Fresh and witty, beautiful and wistful... not to be missed.

Written by stevodevo on May 5, 2015 at 2:06 PM

I feel a little natsukashii coming back to TokyoInsider after so long a hiatus... it's nostalgic but sad to see - there used to be so many good reviewers here that I could rely on for intelligent, insightful analysis but now it seems mostly one liners with little or no thought behind them.

Ah well.

Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso affected me deeply enough to want to write down my thoughts... so here goes.

At first I started watching because I thought perhaps it would be a quality music-based anime like Nodame. Close, but not in the same vein... Nodame leans more towards comedy with dramatic moments. Shigatsu on the other hand had it's funny moments but is definitely more weighty in it's drama and really gets a good solid hold on your heartstrings by the end.

One aspect of this anime I really appreciated was the dialogue. Not just that the spoken words themselves are clever or interesting but the structure of the dialogue and the technique of introducing a thought, fleshing it out with supporting imagery, then re-iterating the original thought was really well done. You'll notice this used in several episodes and it really made for some great scenes.

Of course, you can't really write a well constructed review of this anime without mentioning the music. I just had to close my eyes during some longer musical pieces and enjoy the aural feast. There truly is some great classical music in this series and the animation plays it up nicely with almost realistic (3Dish) scenes during some of it. Bravo!

I'll admit I cheated and previewed the final episode before my wife and I could watch it together, but don't tell her that ok? As the guidelines state, I'll 'try my very best not to write any spoilers' but by the time the last few episodes roll around you can see the iceberg approaching. You know you should slow down or go around it but you just can't. It looms large in front of you and there's really nothing you or anyone else can do about it. I don't always enjoy those kind of endings but somehow it just fit. No it didn't leave me feeling happy happy joy joy but sad and a little thoughtful.

I've always said you can tell you've seen something worthwhile if it affects you deeply, either positively or negatively. And Your Lie in April definitely fits in that category.

IF you are up for some great entertainment, some excellent music, a little humour, and plenty of heart-rending drama then Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso certainly fits the bill...

Highly recommended!