[Rewatch][Spoilers] AnoHana: The Flower We Saw That Day - FINAL (Discussion)

For all you souls who just finished experiencing Anohana, I bring some gifts for all of you.

I've already written a lot during this rewatch, so I'll try to keep my final thoughts brief. I approached this series with the sole expectation of it being sad. While it certainly was that, I didn't find it to be as emotionally moving as many other viewers have. But while it may have disappointed in this one regard, it found countless other ways to both surprise me and exceed my expectations.

AnoHana has some of the most realistic characters of any series I've watched. All of them are incredibly flawed from the start, some of them even down right unlikable. But strong characters don't necessarily have to be ones you like, or even agree with. What matters is that you can have empathy for them, understanding how they reached this point in their lives and why they behave the way they do. It gives the characters (and the story as a whole) much more credibility, and it is this, I feel, which is AnoHana's greatest strength. Despite its flaws, you can never doubt the consistency of the casts' behavior, or accuse them of acting out of character. You'll find yourself easily comparing your own life to those on display, finding sympathy, frustration, anger, and hope in equal quantities as the characters grow and falter.

But while the characters may be the strongest part of the show, it's far from the only noteworthy aspect. AnoHana had consistently excellent art and animation, a fantastic soundtrack (especially the opening and ending), and was well-paced and directed. The series is able to deftly handle its weighty, emotional story while also balancing it with plenty of cute and humorous scenes that never feel out of place. It was willing to tackle difficult issues, many of which you don't commonly see in anime: guilt, dealing with loss, peer pressure, depression, psychological trauma, and even attempted rape. While the series may not be perfect, it succeeded in telling the story it wanted to tell and kept me captivated from start to finish. AnoHana is an unforgettable story, and one I would gladly revisit in the future. My final score for the series is 8/10.

Now we know the name of the flower we saw that day... it was a forget-me-not.

Well, I hope all the first-timers enjoyed the ride! This series also made me a huge fan of Galileo Galilei's (band for the OP and film theme), be sure to check out their music!

I also recommend checking out the film Kokoro ga Sakebitagatterunda once it is released/translated, it's done by the same team that headed Anohana (most notably, the Toradora Trio, composed of Mari Okada, Tatsuyuki Nagai and Masayoshi Tanaka). It may just be the anime film of the year and is guaranteed to be a tearjerker.

Here's the trailer for it!

All you need to understand is even if you did not sob on the outside your soul on the inside was probably crying.

And even if your heart is a brick (like mine) the ED's at the end are very powerful stuff with the episode context.

Very good little anime. cute, short, got to the point and managed to be sad.

Anohana is a classic i feel. More of a casual FeelsBadMan kind of anime. Its the startup to the sad anime genre i feel.

It will all be daijobu