obvious intent to create a sombre atmosphere using dark colours. I didn't like how the character look though. Soundtracks were great and some of the background music really amplify those dramatic moments. Kotonoha's and Makoto's voice were memorable. Character are mostly bastards and bitches meant for all of us to hate(bar a few) so we can have a show. All in all,it was a solid well-done work. And of course every anime has its fair share of flaws,school days isn't any special exception. However,the pros of this anime outweigh the cons by a big big margin that in my opinion,had made the flaws negligible and not matter that much.
This anime is definitely not for everyone especially to the more sensitive but regardless,I encourage you to give it a try. While I don't believe the exaggerated events in school days happening in our daily life,the anime does teach us some moral values. Episode 12 should serves as a pretty good warning for us viewers to not follow his footsteps. Though not that we really need it but meh,it's something. Had the anime not started so innocently fooling everyone,I'm sure School days would just be passed off as an obscure groundbreaking anime that went on a totally different path from what most harem anime would have taken. But luckily or not,it wasn't the case.
I'm pretty sure there are more hate than love in the School days community. While I firmly believe that the anime is receiving too much unwanted injustice from viewers,I do find myself agreeing some key points that was mentioned. The pace of story is slow but it picks up at the latter half. The premise is misleading but it was of a good cause. The characters are detestable but they have to be. At one point,I did loathe it as well since I'd prefer happy stuffs but that doesn't mean the anime is bad.
Take School days with a grain of salt and you'll be rewarded with a story that offers a great deal of engaging drama and an epic ending that will leave you a lasting impression. No,there won't be a sequel,pretty sure about that.
Miscellaneous
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Best soundtrack : Usotsuki by Coo-rie.
Best character : Setsuna.
Adapted by a H-game that is fully animated,you'd thought why sex have become so random and common in high-school. Now you know why.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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