Animation Quality/Design: 8
Beautiful colours abound throughout the series, and the OP and ED look fantastic. Additionally, I really liked the character designs and loved the many different outfits each character had (Poppo’s clothes were particularly fun
). Still, I hated that Tsuruko’s glasses disappeared into her hair (often making her glasses look like they are floating on her face), and I despised Anaru’s twintails.
Additionally, the architecture and design of the cityscape was very realistic and had a nice “lived-in” feel. But, I disliked that so little of the individual character’s houses were ever explored (I’m not saying I wanted to see their bathrooms…but you can learn a lot about a character from seeing their medicine cabinet
), but I did like how individual and defining their personal spaces were (from Anaru’s clutter, to Tsuruko’s flower patterned carpeting, to Yukiatsu bland room) .
Voice Actors: 9
Due to the emotional nature of the series, a single false note from any of the Vas could have spelled doom for the story being told. Thankfully, the cast was chosen wisely, and there was nary a hint of false emotion (I especially liked Ai Kayano (as Menma), who bore much of the emotional burden from episode to episode, but handled herself quite well.)
That being said, while the lead cast was all quite good, I was very surprised by how good the secondary characters voices were, particularly Kaoru Mizuhara as Menma’s younger brother Honma (who, while only shown a few times in the series, has some surprisingly emotional moments) and Mitsuru Ogata as Jintan’s father. Fuyuka Oura as Menma’s mother was also very good, sadly she, and the others I listed, was never given enough time to really explore the characters…but that is a minor complaint considering the story being told.
Script: 8
Unlike many others, I felt the series started strong, muddled its way through the middle episodes (many of which were badly paced and overwrought), before ending on a high, if somewhat ridiculous, note. I always loved the dialogue between the characters, but felt many of the introspective moments were a little forced. As for the story, while very simplistic, there was much depth to the story and Mari Okada managed to plumb much of that depth in a realistic, if somewhat kid-friendly, way. And, while the emotional realism began to subsume the actual realism of the earlier episodes, I was still hooked.
Soundtrack: 7
The OP/ED were both fantastic (especially the ED), with great visuals and great sound (I loved listening to them through my television’s speakers, and I can’t wait to rewatch the series on an actual Blu-Ray with 5.1). Additionally, the incidental music was quite nice and greatly added to many of the more emotional scenes. Still, there was nothing monumental about the score, and ultimately the OP/ED is the main highlights (though they are amazing highlights).
Editing: 7
The series was badly paced (either moving too quickly, or far too slowly), especially the middle episodes which feel downright lackluster compared to the beginning and ending of the series. It certainly doesn’t help that there were transition problems throughout the series. Still, this was more of a minor annoyance rather than actually detrimental.
Enjoyment: 8
Again, the middle episodes dragged on needlessly, and the simplicity of the story was somewhat distracting. It certainly didn’t help that several of the characters, while still feeling “authentic”, were somewhat annoying or had strange changes in character (this is most obvious with Anaru and Yukiatsu, who have whiplash inducing story moments). Still, the gentle boil of the series was quite enjoyable, and the eventual catharsis was well earned for all the characters.
Emotional Involvement: 8
Despite some missteps, I was heavily involved with these characters, and genuinely wished to see them find a way to positively express themselves. The ending was a pitch-perfect, if a little stagy, example of just how in-tune the writing and acting had allowed me to become with the characters.
Overall: 8
Cumulative Episode Score: 7.6