Because Captain Obvious was sick for the day.
ExtraCareful's Review:
So uh...apparently the first 5-10 minutes is spent in confession. Again, a rather hurried up railroading. But the way that they pulled it out was kinda hilarious and I was laughing throughout the scene. When I was done laughing, I started to shout in a booming voice "CONFESS YOUR SINS" every time someone started to say something. And most of the time I was dead on.
CONFESS! CONFESS! AHAHAHA
GOD MAY FORGIVE YOU, BUT MENMA NEVER WILL! RUE THE DAY WHEN YOU STARTED TO CROSS-DRESS!
...No but seriously, they are abusing John 8:32 like there is no tomorrow.
I can fully say that I liked the ending EMOTIONALLY since it was a feel-good ending. However, I did not like the ending with regards to its creativity since...well...it was terribly fuckin' obvious. I got everything head-on in my earlier predictions, including the mom-factor; the whole "we need the hobo to cry" thing was a poor attempt to deviate from the norm and it didn't really center the problem around Jintan so much as it pissed me off.
I didn't really listen to whatever shit was going on between Anaru/Yukiatsu/Tsuruko because that was filler from episode 10...I blocked my ears when Poppo began to rage and when I read the subtitles it was obvious that this wouldn't really have anything to do with anything...they gathered together after the comic session and then went batshit crazy trying to find Menma.
Like if the series is going to ramp up the angst/tension, don't do it by making all the characters bawl for the entire episode. Jesus guys, there are kids in Africa dying of thirst...don't waste water. I literally had to take off my headphones for about 3 minutes just because I didn't want to hear the sound of 5 chickens running around with their head cut off and replaced with Menma. Other than the whole crying shit, the end was pretty good. It faded away very nicely, implied the canon shippings well enough, and most importantly, delineated the fact that the Super Peace Busters were staying together - after all, that's the WHOLE POINT of this series. I don't think I would have really been satisfied if I didn't get a sense of "solidarity" at the end with everybody sticking together, since that's one of the major themes in this series.
Pictured: Fan-made pic of Super Peace Busters hangout
Overall however, this series was quite ok to get through. However, there were more than a few moments where the whole teenage angst thing started to get sour, especially whenever Poppo started to take thing seriously. At the beginning I would have definitely agreed that this was the best of the Spring 2011 series. However, now I don't think it was as nearly deep or as creative as its "Key Studios"-ish background could have made it to be. This doesn't make the series bad at all though. It's definitely a feel-good series to take a run through at least once, like REC, and this series ranks pretty high on my list. Just not over Hanasaku Iroha.
NotMoe's Review:
Before I say anything, I will say that this series was not the most subtle; the teenage angst was a major part of the story, and while most people do not like it, most of the regret and guilt present in the story was a result of unrequited love. What can I say? Much of the story was definitely overdramatized, but would the story still be the same without it?
I agree that the last episode was definitely pushing it, and the part where everyone was literally bawling on the ground made me laugh for a couple minutes straight. But aside from that one scene, most of the series was solid. A good way to describe this series is a bunch of teenagers with PTSD doing crazy stuff. An accurate description, but the things that make this series brilliant are the character interactions and the different ways they have changed over time.
Jintan is clearly the central focus of this series, and while he is at the center of the massive love hexagon of this series, he essentially ignores everyone other than Menma. This leads to a rather interesting set of character interactions between Anaru/Yukiatsu/Jintan, as well as Tsuruko later (although her part is less developed). Much of the series, especially the middle part, focuses on these interactions, and develops both the feelings of guilt and the unique methods of each character in dealing with his or her feelings of loss. Anaru, for example, presents external changes, both in her clothing and in her social standing, but her susceptibility to the opinions of others is still a driving force in her behavior. Yukiatsu still has his cold external appearance, but internally takes part in weird behavior to deal with his problems. Jintan tries to hide from society, running away from his problems, a total contrast to his earlier, outgoing self. The way the characters deal with the loss of Menma is an important part of the series, and serves to highlight the complexity of the characters.
Poppo and Tsuruko are clearly not as developed as the other four, and that can be viewed as a disappointment. Tsuruko's feelings of estrangement are hinted out throughout the series, but is never fully developed and Tsuruko ends up playing a side character to Anaru. Poppo is probably the least developed, and has many out-of-character moments (like when he was egging Jintan on in episode 10) that are only half-explained in the last episode. Developing these characters would probably been a good idea, but given the short length of the series, it was inevitable someone would get shafted.
Menma plays a peculiar role in the series. Aside from the love hexagon going on, the nature of her presence is the main theme in the series. Does she exist? Much of this is left up to the viewer, and for all we know, everyone's hallucinating by the end. I feel like the last episode really screwed things up with a really contrived appearing and disappearing act conveniently when called for by the story, and I would have preferred that she faded away quietly with everyone still searching. But whatever.
Now, some people are disappointed by the ending, and while I am as well, I'm not disappointed for the same reasons. The actual disappearance of Menma wasn't original, but for this series it was perfect. There are two types of anime: ones that try to build up an original and unique story, and those that brilliantly execute an existing idea. AnoHana clearly fits into the latter category, and for that reason shouldn't be ignored because it "wasn't original enough". The ending was nice and wrapped everything up, so why should it be a bad ending?
AnoHana is definitely the best series of spring season, and possibly the best of 2011 (although I can't say that for sure yet). An important deciding factor for me is the balance of pace and development; Noitamina forces series to be fast-paced and a little short on development, given its 11-episode limit. I prefer fast-paced to more drawn out anime (*cough*HanasakuIroha*cough*) and so I really enjoyed AnoHana. Your mileage may vary, but what you're getting is a well executed drama and romance that, while containing too much drama, manages to evoke feelings of nostalgia and loss quite well.
NotMoe's Review:
Before I say anything, I will say that this series was not the most subtle; the teenage angst was a major part of the story, and while most people do not like it, most of the regret and guilt present in the story was a result of unrequited love. What can I say? Much of the story was definitely overdramatized, but would the story still be the same without it?
I agree that the last episode was definitely pushing it, and the part where everyone was literally bawling on the ground made me laugh for a couple minutes straight. But aside from that one scene, most of the series was solid. A good way to describe this series is a bunch of teenagers with PTSD doing crazy stuff. An accurate description, but the things that make this series brilliant are the character interactions and the different ways they have changed over time.
Jintan is clearly the central focus of this series, and while he is at the center of the massive love hexagon of this series, he essentially ignores everyone other than Menma. This leads to a rather interesting set of character interactions between Anaru/Yukiatsu/Jintan, as well as Tsuruko later (although her part is less developed). Much of the series, especially the middle part, focuses on these interactions, and develops both the feelings of guilt and the unique methods of each character in dealing with his or her feelings of loss. Anaru, for example, presents external changes, both in her clothing and in her social standing, but her susceptibility to the opinions of others is still a driving force in her behavior. Yukiatsu still has his cold external appearance, but internally takes part in weird behavior to deal with his problems. Jintan tries to hide from society, running away from his problems, a total contrast to his earlier, outgoing self. The way the characters deal with the loss of Menma is an important part of the series, and serves to highlight the complexity of the characters.
Poppo and Tsuruko are clearly not as developed as the other four, and that can be viewed as a disappointment. Tsuruko's feelings of estrangement are hinted out throughout the series, but is never fully developed and Tsuruko ends up playing a side character to Anaru. Poppo is probably the least developed, and has many out-of-character moments (like when he was egging Jintan on in episode 10) that are only half-explained in the last episode. Developing these characters would probably been a good idea, but given the short length of the series, it was inevitable someone would get shafted.
Menma plays a peculiar role in the series. Aside from the love hexagon going on, the nature of her presence is the main theme in the series. Does she exist? Much of this is left up to the viewer, and for all we know, everyone's hallucinating by the end. I feel like the last episode really screwed things up with a really contrived appearing and disappearing act conveniently when called for by the story, and I would have preferred that she faded away quietly with everyone still searching. But whatever.
Now, some people are disappointed by the ending, and while I am as well, I'm not disappointed for the same reasons. The actual disappearance of Menma wasn't original, but for this series it was perfect. There are two types of anime: ones that try to build up an original and unique story, and those that brilliantly execute an existing idea. AnoHana clearly fits into the latter category, and for that reason shouldn't be ignored because it "wasn't original enough". The ending was nice and wrapped everything up, so why should it be a bad ending?
AnoHana is definitely the best series of spring season, and possibly the best of 2011 (although I can't say that for sure yet). An important deciding factor for me is the balance of pace and development; Noitamina forces series to be fast-paced and a little short on development, given its 11-episode limit. I prefer fast-paced to more drawn out anime (*cough*HanasakuIroha*cough*) and so I really enjoyed AnoHana. Your mileage may vary, but what you're getting is a well executed drama and romance that, while containing too much drama, manages to evoke feelings of nostalgia and loss quite well.
"Does she exist?"
ReplyDeleteMenma clearly has not gotten enough of those orbs of happiness from CLANNAD.
Darn yeah but clearly that would ruin the story.
ReplyDelete