By no means is this a bad anime, however it is far from worthy of the number one spot on MAL. The story is well-written and one of the most well-structured anime I have seen in a while, however the story itself is quite lacking in that it doesn't show enough character development. The concepts that the director have instilled in the characters are very pronounced and admirable, however it is belief that others see this as true character development. Even at the end of this show, it felt that the characters themselves were rushed and were easily predictable, making them quite cheesy (though that seems to not be something the director focused on). All in all, it IS a movie; this does not, however, mean that it is better than anime series just because it can compact many ideas.
Although the main concept of alternating lives is an intriguing one I haven't come across before, it does not make up for the rest of the story, which lacks in depth. It is good to watch as a simple, well-constructed movie, but it does not have all the characteristics required for the most astonishing and creative anime.
Verdict sentence: Over-hype.
