And it’s finally the time of the season again to review the large batch of series ending. The first one is Ano Hana, and really: I don’t expect any of the other series in the next few weeks to come even close to this one. There is just no way. This episode was completely amazing and it pretty much cemented this series as my favourite series of 2011 so far.
the creators really wanted this to end with a tear-jerker, and BY GOD, they succeeded! It’s not the kind of episode that tries to be as sad as possible, but god dammit it was emotional. Just about every character unleashed the final bits of his or her development. Every character got the chance to vent his or her lungs and confess about his or her problems. Everything came together magnificently. I cried more at this episode than at any other episode of this show so far.
This show… this show really knew how to save the best for last. Menma’s wish is so simple, yet brilliant. It ties everything about Jinta together. It wasn’t something epic, but just a small detail about one of the friends she grew up with. Or Poppo, who finally revealed that… he actually saw what happened in that river. It was clear that he had a secret, and this episode made such a wonderful use of that. THIS is how you build up plot twist and make them hit as hard as possible!
The ending also was just bittersweet. Sure, it still remains unclear why Menma was a ghost, or why everyone was able to see her at the final time, but really: who cares. Ghosts just work that way, and it didn’t go against anything that this series built up for. It was truly excellent as the emotional climax of this series.
There’s just one overused cliche in this episode: Menma’s airheadedness, or “I like everyone as friends”. This is a bad twist because anime often use it to sneak their way around having to seriously develop romance. Can we really fault Anohana for that, though? With Menma, she just feels like a kid who just isn’t bothered with romance, even though everyone around her is. In terms of that, she was a great character. It’s perhaps not exactly realistic, but even then it has some of the most natural characters of the season, aside from perhaps Showa Monogatari that nobody watches.
Overall, A-1: we couldn’t have asked for a better apology for Togainu no Chi and Fractale. I love these people, and this is the second time they produced something of classic material, after Birdy the Mighty. Not since Asatte no Houkou have I watched a teenaged drama without anything else that I liked this much (and with Asatte no Houkou only half the cast was actually teenager). Just about everything fits here and nothing feels wasted or out of place. This really was a wonderful watch.
Rating: **** (Fantastic)
A wonderful end to a wonderful series. I was a bit worried that they couldn’t give this series the ending that it deserved but they really did it. I was working hard to hold back the tears as I was sitting in my office at lunchtime watching it 🙂
I haven’t even seen it with subs yet, but I was bawling even without knowing the words completely. I’m going to be a puddle when I do get them, and I will be getting this series as soon as possible when it’s released!
Absolutely beautiful. Best ending I’ve seen in a long time. Definitely goes in my top 20.
Maybe it’s because you watched this without subs, but Menma’s letter to Jintan at the end said “My love for you is the kind that I want to marry you”. So the whole bit about her liking everyone as friends in not really true and the absence of romantic feelings from menma.
In general, it was a good ending. However, it came off as the writers trying to cram everything into this 23 minute long episode. As a result, this episode suffered from a lot of overacting. I didn’t really mind the amount of crying in this series, but this episode it reached a critical point, especially for the first half, and a bit too much talking. I was also baffled by how Menma was able to get to the tree and leave those notes for her friends before they got there.
OK, I’ve stopped crying. Nutcase has good points, and it was a fine ending, but I can’t get far enough away from enough from the story to be sensible & dispassionate, it brings friends & family who’ve died very very close again –
“I want to spend more time with you all”
This is the first time I’ve ever been moved to tears by fiction. Utterly amazing.
This whole series just resonated with me so much, since I recently moved to a new country and away from so many people I cared about.
pretty good……even though this episode did pretty well, kinda feel like 24 min just not enough, maybe it work better if u marathon the whole thing
I started crying half way through and I didn’t stop – even after my mum knocked on my door and asked me if I was okay.
Thank you Ano Hana. This was a perfect episode.
I actually don’t think the amount of crying was overboard at all — it may be a cultural midunderstanding, since it never fails to amaze me to see how emotional japanese middle schoolers get at graduations, partings, etc. in fact, it surprised me that they didn’t cry more.
lovely episode, lovely series, lovely ending. best anime of the season for me.
Definitely the best anime of the season! I held back the tears in the other eps…this one I had to let it all out. The last anime that made me cry was Tokyo Magnitude 8.0. I wish there were more animes as good as AnoHana. Gokurosama deshita!!!
*sobs*
Like Nutcase, I think this episode suffered a bit from rushing. The crying/reconciliation scene, as touching as it was, happened way too fast. It’s still a very emotional, well written ending, but I wouldn’t call it fantastic. The series as a whole, however, is one of the best I’ve ever watched.
Menma probably dragged herself along the ground to get to that tree O_O
Needed less crying and more backstabbing. I expected more out of Yukiatsu’s bitterness.