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First of, I should warn you that I suck at writing reviews. Or at least I think so. SO I generally avoid writing reviews. But something compelled me to write a review for this anime which is called Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae wo Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai (We Still Don't Know the Name of the Flower We Saw That Day).

Death is something which comes to each and every human being in the world.
We could die because of sickness, accidents or murder. Whatever the cause is, when someone close to us dies, we all feel pain. Depending on the type of person you are and how close the person who died was to you, it'll take you a while to recover from the loss. But what happens when a very, very good friend of yours dies and it's your fault? Rather, you think it's your fault? To add to complications, what if this happens when you are a child and the person who dies is your dear childhood friend? That is sort of what AnoHana is about, I think. A part of it, at least.

The story starts out like any normal anime would. A boy(Jintan) playing video games and a seemingly happy-go-lucky girl(Menma) talking to him and bouncing around. But we soon find out everything is not what it seems. Menma is actually dead and for some reason she appears before Jintan, alive and well. We are introduced to the rest of the childhood friends: Tsuruko, Anaru, Yukiatsu and Poppo. But they are not the close friends they once were.

A few episodes pass by and we get hints of how each of the childhood friends seem to be hiding something deep within their heart. We then find out that Menma has a wish that she wants to be fulfilled. Soon, the friends(some reluctantly) agree to fulfill Menma's wish so that she can go to heaven.

We also learn about how Meiko Honma and about how the members of the Super Peace Busters all regret what they did on one eventful day, when Menma called them all to tell them something. That was when the unthinkable happened and the children are shattered and slowly, they grow apart after Meiko's death.

But even they grow apart, and time has passed, their hearts are filled with the same amount of regret they had on that day when they were children. The first few episodes are kind of slow as we are introduced to the characters and at first a few of them may seem rude or un-kind at first glance. But as the story goes on, we see that they are not. The attitude they put out in front of others is actually a kind of shield for them to protect themselves. But you can't hide behind those weak shields forever, is what they soon learn as time goes by.

AnoHana is an anime which tackles a lot of human emotions and shows human nature at it's best and it's worst. It showed how things which you through as a child like emotional traumas, regretting something etc. will follow you throughout your life no matter how much you try to avoid it and you have to face it sometime or the other. It also showed how one small mistake you make can lead to perhaps the most terrible thing happening in your life and you should be very careful in life. It showed how jealousy, courage and fear can lead to unimaginable, cruel things. Pain, suffering, anguish, regret: AnoHana had all of these. But AnoHana isn't just a show full of regrets.

It shows how to come out of all of that pain by facing your regret, facing your problems, battling it out and telling others how you feel. Each of the friends felt that they were the the only ones regretting things and being selfish but all of them: Jintan, Anaru, Tsuruko, Yukiatsu and Poppo; they realized that they were not alone.

Menma was the reason they split apart but Menma brought them back together in the end. Her wish was fulfilled and she left and there were tearful good byes.

The character designs were simple but unique. The animation wasn't amazing but it was pleasing to the eyes. I felt it looked a bit wonky in some bits but maybe that's just me. The lighting effects during sadness or happiness were good as well.

Music? The opening brings tears to my eyes every time I hear it. The ending had a sense of nostalgia and that there was still hope. The soundtracks played during emotional moments were spot on and listening to them alone will make you feel sad.

The seiyuus were excellent. They portrayed the characters they played very accurately. Menma's seiyuu especially was really good. She played a character who seemed always cheerful but the truth was she was sad inside her heart. She portrayed Menma very well.

AnoHana taught me that death, losing someone, or the fear of losing someone is not something to be taken lightly, and not to keep things built up in your heart. It also taught me how precious life is.
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Its been a while since I read a manga which touched me like this one did. And I make it a point to read every shoujo manga I can get my hands on. It really caught hold of my heart and it really made me cry. I'm still crying when I'm doing this review. I normally never review anything even if I like it, but this is an exception. I am reviewing this because I want people to know that this manga is worth it.

I'm not including a summary because it would spoil the whole thing. All I can say is, DON'T DROP THIS MANGA IN THE FIRST CHAPTER! Because that's what I nearly did. And boy, am I glad I didn't. Because if I had, I would have missed one of the most heart wrenching short story manga of this year. DON'T LET THE SUMMARY FOOL YOU! There's a reason why its called a dramatic love story!

If you have read the first chapter in this manga, you would know that it starts out pretty much like other manga and you'd think the female lead is an idiot. SHE IS NOT! DON'T DROP IT! You might think, ho-hum, boring, but wait until the second or third chapter! THE END AT THE THIRD CHAPTER IS WORTH IT!

When you read the third chapter of this manga and everything is put into place you'll feel like you've been slapped on your face. I had not liked the heroine until then. But when I read the third chapter, I felt guilty. I felt mad at myself for hating the heroine.

What i say probably won't make sense until you finish the manga but really, its very beautiful and sad and painful. Be sure to read it. You won't regret it. read more

I LOVE THIS MANGA! I am a shoujo maniac and romance maniac and I check this manga everyday for updates. Its typical romance yes but it has what I want: hot guy who's hard to understand but sweet, nice girl who doesn't cry all the time, good art, great romance scenes, EVERYTHING a shoujo maniac needs. :D

Story:
Yes, we've encountered this many times before, girl and the prince of the school living together but there's sexual tension almost immediately and the guy has a wicked sense of humor and the girl is cute, plus new characters are introduced often who are fun and have their bad points in their own way.

Art:
Pretty nice art in my eyes. Very detailed, cute, hot. What more can I say?

Character:
The characters are pretty ok. Shuusei is a bit hard to understand but I'm hoping future chapters reveal something about his past. Aoi is not a typical cry baby so I'm happy about that too. She's a little indecisive but hey, no body's perfect.


Enjoyment: I enjoy this series very much. Each moment makes me squeal though now, in later chapters, there is a little more drama.

Overall, great manga for shoujo lovers. read more