The story begins quite smoothly and slowly giving the time to get to know the characters, their way of thinking and living.
There are some things which are just given to a reader without any further explanations. You just have to assume them. I wouldn't say I liked it but that's not the most important part here so let it be.
The story tells us about a "detective game", involving time traveling. The most part of it is dedicated to monologues of the main character which makes the story very engaging. There's not much action in it, but that's for the greater good.
It's smartly constructed. There are in general 3 large parts of the story which are deeply connected with each other. Lots of minor details which seemed to have no significance eventually turned out to be very important.
You'll think with Satoru. You'll analyze with Satoru. You'll find the culprit with him. You'll feel yourself in his shoes.
To be honest, art isn't something to admire here. It has its own style which I would call as "a bit edgy". It makes a good job of conveying emotions, actions and thoughts. So I wouldn't count it as bad either. Also, there are some frames which are just great.
It makes its job in a proper way.
I guess you would never forget Satoru, Kayo, and Satoru's mom at least. They became quite real for me. Besides them, lots of another cool characters out there. Characters are a core of the manga. Everything's based on them. A reader has the opportunity to see how they grow supporting each other. Such thing as a "friendship" is showed here in a right way. It's not that pretentious as it might be in some shounen manga, yet very gorgeous and simply a nice thing.
To add more, few characters have their own philosophy. I've found some interesting thoughts.
The antagonist deserves some praise. I didn't understand to the end his philosophy but it was the interesting one without a doubt.
I like stories like this one. Very much do. It's not perfect. To some degree, it may be even absurd. But, what's more important, it gives a reader something to think about. Something to live with.
It's sincerely kind.
I would recommend it to anyone. Especially to those, who are, alike me, unsatisfied with the way anime ended. You'll find a gap and a proper ending right here. And don't forget about additional 5 chapters, please note, they are very important!
