Kimi ga Nozomu Eien

4 reviews - 16.0 total score (Explanation of the rating system)
avg. score: (4.0)

4. Cross Scars

It's been some nine months since my last anime review. It's not that I haven't bothered to write any reviews but more simply that I haven't felt compelled to watch much anime (unfinished, long running series such as Naruto are an exception). Kimi Ga Nozomu Eien changed that. It's truly been some time since a series so engrossed me.

On the surface this is simply another romance anime with a hentai background and an overabundance of cute girls. However, surprisingly and as cliché as it sounds, Kimi Ga Nozomu Eien goes over a lot of ground that no other previous series has touched. Romance anime tend to be fairly formulaic but KGNE decisively breaks the mould. Most importantly it's grounded in a much more adult orientated world and focuses totally on the hardships that occur throughout a relationship. Although the "which girl is he going to end up with" element is still significantly present it is not the anime's emotional driving force compared to the series' main relationship. KGNE's first two episodes are really just a prologue to the ensuing events. The main relationship is effectively established by episode three and it's events from then on that are the main concern. It would perhaps make things clearer if I gave an indication of the plot or the series' set-up but that would likely ruin the series' early twist.

For me, watching this tale unfold was addictive. For the first time in a while I found myself watching several anime episodes on a daily basis. The few twists and turns serve to hook you in and the uncertain ending is another especially strong reason to keep watching. Few, if any, romance series can inspire in a viewer a real sense of uncertainty as to where the main characters are going to end up. KGNE does this extremely well.

Yet for all this hype KGNE is not perfect. Personally I'm quite a sucker for such series but others will definitely be turned off by the drama that occurs. There's quite an obvious feeling from the start that the series will not be a happy one and there's a significant amount of angst throughout. The characters are relatively simple and although that doesn't mean they're not sympathetic there is a strange detachment from the characters none the less. This is possibly due to the passivity of certain personnel. But the secondary characters are delightful and make up for this somewhat. There is little plot development outside of the first and last few episodes so don't expect too much on that front. What happens instead is merely a continued escalation of the main situation to its uncertain conclusion. For myself that was not boring but some may wish for things to move along a little faster.

Overall KGNE comes across as like a soap opera. It may not have the greatest characters and there's a fair bit of angst to deal with but it's still compulsive viewing. The biggest reason to recommend this series is the fact it heads in directions that other romance anime simply don't touch and its unpredictable conclusion ought to have you interested all the way to the end.

3. Qian Wan

This series is beautiful… absolutely beautiful. I usually do not succumb to petty romance series but this one captured my sympathy for a good six hours. In the first episode an innocent sweet girl named Suzumiya Haruka confesses to the male protagonist Narumi Takayuki. Takayuki agreed on dating Haruka, but just because Haruka is a friend of Hayase Mizuki, a popular girl Takayuki seems to enjoy being with. That leads to complications and soon Haruka comes crying to Narumi begging for his real feelings. Takayuki gradually falls in love with Haruka, and confesses his love to Haruka. The girl is happy, the guy is happy, and they kiss in front of the sunset. Same old stuff right? Nope, that is only the first episode. I was dying to know how the series would manage to keep a storyline running at such a fast pace. I thought eventually the lovey dovey drama things would ruin the story. I was wrong.

The second episode starts with the couple enjoying their time with each other. In the middle of the second episode there is sex (now I really wonder how they will continue this). The end of the second episode caught me in shock. Suzumiya Haruka got into a car accident while waiting for Takayuki. Her bloody hair bow and a really upbeat yet sad-sounding music absorbed me into the anime. And this is where the story begins.

Around three years passed, and for all that time Haruka has been in a coma, sleeping through the lost time. Takayuki seemed to have moved on with his life and is going out with Mizuki. But one day, Haruka wakes up and the first person she wanted to meet is Takayuki. How will Takayuki fulfill the promise he made to Haruka years ago – the eternal love for one another? How will Takayuki and Mizuki break the news to Haruka that she has been sleeping for three years and they are now going out? This anime knows how to tell a good story and it knows how to develop it. The characters are all likeable, especially Haruka's little sister Akane reminded Takayuki of his guilt.

The colors and art of the anime is up-to-par with the new animation standards. The characters move graciously and character expressions are realistic. There really isn't a good soundtrack but the song mentioned at the end of the second episode has made its musical impact on me. The ending of this anime is sad and happy depending on how you interpret it (don't get me wrong it has no ambiguity). Overall, it has a very good development and conclusion.

High: Very romantic. An original plot for a romance series and a good conclusion.

Low: No good soundtrack. The entire series stakes its success on its unique plot, so if you don't like the plot mentioned in this review, you wont like the anime.

Bottom Line: Had enough with anime like To Heart, Kanon, and Da Capo? Try a romance series with a real plot.

2. microlith

A sad story it promises to be, this show pulled from an H game. Unlike others of it's genealogy, like Kanon and Popotan, the characters are realistic. Human characters, a plot soundly grounded in reality (almost) and a serious take on the story.

Except that unlike the others, you grow to hate everyone involved.

The story starts off with a fairly typical lead-in, when Haruka finally gets the nerve to ask Takayuki out. And they do, but they don't seem to understand each other until around halfway through the second episode. We then get the Plot-Twist(tm) that actually pulls you in, and makes you wonder what's going on. It actually promises a good show, you know, with good drama.

So you follow it. The story shoots forward in time, leaving you confused but interested. It's been 3 years and Haruka, while alive, is in a coma. Mizuki and Takayuki are an item and Shinji is all but off on his own. And so the story kinda wanders, not terribly interesting. We're then led in later episodes to the past, shortly after the incident. It leaves them emotionally wrecked. You feel sorry for Mizuki who's just lost her best friend, and Takayuki, his girlfriend.

This is where the plot, which while consistent, ceases to be a matter of importance. It's all about the characters now and this is where the hate begins.

We learn that Takayuki, in fact, is a mollusk. A spineless creature who has no means of supporting himself outside his shell. Over the course of the first year or so following the incident he falls into a depression. He can't get over what happened. He even goes insane, barging in and trying to take Haruka out of the hospital. So Haruka's parents ask him to leave. He then proceeds to live at home and do nothing. Spineless.

After he's dragged out of his pit by Mizuki, Haruka wakes up. Well this just throws Takayuki through a loop, as he can't seem to figure out whether he's dating Mizuki or Haruka, even if he's been asked to deceive Haruka. Our man can't make a firm decision to save his life. He's about as indecisive and reclusive as Shinji (from Evangelion) and deserving of about as much hate. At least his friend Shinji (in the show) gives him a well deserved ass-kicking later on. But hey, Shinji has no spine either (can't say no to Mizuki, can he?)

Mizuki can't seem to decide if she really likes Takayuki, or if she's just attached herself to him. Akane hates her cause she thinks Mizuki kept Takayuki from coming back to see Haruka.

Haruka suffers from having no memory, so her character is pretty much absent until she wakes up the second time.  We finally get a firm decision from her, which leads to the relieving conclusion. Namely that this eye-stabbing soap opera of a story is over. Otherwise she's mostly irrelevant aside from the passive effect she has on everyone else.

There are a few memorable characters though. Daikuuji Ayu and Tamano Mayu (who work with Takayuki) provide much amusement at the end of the show, where they host the SD segments that take the place of the next episode previews. They're also a good source of comic relief during the show, especially Ayu with her cry of "Go step in cat shit!"

All in all, if you like excessive drama and spineless, indecisive characters that make life hard for themselves and everyone, you may like Kimi ga Nozomu Eien.

The rest of us will go somewhere else for our dramatic character stories.

1. h8er13

The last time I enjoyed an anime this much, I was watching Saikano.  Kimi ga Nozomu Eien is now definitely one of my all-time favorite anime series.  Kiminozo is mainly about four high school friends and their relationship after a tragic accident, which is basically all I will say about its storyline.  At first, this series seems like a high school melodrama, but after the first episode, you will see that it can't even be compared to such a hackneyed genre.

First of all, all the events seem so real, almost as if this was some sort of biography.  There are no aliens, no monsters, or mechs, or magic.  Kiminozo is just genuine human interaction.  The main characters, situations, and reactions are all very believable, almost to the point that the viewer could identify him/her self to them.  The seiyuu acting was also exceptional and authentic.  To top it off, the soundtrack is very appropriate and wonderful.

Nearly every episode was a heart-wrenching tear jerker, at least for me.  You will love and hate each character.  The ending was not necessarily abrupt, but I believe it was settled a little too perfectly, but I still enjoyed Kiminozo immensely.  Also, if you liked Marmalade Boy or Saikano (both of which rank somewhere in my personal top ten anime), this series is a safe bet.  So please, do not let the impression you get from the first episode deter you from watching the rest of this great series.