Review of Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day

A brilliant, tightly written story about growing up, learning from tragedy and using it to build stronger relationships with the people that matter most. It's clear from each characters introduction that none of them are coping with the loss of Menma in a healthy way. It might not be so obvious at first but you see the signs early, and as more of the story unfolds you see just how broken each of them were by the event. Even with the outwardly happy Poppo you see the effects of it in the way that he's chosen to live his life. He never moved on, andstill tries to live in those days when he was a kid. There's nothing wrong with embracing the past but as is revealed he was not doing it in a healthy way at all.

In turn we see how the group fell apart because of their relationships and the romantic feelings that all seemed to be pointing in the wrong directions. I usually hate love triangles but I think the way it's employed here is painfully effective. The show would have been interesting enough if Menma really was just a representation of Jinta's guilt but then as it goes along she finally convinces the rest of the group that she really is a ghost and is still following them around. You'd think this would solve all their problems but it only makes them worse, because now they know that Jinta is the only one who can see her and that just throws a monkey wrench back into all the love triangle business.

In the end they realize the reason she could move on was because of each of their selfish desires getting in the way of honoring her true wishes. Her real happiness and the promise she made to Jinta's mother was to help him grieve properly and let his emotions out, finally openly crying in front of the rest of the group. The other desire I think was keeping her back was that she needed to see that all of them remained friends and didn't drift apart as they had over bruised egos and rejected feelings. It's an outstanding emotional roller coaster and a must watch for anyone who likes dramatic story telling. 10/10