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Kanon 2006
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Animation - 9.6 |
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Sound - 8.7 |
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Story - 8.6 |
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Character - 8.6 |
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Value - 8.6 |
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Enjoyment - 8.9 |
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Average - 8.8 |
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Garuda |
(2009-06-26 20:49:29) 2009-04-08 23:24:40 |
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| Average |
9.3 |
| Animation |
9 |
| Sound |
10 |
| Story |
8 |
| Character |
9 |
| Value |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| Kanon 2006 is such a wonderfull Anime.
It starts a bit childish but turns out in a beautifull show.
The story is not 100% original or perfect and its also pretty simple but that realy doesnt matter, it has so many beautiull things that make up for it
After watching it the second time i think the most beautifull show i have ever seen.. (Edit: With Clannad After Story) it is realy a must watch for anyone who likes love and drama.
Definetily in my top 5 love/drama with Kimi Ga Nozomu Eien and Clannad + After Story, Elfen Lied, AIR.. and that sais alot.
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0 of 0 people found this review helpful.
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| Average |
8.2 |
| Animation |
7 |
| Sound |
7 |
| Story |
9 |
| Character |
9 |
| Value |
8 |
| Enjoyment |
9 |
| Yuichi returns to his old hometown with an unusual case of amnesia. Though Kanon has the weakest aesthetics of the three Key-Kyoto collaborations, it is blessed with the best story.
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Yenno |
2008-11-12 00:45:25 |
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| Average |
8.3 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Story |
8 |
| Character |
9 |
| Value |
7 |
| Enjoyment |
8 |
| Kanon follows Yuuichi returning back to a town which he visted in his childhood, where he previously made a few friends.
Kanon 2006, admittedly, has raised the bar of standards for eroge-derived anime. Worth a look at -but you aren't missing out on anything special if you don't watch it. In other words, it's not one of the "must-watch" titles.
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0 of 0 people found this review helpful.
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| Average |
9.5 |
| Animation |
9 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Story |
10 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| For the general reader, I'll just say that this anime has a very enjoyable story, interesting characters and wonderful humor. As a harem anime, it avoids the pitfalls of so many other works, and though the story takes a few episodes to get going and the characters are a bit stock (it was a dating game) the quality and finesse with which both are handled is ingenious. As log as you can sit back and relax and not bug out early on, I think most people could get to love this anime.
As compared to the 2002 version, this one is far better fleshed out and of a much higher production value. This especially helps Mai's side plot, the 2002 version of which was laughably, shall we say, unexplained. I felt Shiori's plot wasn't as well played as in the original (she used to be my favorite character), but not so much that it detracts from the series. The new strength of the main character, Yuichi,and his sense of humor also drive the series.
The only real problem I find with the series is that the plot takes about five episodes to kick in. The humor of this new version, though, very much helps carry you through those first few eps so that the slow paces isn't as bothersome as it was in say Zegapain. This part of the series I think was much easier to watch for those who had already seen the 2002 version and were delighted by every slight change that had been made as well as the similarities. It does help to be familiar with the original plot when watching this series, so I suggest you watch the 2002 version first (even if the animation was crap).
On a side note, I recently noticed the plot and setting of Kanon are strangely similar to those of the the survival/horror game, Silent Hill 2. I mean, white fog, emphasis on setting, suicidal girls, demons only certain people can see, a bossy little girl with blond hair, the main characters look ans dress alike and both have amnesia, the only other male character is blond, a phantom of a person who died in a forgotten tragedy, major scenes occurring in a hospital, all these are in both Silent Hill 2 and Kanon. A dating game and a survival/horror game. And the Kanon game came before Silent Hill 2... so if anyone was wondering why Silent Hill 2 had the best story of the series, well, look no further.
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0 of 0 people found this review helpful.
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| Average |
10.0 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
10 |
| Story |
10 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| I love everything about this anime and I have no criticisms whatsoever. 10/10
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0 of 3 people found this review helpful.
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Hikikomori |
(2008-04-29 10:14:46) 2008-04-26 19:12:06 |
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| Average |
9.2 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Story |
9 |
| Character |
9 |
| Value |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
9 |
| Kanon is a pretty good anime, believe it or not. On the surface it might look like one of those senseless super girlie anime series with the cast being 95% female and everyone having those humongous eyes and sitting around saying cutesy crap for 13+ episodes, but this is actually different. This isn't just some randomly senseless “cute” anime at all, there's actually a pretty nice story behind it. So if you are interested in what the buzz is about with this show but are thinking this is just another fluffy dumb chick anime, then maybe you ought to give it a second thought and take a closer look at this one.
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4 of 4 people found this review helpful.
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| Average |
8.0 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Story |
8 |
| Character |
7 |
| Value |
7 |
| Enjoyment |
8 |
| I never liked the first Kanon that came out in 2002. So I thought this new series would be just as bad, so I decided not to watch it when it was being released. A year and a half later I heard really good feedback from people that have already seen this anime. At the time CLANNAD was currently being released week after week, so being the person I am. I checked out Kanon 2006 and found it to be milestones better than the first? And I wondered to myself, how is this possible? Is it because of the new animations that are outstanding? Maybe. Is it because the main character bulked up and became a lot better? Maybe. Is it because more humor was added to the story? Maybe. Is it because the anime is 24 episodes, instead of half the length of that? Or is it because all of these combined make it better? Probably.
The animations are done by Kyoto Animations. The backgrounds are done extremely well and the snow looks pretty real when it's falling towards the camera. The character models may bug you off, because I do know some people that really don't like the way they show chins in this anime. But the chins didn't bother me and I thought the character designs were fairly good.
The OP song is a nice slow song while the animations during the OP showed all the girls. It's very relaxing and sets the mood for the 24-episode run. Voice actors are great and there a whole bunch of top known actors like the main guy, Yuuichi, and Ayu. There must have been more, except I couldn't recognize them.
Do you believe in miracles? Miracles just happen to be the theme to Kanon and the story is planned out very well. I don't know how they extended the beginning thirteen episode series into twenty-four episodes. Maybe they added a whole bunch of extra dialogue, or extra humor, or maybe they just showed a whole bunch of extra backgrounds that add into the story. A story is more better if you can get a better feel for the background. Just like how some novels explain things to the very utmost detail. Well, Kanon is what you would call a harem series where one boy is surrounded by many girls. Except that each girl has some sad background about her and it's really fun to discover or should I say rediscover them and probably at the end of each character's arc. You'll probably like that character by the end. I know I did, because I hated Makoto at first, but then she grew on me and by the end of her arc. I really liked her and it was sad to see her arc end.
The characters are well done, you get five girls with four fairly good background stories. I don't count Nayuki, because she didn't really have a sad past to her. But she was my favorite character in the series. You have your clumsy girl that looks like she's in elementary school named Ayu who is voiced by Yui Horie. You have Mai the strong willed girl who is quiet most of the time. Makoto the girl who somehow wants revenge on Yuuichi. (the main character) And then you have Shiori the sad girl in the snow in the end I liked all the girls and thought they were very well thought out. In my order of favorites it goes ...
Nayuki > Mai > Makoto > Ayu > Shiori
but that's just my opinion.
Kanon 2006 surprised me from the wonderful animations, the fairly good soundtrack, top notch voice acting, a story that compells you to watch, a little bit of humor added to make it a little more standable, and a very good character cast. Even if you didn't like the first Kanon, I would still recommend this series to you. Because I didn't like the first series, but I absolutely loved the second one done by Kyoto Animations. And I can rank it high with Air and soon to be over CLANNAD. What am I going to do now? Wait another week for CLANNAD. *sigh* Another long week of waiting .....
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1 of 1 people found this review helpful.
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| Average |
9.8 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
9 |
| Story |
10 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| I just finished watching this (over the last 3 days...) and must say I'm very impressed. Kyoto Animation, Key, and the voice cast all did a superior job at making this show among the top in my list.
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0 of 0 people found this review helpful.
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| Average |
10.0 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
10 |
| Story |
10 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| A remake of an older series, but a different feel. Although I can't say I have watched the older series, I went into this one first, as it was the anime I watched by Key Animation and Visual Arts. Truly something to wonder and behold, Kanon 2006 does a great job in all of its aspects and from what I heard, covers most or almost all of its holes from its predecessor. Please read on for full review!
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0 of 0 people found this review helpful.
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|
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| Average |
6.0 |
| Animation |
9 |
| Sound |
7 |
| Story |
6 |
| Character |
4 |
| Value |
5 |
| Enjoyment |
5 |
| Based on 20 episodes of Kanon:
Okay, I must admit: Kanon 2006 has very high production quality - especially its animation, voice acting and in a sense music. For a harem game/eroge/whatever you call it, I suppose it is a success. However, objectively, Kanon 2006 isn't very impressive. In other words, I got really really bored watching this. For Da Capo, at least I really liked Sakura's character, but there wasn't really any character to cheer for (more on this later). Anyway, Kanon 2006 is only good serving as some background noise.
Okay, so the first important thing of a harem game would be the girls right? We want interesting girls, and interesting chemistry between the guy and the girls. Sadly, Kanon was kind of lacking this. Aside from Yuuichi's comedic aspects and side dialogue, I really found nothing impressive in any form of character interaction. Dry dialogue, simplistic storyline, simplistic female character personalities, Uguu, Auu, simplistic female 'traits' (if you can call them that), etc. There's much to be desired for when it comes to this.
So, basically... let me tell you a story. I tried watching this anime with all my attention focused on it... fail. Got super boring because of the slow nature of the episodes. I decided to focus on my work while having this play in the background... success. Not only did I fully get the storyline (due to slow and simplistic use of Japanese that even I could understand), but I felt like I basically got all I really needed out of Kanon. In other words, rather than watch this, I'd rather just read about it.
Okay, now time for the storyline: for those who have seen Da Capo, it is very similar. A little bit of magic, a little bit of memory loss, a little bit of deja vu and a whole lot of personal problems. The basic idea is that Yuuichi has been to this magical town before (it always snows there) when he was a kid. While he stayed there for a summer, he managed to meet 5 girls and have them fall in love with him. 7 years later, he comes back... and they relive their hazy memories together... Okay, the idea isn't so bad. It worked well in Da Capo and was Da Capo's saving grace. However, for Kanon, the story is spread really thin. There are various character arcs, each with many episodes devoted to the girl characters - instead of one central girl (well, there is one... but she basically gets the same amount of screen time.)
Anyway, Kanon 2006 is not my cup of tea. It really watches like an eroge. The progression, the dialogue, the storyline, everything. Only the animation is impressive, but if the storyline is too boring to watch/look at, what's the use of impressive visuals? I'll definitely not recommend this.
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0 of 3 people found this review helpful.
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| Average |
10.0 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
10 |
| Story |
10 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| Kanon 2006 took the original Kanon and made it into a masterpiece. Upon finishing it, this anime made it to my top favorites, among the likes of Kimi Ga Nozomu Eien. That says a lot in itself.
I know some people criticized Kanon for being a bit much to swallow in terms of explanations. Yes, to some extent you will have to make a leap of faith, especially at the beginning. There is a lot you won't understand at first, and it won't make complete sense until the very end, but if you're patient it's well worth it. You'll be able to look back and realize, hey, that thing I saw in the 1st episode actually meant something. And that's a trait very special about this anime. From the snow, to the wings, to even the name of the anime (which they managed to connect to meaning as well this time), nearly everything in this series means something. If you cannot realize that and arent willing to think, you wont grasp the entirety of the story.
Animation - My jaw hit the ground on this one. It is beautiful. It is eye candy. I thought Air TV had beautiful animation, but looking back I can see that Air TV was simply a stepping stone to something greater. Kanon 2006 was flawless in this respect.
Sound - Kanon chose to do away with some of their songs from the original, but with the few they used, they used them very effectively. Quality was superb, and for some they even managed to connect it to the symbolism of the story. Impressive. The voices used for the characters were very well matched.
Story - The original Kanon had a decent, if a bit hole-y storyline. They fixed it all. Every character was carefully given their time and a very touching story from which to bloom, and each story was linked to the overall plot and theme. At no time was a character introduced for superfluous reasons; each one built into the story and added value and meaning. Kanon did a fantastic job of staying right on track the whole time. In fact, they were so focused on the storyline and their themes and symbolism that it would be hard to realize that this was originally from a H-Game and that there was any sexual themes at all. Throughout the series were lighthearted and hilarious parts, and there were very dark, thoughtful parts in the storyline. Each character carried their own trials connected by the common theme - miracles. While you may be left at the end trying to connect some parts, you'll find that given enough thought, everything is explainable given the events shown. It all relates to Ayu's storyline, and possibly a few loose screws in Yuuichi's head. Kanon 2006 will leave you with a warm feeling in your heart, as well as some thoughts on life to ponder for yourself.
Characters - They were absolutely adorable! Each character was given a plausible connection to Yuuichi that not only gave each female character depth and color, but also added the same to Yuuichi in the process. I really enjoyed how they played off all of each other this time, sometimes to a disturbing, but always adorable, extent (I'm looking at Ayu and Nayuki). I was left satisfied with each character's reason'd'etre, and felt that each character was well covered to the extent that they were needed. While Ayu, Nayuki, and Yuuichi don't fully develop until they very end, it's really an eye-opener to see such depth put into them. Each character matures throughout the story through their respective hardships and trials to create something even more beautiful than they started out with. The expressions are fantastic as well.
Value - As I said before, a masterpiece has been born. The storyline remains the same as the original, but it was given so much more depth and connectedness this time as to appear to be something entirely new. The writers have clearly matured a lot over the years, and really made something worth watching again and again. I am not one to typically give a perfect rating to an anime, but as I've thought over it for weeks, I'd be hard pressed to find one that is clearly superior. This may very well have been the best anime I have watched, and given my attachment to KgNE, that's hard to come to terms with. Again, if you are unwilling to put thought into this anime you are missing out. There is so much more meaning than meets the eye.
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0 of 0 people found this review helpful.
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| Average |
7.2 |
| Animation |
9 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Story |
6 |
| Character |
7 |
| Value |
6 |
| Enjoyment |
7 |
| There's no question that Kanon 2006 is better than the original series by a long shot.
The question is whether you can handle the same sheep within a different skin.
If you can, then you'll definitely enjoy Kanon 2006 for what it offers: better animation, extended time within the story to develop its characters respectively (especially for Ayu and Makoto's arcs), and a male lead that's miles and away more interesting than the original Yuuichi Aizawa-courtesy of the excellent VA work by Sugita Tomokazu, the same VA who voiced Kyon from Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuutsu. I found Tomokazu-san's wit and charm permeated into the situational humor and gave more life to the character this time around.
Problem: it contains the same supernatural melodrama and story flaws of the original-which for me, I didn't mind as much because I found myself feeling average with the original series. If you've watched Kanon 2006 without having seen the original series, then you may have picked up on these aspects without even watching the first series.
For me, Kanon 2006 was a better experience overall than the original. I, suprisingly, liked it despite the true to form phrase that describes this series to a tee: "same script, different cast."
Why did I find this series likable? As I've mentioned in many reviews of the same form: I like slice of life stories-they're among my favorite genre within the scheme of anime, and I have more of an affinity for stories of that sort. I liked watching Yuuichi (who was much more interesting this time around personality wise) coming back to the place where he grew up after 7 years have passed, and reacquainting himself with the places and people he once knew-which is why I didn't hate the first Kanon series. The psychological conflictions within Yuuichi were interesting to me in the first series, and carried onward (and more understandably) through this one. The problem: it's still overwrought melodrama, but at least it's more bearable because it builds up to the point gradually and much better than the original story.
I found myself knowing the girls a bit better this time around than in the original. Mai, Makoto, Ayu, Shiori, and Nayuki are all introduced gradually within the scheme of the series, and you can find yourself recognizing each of the girls at a better pace in this series than the former. They were fleshed out quite a bit more and, even, more likable than the original. As mentioned, Yuuichi's character excels much more in this series than the former-yet I almost feel he suffers from the same flaw that Rin from Shuffle does: interesting to start, but when the dramatic senarios hit-he loses his flare-I think Tomokazu-san covers Yuuichi a bit better than Rin because the story carries him a bit better--and Kanon 2006, while a harem series, isn't marred by overdisplays of ecchi or awkward pacing-it's actually better than most harem series because it doesn't necessarily play up the "aspects" the define a harem series (awkward male lead who wants to be aptly jumped by the girls he encounters). The girls have some of the same problems-fleshed, but fleshed within cliches, much within the flaw of most harem series.
Music in this series is quite nice: I preferred "Last Regrets" as the OP theme to this series because it fit the overall scheme much better. The ending is an upbeat treat, but I wouldn't say I liked it as much as the OP. In series music is consistent and makes for a pleasant listen, even on a stand alone note. The voice actors actually do a much better job this time around, even taking some of the same VAs who were in the original series (Maaya Sakamoto, Seki Tomokazu, etc.)
Overall, I found Kanon 2006 a decent, but like most game-->anime transitions, it becomes a bit caught in it's own overdramatic premises. I will say I enjoyed this more than the first series, and urge those who didn't really find favor in the first to give the second a try-providing you can stomach the same story in terms of events.
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| Average |
6.0 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
8 |
| Story |
5 |
| Character |
7 |
| Value |
3 |
| Enjoyment |
3 |
| Unlike many people who've reviewed this show, I didn't watch the original. I haven't played the game either, so I'm reviewing this as a stand-alone show.
The first thing that strikes you when watching this anime is the beautiful artwork and superior animation. It's very, very well done. Probably the best I've ever seen in a show of this length. It's a solid 10, no questions asked.
Then there's the opening theme. Personally, I didn't like it at all. Sure, it was dreamy and appropriate considering the story, but watching it even once was a chore for me. The ending song was a bit better, but not exactly good. When it comes to background music, it ranged from average to good... I guess the game-like music was intentional, although at times it didn't fit at all. Bringing up the sound-score is the voice acting, which is top-notch all the way.
The story was... pretty predictive most of the time. I liked the first introduction arc. Characters were well introduced, it was funny, and it was increadibly cute. For each arc, however, I liked this show less and less. The melodrama got worse and worse for every character they focused on. It was so extremely over the top that I couldn't sympathize with the characters at all, and Yuuichi felt like a complete stranger after a while. It didn't exactly help that the only character I kept on liking the entire show was the one who got PwnT by Yuuichi, and never "got her shit sorted out", so to speak. The main story or mystery or whatever was pretty nice, I guess, but not original and both predictive and inconsistent. I guess it's like this due to different paths you can take in the game, but when every path is presented semi-consecutively, it just becomes a mess.
The characters are mostly pretty solid, although most of them also have some pretty hardcore childhood memories that just seem too farfetched. Also, many of them are very similar to each other. The early Yuuichi is by far the most appealing character, followed by Nayuki. Unfortunately, Yuuichi changes during the show, and becomes quite the opposite of what he was.
In the end, I felt that watching this anime was more of a chore than a pleasure. It started out pretty good, but after a few episodes it took a dive for the worse and completely failed to sway my emotions; shows much less focused on drama than this have done a better job at it. The only reason I'd ever watch any part of it again would be due to the animation.
But hey, if you're very emotional and willing to ignore some plot holes and a LOT of cheesyness, this is probably the show for you.
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1 of 2 people found this review helpful.
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| Average |
9.8 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
10 |
| Story |
9 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| Truly a masterpiece of an anime! After watching this anime I felt that all other animes had such awful animation compared to this show! To all Kanon fans, Kanon 2006 offers even more enjoyment that its prodessesor!
An unforgettable anime for me!
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0 of 0 people found this review helpful.
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|
|
|
| Average |
10.0 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
10 |
| Story |
10 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| this anime is amazing! I myself don't usually watch this type of anime, as it's everyday and slow. But I got drawn into it at first by its beautiful quality in the opening: the mysterious theme on dream, the dreamy like quality of the OP and the amazing animation of the characters and setting (a city of snow).
I come to really enjoy the anime despite its slow progression. The everyday sadness and beauty that people encounter, the strength in weakness. In all, this anime is about everyday hardship and dream.
The anime has lots of girls in it, but Kanon isn't like Love Hina. You don't get the usual 'jealousy between girls over a guy' plot. There's no panty shot (thank goodness). The anime is completely serious with its immersion in the wonders of the plain (the everyday) and the sheer experience of the everyday.
Great anime! I cried a couple of times throughout the series.
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|
|
| Average |
10.0 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
10 |
| Story |
10 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
10 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| This is the greatest anime I have ever seen.
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0 of 2 people found this review helpful.
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|
Cataphract |
(2007-04-23 22:57:18) 2007-04-23 22:46:18 |
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| Average |
8.3 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
9 |
| Story |
6 |
| Character |
8 |
| Value |
8 |
| Enjoyment |
9 |
| Let me first say that I liked the original Kanon quite a bit. Though not usually my cup of tea, it did an okay job. Though it had a lot of flaws, it managed to pull ahead toward the end and make itself something decent. That said, it was never a favorite of mine, nor a series I held as being all that great.
Then Kanon 2006 came around...and wow, what a treat. The most stunning aspects of the new Kanon are by far its aesthetic qualities. That tacky, odd-feeling animation from its predecessor is completely done away with and revamped. There is huge detail put into the characters, especially in expressions, and they really come alive. Think the old Kanon's characters with twice to three times the attention given to them. In addition, the scenic qualities absolutely blew me away. Every single scene is gorgeously animated. Taking into consideration just how hard this is to achieve when there's so much snow everywhere I was thoroughly impressed. Top this all off with immensely fluid animation and you're in for an astounding treat. When I heard that Kanon got a revamp on animation I wasn't expecting much (as it was somewhat poor before), so this was a most pleasant surprise.
The soundtrack got an overhaul as well, and my is it nice. Last Regrets (the old ending) is the new opening, and they tossed in a nice ending theme in its place. The background music is what I appreciated most, though. Kanon 2006 is lavish with beautiful orchestral music that is placed very well throughout every scene which definitely contributes to the emotional atmosphere which was lacking in all but Ayu's arc before. The Seiyuu is top notch as well, and though I could have dealt with a bit less of the "uguu" sounds I have no real complaints. A real treat, I'm looking forward to the OST when it comes out.
My greatest hope, however, was in an improvement of Kanon's original fragmented and ineffective story. I was a little disappointed, but I think with the longer length the storywriters were able to flesh things out more. Though they still focus on 5 arcs, Mai's and Shiori's (especially) are cut back, remaining about the same time length as the original series. They developed Makoto a lot more as well as streamlined Ayu's story much more steadily, though I think they could have done a few things differently. All in all, if you enjoyed Kanon's original storyline this is a real treat, if not you might this time around. I'm not sure. Standalone from its predecessor I think it holds its weight, but when comparing I think it does an overall good job at addressing some of my prior concerns.
As for characters, Yuuichi was a MUCH better male lead this time around. Though I found myself scratching my head a few times, overall I was impressed. I like how the focal point in the Mai/Shiori arcs is shifted off of the girls and more toward developing Yuuichi, which is a definite plus. I'm considering only Yuuichi, Nayuki, Ayu, Makoto, and Akiko as the main characters here, as really the focus is placed on them much more appropriately this time around. Where before I felt somewhat aliented from all the characters, I was pleasantly surprised with the amount of depth they were given in this remake. Props to Kyoto Animation here.
Overall an enjoyable and memorable experience. Even if you didn't care for the actual story or characters before, I'd recommend giving Kanon 2006 another shot, if not just for the beautiful animation and music scores. I'm more impressed than I thought I would be.
Highly recommended.
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| Average |
9.0 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
9 |
| Story |
8 |
| Character |
8 |
| Value |
9 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| Now the older Kanon was something special to me. It was my first experience with some other kind of harem anime then the usual active girls all fall in love with the wimpy male lead. This time the girls were sad and not so active. And no matter how calculated it was, it broke my heart in several pieces. When I heard that Kyoto Animation, the animation studio responsible for some series with very impressive production values, I was naturally thrilled. However, high expectations have known to destroy otherwise perfectly fine series.
This time my nightmares didn't come true and the new version of Kanon proved to be anything I had hoped for and more. Thinking back to the older Kanon, its greatest weaknesses were the short lengt that made it more like a fireworks of sadness. There was little time to create solid mood or characters to any length. Luckily Kanon this time is twice as long giving enough time to actually digest what happens. The weak part was the male lead who had little personality. Again, this time the male lead has more personality than most and definitely doesn't stand in the background.
Now that the basic differences are clear, let's get to the business for Kanon rookies. Kanon is about Yuuichi, a boy with serious memory problems. He comes to back to his cousin's place after seven years. Unfortunately to him and some others he doesn't remember much of that time and the series is mostly about girls he met in the past and the problems they have had ever since. The moving force of Kanon is simply that these girls are very cute and all the tragic things that have happened or are happening to them feel very unfair. And then we can follow Yuuichi as he helps them. Which is quite fair, because he's the unknowing source of these troubles in some cases. As the story consist mostly of repeating scenarios (think of the name Kanon), it wouldn't be too interesting unless there was a strong unreal element in the series. No amount of logic can explain what happens in Kanon. People are far from what they appear or they possess strange powers. This all fits well together because realism isn't of importance in Kanon. People searching for stories of realistic love stories shouldn't bother with this series. Kanon is a sad, soft fairy tale with atmosphere of protective and unasking love. In the final episodes this is beautifully and accurately compared to living in somebody's dream.
So back to the characters. As I said earlier, the main character Yuuichi has improved a lot from the last time. If you remember Kyon from Kyoto Animation's last anime Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, Kanon's new Yuuichi is modelled after him, only he has a bit more playful nature. As all the girls are a bit silly in some ways, he makes a great fun of them at times. It's very like to an older brother teasing his little sisters. Endless amount jokes is derived from this and the show had me laughing out loud constantly. He also shows great affection towards the girls and is there to support them when things are looking bad. In the end Yuuichi won't be left unscarred either but we see some of his traumas too. And the girls are there to support him then. It's a great sign that you can actually sympathize as usually male leads in harem series are bland or annoying. The girls don't feel that special at first. They're cute and cheerful and all that but in the end the tragedies they carry inside them make them worthy of attention. Everyone of them gets their turn in the spotlight and grows up to overcome her problems with some help from Yuuichi (who is very talented at saying he didn't actually do anything for them despite the obvious). Some of their stories have more impact then others. As Kanon is based of a harem hentai game, these girls are designed with different charasteristics to appeal different personalities. Personal favourite of mine were Mai, the sword girl fighting demons at night whose background story was something earthshaking for me. In the original series her story was really abrupt and now when she caught full attention, I could really see the benefits of 24 episodes compared to 12. Kanon also used quite nice ways to manipulate me to think something else of her story based on previous stories in the series. On the other, the first story of Makoto feels a bit streched. Funny to think that she was my favourite when I watched the first series. All in all, the stories of different girls are all touching and interesting.
The production values do shine in Kanon as they have done in other Kyoto Animation series. The animation is fluid and detailed. Kanon is a story happening in winter and as I love winter and snow too, I was thrilled to see the beautiful sceneries when snow falls down gently and the scenery is covered in white. The backgrounds are detailed and there many things to catch there. The background music is gentle and beautiful perfectly fitting for the series. From the voice actors Yuuichi's voice Tomokazu Sugita is simply brilliant. His voice perfectly fits Yuuichi's character and is a primary reason making the new Kanon so enjoyable. The girls' voices are also soft and well in their character.
Kanon is not a series for everyone. It doesn't bother with logic and uses elements that look the like the easiest way out. I mean, how hard is not to care for a cute, suffering girl? But since Kanon combines this with the ethereal atmosphere and endless compassion I can't help but to be drawn in to the series, forget about worldly things and cry after the sadness the girls must endure. If you're in Kanon's target group, it will hit you hard and deep and it won't let you out of the dream until it ends.
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kaitokid05 |
(2009-06-17 01:19:01) 2007-03-28 00:26:12 |
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| Average |
8.3 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
7 |
| Story |
9 |
| Character |
8 |
| Value |
8 |
| Enjoyment |
8 |
| I don't have much to say about this one anymore. Please delete this review.
Please delete this review.
Please delete this review.
Please delete this review.
Please delete this review.
Please delete this review.
Please delete this review.
Please delete this review.
Please delete this review.
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|
|
|
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| Average |
9.5 |
| Animation |
10 |
| Sound |
10 |
| Story |
8 |
| Character |
10 |
| Value |
9 |
| Enjoyment |
10 |
| Before i start my review, i give a slight bit of advice that you may wish to take in or not. Watch Kanon 2002 first!! Or not, either way is fine, but imo, to make a fair comparison of this show, a comparison between its first series and the game is quite important.
This new series is basically what Kanon 2002 is but better, everything that i loved in Kanon 2002 (one of my fave anime shows) is better to a degree such as the character personalities and development, the stories involved are much more developed and spread out, the landscape scale of the town feels much bigger and better than before. But importantly, what this series does is fix what the first seasons falters at, in particular, the length of the show and the character designs. Both of which are fixed, and now the characters look like the game characters, the length of the show has almost doubled therefore more time for development and progression.
Sure enough, the uninitiated will find this as a generic kind of harem show and i take fair judgement from that, however, they are missing the point of Key games, they are not as generic as other game makers. As with Air, Kanon passes along a message to the viewer, its deep, its sensitive and it causes alot of viewers to swell up with tears. That is the fundamental difference between this type of harem show and the generic kind like Love Hina, Happy Lesson and even Ai Yori Aoshi.
Now for characters, ok, each girl has a good amount of screentime, though playing favourites is tough here, personally, my old series fave Shiori is again amazing with her cuteness and her tragic illness story that wins her many points for me, however, characters such as Makoto gained a favourable impression on me, though her story dragged on a bit, it was touching and seeing her slow decline to her original self is just brilliant to watch. Mai is great, almost no change from the first series except more development. Ayu and Nayuki are equally awesome, with Ayu being the winner again and Nayuki taking second place towards Yuuichi's heart, which is a shame really because though i have no qualms about Ayu being picked, a remake such as this should have tried something a bit different at the end. And finally, Yuuichi, a much cooler and more handsome version of the last series chinny chin chin, played by the same seiyuu as Kyon, a resemblance is easily picked out and his character is really in touch. Overall, no problems with characters, they're how they were in the first series and much more.
Now, i have to pick out problems with this, being a critic, and it has 2 problems, first off, the ending, rushed but still brilliant, in fact, i would say that if the show was given 2 more episodes, things would be much better but the ending given is still good and tear-jerking.
Secondly, and a sad fact is, if you watched the first series, you 'may' struggle to cry over the parts in this series. The fact that you know what happens generally preys in the back of your mind and that hurts this series in my opinion. However, its still a great value to watch.
Overall, though a rushed ending and deja vu effects come into play, those two points don't outweigh the awesomness that this show holds, superb animation with great developed stories and backgrounds. Kanon 2002 got 8.5/10 from me, and this series is gonna get 10/10 from me. The third 10/10 and a grade: S
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