Review of Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day

On the surface, Anohana is the story of Menma, a girl who dies in an accident, then returns as a ghost to haunt her best friend, Jintan, five years later. The problem is, neither Menma or Jintan know why she has returned. The two are quick to latch on to the “unfinished business” school of thought and decide that they need to grant Menma's wish to get her into heaven. Of course, neither of them have any idea what this wish could be. Thus the story is ostensibly about them trying to figure out Menma's wish and fulfill it. Of course, this is made all themore difficult by the fact that only Jintan can see Menma. Soon the two of them are forced to involve their old friends—who have drifted far apart over the five-year gap—and reopen many of the old wounds surrounding the events of Menma's death.