Clannad | Q's Anime Review & Commentary

A Potent Life Encompassing Story of Youth, Innocence, Love, Loss & Romance 
Clannad (47 Episodes 2 Ova's Two Seasons)8.78 out of ten

Angst, heartbreak, regret, innocence, teardrops, youth.. This is Clannad. A potent part of the Kyoto and Key holy trinity and arguably the best out of the three. While I like many others continue to follow Kyoto animation as well as Key, I feel that Clannad really became a foundational staple for both both parties marking a fine eye point in both their catalogues regarding the shared success and critical reception of Clannad. As when most of us think about the absolute best works from Kyo Ani & Key, a lot of us look back at Kyo Ani & Key's partnership in the early to mid 2000's as the most fond, where the stars seemingly alined and where the majority people would tip their hat in respect to both the visual novel and anime medium in what they are both capable of in terms of telling a story.

Jun Maeda
[Lead Scenario Writer &]
[Music Composition]

While not the first project of the Kyo Ani/Key relationship, there's no doubt in mind that it was the most significant, being that it was the culmination and the fruits of their labour that would mark the end of the Kyo Ani x Key saga and would begin Kyoto Animation's new beginning of carving their path into becoming the most beloved & respected animation force in the industry today. Being that one of the three main scenario writers for Clannad Jun Maeda felt as if his work on Key's last project "Air" was difficult for some viewers to understand, feeling a duty to write Clannad so it'd be easier to understand & receive, in that he championed the creative process behind Clannad's scenario as the most ambitious of his work.

"Clannad is a wall I can never cross again" Jun Maeda [October 11, 2007 Degeki G's Magazine]

In my mind Clannad was the most honest and life encompassing story of the three, & while it has more than it's fair share of going through the motions of established cliche's and narrative loops that concerns the Moe/Slice of life genre in general, what separates Clannad from most of it's peers and predecessors is that the story goes through the natural succession beyond the closet of a story set strictly in a high school setting. As Clannad is Tomoya's life encompassing story of love, joy, regret and tragedy, with beautiful mix of setting and character driven story that's equally atmospheric as it is goofy and sweet. It's a patient family soap opera that sets the stage for it's climatic moments early on through it's details and composition of the individual stages of the story, in how they connect and empower one another. As Jun Maeda & Fumuhiko Shimo we're able to bring the story to a full circle while maintaining a subliminal progression and tempo, having each moment resonate while keeping in mind the composition of the emotional flow, dynamic and flavour of the series throughout the span of 47 episodes. As Clannad is arguably the Pinnacle of the Nakige genre.

Sora No Woto (Sound Of The Sky) | Q's Anime Review

A Tale Filled With Moe Comedy & Wonder, With Subliminal Moments
Sora No Woto (12 Episodes Single Seasons 2 Ova's) 7.96 out of 10 Stars

While often slandered as "Military K On!!", it's quite an oversight to assume Sora No Woto doesn't have it's own merit as it's own unique story, while some will carelessly draw parallels between how Rio & Kanata play brass instruments, along side plausibly similar character designs & the slice of life aspects each series has to call Sora No Woto a "Rip Off", that's really where the similarities end, as I find the comparison surface level and facile, paying little attention to the stark differences regarding the text. In that while K On! continued to be a text book example of a completely episodic comedy throughout it's span of 30 sum episodes, with everything plush & Kawai (Cute) - Sora No Woto on the other hand blossomed more so into a coming of age story, and at least made some attempt at a collective overarching narrative and theme, contrasting it's light hearted moments with prospect of war that threatens their peaceful way of life on the outskirts of Seize, however rosy and sentimental such a take on war that may be.

While somewhat of an average story with a glossed over and an idealized version of what war really means, what particularly strikes me are some of the more subliminal & quiet moments within the series along side occasional laughs that I find make it worth the watch. Not to mention it's a really beautifully rendered animated series for it's time.

Shirobako!! Stuff We Like!! Quick Review & Commentary

It's a new day, so lets start it off with Shirobako.
A Rosy, Robust & Jubilantly Exciting Anime Production 

Shirobako (24 Episodes Single Season)

Shirobako, an anime that gives us a somewhat rosy, but none the less solid and satisfying take on what goes on behind the scenes and the people responsible for making anime. Aoi Miyamori, our light bronze haired female lead takes the role of a production assistant and later a production manager, so we get a general oversight of characters she has to manage, keep track of an up to date with & with the problems that arise we get an introduction to each character in the studio, who they are, the details of their job and how that relates to the problem that needs to be fixed to meet deadlines. Also we get nice insight on 4 other of her friends that serve as additional main characters, though Aoi Miyamori seems to be our main gal for the majority of the show.

Seeing that Shirobako had heart warming moments within a group of friends busty with their daily lives with the spare time they had was very encouraging, Shirobako warranted more investment right off the bat. At Musashino animation, where pretty much all of our 5 main character eventual congregate to, is a anime production studio that contracts itself to produce anime while it airs, which is quite common since it's less expensive. This of course brings deadlines & that's where our problems lie, with the people involved and how Aoi Miyamori helps to understand these people & their problems, to eventual arrive at a solution.