Kanon

[Talon87]

Many years ago, a little boy spent his summers and winters in a small town in Hokkaido, Japan. Covered in a blanket of white snow, the town was Yuuichi's home away from home. There, he met the most remarkable girl of his life, Tsukimiya Ayu. And then ... something happened that Yuuichi doesn't remember.

Seven years later, Aizawa Yuuichi has returned to Hokkaido. His memories are completely gone from the days he spent in his aunt's home, and it takes every ounce of effort Yuuichi's cousin Nayuki can muster to get him to remember the past. But no sooner does Yuuichi return to Hokkaido than does he run into Ayu! Or rather, she runs into him, escaping the wrath of the city market's taiyaki vendor. Ayu recognizes Yuuichi almost immediately, but Yuuichi can only vaguely remember Ayu. Her cute little angel-wings backpack, her soft brown mittens, and her simple red headband ...

Kanon is the story of how Aizawa Yuuichi touched the lives of four very special girls seven years ago and why he came to forget them all. Makoto, a hotheaded blonde vixen who won't forgive Yuuichi for something she can't remember him doing to her. Mai, a girl one year older than Yuuichi who is remarkably proficient in swordsmanship. Nayuki, his cousin who loves him deeply. And Ayu ... cute, adorable, mysterious Ayu ... with an endless appetite for taiyaki and a never-ending search for something she says she dropped. Yuuichi sets out to try and remember each of these girls, each of the histories he shared with them, each one of their respective tragedies that has caused his brain to wipe out all traces of their ever having existed. What could possibly have happened seven years ago that would cause him to forget such wonderful people?

Kanon is a classic love story in true Japanese form. It was a runaway hit as an H-game in the mid-90s and has since been converted into a well-loved animated series twice. This most recent reincarnation of the timeless classic lasts 24 episodes and features some of the most excellent melodies and detailed animation seen in modern anime. The voice actors are some of the most famous in the history of the business, with Yui Horie reprising her role as Tsukimiya Ayu and Tomokazu Sugita (Hideki from Chobits, Kyon from Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu) taking up the challenge of breathing life into the character Aizawa Yuuichi.

[Talon87]

Plot: 8/10. A little on the slow side, Kanon can feel like a bit of a bore to some because it explores all five major dating routes possible in the original game. Yuuichi falls in love with and supports Ayu, Mai, Makoto, Nayuki, and Shiori over the course of the 24 episodes. Fans of any one particular girl (as most of us become) will probably be a little agitated with how much time is "wasted" on the other girls. However, each respected girl's story is sure to please the guys who fall in love with her. For me, that girl was Ayu, and her story is (imo) the cream of the crop, not only amongst Kanon girls but amongst all tragic romantic heroines in anime.

Characters: 8/10. Pretty much for the same reasons presented above. Each human being has their own "ideal soulmate" that they have in mind. In true dating sim fashion, Kanon played to those desires by creating many different girls who epitomize grossly-exaggerated stereotypes of "the ideal Japanese woman." Ayu is clumsy, has a childlike innocence to her, and is defiant. Nayuki is independent, polite, and always eager to help. Makoto is rude-mouthed but yearns for love and support. Mai is the strong, silent type who is actually hiding a weak and fragile spirit. Shiori is the girl who is not going to live to see her next birthday, determined to not break the heart of the man who might fall in love with her by simply never meeting him. Certain girl's voices and dialogue will sound annoying to you and grate on your eyes; other girls' words will melt your heart and have you begging for more.

Animation: 10+/10. Kyoto Animation's done it again; joining Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu for Prettiest Anime of 2006, Kanon sports not only incredibly "shiny" and "brilliant" colors but is also incredibly highly-detailed. The backgrounds are gorgeous, animated to very fine details that most people might take for granted amidst all of the drama. What's more, these settings are all based off of an actual town in Hokkaido -- the city layout, the school architecture, everything is real!

Music: 9/10. The intro theme song is probably the only song in the entire series that I dislike. The end theme song was an immediate favorite of mine and I play the .mp3 every now and then to this day. (I might have overplayed it back in October, heh. ^_^; ) The music in the show reminds me of the background music in Chobits -- you won't notice most of it if you don't make an effort to because it's just so good at blending in with the scenes it plays in and evoking the mood that those scenes require. It's the perfect support music. That stated, it's not as grand as the music in .hack//SIGN or similar animes.

Replay Value: 7/10. I watched the original anime in August 2004 over the course of a few days; then I watched the remake starting in October 2006 and ending on March 25 of the following year. So, I guess by virtue of the fact that "I made it," that proves that Kanon does have enough redeeming value to be watched twice. That stated, I had a two year hiatus from the plot, so that might have been part of what helped. Also, the animation was much improved. Finally ... I basically rewatched the series for Ayu. (And man am I glad I did! :mrgreen: ) I would not recommend watching this show within a year of finishing it last, with one special exception: the final 5 episodes, which are the thrilling rollercoaster ride in which Yuuichi remembers everything that happened seven years ago.

Overall Score: 8/10. A very good anime, and one I'm proud to include on my silver list of anime series. It's a little slow and boring at times, but the great animation and emotionally touching story of Ayu are enough to sell me on this series. I love Tsukimiya Ayu!!! And if that makes me silly, fine. :P So be it. She is, without a doubt, one of the most fascinating and adorable romantic heroines ever.

[Talon87]

This list will probably be edited many times, so long as the thread is active. There are naturally SPOILERS in this list, so be careful.

[center:4acec]Select Quotes from the Series[/center:4acec]

He talks to me. He lets me hear about many things. About his cousin that he met after seven years. About a story of a fox that became human. About a story of a strange girl that came to the school's courtyard every day. About a story of a girl who fought ghosts. And about a story of a childhood friend he met in the shopping district at sunset. A dream ... I'm seeing a dream. A dream of being by my dearest person. A daily life that repeats. Pieces of dreams come one after another and fill my heart, just like how snow gradually turns the city white.


Regarding Ayu's final wish, Shiori comments that it might have been "[...] healing [Yuuichi's] friends who got hurt." Yuuichi asks, "Isn't there supposed to be only one wish?" Shiori replies, "I don't know exactly what she wished for, but maybe, 'I want my dearest person to always be smiling.' Maybe it was a wish like that. For that to happen, everyone around that person has to be having a happy life, too."


I loved the scenery that flew by. Winter. A city of snow. I loved running through the shopping district, leaving behind footprints. Spring. A city of melting snow. I loved picking up the snow piled beside the roots of trees. Summer. The city has forgotten how cold the snow was. I loved looking at the city through the cracks on the umbrella. Autumn. The city waiting for snow to fall. I loved catching the small snowflakes with my hands. And it's back to winter. The season of snow. The season when the entire city is white. I loved the scenery that flew by. But, like a puddle that freezes, my time has frozen. Inside this square room, where there is no change in seasons. I was always alone while repeatedly seeing the same scenes in my dream, while viewing the endless night. But, slowly, light was starting to shine into the night.


Yuuichi: I didn't give her the present. I never gave it to Ayu.
~Flashback~ Young Ayu: I can have it? I won't give it back to you even if you ask for it back. ~Flashback~
Yuuichi: I chose an illusion over reality. Forcing away the sad reality, I accepted the illusion where I felt at ease. So that my weak heart wouldn't be crushed. So that I didn't hurt my memories.

[big bad birtha]

I just got through watching this and all I have to say is.....this is probably one of the best anime titles I have ever seen...... I have never felt so many emotions running through me in a series, or teared up through a whole episode.

I never felt like it was drawn out either. Every moment of it held every bit of my attention. Actually, I kinda wanted more....

The only problem is the fact that the beginning and ending themes are not as great as I hoped, but still OK.

This is truly wonderful, and I hope to find more titles like this. There is still Clanned in October I guess. Aslo, Suigin is not silly for loving Ayu. I only put characters I love as my avatar.

[Talon87]

Inviting You Over Ayu (http://momotora.com/kanon/images/kanon/screenshot425.jpg)
Foreshadowing Ayu (http://momotora.com/kanon/images/kanon3/screenshot074.jpg)
Foreshadowing Ayu (http://momotora.com/kanon/images/kanon3/screenshot131.jpg)
Adorable Ayu (http://momotora.com/kanon/images/kanon3/screenshot118.jpg)
Sugar Overdose Ayu (http://momotora.com/kanon/images/kanon3/screenshot149.jpg)
Innocently Excited Ayu (http://momotora.com/kanon/images/kanon3/screenshot175.jpg)
Ayu So Horrified It Breaks My Heart Every Time :( (http://momotora.com/kanon/images/kanon3/screenshot178.jpg)
Unmei (http://momotora.com/kanon/images/kanon3/screenshot177.jpg)

There's your present for the night. ENJOY RESPONSIBLY!

[Doppleganger]

AQS is only on Kanon episode sixteen. It'll be quite a wait given their recent troubles. :?

[Mcsweeney]

Why don't you just watch a.f.k.'s?

Since they're making a Clannad anime, I hope that a planetarian movie or OAV will soon follow. That's the one I really wanted.

[Talon87]

I recommend SS-Eclipse over a.f.k. on grounds of overall reliability in translation quality and typeface settings. However, neither group is perfect, and SS-Eclipse made a very fatal (and, iirc, incorrect) translation in Episode 24. So if you watched that one, please highlight the spoiler text (in the quote box below):

Sayuri asks Yuuichi if he's been in contact with Ayu's family since finding her in the hospital. He replies, "Yes, I see them every weekend." However, SS-Eclipse decided to translate the word for family ("gokazoku, 御家�") as "Ayu's parents." This is incorrect. Ayu's father was already gone by the time Yuuichi met her seven years ago, and her mother dies very shortly before or after Yuuichi meets her seven years ago. That's why Ayu doesn't attend school and is always waiting for Yuuichi in the city market -- she's an orphan. The fact that Ayu's mother is dead (and Ayu is fully aware of it) is honestly better explained in the original Kanon anime than in the remake; however, if you want proof in the new series, look no further than Episode 19 (where Ayu begins to bawl and asks Yuuichi if he knows what it feels like to lose someone you love and be powerless to change it) as well as the earlier episode where Ayu freaks out over Akiko-san's fever (because Ayu's own mother died, presumably in a similar manner).

The point I wish to make is, and to leave no doubt in your mind is, SS-Eclipse mistranslated "family" (gokazoku) as "Ayu's parents." The people Yuuichi is in contact with and sees on the weekends are very likely Ayu's distant family relatives, people who (for one reason or another) would not adopt her yet still care about her enough to meet with Yuuichi.


Anyway, I highly recommend the SS-Eclipse translation. Aside from this (major) error, and another mistranslation error in Ayu's opening speech in several of the episodes (where a verb that is affirmative should be negative), I didn't notice any mistakes and I did notice that they did an absolutely amazing job with translating difficult grammatical concepts that don't quite exist in English into very appropriate English "nearest matches."

Of course, a.f.k.'s translation of Haruhi was also spot on, but I found their translation of Episodes 1-5 of Kanon (which I think is all I downloaded before deciding they were inferior this time) to be lacking. Some words and phrases they translated in ways I don't agree with, and sometimes their translation felt too unnatural. *shrug* I should point out that I generally despise the color navy blue, and that's the color a.f.k. decided to use for their typeface for Kanon.

[Lone_Wolf]

aww the pics are great!I HAVE TO WATCH IT!!!I'll find a way some how I will!!
The little girl is so cute!!

[big bad birtha]

*saves Suigin's Ayu pics* Ayu is wonderful. Pics. 2, 3, and 7 kinda break my heart though. I don't like seeing her sitting in a tree ;_;

Also, there has been something that has been bugging the hell out of me about Makoto(my second favorite). Alright Suigin, destroy me with an explanation =P
[Spoiler]
When Makoto disappeared, I learned that she was a fox that Yuuichi hid in his room because it's leg was hurt, and it had a little wierd foreshadowing that I kinda ignored because I was devestated at her disappearance. Then at episode 23, there is a older Makoto that he already knew. I was just wanting to know WTF was up with the young fox Makoto. Did the fox just take that name and form to be the same form as his first love, or was it something I missed?

[Talon87]

Yuuichi named his pet fox "Sawatori Makoto" after the hot girl who lived next door to Nayuki when he visited as a child. Even back then, she was an "older woman" (and not some mere girl) to Yuuichi, which slightly makes sense if you consider she's 23 right now and he's (at most) 16. She's seven years older than him, so if (hypothetically) he last visited Hokkaido when he was 9 (the year Ayu fell), that would still make Ms. Sawatori 16 years old. As old (and adult) as Yuuichi is now. Post-puberty. She'd definitely be as sexy to Yuuichi then as she would be to Yuuichi now.

So ... the lady he met was not the spirit of his fox Makoto. It was the namesake for his fox Makoto.

That stated, a lot of fans will probably argue that it could have been Makoto-the-Fox. But I think that's a bit too forced. Especially since the very last scene shows a fox walking behind the tree stump in the forest, i.e. Makoto is still in fox form and (if it's anything like the OAV) won't be strong enough to reach out to Yuuichi until summer is fully under way.

[Talon87]

Mcsweeney (and anyone else who may be interested), I just read on AnimeNewsNetwork that Yui Horie reprised her role as Tsukimiya Ayu in a cameo appearance for Air episode 2. In other words ... look to see if you can find Ayu talking in Episode 2!

[Mcsweeney]

I didn't know about the cameo the first time I watched (since I barely knew what Kanon was), but I found out later. Ayu only talks for like five seconds!

[big bad birtha]

Yesh I knew that. I even mentioned it in my suggestion box (I did not mention the same voice actor though). Also, the kid who does kid Yuuichi's voice is in Air too. I think the first time I see him it is a cameo, but the second is probably a kid who looks like him (if you may of noticed, Yuuichi looks like alot of different male characters).

[big bad birtha]

Right now, I ish loading up anime episodes, and one of the best ways to pass the time is of course, spitting out information. I'm sure no-one gives a ****, but I did when I found this stuff out.

There is a fighting game for PC that is starring characters from Kanon, Air, One, and something else(I think it's called MOON). It is called Eternal Fighter Zero. I originally thought it was characters from games Key that Key made, but One and the other thing are not from Key =O. I'm not exactly sure how it plays, but it seems like a Guilty Gear style game except for the fact that all of the characters little girls(except for Akiko). Every character also has their own super special move as well. They are called "Final Memory", and some of them are pretty awesome. Akiko's is her special blend jam XD. Here's a link to everyone's final memory attacks. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f6ypEkJvXks Suigin, I have a favor to ask. Could you please translate what Misuzu(the very last one) is saying? Also, if anyone happens to find a place to DL this, tell me. The cover has Misuzu and the main girl from ONE hugging Ayu(who wouldn't?)

I'm not sure what relaionship ONE has with Kanon and Air other than a similar story and the same original character designer. It happens to be the very first hentai I purchased. The girl with the huge blonde pigtails, and the brown haired girl who has a yellow hair ribbon(she's on the cover) are on this. I don't know where it is now, so I can't really tell you what it is about, or whether it is any good.

Next, observations. I noticed in the remake that Shiori shows up two times in the background. Once is in the first episode where Nayuki is showing Yuuichi around. She is with her mother. The other is in Sayuri's flashback. She and Kaori are holding hands while Sayuri and her brother are walking on the road. Another thing is in episode one and twenty three. If you look closely, there is an add for a peach drink on a bus in the episodes. The peach drink is Misuzu's favorite drink.

This is just a simple correction. Yuuichi is 17. He left town when he was 10, and came back exactly 7 years after.

Next is crazy info about the great Ayu. ^o^ Ayu appears outside what she is from more than any dating sim character. I looked for examples, but I could only find two, and Suigin already covered one. She appeared in Magical Shopping Arcade Abenobashi on one of the episodes, and yes, Yui Horie did the voice for her. I'm sure everyone knows this, but she uses the masculine term "boku" to refer to herself. I found this out when I was curious about how the Japs use "I". I also know a thing or two about her voice actor, but I won't bother with that.

I have more info, but there needs to be things that only I know, or at least I can think that.

[Mcsweeney]

That special attack looks like one big Air spoiler!

[Talon87]

Since lilbluecorsola's finished the series, I thought I'd give this thread a bump. That way, we can focus some of this year's Kanon discussion here and have it be easily seen in the future by ourselves or our new friends.

Major Kanon spoiler discussion follows!

Do not read on until you've either finished the series or else are certain that you never, ever intend to.

So ... without further ado :) ...
She's a ghost!
Wait, she's not a ghost! Yuuichi just imagined her!
Wait again, she's not imagined either! I mean, she was imagined! But there's the real Ayu, too! Holy cow!

The end of Kanon gets a bit crazy. There are days I still feel like it would have been better if they'd ended it with the first major plot reveal (that Ayu was a ghost), but Kanon 2006 did a great job of getting me to appreciate the value of the second reveal, which is that Yuuichi imagined the whole Ayu we saw during Kanon.

Which sort of begs questions as to how the others saw this Ayu. ^^;;;;;;;;; But putting that on hold ...

Exhibit A. The red hairband. That was one of the visual clues I was hinting at to see if you noticed. Go back to like Episode 1 or 2. When Yuuichi unpacks his things, you see a red hairband in a box. That should not be there!! Yuuichi never managed to give it to her! Then watch throughout the series. Grown-up Ayu is wearing the red hairband. That should not be. Yuuichi never managed to give it to her.

I think that when I originally watched the show, I concluded that Yuuichi still had the red hairband (the real one) because he never gave it to her. It wasn't until I watched Kanon 2006 that I realized that even the one Yuuichi had in his possession was an illusion, since the real hairband had been left behind in that paper satchel for the last seven years.

Exhibit B: the angel doll. This is probably the most obvious hint that something is up with Ayu, although I like the hairband more since it's irrefutable proof whereas theories about the angel are, right up until you know what its backstory is, pure speculation. But indeed: the angel doll, the angel-winged backpack ... all of it is really great allusive symbolism as to Ayu's true nature. Or at least, as to Ayu's true nature with just the first reveal.

The second reveal puts a different spin on it -- it tells us, "Ayu's not an angel. She's Yuuichi's angel." What I mean by that is, to Yuuichi, Ayu was an angel. Not in the literal sense, but in the figurative sense. She was his angel. And so it makes logical sense that, since Ayu is in part (?) a concoction of Yuuichi's own mind's, Ayu would appear as an angel. IIRC in the original Kanon anime (the 2004 Toei one), when Ayu vanishes at the tree stump, great white wings billow forth from her back and she floats up into the heavens. This was downplayed in the 2006 version, maybe because too many fans had become confused and had concluded that Ayu really was an angel all along? I dunno. Kinda wish she had been, though! ^^;

Exhibit C: Ayu's childlike behavior. Whether the Ayu we saw was a figment of Yuuichi's imagination, an astral projection of the comatose Ayu's, or a mix of both, it makes perfect sense for her to have behaved like a little girl. The thing is, if you assume (as fans surely do when they first begin Kanon) that Ayu is a weird but otherwise normal teenage girl, then her immense childishness ought to raise questions. Most fans, however, write it off as simply being Ayu's personality. "Some girls act more mature than their age, and some act less mature. Ayu's one of the less mature ones." But in hindsight, this should have been a major clue for you as to what was going on with Ayu. :)

Exhibit D: Ayu's dress is a subtle but telling hint as to Yuuichi's concerns for Ayu as a little girl. If you look at Orphan Ayu in the flashback sequences, you see that she doesn't have a change of clothes (at least none that we see animated for her). Perhaps more importantly, you see that she isn't very well dressed for the cold climate of Hokkaido in the wintertime. She has a skirt, slipper-shoes, and no gloves. Fast forward seven years and our Ayu has heavy duty boots to keep her feet warm and dry; massive gloves to keep her hands warm; and a thick mountain coat to keep her body warm. This isn't something I'd expect you to have picked up on during your first run-through of the story, but it's something you should notice on subsequent viewings. The phantom Ayu is well-equipped to handle the bitter cold. It's the sort of thing that tells you that little kid Yuuichi, even back then, was aware that being an orphan could be very dangerous in the cold north.

Ho-ly shit indeed. So that's what you meant. O.O;;; So then the others were all just playing along?

I don't remember if I sent this to you via PM that night or not, lilblue, but here:

By far, the SADDEST, most emotional moment for me in the series was when this happened: 1 (http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g92/talon87/Kanon/screenshot175-1.jpg) 2 (http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g92/talon87/Kanon/screenshot176-1.jpg) 3 (http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g92/talon87/Kanon/screenshot177-1.jpg) 4 (http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g92/talon87/Kanon/screenshot178.jpg)

Just heartbreaking. When the ghost is forced to accept that she is dead. That she has been dead all along. That the reason she's been living a dream is because she's been haunting the site, looking for her lost possession for the last seven years.

Then again ... The revelation that Yuuichi imagined her kind of puts a damper on the ghost interpretation of the events. ^^; But I like the ghost story version! :( :)

==================================================

Why do I like Kanon?
I suppose it comes back to the fact that I love ghost stories, I love romance, and so naturally I am very intrigued by stories which combine the two together. While Ayu proves ultimately to not be a ghost -- with the real Ayu being a comatose girl in a hospital, very much alive, and the imagined Ayu being a defense mechanism of Yuuichi's mind -- the story of Kanon certainly plays out like a ghost story, all the way up through to the very last episode.

One thing which made Kanon 2006 so much fun was its expertly executed act of scattering hints throughout the series which would be obvious and entertaining to returning fans of the franchise but which would pass under the radar for newcomers. My favorite of these, and perhaps the most significant of all, is Ayu's red hairband.

[post not finished] :cry:

I've had this in a .txt file since Sunday and I feel bad for putting it off. So I'll post it now. I wanted to equip it with nice screencaps and such, but better to discuss the anime while it's still fresh in your mind and you're still eager to discuss it than to delay until December or something. >_> Knowing me, I could have put it off that long. >_>;;

[big bad birtha]

I think there's something I'll throw in about Ayu.

Visual Novel spoilerWhen playing the visual novel, if you play any path other than Ayu's, you will eventually reach a scene where Ayu meets you on the streets and says goodbye to you. I think this is because she finds what she was looking for, and finds out what she is by herself. I also think Ayu uses her third wish before she disappears to make a miracle happen after each path. Nayuki's mother is healthy despite being in a deadly traffic accident, Sayuri heals well despite being mauled, and Shiori's incurable disease is cured. For Makoto, I think it's implied she turns back into a fox.

[YUKI.N]

It's funny. I went back and looked at an (amazing) AMV that I saw just prior to the series, and realized that it spoiled pretty much the entire plot. o.O; Yet I didn't remember a thing as I was watching. Now that I understand all the references, I admire the video and the show itself even more.

Kanon, like TMoHS, is a story that took a while to sink in. The more I think about it, the more I get chills. I remember back in episode 14, Sayuri described the song Canon in these terms...

"It repeats the same melody and crescendoes gradually, peacefully, and beautifully."

I feel this one line perfectly captures the mood of Kanon. (The song is a personal favorite of mine - one of the first I learned to play for the piano.)

Why do I like Kanon 2006, the animé? (Contains indirect comparisons to TMoHS and Air):

First of all, I love how there are multiple ways to interpret the ending. Ayu could be a ghost, or angel, or simply a hallucination. I think any one of these theories is plausible, and that the writers did not intend for there to be one correct answer, but instead scattered hints for the viewers to draw their own conclusions.

Second, the hints themselves. At some point I will definitely re-watch this series and look for those things you mentioned, Talon. Even though I had an idea of Ayu's background, I still didn't know what to look for. I really enjoy finding these sorts of easter eggs - like Haruhi's and Yuki's appearances in the background of TMoHS episode 12. Episode 00 counts even more significantly in terms of the overall plot. Pretty much, both series require a second viewing in order to fully understand and appreciate the story (assuming you watch TMoHS in air order first, then in chronological). Some people may not like this, but I think it's a very clever tactic that Kyo-Ani has proven quite successful at.

Third, I'm happy with how all the girls' stories tied together at the end. I don't mean the fact that they were all connected through Yuuichi. Um, how should I explain it... When Yuuichi was sitting by Ayu's bedside, telling her the stories about everyone whom he's met, whose lives have changed because of him, and how his life has changed through those encounters... I felt an uplifting sense of conclusion. It was gratifying to know that there was a purpose for everything I've been seeing up to this point. That each girl was special and important in her own way, and that none of them would be forgotten.

I just checked the last episode of the 2002 run, and was disappointed to find that this scene wasn't included. I watched Air yesterday, and I think the reason I wasn't as impacted by it was that it lacked this type of encapsulating dénouement. I understand that harem animé usually tend to favor one girl - there can only be one choice of true love in the end, after all. But as a female attuned to emotions and all that jazz, I was glad to see all the characters revisited in turn at the end. Even if some girls' paths weren't that interesting, they still mattered. Like all the instruments that make up an orchestra, if you'll forgive the lame attempt at a punnish analogy. Together, their individual melodies build into something greater: a beautiful and tragic harmony.

Talon, you mentioned in your review: "Fans of any one particular girl (as most of us become) will probably be a little agitated with how much time is 'wasted' on the other girls. However, each respected girl's story is sure to please the guys who fall in love with her." I've never played a visual novel/watched much animé of this genre, and I don't claim to know or understand a guy's affections towards 2D girls. But I think the way Kyo-Ani handled Kanon's adaptation preserves the "multi-path" characteristic of the game rather well. From the point of view of a female who can relate to any one of the girls more than the guy, I can tell you it's personally elevating to see each one receive nearly the same amounts of attention, support, and detail. This is the first time I've seen a story where all the characters are explored equally in depth, while still maintaining the focus on the central relationship.

This show is creeping slowly higher on my favorites list. Purely in terms of execution, I'd rate it nearly on par with TMoHS for its brilliant use of subtlety, context, and foreshadowing. Its real emotional impact is quiet and subversive, not overly dramatic. I like that.

By the way, I'll be checking out Clannad this weekend, probably. We'll see if it tops my opinion of Kanon, though I personally doubt it.

[Talon87]

Spoiler tags used mostly to condense text. There are no spoilers which will endanger lilbluecorsola. However, lurkers or newcomers to the forum might want to be more careful.

About Clannad:
Clannad will probably not top Kanon in your book. It has some memorable moments, but I don't think any of them approach Ayu's path.

Clannad After Story, on the other hand ... man oh man was I ever wrong to drop that one! :oops: I don't blame myself, since Clannad is kind of a boring show and Clannad After Story's first eight episodes dragged on much too long. But the plot picks up in After Story starting with Episode 9, and it really doesn't relent from there. It just keeps getting better. And better. And better.

And while I think the revelation on Ayu's path about what happened seven years ago to make Yuuichi forget everything about the city marks the saddest moment in a Key franchise, perhaps nothing can compete with Clannad After Story Episode 18 in terms of raw emotional power.

About Guys vs. Girls
It's cool that you can bring this sort of fresh perspective to the table. :)

The point I was making back in '07 about frustration was that you naturally want to see more of your favorite characters and less of your least favorite ones, but that Kanon does an admirable job of saying, "No! =P" and devoting roughly equal time to all five girls, treating them as equally special. As a reader (never mind as a man), it's clear to me that Ayu is the star of the show. So I feel like she ought to have more screen time. And indeed, in the original anime, she did! When you've only got 13 episodes, that doesn't leave much time to tell Ayu's backstory! So iirc (it's been six years @_@ =P) the original anime devoted like one episode to the likes of Mai and of Shiori, and that was that. Whereas the 2006 anime said "No, that's not right. We're going to give every girl her chance to shine."

Hmm. Kinda feel like I'm posting train-of-thought right now and I really don't know what I want to say. ^^; So I'll just end this train of thought here and move on to the next point.

How Kanon holds up on a 2nd viewing
For me, it held absolutely amazingly. :)

I've been posting the last couple of days that I saw the 2004 anime in 2005. This is incorrect. I opened up my anime log text file and it turns out that I actually saw it "Aug 05 - 08, 2004 = complete series, OAV." So, the end of the summer of 2004. Anyway, I bring it up so I'll get my numbers right in the next sentence!

I watched the original anime in August 2004, and so when I came back to Kanon in Fall late September 2006, I was ready for it. Had the remake aired any sooner, I might have passed it by. But it came at just the right moment. What also helped it out, and convinced me to give it a go rather than passing it up, was the fact that it was beautifully re-animated, was rumored to be 26 episodes long (which later turned out to be 24, I guess), and was being done by the team who had just wowed me and the rest of the world with the amazingly fun, amazingly beautiful, amazingly awesome Suzumiya Haruhi series.

You wouldn't have all of these benefits, necessarily, were you to rewatch Kanon. But I think it's safe to say that if you were to rewatch it even next week, you would enjoy it very much. Because I had an absolute blast watching Kanon 2006. :)

A, it was so fun picking up on all of the little hints sprinkled throughout the show. (HAIRBAND. ;-))

B, it was super-fun discussing the show with BBB, an enthusiastic newcomer who was discovering the mysteries for the very first time. Through him, I sort of vicariously relived my own experience back in 2004. The fact that he enjoyed the show 10x more than I ever had enjoyed it made it that much more rewarding to be around chatting with him when the show was airing.

C, it was great fun to sort of "meet old friends again" courtesy of:
1) their catchphrases. Uguu! ^-^
2) just they themselves. It was neat to see Sayuri, Ayu, Makoto, etc. again and to be like, "Hey, I know you! I know what's going to happen to you!" I guess that feeds back in, then, to what I said in Letter A. Like noticing Makoto's large appetite and her preference for meat over vegetables. Real people fit that bill too, of course, but when you already know who she is then it takes on a completely different significance. :)

So, I think you'd really enjoy it on a re-viewing. I'd just say, give it some time. BBB did not, but he didn't need to. Kanon was moving for BBB. Totally earth-changing. Just ask him yourself. I shouldn't put words in his mouth. :oops: But yeah: he was ready to re-watch Kanon on Day 1. lol Me? I still haven't rewatched it since it wrapped up in 2007. But talking with you has given me a little incentive to load it back up and watch it again.

[YUKI.N]

On Clannad:

I'm already somewhat aware of what happens to the three main characters in Clannad After Story (not your fault), and am looking forward to the emotional rollercoaster ride. Which is why I've decided to save it for last.

On Guys vs. Girls:

That's okay, this topic is pretty much just a train-of-thought observation.

As I haven't played the visual novel, while I was watching I tried to pick a favorite girl of my own. I considered it both from the point of view of the "player" (i.e. which girl I would prefer), as well as whom I could identify with most in terms of personality. I found that I couldn't decide. I sympathized with each in turn, and could see how every one of them might fall in love with Yuuichi. Being able to put myself in their shoes, I ended up falling for him too.

I'm a huge sucker for unrequited love stories. Though I've never experienced it, I imagine one of the worst pains would be the person you love not just choosing someone else, but never even acknowledging you in the first place. I was amazed at how Yuuichi managed to spread love to everyone around him - without coming off as a player. He just noticed other people's troubles, and genuinely cared and tried to help. It's hard to find someone that honest IRL. I know you think he's boring, but I personally found his character inspiring, in a way.

...Whoa, I just realized why I like Yuuichi so much. He's like a combination of Kyon and Link from The Legend of Zelda, my two biggest fictional crushes. o.O; Freaky.

On Kanon Round 2:

Given that I haven't seen the original run, I didn't have the same familiar experience while watching Kanon 2006. Knowing what I do now, I really want to go back and re-examine the entire series in a different light. (Still haven't been able to find hairband scene you mentioned just by browsing. It's gonna bug me until I see it for myself!)

Plus I'm thinking of writing a TMoHS/Kanon crossover. XD But that's another story.

[Doppleganger]

Talon I think your experience with Ayu in the Toei Kanon anime definitely influenced your slight irritation at having to wait until the end of Kanon 2006 to see her story again. Like Corsola I agree that the girls paths were treated well and were reasonably integrated with one another through Yuuichi, with one exception.

The exception is Makoto. I think Kyoto Animation tackling on Makoto early was both a statement of how far Kanon would dare go and because her story line meshed least well with the other ones. Another way of saying this is Makoto was only tangentially related to the other girls, where even Ayu had some interaction with them (?). Yuuichi was blasted with a ridiculously emotional degradation by Episode 4 iirc, and Makoto died/disappeared and that was it. It was powerful stuff, but Makoto was basically forgotten after that until that end-story incident where Yuuichi brought up all the relationships he'd built over the anime's length.

Had Makoto not been written into Kanon 2006, I don't think it would have changed my esteem of the whole series because Makoto was only slightly involved with the lives of the other girls. It would have been better if Kyuuichi had developed significantly from his interaction with her, but since the anime appeared to try and get her story out of the way, any long-standing development from that would have changed his behaviour during Shiori (who was supposed to die, according to BBB) and Ayu's arcs.

On Clannad:

On Guys vs. Girls:

That's okay, this topic is pretty much just a train-of-thought observation.

As I haven't played the visual novel, while I was watching I tried to pick a favorite girl of my own. I considered it both from the point of view of the "player" (i.e. which girl I would prefer), as well as whom I could identify with most in terms of personality. I found that I couldn't decide. I sympathized with each in turn, and could see how every one of them might fall in love with Yuuichi. Being able to put myself in their shoes, I ended up falling for him too.

I'm a huge sucker for unrequited love stories. Though I've never experienced it, I imagine one of the worst pains would be the person you love not just choosing someone else, but never even acknowledging you in the first place. I was amazed at how Yuuichi managed to spread love to everyone around him - without coming off as a player. He just noticed other people's troubles, and genuinely cared and tried to help. It's hard to find someone that honest IRL. I know you think he's boring, but I personally found his character inspiring, in a way.

...Whoa, I just realized why I like Yuuichi so much. He's like a combination of Kyon and Link from The Legend of Zelda, my two biggest fictional crushes. o.O; Freaky.


*senses opportunity*

Would you be interested in playing visual novels that hit on those themes? I can think of a very special one that I can get two other people to vouch for...:)

[YUKI.N]

Makoto:

I also got that feeling about Makoto. I don't know if and how the game handled it originally, but I liked the little throwbacks to Makoto's story during Shiori's path and at the end. Even though Makoto's path didn't mesh well with the others, I think Kyo-Ani did the best they could. I hate when characters are introduced in a story, given development, then all of a sudden erased and forgotten as if they never existed. It was refreshing to see that Makoto remained with Yuuichi in spirit, even protecting him during the snowstorm.

*senses opportunity*

Would you be interested in playing visual novels that hit on those themes? I can think of a very special one that I can get two other people to vouch for...:)

Sure, I would love to. ^^ I've always wanted to try playing a visual novel.

Uh, is there any hentai in it though? Not that I mind, but I do live in a dorm. ^^; If it's NSFW I can only play it on weekends when my roommate goes home.

[Doppleganger]

Sure, I would love to. ^^ I've always wanted to try playing a visual novel.

Uh, is there any hentai in it though? Not that I mind, but I do live in a dorm. ^^; If it's NSFW I can only play it on weekends when my roommate goes home.

Nope, none at all. This particular title's lack of it was a major point of interest for me. The story, characters and themes are INCREDIBLY strong, I wrote a glowing review in what became an immeasurably huge topic. I am very spoiler sensitive regarding it, and now that Talon just announced the next game in the universe was patched, it would be cool to start you on your path into the infinity loop.

The game is Ever17 - the out of infinty (http://forums.upnetwork.net/showthread.php?t=389). It is no small exaggeration that this game changed my life in 2007, when I was reeling from a lack of confidence due to academic struggles. It's the only visual novel I've played that I've rated over a 9.5, one of two past 9.0 (the other is Sengoku Rance, an H-title).

It was/is a marvelous experience.

[YUKI.N]

This is a totally random observation, but did anyone notice this (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v254/starswift/Kanonfox.png) in the final scene of Kanon?

Just discovered it while I was working on an AMV. I am definitely rewatching the whole series someday to see what other subtleties I can pick up. X3

[Talon87]

(A) Too long ago, (B) you just showed me. A+B = I can't say for certain. But probably not?

And yeah, it sure could be. You never know. :)

[unownmew]

This is a totally random observation, but did anyone notice this (http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v254/starswift/Kanonfox.png) in the final scene of Kanon?

Just discovered it while I was working on an AMV. I am definitely rewatching the whole series someday to see what other subtleties I can pick up. X3
I noticed it!


I just finished Kanon today. I'm not one for a huge analysis or anything like that, but I absolutely loved it. It was incredibly touching.

Personally though, I prefered Makoto (the Kitsune) over the others. Even if her story didn't mesh with the others, I'm glad she wasn't left out. I loved her personality, and it was so sad when she had to disappear, it was just as touching as as Ayu's story.

I moment I saw the first fox, I knew there was going to be a Kitsune who changed form. But Makoto was a red fox, who was the two-tailed kitsune briefly glimpsed behind the bushes in the forest?

The only thing I didn't like was how they kept dropping the girls to focus on another girl's arc, even though each end made me cry.