Review of Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day

I walked into this series like I did with angel beats; I knew it was a sad series. I strived on watching it with no prejudice and I did, but I was still warry of how I felt about angel beats (not very well). I was pleasantly surprised on how well done this series is in every way. The story, characters and music we’re amazing. Story – 8 Although I had a few problems with the paranormal aspects of this series, it is still extremely grounded in reality. With the way menma is portrayed and how she still abides by physics, although having no shadow andreflection. The dialogue is amazing, the plot stays consistent throughout the whole series, and I found no problems with timing. This story is a perfect example of how different children come to terms with death. It’s amazing at portraying the mental and physical effects of a child’s trauma and has a very effective life lesson on how to deal with a situation like this.
The death of Menma is heavy for every character they blame themselves for her death. The story aims to teach each character to forgive themselves. it’s amazingly easy to relate to each character and it’s hard not to see why each character is having troubles.

Art – 8
It’s good, there is a bit of irregular CGI in the backgrounds or foregrounds of this series and the way that the characters express emotion is exceptional, something on the level of a Ghibli or Miyazaki movie. The art is consistent and fluid and truly a sight to behold, with beautiful backgrounds and a nice relaxing style.

Sound – 9
Wow. That’s all I can say. The OP and ED are amazing with some phenomenal background music. I will say that once you finish the series you won’t be able to listen to the OP or ED without at least feeling a little sad.

Characters – 9
These are some of the best built characters I have ever seen and as such I will go in depth to all of them.
Jinta is the main focus of the main characters. He was the leader of the group but has become a massive NEET that skips school and plays games all the time. He is quite a dick as well, being quite cynical towards girls. He is quite cynical due to his own personal guilt; he feels guilt due to running off during an argument in the group. With the help of Menma he brings his friends back together and they all aim to achieve Menma’s Wish. He the main influencer of the series and bring the characters together.
Anaru was the nerd of the group, being into games and manga. She later split from the group and became one of the popular girls ditching her glasses. She blames herself for Menma’s death because she sparked the argument that later lead to her death. She is happy on the outside, but she conforms to her surroundings and can’t express her feelings. She also has feelings for Jinta, causing quite a bit of mischief. She feels out done by menma and is spiteful because of that. She is one of the first people that are introduced to jinta in the series and helps along the way immensely.
Poppo is the happy go-lucky character of the series and is portrayed as the character that isn’t really worried about anything. This is until the 2nd to last episode where he cracks, he feels guilty because he saw Menma die and didn’t help. He froze in fear and he can’t live it down so he travels the world to see other things. He immediately helps Jinta in his quest and is one of the light-hearted aspects of this series.
Chiriko is the stoic and quiet girl of the group and doesn’t change much in the series, staying as the character that watches and understands whats wrong. She also has emotions for Matsuykui and feels outdone by Menma, she also hass massive problems with self-doubt and can’t express herself as an artist. She blames herself for not helping in the argument and she is the one that doesn’t help much in the series.
My least liked character in the series is Matsuyuki. He is the sort of rival for Jinta and opposes most of his points. He can’t let go of the love he has for Menma and the way he copes with it is incredibly unhealthy. He is angry and spiteful; he feels outdone by Jinta and feels that he can never win against him. He feels guilty because he couldn’t properly express his love for Menma before she died.
Menma is the driving force of this series. She comes back to Jinta as a ghost that only he can see and this works exceptionally well in the series. She pushes Jinta to bring everyone back together and she brings all of the bottled emotions of the characters to the table. She’s never explained why or how she got there, but she doesn’t need too. She is in the body of a teenager, but she still has the childish nature she had when she died.
These characters are a perfect example of why a backstory is important to a character.

Overall – 9
I find it incredibly hard to give anything a ten, because I believe that nothing is perfect. This however is one of the best anime I have ever seen, with the most intensely built characters ever. Not my favourite and not a series I will watch often, but it’s incredibly to see how amazing a story with an incredibly important message can be made. Truly one of the closest anime I’ve ever seen to a Ghibli or Miyazaki movie.