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Old 2013-09-01, 07:49   Link #744
Ledgem
Love Yourself
 
 
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: Northeast USA
Age: 38
I agree with a lot of what has been said about this series. It's been about a year since I started the first season, and I just finished After Story.

The second half or so of After Story is masterfully done, and somewhat unique as far as anime goes. It is a beautiful experience to get attached to characters and then see them go throughout life, hitting major life events that we, the viewers, are likely to experience ourselves. It is profound in that you vicariously live those moments, only to return to where you are in your own life with some further knowledge and understanding of what is to come.

The rest of the series, including the first season, somewhat drags down what the second half of After Story accomplishes. That's because the first season and the first half of After Story are fairly stereotypical high school drama series. Yet even as a high school drama series it felt somewhat banal; there were too many episodes where I didn't feel much motivation to move on to the next one. I almost inadvertently dropped the series twice by taking breaks, but continued on because I'm a completionist (and, not wanting to re-watch episodes that I had already seen, was worried that an extended break would cause me to forget everything and be forced to start from the beginning again).

There are some series where I watch them and then desire to share them with my wife. In those cases, re-watching the episodes that I've already seen is enjoyable. I wish I could share the second half of After Story with my wife, but I feel that we would need to go through the entire first series, at least, in order for its true impact to be felt. The thought of doing so feels as if it would be a chore.

I wish that more of Clannad were like the second half of After Story. It also would have been amazing if After Story had gone even farther, bringing Tomoya and Nagisa to old age, and Ushio to the point of high school or even new motherhood. Then we would see the entire "life cycle" in one series. It would have made for an even more beautiful experience.
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