Review of Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day

Regret. What does this word tell you ? What does it bring back, what kind of memories ? Anohana gets right to the center of this fearful and how horrible emotion. Story : 9/10 Anohana has a very peculiar story, which is a mix between slice of life and supernatural. Jintan, the main character, is the only person who can see the ghost of Menma, a friend he lost when he was younger. Slowly, you learn about how Jintan and Menma were members of a group of friends, a group of had separated since a long time. As the anime goes, you get to meeteveryone of this group and how and why Menma came back. A pretty nice story, in my opinion, with a few lacks, especially surrounding the whole 'wish' of Menma.

Art : 8/10

I don't have much to see on here. The art of Anohana is great. It is nice, clear and well done. It isn't amazing, the colors won't make you fall out of your chair, but you will enjoy it pretty nicely.

Sound : 10/10

Secret Base, by Machida Norihiko, is what really makes Anohana one of the best anime I've had the chance to watch. The song is sweet, soft and it tells us about many things that were part of the anime. It is on my Iphone, on my computer, on my Ipod, everywhere I can listen to it, I will. Plus, you also get a lot of nice sound effets, in the forests or simply the sound of summer, which said like this sound a bit stupid, but really adds to the atmosphere of the anime.

Character : 10/10

I would put a 100/10 if I could. Regret could be the most pertinent word to use here. Is it my fault ? Was I the one who killed her ? The struggle of those questions can push people to do things that you wouldn't deem them capable of doing. A struggle shared by 5 friends, a struggle that affected them all deeply. What did Menma had that made them so sad, that changed them so much ? Why can't they forget her ? All of those questions find answers in the anime and those answers are worth waiting for.

Enjoyment : 10/10

All good things come to an end (not the Nelly Furtado song, though). Anohana is a really deep and touching anime, you don't really 'enjoy' watching it. It really rips your heart and make you feel emotions you probably don't want to feel. It brings back all kind of memories, could they be sad or happy. It brings back your childhood and the people you lost, the fun you had and that you can't feel anymore. It makes you think about the past, in a certain nostalgic atmosphere.

Overall :10/10

Anohana is a masterpiece, to my point of view. I could understand if someone was to disagree with this, but my opinion is strong and it will not change. Anohana brought me sadness but it brought me something that I never really had watching an anime : memories. It brought back so much from my past and made me feel things I hadn't felt in a while. I went to see the movie, I even got the poster and the letters. I cried and cried and I could cry again if I were to watch it another time. Really, I think that I found the anime that will truly be in my heart forever, seems like it was playing hide-and-seek until then. ;)