Forum - View topicREVIEW: Clannad After Story Sub.DVD 1
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Big Hed
 Posts: 1607 Location: Melbourne, Australia |
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Oh I agree. Though I've only seen the first seven episodes, due to the speed at which a certain group is subbing the series. |
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Avacado Burger
 Posts: 85 |
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I am definitely going to agree that the OP is one of the best out there, but Torch is another story altogether. There are inappropriate moments in later episodes where Torch will completely kill the mood. I most certainly did NOT want to hear this upbeat song after spoiler[the losses of both Nagisa and Ishio!!]. |
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EmperorBrandon
Encyclopedia Editor
 Posts: 2210 Location: Springfield, MO |
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Well, it seems only natural to me that direct sequels tend to get more favorable ratings. Many people who continue on to a sequel watched all of and liked the original series, and thus they're more inclined to view the sequel favorably, while the original series will have many more people trying and quitting early when they don't like it. I think Clannad After Story deserves it, though, particularly. I'm almost at 10 years of being an anime fan now, and at this point I've never really had any experience like Clannad AS. There are a few series I've come close to enjoying as much, but there was nothing quite like Clannad AS emotionally for me. Maybe I'll change my mind at some point, though. A few of my old favorites have held up better than others. Key's reviews are always rather interesting to me, so I am interested in what he will think on the second half. The ending seems to garner mixed reactions, but I really liked it. I was really only disappointed by a few of the things immediately leading up the ending (though I may reevaluate that when I watch again). Episodes spoiler[16-18] is still the absolute best part of the series for me, though. |
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Kaioshin_Sama
Posts: 1215 |
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The main problem with many Clannad After Story recommendations that I've seen is that to their own admission (willing or not) the series has only a handful of episodes where it really shines (eps. 16-18) while the rest are pretty much fluff or even "serve" to counteract the episodes that stand out. I think to be declared a masterpiece or one of the best anime of all time a form of media needs to consistently shine throughout it's run.
However it seems like a lot of the die hard apologists for Clannad After Story tend to plug the series based solely on those episodes without taking into account that when you review a work as a whole you're kind of supposed to take into account it's entirety along with the parts that may or may not be flawed. That works both ways too. A review attempt that is just the complete and utter bashing of a series while obviously failing to point out it's strong points or the moments where it may have shone (I saw this happen a lot with Code Geass R2 while it was airing actually which is why it surprises me as well that it has that ranking in ANN's poll and a number of other polls since by all impressions people tend to summon an inhuman amount of bile in order to condemn it [with accusations that in some cases are just flat out factually wrong] whenever it is mentioned in even the slightest positive light...unless it was all just part of the game. I actually enjoyed the majority of that show as opposed to that small stretch of Clannad:AS and have defended it on a number of occasions for it's strengths, but I'd only give it about a very good myself, whereas Clannad:AS gets a decent thanks to that good stretch of episodes) shouldn't be given much credit in my eyes. Again when it's pretty clear that a person is already inclined to declare something a masterpiece or the worst thing ever ahead of time then I say get a second opinion where that isn't the case. |
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EmperorBrandon
Encyclopedia Editor
Posts: 2210 Location: Springfield, MO |
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I think those episodes would not have the impact they did without the whole rest of the series that comes before them. If the rest of the series wasn't good, why would I care much about those particular set of episodes anyway? It's particularly memorable to me because Clannad was a great series to watch from the very beginning and got me loving the characters. Maybe it is the case as you say (I don't claim to know how others feel on the show), but I don't really think anyone hyping particular episodes think that the whole series is the best just because of a few episodes. No part of Clannad really stands completely alone in my opinion. I think that particular point came to mind when I was rewatching it from the start, as I notice things early on that tie in to things that happen later. |
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sailorsean
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Actually you don't have to complete all of the girls stories to get to After Story in the game, (hell, you wouldn't even need to get any of the girls endings) After Story opens up in the game when your on Nagisa's route, and Nagisa's route only. The only difference is, you'll get a bad ending. (You need to re-play the game more then once to understand why.) The real After Story in the game starts when spoiler[Nagisa starts to go to school alone.] The game is very different, to be honest. For example, (in the anime, spoiler[when Sunohara pretends to date Nagisa's mother, Tomoya knows who Nagisa's mother is, in the game however, when you replay it, it turns into a different arc, such as when Sunohara is trying to find a "pretend girlfriend" so that his sister will be happy, Nagisa's mother appears and Tomoyo is meeting her for the first time.])
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neocloud9
 Posts: 1178 Location: Atlanta, GA |
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Psst, I think you mean episode 18. 
But yes, I completely agree. If it had ended there, it would've easily been the best of KyoAni's Key adaptations. |
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Megiddo
 Posts: 8360 Location: IL |
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Since we're talking about how we would have liked it to end already, I I'll throw in my opinion. Personally, I feel that spoiler[after Ushio had died in the snow that Tomoya should have taken her to the construction place where Akio had taken Nagisa and then have the whole white orb thing happen where the girl with the robot then gets called back and Ushio comes back to life. This way the whole collecting orbs thing still comes into play and all the character development that Tomoya went through wouldn't be negated. Tomoya would simply care after Ushio and make a vow that he'll raise her and love her just as Nagisa would have wanted. Now that would be the ending for me. Instead of the ending we got which basically made all of Tomoya's growth as a character moot.]
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grooven
Posts: 1426 Location: Canada |
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Once again IN THE GAME context it makes perfect sense for it ending at 26. Saying it should have ended at 18 or 19 is strictly from an anime only viewer having no prior knowledge of how the game worked. Though some still argue it should have ended at whatever episode see it from a different perspective and see it fit ( except for in game context it wouldn't add up) From a non gamer view the ending comes as confusing since the studio did not fully explain relevent plots. The multiple "helping people" is needed for the end. Obvious in the game but not obvious at all in the anime. Such a shame since it was an amazing game and the outcome for non gamers wasn't as well recived as it could have been. |
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grooven
Posts: 1426 Location: Canada |
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Well actually spoiler[ I never got the impression that Tomoya never forgot. Hence the recap where he tells Ushio everything that happened. And it just isn't the orbs, it is also the world Ushio created to bring her mother back, which is connected to that place. It all ties together. Plus how depressing to play a game for over 100 hours and fail to save your wife LOL. I heard Jun Maeda wanting it to end like that but it probably would not have been recived well.] |
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egoist
 Posts: 7762 |
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This review made me want to give this anime yet another shot. How many times was it now? About 4, I think. If that's truly what moe is about, then I'm really disappointed. After all my tries to get through this anime's season one and finally stopping at episode 17 or so, despite having my hopes up for another try soon, all I can say is that this anime is overrated. You guys must've caught something like "I want a sister like that" or "this girl is so cute" to actually enjoy this anime as much as you seem to enjoy, judging by how enthusiastic most of the posts here are.
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neocloud9
Posts: 1178 Location: Atlanta, GA |
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But we're not talking about the game, we're talking about the anime as an entity unto itself. |
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Key
Moderator
 Posts: 18262 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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That should have been taken into account when the anime was made, and so it's a failing on KyoAni's part that they didn't adjust the story accordingly. All this talk about episode 16-18 has gotten me curious, and it's been sooo hard to fight the temptation to look at the spoiler tags. I am typically a sucker for huge emotional scenes, so I'll be looking forward to the early December release of the second half. (In terms of emotional impact, how do those episodes compare the emotional impact in series like, say, SaiKano or Koi Kaze?) And no, even if those episodes are wonderful, if the rest of episodes 13-25 aren't at the same level then the next set as a a whole will not get a top grade from me. "A" grades both overall and for story are going to be hard to come by with these 12-13 episode sets because, while some shows may peak at that level for the equivalent of a volume or two, even in the best of series it's rare to see that level of sustained quality. Yes, a strong volume - especially at the end - can pull an overall rating up, but several lesser episodes can also pull a rating down.
Then I guess I will be doing some insulting, too. I don't think R2 is bad, but I do think that the high rating for it is much more indicative of enthusiasm for the series than any genuine qualitative rating. It is a series loaded with grand and colorful actions, and that kind of thing often draws rabid fans. Last edited by Key on Sun Oct 18, 2009 12:36 am; edited 1 time in total |
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Big Hed
Posts: 1607 Location: Melbourne, Australia |
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Nope, I meant 17. I knew I should have confirmed that in the post 
Another thing I should have mentioned, it seems. As neocloud9 said, I too am only concerned with the anime as an independent story, rather than how well it reflects the game. Of happiness orbs, lonely girl and robot: they didn't bother me while I was watching the series, but given how these elements participated in the conclusion I would rather they have not been there to begin with. Their removal would have essentially no measurable impact on the story if it ended at episode 17 (or 18, for that matter). |
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s.alsa-man1991
Posts: 137 |
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I've watched this show 3 times, from beginning to end. Yes, I could be considered a rabbid fan. However, I'm not the moe-visual-novel-adapted-into-anime kinda guy. Air bored me to no end. And I couldn't get past the first episode of Kanon. I guess I just found it genuinely funny. Also, I cried with a TV show for the second time (and subsequent third, fourth, fifth and so on...) with it.
And even though I love it, and understand the nature of the ending (which is the game's true/secret ending, something KyoAni didn't do with Air, and presumably neither with Kanon), I disliked it. I didn't hate it. I just believe it was not ideal. In short, from my point of view, give the show a chance, both during it's school-life stage and it's post-school-life stage (the latter being better than the former), as they are two different beasts altogether. |
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