Reviews

I love this anime with all my heart. Although I have a few minor issues with it, they're outshined by the wonderful characters and heart-wrenching story. Do you want to see someone so innocent, so full of life, so optimistic, so focused on his own bubble taken down a notch? I mean crushed, beaten, abused, and turned so hopeless he's willing to give up on life itself? Rintaro Okabe, at your service! He spends his days with his two friends Daru and Mayuri. He frequently slips into his alter-ego, mad scientist Hououin Kyouma, deadset on taking over the world. He builds gadgets in his apartment while Daru and Mayuri hang out. While going to a conference covering time travel, Okabe stumbles upon the dead body of one of the speakers - shocked, he texts Daru, only to find that the researcher wasn't stabbed. Okabe correctly deduces that he's changed the current timeline and with the help of the researcher named Kurisu, works to experiment even more. Okabe's able to change more past events, finding himself the only one aware of the "previous" universe. He helps his friends, essentially granting them wishes. His one friend's long-dead father? Alive and well, and getting along great with his daughter. Another friend is (implied to be) trans and hates being biologically male? Through some sorcery, now she's biologically female. You're introduced to new characters and you're able to really get a feel on Okabe while laughing at the antics of these four and their friends. Kurisu and Okabe begin to develop feelings for each other. This part of the show is mostly whimsical and silly, courting you into a false sense of security until...

Mayuri's dead. Okabe's best friend, someone who's cared for him and who he's cared for, was killed because of his experiments. Okabe tries on something he and Kurisu were working on, and is able to travel back in time. Okabe desperately tries to prevent Mayuri from dying, but fails each time, becoming more and more desperate as he watches Mayuri die every single time. And every single time, the heart wrenching reality sets in more and more. Okabe realizes he has to undo his former alterations, changing the past back to what it was - and undoing all of the help he'd done before. What truly breaks Okabe is his realization that Mayuri will continue to die if he doesn't undo his very first alteration - saving Kurisu. Okabe falls in love with Kurisu and wins her back over and over again, as her memories of the previous realities disappear every time Okabe travels back in time. Kurisu encourages Okabe to sacrifice her and save Mayuri. Okabe is finally able to come to terms with losing her, and undoes his first alteration, saving Mayuri... but dooming the entire world.

As strange as that sounds, it makes sense in context. The ending of the show is bittersweet, as Okabe manages to save everyone - but erases Kurisu's memory of him. By chance, the two meet again...

Okabe's character arc is one of my favorite in any show. His soul is crushed. He's broken. But he still finds hope. He's a completely different person by the end, like a boy becoming a man. It's really something special.

This is just a wonderful show. It's sweet, funny, contemplative, and devastating. There is no "happy" ending here, just the least sad one, which Okabe is able to achieve. They eventually released a sequel where Okabe didn't manage to save Kurisu, and it is incredibly devastating just the same.