Sayonara no Asa ni Yakusoku no Hana wo Kazarou

Every year, we are bestowed with alluring visuals and a rhetorically contrived title, that piques the interest of the anime community. This time around it is SayoAsa.

As soon as the PV got released, me alongside many others were waiting for the release.

Personally i feel that for an Anime or Manga to be considered quality it has to come good in terms of its basic pillars like ART/SOUND/STORY/CHARACTER. So lets go over these one by one.

STORY - 8
The setting of the story is in medieval age, where humans are living alongside many other races. From here on, we follow the story of our two main ... characters Ariel and Maquia, seeing them grow together, connecting disconnecting and exploring each other again, developing a strong bond and making endeavors to overcome hardships was such a heartwarming roller coaster ride.

The Strongest point of the story is how realistic the mother-child relation is being portrayed. Mari Okada, the veteran in making people feel emotional, once again took it upon herself to narrate this beautiful bond unlike ever before.

We also have a colorful side cast. Each of them playing imperative roles to carry out the story.


ART - 9
Arguably, the strongest point of the movie is its art. I always thought that making compelling visuals was the forte of only MAKOTO SHINKAI'S movie but how can one be so wrong.

SayoAsa is brimming with Eye-catchy visuals woven with unique character design that made it easy to project the emotions of the characters to the audience, thus complimenting the message being conveyed by the movie.

Through and through movies is filled with mesmerizing background and sceneries that can infatuate anyone.


SOUND - 9
OH BOY!!! OH BOY!!! Kenji Kawai, you did it again. From the well-acclaimed composer of GHOST IN THE SHELL, FATE STAY NIGHT comes another masterpiece. I thought that was the best of his work but OH BOY THE EARGASM!!! In my view, soundtracks in this movie were the MAGNUM OPUS of the Kenji Kawai.

Every soundtrack with its impeccable timing leaves a huge emotional impact on the viewer, but not to mention, here we have to give credit to the director whose direction of right soundtrack at the right time made every single scene more impactful.


CHARACTER - 7
This is probably the weakest area of SAYOASA. The story follows our two main characters and builds further on the relationship between the two. The side cast is also colorful that wrestle with their inner conflicts and emotions that makes them feel like more human and easy to connect.

My main gripe in this department is the way some characters were handled and the way how some of them were re-introduced that made it feel like a bit forced.

Also, i feel that some of them could have been excluded which would have made it easier to give more screen time to the characters that could have made the experience more wholesome.


OVERALL - 8
All in all, the movie excels in all the departments and portrays a strong mother-child relationship that will keep you engaging and probably would make you emotional and tearful.

Does this movie deserve 10/10 as some people are suggesting? Does this movie deserve low rating if we go by the narrative of the other? I would say "NO" to both cases and it is purely subjective. SayoAsa could have been a lot better but the execution of the story down the middle and forced re-introductions of some characters pulled its legs. But that in no sense is taking the credit away from the movie.

Thanks for reading.

If you're searching for an anime about the touching relationship between mother and son (like in Wolf Children) then this might be the right movie for you. But that's it. It could have been a lot more and that's mainly what I didn't like about this movie. But I'll try to explain in detail.

Story: 7/10
Maquia is a 15 y.o. girl from the "Iorph" village, people who live separated from the rest of the world and age at a very slow rate. One day her life will drastically change and she will decide to live in the human society with a baby she saves from ... death.
I only said the main plot to avoid spoilers but actually many things happen. TOO MANY. There are many interesting elements left undeveloped or unclear (like the nature of Hibiol, the past of the Iorph, etc.), some don't even make sense to me and the pace is way too fast.

Characters: 6/10
Let me be honest: Maquia and her son are annoying. She goes from being a crybaby to a perfect mother and then again she looks like a kid. I know that these characters are supposed to be complex, but then I expect the show to at least try to make the characters coherent and appealing. Moreover, there were many interesting secondary characters left undeveloped. For example the royal guard, who had an interesting inner conflict, or Leila (imho best character of the whole show).

Art: 7/10
The landscapes are stunning but the character design is horrible. Even at the most touching moment I couldn't cry because Maquia's deformed face ruined the atmosphere. Also, there's bad CGI here and there.

Sound: 8/10
The sound is really good. It creates the perfect atmosphere at the perfect time.

Enjoyment: 7/10
There are many hidden themes that I would have liked to be developed (for example the "white purity" of the Iorphs) but overall I can't say I didn't enjoy the movie. I was only expecting more.

Aight, this is my first time writing an anime review, so don't mind me. But first, SPOILERS ALERT!!!

Firstly, I would like to congratulate P.A Works for another excellent production. I didn't know that they made Nagi no Asukara (A lull in the sea) as well. Which if you haven't watched, I highly recommend you do.

The way this movie presented itself might have caused a lot of people to be annoyed, confused, or even angry. The actions that some of the characters chose to do were at times questionable to say the very least. However, the main focus of this movie to me was about ... Moving On. For me, this really hits home, because of my parent's occupation, I move to different countries every few years. Not to say that I don't have any friends, but never a place I could truly call home.

Characters such as Leilia at first was upset that she couldn't be with Krim, but eventually moved on, and she also moved on from her daughter, knowing that she would just bring more pain if she had stayed (similar situation to of Ariel and Maquia). As for Maquia, she had to move on from her clan, then her family (Mida and the dog), and at the very end Ariel as well. While I felt a lot of empathy for her, I could not say that I felt bad for her. She acknowledges the reality of her situation and decides to fully embrace it. If anything, I'd say she has balls made of steel. Ironic isn't it, a clan that was suppose to frozen in time, moves on in the end (Maquia and Leilia), and ultimately, for the ones who are immortal, even if they can live forever, if they cannot resolve the past, no matter what happens, will eventually end up like Krim, who also held on to the past, unable to move on, scared of what Leilia has become, winding up dead.

Motherhood, another strong theme presented in this movie, Maquia and Leilia, both showed how strong a mother's love can be. For Leilia, she loved her daughter enough to abandon her at the very end (reason stated above), despite Medmel being a child her was forced to have. As for Maquia, she decides to adopt a orphaned child, and raises him to be her own. This movie shows the situation of different motherhoods, all of them have different problems and obstacles, but what is common is their love for their child.

I thought the art, the sound, the characters were all great. And I would say I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. However, the one thing I cannot overlook, not just in this movie, but in most animes is that the story is kinda wonky. One thing I hate is plot holes and lazily written scripts, and no matter what you think of this movie, this movie definitely has those moments. Excuse my french but, how the fck did the soldiers from Mezarte find Iorph in the first place? Like, can you just walk in and walk out like whenever you want? Wtf is up with that dumb idea?? Also, wtf happened to all the other women in Iorph, I remember the king of Mezarte was looking for more Iorph women because the prince was bored with Leilia, wtf did they do with all the other women? Killed them all? nah, they didn't explain shit, and same argument with the males of Iorph. Also, I felt as if they could've made the weaving stuff more significant to the story. I felt as if the symbolism behind it was largely missed out due to the writing. Also, I understand why Leilia left her child, but seriously? I felt really angry about that, she was so desperate to see her, and even disregarded Krim for it, but nah, the moment she saw her, she was like "sike" "forget about me lmao". That was really wack writing from the writers. Also, where tf did Maquia and Leilia end up at the end? Iorph? Wasn't it destroyed? wut???? While some may argue, oh that's not important, I'd say it's just lazy writing again.

But despite these flaws that I thought to be present, overall, this movie was amazing in a lot of different ways. Some moments were so realistic, that I even almost teared up. This is a must watch, a great movie with a good theme. 9/10 for me (the missing 1 is for the wacky plot holes).

Warning: Will contain minor spoilers. Everything here is written based on the assumption that you, as the reader, have at least read the synopsis, if not watched the actual movie.

Sayonara no Asa ni Yakusoku no Hana wo Kazarou, or SayoAsa, was a great goddamn film. Although I'm a male and currently not yet in a relationship, even I could sympathize with Maquia's (the main lead) tribulations as a mother and learned to appreciate those like her, who raise us. I was crying constantly during the last few dozen minutes like I had been reverted back into when I was a baby from how beautiful the ... portrayal was. But, without further ado, the actual review:

Starting off with the story aspect, I feel like this was the weakest out of everything - though admittedly, it was still very good. The start was pretty generic and simplistic in terms of how these types of fantasy-drama anime movies go - Maquia's home village is attacked and she manages to escape through sheer luck by using the dragon to take her away from the village. After this, however, everything gets much more interesting - especially with all the characters meeting up again after years have gone by. Unfortunately, even though I consider Maquia to be incredible, it does admittedly have a lot of plot holes even I could spot over all my time spent crying. For one, it was way too convenient for the first dragon to contract the Red-Eye disease or whatever it was at the start, just in time to save Maquia. It was also jarring how fast some of the time skip transitions were in the latter half of the movie. All-in-all though, these points are generally just nitpicking.

Onto art, it was really good. Not much to say here. The animation was fluid and the art portrayed people's emotions very well. Everything was very detailed, too, as expected for movie production. Not once did I spot any characters in the background missing any details, like eyes and mouths. The character designs were very pretty and even though all the Iorph's were quite similar in appearance, it was always possible to distinguish from who was who even without the character's voices.

Speaking of voices, the next area to critique is the sound. And damn was the sound good. Every character's voice acting was absolutely incredible, especially the main few. Maquia has a relatively subdued, quiet, and polite voice most of the time, but when the scenes require it, her VA does an excellent job at portraying incredible happiness, sadness, etc. I especially felt like it was really good at that line about "her promise", and if you've watched the movie, you know what I mean.

As for the character portion, this was the area which bumped my enjoyment and overall rating to a ten. All of the characters have unique personalities and the character development is incredible to watch, specifically those of Maquia and Ariel/Eriel. The way the movie showed how painful it was to be a mother (especially so for her age), and also its portrayal of Ariel's rebellious stages was especially nut-busting good. And when I mean nut, I mean NUT-nut. The struggles and tribulations EVERY major character in the film goes through, and I mean EVERYONE (except for Izor, but eh) goes through will make you tear up, if not individually then collectively.

In the end, this movie was a 10/10 for me, and it's probably my favorite film of all time. Take that with a huge grain of salt, as I'm a weeb who doesn't go outside much and therefore I haven't seen many movies (actually probably watched more anime films than live-action), but still, it says what I like about the movie. In terms of overall anime I've seen, I would rate this film in my top three. Go watch it if you haven't, if not for the presentation of motherhood and all that, then just to see a good story with good animation, sound direction and heart-pulling scenes.

Ten-out-of-goddamn-ten.

This is a very hearfelt anime it touched my heart and I even cried while watching this. I liked the story line very very much. It is a very beautiful anime and it sometimes made me very sad.

This is one of my favorite anime movies that I have watched I liked the development in each character and how it progresses further on the story and how each of them interact in some ways it reminded me of a kinda broken family but reunites again further on the story progresses.

I would highly recommend this to people who like movies that have this much emotions. They progress ... so much in how their life and shows the different kinds of ways that a family is hard and how hard it is raising a child as a single parent.

Maquia: When the Promised Flower Blooms

There's a quotation, "Death leaves a heartache no one can heal, love leaves a memory no one can steal."

It's a fatal example of an extreme heartbreak in the name of motherhood, an astonishing story of the immortal girl named Maquia... I've never seen such storyline like this but heck, every second was worth of the time! The story has it's own charms like you wouldn't mind to go with the flow....

And the most significant part of the movie is how a girl becomes a mother, a worrier who is ready to do everything to protect her child. ... Like raising the child during the development of her motherhood adventures and the feelings being elaborated in her terms was phenomenal....

Last but not the least this was remarkably dramatic animé so far but still I would love to watch it again and again.

This is what a parental relationship should be like.
Man, this honest to god didn't just make me sad, it also made me happy, sad for the time that they will never be able to see each other again but happy for the great moments they had with each other. I wish I had a relationship like that with my mother but anime mothers can always suffice. I cried to much for my own good but I honestly feel in general like a weight just go lifted of my back.
The story was honestly amazing and you could really tell how hard Maquia tried and loved her ... son.
The art style honestly felt magical, yes the CGI in the fight scenes kind of sucked but what do you expect from an anime from 2018. The CG is only in a small chunk of it so don't worry.

I cried. A lot. By the end of the film, I had emptied half of my tissue box.

This movie is an emotional masterpiece. It’s one of those rare gems that you’re glad to have watched, but can’t bring yourself to rewatch because you know it’ll turn you into an emotional wreck again. Instead of listing both the good and the bad, I’ll spare you the long read and only write my criticisms.

The overall plot was boring to me. I honestly didn’t care very much about the story, and I’m not a fan of war scenes in anime.

As for the art, the medieval-type buildings ... that the humans lived in looked a lot worse than the Iorph’s futuristic buildings. Other than that, it was gorgeous.

So, why does this deserve a 10, despite the uninteresting plot? Because that’s not what’s important. The dynamic between Mequia and Ariel is so heartwarming that I felt captivated the entire duration of the movie despite not caring for the plot. The movie genuinely changed my view on life and made me realize the importance of expressing love to my parents.

Please. Watch this movie. It’s truly an emotional rollercoaster everyone should ride at least once in their lifetime.

Maquia tells a story not just of the most exciting portion of one's life but the entirety of it. While other movies try to capture just bits and pieces of human nature, Maquia captures each and every single goddamn piece of it. After reading other reviews, I understand the critiques that come with it; yes there are coincidences, yes the plot at times is shakier than my bank account at times, and yes, some characters have more screen time, and more of a full arc than others. But hey, that's life, and in the case of Maquia: When the Promised Flower Blooms, the stories of ... the lives it captures is truly a masterpiece beyond anything I've ever seen. The story starts at the beginning of life and calamities of war, has characters that are foils of one another, is a coming-of-age story for so many characters, and has an ending that truly moved me in a way that few others have. This is a movie that's probably better enjoyed alone, a story that gets better the more you think about it, and at the end of the day, I believe is a movie, a piece of art that maybe just maybe make you view life in a little bit of a different light.

My review is rather one-sided as far as I see but I’ll try not to.

For a story that takes place in a fantasy world, the realism of mother and child was done perfectly. There are instances that you can’t understand what's going on because of the time skips; this time skips are gaps which your life will fill into it. You will either relate, hate or be envious of the maternal love shown as you watch this masterpiece.

At first, I was expecting a child who truly loves their mother even when they grow up because of the fiction plot, but as the movie progresses it ... will show the harsh reality of what a son/daughter becomes as they age; forgetting the heartwarming promises they have made to their parents and lost sight to the path they wanted to take on the past, only to realize their mistake in end.

Story: 10/10
The setting of the story is very beautiful, as expected for a fantasy type. All of the elements have been done very well, the only thing off is the climax; I can imagine something like “The son will risk his life just to save his mother” for the climax, but that thought was shattered halfway throughout the movie and was offered with a more realistic approach instead.

Art: 10/10
In the first few minutes I was already amazed, the art is gorgeous, scenery is fantastic and well drawn. There are times where you will see CGI but it’s bearable.

Sound: 10/10
The music is magical and fitting to the theme, it enhances the way you feel throughout the movie, it could be heartwarming or even heart-wrenching depending on the way you want to hear it.

Character: 9/10
The characters here are realistic, they are genuine and have what us real humans possess. I am rather disappointed by Ariel but that’s what also makes him a real person.

Enjoyment: 10/10
For a son that loved his mother when he was a kid, I cried many times watching this. I regret and realize that the past me was very pure and innocent compared to myself now (I’m currently 16 of age). Just like what I said in my first paragraph, you’ll like this movie more if you relate to it, otherwise this will just be an average drama movie for you have not or yet experienced the life within; to understand the true intention why this movie was created. I enjoyed it a lot and will recommend this for those who have similar experiences to me; I will watch this again with my mother on her birthday.

Overall 10/10
The theme is about maternal love and focuses on this throughout the very end, there are also sub themes which are loneliness and the pain of separation. It was indeed a rollercoaster of emotions. The 2 hours I spent on this was worth it.

I apologize for my one-sided and personal review. Thank you for reading.

This is my first time ever writing a review so do take this with a grain of salt.

After constant pushes from my friends to watch this movie I finally did it. I have to say, I should have seen it earlier. This movie is a masterpiece, telling the story of an immortal living her life with another mortal and becoming whole. It's a story of parting, love and parenthood the movie tells the tale of a beautiful mother and son, Maquia and Ariel, they spend their times together as parent and child and overcome all obstacles that restrict their relationship any further than being immortal ... and mortal already can. It's a strong, heavy and passionate adventure that really brings out the best in any person. After I finished the movie, had to go tell my mom that I love her because I don't know when I'll have to part with her, and when my last words will be to her.

This is the first time I've ever felt this way watching an anime, after losing most of my grandparents leaving only my current grandmother in ICU watching this made me cry, thinking about when the time comes for her to reunite with her husband again, the last time I'll get to have her cooking, the last time I can be in her warm embrace and the last time she will be able to say 'I love you' to her kids. Throughout the movie, I was in constant pain reminiscing about the past and dreaming of how life would be without my mother. I am truly blessed to have a loving family and the warmth of a loving and accepting parent. I don't know how I can stretch this review up to over two thousand two hundred characters long so I'll just be adding spam text to fill up the rest of the empty spaces.

Thank you for taking the time out of your day to read my review on this masterpiece. However, don't take my word for it watch the movie for yourself and experience the breathtaking adventure P.A Work's Maquia will be taking you on through this 2-hour long movie.

<3

Maquia is the pure definition of mature process and tangible context of loneliness. With a charm that achieves the drama to deliver the sadness, it is genuine that this is not a lazy work to handle such a masterful writing of melodrama. It never abandons the theme itself to the point that watching them (him) grow up is exactly a systematic irony towards the reality itself. It never abandons the grasp of connection and contrast between two main characters, Maquia and Ariel, who builds their wholesomeness into a simple yet significant empathy to hold such a meaning with the tears shedding from our eyes.

First ... of all, I really love the entire ambiance throughout this film to exhibit the beauty of light and Ionian wonders before our eyes. The prologue creates a good job to introduce the brief origin of how Maquia has provided her ideal and behavior to the point that we can understand that she has been curious around how the practice has been dealt with her to grasp the felicity. We can see the peace that pulls up its breathtaking start to realize what will come up next. Then, in the next time, there is a threat that deals Ionian to offer the prosperity of biological greatness that the royal blood will acknowledge Ionian ethnicity due to its lengthy life expectancy. In which, the threat makes Maquia walk off from her home as she seeks an escape to her own peace. While escaping, she finds infant Ariel crying while being held by his deceased biological mother. Ignoring the baby to leave himself in hunger is inexcusable for Maquia to leave him alone, so she instead carries and cares him to ensure his life not to be wasted by his actual mother's sacrifice. Thus, the motherly theme has begun.

Such admiration to see them growing and building each other up is chaste to recognize their familial love in a large extent of contentment. As such playing and educating together is a rightful thing that can suffice the charm with heartwarming aura. A slice-of-life which can deliver their daily lifestyle into something that will prepare to trigger their gradual struggles is a total gaiety to enrich their relationship up until Ariel realizes his maturity doesn't offer him to give back everything that is worthy for his mother, Maquia. Honestly, that is such a fallacious belief for Ariel to give back everything towards his mother because it's like you're giving back the present from Maquia towards Maquia herself. That's not how Christmas gift works. She just wants to nourish him and his love to the fullest, and yet Ariel acts arrogantly with excessive idea of minimalism. That being said, giving her back will result to discontentment between each other because she knows it's not enough for him to offer since their life expectancy is far different to await.

On the other hand, the side characters have their own struggle to liven themselves up due to the corruption that the royal blood is trying to pursue for. Honestly, they're not significant to follow the main storyline of this film, and yet this bonus thing is a plus points to consider that the worldbuilding is transverse from its narrative limit. We get to explore more what's going on which leads Maquia and Ariel to be apart for their own agenda. It's like the son is going to his first work while the mother is heading towards her origin to reflect what and how she had been going through, realizing that they forget to bid their farewell properly in a sense that it clouded them to die for.

The art itself is perfectly fantastic that the background and structure really affects the world to be alive for excellent immersion. The designs are well-fitted throughout the ambiance, and the fluidity is masterfully present with perfect camera angle and saturation. Thus, I consider it to be exceptional in this case.

The sound is indescribable. It's like when you listen to Celtic flute music, it feels like you're going to relax while watching this film for the better effect. Your ears will going to pierce your mind like an acupuncture, and your eyes will feel like you're in that world to perceive the understanding of what's going on and touch the texture of its medieval, light-hearted ambiance.

Overall, my enjoyment is soothingly indescribable. The tears I have with this film really strike me to value the love for my family until I'm going far away from them. Loneliness is the only thing you can think of, and it is harshly beautiful in a way that there is no way to return back what has been offered ever since. The story is simple yet mixed with emotional seasoning to it. It is to the point that there's no more words to say about this. This film is self-explanatory to describe the feeling of solitude. The consequences they had have already fulfilled to realize it is indeed worth an ending. Thus, I highly recommend this series with a cozy touch. No critical thinking is ever needed when there is a critical feeling from this wholesome, heartwarming film.

I am in love with anime even more now.

Tbh, this is not my fav movie but it is honestly a masterpiece. The stroy about how Maquia gets seperated from her race and founds her hibiol in a human baby is so sensual. There is just so much to say about the story that greaty moves my emotions.

The movie consists despair, love, fantasy, action and drama. The artwork was just outstanding and most of all, the feelings of characters in the movie seemed real as if no excessive or weird drama was there.

The theme that Maquia (a stranded 15 year old Lorphian orphan) raised ... Ariel from his birth and also got to bear witness his last breath and all the despair and love they both went through is just nastolgic.

I am more of a thriller than a feeler but this movie clearly is neck n neck with Koe No Katachi and Kimi No Na Wa (my fav).

Maquia: The Promised Flower Blooms.

*Spoilers ahead*




What a film, what a film! For almost as long as I've lived, I've been in a weird relationship with my mother. Not a relationship where we downright hate each other but there certainly is bad blood there that is pretty far gone as far as family goes. I've spent forever searching for something to show me why everyone who engaged in loving relationships with their mothers say "you should talk to her more" or "but she's your mother!" Like yeah, I know, but what does that really mean? Being a mother, all that nonsense.

That's the same question ... that is posed to a young Maquia when she is separated from her village of Iorphs, a race that harbors individuals that can live for much much longer than the normal person. A dragon sweeps her up and she is inadvertently sent to a forest. As she is kind of wandering around in her new environment, she finds the dead body of a mother who seems to still be hugging her supposed child. And I don't exactly know what compels her to pick up the child, either be it the director had to do it to progress the film or maybe it came as a shock to her that someone would be willing to go so far for anyone. Her sentimentality on love is, "If I ever love anyone, I will truly be alone" as explained to her by Racine, the village elder. I imagine this sight is not just one to behold but one that holds deep significance to her. She realizes that he is not truly alone as his bond with his mother, even if he had never seen her was still much greater than having nothing. And so she grabs the baby from outside of the mother's grasp, one that was still firm and adopts it.

And just in that moment alone, I applied it to my life back in better times. Times that I can say I unconditionally loved my mother and she did so for me as well. Would she, in some type of catastrophic event have sacrificed herself for me? Would her protective grip be so strong, that she is able to hold on to me and comfort me even from beyond the grave?

When she brings the child outside and smells him, he smells like the sun. Beautiful.

And sure, you can say this scene is a bit overblown in terms of emotion especially when that somber soundtrack comes on, but I think its meaning far outweighs that. For now, anyway.

Her name-choosing process was quite adorable. Her eyes darting around the room, at first choosing a female name to honor her lost fried before blurting out Ariel and staring at the floor like a nervous wreck. It's a fun, lighthearted moment, but this is the moment when the child really becomes hers. His identity is set now.

She goes on a small walk around town with Mido before coming to a stop where Mido explains a mother's life is hectic. After being hit with a, "I don't know" from Maquia, she jokingly slaps her stomach. When Maquia laughs, Ariel follows suit. These fun, energetic, and bright scenes really help the narrative develop as we see how Maquia becomes more of a mother, how Ariel begins as such a loving baby, it humanizes this "mother" role that we've all come to misunderstand. Our moms are people just like us. The film then shows us another symbolic showing of Maquia dyeing her hair to fit Ariel's, distancing herself from her heritage and in a way, leaving that life of pain, of misery, and of isolation, a theme that comes to be developed.

Which is really one of Maquia's strong suits. It develops every idea it starts, every theme, every narrative is woven together through progression of the plot.

More light heartedness ensues after the first time skip which is understandable if you want to show someone's whole life in the span of 2 hours, but they do start to get a bit much later on into the movie.

And it's when Ariel's friends tell him that liking your mother is weird is when we see the first instance on valuable social commentary. This is definitely not a thing limited to fiction as children in real life are ridiculed by their peers for loving their moms all the time, especially little children who don't know any better. And when Maquia meets an existential crisis as she comes to realize everyone will die much quicker than her, she truly understands what the elder meant by her words. The irrationality of this scene is what really sells it because almost everyone understands that others die, it's just a fact that we don't really account for. Lang goes on a charade about how mothers don't cry, which may be just a tiny drop of chauvinistic and completely irrelevant to the narrative they're trying to sell and quite frankly might have only been introduced to make the final scene that they did.

When you hit the festival, the first thing you notice are the vivid colors flying across the screen as the citizens are dressed in different types of the colors, the banners up are characterized by a royal blue, and the venues offer a wide array of hues for you to feast your eyes on. But if this is the first time you notice the breathtaking audiovisuals, I hope you look back because almost every scene is brought to life with lively animation befitting of the moment. The high definition water, unique art style, wonderfully apricot skies, the velvet trailing of the Renato as Maquia is soaring through the illuminated night, every detail is left observed and there is no speck that doesn't amaze me in the art department. Tranquil plucked strings for the calm scenes as opposed to grandiose choirs for the climactic ones, who can't love that?

My least favorite moments of this picture are when the themes of motherly love go overboard. Leilia not wanting to leave because of her child, Leilia only wanting to see her child (despite it being unwanted in the first place and her freedom being taken for it), and an assortment of other melodramatic "but my kid!" scenes make the narrative quickly go from heartfelt to cinematic tool for drama.

As Ariel grows up, he goes from wanting to protect his mother to...wanting to protect his mother. But this never feels static because his outward personality wanes from warm and loving to cold. His overall personality changes, of course, but it's important to the narrative that he remains wanting to protect his mother. He just realizes he's too weak and undeserving of someone who treats him so carefully.

And when I heard the line, "Why does that person treat me so carefully?", I couldn't stop the emotion crawling up my throat. It's such a relatable emotion. such a genuine piece of dialogue, such a beautifully understanding moment.

Maquia really understand both sides of adolescence. Both from the parent's perspective and the child's. But it's this superb understanding coupled with powerful intertwined themes such as finding happiness in separation that really catapults this picture in quality.

Beautiful artwork, beautiful morale, but sometimes the otherwise genuine and vehement themes are blown out of proportion into something else entirely. The pacing is, honestly fine but those time skips don't do it any favors.


I'm feeling a strong 8 to a light 9 on Maquia.

Before I delve into this whole story I would Like to say that this is purely a movie. Meaning it only has so much time to finish up the story in a satisfying way. I believe it accomplished this but at the cost of the run time. I don't really have a problem with movies, it just makes me wish that we could know more. A good example of a movie done right is A Silent voice. I won't explain any further since this is my review of a different anime. If this whole movie was adapted into a couple of seasons then I ... would've broke. If all of the characters backstories were introduced and it slowly took it's time then my eyes wouldn't of lasted.

Story -
I'm disappointed of how much info we got regrading this. I've said previously that it's a movie so we get what we get. There is so much that I would of loved to learn, about their origin, and more about the red eye disease. I know it was hinted at being about their emotions being bottled up but it could of gone more in depth. There is so much about this world that we don't know. So there are dragons but what else, monsters? Magic? well we don't really know. Would've been awesome to get more world building.

Art -
Holy shit was it beautiful I want to give it a ten but at some points the CGI distracts from the overall experience. All the landscapes and animations were so fucking good. This is a strength of being a movie, since you're able to take your time and not have to worry about a hard deadline to meet.

Sound -
The Ost was soothing and felt really good to listen to. Especially the credits really hit home, the music here was used correctly but we didn't have enough information.

Characters -
This is where my main criticism comes in. The audience didn't see much about anyone, even on the island where the start takes place, we are just placed there, not really knowing anyone and why should we care in the first place. If there is a character whom I don't really know his story or his emotions then I just don't give a shit. Kinda like Krim. Hopefully I spelled it right. The anime can take it's time for character development and that should of been how this was made.

9/10
Make an anime out of it

TLDR Review at the bottom. Hopefully, that helped, thank you for reading it in advance.

For convenience, I will be referring to Maquia: When the Promised Flower Blooms with high expectations as Promised Flower Blooms

I went into Maquia: When the Promised Flower Blooms with high expectations, did the film meet those expectations? Well, not really. Did it meet my standards, however? Yes, certainly. To be fair, I didn't read any review or synopsis beforehand, I just dived right into the movie hoping for the best. And whilst I can say that the movie is no masterpiece, it is something that I wholeheartedly recommend that you shouldn't ... skip over.


Story - 8:
I'm going to be honest if you have had a decent experience with a movie regarding family relationships, you will see everything coming, the story is predictable and it has nothing new to bring to the table. It is sad really, that most dramas regarding family use the same formula of ups and downs in family, and whilst one could argue that that is probably the most realistic thing in a drama to do with family, it is by no means original.

So then you might be asking. What's up with the 8/10 for the story score? Well, short answer, the execution. A longer answer is that the execution just changed everything. Even though everything is predictable, Promised Flower Blooms is one of those movies where no matter how much experience you have with drama, you still feel as if this were your first time viewing one of it's kind. I could have just said that, yeah, this is your mediocre kind of stories you get every now and then since studios need to make a quick buck. But Promised Flower Blooms isn't in that group despite being anything of original quality. It is quite funny, people are quick to shun down average stories just because they are average. But sometimes even those that take upon the average path can still shine through the others that are just like it. So much so that it will be a story you can remember in the years to come.

If I had to split the story into sub-categories of elements, then I would give scores to:
Plot - 6, Execution - 9: Overall - 7.5 (8)

I did try to find some flaw in the execution, but I didn't really get anything, everything flows so smoothly and nothing seems cheated or half-assed. To be fair, anything with great visuals like Maquia can actually pull off good execution simply because everything looks so good and realistic to the world it is set in, which is why I didn't give execution a 10/10. Other than that, it does a great job of telling its own story.


Art/Visuals - 8:
Very good visuals all around, though unlike your average Ghibli film or Makoto Shinkai film. The film didn't seem to pay attention to the setting/surroundings it had to offer. It kind of gave a simple, yet pleasing character design, and kinda just forgot the setting existed. I'm not saying that you will get what looks like your mediocre setting for an anime adaption of an isekai/fantasy light novel, in fact, it looks way better than that. It just, wasn't as focused as the characters there are some beautiful shots here and there but all around the board, everything is just character detail at the end of the day for the anime.

The animation wasn't bad. It had more detail than what you usually get in anime around its time of releasing. Nothing more to point out there other than it is a pleasing experience to watch.


Sound/Audio - 8:
Whilst writing this review I am literally listening over the OST lol. But I can say that since I have done that, everything feels like a variation of "Iorufu, Wakare no Ichizoku". Only non-similar audio I could remember where "Yakusoku no Hana" and "Viatoru". Both of which are great by the way. The varied versions aren't bad, but it just becomes a narrow selection of sounds to remember, in which, you have a better chance of remembering the original over the variety anyways, though, I will point out the variety in instruments the varied versions use as well as different pitches are quite nice as a change to the original. "Iorufu, Wakare no Ichizoku" on its own is an amazing piece to listen to though. I felt like it does a good job of telling the story of the Iorphs and their lifestyle.

The VCs did a good job with the character and presenting their emotion too. Nothing more to focus on that matter, other than a job well done.


Character - 8:
The characters again, suffer like the story with predictable behaviour and unoriginality. Despite this, the characters feel real in the environment and actions that happen towards them. What I really liked about the characters however is that both Maquia and Ariel are learning. They are both, in the eyes of their respective races still very young people trying to go through life together with one another.

Maquia reaches this hits this target more so than Ariel however, she is someone who becomes a mother figure for someone she literally doesn't know anything about, did she have to do this? No. No, she didn't. But out of the goodness she bore within her, she did so anyway. I wouldn't know what most would do in this situation but if I had to guess it would probably be something along the lines of sending a child-like Ariel to an orphanage or something similar. Though she didn't do this. She dedicated to go strong and whilst some may say, "well that was dumb". You need to remember that at this time Maquia had lost everything to her and had no more Hibiol (the memory paper), she had essentially lost some of her identity then too. The same is with Ariel. He had nothing, hell no one knows his real name too. Nevertheless, Maquia was the best fit for Ariel as a mother figure due to the similarities between the two. They really did come off as a good pair.

The side characters don't have a lot to offer and to be frank, they don't give anything special to the wider picture of the story accept from Leilia who had a deep life I will not go into due to spoilers.

All in all, very good characters.


Enjoyment - 8:
I don't really dislike anything I come across and Promised Flower is another one of those examples. Despite its predictableness and unoriginality, as said before, the execution made for a joyous experience and something that was certainly worth my time. As well as the visual beauty that was given.


Overall - 8.0 (8)



TLDR Review:
Story - 8: Unoriginal and predictable story, yet execution made up for all of that, which turned out to be so very good.
Art/Visuals - 8: Amazing character design and detailed animation. Though detail cannot be said the same for backgrounds.
Sound/Audio - 8: Multiple variations of one particular soundtrack, however, nothing was actually bad rather, they were all well made.
Character - 8: Again, unoriginal and predictable, but the pair of Maquia and Ariel was so very good and actually made a load of sense.
Enjoyment - 8: Very enjoyable due to but that is just me enjoying everything I come across.


How I came across this movie was by chance after the search "Makoto Shinkai" on YouTube then coming across on what is literally titled "Makoto Shinkai is JEALOUS OF THIS ANIME FILM". I am really glad that I got to take on this anime because it is a wonderful experience one can take themselves upon. Would I recommend this? Certainly. Though, if you are into originality and non-predictable behaviour then I don't recommend you watch this. However, due to the great audiovisuals, the movie has to offer, you probably should take the chance to watch it anyways regardless of where you are on the scale of watching unoriginal stories.

I'm mostly no fan of drama's but somehow was intrigued by the plot. The story really gets you emotionally invested in the characters, but only if you really follow them. If you're not interested in the characters, the story is kinda lame.

I really had some issues with the "time jumps". It kinda felt harsh and there'e not a lot of explanations about how coïncident some encounters were.
Maquia is likeable as a kid, but somehow gets cringey as an adult. (probably because she still talks like a kid)


Overall, I liked the artwork and the moral of the story (kinda cliche tho, but still entertaining)

HI, guys, I am new here, since this review is going to my first review I am proud to present this amazing anime movie Sayonara no Asa ni Yakusoku no Hana wo Kazarou.

Now if you are able to see the ratings that I gave to this movie, you all would think that I am being a little bit generous here, however, once you watch it I guarantee that your ratings would be more like the same as my ratings.

Now to be honest, when I first looked at the trailer, I really didn't think that it would be a masterpiece due to the lack of ... information provided from the trailer, but due to the artwork being so amazing, I had to give it a chance when the movie gets released.

I am glad that I watched this movie because if I did not I would regret it for the rest of my life. Not only did it had an amazing artwork and story, It also had an amazing moral/ viewpoint of being immortal.

Overall, I strongly recommend watching this amazing anime movie, not once but more than once. Thank you: Taneda11

I really hate the idea of using power to force on people especially on woman. I want to kill them all but that's unrealistic.

I ask myself what if this happen in real life? I realize this happen everywhere, any moment from the past over the world. War killed millions of people, millions of families, millions of couple, millions of child... I can never think of myself killing someone I have never met.

Why people hurt each other? or we were born to hurt each other ? What is the purpose of life. I am in pain. Thinking about ending my life then all the pain will ... be gone.

Seriously? This literally came out of nowhere, this film has gotten such little attention it's beyond ridiculous. This is the epitome of what animation can do. This will forever be a classic in my eyes and I suggest anyone to watch this, it has something for everyone.

I adore everything about this show, from the animation to the characters everything is sublime. The CGI is there but it's hidden masterfully and used sparingly and where it needs to be used. It's used to enhance the animation and not to save money. The music is sweet and lovely, the characters are well written and with the story ... the characters flourish.

This film is what every show and film weather it be live action or animation should strive to be. Beautiful.