Okay, let's get started with the review:
Story 10/10:
Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso creates a powerful scene with every episode. Multiple flashbacks that may seem like "just fillers" contribute to the overall message of that episode and the entire plot as a whole. For instance, the flashback of Saki, Kousei's mom, who is portrayed as cruel and abusive, relating to Kaori (later in the story) seems to be one of the most intense and suspenseful series of moments. As the viewers see (or at least should see) some parallelism between the two (Kousei's mom died when Kousei was a child), the series of events give implications of Kaori's fate (don't worry, I won't spoil the ending :P ). While the pacing may seem rather slow to some people, the story nonetheless expresses its many insightful messages that go along very well with the music, such as the Twinkle Twinkle Little Star Variations of Mozart (compared to the lights on the stage, watching over the musicians as they perform...don't worry it sounds a lot better in the anime), and the Debussy's "Clair de Lune" while Kousei and Tsubaki are alone in the music room, while a series of flashbacks from their childhood occur under the "Moonlight". The story slow cooks many "frogs," instead of placing frogs in boiling water, which may seem boring to some people (sorry, the frog analogy might not be the best/I may not be using the metaphor correctly). Yet it’s the subtlety of the heightened temperature that slowly immerses the viewer in and allows the viewer to make many connections, with the mentality that most, if not all, flashbacks have a purpose to propel the plot forward and to meet a very satisfying (and somewhat unexpected) ending.
Art 9/10:
Overall, the art was incredible. The fluid and exceptionally bright colors adds to the anime (and the fact that Hiroko's little daughter is so cuuute :3 ). The piano and violin playing were coordinated accurately with the music being played (a big plus for me). The scene plays a huge part of the anime (I'm going to reference the Moonlight scene with Kousei and Tsubaki again...hehe). I would give art a 10/10, but I can't really give every category a 10/10 because that would seem extremely bias (and the fact that I don't have much to say about the art/didn't pay too much attention to specific instances of how the art stands out...I do plan on re-watching the anime in its entirety…).
Sound 10/10:
This, in my opinion, is probably one of the strongest (if not the strongest) part of Shigatsu. 7!!'s Orange (2nd ED) is one of my most played songs on my phone, along with Goose House's Hikaru Nara (1st OP) and My Truth by Risa Taneda, not to mention Masaru Yokoyama's powerful background music that left me with too many tears (I highly recommend listening to the bgm on YouTube). As for the classical music, Shigatsu incorporated many common classical pieces, such as Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata 3rd Movement at the beginning of the anime, Debussy's Clair de Lune, Kriesler's Love Sorrow, Mozart's Twinkle Variations, Chopin's "Wrong Note" Etude, among other famous (and rather challenging) classical pieces. The pieces fit well with the mood of the story, such as Emi's Chopin's “Winter Wind” Etude venting, if you will, her emotions toward Kousei. Also, please note: I might be biased (just a little) because I play (or at least think I play) both the piano and violin (not very well, and nowhere near as well as Kaori-chan or Kousei-sama, of course :) ). Soundtracks (as with all anime, movies, TV shows, etc.) just add the icing to the cake. If that's the case, this anime might've put too much icing on the cake for me to stomach (lol). The music was simply amazing. Masaru Yokoyama is definitely up on my list with Hiroyuki Sawano, Jun Maeda, Yuki Kajiura, and among other amazing composers.
Character 9/10:
Please note: this section (possibly) contains a few spoilers that you may not want to know before watching the anime.
Shigatsu has an amazing variety of characters. The idea of losing a loved one is a major theme that Kousei seems to experience: first with the loss of his mom, and then, after falling in love with Kaori, the potential loss of another person whom he loves. This very fact makes the viewer empathize towards Kousei: that despite his incredible "human metronome" skills and gaining the highest musical prestige in Japan, Kousei experiences emotional instability (much to the surprise of Takeshi who idolizes Kousei as a hero) with a devastating event: the death of his mother, only to later see that he see the same event possibly occurring with Kaori. Yet even after finding out Kaori's health issue, Kousei moves forward: he makes lemonade from the lemons life gives. This is what makes Kousei a very likable character (and also the fact that he reminds me a little of Okabe Rintarou (Steins; Gate), Emiya Kiritsugu (Fate/Zero), and Okazaki Tomoya (Clannad) for some reason…). Also, Kaori, despite her progressively diminishing health, fakes a smile while encouraging Kousei to pursue the piano again, after quitting for two years, to move forward with his own life. "Sometimes it's not the tears that measure the pain. Sometimes it's the smile that we fake" ~Anonymous. Tsubaki also seems to be a well thought out, realistic character: a childhood friend of Kousei who struggles with the idea of being a protective big sister and the internal and very implicit conflict between her potential loss against Kaori as Kousei’s love interest. The only problem with the characterization I sensed after watching the anime is that it does not develop many of the characters in very much detail (or as well as I'd want them to be developed). Admittedly, Emi’s and Takeshi’s rivalry with Kousei, Watari’s role as Kaori’s boyfriend, etc. is developed, but just enough to pass by. Also, Shigatsu is a 22 episode anime, meaning that the producers had a somewhat limited amount of time (meh), and, if the anime went even slower, I don't think I would rate the anime nearly as high.
Enjoyment 10/10:
Shigatsu was THE highlight of my week. Ever since I started the anime from the release date of episode 1, I fell in love with the anime and watched every episode every week on Thursday. When they skipped two weeks, I was devastated. Every episode was so powerful. From the onset, I had a general feeling that this anime would not only be one of the best animes of the season (...still need to finish Parasyte) but also something extra-ordinary, and I could really feel that I could relate to the anime. Shigatsu was without a doubt a worthwhile anime to watch.
Overall 10/10:
With the incredible art, breathtaking soundtracks, realistic storyline, and relatable characters, Shigatsu has become one of my favorite animes. The story starts with a powerful, eye-catching opening, and the story ends with a very, very satisfying (and somewhat unexpected) ending. With nearly perfect pacing, Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso delivers a flawless story with life-like characters. If you haven’t watched it already, I’d suggest reserving about 8 hours to binge-watching all 22 episodes; Shigatsu is definitely an anime worthy to be re-watched over and over, and an anime that I’d say is indisputably a masterpiece.
