Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso

Hers was a white lie built on a grain of truth that snowballed as one lie after the other piled up. At first it was only hers, but then it became something that the two of them shared together – like a secret, a world upon which no other could encroach. He may have been “Friend A,” and she “the girl that loves my best friend,” but they were masquerading around a truth that neither one could openly admit because ultimately, the truth was much more painful.

Your Lie in April is a deceitfully masterful series that initially appears light-hearted and colorful, its palette boasting pastels ... that lend to the idea of it being another romantic comedy. Yet the moment we step past the disillusionment that it casts upon us by its false prefaces, we quickly realize that what we have immersed ourselves in is actually a tragedy in the making.

Tragic not because of a single element but because of all of its parts, and yet at the end of everything, this isn’t a series about tragedy. It is a series about learning to heal, learning to move on, and learning to accept the parts of ourselves that we’d rather pretend aren’t there. Part of that is accepting that sometimes we need a helping hand to take that first step. Part of it is learning to say goodbye when the time comes.

What is so compelling about the storyline is that it’s not merely an adventure into first love, it delves into the reality of post-traumatic stress disorder, childhood abuse, and chronic illness. It doesn’t paint any of these as artistic or tragically beautiful—they are horrible, they twist people, they ruin the best moments, and they have a long-lasting impact.

No one is completely black-and-white; everyone has their short-comings, fleshed out in full before our eyes. They have their hang-ups, their strengths, their struggles—and it’s in these characters that this series really takes off in full stride. It would be enough for them to be multifaceted with equal amounts of depth, but they take it a step further in painting the reality of youth.

Older anime fans may critically analyze the series as an unrealistic approach to young teenagers, but that pessimism overlooks the reality of what it was like for us to be that age. We were all that point when we found our first love, when we thought it was forever, when we poured our passion into something that ultimately would not come to fruition or last. That’s what being young is about—and that’s what Your Lie in April gives us.

Granted that it may veer a bit over-dramatic at times in its representation of youth; there are moments of symbolism or hyperbole so overt that the cheesiness makes you shift a little uncomfortably in your seat (but I promise it’s not enough to gag you). Given that this is, however, a rather common trope that runs in series with heavier themes, it’s not necessarily a huge setback for an otherwise solid series. In the end, it is intended to be a fictional representation that conveys more than just what can be summarized in a few sentences or less.

The sound is completely on point, and the soundtrack artfully matches the emotions intended to be represented in each scene. From the actual classical music to the opening and ending, everything fits in like a jigsaw puzzle to give a full, satisfying final piece. When the characters analyze someone’s playing as harsh, rigid, and stilted, we can hear this—whether we are knowledgeable about music or not. Your Lie in April conveys emotion to us not just visually but aurally as well.

The animation is wonderful with bright, vibrant colors that bring the characters fully to life. There is an amazing, visually perceivable transition for the characters as time passes, particularly in regards to Kaori as the series moves on. It occasionally has some stilted moments but nothing outrageously noticeable to detract from the overall quality.

Ultimately, Your Lie in April is a story that starts out of the gates moving a bit slowly, but the pace matches the tone of the series. Structurally, it is a solid story of youth that dramatizes some aspects but never distracts from the intended message. On top of its other strong points, it’s aurally and visually a joy to the senses – and to anyone appreciative of a series willing to realistically approach the conflict of childhood abuse and the resulting trauma in a positive way. It’s not without a few setbacks, but in the end, Your Lie in April fashions itself to be a stand-out romance series that reminds us that while some relationships may be transient and brief, some people will come into our lives at just the right time for just long enough to touch us in a way we never thought possible.

"Did I reach you? I hope I did."

I nearly skipped this gem just because of the music tag. Not really big into music anime but somehow the art dragged me into watching the first few episodes. First episode was an average episode with few interesting plot lines. But the second episode was the hook. Irony. The tag that made me nearly skip this anime was the one that kept me in it. The music, the music... THE MUSIC.. what can I say? It was just right down my taste. Never in my life did I thought of "oh hey let's listen to some classical ... music" but this anime opened a new taste in music in me. And I'm grateful for that.

The first half and second half have clear differences with a very smooth pacing and objectives in mind. Some may say the pacing was slow and sometimes it felt that a point is being dragged out for long. As much as I understand where they are coming from, I feel that this series took the right amount of time to build up for the many impact full moments that is present. The inner monologues that the series loves to do felt right to display the conflicts that our characters are fighting with. Also, the conflicts dealt with are very realistic and people can very much relate to them. I happen to be one of them being able to relate to our main male protagonist.

The cast of characters in this show is pretty high. As a 22 episode anime, I think it did an excellent job portraying those characters. As most animes, not all the characters were fully fleshed out, and I didn't expect it to do so. The ones that mattered most were developed beautifully. Besides, nearly everyone's thought process were clear, motivations/purpose in tact and passion which shone through.

Sound is something that I will not even talk about since it is subjective. The main reason, however, that I will not dive deeper is because for me, it was perfect. I couldn't have asked for anything more.

Animation wise. Throughout the whole series, it was standard stuff from A-1 Pictures. It did have some drop from time to time, especially during the comedy segments, which I didn't find distracting but it wasn't great to say the least. Animation stood out where it counts. Those performances. I would have been really been disappointed if the animation was average in those moments, because of how beautiful the soundtracks are. But A-1 delivered, and they both complimented each other outstandingly.

By the end of the series, I was just left in awe, and honestly a bit (extremely) emotional. To compare, the 'feels' in this series (my opinion) surpasses the highly praised Clannad: After Story for one simple reason. I was just slightly more attached to the relationship our main characters shared than I was with Clannad. But the story is not about tragedy. It's about inspiration, passion, moving forward, family, friendship, helping each other (many more). It is about life and how hard it can be to carry on, but you still gotta do it. You still gotta live your life to your fullest.

"If you can't move with your hands then play with your feet! If you don't have enough fingers, then use your nose as well! Whether you're sad, you're a mess, or you've hit rock bottom, you still have to play! That's how people like us survive." - Kaori Miyazono.

Overall 9.4/10.

My Thursdays won't be the same after finishing this anime. Shigatsu has taken me to a world of music that I will never forget.

Even though the story isn't anything new, the way it was written and directed make it feel like one. It is a story that revolves around music and how it connects people and how it affects them. It does not only affect them in a good way, but in a bad way too. And with that premise, a beautiful story about tennagers started.

Although there were some characters that didn't get a proper development to know and understand their own problems, motivations, and ... dreams, they didn't feel empty and meaningless. They all had a purpose and most of them where helpful to our main characters. They didn't feel cliché neither, even when we got some of them like the childhood friend and the dandy best-friend. And the best part, at least to me, is that there was no fan-service.

I didn't get to see a flaw in the animation in the 22 episodes aired. The palette of colours used, especially the blue ones, were gorgeous, while the performance moments were dynamic and realistic. Not to mention the opening and ending sequences, which are to date some of my favourites of all time.

Add to this a beautiful ost and amazing songs for the openings and endings and you'll feel in heaven. The opening songs were upbeat and represented a good tonal contrast to the story, while the ending songs complemented it, especially the second one, which can make you cry (if you were not crying already) after the emotional final episodes.

Overall, this anime has been one of the bests I've ever seen. It hooked me since the first teaser, and never let me go until the last episode. It is not a hard story, so everyone can enjoy it as much as I did. With loveable and relatable characters with deep stories, a gorgeous animation and an amazing score, I'm pretty sure that this is one of the best anime from the past few years, and the best (TO ME) of this season. I can recommend this show to anyone who want to watch and experience a good, heart-warming romance anime.

If you don't want to read, then there’s a tl;dr at the end, as well as a tl;dr for every section.

Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso, or Your Lie in April, is 24-episode anime that started airing in October 2014, and ended in March 2015. Since its end, it has been a subject of hot debate on this site. Usually there are 2 types of people for any controversial show, those who love it to no end, and those who flat out despise it. I personally am somewhere on the fence.

Now is it the best anime ever? No. Is it bad? Definitely not. Then what ... exactly is Shigatsu?

Well, at its core Shigatsu is a story about a boy(Arima Kousei) who used to be a fantastic pianist at a young age. Unfortunately, during his growth, he lost his mother, something that left him unable to hear the piano ever again. Or at least until he met a violinist named Kaori Miyazono, who tries to help him return to music.

Well, that’s the basis of the story. Now onto the review.

Story:- 6/10

The story of Shigatsu has both good and bad sides to it. Before we delve into the bad, let’s take a look at the good.

The story, as you would normally expect, has a lot of romance, which is done pretty well. The romance in Shigatsu, is very heartfelt at times and also very fun at other times. The story tries to maintain a perfect balance of comedy and real romance, which does work, most of the time.

Unfortunately, this show is also a melodrama, which is the bad part. The drama in this show apparently got many people teary-eyed, but, I have a hard time believing that. The show tries way too hard to make you feel some “feels”, and pretty much drops flat on its face. The show constantly tries to shove its drama in your face, from episode 13 onwards, and it gets annoying at times. Before episode 13, it still had some dramatic moments, but those were much better done, showing Kousei’s inner fears.

As I previously mentioned, the show is filled with comedy, romance, and now, drama. When you but all these in a blender what do you get? Well if the blender was a good one, then you might get something amazing. But this wasn’t a good blender. Instead what we got was a drink with a beautiful exterior, but a bad aftertaste.

Since Shigatsu thinks it’s a drama, but also tries to make time for comedy and romance, we get painfully abrupt scenes of melodrama, followed closely by comedy, which does not fit at all.

One second we might be seeing a person die, and the other we see Kousei getting kicked by his “not-girlfriend”, Tsubaki.

Speaking of which, the romance aspect isn’t flawless either. Somewhere during the time that the show was trying to find what genre it belongs to, we got a love-triangle. Now, it really isn’t as bad as I make it sound, but it’s still a bit cliché at times. Boy A loves Girl A, Girl A loves Boy B, Girl B loves Boy A, and Boy B doesn’t give a shit.

The romance isn’t complex but it still does get stale at times.

But, for as much as I railed on the story, it has one saving grace. The ending. The final episode is probably the best part of this anime, in my opinion. It’s a simple monologue by the female lead, Kaori. But it’s so beautifully written that I couldn’t help but be engrossed by it.

TL;DR for STORY : The story has pretty good romance, which gets slightly stale near the middle. The excess of melodrama mixed with the comedy is probably the biggest flaw of the story, since those are two genres that should be implemented far away from each other. But, no matter how many flaws it has, its ending is beautiful in every way possible. Great writing, good background music, very good voice acting, and beautiful art. Speaking of art, let’s move on to the next section.


Art and Animation:- 9/10

The art of Shigatsu is probably the best part of it. It changes according to the mood of the scene, and fits the overall feel of the show. It’s very bright most of the time, and it everything ranging from the night sky to the school playground look gorgeous.

The character designs for the main characters are well done, and easily recognizable. The adults were also very well designed, to a point that you could actually guess their age. The only flaw I see with the character design are the children. It might just be me, but it’s weird to see children who have buttons for eyes, which makes them stand out in comparison to the rest of the cast.

Most of the time the animation is very fluent, and everything moves very nicely. The performance scenes are where the real budget went though. Accompanied with great music, it uses CGI for the piano, and extremely fluent animation for the violin. The CGI is a bit odd, and does stick out sometimes, but it did not distract from the focus of the scene, the performance.

TL;DR for ART : The art in Shigatsu is the best part of it, with a hefty use of colors, and a very bright scenery which changes according to the mood and feel of the scene. Most of the character designs are pretty good, besides the children in the show. The animation is fluent for the most part, and the performance scenes were amazing. Even though the CGI piano was a bit jarring at times, it didn’t distract me from what really mattered in the scene, the music.


Sound:- 8/10

Being an anime focused around music, one would normally think that the music of the show should be its strongest point, including me. But no, that’s sadly not the case.

Towards the beginning the performances were all amazing with the focus remaining solely on the performance and nothing else. But this is soon forgotten in the latter half of the show. The music itself is very good, or at least as much of the music I could hear.

The performances(in the latter half) are constantly interrupted by monologues, which are meant to bring up the drama, but instead come off as a distraction and an annoyance. Most of the performances I was yelling at the screen “Stop talking! I’m trying to listen to the brilliance that you’re playing!”. I personally am a fan of classical music, so when someone talks over it, I get very annoyed, and feel like punching a hole through the screen.

That being said, the overall soundtrack of the show, excluding the performances, was pretty good. Although no song really stood out to me.

The voice actors also do their jobs pretty well, with all of the voices fitting the characters. Especially Kaori and Kousei’s voice actors.

But of course, nothing in the show can top it’s masterful opening. Opening 1(Hikaru Nara), is probably one of the best openings I’ve ever heard in a while. The second opening(Nanairo Symphony) while not as good, was still great. Both endings were also pretty well done, but the second ending(Orange) is the better of the two.

TL;DR for MUSIC : The show should focus on music, but instead many of the performances are spoken over for the majority of the time. The show tried to bring drama into the mix again (by talking over the performances) but failed horribly in this case. The soundtrack of the show is pretty good, and the voice actors do the characters justice. Its openings and endings are few of the best of 2014, and Opening 1 is one of my favorite openings of all time.


Characters:- 5/10

This is where Shigatsu really fails. It’s not that there isn’t any character development, but certain characters, who needed development, didn’t get any. I’ll start with the good.

Kousei: He’s probably the character who is best developed throughout the entire show. After meeting Kaori, he starts to regain his will to play music, and starts to overcome his fears. Many other characters, including Kaori, act as foils in his development, like his friends, teacher, his rivals, and even his pupil. His development is the one that got the most focus in the entire story, but maybe even too much.

Kaori: This is where I feel that the characters fail. Since I can’t talk too much about Kaori without spoilers, I’ll be as careful as possible to avoid spoiling anything. Kaori is probably the character who had the most potential to develop, but instead, she was used as a mere plot device. Something to simply be present to help Kousei grow. While I did praise Kousei’s development, it’s not worth sacrificing the development of another character that could’ve grown into so much more. In fact, she was probably the character who I loved the most in the entire show, so I was extremely disappointed to see her get sidelined as a plot device with no depth at all.

Tsubaki: She’s the other main female lead, and the other love interest of Kousei. In other words Girl B. She also played a large role in Kousei’s development, but here, unlike Kaori, she also got some development. While she didn’t get a lot of development, she was still the second-most developed character in the show, which was a step in the right direction.

Other Characters: Most of the other characters are just treated as side characters, but some of them are developed. In fact Kousei’s rivals and his pupil, all get some development, which was nice to see.

TL;DR for CHARACTERS: The entire story of Shigatsu seems to focus on both Kousei and Kaori, but in fact it focuses just on Kousei. He is developed the most throughout the show, while Kaori gets the shortest possible end of the stick. Her development was expected, but it never came to be. The other characters sometimes got some development, and the other female love interest also got some development.


Enjoyment:- 8/10

As much as I might rag on the show, and no matter how many flaws I point out in it, I still thoroughly enjoyed it. Yes, some characters got on my nerves, and the performances were really disappointing when someone talked over them, but even with all those flaws, I still enjoyed watching it.

Most of the time I was engrossed by the beautiful exterior of the show, and at other times, I was yelling at the characters to stop talking over the music. But, it was still a fun ride.



Pros:
+ Great animation.
+ Brilliant Openings and Endings
+ A beautiful ending
+ A well developed main lead, and a likable cast of characters.
+ Enjoyable, if you don’t try to notice the flaws.

Cons:
- Terribly developed female lead, with a ton of misused potential
- Performances were often talked over
- Story tries way too hard to be a drama, but in reality is just a mediocre melodrama


TL;DR for OVERALL:

Overall, the anime definitely isn’t bad, but it doesn’t know what it wants to be. It thinks it’s a drama and tries to act like one, but it had much more potential as a simple romance. If it wanted to be a drama, then it didn’t need to add so much comic relief at every second. It keeps trying to get tears out of you, but it tries way too hard to do so. The characters were also something that needed a lot of work, with Kaori being one of the most misused characters in the show.

On the plus side, the anime looks gorgeous, and it has some of the best openings of all time, along with performances that could’ve been much better, but were still very well done. The final episode is also a very good part of the show, meaning that the show has a brilliant ending.

In the end, it’s not a masterpiece, nor is it garbage. It’s a good experience, that I can recommend watching.

Overall: 7.2/10

Beethoven was a piano genius who couldn’t hear his own music because of his deafness. Arima Kousei is a piano prodigy can’t hear his own music because of the tragic death of his mother causing mental breakdown that casted a deep, dark shadow over music.

[Story]

Your Lie in April starts out as a colorful, and lighthearted anime, but all this contrasts the life of it’s main character, Arima Kousei, which is described as monotone, and dull. The lightheartedness is contradicted yet again as deeper, and much darker past is revealed as Arima falls deeply in love with Kaori. You get a large glimpse of ... his dismal past revealing the actual reason behind why he can’t hear his own music, but his conditions steadily improves as he ventures into his first love. Though only calling him “Friend A” Kaori slowly begins to drag him back into music, as well as showing him a new side of life that was colorful, and vivid.

I enjoyed the story as well the storytelling methods of Shigatsu. The story is told mostly through Kosei’s point of view, and the anime utilizes a unique way of narration, much of the story is told through internal monologues, and thoughts. There are several pros and cons of this method, and a pro is the fact that you can see the character’s thought processes, and the con is that too much monologues can be quite overwhelming as well as annoying at times.

[Characters]

One of the things that made this anime so great was the characters. The anime heavily centers in on the past of the characters, which proves to be an excellent way of characterization. Every single character in the anime no matter substantial or minor is given a great personality. And as far as character development goes, most of the main characters display a considerable amount of it, especially Kousei.

I really enjoyed diversity between the personalities of Kousei, and Kaori. Kaori seemed like the incarnation of freedom, a happy go lucky girl. Yet Kousei is a sheltered person, he seems to withdraw himself from others in order to protect himself. They were polar opposites of each other, yet they were also made to be together.

[Sound]

Amazing put together, the soundtrack to the anime emphasized every aspect of the anime making it so much better. I’m definitely no fan of classical music but, they were essential to the show, as to any music anime, and it turned out I really enjoyed them because the songs were part of the story. Each time Kosei performed a song it revealed to us a little bit of his past. As a person who always skips the OP and ED of an anime, I made the exception for this one since they all were so well written, and complemented the tone of the anime.

[Art & Animation]
Original, would be the word I would use to describe the type of art style in the anime. Personally I thought it was okay but it was fairly compatible with the show, it used a lot of vibrant colors which thoroughly emphasized a lighthearted mood.

[Negatives]
No show is perfect, and this show is no exception. Not really sure why people had such a big problem with the overly dramatic scenes but it’s true there were a lot of drama, especially towards the end. Personally I thought the drama made the show more realistic, but honestly do a couple of 14 year olds need that much drama.

Pacing, one thing I learned after watching this anime was that the author really likes to drag things out, and I understand that this might not be a problem for some people, but honestly, do they really need to spend a whole episode on the past of a supporting character? I really wish they would’ve made the last part of the show longer rather than adding in too much detail.

[Overall]

I really enjoyed this anime as a whole, it took a very clichéd plot, and with it’s added elements turned it into something original. And taking it’s genre’s into perspective, it really excels at each of them except the humor it could’ve been done a lot better. The jokes were poorly placed and overall just caused awkwardness. The anime is a real tearjerker it made me cry twice, and I pride myself in being a real macho person. But as far as masterpieces go, this definitely belongs in the best of the best. It’s an anime that I wished would never end, but nothing lasts forever, except true love.

"Will you forget?" - Kaori

Honestly, I have not written an anime review probably since Sword Art Online. I don't necessarily prefer writing reviews cause they're generally tedious & time consuming. However, There is only so long I can see such misleading, disrespectful, and uninformative reviews. Out of the well over 300 anime series I have seen, Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso is one of Seven anime I have given the perfect score to. And that is because this anime epitomises quality & perfection.

I came in to this show with moderate expectations. I followed this show weekly - watching it each Thursday as it ... aired alongside my other Fall 2014 & Winter 2015 shows. Episode after episode continued to raise expectations, to command attention & perpetuate interest. I've seen a relatively fair share of Romance/Drama/School type anime, the most recent one of this genre being "Nisekoi" and most falling in a long line of trope filled, generic characters, non-developing story, and non existent romance.

The first thing you have to judge a show by is its first impression, just like any other art medium. My first impression of Shigatsu was along the lines of "Wow, this is aesthetically pleasing." The meticulous attention to detail of backgrounds, artistic displays, character designs was beyond impressive. Even the way A-1 transitioned between Kosei's world of colour & that of black/white played a positive, constructive role into developing not only Kosei's character, but the plot itself.

The music coincides with the other positive elements of the show to create the stunning masterpiece it is. First and foremost Shigatsu is a music anime & i find some of the criticisms of this not only amusing, but contradictory. OF COURSE, the drama, romance, setting & other plot elements are going to be centred around Kosei and his Piano playing - his fears, his desires, & his inability to overcome that struggle. I thought this would be more obvious to some people who call it melodramatic, or saying the drama is forced, which is rather ironic seeing as all the drama that occurs is relevant to the story & does not feel forced. Anyway I did not intend to deviate from how special the music is. The score is very evenly and appropriately composed, and at points where the emphasis is on the recitals, the music always fits the mood of the show well, and the monologue that occurs during these moments provides invaluable access to the minds of the characters (predominately Kosei) that allow us to resonate not only to the sound of the music being played - but to the intention of the sound. To the tension of that sound - of that meaning reaching its final destination. The hearts of the audience. The hearts of us.

Did it reach us? - Yes it did.

You can't have a perfect score without characters of the highest calibre. That's where Kaori Miyazano sparkles. She is confident, strong willed, beautiful, motivational, short-tempered, fragile, lonely all at the same time. To me she rates among the best female characters of all time. Kosei was a little more frustrating at times, and a little more bland. A little more of the generic type, but even when he should feel generic, there is a realness he represents. The struggle he faces, his desires to overcome those struggles, his human emotion - his black and white world that is slowly being transformed to that of colour. Kosei surely wasn't the most spectacular of protagonists - but seeing the once "puppet to the score's" transformation both as a person - and as an artist is one of the best coming of age developments in Anime history. Even some of the side characters I particularly grew fond of. The most specific of these is Aiza. Aiza while truly looked up to Kosei as a hero- as an idol, despite being equally as talented and prodigious himself. Even looking at Kosei's back, he always strives to catch up to him, to make an impact. Not all of the characters were strong - Watari is the generic best friend who's athletic, good looking, confident, etc & Tsubaki has the archetypal role of being the childhood friend who's in love - but can't realise it.

When I rate anime, 9 to me represents masterpiece, and 10 represents what i describe as "beyond masterpiece". I always say if I have to "question" if a show is a ten it is inherently not a ten, So what separates Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso from other masterpieces? It's the show's impact. Week in and week out my heart aligned with the characters - aligned with the drama. The aesthetics were unparalleled, the score so diligently composed, the characters so well developed and an ending that catalyses tears from even the most desensitized of viewers. Save for a few moments of misplaced comedic madness, the tone was consistent - the mood always properly developed & accentuated by both the score & art, and the show epitomised the absolute pinnacle of its genre. I loved this show.

They say that when you fall in love, your whole world changes. The grey becomes colored, the dull becomes vivid, and the little moments become unforgettable ones. While there may be other stories that are written better or other productions that are animated better, Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso (Your Lie in April) struck a chord with me that I hadn’t felt with a show in a long time. Even with its flaws, I loved every moment of this show, both as a musician and as an ordinary viewer.

Shigatsu focuses on the journey of Arima Kousei, who was a brilliant pianist as a child, ... but is now just a shell of his former self, haunted by the tragedies of his past. However, one day in April he meets Kaori Miyazono, the wild and unorthodox violinist, and that meeting sets off the beginning of Kousei’s journey as Kaori drags him out forcefully to confront himself. While there’s nothing especially groundbreaking about the premise, I felt it was executed in such a way that made the journey engaging and got me invested in the lives of the characters. The story’s lighthearted moments were very enjoyable, bar a bit of repetitiveness in the slapstick comedy, while the tragic moments made me sympathize and mourn alongside the characters. Some may say that the show was a bit overdramatic, but I’d have to disagree. The emotional plights that seem trivial to an outsider have much more weight to growing adolescents, and that is something I could definitely empathize with. On the other hand, the stress and despair that the musicians feel leading up to their performances may not be understandable to the casual player, but to those with a real investment in music, it is very real. I felt that the drama was well done and raised the tension in such a way that made the stakes at cost feel present. Also, I’m glad that they committed to their ending and didn’t kind of half-way attempt it but then turn tail because they were too afraid of committing *cough* Oreimo *cough*. It made the ending feel much more satisfying, which sadly is not the case for many shows.

One complaint that some might have with the show and that I’d be able to understand is that it’s a little heavy-handed. With an abundance of monologues containing flowery, Shakesperian-esque dialogue as well as not-so-subtle symbolism, it probably would’ve been to their benefit to have toned it down a little and made it a bit more subtle. While it might be too much for some, I personally didn’t really have too much of an issue with it, but it was noticeable. It could also be a little slow at times, but other than one especially noticeably repetitive episode, it wasn’t too big of a problem.

A part of the show that I enjoyed immensely was watching the musicians grow. From the climb out of despair in Kousei or just the small steps as a musician in the young Nagi, seeing all the musicians grow up on their own journeys both musically and emotionally was extremely satisfying to watch. The rest of the cast were a bit more stagnant, but they were still enjoyable characters nonetheless. Watari was a bit of the typical male best friend character and didn’t really grow through the series, but was still fun to watch. Tsubaki didn’t really grow much either for most of the series, but when the time came around where everyone realized just how fleeting time is, she was able to do more than just the typical childhood friend character, and I appreciated that. The characters felt like more than just two dimensional people, leading me to grow invested and care about their lives.

Now, there was some slight controversy surrounding the show, mostly involving Kaori’s forcefulness with Kousei, as well as Tsubaki and Watari to a lesser degree. While it’s certainly not going to be the same case for everybody, and there are probably hundreds of different methods that could have been used, I feel as though Kaori’s push isn’t as wrong as some people think. I may not have gone through the same circumstances that Kousei did, nor was my despair ever as great as his, but I think that I can empathize with Kousei’s mindset. And if it was me, I definitely would’ve needed to have had someone else push me, even if it hurt, to ever have a chance of finding a way out, so I feel as though the story’s take on the situation wasn’t wrong. Of course, some people may have different opinions, and I respect that, but that’s my personal take on the matter.

On the artistic side of things, it was a beautiful show to look at. The art style was pleasing, and the animation was mostly fluid; they also had some gorgeous stills too. The color palette changed to fit the emotions as well as the livelihood of a certain character, so that was a nice touch. There were times that the animation cut the corners a little in a way that you could tell, but it was never anything too prominent. The soundtrack was nice and fitting, with the everyday moments feeling pleasant while the dramatic ones being accentuated with the emotional music. I loved both OP’s, although Hikaru Nara edges it out slightly for me, while both ED’s fit nicely with the tone, with the second one more somber than the first to fit with the growing tragedy.

Of course, as a show about musicians, the performances had to be good. And they were absolutely amazing. The performances were extremely engaging, and after every single one, I noticed that I hadn’t moved an inch during the whole thing. They were animated beautifully, and the emotions in the music captivated me as a viewer. As a musician, watching these performances reignited a love for classical music I had forgotten for a long time, and it’s stirred me to expand my repertoire to more than just contemporary music. As a side note, I’m extremely glad that they finally didn’t have a violinist just flailing around the bow like they’re playing the music even though it doesn’t match what’s playing at all. As a former violinist it would grate my eyes whenever I saw that in a show, but thankfully this one avoids doing just that.

Maybe it’s just because I’m a teenager and a musician so I can relate with the characters, but this is a show that captivated me in a way that anime hasn’t done in a long time. While it may have had some flaws, the character journeys, the tragic moments alongside the lighthearted ones, the performances, and the energy of the show all just came together to create a show that was extremely enjoyable from beginning to end.

"Are you going to forget? Even if I die, I won't forget."

tl;dr – I liked it. A lot.

There is much bitterness in life, but we have to learn that we must forget that and keep go on. Just like a rainbow in the rain, Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso ends beautifully.

Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso is a story about Kousei Arima, a piano prodigy who is quite famous at his young age thanks to his mother who introduced him to the world of piano. Arima dominates all competitions he participated because of his perfect performance. One day her mother died. Arima feels shocked since then and got some sort of trauma that makes him unable to play the piano again. Kousei gave ... in to the world of music until one day he meets a young violinist girl named Miyazono Kaori who introduced Kousei the true meaning of music.

One of the oldest art forms in the earth is music, music has become a friend of mankind since the beginning of civilization. But what exactly is the meaning of a music? What causes sound was very interesting to listen to? Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso has the right answer for it. Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso prove that music was meant more widespread than we think, not just a set of joyful sound but can mean different - depending on one's own thoughts.

If we look deeper into the story, the concept of the story is not too complex but not too simple either, which makes the story more easily accepted. Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso also has advantages in the individual elements of the story, though sometimes the comedy is a bit flat. The anime also success in delivering expressive situation, you can feel the intense drama though sometimes looks too hyperbole and exaggerating.

One of the things that makes a lot of people become difficult to enjoy this anime is the pacing. The pacing is very slow with many flashbacks to appear, it might make you not stand with this movie and feel bored if you not yet accustomed to watching this kind of setting. But this is not a deficiency, the slow pacing makes the story more visible so that there is no stiffness in its delivery. The process is visible and the results are quite satisfactory.

The animation owned by Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso is wonderful and suitable, the background illustrated in great details with a different feeling. Different in every scene, could be seen shining and beautiful color, and can also be dark with despair surrounding it. When playing the piano, the animation sometimes turns into CG. Character design very represents and match with the story.

What can I say about the sound settings? One word to describe … “Wonderful”. OP / ED theme is nice & and matched with the mood of the story. Also, the classical instruments of the performance are also nice & expressive with many different feeling. The seiyuu did their work fairly well in bringing the character to the screen.

In terms of deepening the characters Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso is not less than any other anime. The number of flashbacks in the story makes the main character (Kousei) illustrated very clear and very deep as well, a massive character development occurs in Kousei, it is the main success as well.

Besides Kousei, we have Kaori which has a considerable role in encouraging Kousei to plunge into the world of music again, Kaori takes a great role in the 2nd half of the series as well. Some development is also found in the other main characters, such as Tsubaki. Characters with the weakest development are entirely Watari appeared only to meet the needs of the plot alone. Some of the side characters like Aiza Takeshi & Emi Igawa have their own proper development.

For the enjoyment, Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso also quite entertaining with all the advantages and disadvantages. Fans Slice of Life must watch this anime, also, if you are looking for an anime with strong character development & great dramatic storyline, you come to the right place. In the end, this anime is a true color spectrum that all of the story aspects with rainbows and light that they have. It is really a real deal.

Your lie in April is my favorite show of all time. Beautiful, inspiring, wonderful.

The characters of Kousei Arima and Kaori Miyazono will likely stick with me forever. Kousei is an immediately tragic character. His inner monologues give him a characterization that show someone who is withdrawing from the world in order to protect himself. Seeing how he progresses throughout the story is one of the best things about Your lie in April. And showing a wisdom far beyond her age alongside a bright perspective on life and music, Kaori is absolutely inspiring. The words she says to Kousei help to bring him back into the ... world, but some of her knowledge may actually be words to the audience as well.

Using the love of classical music as a backdrop gives the often introspective characters a place where "music might just transcend words." The classical music is absolutely wonderful. The moment that the first performance begins in episode two was the moment that I was hooked on this show. AS the show progresses, the classical music becomes more and more incredible leading up to what has become my favorite classical piece.

In many ways, the classical music is the star of the show, but the heart is in it's coming of age story. Showing an honest side to first loves, dealing with loss, and growing up, Your lie in April's story is an absolute wonder to behold. From the exhilarating highs of the story, to the very tear-jerking moments, Your lie rarely manages to skip a beat. (Seriously, bring a tissue box, you will likely need one)

It's not perfect of course. The humor sometimes seems out of place, and the characters sometimes feel a bit older than they are supposed to be, but even with these very minor flaws, Your lie in April is phenomenal.

Early in the show one character remarks that the people watching their performance will never forget what they saw that day. As lame as it sounds, I don't think that I'll ever forget this show. It is, in my mind, a masterpiece.

Here’s some interesting fruit for thought: imagine a world without music or sound. A place void of lyrics, voices, or emotions. It would look pretty hollow doesn’t it? For a character named Kousei Arima, he knows what it’s like to be around music. During his childhood, he became a child prodigy with his talent in playing the piano. But one single solidary moment changed his life forever and his world became hollow. From the child prodigy he once was, Kousei is now a normal kid attending school with his friends. Until one day, he meets a beautiful young girl named Kaori Miyazono who could ... make his inner dark world just a bit brighter. This is the story of about more than just music. This is a story about conquering his demons in a world where anything is possible.

Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso (April is Your Lie) is an anime adaptation based off the manga of the same name. However, there are two noticeable things to take consider about the source material. One is that the series is actually completed so expect a full adaptation. And two, it has won a Kodansha Manga Award for the shounen category in 2013. Thus, expectations coming into the series are relatively high. It also doesn’t take long for the series to take off in the beginning as we meet Kousei and his friends. The first few episode sets up the foundation of what’s to come. We meet Kousei who seems to be doing well at school with a normal personality. He has friends so loner isn’t part of his vocabulary but there are also hints showing that part of his past isn’t so very pleasant. The shift in balance of the series is reflected by the musical atmosphere. The way he meets Kaori could be described as a miracle as she is someone who really stands out in this show. But for what’s worth, the series isn’t just about music alone.

In many ways, the show is almost like a journey, at least for our main characters anyways. In the case of Kousei, it’s much more. To him, it’s about overcoming a deep scar that still remains in present day influenced by his past. This is clearly shown when he and Kaori goes up on the stage to perform but during the session, Kousei suffers a mental breakdown. We can see his grey and hollow world after realizing that he cannot “hear the music notes” from the piano. Of course, this can all be interpreted as a mental sphere as all these events are going through his mind. The talking cat, the water-like dream phases, and broken piano notes serves more as a metaphor. In this way, the show does an outstanding job in reflecting Kousei’s mental stability. It doesn’t take long for viewers to find out that the cause is Kousei’s overbearing mother. You ever been part of a family where your parents push you beyond your limits? I’m talking about the type where they expect you to come out as #1 every single time. Kousei’s mother is something along that line but what’s more so is her final moments that really stung Kousei in the heart. So for this show, it’s about how Kousei can recover from that in this journey infused with both music and interpersonal issues. On another level, there’s also Kaori and her problems. Although her past isn’t influenced by an overbearing parent, there’s something that is holding her back. It doesn’t take long for the show to make viewers suspect that she may not be a perfectly healthy girl like some of us think she may be. Just do take a note that the show can sometimes be staggering when it comes to transition between events from the past and present. The timing is a key and it nails it on spot when it finds its way. However, the show sometimes over-saturates it to a point where it may become an annoyance or overbearing.

Of course, these two main characters are only half of the main cast. On a lighter side of the story, we have Kousei’s childhood friend Tsubaki. She has an interesting past with him that brings out both a brighter and emotional side of the story. Her cherry personality is similar to that of Kaori and is always supportive of her friends. Then, there’s popular school athlete Watari who is more of the ladies’ man. Unfortunately, the series doesn’t focus much on his character as much as the others. We don’t see much about his background story and he lacks the impact of both emotional and social problems that is reflected in the other characters. What do these all four characters have in common though? There’s a sense of connection. All of them are supportive with one another in their dreams. In fact, without them, Kousei’s life would have been quite different than what he imagined it to be. Then, there’s the more emotional side of the story involving romance. I can say this show is labeled more as a romance square. There are obvious hints to who likes although some of the characters themselves don’t realize it until later in the story. However, do take not that the show isn’t just focused on romance and serves more as a sub-plot; albeit an important one to bring out the interpersonal issues with the characters especially towards at the very end. Another key thing to note about character relationships is how they react to certain situations. In many ways, it’s realistic and relatable to how some of our own lives. I also have to say that the growing bond between the characters remains strong from almost start to finish with every episode.

In a world where there is music, competition also exists. For Kousei, that also comes in sheer force with characters like Emi and Takeshi. In most shows, they would push this plot to a point where competition becomes a driven force. But in this series, Kousei’s concern isn’t so much about winning but about overcoming his own fears. After all, he already proved himself to be the stronger competitor in the past against the both of them. No, it’s more about how Kousei can live up to people’s expectations in the present. A good portion of the first half presents Kousei’s fight against his inner demons. The illusionary binds of his past is his major obstacle that only he can overcome. And this is where the show gets the more dramatic when we see Kousei’s multidimensional struggles. However, he also realizes for the first time that his friends are in his heart to fight with him (especially Kaori). And at the same time, it echoes Kousei’s present life and how he can find ways to change. This becomes a driven factor as Kousei also plays the role of a mentor after meeting an old friend later on in the story. This is somewhat similar to Kaori’s own battle as she literally fights for her life. With a tragic sense of tone, the show is able to capitalize on each pivotal moment and articulate them in a profound manner. It’s also fun at the same time to see how the show is able to mix in comedy with timings during appropriate moments to make you feel more at ease.

If there’s something else unique about the show, artwork can easily fit in that category. Taking a close glance at the visuals is like looking at lively water paint. The show has this serene-like mood wherever it goes. Each episode makes a solid effort to illustrate the backgrounds, characters, and setting with its pastel artistry. Character designs also reflect on their personalities well especially for Kaori and Kousei. It even shows the physical condition of Kaori later on as there’s a dramatic change in her looks. Similarly, the show also adapts metaphors with a precise mood to reflect on whatever message it’s trying to deliver. There are however occasions when the series becomes lazy in regards with the background characters. Well, it’s more like the characters that just appears in the background with their single dotted eyes. But overall when it comes to art, the show knows what it’s doing with it phenomenal production.

Ah yes, the music. This is probably a flagship for this series. It is a driving factor of Kousei’s journey to once again realize why he began playing piano from the beginning. As this series highlights both piano and violin play (rather than singing), it adapts more of a classic tone. Famous music such as Kreutzer Sonata (Beehoven) makes a presence in this show. At the same time, it’s interesting to see how the show reacts to the characters’ movements on stage. Their feelings are poured in a stylistic matter to synchronize with the movements while their music speaks by itself through talent. Other noticeable music played such as Etude in E minor and Lover’s Duet also makes their debut in the show to spice up the hype. Even the duet plays by Kousei and Kaori is important for their ability to move the audience beyond just the music notes. OP and ED songs on most parts has their lighthearted style such as the case of Goose House and Coala Mode. It also has some foreshadowing and imagery with a stylish portrayal that can just be so fun to watch. Finally, I give a lot of praise to the voice acting of this show. Characters are able to speak from their heart with their very real voice, perhaps an irony of the title. But for everything that comes and goes, music is something that I’d stress not to forget.

Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso has this powerful ability to convey and enlighten beyond just the musical side of its story. We get character relationships, interpersonal struggles, and all in all a journey that is filled with passion. Romance may not always prevail as a dynamic factor and the music may not be a suitable taste for everyone. However, the show captures the essence of personalities and issues. It effectively portrays a compelling cinema when it comes to performance (both in musical style and character). And furthermore, the show has a graceful portrayal at what having friends is like during the darkest of the hour. A show like this makes a lot of its concepts and themes relevant. It has a meaning that celebrates music culture and a journey of ground-shaking emotions.

"We’re all afraid, you know.. to get up on stage. Maybe you’ll mess up. Maybe they’ll totally reject you. Even so, you grit your teeth and get up on stage anyway. Something compels us… moves us to play music." -Kaori Miyazono

Life is a concert, a conglomerate of symphonies and pieces that seamlessly transition from one song to the next. Like a concert hall, life has moments of crescendos, the rising areas where we feel accomplished, or pleased with ourselves, but it also has those moments of diminuendo, where our lives dip into sadness, failure, and despair. There are times where we speed up, ... even flutter by with the trills and flings of life, and there are times where we slow down to take in the small things that we sometimes miss. In the end though, life, much like music, ends just before the time that we finally begin to enjoy it. It is with this, that I bring you a review of Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso, better known as "Your lie in April."

Author's Note: (This is also my 100th review on MAL. YAY! :D )

Story (8.89/10): Arima Kousei was once a brilliant prodigy on the piano. Known throughout the entire music community in his hometown, he has now fallen into despair with the passing of his mother, also known as his music teacher. With the despair of losing one of the most important people in his life, Kousei has fallen into despair, now according to him, unable to hear the notes of the piano, now unable to hear or use his last tie to his now deceased mother. It is here in his despair and sorrow that on one faithful day in spring, underneath the cherry blossom trees, he hears the sound of music playing, and he meets the girl known as Kaori Miyazono, the girl who would change his life forever.

Shigatsu, as I like to call it, follows the story of Kousei as he, his friends Watari and Tsubaki , and most importantly, Kaori, bring Kousei back to the world of music, putting him in front of his trials, and the past the he is so desperately conflicted about. What I think this story excels so much in, is how we as the audience look through what Kousei is experiencing and go along with him as this new life of his takes him on a journey that he has never experienced before. We experience what being a pianist is like, and what kind of trials and tribulations someone of this career path experiences. (You know, without all the methodical practice. It kinda skips over that thankfully.) At the beginning, the show uses this kind of story as its plot. But as it advances, it changes into something more.

Shigatsu utilizes the theme of life as its main focal point in the series. Throughout the series, the show not only focuses on Kousei's story, but also the people that are around him. In life, we have many people around us that help us in different ways. Similar to this, Shigatsu uses this idea by running much shorter stories to our main protagonist, making the anime feel a little bit more real and developed. Within these, other character's ideals make the focal point of the series for just a brief moment and give the series more life.

In addition, Shigatsu has its own unique way of storytelling, a very brilliant way of doing so, I might add. In terms of actual dialogue, the show doesn't really utilize that as much as a normal anime would. Instead, half of the subtitles that you will be reading will be utilized in internal character monologues. Very often, the show will transition from a character interaction to a moment in time that focuses solely on one character thinking to his/herself. With this, the audience gets a very clear picture as to what the certain character is thinking at the moment, and the emotions that they are conveying become very prominent and clear to the viewer. Personally, I think that this is a great way to showcase the expansive amount of character growth in this series solely because of the fact that the internal monologues provide the viewer and easier way of understanding what each individual character is coming to terms with. It perfectly encapsulates what this show is about and it is by far, one of the highest points this show has in terms of storytelling. Sadly though, no show is without its flaws. (Now that would be a lie, if it didn't.)

Pacing is what I feel is one of the biggest flaws in this anime. With the show being 22 episodes long, the show is split up into two equal parts of 11 episodes, each half dealing with something different with progression of time. The biggest flaw I have seen with this show is the fact that both halves are incredibly different in terms of pacing. Bluntly put, the first half is way too drawn out and rather slow, while the second half is slightly rushed, with a good chunk of details missing. In addition, the show while provides little sidestories for a good deal of the cast, doesn't really do it for all. Two very prominent characters, Watari and Emi, don't get any portion of the story really devoted to themselves, as evident of the lack of personal narratives/internal monologues that a lot of characters have. While these flaws don't seem very big, in a show where story progression and character growth, explanation, and development are essential to the themes it was trying to convey, they become very glaring and put a bad chord to this show.

Overall though, Shigatsu's story was executed very well. While missing some details, the anime encapsulated the manga to a near perfect status, and finished the story of this beautiful little tale with a very heartfelt and emotional ending. The show deals with the hardships of loss, the grand thoughts of our own personal dreams and aspirations, the happiness and despair that life brings us, and overall, the idea of no matter how hard we are beaten down, we must keep moving forward. No matter what happens, we must keep on living.

Overview:
+ Simple, yet beautiful story
+ Exudes character growth and development
+ Internal monologues help with story-telling
- Pacing varies from episode to episode, creating imbalance
- Lacking growth/importance for some relatively key characters

Characters (8.76/10): In Shigatsu, the characters represent the instruments to a symphony. As they spin the tale of music, each individual character provides their own part to the song "plot", creating their own sound that melds well with the piece known as "Your lie in April."

Arima Kousei is our main protagonist in this series. As a prodigy on the piano, he has since two years prior to the story's beginning not performed in a piano competition, squandering around his miserable life day in and day out of his home as he deals with his mother's loss, forcing himself to play the thing that he hates the most even though he, according to him, "Can't hear the notes." Kousei out of all of the characters in this series gets the most character development, with every character warping around him as some kind of inspiration in order to help sing the tune that is his life. As the series progresses, you can see the progress he makes as a character as he relearns the piano, develop his own personal sound, and get closer to the people around him, especially one special girl.

And then, we have Kaori Miyazono. According to Kousei, Kaori is a selfish girl, a violent brute who forces him to go along with whatever antic she has come up with, making him go along with whatever she wants to do at the time, and punishing him every time he does something that displeases her. Kaori serves as Kousei's main inspiration and focus for why he plays the piano. Throughout the whole series, you can see how Kaori and Kousei grow a bond together, blossoming the aspect of life known as bonds and closeness between people. In the beginning, you don't really learn much about Kaori, but instead, about the influence that she has as you watch Kousei admire this girl's freedom and tenacity for life. As the series goes on though, you learn more about her, understanding more about who Kaori Miyazono is. What I think is a flaw for Kaori is the fact that she really remains a mystery for the show up until the very last episode. With a character that is so essential to the plot, the show doesn't really put much attention towards her past like a lot of other characters. While saving all the facts till the end does work for the show to some degree, I still wished that the series gave a bit more information on Kaori as a person during the span of the show rather than saving everything till the end.

Apart from these two, we have the other two "main" characters, Tsubaki and Watari. These two are an interesting duo of characters primarily because of the fact that rather than serving as main characters, they don't really show up all too often. The amount of screentime they both get doesn't really make them seem like a main character at all. Even less so for Watari's case because he really doesn't serve much of a purpose for the series besides one key point. This is evident because Watari doesn't actually get a single monologue to himself, instead, really just being that dude who likes soccer and girls. As for Tsubaki, the series does flesh her out a little more as a character. While small in comparison to Kousei, it was a nice addition to the story that in the long run, did play out some significance to the overall story.

As for supporting cast, the series does well in developing a good number of its side characters. From Takashi and his little sister's aspirations for piano, to Hiroko's atonement for her past deeds. Apart from them though, the other characters serve rather minimal roles, but are really of no downside to the series. However, like I have mentioned before, the character known as Emi doesn't particularly get much development. I find this odd because she's on the same level of importance as the characters mentioned above, yet she doesn't really get any time devoted to herself. It's this imbalance that leaves the sound of the show slightly off-key because pretty much every other character that has some sort of importance towards Kousei is given a section of the show devoted to them.

Overview:
+ Fantastic character growth
+ Growth for side characters relevant to the story
- Kaori's development came too late/involvement wasn't there
- Several key characters didn't receive same treatment as others

Art and sound (9.09/10): A-1 pictures have done it again. Shigatsu wa kimi no uso is an anime that has very stunning visuals. From the first minute of the series, the show is breathtaking to look at, utilizing a very light and detailed environment and artstyle as its way of conveying the story. Showcasing a lot of symbolism during the piano performance scenes is also what this show excels at doing, utilizing visual imagery to convey the emotions that the pianists playing at the time are conveying, making the pre-recorded concert music sound very stunning.

The show uses a dual artstyle in order to convey what it wants to show. In addition to the already stunning visuals that the show normally provides, Shigatsu also has a comedic style of animation to it, essentially reverting the characters to become little demonic sprites of themselves rather than their ordinary, beautifully looking representations. While this is quite niche, the show does suffer a little bit from this. The reason being is that sometimes, the comedic artstyle doesn't really fit really well with scene that it's placed in, (sometimes putting it in a scene with its standard animation), which can really leave an ugly sound. Sometimes, the comedic style can look downright bad because it's so unfitting of the moment it's being used in.

As for music, there is no denying that an anime about music would express such a beautiful set of tracks. Because the series is split into two parts, each part features their own OP and ED. For openings, we have "Hikaru Nara" and "Nanairo Symphony". Both of these tracks are beautiful to listen to. Hikaru Nara has a very big band feel to it, with a group of 6 people known as Goose House singing a six part harmony to the song, while Nanairo Symphony uses a single singer in a small band. Both of these openings are beautiful and stunning in their own way, giving off their own individual feels that can drive one to not only sing to the lyrics (given they've heard it long enough), but dance and move along to the beat.

As for endings, we have "Kirameki" for the first half, and "Orange" for the second half. Compared to their opening counterparts, these two have very different emotions for each of them. While they both utilize one singer, Kirameki gives off the hopeful and bright feel that corresponds to the pleasant feelings that life can give us, while Orange sings a sorrow filled and regretful tone responding to the sadness that life can deal us. All four of these tracks I feel are very memorable pieces that deserve credit where credit is due because when anime music is exceptionally memorable, I feel it should be considered a masterpiece.

In addition, Shigatsu's OST is fantastic to listen to. While the entire OST is more or less filled with tracks that sound rather similar, with only slight variations of instruments being used to play the tracks, practically every track is beautiful in their own way, and each are memorable in their own way. Each piece is used at the right moments in the anime and help exemplify the power that each scene has, thus, making the "feels train" hit just a little bit harder.

Overview:
+ Stunning animation
+ Fantastic soundtrack
+/- Comedic art style is hit/miss
+/- Good chunk of the OST sounds rather similar

Personal Enjoyment (9.78/10): When I first saw this show on Anichart, my first thought was "Cool! A music anime that's actually about music!" (Sorry, the memories of K-on being a "music anime" flooded in) When I first started this series, I knew that this was going to be good the moment I started. I expected myself to be completely blown away by what I was about to witness. In the end though, I was sorta right.

Did I like this anime?

Absolutely. As a music player myself, it was easy to engross myself in the beautiful soundtrack and the concert pieces that this anime featured during its runtime. Not only were the aesthetics amazing, but I found myself engrossed with the story, feeling depressed and sad after every episode. The characters for the most part drew me in, and I was glad that this series didn't disappoint me.

What didn't I like about this anime?

As I have stated before, with a show that tries its best to stay true to what it wants to do, any messups become clear as day. For Shigatsu, the flaws existed partially in every genre I have analyzed. The pacing of the series is unbalanced and many times, jump over things and sometimes don't let certain events/moments sink in fully, skipping to the next part without a moment's notice. In addition, the comedic visual style clashes heavily with the standard animation, leaving the viewer to view the scene as weird, and the character growth/explanation for certain characters (especially Kaori) were not brought to its fullest extent, and docked the series down a bit.

Would I recommend this anime?

Yes. Personally, I feel like Shigatsu is a great example and representation of life in animated form. It begins slow like the beginning of a piece, rising up and up with every note being played, before ending on a soft major chord before you even realize that the series is over. It represents the beauty and terrifying nature that our own futures have, and that no matter what, we have to look forward. Drama isn't everyone's favorite genre, and it's understandable if music isn't either. But, from what I've seen, Shigatsu is a beautiful show, stunning in almost every aspect, and is a prime example of what a good anime can be. Saying that it's perfect, well it's a bit much. Saying it's a touching and well-written story, well, it'd be a lie if I said it wasn't.

Overall Score: 8.95/10

While other musical animes don't have a good plot, Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso has a good a interesting plot (thought the title of the anime can tell a good part of what you are expectating)

The story is about Arima Kousei a ex-pianist that one day gets invited by he friends to go hang out with they to show Watari(a friend of Arima) a girl named Kaori Miyazono, Arima go to the local first and see Kaori playing a instrument, immediately Kousei fall in love for the girl that like his friend.

A few episodes later Kaori tells Kousei to be her companion for a show, ... Kousei refuses it but later on he accept it.

When he start playing everything is good but he remembers of his dead mother saying, to him "That's your punition", and he starts playing very bad since he cannot hear the notes, he look at Kaori and with determination and he start, playing the piano again but he imagine the sounds.


So basically the first part is focused on Kousei forgetting those bad memories and choose better memories so he can play the piano nice.
The other part is focused on Kaori disease.

The art is outstanding, it's hard to see animes with good art these days, this one of the reasons I didn't stop watching it.

About the characters, I can say in the beggining Kousei is a very very boring character, Tsubaki is dumb until the end of the anime, Watari is funny, Kaori is the typical character that is dumb but still fun and can bring you tears to your eyes.

The anime has a lot I mean a lot of Melodrama, every episode someone is in depression or cry a lot and someone shows up to cheer up. I Don't get mad with a bit of drama, but in every episode it starts getting boring and repetitious and predictable.

My final opinion is this:

While this anime has a good art, music and good characters, it fails in character development, it uses a lot of melodrama, the story is too much predictable. I Liked the anime, but this anime can have a lot of opposite opinions because of the melodrama.

Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso.
My first proper review.

People go through life following the path they've chosen and often they encounter stories along the way that they never forget. Those stories, the living and breathing characters in those stories, the vivid worlds birthed from within the story, all of them break into fragments and get meshed into your being, into your personality, into your mind and soul. Those stories we all encounter shape up who we are, and this is one of them.

This particular fantasy, holds beautiful fragments in the form of music, faces, dialogue, emotions, struggles, imagery and sensations all bursting with color. They ... materialize inside you as valuable lessons that will forever be engraved in your mind.

The lessons themselves, they teach you that sometimes you need someone to push you forward and believe in you if you wish to achieve anything great. They teach you the power and freedom that music, human passion and art in all its forms has to offer. They teach you how to say goodbye and how to embrace what fragments and memories the people you encountered throughout your life have given you, even though they've drifted away. They teach you that nothing that's great or beautiful comes without a tiny bit of sacrifice, sweat and strife. The lessons teach you how to cope, heal and keep on moving through another spring, with a smile on your face and fragments in your heart.

There's a lot you can assimilate from this series, especially if you marathon 22 episodes in two days like I have, so I want to wish you a fun little ride, because it will definitely be something you won't forget any time soon, if ever.

- Story: 7/10 Good -

The story might be perceived as somewhat cliché by the veterans out there, but what mattered the most to me was the pacing and flow of everything. How every center piece unraveled in the beginning, how the narrative accelerated in small crescendo steps, with peaks every couple episodes. It was all that I was looking for. The story might have some imperceivable flaws in it and be a template straight-forward romantic comedy, but after all, what matters is the imprint it leaves on you. The story does show you multiple perspectives of other characters occasionally, which I really enjoyed.

The comedic aspect of the show is decent, not great, but it sometimes stands out as bad by being misplaced in between several serious scenes that were developing nicely and it saddens you when you see that cut happen, but you get used to it after the first two or three times.

The romance aspect is constantly being displayed throughout each episode, but it alternates in importance gradually. Sometimes love becomes the focus, but there are other emotions out there beside it, some maybe more complex to explain, and the story has an entire spectrum of feelings for you to experience.

The story delves into darker parts as well, and that's what makes it good in my book. Treating matters like trauma, chronic illness the way it has been here departs it from many other works of the same genre, and ascends it in a higher place.

- Art/Animation: 9/10 Great -

It's bursting with color, and everything rises from monotones. Technical achievements is what carries a work of art, and in this case it does more than enough justice to the underlying world it aimed to build. The synesthesia between the imagery and the sound is an absolutely superb dance of two well known art forms: animation and music.

The art and animation is in a supporting role, the main stage being taken by the music. Because of that, it's not as great as other examples out there, but it's great nonetheless. In this show, the animation in art was made for the music.

All of this becomes clear when it reaches the pinnacle at the end of the series.

- Sound/Music: 10/10 Outstanding -

You can't help but stand up, applaud and ask for an "Encore!" after you experience this recital. By far the most vivid imprints and fragments you get from it are the music presented in its raw form: classical music. If this show doesn't make you adore classical music, then probably nothing will.

The emotions are conveyed masterfully through the soundtrack. I haven't seen a show mirror the story and characters as well as Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso. As expected from an anime that revolves around music, it doesn't disappoint.

Voice acting is top notch, too. There was no point in dragging the quality of the characters down if the instruments were so well spoken, wasn't it?

An aural delight.

- Characters: 8/10 Very Good -

The characters themselves aren't anything out of the ordinary. They're just young boys and girls that have their own paths to trek, their own struggles and ambitions, and I love how they've played their respective roles.

The bad parts like the over-dramatic bursts of the characters and general elongated monologue scenes are not that big of a deal, unless you're the type of person that either cringes too easily or doesn't like to get too emotional. I personally enjoyed that intensity, even though many times it wasn't that warranted.

The characters become dear to you, bit by bit as you get to know them. Some side characters don't shine that brightly, but the main ones do very much that.

- Enjoyment: 10/10 Outstanding -

Overall, this has to be one of my favorite experiences I received from watching an animated series, ever. It's true what they say that the whole is more than the sum of its parts, and the way this entire jigsaw puzzle shapes up and ends with a masterfully executed center-piece is just astonishing to witness.

- Overall: 9/10 Great -

I can't recommend it enough to anyone that can hear music.

"Your Lie In April" is a transparent attempt to pull at your heartstrings, and it works well.

The best part of this anime is how it ties character growth to musical ability. You can have fantastic piano technique, but if you're temperamental, immature, or just plain boring, it will come across in your music. Kousei's character growth comes across well in his playing, and that goes for the other characters too. The show manages to make multi-episode piano competitions interesting, which is itself quite the accomplishment.

The other good part is how it depicts the characters' struggles to figure out what they want from ... life. Becoming a world-class musician requires immense sacrifice, and finding the motivation to pour your heart into one of Chopin's Etudes for the hundredth time is no small task for a child. The struggle to produce collides head-on with the cold reality that sometimes you're just not good enough... something that's mirrored in the athletic careers of Kousei's two friends.

The characters are well done all around. They all get to show their strong and weak sides, they have motivations and doubts, they lie and do things that they'll regret. Kousei's mentor, Seto, is refreshing when she arrives, because she brings both a mature perspective to the situation as well as a more adult set of problems.

But there are two issues.

First, this anime has no business being 22 episodes long. There is simply not 22 episodes worth of content. It matches the source material rather closely, but I would rather have seen a couple filler episodes with new content rather than have it stretched out so much. Some parts drag on a bit, and in a few parts, the events are depicted in anachronic order to pad out the time a bit.

Second, the drama is far too obvious. Did you see the ending coming? You should have. This is a very "architected" plot: everything that happens supports the plot, and the characters never get the opportunity to go off the rails.

Reviewers on this site are a bit too fond of shows that try to make you cry. This show currently sits at #14, not far below "Clannad: After Story" at #6. Yes, "Your Lie In April" is good, but it's not that good. It hits all the right notes but it never gives you any doubt about what's going to happen next. You'll enjoy the show but it will never challenge you.

First of all, I do not love it because it is popular. I'm French and nobody knows it in France. So, nope, I've just been told by a friend about Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso.
I'll try to organise my review: we'll first talk about the plot. Then, we'll talk about the music. After, we'll deal with the characters. Last, but not least, we'll "judge" the animation.

So, let's begin with the plot: fabulous. Yet, the original speech looked classical: Kosei was a great pianist, "the human metronome", who was able to play perfectly every score, as if the original composer was playing. Today, being fourteen, he ... doesn't play the piano anymore, because of a trauma I won't spoil, and see a monochromatic world, the same colours as a music sheet or a piano keyboard. But comes in his life an excentric and free-spirited violonist, named Kaori, playing the score the way she wants to. She will try to make Kosei's love for piano and music reappear. Yes, we could have thought the plot would be: "Kosei unhappy. → He meets Kaori. → She helps him playing piano. → It's hard though. → She doesn't forsake. → Kosei is alive again. → They fall in love and live happily ever after." Well, perhaps it's a little bit more complicated. The work doesn't use music in order to deliver a cheesy shojo. It's more "a slice of life", even if Wikipedia and Mangafox describe it as a shonen. No matter what, it's a real love letter to music. We insist on the emotions music can make us feel, and it's amazing! Love, anger, loneliness, sadness, determination, the panel is pretty wide. And it's really strong. We're told that it's this way of playing which will make our music etch in people's hearts. We've got a reflection about music, but about the place of the artist as well: must they be what people expect them to be? Or must they be themselves, but being people that no-one understands? Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso also proposes a reflection about the surfacing of love feelings, about seeing your beloved far away, about traumas, about mourning and so on. It's pretty good. And to insist on these ideas, several symbols are given to the spectator, free to interpret as they wish: spring, cherry tree's flowers, piano, music at bottom, stars and even trains (the only thing I cannot interpret). Yet, there's still some little faults: the beginning of the second part. That Kosei faces his trauma at the beginning of this part, according to me, should have been at the end of the first part: moreover, the 10th episode was excellent because it had already concerned that and the battle looked like it was led. In my notes, I've even suggerated an achievement of the hero. But, fortunately, this accomplishment is completed at the 13th episode (the second episode of the second part): it's not worth grieving! Especially as the humour is particularly excellent. For the plot, I let me give a 5/5, deserved.

Let's deal with the music. We have got Chopin's. I think it is enough to show how excellent it is. The "songs" we listen are extremely well played, it's a feast for our ears. The original score is effective, and even though it is not unforgettable, it's able to be mixed with "classical music" (I use "classical" because I can't make a difference between "classical music", "baroque music" and so on, even if I hardly recognise the romantic music.) Endings and openings are excellent. Especially openings. Especially the second one. Music is enchanting, and pictures' representation is superb. Fine art. All of this work's music (opening, ending, original score and intradiegetic) is well done. In a nutshell, the music, without surprising nobody, 5/5.

Then, characters: most of them are interesting. The hero is well made. A musician not hearing the piano when he concentrates on playing: it was ambitious! So, we have a character traumatised, totally empty, monochromatic, and who has got nothing to prove to the world, and to himself too. Yes, he will change (luckily, seeing a depressive character the whole work on wouldn't have been worth seeing, it's only well done in Life). He will colour his world thanks to Kaori, extrovert and free-spiritied musician. Kaori, who is, all the same time, an excellent character. All of the characters are excellent, and I won't be able to develop without spoiling, because all of them are suprising. Even some characters you discover after a lot of episodes and who are not that present are amazing. Nevertheless, there is one flaw: Watari (what an unluck, it's one of the main characters!). He didn't seem really developed. I thought it was an empty character that they wanted to contrast with the hero (you will understand how they are constrated by watching the anime). But we understand that he's got a willing making him cry. Is he developed or isn't he? If he weren't supposed to be developed, why this little development? If he were, it's not enough. Conclusion? It kills me admiting that but... it's... a... *clearing his throat* non-sense... Regarding Tsubaki, in order to complete the square of teenagers, she is extremely well made and deep. Characters, 4,75/5, but because of Watari.

The animation only confirms the rest. Super. Grandiose. They have really good ideas, really good effects. I mean, representing Kosei non-hearing the sounds playing piano by diving him in the water is an excellent idea. Landscapes are detailed, the characters, amazing to look, and lots of efforts are made: we have even got sentences on t-shirts (the "No Life Is Enough" made me laugh). Animation is intelligently between 2D and 3D. Even if it's not the best 3D ever (*sweet looks to Disney and Pixar*), it's enough to what it represents, and, in addition to that, rare enough for not bothering. Moreover, it's not that far from the 2D animation, it's pretty good. It's not like if they used that for the whole show (isn't it, KIRARIN REVOLUTION 3?). Yes, I find the animation superb, splendid, intra/extradiegetic plans are excellent, beautiful work, 5/5.

To put it in a nutshell, is it neat? You have understood: a masterpiece. Even a big one. 19,75/20 (=9,875/10, so let me give 10/10) isn't from nowhere. People say you can judge something only when it is finished: it is finished and superb! The beginning, the middle, the end: everything verges on genius! Excellent things, a rich and mastered universe (just one little non-sense), you've got everything to have a good time. This anime is an excellent "mise en abyme" of its aim: it offers you anything it has got in order to stay in your heart forever. Your Lie in April, as it is translated is a pure masterpiece, the centrepiece of shonen and "slice of life" mangas, a delicious work deserving more than a glance: it deserves your heart, your soul and your passion. Ears welcome.

"I want to hear it again, yet I don't want to hear it again. I want to see her, yet I don't want to see her. What do you call this kind of feeling again?"

Music is the only language which people of all nationalities are capable of understanding. It is a unique method of sending messages to one another and to understand one another. It's a conversation through instruments. In that sense, music transcends words.

Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso is a deeply melodramatic story about love and life itself, and how the aspect of music can be used to affect both. It is one of ... very few anime which actually revolves around classical music, and it does so in a stunning fashion the likes of which hasn't been seen since Nodame Cantabile.

If you just want a short summary of what Shigatsu (I'll just refer to it as such henceforth) is about, and why you should or should not watch it, then here's a quick rundown of it. Otherwise the full review follows below:



Pros & Cons:

+ One of very few anime which to a large extent revolves around classical music
+ Very poetic writing and an abundance of intricate monologues
+ Lots of character facades where there are a ton of bottled up thoughts and feelings inside all of the characters which they don't show to anyone else
+ Absolutely beautiful music with exquisite presentation and an incredibly captivating atmosphere. If you would discount all other factors of this anime, then really the audio department alone is honestly enough of a reason to watch it

+/- Very slow pacing during live performance sessions, but as long as you can lean back and just appreciate the beautiful classical music then it's not really an issue
+/- A minor love polygon is present, though it's definitely not the main focus of the show
+/- Highly melodramatic – this can either be interpreted as it being beautiful and emotional or cheesy and cliché, depending on who you ask

- Highly predictable plot development overall; you can pretty much sketch out how the entire anime will play out after just a handful of episodes
- Poor usage of comic relief and overall bad timing of non-serious moments



Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso (or "Your Lie in April" in English) primarily follows the life of Arima Kousei; a diligent and strictly trained piano prodigy who dominated all the classical music competitions during his childhood. However after having a traumatic experience along with the death of his mother, he suffered a mental breakdown and completely lost his ability to play the piano. That is until two years later when he one day happens to stumble upon his polar opposite in the form of Miyazono Kaori; a beautiful and energetic young violinist who tries to live her life to the fullest. She begins to show Kousei the wonders and beauty of music and tries to teach him that he should play the piano not because he can or must, but because he wants to.

Initially, the setting seems fairly familiar as we have Kousei basically restarting from rock bottom of his life, but with the help of his friends his vast potential slowly starts to reveal itself over the course of time. Along with this, the anime provides us with some absolutely exquisite live classical music performances which give the series its own flair as well as a fantastic atmosphere more often than not. However as is also made evident as the story progresses, that is not the only thing that Shigatsu has to offer, as it gets gradually more and more depressive and tragic, resulting in a great deal of a little certain something we most often refer to as "melodrama".

This is the real make-or-break factor of the entire show. The melodramatic elements in the latter portion of the anime are highly prevalent and affect the story quite drastically. Now some people will find this absolutely beautiful and touching since the anime does become extremely emotional as it tries to draw out as much "feels" as possible from its viewers. On the other hand many other people will instead claim that this only made the story cheesy and cliché as a result of bad writing. And honestly... I can't really say either side is wrong. Melodrama by itself is neither a good nor a bad thing, but it will cause some rather extreme reactions from its viewership. If the anime succeeds in bringing out the emotions from you as it tries to do, then you'll probably love this show. On the other hand if it doesn't, it'll probably just make you roll your eyes in exasperation. It's an extremely individual matter, and thus the only real recommendation I can make as far as that goes is to simply try it out and see for yourself. Maybe you'll like it, maybe you won't, but it's at least worth giving it a chance.

Now if I could mention something which I would actually label as a problem however, then it would rather be the way the story as a whole is structured. This is simply because as it is, the plot developments of Shigatsu are for the most part highly predictable. You really don't need to watch very far into it before you will most likely have a reasonable estimation of how the rest of the story will play out, and there are very few moments where it actually manages to surprise you. This fact may also indirectly reduce the impact that many of the show's emotional peaks contain, not because they're poorly written but simply because you will probably see them coming beforehand.

Kousei comes across as your fairly typical admirable protagonist with a tragic past. He's shy and quiet but he is very caring for those who are close to him. Out of all the characters, Kousei's development is by far the most noticeable as the changes he goes through over the course of the story are quite massive, and his extensive monologues give you a really good insight on what is going on inside his head. Kaori on the other hand is what I at first glance would have described as the anime character personification of Lindsey Stirling, which made me personally very excited as I've always been a huge fan of hers. She has a very cheerful and outgoing personality (albeit lightly tsun at times) which makes her the trusted mood maker of the cast. She tends to keep her private life more secretive however and doesn't like to let other people know what she's going through very much, but she certainly has a fair share of development as well. The other two main characters of the show, Kousei's two friends Tsubaki and Ryouta, are both somewhat neglected in this area though I feel, especially the latter one. I think this is a bit unfortunate because in all honesty the two of them have surprisingly big supportive roles in this anime.

Anyhow, for the most part I would still have to say that Shigatsu is a very enjoyable anime. Especially the live music segments are exquisite, and although the pacing tends to slow down to a snail's pace during them, at the time the show still manages to completely captivate you as a viewer by just how well it is presented and how beautiful it is. I haven't read the manga admittedly (yet?) but I have a very hard time seeing Shigatsu being as good without the presence of audio. It really is the department where the anime shines the brightest.

The animation for Shigatsu was done by A-1 Pictures, and as you may expect from them, almost everything in the show looks very crisp and clean. I did have some minor issues with the almost exaggeratedly rounded faces in the first few episodes though, but I got used to it pretty quickly thereafter. The bottom line is, the anime looks beautiful when it tries to... *when* it tries to that is...

Which brings me to the second problem I have with this show, namely its utilization of comedy. Every so often, the animation quality will deteriorate drastically and reduce the character designs to more chibi-like designs in typical shounen-comedy fashion, and then it tries to incorporate some average comic relief gags into it. Case in point: this entire aspect of the show *should not have existed*. At all. Let's be real here, regardless of whether or not the anime is in a segment where it's focusing on character interaction, music or drama, it always feels serious. The general atmosphere of this story is stylish and dramatic, as you would expect from a story revolving around classical music to such a large extent. The last thing I would ever want to see thrown into that mix is cheap chibi comedy; it breaks the atmosphere apart like no tomorrow. It's so incredibly needless and off-putting, and I can't for the life of me figure out why it was implemented to begin with. If you look at Nodame Cantabile for example which has a very similar premise, that show still manages to incorporate comedy despite its mature and dignified atmosphere. It almost feels like Shigatsu was aimed at the wrong target audience, and as if it would have been better off being aimed at adults, perhaps even women primarily. I mean I understand that the main characters here are all middle schoolers but still.

Even with that taken into account however, at the end of the day what you have is an anime where the pros still heavily outweigh the cons... *unless* you're unable to stomach the melodramatic aspects that is. However that is something you will have to find out for yourself. Personally I'd like to believe I'm fairly neutral as far as that matter goes as I neither love or hate it, and with that in mind then I still definitely liked Shigatsu a lot overall.


Recommended for:
Fans of emotional dramas and classical music, as well as those who can truly appreciate exquisite presentation for what it is

Not recommended for:
People who believe solid writing carries more weight than emotional impact, and also those who for some reason don't like classical music to begin with


Overall, Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso still stands as one of the more memorable (and conclusive) romance anime in recent years, and while I can't call it the best ever it still definitely stands out for what it is. Although it is certainly far from flawless, it still goes to show that that isn't really necessary anyway. The whole is greater than the sum of its parts, and in Shigatsu's case it provides us with an anime that although it's far from perfect, it's still a hell of a lot better than most.

What a treat. I didn't pick up Shigatsu wa kimi no uso expecting much. The art style is a bit conservative, and the musical love story is a well trodden path. While A-1's contributions to the Noitamina block include the memorable Ano Hana, they have also delivered the stale light novel adaptation Nanana's Buried Treasure, the infamous Fractale, and even this season a straightforward harem in Saekano. Fortunately, A-1 pictures brought their A-game to Shigatsu, and in fact this is one of the better shows of the past year.

Shigatsu starts of as a verbose, slightly melodramatic series and stays that way. Arima Kousei ... is very conflicted about his mother's death, and he's going to let you know with some marathon-length monologues that span half-episode long piano performances. Other characters are similarly self-reflective, and the viewer might occasionally feel like they're at a confessional.

Shigatsu is at its heart a tale about the things that hurt us but also make us move forward as individuals. Love, loss, and relentless dedication to a craft, in this case music. Most of the musicians in the series are pianists, except the lively Miyazono Kaori whose kinetic, off-the-rails violin performance inspires change in the diminished and sad Arima Kousei. In the second half the main character's brooding finally exits the stage and the cast of supporting characters is given more room to breathe life into the series.

When you get swept into the emotional tides of Shigatsu's youthful, vibrant cast, it becomes an immersive experience. Due to its vary nature as a character and monologue-driven experience though, I think whether the viewer is sympathetic to the main characters or endears to its style of storytelling will hugely influence their enjoyment. While I ultimately did, the show really does drone on at times. Anime writers take note; sometimes concepts are simple enough they don't need to drag on for hundreds of lines.

Shigatsu really sets a high bar with its production values. The art style is a tad conservative but the use of colour and lighting really is sumptuous. Super-deformity, which is fairly ubiquitous across many shows, makes an appearance. While its use suits the show's humour, which often comes in short, abrupt bursts of comic relief, it isn't a good contrast with the relatively serious and realistic nature of the series. Perhaps best left in the manga? The animation on the whole is very solid nonetheless. The way the characters move convincingly with the piano during recitals is particularly impressive. The series also makes use of CG to animate piano playing, and while slightly off-looking, it's certainly preferable to badly animating it in 2D or conveniently avoiding it.

The audio is clearly where Shigatsu ought to shine, and through a choice of classic piano pieces it indeed does. There are scenes where spectators at concerts, in monologue, evangelise the beauty of how emotions are conveyed in the performances. I'm honestly too tone deaf to tell, but listening to classic pieces is mesmerising regardless of whether the claimed level of personalisation is actually being conveyed. The show's actual OST is intensely forgettable. Shigatsu offers one audio gift to forgive its mediocre OST though; great voice acting. With monologues stretching for literally minutes at a time, having them delivered in a suitably emotional, almost breathless manner makes them feel more colourful.

During the relentless monologues and 3 episode long concerts in the first half, watching Shigatsu felt a bit like a chore, but after the half-way point, Shigatsu hits its stride and delivers a passionate, pitch-perfect drama about music, youth, and love. Ultimately, its workmanlike presentation and dialogue means the only way it stands out among similar shows is quality, but this level of quality and consistency in production is quite rare.

Story: 7, Art: 7, Sound: 8, Character: 8, Enjoyment: 8

Overall: 7

This anime had a ton of potential. The art was amazing, sound amazing. The characters were beautifully drawn.

The ending absolutely ruined it for me. This anime feels very much like Clannad, in that it is pretty melodramatic. I personally prefer happy endings, and I wouldn't say this one has a happy ending. I personally feel frustrated after watching this.

There wasn't really much of a plot or story, the anime focuses mostly on the characters and their past. The flow of the anime is very inconsistent as well. You go from music, to competition, to love triangle, to very disappointing ending.

It's hard to describe more without ... giving tons of spoilers so I'll leave it there. I'm not the best at writing detailed reviews as most would prefer, I can only leave my feelings here for anyone else that might find it useful. I really wanted to love this anime, and maybe in a sort of weird way I did, but overall I am disappointed and frustrated.

(THIS REVIEW HAS SOME SPOILERS SO PLEASE READ AT YOUR OWN RISK)

So this review is basically on Shigatsu wa Kimi (Japanese) or Your Lie in April (English). I have to say, this anime was pretty awesome but it had some major cliché stuff going on but I'm pretty sure I'd rate it as a must watch if you like the kind of touchy-touchy or romantic anime (I also use the word 'cliché' a lot so please don't be annoyed). And of course, I must state again that this review of Shigatsu wa Kimi has spoilers, so please read at your own risk. Anyways, enjoy this ... review!

STORY:
So, the story had some major problems. The protagonist, Arima Kousei, was a star pianist. That I get but then he stopped hearing the notes? Seriously? I mean, I guess it's supposed to be dramatic but seriously, this? I mean come on. And then the other protagonist, Miyazono Kaori, she had an illness that paralyzed her legs? Talk about cliché. And then all of a sudden she produced a violin out of thin air? Seriously? I seriously think that the sad scenes in the anime are forced but then again, it had some beautiful moments. I rate the story 6.

ART:
The art was seriously great. It was really vibrant, which of course I like. Sometimes it's a bit too bright for my eyes but it's cool, I can live. I s'pose that it had some minor blemishes but it's fine. I loved the character design for the protagonists though, like seriously. It was pretty cool. I rate the art a 9.

SOUND:
The sounds are awesome, it's pretty much beautiful but that would be an understatement. I mean, the opening song is flippin' amazing, at least two people saw me try to sing along with it in Japanese. The soundtracks are equally amazing too, well, what do you expect? This is an anime that features the infamous pianist, Arima Kousei, and the gorgeous violinist, Miyazono Kaori. I rate the sound a 10 but I do regret it that I can't rate the sound higher.

CHARACTER:
The character backgrounds are cliché, again. I mean, Arima lost his mom at a young age and then he quit violin? Come on. All I can say is cliché, cliché, cliché. And then all of a sudden, a girl changes his mind? And Kaori also had a past that was pretty.. how do I say it.. unoriginal? She was a frail child and had went through a lot of surgeries. Then she saw Arima at a music recital and was encouraged to meet him. Talk about cliché. But I guess I can't see how they could end it if they couldn't go cliché. I rate it 6, I guess.

ENJOYMENT:
I loved it, I really did. But the scenes where people cry over are pretty nonchalant to me. I feel as if the scenes are like you put sad anime songs in the background and then BOOM, you just start to bawl your eyes out. The thing is, the sad or "feely" scenes are pretty forced. But even so, I still enjoyed the anime even with all of it's forced scenes, cliché scenes, and so on. I'd rate the enjoyment a fair 6.

OVERALL:
The anime was pretty cliché (I'm sorry but I had to use the word again), but it was worth it. Again, it is a must watch (well, for me it is). I really did love this anime and I hope there's going to be a second season. This anime did have a few ups and downs but this is seriously one of the best anime I have watched (so far, and note, "ONE OF" the best, not the best) in the first-half of the year. It was amazing, really amazing. Loved every second of it (excluding the forced scenes).

So I went and checked out the hype train despite my busy sched and backlogs, and ladies and gentlemen, I am glad to report that the hype.. is real! Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso (Your Lie in April) is a MUST WATCH specially for fans of classical music.

Kimi Uso, if I would put into imagery, is like trying out this Black Forest cake specialty that uses sour cherries at this new classical cafe everyone is talking about. You walk-in, greeted by the beautiful classical ambience, and when your order reaches the table, you see that it actually looks great and appetizing. You start tasting it ... but get disappointed, feeling that it does not live up to its reputation, but as you continue eating it, you realize that it has just the right amount of sweetness accompanied with sourness within each layer that gives good contrast and variety, perfect for your palate (well depending on your taste of course). Then when you finally get to the eat the whole cherry on top which you expected to be the dramatically and tear-jerkingly sour climax, you find out that it has this unique, indescribable anticlimactic taste of satisfaction instead.

Music, romance, humour, trauma, despair, realization, inspiration, change; I find this series having one of the best story concepts and premises I've seen to date. It starts out quite slow and only picks up half-way through, but you can really see the character development and it ends conclusively well, connecting everything, tracing back to episode one. It has good casting, with perfect setups for each character introduction; everyone fits-in and is significant. The only thing I did not like is the inconsistency, blandness or coldness I felt at the end because I was expecting more drama, more emotions, and my helpings of super tear-jerky scenes.

The story is paired with a beautiful art style consistent with what you can see on the cover and good selections of wonderful classical pieces that can attract people who are new to the genre. You will see fitting character designs, beautiful backgrounds and non half-assed (though sometimes repetitive or recycled) full concours audience with fully detailed expressions; and the most amazingly fluid instrument-playing animation with the most flashy, emotional performances you can experience to date. You will hear well selected voice acting and great, goose bump inducing classical piano and violin that I so love; and which Disney fans should look forward to because they also included Tchaikovsky's Sleeping Beauty Waltz in a most awe-inspiring duet. Such budget. Much wow. This series is eye and ear candy.

Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso is short but complete, and is well produced. I really enjoyed it; to the point that what was supposed to be a check of the pilot episode to pass a few minutes of my time during my visit to the beach, ended up being an all-nighter, that made me miss half a day of my beach vacation. People who liked music titles such as Nodame, Beck, Sakamichi Apollon, should definitely watch this. It is beautiful. It is amazing. It is so much worth.

P.S. I do not eat black forest cakes; that imagery is a lie I told you guys this April.