In Nagato Yuki-chan no Shoushitsu, or "The Disappearance of Yuki Nagato" in English the balance between the mundane and the philosophical is tipped slightly in the former's favour. That's not to say the science fiction elements are absent completely, but it's far more like a traditional high school harem series than the original was: far more time is spent on typical activities than before. That's not all: some of the cast members have had their personalities tweaked slightly for this series.
Yuki Nagato herself has a similar composure to the character from earlier series, being quiet and reserved, but now more closely resembles the behaviour of a real person. Her tendency to be quiet is no longer the result of a robotic mind but of shyness. She's also now a bit clumsy, no doubt in order to better cater to a certain kind of individual. Another character who has been changed is Ryouko Asakura, the murderous class representative of the first series. Her confident and slightly intimidating personality is retained, but is now concentrated on looking after Nagato. Her role is much larger than before too, in fact after Yuki and Kyon, she is the most important character in the series.
Tsuruya, the green haired ball of energy is also more important this time around, while Mikuru, Koizumi and Haruhi have been relegated to the sidelines. This shift has changed the direction of the series dramatically and even though these characters have not been altered their limited presence has had an effect on the series which is even greater than the more conventional approach. If you feel sentimental about the original series then there is a good chance you won't find this series as appealing as the others. The same goes for those who dislike the cutesy, mixed signals kind of romance that you find in other high school anime. This is a recurring theme, particularly in the earlier episodes.
But do not think that the series has become completely saccharine. On the contrary, this series raises far deeper philosophical questions than either the first or the second series do. Events conspire such that one character may be killed inadvertently to save another, a moral dilemma similar to the famous problem about an out of control trolley running down a hill. Though the set-up which prompted this dilemma are fictional, the ramifications of them are significant. The presentation of it is rather stirring too, and you may find yourself feeling rather melancholic about the whole affair when it's through.
Speaking of presentation, you may have noticed that the art style is radically different from the series which were produced by Kyoto Animation, and more closely resemble the artwork in the original light novels. The change is slightly distracting at first but the relative simplicity of it is ultimately rather charming. Though the colouring could be better: embarrassment is signalled with a change of skin tone rather than facial expression, and it feels lazy.
Mercifully, the original voice actors have been retained for this series, so no-one need worry about adjusting to a new Haruhi unless you watched the original series dubbed. The background music is pretty catchy too, but if you were expecting themes capable of rivalling the Hare Hare Yukai or Bouken Desho Desho you are going to be very disappointed, as both the OP and ED for this series are dreadful low-tier pop songs that have none of the excitement or fun that the original series themes did.
But music isn't everything, and unless you are the kind of person that can't stand the idea of your favourite characters being meddled with, then overall this series does rather well. And fortunately for us, those two legacies actually can co-exist with one another simultaneously.
