Remembering Love: Clannad After Story Part I

I know it’s late, but I decided to take part in trzr23’s new project called “Lets us Remember Love.” This is where we rewatch our favorite Anime and talk about it. When I came across some of these posts, I see why not even though a few days passed.

If you seen my about page, I listed some of my favorite anime. However, there is one in particular that influenced me the most since it’s the first title I blogged about when I began my Anime Blogging career. That show is of course Clannad After Story. (Image Source)

Needless to say, Clannad is probably one of the last and best “traditional” works from Key before they started other projects outside the genre like Little Busters and Angel Beats. Like Air and Kanon, this show is probably the strongest out of all the adaptations Kyoto Animation ever produced. While the first season has its share of comedy and drama, the second season is where the show starts to shine, especially in the second half. But for now, I will only talk about some of the things in the first 6 episodes.

Since the second season aired a year later after the first, the Baseball episode does a good job in reintroducing the characters. Yes, it’s very light-hearted, but it has some great moments. In particular, Kotomi calculating where to hit the ball, Tomoyo’s attempt to hit it in a more feminine fashion and Yoshino’s speech. Although filler, it’s fun to watch.

After that, we jump into the side characters’ arcs. The first is Sunohara, which is funny because the same voice actor is currently voicing a similar type of character in Hyouka. Although the soccer team bullying Nagisa, Tomoya and Mei is brutal, the fake girlfriends added to the arc’s enjoyment. Not to mention, in one of the images I used for the fall, Sanae apparently becomes Sunohara’s fake girlfriend. It was enjoyable since she is still cute for her age. Of course, there is Mei who calls Tomoya “older brother” during their faux date. When I heard that and the girls’ reaction to it, I laughed so hard that I literally fell out of my chair.

Lastly, there is Misae’s arc and the cat, which is actually Shima during the flashback. Although it’s sad that he suddenly disappears in his human form shortly after their confession, I just couldn’t take the scene where he cries about Sanae’s crush too seriously since she keeps throwing down to the ground while melancholic music plays in the background. Although not on the same level as Angel Beats, it felt out of place.  Even so, the prank that her friends pulled on her by having him dressed as a girl was the funniest part ever since he looked so cute. While he looked good in it, it can never top the level of crossdressing Ryou Akizuki does…

Next time: The conclusion of the side characters.

Incomplete List of Participants (Week 1)

• Nopy’s Blog: Martian Successor Nadesico
• Trzr23: Clannad–Beauty in Negativity
• Marina: Uchuu No Stellvia: Heading Off To Space
• Deluscar: Gintama: The Art of Randomness
• @fkeroge: Sibling and Filial Drama in Kanon (2006)
• Kluxorious: Opposite Attractions in Lovely Complex
• Temporal Vortex: Kare Kano–Obsession to Popularity
• Ty-chama: Death Note and Its Characters’ Questionable Morals
• Justin: Reliving Daikichi and Rin Once More Part I

 ¶