nobahn's Anime

• Michelle Liu & Jacob Chapman

• James Beckett

• It just begs to be compared with Voices of a Distant Star -- which has the same director. While that OAV was about two people who still remain emotionally close, this sixty minute movie is about three people's unrequited love for one another and how they inevitably drift apart.
• The issue of children drifting apart is also explored in the series Anohana.

• "Growing Up | A Personal Analysis of 5 Centimeters Per Second"|Rayouri

• "5 Centimeters Per Second - Separation"|Sage's Rain

There is some fan service in the 2nd episode.

• "What Isekai Almost Was"|Manime Matt

• Rebecca Silverman's review of 1st 12 episodes

• "Accel World Anime Review"|GLENLOVESUBWAY

• "Accel World Anime Review"|BlackCriticGuy

• "GBE Reviews: Accel World Anime Review"|The Good, The Bad, The Ecchi Reviews

1. Noteworthy animation/graphics
2. Please don't let this turn into a love triangle!
   On another note, what's up with Chiyo's side mask?

3. And here Haru thought he knew everything about Chiyo.....
4. I must say, these cliffhangers are quite effective.....
5. Kuroyukihime is something of an antihero.....
6. Another cliffhanger.....
7. So a team is forming? At least Kuroyukihime is acknowledging her sins.....
8. Kuroyukihime's sins are always somewhere near the foreground.....
9. 20:00| OK, this is amusing: With both parents away, Haru has to deal with this seemingly spontaneous harem / love triangle.
   I'm impressed by the screenplay; another, realistic side of Haru is revealed.
10. I'm impressed by Niko expressing her philosophy regarding online game play.
    So it was the Yellow King all along.....
11. Yellow King fails "to check his back" because of his hubris.
    This battle has now entered a decidedly different phase.....
12. Calamity Armor is here; what now?
    Has Calamity Armor really been deleted? This seems like a hanging/unresolved thread.....
13. There's a new kid on the block.....
14. 12:11| Are you serious???!!!
    More questions are raised: How is this guy hacking everyone? The answer better be good.....
15. Haruyuki loses to Nomi and Ash Roller takes him (as Silver Crow) to meet his master/Parent Sky Raker.
16. Sky Raker teaches/trains Silver Crow; then they meet in real life so that she can give him something important ─ Gale Thruster. Sky Raker also reveals who her best friend was and Haruyuki tells her that that bond was surely never broken.
17. Chiyuri undoes the work of Harayuki and Takumu by healing Nomi.
18. 2 old acquaintances meetup again in Okinawa.....
19. 13:05| Oookaayyy..... So who is that 5th girl?
    What is Megumi's connection with the Accelerated World?
20. So, apparently Nomi has been hacking everyone.....
21. The investigation against Nomi now begins.....
22. Harayuki and Takumu vow to fight Nomi without Kuroyukihime.
23. The cavalry arrives in the form of Kuroyukihime.
24. It's nice to see Chiyuri develop some agency.

1. I would like to rate this episode at 10/11 because we see Haru's lack of self-worth.
2. Same as above; even though I'm certain that a nutritionist would be dismissive of the ideas that are entertained in this episode.

• The 1st 38 minutes are a compilation film.
• This movie is so different from the TV series. The TV series explores the various traumas of the various characters; this movie seems to be all magical action wrapped around a threadbare plot. I just cannot recommend it. Read the light novels, instead. (The 24th volume was released on 2019-08-10) Interestingly enough, this author also wrote the SAO novels, as well.

• 1st 15 minutes have death in spades.....
• When Maetel's face is first shown, her expression is ambivalent.
• Not for children ─ they'd be bored to tears as the film becomes more and more mystical.
• Tragedy in spades.
• Symbolism throughout the film
• Tetsuro's final face shots are enigmatic.
• At least one element of the film seems to be about how Metsuro has changed; but I have a problem with the plot element that seemingly implies that children do not mature unless they've been through war.
• This film was seemingly influenced by both The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968).

• Review by Caitlin Moore

• https://countzeroor.com/2020/01/05/after-school-dice-club-anime-review/

• An anime about Board games ?! (review on after school dice club.) | Goblins be gaming

• ED song

After a rewatch I realized that I had forgotten just how much I enjoyed this show. I should rewatch more of my favorites.
1. Setup. "Iyashikei"
2. • When I was a child, I had a crush as well. [PRO]
   • Growing up, I was lonely as well. [PRO]
3. I strongly identify with Miki Takekasa. [PRO]
4. The Student Council Vice-President is shown the passion that her kohai has for board games.
5. A Summer trip to Miki Takekasa's Aunt's hotel.
6. Midori is persuaded to seek the advice of Miki and Aya regarding the board game that she is designing.
7. • Pt.#1: Kyoko Maki takes Miki Takekasa on her motorcycle to a stream. A number of hijinks ensue and they discuss their respective histories.
   • Pt.#2: Yuto Aoshima overrules Ren Shibusawa and allows the Dice Club to present board games during the school cultural festival.
8. • Pt.#1: Miki, Aya, and Midori meet Emilia at a game cafe. Emilia happily joins the Dice Club.
   • Pt.#2: The school president promotes the Dice Game club at the school's cultural festival.
9. Ostensibly, this episode is about playing games; but it is really about the relationships that are developed while playing the various games.
10. • Pt.#1: Aya's father returns after a two-year absence and immediately ignores Aya.
    • Pt.#2: Shota Tanoue and Ryuji Yoshikoka are invited to play a game after school on Christmas Day.
      More relationship building.
11. Midori, with the help of her friends, incrementally improves her board game.
12. Relationships are important ─ especially as we grow and change.

ADR Directors:
1. Clifford Chapin
2. Anthony Bowling (episode #5)

On the whole, After the Rain is a thoughtful and beautifully realized story of rediscovering your passion for life, finding universality in both Akira and Kondo's stories while illustrating those stories with all the visual splendor it can muster. The show's later episodes can't maintain the beauty of its opening, and the consistent diner setting occasionally limits its visual range, but the storytelling is sturdy and emotionally rich throughout. If you were repelled by After the Rain's premise, I'd urge you to still give it a chance. Though quiet and unassuming, this show is one of the best dramas of the year.

• Citrus and After the Rain: Two Very Different Sides of the Same Coin

1. Nice OST!
2. • Flowers as symbolism.
   • "Shoujo sweetness."
   • Akira Tachibana confesses to Masami Kondō
3. Masami Kondō inadvertently invites Akira Tachibana on a date.
4. The date has an unsatisfying ending ─ for both of them.
5. Tsubu the hamster is bringing out the social songbirds in everyone!
6. • Hakura reflects on her changing relationship with Akira.
   • Does not explain; but, instead, shows.
   • The animation budget is remarkable.
7. • Symbolism at 17:00 mark.
   • Mutual feelings develop.
8. • The animation is really stunning.
   • The purple-checkered dress that Akira Tachibana wears is beautiful.
9. Kondo reminisces with his college friend; one attained his dream while the other did not. Kondo relates this experience to Akira.
10. • Kondo is definitely a bibliophile.
    • Kondo thinks about how his repeated failures as a writer destroyed his marriage.
    • Akira obliquely tells Kondo that she still loves him.
11. Symbolism is everywhere. Chihiro Kujou presses Kondo to keep trying to write a novel; meanwhile, Haruka Kiyan presses Akira to return to track & field.
12. Both Akira and Kondo rediscover their passions in life. The series has a non-romantic ending. That changes things for me and I will rate it at 11/11. (Ignore the below comment.)

• The sexism of Japanese culture ruins this show. Think about it: How many anime/manga are there wherein a seventeen-year-old boy becomes romantically attracted to a forty-one-year-old woman? In Japanese culture, women over twenty-five years of age are considered unmarriageable. I'm just tired of this sexism. I really wanted to rate this at 11/11 (Masterpiece); I really did.
• After the Rain Overcomes a Problematic Premise| Grex
• Gabriella Ekins wrote:

  Ultimately, After the Rain was just about the best version of itself that it could have been. It broached its controversial subject matter with both honesty and responsibility, averaging these two qualities out to a best-of-both-worlds situation where Akira's crush was neither dismissed too easily or depicted with exploitative permissiveness. Thematically, the whole thing works on a number of interconnected levels. First it's a story about healing and the processes by which people recover from major slumps in their lives. Secondly, it's about how different people shape their lives around specific passions, and the pleasures and burdens that come with devoting yourself to a particular activity. Finally, it's a relatable depiction of a relationship type that I haven't seen depicted often (or not depicted well, at least) in fiction – as in, a quasi-romantic mentorship between a young woman and an older man that isn't exploitative fetish material. I've been in situations like Akira's, and while I acknowledge that they're rare compared to the ones where the dude turns out to be a remorseless creeper (something that I am also unfortunately familiar with), it was nice to see something like my positive experience mirrored in a work of art. The only significant flaw that sticks out in this show is the derailed importance of Kase's character, but it's also pretty easy to forget that part of the story without losing anything. (I've heard that he has more of a presence in the manga, alongside a couple other side characters. My impression is that they streamlined this story for adaptation, so check out the upcoming manga release if you're curious about the show's occasional loose ends.)

• Yiman
• There are eighty-two chapters!!! (I'm going to have to see what did not make it into the anime.....)