Review of Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day

I'm the type of person who is open to all genres of anime. I never dismiss a show based on its central genre, before I even watch it. But to really know what an anime is about, you need to know what the topic of its plot is. For example, online gaming in SAO, terrorism in Zankyou no Terror, or time travel in Steins Gate. The topic of this anime? The loss of a loved one. Dealing with a death of a loved one is never easy. It may completely change a person, both on the inside, and outside. People shut themselves away from theirfriends, family, and the whole world, and become seriously depressed. Sure, adults can use alcohol to help themselves , but not children. But, what if a dead friend came back? That's what this anime is about...

STORY
The story begins with a group of six young friends, but they soon go their separate ways after the accidental death of a girl, who was part of this group. The "leader", Jinta, blamed himself for her death, and ten years later, the ghost of the girl, Menma, comes back to "haunt" him... There is just one catch though, Jinta is the only person who can see her, even though Menma can physically touch anyone. And so, Jinta tries to get the old gang back together, to fulfill Menma's last wish. We then follow each character, as they get over the guilt they have from the tragic incident.
I think it is a very interesting setting to the story, it isn't full of elaborate explanations, it is just so simple.
When Jinta met his friends after so many years, to me it felt very real. To see how people have changed, and by how much, may be unsettling, but it still feels great, and brings an aura of nostalgia to it. This anime has a really good first episode, which I can hardly find in anime nowadays... And the pacing of this series.... Absolutely brilliant.

CHARACTERS
I think that Anohana has the best cast of characters I've ever seen in anime. I've yet to meet a person who didn't find a liking to at least one of the main six.
It's obvious that the characters are the driving force in this show, as the show focuses on their relationships with each other, and how they deal with Menma's death.
Here's a quick rundown of the main six:
Jinta - the old leader, now a shut-in, without any interest in anything. He disguises himself whenever he goes outside,
Menma - Always happy, loud and selfless. She hasn't changed since her death.
Anaru - Jinta's classmate, and the popular girl at school who blames herself for the incident.
Poppo - Loyal and energetic, he travels the world, and has a bit of a lewd personality...
Matsuyuki - Still distraught over Menma's death, he is serious, and become agitated upon the mentioning of Menma's name.
Tsuruko - Stoic and cocky, she is a cold character from the outset who insults the rest when they first meet...
There is a good amount of character development, but this can be argued upon, in the case of a few characters, who would have been better if they got a few more minutes of screen time, and were able to give some of their story. The actual design of the characters is really noteworthy. Character stereotypes don't really exist in this anime, as each character has their own unique personality. Of course, there are a few things that may be seen in many other slice-of-life shows in terms of characters, but I really must say that these people really feel...well, human.
They all express emotions that are accurate enough (90% of the time) and that's what I think what makes these characters so loveable. For example, (Not a spoiler) I mentioned nostalgia earlier. There is a scene where Jinta and Anaru find an old Nokémon game (yes, I know) and react to it just like I did when I found my uncle's old Nintendo...
Some of the side characters are also worth a mention, for example, Jinta's father, Atsushi, a funny and gentle old man, who constantly calls things cute...that's not his only role though...

ANIMATION & SOUND
Anohana was made in 2011 by A-1 Pictures, a studio responsible for SAO, Your Lie in April, Black Butler and Aldnoah Zero.
In terms of animation style, it is closer to a little anime called Sound of The Sky. Even though the show deals with death, it is very colourful and bright from the very start. It has a very good attention to detail in terms of background animation and the characters are drawn really well also. Apart from Anaru's twintails, they defy the laws of gravity or something! (also, Jinta looks just like me, so bonus points for that).
A simple soundtrack for a simple anime. It mainly consists of light piano and guitar tracks, which, to be honest, aren't the greatest OST ever made, but they fit the anime really well. The opening, Aoi Shiori, by Galileo Galilei (the band) is one of my all-time favourites... A Really pleasant song with amazing vocals by Yuuki Ozaki, with animation that easily describes the anime in one minute. The ending theme is also one of my favourites. "Secret Base - 10 years after" features vocals by the three main female voice actors in this anime. (Ai Kayano, Haruka Tomatsu, Saori Hayami) It's the kind of song that closes off an episode very well.
The Japanese dub is really good. Dialogue is a big point of the show, and I'm happy they got good voice actors to do the job... An English dub was never made, and I think that it's good, because Anohana doesn't need a dub!

FINAL EVALUATION
Anohana is short and sweet. It is only eleven episodes long, and has a great ending. It is good to watch after watching a number of epic series, to relax and wind down. I do have to say that it is a more mature anime, which does help the tone of the show, somewhat.
No matter what shows will come out in the future, Anohana will always have a place in my top list. I'm not the kind of person who learns lessons from anime, or movies, but out of my whole experience of anime, I could take a life lesson out of only 2 series, one being Anohana. (the other is Clannad After Story)

"Don't mourn forever about a loss. Cry a bit, and then move on."

10/10.

Why SHOULD you watch Anohana?
- beautiful story with great pacing.
- realistic, loveable characters.
- excellent animation.
- great opening and ending themes.
- satisfying ending.
Why should you NOT watch Anohana?
- if you are a heartless b*****d
- if you don't like slice of life anime.
- if you don't like moe. (but let's face it, this show wouldn't be as good if they left it out. There's not that much in it anyway.)