Nagato Yuki-chan no Shoushitsu

As a fan of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, I won't hesitate to watch or read (or at least plan to) anything related to that series. Of course, that includes this spin-off, The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan. I read a few volumes of the manga and loved it, so when this anime was announced, my excitement was only doubled! However, I admit that I also had my concerns, as Kyoto Animation, the studio that worked on the original anime, didn't work on the spin-off. As it aired, I found that it wasn't received that well, either. However, that doesn't change the fact that I still ... really enjoyed The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan.

Okay, so does anyone remember The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya? This anime takes place in the alternate world from that movie, where everything is normal and there is no aliens, time travelers, or espers whatsoever. Yuki Nagato is a shy girl who is nothing like the Yuki Nagato we all know and love. This Yuki is a member of the Literature Club, along with Ryoko Asakura and Kyon. Yuki also happens to have a crush on Kyon. Basically, the anime follows Yuki as she goes through her everyday life with the Literature Club and her feelings for Kyon develops.

As you can see, a majority of the characters have changed. As I've said before, Yuki is now a really shy girl, and Kyon is kinder in comparison to the original. Ryoko Asakura is also different from the original; she acts as more of a motherly or a sisterly figure to Yuki. I wasn't really a fan of her in the original anime, and I'm guessing other Haruhi fans can understand why. However, that's not to say everyone's completely different. Mikuru still retains her character from the original series (which is a good thing, as I LOVED her in the original series), and Haruhi is still as fun of a character as ever. Even so, even the characters whose personalities have changed were still fun to watch, although I can't deny that they're still not the same as the ones we know and love.

The story is a good one, with lots of comedy and drama. The story is especially great in episodes 10-13, where the Yuki Nagato we all know and love is shown to us. The animation, I admit, is not as good as in the original series. What do you expect, though? It wasn't Kyoto Animation that did the animation this time; instead, it was Satelight. As a result, the animation is more bright and more cutesy, and it takes a while to get used to. It's not bad animation at all, though; in fact, Satelight did a good job with the animation. The voice actors also did a great job at reprising their roles, as expected. The OP and ED are great, too; I could listen to them on repeat without getting bored!

Let's face it, everyone; The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan is NOT a Haruhi Season 3. However, it's still a really, really, REALLY enjoyable anime. If anyone liked Yuki Nagato from The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya and want to see more of her, this anime is PERFECT for you. It's given me even the tiniest of hopes that The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya will get an actual third season!

While I've never been much of a fan of the Haruhi Suzumiya franchise, I can still say, at the very least, that I admired the off-kilter charm it had and understood the appeal that others would find in its self-aware meta-humor. It was quirky, upbeat and had a trademark style of doing things that were uniquely its own. By itself, that might not seem like much of an accomplishment, but when placed through a filter with the countless other school slice-of-life titles produced after its inception, it becomes more apparent why it gained its popularity. Despite the anime industry being saturated with these dime-a-dozen titles ... every year, the Haruhi franchise still manages to stay relevant by being one of the few to tinker with the formula in inventive ways. And like most things tend to, it had its fair share of detestable moments as well (8 x ∞), but regardless of that, it still had a distinct identity that couldn't be found elsewhere. It's something you don't necessarily have to like, but you can still appreciate it for what it did.

Unfortunately, I can't offer the same accolades to its spin-off Nagato Yuki-chan no Shoushitsu ( The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan). A "Spin"-off is supposed to take elements of its predecessor and add a new "spin" to it. In other words, it's supposed to do things differently from the status quo of the original series but still maintain aspects of it that connect it back to the parent story. While it was certainly "different" and a departure from the usual hijinks of the SOS Brigade, it had none of the charm or inherent value found in the parent story. In fact, The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan is the exact opposite of what I saw admirable about the main story in the first place. It's a spin-off indistinguishable from the mass produced yearly offerings that I thought Haruhi never fell victim to. It's a title that got caught in the trappings of its genre's tropes, which automatically makes it a title that many would not speak of or forget altogether in the long run. The premise that it had wasn't bad, but the actual product that we were given was far from satisfactory.

Swapping the supernatural shenanigans and one-off adventures with a rom-com narrative, the story of Nagato Yuki-chan sees the titular character Nagato try to confess her love to Kyon, only for her attempts to end without fruition, and then they repeat the cycle by the next episode. There you go, that's literally it. For the 1st 10-episodes, what we're essentially given is your typical "would they or wouldn't they" scenario where every moment is ruined by the love interest in question or by a side character popping up at the most inconvenient time. In between these moments, they insert a lot of padding and fluff in the form of slice-of-life segments. This includes everything from your cliched bathhouse/hot spring episode, to your group field trips. If you've seen enough school SoL anime titles before, this is just a patch job of all the overused setups, with the only difference being that the characters are from the Haruhi universe. I feel like there isn't a need to spell out the obvious here but just in case it isn't already clear enough, this is G-E-N-E-R-I-C. But like I said, it was the 1st 10 episodes that followed this monotonous cycle, after that point, the show took an unexpected turn and introduced a plot twist that brought with it much needed character drama, but I'll save that information for the spoiler section for those who haven't seen the spin-off yet.

The story of Nagato Yuki-chan may have had good intentions, but the humdrum way it went about presenting it topped with the overused scenarios made it a tedious watch very quickly. It tossed in an unexpected twist for good measure, but by then, the damage was already done.

The art and animation of Nagato Yuki-chan were, for the lack of a better word, basic. This can also mark the 1st real point of contention for fans of the franchise as they altered all the original character designs that helped to distinguish the cast into moe ladened ones that make them appear painfully generic. Change isn't a bad thing per say, but when the change is a downgrade from unique character design to xerox copies, that change can be very jarring. Their "spunk" was gone. The quality downsizing didn't stop there, as there was also a lack of detail placed in any given background. Even the unique shot compositions were no longer present. This may have been the result of another studio handling the show, as Satelight took the reins from Kyoani in its inception; a choice that might have been the first big mistake. With no proper use of lighting, no attempts at unique camera angles, inept understanding of color theory and no real distinguishable atmosphere developed, the switch in studios was one that really put a damper on a show that was already holding on at the end of the proverbial rope. The only credit I can offer is that they were able to capture the right tone for the latter half of the show.

As if to add insult to injury, a majority of the cast felt alienated from the prior installments. Not only did they look generic but now even their personality is bleached. They were either rewritten or regressed in dimension, and some were also reduced to being used as nothing more than background decoration. Thankfully, some maintained their personality, like Haruhi and Asahina, but even then, they were all watered down versions of their former self. Nagato and Kyon took the lead roles in the story, and while Kyon still had his sharp whit about him, it was toned down quite a bit. His personality was altered to fit a more optimistic portrayal, which in turn erased the "person of reason" that he was always known for into a character that didn't quite fit the mold. It's okay if they wanted his personality to reflect better the more lighthearted tone the show was going for but his pessimistic outlook is as much of a signature of the franchise as is the yellow ribbons as much of a trademark style of Haruhi. Getting rid of it is like getting rid of a big chunk of what makes the character stand out.

Koizumi isn't even given any screen time and felt like he was only being placed the show as a carryover and nothing more. Same can be said about Asahina's involvement. They were both there to fill in their roles but was never given any time dedicated to them. A majority of the cast was underutilized or not even relevant at all. Perhaps the most significant change is that of Nagato's, and quite frank, it's the most grating. While the intention was for her to be an alternative story-line version to that of the movie, her personality makes a complete 180 if compared to the original and his grossly exaggerated if compared to the movie version. She's no longer the stoic, calculating Nagato but a shy hyperactive moe-blob with a pension for food and video games. It's a huge juxtaposition from who she was and one I couldn't buy into.

The cast as a whole was quite unappealing, and none of them was endearing or fleshed out. They were all husks of their former selves.

The soundtrack was forgettable. None of it ever grips you and remained as background noise. I can't recall anything special about it, as none of it stood out. The only time there was any visible effort came with the piano ballads towards the latter half, but even that was run-of-the-mill for what it was intended to do. The opening and ending themes were skippable, with the opening being a typical J-pop song and the ending a somber downtempo one. The voice actors were all fine, the only standout that comes to mind was that of Tomokazu Sugita's, who played Kyon. His monologs were always a nice touch and through it, provided insight into the situations the characters found themselves in.

***Spoiler Section****
(skip to the enjoyment and overall section to avoid spoilers)

So the big reveal that the show hits you with is that the old stoic Nagato from the main series randomly commandeered the body of the new Nagato of this spin-off, and while it was indeed an interesting twist..., HOW and WHY does this happen?

The plot twist had no buildup, no foreshadowing but just came out of nowhere with no explanation and then it went away just as quickly with no proper reasoning behind it. Honestly, it felt like it was a cheap ploy only there to break the monotony of the basic rom-com and in a desperate attempt to salvage viewer interest. The character drama that arose from it was nice, as it spiced things up, but with it simply popping up and then going away without consequence or reason, it just brought more questions than it helped with the overall show. Not to mention that even the stoic Nagato was reduced to acting silly and "kawaii" after the reveal, which defeated the whole purpose of her being introduced in the plot twist, to begin with. I don't know if they meant to use this as a chance to leave the story open-ended for a continuation or not, but it happened far too late into the story to matter, and everything was only brought back to the status quo by the time the series ended.

***End of Spoilers*****


Enjoyment: 2/10

I'm not going to mince my words here; I hated this spin-off. Every bit of me wanted to drop it, and the only reason I didn't is my OCD-like mentality towards finishing titles. It was bland, overly sentimental and a waste of effort.

Overall: 4/10

Nagato Yuki-chan no Shoushitsu is not only a stain on the Haruhi's name but one that manages to lose all the charm and wit the franchise is known for. It's a cash grab nobody wanted nor needed, and the only thing it honestly shares with Haruhi is the characters and familiar namesake. With that said, if you're an avid fan of the franchise, then I suggest keeping your expectations low, as it doesn't contain the same trademarks you'd expect from the series. And if you've been impartial towards the series thus far, then stay clear from this one or prepare yourself for a cringe-inducing experience.

Its amazing how slight changes in perspective can cause something that on the surface seemed initially disjointed and disappointing, into an emotional experience that brings a surprising amount of satisfaction.

Like most, I went into the series expecting the enjoyably discordant storyline, animation, and voice acting that the original series and movie had. I was consequently confused by Kyon's noticeably different appearance and a number of other slight visual changes that I shamefully explained away by learning the original studio hadn't worked on it. The first few episodes made it abundantly clear that it was not "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya", and finding that out ... annoyed me immensely.

However, as I continued to watch the series, I began to recollect parts of the "The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya" in particular Nagato's role in it. As part of that recollection, I finally realized, "Ah... this is Yuki-chan's dream reality" and afterwards everything clicked into place. The visual aberrations weren't unintentional, there was meaning behind the almost cliche variants of this series' characters' personas, and even the series' romcom style, and use of aged animations, was used to create a traditionalized perspective reminiscent of Nagato's preferences that contrasts really well against the unreal and jolting, or Haruhi-like, characteristics of the previous series. With this new perspective, even apparently superficial references to the previous series begin to question which of the two realities (i.e. Haruhi's or Yuki's) is the "truest" one or had the most merit for existing. This issue could only have been seen from the original Yuki's perspective, and was briefly discussed in the movie; bringing it up in this manner in Yuki's reality neatly explains the logic of her actions in the movie while allowing Yuki's own personal wishes and motivations to remain at the forefront.

If you watch this series because you wanted a 3rd season of "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya", you'll be disappointed. However if you watch this series because you want to know more about why Nagato did what she did in the "The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya" then I think you'll be pleasantly satisfied, and glad that this series made it to air. Personally speaking, the groundhog hell that Nagato went through in the movie still prevents me from watching it again; watching this series softens that angst and brings even more meaning to the series as whole.

I don’t envy anyone who sits down and tries to come up with a spin-off story. Picture it: Here you are with a bunch of fun, memorable characters who each have a purpose but you want to change those around to create something new. If that wasn’t hard enough already, strip away one of the major genres that underpinned the original. Hand someone some paper and a pen and tell them to come up with something new with that added rule. It would certainly leave them scratching their head for a while. I’ve found the anime that shows why that’s not a simple task.

Nagato ... Yuki-chan no Shoushitsu is an attempted creation along that line, a romantic comedy created from the Suzumiya Haruhi series, with studio Satelight putting it to screen. In place of the supernatural we have a focus on romance. In place of Haruhi as the lead we have Yuki. The pieces were all rearranged on the board ready to start the game but then this anime didn’t know how to move them. It’s a show that relies too heavily on referencing the original series as opposed to crafting its own meaningful story. It’s all a big bunch of fanservice and if that’s all you’re after then there’s a few things you might enjoy spotting. But if you wanted to see some more creative spark or interesting developments in the story department you might walk away feel a bit sour.

I’ll also end up doing something in this review I normally like to avoid, and that’s compare it to another show. Given the franchise this anime is inspired from into I feel it’s only fair I draw upon Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu as a reference. Nagato Yuki-chan no Shoushitsu show fails to stand up on its own merits as a spin-off and there’s no better way to show that than by making this comparison. Note that this review contains minor spoilers for the original Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu series.

Story

Nagato Yuki-chan no Shoushitsu is a story packed with few surprises. Yuki wants to tell Kyon how she feels about him but every time she comes close to doing so she falters in some manner. Rinse, repeat. You get to watch episode after episode of it. The presentation can be fun and light hearted at least. It’s not as if the show is ever terrible, but it’s never memorable. As I watched on I couldn’t help but notice there was a serious imbalance between comedy and drama. It opts for laughs over love on too many occasions, and there’s little to no complication in the romance area. If there’s little external forces to come between our pair then what’s there to keep it interesting? There’s the odd curveball though that saves the show from being a complete flop, which I’ll come to.

More than the characters involved, nothing annoying me in Nagato Yuki-chan no Shoushitsu more than its boring episode structure. It tells you “Here’s your Valentine’s episode”, “Here’s your beach episode”, “Here’s your summer trip” and the list went on. It was sleep-inducing. While there’s a share of Easter eggs to be found in these episodes that pay homage to the original series, sometimes clever and subtle, often that’s all they are: references. They serve little purpose and it’s like the writer was saying “Hey remember this scene guys? This was in the original series!” You have a laugh, nod in agreement, and then go back to watching droll rom-com nonsense.

These generic episode set ups were still made to be exciting in the original series because romance was not at the forefront – it was a product of the mysteries and adventures the cast found themselves in. At least when Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu resorted to these stereotypical anime scenarios they came with that added spice of having to appease Haruhi. Even when the SOS Club were thrown into seemingly mundane situations you always had to expect the unexpected. It was a show that knew how to have fun because of that kicker. Here these same situations are used for nothing more than cheap laughs and with little to no romantic progression. When love is the theme, and you strip away the supernatural, things all come crumbling down.

By the time that Nagato Yuki-chan no Shoushitsu decided to start being serious and start exploring the mind of its lead character I had lost interest.
There was a serious imbalance in the way the show built up to its major complication. I was falling asleep. When the psychological drama came around it was like an alarm clock taped to my ear. I really wasn’t ready for it. Talk about a jarring tone shift. As jarring as it was though, I must say it was welcome. Here we are with not only some complication of substance, but also comes with one of the more clever throwbacks to the original series. It was the first sign of meaningful development for Yuki. It also changes up the dynamic between Yuki and Kyon a great deal. Dare I say the show even became somewhat interesting? It saves the anime in its run home but all I kept asking myself was “why didn’t this happen earlier on?” If you’re able to overcome how sudden – and maybe a bit ridiculously – things take a turn then you might get more out of this series than what I did. The ending is charming enough and I actually got a lot more out of it than I expected. While not entirely satisfying or complete, the presentation and references this time around were fun and felt useful.

Characters

Yuki obviously gets the big turnaround in behaviour when compared to the rest of the cast. Instead of the alien of few words, she is now driven a lot more by emotion. This gave her much more potential to express herself but watching her felt like a chore. How could they have made Yuki more interesting? Putting her character on a greater offensive would have been a great start. Don’t get me wrong, she really wants to make things change. She tries to express herself but you can guess how it always ends. It’s normally something along the lines of… awkward situation, exasperated overreaction then back to square one. You can find that one in the first chapter of “Writing Generic Romantic Comedies 101”. I wouldn’t be mad if Yuki followed the start of those guidelines but then actually took something away from her experiences, and learn to fend for herself. Instead it’s always mother Asakura to the rescue and Yuki herself doesn’t seem to take anything on board. It’s like every episode restores the status quo.

Speaking of the devil, that’s all Asakura’s role in this series is. She’s there to pick up the pieces Yuki leaves behind and do everything for her. She’s more of a parent than a friend. I understand that this is another interesting tie-in to the original Haruhi series (in particular the film) given the ‘protective’ nature she had there, but watching it here is tedious. She had the potential here to play a much more active role in this love story but content to hang back to provide annoying comedy (hey look she’s pulling a scary face again) and repetitive relationship advice to Yuki.

This may sound a little mean, but Kyon is just too happy and untroubled in this show. His best asset was his frustration as a result of the situations he found himself thrown into with Haruhi. He becomes just another generic anime high school male character this time around when left alone to his own devices. While we get the odd look at the old Kyon we know and love, it sadly isn’t the one taking centre stage. It’s unsurprising that some of my favourite moments in this anime came from his dialogue with Haruhi. It’s not a good sign when your main female lead can’t bring out the same level of engagement. All Nagato Yuki-chan no Shoushitsu will do is make you miss Kyon’s non-stop stream of amusing thoughts and inner monologues.

Everyone else in the show just feels like they’re there to advance the story and take the group to somewhere new. They don’t feel like active players in character relationships, again just there most of the time to remind everyone what series’ spin-off you’re watching. Haruhi manages to steal the show away from Nagato quite often. I thought she was going to add a bit of conflict this story but I was let down with that idea. Everyone else isn’t even worth touching on.

Thank goodness the original cast returned for this and helped to correct that somewhat. Tomozaku Sugita, while limited with his capabilities in this show, still gives Kyon that snarky edge through all his rom-com suffering. Minori Chihara actually gets the chance to put some sentences together as Yuki and does a fair job in a new role as the blubbering, timid female lead. You also don’t need me to tell you that Aya Hirano, as Haruhi, was excellent. I have to say that people have ragged on the character designs a bit too much. I actually like that Satelight tried to distance themselves away from KyoAni’s designs and make something unique on their end. Are they memorable? Not really, but they’re far removed from the worst I’ve seen. It’s fair that you compare the roles of characters between this and the original series, but it’s unfair to do the same for the art style.

Summary

Here’s the big problem with a spin-off that changes up the dynamics and personality of its characters: The original series is crafted around the interactions and clashes of those personalities. Changing this up is asking for trouble. Now in Nagato Yuki-chan no Shoushitsu the roles of these characters have become uninteresting and out of place. All the drama in this show is boring and everyone outside of Kyon, Yuki and Asakura don’t seem to have anything to contribute. I’d struggle to recommend Nagato Yuki-chan no Shoushitsu even to a fan of the franchise.

If you could sum up the show you could call it “References: The Anime”. All it does is serve as a reminder that you could be watching its more superior reference anime. Granted, Nagato Yuki-chan no Shoushitsu never tries to emulate Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu. It knows it’s only a spin-off. It goes for a completely different theme in its story but its execution was iffy. Pointless, meandering slice-of-life antics took up too much of the show. When it finally ditched them I’d come too far through the 16-episode count. It tries its hardest to look back of those SoL previous experiences and make them feel significant but it falls flat on its face.

Score: 4/10 (Poor)

It’s like something born out of a fairy tale story. Nagato Yuki-Chan no Shoushitsu (The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan) is no Haruhi Season 3. In fact, it’s more a spinoff taking place in an alternate universe where aliens don’t exist, Kyon seems normal, and Nagato Yuki is almost nothing like what fans remember her from the original series. As far that goes, this spinoff is more or less of a slice of life story that mixes in elements of drama, romance, and some SOS shenanigans.

Based on the manga of the same name, the series consists of 16 episodes that depicts the life of Nagato ... Yuki. Unlike the stoic girl that many fans remember her as, she is rather timid and shows much more human emotions than her Haruhi counterpart. Make no mistake though, she still retains some characteristics such as her love of reading books.

As of the story itself, Nagato Yuki-Chan no Shoushitsu is very straightforward. We meet Nagato Yuki, the titular character of the show as she has an encounter with Kyon. Because Kyon isn’t like the cyclical self that we remember him as, he is able to easily make friends with her. Then enter Haruhi, the girl that made herself famous from the original series. And in this show, she is also shown to be kinder yet still full of energy. The first few episodes easily establishes the primary character cast. They compose of Nagato, Kyon, Haruhi, and joining them includes Mikuru, Itsuki, and Asakura. A good amount of investment comes from the relationship building. In particular, Kyon and Nagato shares some similarities and the two seems to be able to get along quite well. There’s also some very obvious attraction that Nagato shows towards Kyon. While the show isn’t entirely structured as a rom-com, it does highlight such moments from time to time.

Drama also does come to play at some pivotal moments in the show. This is shown early on in the series as Haruhi gets into a controversial love angle between her, Nagato, and Kyon. What started as a misunderstanding degenerated into tears and sorrow. Unfortunately, there’s really not much to expand on the story development beyond that. It’s too simple and formalistic with a predictable outcome that anyone could of seen coming. What’s more is that Nagato shows her vulnerability that fans might not be able to adapt with well. After all, she was always supposed to be a stoic girl with almost a lack of human emotions. Here, she shows more human emotions than she ever did. In retrospect, the series isn’t very good at dealing with drama. It fits more as a slice of life series and attempting to craft drama doesn’t make the series distinguishing. On the bright side, the chemistry between Kyon and Nagato can be genuinely heartwarming to watch. It not only brings out the honesty of their characters but also shows how they can co-exist to tackle almost any problem. On the other hand, the show is sometimes overshadowed by Haruhi. She is like a bright and shining energy ball that just never seems to stop glowing. While the main protagonist is Nagato in this spinoff, it’s really hard to ignore Haruhi’s presence when she makes herself stand out above others. The plus side is that she isn’t a jerk that some of us remembers.

At some point in this series, it will seem like a chore to watch. I had this sort of feeling early on when comedy on top of comedy is thrown towards the audience. While it seems fun at first, it just seems like dead humor. The jokes quickly become stale while doesn’t really add anything new for the audience to experience with. Characters also shows little change to their personalities until a certain episode. However, if you get to over half the show with patience, then you may be surprised. In one of the later episodes, the story brings out a side of Nagato Yuki that we may be familiar with. The tone of the show changes drastically for several episodes as we see this complex side of herself. Perhaps this will refresh your memory of the original Nagato as well based on her behavior. What’s more is that it also brings out the best from other characters such as Kyon and Asakura. It shows their care for a friend when they need it the most. Furthermore, I have to say that the show adds a bit of suspense that invites anticipation. While the show at that point still retains some comedy with slice of life elements, it’s almost like a 180 degree shift from the first half of the season. Sometimes, a shift like this may seem risky. But for a series that already foreshadowed some of the events, it effectively delivers. In retrospect, the short yet melancholic arc (episodes 10-13) will be an emotional ride.

Satelight is the studio in charge to deliver art visuals. And for that reason, don’t expect the artwork or visual quality to be top stellar. In fact, the show’s character designs and setting looks only moderate with generic characteristics. Nagato Yuki also looks different from her original self although still retains similar clothes and her trademark glasses. Then, there’s Kyon. Some fans may barely recognize him at first until he begins speaking on-screen. On the other hand, Haruhi still looks the same while other characters such as Mikuru gives off the Ms. Fan-service vibe. In fact, fan service is no stranger in show. From the curious camera angle shots, bouncing boobs, and classic onsen episode, it’s safe to say that the show really wants to service the fans. And in terms of comedy, the facial expressions of the characters are almost endless. The highlight part of the series is the deeper development such as the symbolism of the rain and OP/ED song adjustments. When carefully examined, it really brings out a meaning for this show’s title.

Surprisingly, the soundtrack is an important part of the show along with the voice mannerisms. In order to capture the new refreshing feeling of this spinoff, the characters needs to connect with the audience. In the beginning, it seems that they can do just that. Despite some annoying antics such as Haruhi’s overwhelming personality, the characters are able to carry the show and not bore the audience. Similarly, the soundtrack has a nice balance that changes from the casual and humorous tone in the first half, to a very melancholic and atmospheric feeling in the second. The OP and ED theme songs also reflects a good amount of this change. And in general, the music is something that can easily be enjoyed whether you’re a fan of the story or not.

A show like this seems like a blast from the past on first glance. But in the end, it’s not much like so despite some similarities with the original Haruhi series. If you’re a fan of humor, drama, and lots of slice of life, then this show will no doubt be something you can tolerate. While the series does attempt to emphasize the romance context as well, it doesn’t work out right in the end. Let’s face the facts. Nagato Yuki-chan no Shoushitsu isn’t really a rom-com. While the relationship connections are evident and the chemistry is charming, the drama itself is polarizing. On the other hand, the series does craft melancholy quite well. The shift from a certain mood from one to another of the complete opposite will seem like a surprise and keep you at the edge of your seat. And for a show like this, it’s what’s needed to keep it somewhat interesting.

I had some serious mixed feelings about the disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan after re-watching the series, I decided to do yet another review. To begin, for starters and obviously, the show itself was unique. To see the Yuki I knew from the OG series turn into a klutzy, nervous wreck was a bit strange and somewhat amusing. What I did not like about that though is she reminded me too much of Mikuru. This was something I noticed a lot by Nagato's action while re-watching. It was like having a second slightly more annoying yet tolerable Mikuru around and it just didn't appeal to me. ... Something else that bothered me a little was that there were too many characters used in this show. It took away some of my focus on Yuki for the most part along with her development as the main character. This opinion of mine changed during the later half of the program though. At first I didn't really think the amount of characters was necessary until I made it to the middle, no close to the end of the series. That's when it hit me that Haruhi, Ryouko, Mikuru, etc all have a bigger purpose (Kinda sort of.)

Moving on, the story is actually quite simple, However the way things occurred, why things were happening the way they were, and the other events that were explained by Nagato (The real one) were a bit difficult for me to understand. I felt like I wasn't left with much of a backstory on why things were happening during the entire time watching Nagato Yuki-chan no Shoushitsu. That aside, the pacing of the shows events was great. It was as if they saved the best for last. The show starts off a bit ridiculous however it slowly but surely develops into something greater in time. Honestly, I thought it was much worth the wait. The ending, I must say was a bit cliche. In fact the characters say it a lot about how certain things that are happening in an episode seem like they are straight out of a love or romance manga. So I'm going to agree on that. But overall The ending didn't bother me too much, it was still sweet and enjoyable.

The music and soundtrack in Nagato Yuki-chan no Shoushitsu where pretty good, I (as I am writing this) cannot remember if they used the same original soundtrack in the Haruhi series but it still sounds great. There where a few tracks that I'm assuming they added especially towards the end of the series which sounded pretty damn good if I do say so myself. Moving on, the voice actors are still pretty great. I watched the Japanese dub with English subtitles and it was pretty interesting hearing Chihara Minori "Voice of Yuki Nagato" change her voice from clumsy and nervous to serious and monotone in a few episodes of the show.

Music aside, the artwork and animation done on this series is always great. Some scenes are of course done so well that I could really tell when they were going all out. I believe it's in episode 9 where our characters are at a summer festival, the scenery and animation seemed like it was improved just to enhance the atmosphere. There are lots of moments like this during the series however this moment stood out a bit more.

I can't say whether or not I would recommend this series to anyone. Personally I think it's both a great... no, decent tear-jerker and comedy anime. However in the end, it's just a little too out of place for me to actually say whether or it's any good or just so bad it's good.

Overall I gave this show a solid 7 because it was in fact a unique concept with great visuals and audio along with a decent story however it's too out of place in terms of story and timeline even if it's supposed to be about another character.

If you come into The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan with expectations that this will be on the level of the original Haruhi series, you will be in for severe disappointment. To watch this anime, you must be a fan of the Haruhi Suzumiya universe, but you must also leave any such expectations at the door. When you do that, then, and only then, will you be able to enjoy this anime. Somewhat. Sometimes. Maybe?

Nagato Yuki-chan is essentially a “what-if” story. What if, in Disappearance, that world became canon? Or, better to say, what-if the world from The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya was the true world? ... How would things be different? While the titular Yuki Nagato was more fragile in the movie, the anime draws upon that material (as well as Nagato playing games from The Melancholy of Haruhi-chan Suzumiya) to deliver a character that’s different (for the most part, she's in love with Kyon) but not new. Despite being a different entity altogether (and even being written/drawn by someone else), Nagato fits in with the universe for being silly. Although it never reaches an intelligent level of parody like its mother series, Nagato Yuki-chan can be refreshing in how light-hearted it is.

Thankfully the performances of the cast are great. The Haruhi series is famous for having a great sub and dub, and even though the original Japanese version has finished, in this age of simul-dubbing, we get to experience the original dub voices once again. The shoutouts here have to go to Minori Chihara and Michelle Ruff, the voice actresses of Nagato in both languages. Chihara does a great job of making Nagato meek and cute. Ruff takes it in a slightly different direction (since it would be unnatural sounding if she did that much high-pitched cuteness) and she focuses on the shy aspect of Nagato, with equally great results. All the other principal voices return and they perform with the same level of confidence and ability.

It’s unfortunately, however, that all of the good aspects of the Nagato Yuki-chan anime can be described as superficial or dependent on the love of the original series, because the spinoff itself doesn’t have enough strength on its own.

Easily, the weakest part of the presentation aspect of the show is its animation. Admittedly, however, it is tough to tell if this is because the animation is actually below average or if it just is worse than previous entries. Taken by itself, the animation done by Satelight isn’t bad. The only thing that jumps out at me is the fact that there seems to be a lot of white used, and all the scenes look brighter to an uncomfortable degree. Any other complaint, however, comes from a comparison to Kyoto Animation, the typical animator of the Haruhi series. This season, for whatever reason (probably because this is a relatively unimportant spinoff of the main series, or the cynical reason that KyoAni has no reason to promote Haruhi anymore), KyoAni decided not to animate this entry in the Haruhi universe. And while Satelight generally tries their hardest, KyoAni and their animation of the original series is often too hard to live up to. Anything good that Satelight does feels merely serviceable looking at KyoAni, and this is augmented by the sheer whiteness everywhere and the fact Kyon looks like a goddamn middle schooler.

Character-wise, Nagato Yuki-chan is generally alright, but the implementation of Haruhi can get dicey at times. You can’t have the series without Haruhi, that’s practically a given. But Nagato Yuki-chan struggles to find the right balance of Haruhi in the show. Haruhi is the same person she’s practically always been: obsessed with the supernatural, eccentric as hell, and bossy to a fault. If she didn’t take charge, it would be strange. Often, however, the show puts the spotlight on Haruhi and her antics, when they need to take a definitive backseat. This isn’t the show for Haruhi to do weird things; that’s literally all the other Haruhi series (well, except for Nyoron Churuya-san). The show shines when Haruhi does something weird and it’s left in the background or used as an impetus for the principal characters (Nagato, Kyon, and Asakura) to do something; on the other hand, if there’s even a little more Haruhi antics, the show feels like a discount version of the main series. Even at the end of the day, Haruhi is just a hyperactive person, without many of the nuances that made her interesting in the original series.

With the exception of Nagato and Asakura, who are rather interesting in their own right, all of the other characters are very watered down versions of themselves. Since Koizumi, Mikuru, and Tsuruya don't play as much of a central role in the plot, it's not a huge deal, but Kyon plays a strangely odd role on the sidelines, reduced to an occasional straight man gag. In fact, Kyon, the romantic interest, is thoroughly uninteresting in this incarnation of the series, which is a huge drawback.

At the end of the day, despite it being Haruhi characters you know and love, despite the voice actors coming back, and despite the cuteness of it all, The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan is an extremely generic, and often boring, slice of life anime. In fact, outside of love for the original cast of characters and voice actors, there is no reason to partake in it for the actual plot. Episode after episode is a slow cliché slice of life borefest that just makes you want a third season of Haruhi adapting Rampage. Beach? Check. How about a trip to Kyoto? Check. Tanabata episode? Sure, let’s forget the original series and give that a check. To this end, Nagato Yuki-chan becomes a discount Haruhi Suzumiya, often filled with annoying nods to the parent series without any of the edge, and even those who do their best to ignore this find it progressively harder to do so as the series continues.

As a result, the smiles from the cuteness of the show just can’t outweigh the fact that the series is boring, generic, and derivative. The fact that these are well-established characters only goes so far, and ultimately, this would have worked better as a short OVA or ONA series rather than a 1.5 cour deal. Nagato being super cute, while extremely pleasing, isn’t enough.


Story - 3 (Cliche, boring, generic Slice of Life and discount Haruhi)

Art - 6 (Bias for KyoAni may exist, but still only adequate)

Sound - 8 (Good voice acting but only Nagato is amazing; this is because of the blandness of the characters)

Character - 4 (Nagato is cute, Asakura is elder sister like. All other characters are one-dimensional or lose some traits, like Kyon's inability to become the straight man in a good fashion)

Enjoyment - 5

Overall - 5.2 (rounded down to 5)

After hearing that the Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan Manga will be turned into an anime, I was very excited to say the least. After the last episode aired, I watched the whole anime over the course of the weekend - After initially having somewhat mixed feelings, especially because of the art, I ended up enjoying the series as a whole. Please note that this is my first review, so it will most likely be far from perfect.

Story:
Satelight took the first five volumes of this spinoff-manga (which is set in the alternate universe established in "The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya") as work material. It is basically ... about "how would everything look like if Kyon chose differently" - Which is a world without any aliens, time travelers, ESPs and the SOS Brigade. The story mainly revolves around Yuki and follows her through her life as a shy girl who fell in love. Nothing overly special, but still enjoyable. As consequence, you won't find anything supernatural in this series and there won't be any crazy happenings like you've got to see them in the main series. However, long-time fans who read the novels/watched the original anime series will notice a lot of nods towards it, among them the notorious "Kyon-kun, denwa!" which will probably strike terror into everyone who has seen Season 2. Those small nods were something I really appreciated, but still nothing to get extremely excited for.

Art:
The art is arguably the weakest point of this adaption. They switched the art style (which probably was to be expected, given a different studio was working on it) and the whole thing feels like a downgrade from the main series. Especially Kyon often looks way younger than he should and faces, especially Kyon's, look slightly weird at times. Once you get used to it it's not as bad anymore, but regardless of that, they could've put more effort into it; Though the different style does suit the spinoff well.

Sound:
The original cast has taken over their roles, as it should be. The result of this is some superb voice acting with the VAs doing their best to make the characters sound convincing, which more often than not succeeds. Emotions are carried across well and it rarely feels out of place or badly acted. Especially Minori Chihara did a great job playing the shy, clumsy Yuki Nagato which is a 180° turn from the main series Yuki.
The OP song "Fure Fure Mirai" (which is a play on "Hare Hare Yukai", the ending of the 1st season of the main series) is a typical J-Pop song, rather fast-paced, happy-go-lucky style. Enjoyable, but nothing special.
The ED "Arigatou, Daisuki" on the other hand sounded great, being a slow paced song sung by Minori Chihara. I found myself listening to it every time due to how well it was made.

Characters:
The characters are very distinct, each of them having their own, vastly different personalities. The character development is mainly focused on Yuki and Kyon, however Ryoko and Haruhi also "expand" a bit over time. The other side characters are pretty much stagnant; that being said, there isn't all too much development over the course of the series, but it does exist.
The characters themselves are quite enjoyable as it still feels like they have personality and aren't just bland.

Overall:
Despite lacking some more depth, the mediocre art and other flaws, this is still an enjoyable series with a lot of funny & cute moments. If you are a fan of the main series however, you need to make sure to realize that this is merely a spinoff and you won't find more of the "classic" Haruhi here. No aliens, no supernatural happenings, no sci-fi. Once you can accept this and start watching this with an open mind, it will be much easier for you to enjoy. If you don't, you're most likely going to dislike it. On the same side, people who want an overly convoluted love story with a lot of twists and extremely deep character development, this might not be for you either. Everyone else can give this a shot and will most likely get at least some enjoyment out of it.

I'm honestly not against spin-off series, after all my lovely Illya Prisma is just a spin-off of Fate, and so I wasn't against a spin-off focusing on Nagato either. After all practically everyone loved Nagato in the original, almost as much as they hated Haruhi (aka a lot). There are just 2 major problems. 1)The audience came to sympathise with the tortured lonely Nagato of Haruhi's universe, remaking her into a girl whose only characteristic is being clumsy was stupid to begin with. 2)Haruhi didn't have a "just bad" response from the audiences, she practically got kicked out of her own show and the movie ... had no relation to her other than the name. So tell me dear animators, WHY does the b£$%& with Lucy's voice need to come back?! I thought it was clear by now, we HATE her. And of course unlike Nagato who got a total personality liftover Haruhi remains the same annoying overenergetic little f$%& that desperately tries to grab attention but ends up pissing everyone off. Actually make that 3 problems: 3) What the hell is wrong with the blue-hair's eyebrows?!

Anyway as usual the (unbelievably boring) Kyon joins the literature club, with Nagato as a president and her friend Eyebrows as the second member. They practically do nothing all day and it's just Nagato playing games, while slowly (very very slowly) developing a romance... Which is about as interesting as reading the Terms of Agreement in non-EA games, considering Ky-on has zero personality and Nagato is unbearable while Eyebrows is just the onee-chan character. It was tollerable though! Without the b$%^h everything felt much more relaxed than the original and despite this Nagato not being the one we loved it was still watchable... And then of course the b£$%h arrived and everything returned to the original level of s%£t that we were this close to forgetting.

About halfway through, the anime did manage to catch our interest. Haruhi was mysteriously gone for mysterious reasons shrouded in mystery that I suspect were described by "ratings plummeting to the ground" and Nagato returned temporarily to the personality we all loved from the original. Granted Kyon was still as interesting as watching a cabbage grow, and ms Eyebrows was still taking too much screentime for her own good, but the anime became enjoyable at least. The emotionless loli is back biatches! Of course that couldn't last forever and eventually we returned to our beloved swamp of stupid.

Oh and before I forget: 4)What point is there to Asahina's existence? I mean, seriously, it was more common for the characters to mention that "she has work to do" than actually talking to her. 5)Kyon's voice acting... Plain awful, Asahina's voice acting... Unbearable (having to hear her in Wakaba girl is a challenge), Haruhis voice acting... You don't deserve to be Lucy you b£$%h! 6)Graphics were mediocre at best.

The absurdity of the Melancholy of Haruhi Suzimiya franchise is without a doubt it's most endearing quality. The use of outlandish and bizarre science-fiction characters to create what an ultimately rather mundane high school comedy has a rather cunning, almost satirical bent to it which has allowed the series to endure far longer than most other work in the genre. But more than just being funny, the set-up also provides the opportunity to explore more philosophical matters from time to time.

In Nagato Yuki-chan no Shoushitsu, or "The Disappearance of Yuki Nagato" in English the balance between the mundane and the philosophical is tipped slightly in ... the former's favour. That's not to say the science fiction elements are absent completely, but it's far more like a traditional high school harem series than the original was: far more time is spent on typical activities than before. That's not all: some of the cast members have had their personalities tweaked slightly for this series.

Yuki Nagato herself has a similar composure to the character from earlier series, being quiet and reserved, but now more closely resembles the behaviour of a real person. Her tendency to be quiet is no longer the result of a robotic mind but of shyness. She's also now a bit clumsy, no doubt in order to better cater to a certain kind of individual. Another character who has been changed is Ryouko Asakura, the murderous class representative of the first series. Her confident and slightly intimidating personality is retained, but is now concentrated on looking after Nagato. Her role is much larger than before too, in fact after Yuki and Kyon, she is the most important character in the series.

Tsuruya, the green haired ball of energy is also more important this time around, while Mikuru, Koizumi and Haruhi have been relegated to the sidelines. This shift has changed the direction of the series dramatically and even though these characters have not been altered their limited presence has had an effect on the series which is even greater than the more conventional approach. If you feel sentimental about the original series then there is a good chance you won't find this series as appealing as the others. The same goes for those who dislike the cutesy, mixed signals kind of romance that you find in other high school anime. This is a recurring theme, particularly in the earlier episodes.

But do not think that the series has become completely saccharine. On the contrary, this series raises far deeper philosophical questions than either the first or the second series do. Events conspire such that one character may be killed inadvertently to save another, a moral dilemma similar to the famous problem about an out of control trolley running down a hill. Though the set-up which prompted this dilemma are fictional, the ramifications of them are significant. The presentation of it is rather stirring too, and you may find yourself feeling rather melancholic about the whole affair when it's through.

Speaking of presentation, you may have noticed that the art style is radically different from the series which were produced by Kyoto Animation, and more closely resemble the artwork in the original light novels. The change is slightly distracting at first but the relative simplicity of it is ultimately rather charming. Though the colouring could be better: embarrassment is signalled with a change of skin tone rather than facial expression, and it feels lazy.

Mercifully, the original voice actors have been retained for this series, so no-one need worry about adjusting to a new Haruhi unless you watched the original series dubbed. The background music is pretty catchy too, but if you were expecting themes capable of rivalling the Hare Hare Yukai or Bouken Desho Desho you are going to be very disappointed, as both the OP and ED for this series are dreadful low-tier pop songs that have none of the excitement or fun that the original series themes did.

But music isn't everything, and unless you are the kind of person that can't stand the idea of your favourite characters being meddled with, then overall this series does rather well. And fortunately for us, those two legacies actually can co-exist with one another simultaneously.

The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan.

Fuck this show. I hate it from the bottom of my heart. It was a disappointment in every regard.

I'm not going to pretend like the original series was a masterpiece, because it isn't. But it was entertaining and charming (exept for Haruhi being a bully sometimes)

Everything that made the original series fun is missing here.

I find Nagato the most interesting in the original series. She's so mysterious and kicks ass when it needs to be kicked. Her usual self and the version in the alternatetimeline of the movie are both endearing. So when i heard that a Spin-off with Nagato as ... the central character was coming up, I was soooo hyped. Exept for the movie, Nagato didn't get much screentime which i found particularly unfourtunate.

When i heard it was going to be a romance, taking place in the alternative timeline and saw the new characterdesigns I was less hyped but still excited. I am completly open to the idea of making a lovestory with that version of Nagato.

It's just that the character called Nagato in this series isn't Nagato, it is a hollow shell of a character. The Nagato from the movie isn't that fleshed out, but she was depicted as a really shy, bookish, unsocial and lonley person. Instead we get a gluttonous, lazy, airheaded idiot we're supposed to find cute.

The problem is that the romantic elements are handeld so poorly that I wonder why they even bothered. So the rest of the show is just SoL, Great! The original series was just SoL with some supernatural elements mixed in so this should be fun aswell right? No, this is the most boring, generic and unimaginative SoL I have seen yet, on the level of bad fanfiction. It's like they where checking things of a checklist, in order to include every chlichéd scenario.

But if that wasn't enough it just doesn't make sense in context of the original Series. This wouldn't be really a problem if it didn't try to connect the two with forced, stupid references we're supposed to look at and yell:

"Hey! I rembember that from the series"

Plus the animation and soundtrack is ten times worse.

There is absolutly no reason for anyone to watch this series. If SoL is the sand on the metaphysical anime Beach, then this show is a turd someone used to rip off a sandcastle.

SPOILERS AHEAD

If you're a person like me who shipped Kyon and Yuki since The Disappearance movie (it's even in my nickname), then don't expect that much from this adaption, because you will only get a pretty cliché romcom. Why? Well, it has everything that would define something like it: ruined love confessions (check), misunderstandings (check), fluffy scenes between the main characters (check), an ending that doesn't round up anything thanks to some freaking fireworks (check).

I expected a good resolution from this, something that would only be read or seen in fanfictions, something that would make my "dreams come true", but the series took the easy ... way, wasting 13 episodes with absolutely nothing and 3 amazing ones to end with a "you didn't hear what I said because of the fireworks, right?" For an ending like that, I would prefer Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun.

With my hope at 100%, I started loving the series because it gave me what I wanted: more from the world of Haruhi and a genuine love story between Nagato and Kyon. I didn't even care for those 13 episodes of nothing because I thought that at least at the end, the series would give me a kiss or a solid confession or something that would make me spend 50 dollars for the release. Hell, I was so wrong.

At least, these series gave me one of my favorite songs im Japanese (i.e. Arigatou, daisuki, the ED song beautifully sung by Minori Chihara), more from the original dub cast, and 3 interesting episodes (with some little touches of Serial Experimes Lain) where we could see the Nagato from the original series.

Yes, these series was a real disappointment. There are few things to save from this adaption. It was good at the beginning, interesting development at final part of the series, an amazing ending song. It even reunited the old cast from the original series. But no, I won't waste my money on something that ended in such a mediocre point. As I said before, I prefer Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun because it at least have some of the best comedy out there that would make me rewatch it again and again, without any care of the final.

As far as I know, the manga isn't finished yet, so it might give me that ending that I expected since the moment I discover this spinoff. Maybe it will give me that ending that I wanted from this series.

The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, an anime that when it was aired, has regard to be one of the most well known anime since its release on account of its overall wackiness and parodying of everything, it's odd set of characters including a time traveling moe girl, a kuudere alien, and an esper, and the one character to bring it all together, Haruhi, the hyperactive god character. So, with Satelight taking over the Haruhi franchise by producing us this spin-off, what are we as the audience to expect?

Story (6.22/10): The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki, contrary to the rest of the Haruhi series, is very ... different in its setting. Taking place in the Disappearance world of the Haruhi universe, where Haruhi and Koizumi go to a different school, Asakura isn't a homicidal alien, and Nagato is a moe creature rather than a cool kuudere, the story follows our main protagonist Kyon as he basically...does what he did in the original Haruhi series, which is spending time with the title girl in the series.

In terms of differences to the original Haruhi series, this Spin-off bears only some resemblance to the flow and plot points. For the most part, the series focuses mainly on Kyon and the rest of the Haruhi cast in their disappearance roles, getting into various wacky situations without all of the supernatural business that goes on. The thing that irks me though is the fact that the show plays out like a generic rom-com with many cliche romcom scenes that don't really provoke much feeling. It's so reliant on this way of storytelling, that it really doesn't make the story all too entertaining and rather bland. One of the reasons for this perception is because this show is connected to the Haruhi series, where that show is known for being out there in terms of...well basically everything. Contrasting that with a platonic romantic comedy just sort of clashed.

The actual content of the show has a couple ups and downs. Because Nagato is now a shy, moe creature, the show uses that to create a lot of moe moments that admittedly are cute, but are used quite often and overturn the flow of the story. But my biggest complaint about this show is towards the end where they create the "disappearance". I'll be honest, that didn't really make a whole lot of sense. The issue is the fact that they just throw it right in front of you and expect things to fall into place without really a proper explanation as to why what happened was happening. When introduced, it was just kind of confusing, and when it ended, things just didn't make any sense, and when plot points don't really make any sense, that's considered a flaw in my book.

There is still the upside of this show being part of the Haruhi series. Throughout the show, the show references the original Haruhi in a vast amount of ways, even creating several plot points that have parallel settings; so if you're a hardcore Haruhi fan, you'll appreciate what they throw at you there. (That goddamn endless 8 reference at the end...)

Overall, Nagato Yuki had its ups and downs in terms of story. Without any ties to the Haruhi series, I don't think it would've done as well as it could've just on the simple fact that it was a rom-com story that had no resolution. (Seriously though, don't expect any ships to sail here. They all sunk.) It was a bit of boring because it just simply didn't try and go beyond what it was and it never attempted to create a resolution to the story.

Overview:
+ Haruhi references
- Platonic Rom-com story
- No proper resolution
- Some confusing plot points

Characters (7.01/10): Because this is a Haruhi series, the characters in Yuki Nagato are basically the same people that you see in the original show, just made to be slightly different.

Up first, our main protagonist, Kyon. (Cause apparently, no one knows his actual name and resorts to calling this guy by a nickname.) Contrary to his original counterpart, Kyon isn't the fish-eyed bored person that he was back in the original series. Rather, he's a bit more cheerful, a little more willing to have some fun with people rather than be reluctant as all hell on whatever heinous thing they're doing. (He still keeps his wit, so that's a plus.) While the show is based around his perspective with Kyon doing the narrative and all, his development appears only later on in the series when it takes a different turn, which is ok, but even with it, the show just sort of returns back to the status quo that it had at the beginning of the series, which didn't bode well for it.

Then there's Yuki Nagato, the title character of the series. As I have mentioned before, this spin-off takes place in the disappearance world, meaning that Yuki is no longer the cool kuudere who sits in the corner of the room reading books, but rather is a little moe creature who drools at the word Turkey, and appreciates vita games more than books. Throughout the series, the show focuses on Yuki and her relationship with Kyon, as virtually almost every character knows about her "little crush" with Yuki failing (unsurprisingly) to take a step in the right direction to make her love a reality. The thing about Yuki that I find interesting is what happens towards the end of the series where the show takes a dramatic tone change. There, we have a plot point that makes sense in a Haruhi setting, but the show just doesn't pull through with it, leading up to the aforementioned half-assed conclusion. It's not as if this development of her character is bad, because it put interest back into the series for me, it's just that it doesn't explore it deep enough to get a proper explanation, resulting in some plot holes.

And finally, since I've been saying her name an awful lot, we have Haruhi, who, because she is no longer the title character, is now part of the supporting role. Compared to her other world self, Haruhi doesn't bear any difference in character, as she is still the hyperactive UMA searching, Kyon enslaving girl who just now has longer hair. While the show doesn't specifically focus on her as much, she still plays a very vital role in the series, as she is the one who once again, drags everyone into her schemes and forces everyone to follow what she does. For Haruhi, this is fine for her character. What I didn't like was how they attempted to shove in a love triangle aspect to the series, making some very obvious implications that Haruhi sees Kyon as more than a manservant. It's bad because there really is nothing else that the series did for that plot point aside from a few silent moments form her, so it made me question the point of it since they never went through with it.

Likewise, most of the other Haruhi characters make appearances in this story. Those characters most prominently being Koizumi, Mikuru, Tsuruya, and Asakura, who, like I mentioned before, is no longer a homicidal alien, but rather more like a "mother" towards Nagato, cooking her food, taking care of her, and the occasional scolding. In terms of development or importance, everyone apart from Asakura doesn't get ample screentime. They for the most part stay with what you would expect from these characters' personalities, minus the supernatural stuff that Haruhi imparted onto them. Because they're virtually the same, there's not really much to talk about since Mikuru is still Mikuru, Koizumi is still Koizumi, and Tsuruya is still Tsuruya.

Overview:
+ Decent Main characters
+ Side characters are the same (basically)
+ Haruhi is still Haruhi
- Some unnecessary characteristics associated with unfinished plot points

Art and Sound (7.00/10): The art for Nagato Yuki was not created by KyoAni like the rest of the Haruhi series, but rather by Satelight, who created an all new style of animation that makes the majority of the characters (noticeably Kyon), a hell of a lot different looking than their original look. The animation itself doesn't really stand out all too much, since it's just standard fare, but it's the characters themselves that have such a big impact since we, the anime community, are familiar with seeing these characters a certain way.

Whether or not you're a fan of this style of animation is up to you, so I can't say anything else beyond the fact that there's ups and downs with the new look of them all. All I can say is, get used to seeing life in Kyon's eyes.

In terms of sound, the show has an OP that bears in some resemblance to the style of music that the original Haruhi series had. With a bright and wacky song to compliment its mother series, it's a decent listen, but it to me, it doesn't resonate with me all that well and I don't find it to be as enjoyable as other people may do. (Thats my personal opinion.) On the other hand, the ED is a more melancholy sound. (Ah...) Contrary to the more bubbly songs of the mother series, there is no signature dance, there is no happy go lucky song, but rather a track that pertains to what happens on in the second half of the series. Personally, I felt like it didn't really fit with the series considering that the majority of the show was a very slice-of-life/rom-com style of story, and it sort of clashed that feeling with the ED.

Side Note: The original cast of the Haruhi series voice all of their respective characters, so you don't have to worry about anyone sounding weird or anything. Except maybe Nagato, because Minori Chihara uses the moe voice of Nagato over the kuudere version in this series.

Overview:
+ Art is standard fare
+/- Different animation (positive or negative depending on whether you're a fan of the new designs.)
+/- Decent tracks, but not memorable for me

Personal Enjoyment (5.44/10): While I am personally a fan of the Haruhi series, Yuki Nagato never truly gave me that sense of entertainment when watching this. I had expected the show to be different, seeing as how Haruhi wasn't the title character of the series, but I never expected the show to be so bland and in some scenes, uninteresting. As a result, the score itself is quite low.

Did I enjoy this show?

While I do have many problems with this spin-off, it wasn't always completely bad. There were the moments where the show at times was rather entertaining. The only issue is the fact that those moments only appeared when Haruhi was around to cause havoc. When she wasn't in the frame in some sense or another, the show didn't really have much to stand on beyond being a boring rom-com plot. A bit of this is partly due to the fact that I'm more of a Haruhi fan than a Nagato fan, but even then, there should be moments in the show that should be able to stand on its own two legs.

What didn't I like the show?

Apart form the obvious generic plotline, the ending really gritted my teeth because there simply wasn't any resolution to the series. It went back to the status quo, which basically got rid of almost every bit of progress this show tried to make when progressing episode to episode. In addition, they put in the whole love triangle thing which really didn't do anything for the series because it was never used and wasn't just implied, it was heavily implied with several scenes devoted to imply it even further.

Would I recommend this show?

If you've seen any part of the Haruhi series, most importantly, The "Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya" movie, then I would say you have enough background to understand what is going on in this series. (I recommend that because you will be lost otherwise.) Also, if you're a Nagato fan, you may enjoy this as well. While I may not have personally enjoyed the direction that it went, it's not completely terrible, as there are some aspects that I did actually find enjoyable. However, because it plays out like a rom-com, expect it to be a rom-com because that's the main plot point of the show, and the direction that it goes.

Overall Score: 6.48/10

This anime is the perfect example of "don't watch or drop an anime based on the review"

I don't usually write a review (especially an anime from 2015). But there's too many people that seems to misunderstood this anime. This is NOT a haruhi season 3 (and there will be probably none)

Sure the first episode feels like a really generic moeblob romcom.

But there's a 3 certain episode that really good that it should be on the main series. Also the change in the ending on those 3 episode is really a jpb welldone.

Overall, this is the type of anime that i don't even expect ... to gave me any feels, but it does.

but hey, people have difference taste though.

The spring 2015 anime Nagato Yuki-chan no Shoushitsu also known as the disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan this is the 2nd just not appealing boring anime ive seen in the spring season next to triage x but at least triage had the fan service going for it.

Story- You can read the synopsis on it but to sum it up anime wise a shy girl named Nagato Yuki is the president of a club consisting of 3 members herself and a male and female who basically do club activities and stuff along those lines and also the love story that is on going throughout the series of ... Nagato having a crush on the male member of her club before the expansion of more members. the name doesn't fit the series until about episode 10 or 11 when the dramatic scene actually happens the "disappearance" part but to be honest the story was bland and boring the characters didn't help the story much either but its not mediocre but its not good at all. The most interesting thing about the series was like 2 characters and the "disappearance" part which was not executed the way id would've hoped it to be.

Art- This is where the anime lacks the most the art isnt appealing at all it just looks meh not terrible but it isnt something that you would be interested in upon first glance with whatever looking characters and backgrounds that just look not so good it isnt something i would call good and also the animation also hinders it alot as well with certain walking scenes when another character is afar the background scene just makes it look bad and when the character is walking or running in this specific type of scene it shows the quality of the animation which isn't good but again i have seen worse.

Sound- honestly its a weak ost didn't notice anything special or good but i did enjoy the ed theme that was ok but it wasn't enough and the voice actors for Nagato,Asakura and Suzumiya i absolutely enjoyed other than that its just average.

Character- ima give this a 7 just because i liked Nagatos character although it wasn't anything new i still enjoy a quite female protagonist whos shy and cute but that's my personal liking other than that nothing amazing but its good for what it is and Asakura also was a plus her character was more so like a mother figure to Nagato giving her advice cooking for her and bending over backwards basically everything she does in the series is for Nagato at least 80% of the time and the voice actor fit the character which i appreciate. and Suzumiya which she is probably if not the best character on the entire span of the show when she appeared on the earlier episodes her character comes off as super energetic and some other traits that easily make her the most enjoyable character also you get some other characters not worth mentioning but they are whatever for most of the series nothing new and nothing special.

Enjoyment- 5/10 i wasn't looking forward to this series but i kept watching till the end i don't ever drop any anime that i choose to watch because you'll never know until you experience it yourself instead of hearing peoples opinions. I do not regret watching this because i was not hyped for it and in return i got what i expected a kinda below average slice of life series with other themes that honestly could have been executed better but wasn't and that ending didn't help the series in the least.

Overall- 6/10 just a meh series but that's what i think if you watch and like alot of slice of life watch this. There is a manga that is currently ongoing if you are looking forward to this series just read it if you are not in that mood just watch it.

If you've watched the Haruhi Suzumiya series, I'm pretty sure, that at least once you asked yourself the question, "What if?" If you haven't watched it, stop reading this, there are spoilers in this, or go ahead, I don't care!
Many people will tell you what their fanficton-material stories would be, and somewhere you'll find someone asking, "What if Haruhi wasn't a god, and what if nobody had their powers?" And while I could just take that one scene from the Disappearance movie, and type out a thesis on Kyon's amazing monologue, I'll just throw this in your face: The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan...
It is ... a spin-off series that perfectly answers the above question. But before you jump off of your seat and start looking for the anime on the Internet, (yes, I'm talking to you, avid fans of the franchise!) keep in mind that this IS NOT A SEQUEL TO THE MOVIE. Instead, what we have, is a pleasant slice-of-life romance, involving the main duo, Yuki and Kyon. Yes, I know that those of you who despise that genre will be sickened by this, but as a big fan of the original franchise, I think that this is a good thing to put in. I mean, if we ignore all the fanfictions and doujinshi material, we can see that in the original anime, there was never any romance between any of the characters. Well okay, you could include Episode 6 from the "first season" as something between Kyon and Haruhi, but that wouldn't end up anywhere.

STORY
From what I've said already, there isn't much to add. The slice of life genre may be a turn-off to some people, but if you sit through it you'll get used to it soon enough...

CHARACTERS
Let's be honest, the characters are the main reason why anybody would watch this show... From all of the characters, the only one to change is Yuki. In the original series she was an emotionless robot who hardly spoke, in the movie, she was extremely shy, and hardly spoke, and in this anime, she is also quite shy, but talks more. She also prefers to play video games rather than read books as we are used to.
The other characters haven't seen much change in terms of their personalities. Haruhi is still loud and energetic, Koizumi is still her theoretical assistant, Asakura is the mother-like figure, Mikuru is still the same klutz as she was, and Kyon is just as much of a sarcastic joker as he was in the original...luckily. Honestly, he's in my top 10 anime characters for a reason!

ANIMATION & SOUND
If you weren't turned off by the fact that this is a slice of life anime, you'll get turned off by the animation. Maybe.
The anime was made in April 2015, by Satelight Inc., (Log Horizon, AKB0048) and to be honest, it's not that great. Yeah, it isn't the same animation style from Kyoto Animation that we're used to, but even so, the animation is quite average for the most part. The characters are still recognisable, the only difference being Mikuru having dyed her hair slightly, and Kyon looking like he's twelve years old. The best parts of when the animation kicks into overdrive, are later on in the show, when the story becomes......interesting...
My favourite part of the whole anime is the dub. Why? They got the old cast back!!! Yes yes yes, more Crispin Freeman, more Michelle Ruff, and more hilarity from the cast that has made one of the best English dubs in existence. The fact that the show has the entire old cast of voice actors back gives it an almost nostalgic feeling, like you can spend more time with these amazing characters... And although it is true that the first episode is a bit "unstable" in terms of the dub, it gets better very quickly.
The soundtrack, is OK. It mainly consists of soft piano music, but there are a few tracks that stand out... The opening and ending themes aren't bad, depending on your tastes....

FINAL EVALUATION
Long story short, you'll most likely enjoy this show if you enjoyed the original for the characters and comedy. What will also greatly add to your enjoyment of it are references to the original series, those that will make you smile when you see them, although they are not that easy to spot. And also, for those of you who watched the original for the sci-fi, or for the dark and slow moments from the movie, there is one story arc in this show for you, which is absolutely brilliant, and it feels like it should belong in the original too.
8/10
It's not season three, as I have already said, but it's a good spin-off series, that just gives us an excuse to spend more time watching our favourite characters... Sure, it doesn't have ALL of the Haruhi-ness we are used to, but there's a good amount for anyone to enjoy.
If only KyoAni could make Season 3....COME ON !

For those who have never taken the time or have not been with anime long enough to have given the parent series of Yuki-chan a thorough viewing then what you are provided with when watching this series is a story of comical romance surrounding the the character of Yuki Nagato, hence the name. However is you are approaching this series because you are indeed a fan of the parent series then what you get is just a little bit more from the characters that you have likely come to love. Both are particularly good reasons to give the show a chance, even if this ... particular spin-off can be somewhat misleading with what the parent series actually provides. I present this review of Nagato Yuki-chan no Shoushitsu (The Disappearance of Yuki Nagato-chan) so you can decide if this show is for you.

First off, the story of Yuki-chan is hard to hate seeing how it is written by the same beloved author of the show's parent series even if it resembles more of a stereotypical romantic comedy anime, but even so some of that eccentricity that a loyal viewer of Haruhi can relate to. As the story of Yuki Nagato-chan progresses this eccentricity that I speak of pulls this spin-off away from what is truly just a generic series, and provides a lovely perspective of 'Kyon's' life should a certain Haruhi have never existed. The art, surprisingly, is also worth mentioning seeing how a different studio has taken up the series after so many Haruhi-less years. The new art, although relatively close to that of the parent series, provides a much needed uniqueness to the show that reminds new and old fans alike that this series is not dead and we will hopefully see more of it in the future. A per usual of most high production anime the story and art are the better part of the pie and thus I reward an 8 and a 9 to them respectively.

In the sound department we see the return of every voice actress and actor that the parent series was completed with and it is hopeful that any English dub (none when written) will also provide the same English dub and actors as both dubs in the Parent series have proven spectacular and this series is no different. Yuki Nagato-chan is great successor to what many would call an excellent series and should find a permanent place to any fan's collection. I reward an 8 out of ten.

Character wise the show has some limits however, this is a spin-off series and as result our main protagonist is a shy emotionally filled Yuki Nagato that was first introduced to old fans in the fourth book of the light novel series or in the franchise movie, "The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya." This is a character that is worth loving but at the same time has some issues keeping up as the protagonist of her own show, as a result it seemed the author and studio reintroduced some initially not introduced characters. Otherwise this show would have lost a lot of watching value as the character of Yuki Nagato requires a lot of supporting roles in order to keep an average or casual audience interested. This of course probably wouldn't have been a problem assuming that the only ones that would've been watching this series were dedicated fans of the parent series and such a thing should not be assumed in the world of show production. With a lot of strong supporting roles Yuki Nagato gets a C on her test of being a good protagonist and thus is rewarded a generous 7 put of ten. Without prior knowledge of who the main protagonist is from the parent series (Yuki Nagato), then a casual viewer would not see anything particularly interesting about this Yuki which is just a shy girl with a crush.

Personally I could only call my enjoyment of this show as fair, being a loyal fan of the Haruhi series it seemed as thought this was just a little bit more of the characters I have come to love with no actual story progression of what we have already seen. Of course this is a spin-off and I knew this before jumping into the manga and show and so I can only speak personally when saying these things, but as an added note I do find it to be a well deserved addition to the Haruhi series and would recommend it to anyone that has seen the parent series and would recommend any newcomers to Haruhi to watch the parent series first. So for my enjoyment of the series I reward a 6 and give this spin-off the overall score of 7. This is generic romantic comedy, but it is an average anime with many reasons to dislike and just as many to reasons to like it.

What do you get when you take away the S.O.S Brigade? The "Godly" Haruhi Suzumiya? The espers, the time travelers and Yuki the alien? Well, you get this... A pile of horsesh*t. To be honest though, I did enjoy the show quite a bit but not as much as the Haruhi series.


[Story]: (4/10)
Yuki Nagato, the shy president of the literature club, has never been very sure of herself around other people. But around Kyon, the only boy in the tiny, three-person club, Yuki finds herself faltering even more than usual. For Kyon, and for her precious club, Yuki must find her confidence ... and let her true personality shine!

When I found out there was a spin off to the Haruhi series called "The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan"..Man, was I hyped. I mean, the movie came out 5 years ago with no sight of the 3rd Season for the Haruhi series. A spin-off was pretty much good enough for me, as long as I can see Haruhi, Kyon and the gang again. Welp, my hyped quickly died down after seeing the first 3 episodes. Why? Because it didn't have the same feeling or vibe as the Haruhi series. Kyon was right, without the espers, the time travelers and the aliens, life is boring. The show just demonstrated that. The episodes are just your typical slice-of-life with no mysteries whatsoever. That's what made me love the Haruhi series in the first place. A slice-of-life with mysteries. Taking out the mystery part is like taking out the strawberry in your strawberry cake. It's just no fun.

The first 2 episodes re-introduced the characters but not so much because they already assumed that you have seen the Haruhi series and you know these characters very well.
The first 10 episodes are just your typical slice-of-life/rom-com moments. In other words, eating, fooling around, main girl doing everything to catch the male's attention..that kind of stuff.

Episodes 11-13 is where it gets good...or so I thought. Ep. 11-13 is "The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan" arc. At this point, I thought the show was going to get better but instead, it became even more boring. She didn't really disappear like how Haruhi disappeared in the movie. Only her personality disappeared and it got replaced by her "old/alien" personality. Only temporarily though. I was very disappointed at this arc. Was I expected to cry when Yuki's old/alien personality was about to go? Because it's not even that sad. I was just too bored and I wanted the arc to be over with.

The last 3 episodes is again, your typical slice-of-life with no mystery plus some rom-com moments. In other words, it's the same as the first 10 episodes.

Some people thought the ending was a disappointment but I didn't find it disappointing. I actually thought it was a decent ending. It felt somewhat similar to the "Endless Eight" arc but very different.
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[Art/Animation]: (8/10)
Noo!! What happened with the animation?! If you compare this to the 2006 version of "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya", it looks like the main series' had a younger brother (which is this show) and he somehow had a birth defect. Yea, I was disappointed when I first saw the animations and I was also disappointed that the show is not made by Kyoto Animation this time around. The show is animated by Satelight so there's a reason why the animation is different than the 2006 version. To be honest though, if you look at this show without looking at the main series then the show's animation looks pretty good. The character designs also bugged the hell out of me when I first saw them because KyoAni's character designs looks a lot better but I got used to the show's character design in about 2 episodes.
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[Sound]: (7/10)
Is it just me or does the soundtrack feel similar to the Haruhi series?....Nah, I'm not alone on this one. The soundtrack IS the exact same as the soundtracks played in the Haruhi series. There is some new ones but I'm glad most of them returned because I absolutely love the theme that plays during Haruhi's crazy missions in the Haruhi series. In here, it's used in a similar way.

The OP theme song is "Fure Fure Mirai" by Kitakou Bungei-bu Joshikai and the ED theme song is "Arigatou, Daisuki" by Minori Chihara..
In my opinion, I was disappointed at the OP and ED theme song. I admit, the OP is catchy but it's a shitty OP theme song at the same time. The ED theme song is just downright annoying because the singer's voice didn't really fit with the sad and dramatic tone that the ED theme song is trying to play.

I watched the show in English Dub so I'll be reviewing the English VAs. They all reprise their roles and they all did a great job with their characters. Yuki's English VA managed to have that "cute, innocent, shy and moe" voice.
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[Character]: (7/10)
All the characters you know and love from the Haruhi series has been re-introduced in this show and this time, they have no special powers..How boring...
Kyon is the same as always and thank god nothing changed about him because I love his monologues and his funny ass sarcasms. Yuki Nagato's personality has completely changed. She went from an alien with no personality to a normal somewhat-shy teenage girl who plays her PS Vita all day. Reading books is boring anyways right? Ms. Asahina is still the same old moe but doesn't cosplay anymore. My beloved Mikuru..wearing her maid outfit..gone.. Itsuki is still the same old cocky transfer student but this time, he has a crush on Haruhi. Lastly, Haruhi is not the god anymore. Meaning the world will not turn "upside down" if she gets bored. She's still the same old over-cheery girl though so if you found her annoying (I don't find her annoying) in the main series then expect Haruhi to be more annoying in this show.

2 characters that didn't really get a lot of screentime in the Haruhi series finally gets more screentime in this show. That's Asakura and Tsuruya. In the main series, Asakura tried to kill Kyon and if I remember correctly, she too was an alien. Well, here..She's a normal girl who helps Yuki most of the time and she's part of the Literary Club with Yuki and Kyon. She doesn't have any intentions of killing Kyon and we are shown that when she gets on her "angry" side, she tends to be scary. Very scary.. Tsuruya is still the same old annoying rich girl.

Do I like these characters? In a way, yes..They're pretty decent but they're definitely inferior when compared to their selves with special powers.
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[Enjoyment]: (7/10)
I'd be lying if I said that I didn't enjoy this anime because I did enjoy it. Except for the "Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan" arc which felt really boring. The comedy is still there but not as great as the Haruhi series.
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[OVERALL]: (7/10)
"The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan" didn't really live up to the hype like the Melancholy and the Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya did. It just doesn't feel the same as those 2 series. It felt like a generic rom-com with slice of life moments. It's still a quite enjoyable series to watch but don't expect it to feel almost the same as the 2 main series. However, if you look at the show on its own then you might enjoy it even more.


Pros:
+Animation looks pretty good
+Most of the soundtracks in the main series returned here, with some new ones.
+Nice change in the characters
+Yuki's personality is better than her old personality
+Show retained Kyon's monologues and funny sarcasms

Cons:
-Flat Story
-Show doesn't feel the same when compared to the Haruhi series
-Generic Rom-Com/Slice of Life moments
-Inconclusive Ending

(This has been adapted from my blog/reddit thread. Spoilers ahead!)

In the school of thought, there are two areas that are often compared and contrasted: the conscious and the subconscious. The former is what we are aware of, the actions we take that we knowingly carry out, whereas the latter is what happens “without our knowledge,” the actions we take that we unknowingly carry out. We often say that “I subconsciously did this” in response to doing something that we are unable to explain. But what is interesting is that we accept this “hidden” part of ourselves. That is, despite having a main and understood self, ... we still believe there is a second, similar self within us. The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan is connected to this notion of two selves, generating an anime that somewhat subconsciously loses itself along the way.

STORY

Something that not everyone learns is the notion of perspective. Having the ability to displace one’s self, move outside of one’s current view and look at a particular situation from a different vantage point, is valuable not only for the one shifting his or her perspective – since it reveals previously unknown ideas – but also for those being looked at differently – complete bias gives way to further understanding. The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan targets this same theme with mixed results.

The anime’s sign that its overall perspective is about perspective is in the way that it structures its narrative, and more specifically who is doing the narrating. Essentially, the plot shifts its perspective between three separate characters throughout the season: the regular Nagato, the “new” Nagato, and finally Kyon. The majority of the anime follows regular Nagato (about the first ten episodes or so), with her segment more slice-of-life and romantic-comedy in nature. One moment she is sharing a drink with her crush while the next has her on vacation with all of her friends to enjoy life’s small offerings. During her events, the anime is generally fun, upbeat, and lighthearted, as a simple foray into the Haruhi Suzumiya world that this spinoff comes from. Feelings of this kind are felt because the audience is viewing the anime from Nagato’s perspective which coincidentally has these same emotions. Therefore the viewer comes to understand Nagato’s thoughts directly from her, laying down the foundation for how the remainder of the season proceeds.

However, the emotions subsequently change when the perspective does, most notably when the show moves from regular Nagato’s point of view to new Nagato’s. No longer are the feelings related to elation but instead loneliness, depression, and sadness because that is how new Nagato perceives the environment around her. As a result, the anime also goes from being slice-of-life oriented to being dramatic in its presentation. Gone are the small talk and romps, replaced instead with trips to quiet libraries and nighttime park benches that encapsulate the plot’s new focus. Haruhi’s exclusion during this arc makes the switch even more apparent – the biggest ball of energy is purposefully missing to keep the show’s current tone bogged down. Such a tonal shift contrasts harshly with the beginning, giving it higher impact on the viewer and therefore higher power since the effects are both immediate and palpable. But even more powerful is how the change in perspective allows for the audience, for the first time, to see regular Nagato from a new angle. Before it had always been through her eyes, through her own introspection. Now, she is seen from a point that is paradoxically inside and outside of herself due to new Nagato’s special status. Consequently, the narrative showcases regular Nagato’s thoughts and feelings through new Nagato, providing (coincidentally) a new angle to view the characters in question and thus the relationships involved.

For its final angle, the anime changes its perspective to Kyon, the character who has been the target of the girls’ affections the entire time. Like new Nagato, the change in perspective can be seen in the reassembly of the anime’s elements: Kyon’s little sister is around more than ever, evident references to “Endless Eight” are included, and his previous connection to Haruhi is elaborated on. Perhaps obviously, the trend of morphing feelings continues, with this last iteration mirroring Kyon’s awkwardness and unsureness. Again, these emotions are present not only because of the conflicting personalities and actions between the regular and new Nagato but also because the narrative is now from his point of view. This results in a similar investigation of the characters and relationships; the audience is now able to see both Nagatos from a perspective that is completely separate from them. Kyon wrestles with himself on what to do, he interacts with the characters in more meaningful ways – less joking and more personal – and his ultimate decision reflects the sort of middle ground that was necessary to succinctly conclude the problem at hand. The anime certainly could have flipped its perspective back to the regular Nagato but that would have reduced Kyon’s plight and would not have meshed well with the newfound mood since regular Nagato was always about having a happy time.

But no matter how elated or melancholy the narrative gets, that does not immediately reveal what this perspective-shifting creates. In the case of The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan there is good news and bad news.

The good news is that the constant shifts in perspective allow the anime to escape from self-imposed narrow-mindedness. The situation between Nagato and Kyon is not relayed through a singular outlet but many outlets, altogether crafting a dynamic, rounded, and interesting tale that is open and explored since the multitude of perspectives prevents the anime from restricting its mindset. Since each main player’s direction is elaborated on, the narrative is empowered because it is no longer streamlined and instead given the opportunity to reach the same destination – a satisfying resolution between the three characters – but from multiple paths at once.

Unfortunately the bad news is hefty and almost ruins the narrative entirely. In essence and inherently, the tactic of shifting perspectives has a major problem: losing itself along the way. Initially the anime is about regular Nagato’s feelings toward Kyon but by the end it is about Kyon’s feelings toward new Nagato. In other words, the show’s original goals are never accomplished because the change in perspective brings with it a change in the conclusion. Using the multiple paths analogy once more, while the destination is reached, the anime chose to not look back or at least place markers along the roads it took. The implication, then, is that when the finale is over and it does see where it came from, it has no idea how it got to where it is at because there are too many paths to choose from without any sort of indication for which were taken when. Putting it differently, the conclusion makes it clear just how lost the anime is.

When done right – which happens here – shifting the perspective illuminates new ways in which to view the narrative. When done wrong – which happens here – shifting the perspective conceals how the narrative got from start to finish. Collectively, the mixed concoction is neither wanted nor discarded but simply tolerated.

ANIMATION

The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan chooses to employ a soft art style. Both the backgrounds and the character designs adopt this look as a means to make the anime more inviting; like a kind person, a show that is shown to be “caring” is easier to approach. Along these same lines, the locations visited are familiar to both newcomers and veterans of the series. The clubroom, the school grounds, the library, Nagato’s apartment, and the various areas within the city are visited, giving the anime a new yet nostalgic feel that further adds to the invitingness. Simultaneously, the show often makes use of a “chibi” art style, where characters and their faces become squatter and more exaggerated than normal to emphasize the comedy of the situation.

It is also worth highlighting the anime’s expert representation of new Nagato’s perspective. Where regular Nagato and Kyon have bright lighting and colors, new Nagato’s arc is mired in darkness, with low lighting and more somber hues – mainly purples, blacks, and blues – that work together to make her perspective that much more sad.

The characters’ designs are actually rather plain, mostly as a result of the soft art style. Besides Haruhi’s yellow ribbons and long, brown hair, the remainder of the designs all sort of blend together. The boring school uniforms, the weird hair colors, and the lack of extra detail (accessories or similar additions) keep the characters grounded in realism at the expense of interesting or memorable designs. Granted, the characters do fit their roles: Asahina’s peach hair coincides with her girly behavior, Asakura’s long blue hair and mature face matches her motherly instincts, and Yuki’s short, purple hair and round glasses fit her shy attitude, to name a few examples. Meaning, the character designs, while uninspired, manage to be purposeful within the context of the anime.

Actual animation tends to sit somewhere in the average area due to the laidback dealings of the anime. In general, the show is never flashy or dull, instead showcasing the everyday dealings of high school teenagers. Characters interact with each other using typical body and facial movements, with a lot of the downtime regulated to them standing or sitting around having a conversation about themselves, each other, or the occurrence at hand.

CHARACTERS

The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan’s approach to its characters is two-fold in more ways than one.

On the surface, the characters embody a smorgasbord of personalities. Nagato is the clumsy girl, Kyon is the wisecracker, Asakura is the competitor, Haruhi is the hyperactive one, Koizumi is the quiet sage, and so on. The anime portrays them as such because that is who they are; of course, how could they be anybody else? Interestingly, besides Nagato’s increased reactions and Asakura’s more prominent role, the characters act much like they have been known to behave. That is to say, the traits that have defined them in the past – within the original series – have carried over into their present manifestations, providing the same sense of nostalgia that the art did. Indeed, people experience development over the course of their life but who they are and how they act is something that is persistent. Someone who is a partier remains a partier, someone who is a nerd remains a nerd. So, the cast of the show are the same: Nagato usually fumbles with common happenings, Kyon has a witty comment or two to share, and Haruhi is the one that designs the ridiculous activities. Characterizations like these are not just readily perceivable but also immediately attributable based on what the viewer learns and possibly has learned.

It is not that the partier cannot become the nerd and vice versa, but that people who portray themselves one way rarely lose that side of himself or herself. Geometrically, features are lines that connect a definition to the person in question. When someone is described as funny, that word strings the ideas of funniness with the one being described – he or she tells jokes, makes weird faces, uses overzealous motions, and so on. The same train of thought applies to the cast; calling Kyon sarcastic or Haruhi rambunctious causes the brain to start making connections.

But people are not one line, but many. Continuing to think with geometry, people are shapes, complex structures that weave and loop in intricate patterns. People are made up of a large amount of lines at once that, collectively, make someone who they are. In other words, people do not have just one side but several; people are multiple “persons” at once. The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan showcases this mathematical premise with each of its characters. Kyon’s wittiness and outward smartness sits alongside the worrywart and kind person that he is. Asakura might be a competitor at heart, but she is extremely motherly, treating Nagato like her own child. Haruhi is selfish and slightly crazy but she can be envious and sane when she wants to be. Even Koizumi, in all his infinite wisdom, would much rather flow like water, be a follower instead of the leader he seems destined for. Now, the majority of these are contradictions, where each person’s “second person” goes against their regular self, but this pronounces the type of shapeshifting people experience. People can, and often are, polar opposites of themselves, both because they are allowed to be and because it is simply another side to the shape.

A potential problem arises when the most important character, Nagato Yuki, is used in conjunction with this line of thinking. As is shown, the anime depicts the regular and the new Nagato as different people entirely. Not the same person with two distinct halves but rather two distinct people. That is, it appears as if the Nagatos do not follow this train of thought since the anime goes out of its way to say, “This is one Nagato and this is another,” that it is not one Nagato with multiple sides but instead two separate women. But they do. Regular Nagato is surely shy but hidden beneath her hiding exterior is a girl looking for and wanting love. New Nagato is a bit more reserved yet sure of herself. While she was not looking for love, it found her, with the understanding she had of her person encouraging her to press on where the other Nagato never could.

The Nagatos being two separate people, with their own set of traits, features, and quirks that make them composed of several “people,” is ultimately the anime’s message: a person is composed of a mishmash of shapes that make him or her a completely unique one. In a way, the show is alluding to the original series, with its characters having identities separate of their “normal” selves that made them special individuals. Kyon’s final talk goes down the way it does because he understands this notion, how people are made up of multiple facets that make them who they are, make them stand-out from everyone else. He sees that it was not the regular Nagato he started to have feelings for but the new Nagato, with her books, quietness, and confidence that allured him. It was new Nagato’s shape, not regular Nagato’s, that seemed so appealing. Kyon’s words do not have romance flourish between any of the couplings, but it highlights the importance of differentiation. Differentiating not only between people but also between ourselves.

As it stands, the entire cast lacks major development despite the drama instilled, which would seem to hamper their execution. However, due the characters’ theme on multiplicity being as involved as it is, their purpose is not entirely folded into nothingness.

SOUND

The opening theme is very ecstatic, which is strange since this is an anime about Nagato and not an anime about Haruhi. Regardless, the upbeat nature of the piece comes from the quickness, multiple vocalists, and weird instrumental effects that make the track itself pretty crazy. A little too crazy, given the content of the anime during the latter portions of the series. It can be fun to listen to at times but is mostly forgettable. The ending theme is the opposite, in tempo, emotion, and memorability. The vocalist gives a strong performance, the sentimental tone is serene, and the backup choir supports the main singer well. It is a track filled with loneliness, longing, and love, each of which can be easily felt when listening to it both when and when not watching the anime.

The remainder of the soundtrack is two-fold like the characters. Since half of The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan is a comedy, many of the tracks are similarly fun, with beach-like tunes, acoustic sounds, and faster beats to fit the occasion. The other half is dramatic, with accompanying flutes, pianos, and violins taking up much of the music. The dramatic pieces are better than the comedic ones mainly as a result of the passion they exude when compared to their silly brethren. Overall, the OST is a nice group of songs that are neither strong nor weak, used when needed but lacking power.

Voice acting for the show is somewhere above average. Many of the voice actors and actresses reprise their roles, such as Minori Chihara as Nagato, Tomokazu Sugita as Kyon, and Aya Hirano as Haruhi. Minori Chihara in particular gave a wonderful performance, providing a voice that is awkward, quiet, and straining, portraying Nagato as the pitiable yet hopeful lead. Alongside Tomokazu Sugita’s sarcastic and overly-manly voice for Kyon, Aya Hirano’s peppiness for Haruhi, and the remainder of the men and women giving nice performances, the cast as a whole gave the show some much-needed life.

ENJOYMENT

I would not consider myself a fanatic (aka, a fan) when it comes to the Haruhi series. I think it is well-done – and yes that does include the second season that seems to literally define repetition – but I never find myself talking about the series to someone else or even suggesting it. Again, not that I hate the series or find it missing in execution, which are both untrue, it is simply always sitting somewhere slightly outside of my mind. The movie which, coincidentally enough, shares nearly the exact same name as this series, is a whole different beast that should be viewed by everyone.

That being said, as I was watching this one, I found myself liking it. It was because of the romance aspect; watching Nagato squirm, stutter, and smile her way towards the love she wanted was cute to watch, as was all of the blushing and courage she sporadically had. The references to the original were cool throwbacks, too. They were used sparingly and appropriately: not too much so that it became indistinguishable from the original series and not too little so that it forgot its origins. Comedy-wise, the show also had a foothold, with reaction faces, character interactions, and skits that would usually get a laugh out of me now and again.

But as the anime began switching its perspective, so did I. I started to find the show less and less entertaining the further along it progressed. New Nagato’s segment is arguably the strongest part of the anime, but it was a section that was honestly quite boring. I wanted Nagato to continue fighting for Kyon’s attention. I wanted Kyon and Haruhi’s personalities to still be around. I wanted Asakura’s overprotection. I wanted the fun, the romance, back. But I did not get what I wanted. What I got was a show that was not what it was before, making me, like Nagato, longing for that which I could not have.

For a final note, I want to say that, despite Minori Chihara’s amazing performance, I hated Nagato’s voice. Nagato acted cute but spoke in a way that was unfavorable. It was not deafening or unbearable, but it was grating and annoying. Each time she started to speak, I was wondering when she would stop because it sounded like she was struggling, drowning in a sea of her own vocal chords. To be fair, that is sort of the point – she is a super-shy girl that has difficulty socializing with others – but that did not prevent me from disliking her each time she opened her mouth.

The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan is an anime that has surprisingly strong themes on perspective and variability of the self, with mediocrity within its remaining parts unfortunately covering them. The story gets lost in some woods, the characters’ development gets misplaced in a cabin, and the music gets abandoned on a mountainside, each with zero chance of recovery since the show never attempts to find them. At the minimum, the anime, like its lost items, will continue to exist in the subconscious of those that have seen it: always there but not quite remembered.

SUMMARY

Story: Fine, the narrative’s tendency to shift its perspective gives it new angles but simultaneously causes it to lose itself along the way

Animation: Fine, nice art style, adequate character designs, about average actual animation

Characters: Fine, while missing a lot of development, the cast demonstrates the idea of multiplicity in ourselves

Sound: Fine, bad OP, good ED, okay soundtrack, above average VA performances

Enjoyment: Bad, fun and comedic in the beginning, reducing in entertainment the further along it proceeds, with Nagato’s grating voice persistent from start to finish

Final Score: 4/10

This is not a "what if Kyon stayed in the other world" scenario. This is a "what if the genre and narrative changed" scenario.

I have watched the original series and movie and am a huge fan of it, but that being said, one should go into this show with an open mind and realize that this isn't the same show. If you hold onto your belief that the old characters will come back and do SOS Brigade shenanigans, then you shouldn't watch as the entire premise is different. There is no bigger picture or universal scale events, just an eccentric girl crushing on a ... guy that helped her at the library.

P.S. - I just finished writing this review and re-read the synopsis. Don't trust that, it's wrong. At no point is the literature club in danger. I don't find Asakura to be perky, that makes it sound like she's energetic which is wrong; she's closer to a doting onee-san. And what's this "court her crush" thing? It should be "wanting to get closer to the person you admire" type of thing. Not outright seeking romance, but to further develop their relationship. Why are Tsuruya and Mikuru described like that? They're literally just friends that like to visit; the synopsis makes them sound like annoying antagonists when they really only get like 4 appearances. MAL descriptions can be weird sometimes.

Story (8/10):
So, that being said, it's not like it's a special story. Girl meets boy, they go to the same school, same club, and try to get closer. While there is progress there by the end of the series, the story is primarily character driven where we can see the changes that occur within characters over the course of the series. Unlike many other shows of this nature, the beginning and ending of the series show clear developments have been made.

Art (8/10):
Haha, I've seen that a lot of people are put off by the change in art style. If such a small thing bothers you then okay, don't bother watching. It should be obvious to not expect a KyoAni art style and to instead expect a style that fits a school, slice of life, romance, comedy. I for one think the art style suits the narrative well. Bubbly and light like Nagato's new easy-going personality.

Sound (8/10):
As a slice of life, the selection of music leans towards the light, relaxing side. In terms of direction, I find it to be used well in general. No spots where it seemed out of place and listening to Chihara Minori sing is always a pleasure.

Character (9/10):
To address the elephant in the room, yes, Nagato's character has changed significantly from the original. Is this a bad thing? No of course not, I gave it a 9. Imagine if alien Nagato starred in this show; it'd be ultra boring. Alien Nagato works well in the original because we know she's an alien with orders to not stand out but is over time more affected by emotions that she didn't realize she had. To expect the SAME THING from a different show despite using the same characters is nonsense. Her background, personality, mission/goals, and growth are COMPLETELY different, thus the change in character to one that fits better and is frankly more entertaining in this setting.

Aside from the elephant, the other characters are actually pretty faithful to their original personalities with some minor changes: Haruhi is not as lacking in empathy, Asakura is not unsettling, Asahina is not a baby nor does she suffer any great pains or abuse at the hands of Haruhi, and Kyon isn't as sarcastic. The dynamic that worked well in the original apply to here as well with the addition of Asakura who fills the void of voice of reason. Likable people all around.

Enjoyment (9/10):
The only reason this isn't 10 is because it was sorta slow sometimes. Enough that it was noticeable, but not enough to takeaway immersion. Seeing the dorky actions of Nagato was endearing and seeing relationships beyond mere club members was nice. The prominent arc later in the series (Disappearance) especially takes the experience to another level. To achieve a drastic change in tone and narrative without disturbing the flow or suspension of disbelief is incredible and deserves praise. Direction is taken up a few notches and the new character introduced is quickly likable despite the differences from the main cast.

Overall (9/10):
Don't expect SOS Brigade shenanigans here. As its own standalone, this show stands up well. A slightly different yet familiar setting makes this an easy watch to enjoy. By all means, think of it as an alternate world, but that means to... think of it as an alternate world. They may not be the same as you knew them, but deep down, they're still the dorks we love.