Kanon (2006)

I doubt I’ll have as much to say about Kanon, as I did with Kashimashi. I guess that is a little odd since I found Kanon to be one of the nicest and rewarding anime I’ve watched. It certainly isn’t perfect, and I’d never claim it’s for everybody, but I’m always going to rank it high among my favorites. I should point out I’m talking about the 2006 remake. I’ve never seen the 2002 version of Kanon, nor have I ever played any of the versions of the visual novel these anime were based on.

The story revolves around Aizawa Yūichi a second year high school student who moves in with his Aunt and Cousin (Minase Akiko and Minase Nayuki) whom he used to visit during the summers when he was younger (although he hasn’t done so for seven years). Yūichi quickly runs into several girls he used to know from his previous visits, but strangely he and in many cases they have trouble remember details of the events seven years prior.

The early episodes of Kanon are pleasant and leisurely paced. They do a nice job of introducing the main and supporting characters, but beyond some nice conversations, and the sowing of seeds for possible romance nothing much seems to be going on. Or at least it seems that way on the surface, nicely woven throughout are little hints and clues speaking to the fact that there is something more going on. Some are nicely used cues hinting at the areas and themes the anime is going to expand upon; others start out seeming like standard romantic anime fare, but quickly become apparent they have more importance than typical anime cliché. Then there are the more subtle clues that only become apparent when remembered after viewing later episodes. Finally, and these are my favorites, there are the revelations that induced double-takes or vocal interjections on my part while I was watching. The first one of those happened for me at the end of episode 4, where I was left wondering if the entire tone and them of the anime was about to undergo a radical change (happily it didn't, but it did leave me wanting more). A second, possibly even bigger “What!?” moment happened in episode 8. At that point it started to dawn on me, and as I continued through this anime it became more apparent (and delightfully so) that the world Yūichi lives in is every bit as fantastic as the worlds presented in say Kino’s Journey, or The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi (obviously in different ways, but fantastic never-the-less). My absolute favorite part of this anime was discovering just how much more was going on than I then I was expecting.

I should mention a few things in passing.

Forgive me for blogging about the weather, but I felt my local weather was pretty fitting for April Fools' Day. As one might expect from spring the last week has been pretty rainy, the previous two days in particular have been practically nonstop rain. Today however when I looked out my window I was greeted not to the sight of more rain, not to the sight of sunshine, or even just overcast skies. Nope I got to see snow; however it was warm enough that despite the fact the snow was coming down at a decent rate none of it was accumulating. So in a way it was like fake snow, I got the see the stuff fall from the sky, but I didn’t have to deal with it piling up on the ground. I felt it was a pretty appropriate April Fools' Day joke on the part of Mother Nature.

Baseball season has started. I am a very happy person.

I am really good at starting new anime (not as good at finishing them, because I’m easily distracted by more new anime). Last night I started a number of them. I have a feeling when I get home from work Ghost Hunt will occupy a large amount of my time before I go to bed (I watched the first 4 episodes of 25 last night). However Red Garden may give it a run for its money (I’ve watched 2 of its 22 episodes). I also took in the first episode of Code Geass, and the first two episodes of Negima!?.

Ghost Hunt’s title gives you a pretty good idea of what it’s about. The characters seem pretty interesting, and there are hints that the main female character has secrets to be revealed. I found watching Red Garden to be an interesting experience because I knew almost nothing about it when I started watching it (I usually at least know the genre of an anime before I start it). I knew it was by Gonzo, and that back in October John from Ask John had written in his Ask John column that he felt it might be overlooked by American fans (verses Pumpkin Scissors also by Gonzo which John thought would be a hit with American anime fans). I did have an amusing revelation when it dawned on me that Red Garden was set in New York City. If I had paid any attention to the opening credits the setting would have been obvious, but instead I got to sit through the first half of the episode wondering what was bothering me about it. The lack of school uniforms, the yellow school buses, and the characters with names like Rose, Claire, and Kate finally drove the point home for me about two minutes before the anime made mention of New Jersey. I don’t have much to say about Code Geass yet. It’s set in the future, it has mecha, and the main character seems rather intense (he has an interesting power, but I’m not sure I’m going to like him). The art style of Negima!? is very different from Mahou Sensei Negima! I’m a fan of the Negima manga, but less enamored with the original anime (I didn’t hate it, I just preferred the manga). I’m not sure yet what I’m going to think of Negima!? but at least it’s interesting to look at (not quite as stylized as Gankutsuou, but close).