Many people will tell you what their fanficton-material stories would be, and somewhere you'll find someone asking, "What if Haruhi wasn't a god, and what if nobody had their powers?" And while I could just take that one scene from the Disappearance movie, and type out a thesis on Kyon's amazing monologue, I'll just throw this in your face: The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-chan...
It is a spin-off series that perfectly answers the above question. But before you jump off of your seat and start looking for the anime on the Internet, (yes, I'm talking to you, avid fans of the franchise!) keep in mind that this IS NOT A SEQUEL TO THE MOVIE. Instead, what we have, is a pleasant slice-of-life romance, involving the main duo, Yuki and Kyon. Yes, I know that those of you who despise that genre will be sickened by this, but as a big fan of the original franchise, I think that this is a good thing to put in. I mean, if we ignore all the fanfictions and doujinshi material, we can see that in the original anime, there was never any romance between any of the characters. Well okay, you could include Episode 6 from the "first season" as something between Kyon and Haruhi, but that wouldn't end up anywhere.
STORY
From what I've said already, there isn't much to add. The slice of life genre may be a turn-off to some people, but if you sit through it you'll get used to it soon enough...
CHARACTERS
Let's be honest, the characters are the main reason why anybody would watch this show... From all of the characters, the only one to change is Yuki. In the original series she was an emotionless robot who hardly spoke, in the movie, she was extremely shy, and hardly spoke, and in this anime, she is also quite shy, but talks more. She also prefers to play video games rather than read books as we are used to.
The other characters haven't seen much change in terms of their personalities. Haruhi is still loud and energetic, Koizumi is still her theoretical assistant, Asakura is the mother-like figure, Mikuru is still the same klutz as she was, and Kyon is just as much of a sarcastic joker as he was in the original...luckily. Honestly, he's in my top 10 anime characters for a reason!
ANIMATION & SOUND
If you weren't turned off by the fact that this is a slice of life anime, you'll get turned off by the animation. Maybe.
The anime was made in April 2015, by Satelight Inc., (Log Horizon, AKB0048) and to be honest, it's not that great. Yeah, it isn't the same animation style from Kyoto Animation that we're used to, but even so, the animation is quite average for the most part. The characters are still recognisable, the only difference being Mikuru having dyed her hair slightly, and Kyon looking like he's twelve years old. The best parts of when the animation kicks into overdrive, are later on in the show, when the story becomes......interesting...
My favourite part of the whole anime is the dub. Why? They got the old cast back!!! Yes yes yes, more Crispin Freeman, more Michelle Ruff, and more hilarity from the cast that has made one of the best English dubs in existence. The fact that the show has the entire old cast of voice actors back gives it an almost nostalgic feeling, like you can spend more time with these amazing characters... And although it is true that the first episode is a bit "unstable" in terms of the dub, it gets better very quickly.
The soundtrack, is OK. It mainly consists of soft piano music, but there are a few tracks that stand out... The opening and ending themes aren't bad, depending on your tastes....
FINAL EVALUATION
Long story short, you'll most likely enjoy this show if you enjoyed the original for the characters and comedy. What will also greatly add to your enjoyment of it are references to the original series, those that will make you smile when you see them, although they are not that easy to spot. And also, for those of you who watched the original for the sci-fi, or for the dark and slow moments from the movie, there is one story arc in this show for you, which is absolutely brilliant, and it feels like it should belong in the original too.
8/10
It's not season three, as I have already said, but it's a good spin-off series, that just gives us an excuse to spend more time watching our favourite characters... Sure, it doesn't have ALL of the Haruhi-ness we are used to, but there's a good amount for anyone to enjoy.
If only KyoAni could make Season 3....COME ON !
