REVIEW - Clannad After Story (2007)

Sequel anime are normally either very good or very bad, and a lot of the time it depends on the ending of the first anime that determines the outcome of the entire second season. Sequel series are a big risk a lot of the time, and while some pay off greatly, others don't. It really depends on how good that first season was and how much weight the second season has going into it.

Clannad After Story by Key Visual Arts is nothing less than perfect.

Clannad After Story takes place right where the original Clannad ended. Tomoya and Nagisa are now living together with Nagisa's parents and it's coming to the end of their third and final year in High School. Everything is going well in the Theatre Club, and it seems as though nothing could stop our main characters living out the rest of their School Days in peace. Unfortunately for Tomoya, Nagisa falls sick near the end of her school year. Due to her low attendance, she yet again has to repeat her final year of School....without Tomoya. To try and occupy himself while Nagisa repeats school, Tomoya starts to work in the Furukawa's bakery to earn himself a small bit of money (even if Sanae's bread isn't that great...). He moves out and get's a job with Yoshino Yusuke and the electric company to help pay his rent at his new place. And it's here where the story begins to become something greater than it seems. Rather than just a story about a delinquent trying to make friends, After Story pushes the boundary's of Tomoya's character and we begin to see how he handles real life (in the sense that we see him cope with life after school) and how he handles being a family man, as he ends up marrying Nagisa. I won't go further into the plot details as, Episodes 15-22 (the Last Episodes) contain some of the absolute saddest, most emotionally heartbreaking moments and the absolute best ending to any anime series of all time. I though that it couldn't get better than the original's ending, but After Story blows the original - and everything else - out of the water. it's not just a tale of a boy trying to accept his new life, but about a boy becoming a man and having to accept the things that life throws at him. It's unparalleled in terms of storytelling, and has the best plotlines of any anime to date.

Characters are hard to talk about with this anime, since a lot of them have spoilers that could potentially ruin the whole damn thing. So be forewarned about this, I'm going hella deep into spoiler territory with this one. Don't come crying to me if I spoil anything.

Tomoya Okazaki

Tomoya has grown in character since we first saw him at the bottom of the hill at the start of the original Clannad. He's not the guy who regularly skips class or gets into fights (although he still does get himself into one or two fights due to uncontrollable circumstances) anymore, now he's a caring, loving character who wants to live out the rest of his School Days with Nagisa and the Theatre Club. He's still a bit of a wise ass, but he's also very intelligent and funny (especially in combination with Akio). He's also determined to do anything for his family and he also ties up loose ends with his father, making his character come full circle at the end. Watching Tomoya grow in all of this makes me realize how much effort and care was put into his character by the writers. He is without a doubt Key's best male lead character, and one of the best in all of anime.

Nagisa Furukawa/Okazaki

The fate if this character is one that has caused many an anime fan to pause the episode, think for a minute and break down in tears from the reaction that Tomoya gets. Without a doubt the star of the show is Nagisa, the ever popular crybaby of the unnamed city. Even though she is a crybaby and very weak, Nagisa is determined to become stronger, albeit not physically but willingly, not just for herself but for her family and for her boyfriend Tomoya. While her fate is tragic, she gives Tomoya something to live for, something to strive for and something to dream for. She is the source of a lot of the anime's more memorable moments, and is a well rounded character all in all. But her fate is inevitable....and my God if you do not cry at the stuff that happens to Tomoya because of this, you sir/madam do not have a heart.

Animation wise, Clannad After Story is tied with Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo as the best looking anime of all time. I honestly cannot find nothing wrong with it and it's a substantial upgrade from the original series, with breathtaking environments, stunning characters and at times an out of this world (somewhat literally given the context of the scenes) framerate. Lighting is fantastic and areas are beautifully drawn. I cannot say anything bad about it even if I were to be hyper-critical it's THAT GOOD.

Musically, a lot of the tracks come from the original series superb soundtrack, which is fine but what takes After Story over the edge is it's absolutely stunning and well done opening. The music is great, but in co-ordination with the animation it's just absolutely stupendously brilliant. There is not a single flaw with this soundtrack, and the Dango Daikazoku song is still as catchy as ever.

There's no other way of saying this so I'm just gonna say it now: Clannad After Story is simply Flawless. From the heartwarming story, the heart wrenching characters, the stunning animation and the absolutely amazing soundtrack to the pinnacle anime ending, Clannad After Story is the anime other animes should try to be. Everything Key has ever done after this such as Angel Beats! simply cannot compare to the brilliance that is Clannad After Story.

Story: 10

Characters: 10

Animation: 10

Sound: 10

Personal Enjoyment: 10

FINAL SCORE FOR CLANNAD AFTER STORY: 10/10

Flawless