The introverted Ichinosuke has a shadowy intriguing backstory that far surpasses what the show writes for everyone else. There is little in the way of depth or drama. But the problem with Clanaad is it has an ongoing feeling of sameness. Ichinosuke's violin playing is a riot and Nagissa's mom who is unflinchingly over sensitive about her baking is adorable. Sakagami has the same angel face as all the other girls but she can drop kick any of the boys in the school out a window. If you are anything but a 12 year old girl, comedy goes further than drama in this series. Even more extraordinary however is how the show has a way of summoning beauty out of the mundane out of the flies hovering around a street lamp, or the quaint naturalism of the bakery that Nagissa's family owns, or in the elegant minimalism of a traditional Japanese bedroom. This is a world where the sky is always blue in the day and golden in the evening. When it comes to art, few animated shows paint with sunlight as vividly as Clannad. And yet Nagissa is strangely underwhelming as a character simply because she has no flaws. What is important however is that they get along perfectly, it is everything but a forced relationship. The fact that she seems small enough to be his little sister is somewhat distracting once it becomes obvious that they are heading towards being a couple. Nagisa is an angel face with a heart to match, the kind of girl that is too impossibly perfect. How perfect is it that all the girls in the show are drawn to him. He is unmotivated and depressed, (although he never seems that way) but things get turned around after he makes friends at his new high school. Infused with bits of magic realism, the show is some kind of a daydream a story where everyone wins and gets what they want at a cost of virtually nothing. Japan's favourite slice of life series, Clannad rises and falls on its oversized heart and untainted emotional grace. Overall I'd certainly recommend this to fans of the genre. I can't say how it compares to 'After Story' but having read other reviews I think that is something I need to watch. The story is well told although it must be noted that the twenty third episode is the real final episode episode twenty four takes place in an alternate timeline where Tomoya is involved with the studious school council president something others disapprove of. There are a good range of interesting characters their designs are fairly standard but they are distinctive enough that one shouldn't confuse who is who. Amidst the drama there are some very funny moments mostly involving Tomoya's friend Youhei.
When to watch clannad movie series#
Protagonist Tomoya may have several female friends but it never becomes a harem series and the stories have a good emotional pull especially when we learn certain things about Fuko. In some ways this is a typical high school anime with its mix of varied characters and a blend of drama and comedy there are however things that make it stand out. This may sound fairly routine but there is something odd about Fuko, first she is carving wooden starfish to give everybody and secondly not everybody seems to notice her for reasons I won't spoil. The most notable being the first where they help Fuko, a first year girl, who wants to invite everybody to her sister's wedding. For much of the time this plot takes a back seat as the pair, along with other friends get involved in other plot arcs. She wants to restart the school's drama club and he agrees to help her. Tomoya Okazaki is a typical, if somewhat lazy high school student then one day he meets Nagisa, a quiet girl who, due to an illness, is repeating her final year.