Angel Beats! was the most hyped anime of last season. Taking place in a limbo-like world, the anime deals a lot with themes of death, reincarnation, identity, and souls. Ootonashi wakes up in this alternate reality, where he is immediately confronted with news of his own death. People in this afterlife are already dead and thus cannot die. Ootonashi soon joins SSS, a rebellious faction against the rules of this world. Together with Yurippe and other SSS members, they fight against any perceived authority. However, when Ootonashi meets Kanade, he realizes that things may not be as Yuri thought.
The premise is definitely very solid. It has all the elements to make it a masterpiece: action, adventure, and copious amounts of depth. However, after a few episodes, I hated the execution. The flaws are blatant and huge. However, despite all the problems, I actually enjoyed Angel Beats!
Let us just get the criticisms out of the way. The pacing is terrible. For example, in one episode, we see Ootonashi’s flashback to how his previous life ended. While this is a very beautiful moment, it is immediately followed by a rather silly fishing trip. Furthermore, the plot is really incoherent. Something treated first as a comic relief may end up being the trigger for a very serious subplot; that insignificant fishing trip ended up being an important beginning of a new arc. The series is too inconsistent about its tone and its hierarchy of plot points. The problem extends to its characters. I found many of the supporting cast to lack much development. They were not distinct enough and I have little idea who is actually important. Takamatsu, Oda, T.K., and Fujimaki all fill the same forgettable role. Yet once in a while, one of them becomes significant to the story. Ultimately, there is just too much confusion with everything. The confusion is worsened by the amount of themes Angel Beats! try to address. In the end, we are left with a superficial exploration of life, death, and all the other stuff Angel Beats! try to cram in.
Yet, several weeks after watching this, I still smile when I think about this anime.
It is certainly not refined literature, and it does not try to be. Instead, Angel Beats! takes the premise and just goes completely for it. When the anime wants to address the realities of this afterlife, it does not just explain the rules. It gives us a scene like that of The Matrix. When it wants to incorporate romance, we have a poignant ending akin to the last scene of Kannazuki no Miko. It really goes all out, and that makes it a fun, wild ride.
In addition, there are actually some things Angel Beats! executes wonderfully. I really like the changing attitudes of the authority figures. It is a nice pattern to see Tenshi eventually become an ally, and then a parallel situation with Naoi. The anime takes this neat idea of breaking down authority even further when Ootonashi changes SSS leader Yuri’s attitude about this world.
I also really like the running music theme. It strings this incoherent story together. When Iwasawa sings her final song and leaves the world, it is seen as a sad loss. Later, when the replacement rock star also leaves, it is instead a really beautiful blissful moment. This signified a change in attitude among the characters and the audience. Finally, this progression sets up for the graduation ceremony when the important characters sing before they leave this afterlife. I thought that was quite a powerful motif.
I should also mention briefly that Yui-nyan~ takes the anime to another level. She is super adorable and I laughed at her every silly charming antics. Unlike most other support characters, Yui is a total success because of both her distinctive personality and developed background. The kyaarific confession moment is also just too cute.
Angel Beats! certainly has its flaws, but it does not feel pretentious. I really like anime that try to go over the top. Indeed, Angel Beats! does that and more. It is not perfect; it is not even well executed, but this is a solid, fun, and enjoyable series.
![Blue Friend [Yuri Manga]](https://i0.wp.com/lh3.ggpht.com/_c3hWUvy__P4/TODtxeH57fI/AAAAAAAABRM/Jrn29X5gz0U/Blue-Friend-yuri-manga-cover-1.jpg?resize=200%2C200)
Listless Ink 
I felt the same way. It wasn’t perfect, but who cares? I don’t demand perfection from every anime, and Angel Beats did enough right to be love-worthy
Yep yep. It did just enough right to be a solid series. It’s not at my top; it’s not something I’ll re-watch, but for those 13 episodes, I enjoyed it. Even now, when I see images of Kanade and Yui, it’s evokes a heartwarming reaction.
Even though Angel Beats may not be as good like Clannad, I still enjoyed it. There were some things that bothered like the music from Girls Dead Monster and the lack of character development of the other characters, but there was stuff in the show that redeemed itself… I just call it a tsundere of Anime…
Shows don’t have to be perfect, as long they entertain me… its fine, unless there is a reason why the show sucking a lot like with *coughKampfercough* for example.
Haha tsundere of anime. The characters definitely needed way more development. Yuri and Kanade especially. For two characters so pivotal to the story, they felt flat for me. Sure, we get tidbits of their past and bits of their motivations, but overall, it didn’t feel real. I thought Yui was a much more successful (perhaps the only successful) character in terms of development.
Still, I liked it. I almost tried watching Kampfer, but yea, it doesn’t look good at all.
I definitely enjoyed this show. My complaint though, is that there wasn’t enough room to flesh out the character development of everyone within the time span of 13 eps. By the time Yuzuru’s past is revealed, the producers are already planning a way to shove an ending in the few remaining episodes. I felt that Kanade’s reason for being in the Angel Player was sort of an ass-pull for an ending. It certainly was meaningful and nicely ties back to the title, but they could have at least showed more than 5 seconds of what happened to her and Yuzuru they left that world. But yea, like you guys said, shows doesn’t have to be perfect to be great.
Meanwhile, rumors of a second season of Angel Beats scheduled for 2011 is floating around, with a new cast. However, I haven’t been able to find solid sources about this so be optimistic at your own discretion at best for now.
I agree. Especially for some of the support characters. They really just felt like unnecessary filler characters. I had to look up most of their names. Even some of the more important characters don’t stick at all. Naoi comes to mind. Beyond the shallowest information (hypnotist, BL… etc.), we really don’t know anything about what drives his actions. His personality is pretty weak and other than the occasional BL humor, he adds nothing to the cast. Even Yuri started to lose her charm by the later episodes. Overall, I felt little for most of the characters.
Also agreed about Kanade. She is pretty much only there for moe.
If a second season does come out, I’ll certainly watch it, but more out of obligation than anticipation. I enjoyed this series, but I’m done with it.
You know what I think about this ^_^
I think we agree mostly. ^ ^
I loved the series personally. I really do, I’m still very much in
love– awe and admiration for Kanade. I enjoyed the series, although one question kept bugging my mind: What does TK even do?GOOD CHANCE AND LUCK
I effing hate TK. I don’t even know why. He’s not important and he doesn’t get much screen time, but for some reason I hate him.
Anyways, Kanade’s cute in her own way, and I like her too.
I liked Angel Beats too, despite it not being perfect. The only thing that I would really have changed was Otonashi’s reaction after Kanade disappeared, it just ruined the whole scene for me. My favourite part of the series would have to be the part just before Yui disappears, it brought tears to my eyes.
That was my favorite part too! Yui totally stole the show for me. And her last moment was so much kyaaaaaaaa~~~!! I cried a bit as well. Loved that scene.
This is definitely one of my favorite anime. The animation was very beautiful and touching. I completely agree with your review :). The ending actually made me cry a bit , though lol.
The graduation is a really beautiful episode. There are actually several quite poignant scenes. The ending, Yui’s disappearance, and even Otonoashi’s past are all quite beautiful. I shed more than a few tears.
I liked it.
It seems like the just tried to fit too much stuff into 13 episodes. If it was longer, the story may have been quite a bit more sensible. Characters could have been fleshed out. The gang may not have seemed like a luckless group that must always be at war with something.
Still, I liked it.
They really tried to fit too much stuff. Too many ideas, too many characters, and too many subplots. They failed pretty badly, but I appreciate that they tried.
And it didn’t turn out that bad. I like it too.
The only consistent thing about the show is its inconsistency. It was an ambitious project and props go for Maeda for coming up with such a premise. Now take the props away for the shoddy execution towards the end. There was never really enough time to figure out how the world really works and all explanations seem hand-wavy at best, especially when the huge plot hole came down in the final episode.
Well, it tried. That can never be a bad thing, though I do wish that it succeeded since it had promise. An above average anime overall and I don’t think it’ll stick in my memory like the other shows that are associated with Maeda.
Buuuut the music was good. That’s something, yeah?
Agreed completely. Major props for trying. I love anime that really goes all out. It also tanked pretty badly, but it still ended up being fun. Little re-watch value for me, but overall an enjoyable ride.
I like the music too. And Yui.
While I did watch and enjoy “Angel Beats!” for its entertainment value, with the hype surrounding the series I agree and have the same criticism about it. It presented itself as something epic and serious but pretty soon crumbled in onto itself due to poor plot execution, ill thought pacing and character inconsistencies.
To this day I still can’t shake the feeling that they wanted to turn Yuri into the new Haruhi and make her an extremely popular character but as they noticed while the series aired that this failed, they shifted focus to Kanade and made Yuri’s overly dramatic past suddenly sit on the backburner to ultimately resolve it without much effort or involvement at all.
One of the problems the series in that aspect had is they treated it as a 26 episode or longer series and started doing lots of side plots and silliness to then realize they had only a few episodes left to wrap everything up.
An entertaining watch but alas didn’t live up to its potential.
The hype certainly played it up as this deep series. For the first two or three episodes, it did feel like it. However, the show started taking a different direction when it tried to cram all this stuff in. At one point, I felt like the writers gave up and just stopped taking itself seriously. The shift was really awkward, but I think it turned out not bad in the end. I did feel like all the serious backstories were simply not fleshed at all, which is a shame. Those would have made a really rather dramatic and touching plotline had they been developed further.
It was entertaining, but also somewhat draining. It’s not something I’ll ever revisit and it didn’t live up to the hype, but decent overall.
Will probably watch Angel Beats! this weekend. That 4th photo looks great!
It should be a fun watch. Anyways, I like that image too. ^ ^
I really like Angel Beats alot… especially Girl’sDeMo!!! Their songs are just AWESOMEEE!!! But for some reason, none of the characters are my favorites. I just like the seiyuus. Xd Oh, and Yui-nyan’s guitar is the same as K-ON!! Sawa-chan’s old guitar… which was a total LOL when I 1st saw that. XDD
And the Last Episode (Yui-nyan’s disappearance eps too) I actually cried…. too touching T_T
* BTW, U should make a post about sphere too, like what I did (well, I always post them tho), just a suggestion. ^^
Most characters don’t stand out for me. I think if I see them again in a year or so, I wouldn’t member anyone’s name (except maybe Yui).
Never noticed the guitar thing. That’s super cool. ^ ^
I cried during those times too. Yui-nyan’s disappearance especially!
I might eventually do a post about Sphere, but I’m never good with music posts and I have a lot of stuff in the draft folder right now. Love them though. ^ ^
I was also really looking forward to Angel Beats! before it was aired, but after the first episode… it was nothing what I expected. And after a few more, i knew it was not what I was looking for.
Especially the art quality in episode 1, which totally left me thinking,
“they really gave a good impression on the first episode didnt they?”
so bad…..
The reason I was so hype at first was 100% because of KEY, which did Air, Kannon, and of course, the epic water work of CLANNAD ~after story~. Have never streamed so much salted water from my eyes for an anime for DAYS!
What made me more and more disappointed with Angel Beats! is… well, the whole thing. It feel as though they are just cramping EVERYTHING thats good from every genre of anime.
e.g.
Character design: Yuri = Haruhi
Kanade = Nagato/Ayanami type of character where they keep quite most of the time, and pale hair, another type of character design where most people fall for no matter the storyline. *cough cough harder on the pale hair quite type*
Yui = just another girl that Nyaa for no reason to look cute. (although I must say, i went awwwww when she nyaaa, but, meh~)
The music band thing = K-ON!
A bunch of comedy <— not a bad thing.
Mysterious <— not a bad thing again.
The "sad" ending, well, they try to make it into another CLANNAD tearjerker but where was the build up to it? You cant make audience cry if theres no build up to the finale, which I have personally felt.
As you can see, it feels as thought they are cramping everything thats “good” into one anime, which have made me felt angry at KEY.
But saying that, what if Key let Kyoto Ani to manage to production, rather than whoever the other guys were in charge, I reckon they will be able to turn it into a master piece.
So, Kyoto Ani, if you ever thinking of re-doing Angel Beats! I will watch it!
Exactly. I felt like they tried to take all the good anime and cram it into 12 episodes. The first few episodes felt like Haibane Renmei. The last arc felt a bit like GITS. The characters were definitely not fresh at all, but they had potential if they got a bit more development. Overall, there were so many things wrong.
It is too inconsistent too! It started in one way then quickly shifts to another and then another. Compared to other KEY works, such as Air (which I love), this is pretty bad.
Thanks for the comment and the in depth breakdown of character comparisons!
although I must admit, if given more time, i m sure this would have been a great series, just too bad there is not enough time.
Wow I loved your analysis!
I haven’t seen Angel Beats yet…and as you said,I am excited about its hype as well…
I have seen many people criticizing the anime thoroughly because there are some bad points in that anime…and reading that makes us feel that we shouldnt go for that anime…
You have maintained a balance between the ups and lows and mentioned its good points as well 🙂
And nice pics and good to know it has nice music!!
Its kinda made me excited to see it soon 🙂
Nice review 🙂
I have to warn you though that this is by no means a great anime. Most of the criticisms I read are valid and really detracts from the enjoyment. It’s just that overall, I enjoyed it for what it tried to do and for the moment.
Don’t expect it to live up to the hype and don’t expect a series that you would want to watch again. It’s filler, but it’s fun filler.
The music is a huge plus though.
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It was certainly an enjoyable anime =)
Cried a during a few of its episodes =(
Ichiban no Takaramono is the best song in this anime =D
to be honest, watching CLANNAD right before Angel beats! feels AB is just nowhere as emotional.
I cried a few times too and I like it. I agree with leungclj though that compared to other KEY works, this is not as emotional. Still, after all the things that went wrong, this turned out really nicely.
I agree that Angel Beats! has its share of flaws, but was enjoyable anyway. Like you said, the themes were kind of all over the place and its large cast of characters could have used more development, but I found enough things to like about it. I’m still crossing my fingers for a KyoAni 20+ episode remake =)
With 20+ episodes, I think Angel Beats! could really do a fine job. I’d like to see that too.
I will not hesitated to stay up all night to watch it, knowing the quality will be very high standard
I haven’t had a chance to see Angel Beats, but after reading this I think it might be worth checking out!!!!!
And on another note, sorry I haven’t dropped by in a while since I just wrapped up my eight week summer class and that things are crazy at work since we are getting ready to start the fall semester in about three weeks 😦 Hope things are going well and I will catch ya later.
It’s worth the time if there’s nothing better around, but it’s not at the top of my list.
Anyways, don’t worry about not dropping by and good luck with classes. And it’s always a pleasure to hear from you.
I’m wary of this series. Hype + moe never seems to work out for me.
I’ll quietly work on making the series more drab while murdering anyone who talks about it. If it all works out, you can watch the series in good faith in a few months.
Hype doesn’t do much for me, but we have very different opinions about moe. Anyways, Angel Beats does wear on the viewer simply because of all the hype and all the stuff going on around it. While I enjoyed it, it’s not something I’d watch again for sure.
Just a small question, can all these downsides be explained by the tight number of 13 episodes?. I mean.., I felt the story was well written it’s just the execution that lacked consistency which goes hand in hand with the time it’s got to unfold the itself.
As a die-hard fan of Jun Maeda it’s hard to accept one of the projects he was involved in wasn’t amongst the best – . -‘.
totally agree
I think so. I think there just wasn’t enough space to expand on these wonderful ideas, and so we end up with a very poorly executed series. It’s definitely not one of his best. 😦
Hmm,although it is only 13 episodes,i felt that they are still kinda dragging the plot.I dislike the how thay tried to cram explainations into one episode n how kanade n main character love each other without any signs that their relationship is beyond friends until of course,the last episode.BUT superb graphics though.
That was one huge pet peeve I had about Kanade and Ootonashi too. Ultimately, it made feel even less for those characters. I mean sure, the ending was very kyaarific, but how we got to that point was so hastily done, the romance between Kanade and Ootonashi didn’t have a lasting effect. In fact, for most of the series, I was expecting a Yuri x Ootonashi ending. It’s again a random haphazard cramming of another thing into there, but I guess it didn’t ruin it that badly. I still liked it over all.
That is the strange thing about Angel Beats, it’s very flawed, yet at the same time, I came out of having enjoyed the experience immensely.
I didn’t notice the music motif though. Thanks for pointing it out!
That was really weird for me too. It’s so poorly done but I still enjoyed it, as do many others. I guess that’s part of its brilliance then.
To put it simple… this needed a 24+ episode =/
is was too dam short and so many flaws. D: but like you said it is a solid, fun, and enjoyable series. =)
I’m surprised that it still came together in the end even with half the time it needs.
Like you said, the series had horrible pacing. However, I still really enjoyed Angel Beats! and became a fan of a lot of the characters in it (Tenshi ftw!).
Limbo-like world? Inception? 🙂
Haha, Inception! Recently, everything reminds me of it.
I liked a few of the characters in there too, and I think that played a lot into making the series decent.
I actually met the voice actress of Yui (Eri Kitamura) at an anime exposition. She was totally awesome. I think she did the “Yui-nyan~” line twice, it was really cute ^^.
Oh was it at Anime Expo 2010 in Los Angeles? I heard she was there. It must have been nice to meet her. Her voice is really cute!
yea, it was anime expo 2010 in L.A. It was Eri Kitamura’s first time coming overseas, so it was a great opportunity to be one of the first people to meet her and talk to her. She even wore this kimono outfit aha.
Oh and I met Yui Horie, but I still like Eri Kitamura a tad more :P.
Yea I like Eri Kitamura a lot too.
The BGM and the OP/ED was typical high Jun Maeda quality, but his GirldeMo tracks bored me. Yui’s singer in particular in my opinion…how should I put it, didn’t have the voice yet tried too hard.
The whole show’s very pretty to look at though…
That’s an interesting take. I’m not very good at analyzing music at all and I didn’t pay particular attention to BGM much. But I did like the OP/ED and I actually kind of like Yui’s voice… probably more because I like the character though.
Agreed the show’s very pretty.
Got to agree with you here. Enjoyable to watch, but some serious problems really drag it down. Pacing and side character development being the most obvious; not to mention that horrible and inconsistent final episode.
I can’t help feeling Angel Beats! was a marketing experiment where they try to include everything that sells. Music, figures, magazines (guilty as charged) etc. Meh, maybe it’s just me.
TK is awesome. Whether he does anything or not 😛
I got that feeling too. It’s almost as if they took every successful thing from popular works and tried to combine it. Very little originality and poor directions. It managed to mess up some really big ideas. Still, as a franchise it works. And as something fun to pass the time, it works..
I disagree on TK though… I hate that guy. 😦
I watch Angel Beats for the Starcraft references.
Best thing about Tenshi! That and her head tilt.
I absolutely loved the music and Yui, I always enjoy listening to the albums in the car or on a walk
I really like the OP and the ED. They’re nice songs. I play them in my car sometimes too.
i have yet to see this series myself even with all the hype around it. i saw in the comments that there are starcraft references? hmm im a little more intrigued now lol well at least i can agree with you that things dont have to be perfect to be enjoyable ^^
it was an interesting enough review to put this on the huge watchlist backlog… ive been falling behind on so many series XD
Starcraft references… Not necessarily. A girl with blades like those used by Protoss, I think so. I don’t actually play Starcraft so I’m not exactly sure either. It’s interesting enough to pass time with, but I wouldn’t put it at the top of my list, and I have a tendency to be really forgiving about anime. I like most stuff.
I tried to watch a couple episodes due the hype as well. It never really appealed to me and I love death themes
That’s unfortunate. I can understand why some people might not like this though. It’s poorly executed and it has some really serious flaws.
The only series I’m reading right now that has anything to do with life in the afterlife is Jack Frost. Despite how odd it is I’m enjoying myself. Angel Beats is something I may watch someday, but it’s not at the top of my priorities.
Hm… I haven’t heard of Jack Frost. I must check it out sometime. I like stories that explore the afterlife, especially odd ones.
Anyways, Angel Beats was not on my priorities either. I picked it up on a whim… probably because of the hype and because I was in the mood for a series that’s not very demanding.
You said it how it is. I enjoyed Angel Beats throughout the whole thing, it really was good in the end. I felt disappointed and wanting more at the same time though. It had just enough to draw me in and make me like it, but it seemed like a short tease. Some things just didn’t make any sense, and that’s ok because they were dealing with things that no living person has ever been able to survive to talk about. The fun moments seemed like a decent balance after the serious parts, but I was left wishing it had been a 26 episode series or so because while some characters (like Yui-nyan) were beautifully fleshed out, others seemed like nothing more than background noise. Now that it’s been some time since I finished the show my feelings towards it are pretty neutral. It could have become one of my favorite all-time anime but it fell short. It still deserves praise for what it did touch upon. It’s just a shame when a potential masterpiece is cut short. That’s just how I feel, and I respect everyone’s differing opinions ^^
I agree. It felt so much like a tease. Every time the series delves into something really fascinating about the characters or the world, it springs out of it and changes directions. Nothing gets fleshed out well. In the end, I could forgive these shortcomings though because the tease was fun in its own way.
I didn’t really like the transitions between the serious and the light parts though. I felt they were too abrupt.
I also wish it had been 26 episodes, and I definitely want more Yui-nyan. Overall, it’s a decent series that could have been great.
I dropped the how for some reason but now I’m back on it. I really love the whole idea of it.
For me, this show is fun but it’s not something that’s a must watch. I wouldn’t give it a second thought if I happened to drop it. I’m still glad I finished it though since it is very enjoyable.
Awesome review, what Angel Beats executed wonderfully is character development;Yui, Otonashi, Yurrippe,etc. The animation quality was great, considering it was animated by Key. I think that Angel Beats just had to be stretched out a bit more to fill in the holes (flaws) you mentioned. It is its potiential and solid premise that gave us viewers expectations that were too high, which left us a little bit dissapointed when it ended (at least that’s what I thought).
But then again, Angel Beats was meant to be short and sweet, Key has truly done amazingly well to bring us so much enjoyment in a short 13 episodes
That’s certainly true. It had a lot of solid raw potential. Maybe our expectations are indeed too high, but to some degrees, many of us enjoyed it in the end. I guess in the end, it did meet the bar, even if it wasn’t the original high bar.
I didn’t mention much about the animation, but that’s another plus for sure. Loved the animation as well as the character designs. Angel Beats is pretty to watch.
Uhm i’d generally second the popular opinion Angel Beats is flawled, inconsistent and has a terrible pacing and wrong direction. I believed the problems were issued by the short seasonal format, but now i realized that having 13 or 26 more episode would’t add nothing more than chaos with such a terrible direction. I mean, the show changed from comedic to drama, to matrix, to whatever genre you may think about and back. It’s like a pinball! The only way they’d let that huge mix behave would have been reducing it in short oav-like arcs. They’d even have space for adding several more seasons after. But this show, for one, has a closure, and a good closure at that! I usually whine a lot about inconclusive animes, but i feel like having an inconclusive ending here would have helped leading the way out to reduce the plot complexity and better develop it in several more series. [i]Divide et impera[/i]. A good way to solve problems since the ancient times indeed 😛
So the general opinion was this anime to be bad, but why are there so many people who like it despite the huge flaws? I’m also in the group eheh!
The chars. The chars are lovable and interesting from the main ones to the appearances. I mean, that girl dead monster at the start was awesome wasn’t she? Not to speak about Yui, not the usual moe moe kyuu char at the very least. TK, thus having done quite nothing peculiar since the start of the anime was awesome too! Every one of the cast would have been fleshed quite better, but the space was as little as 13 tiny episodes. That’s why a more clever (and linear) plot would have greatly enhanced the value of this aime. Well that’s all folks. Let’s hope in a proper remake just what like they already did with Kanon.
An OVA form that focuses on a different theme/ arc is actually a very neat idea. In fact, now that you’ve mentioned it, I agree that this would probably provide an even better anime than simply an extended series.
As for me, I think I like it simply because it’s just big packed fun.
I agree about Yui-nyan~ She’s simply precious and she’s one of the more fleshed out supporting characters. Girl Dead Monster is also very nice.
However, I don’t share the same love for TK though. He annoys me a lot…
I wouldn’t mind a better remake at all!
I agree TK may be an annoyance, but he’s sure a peculiar char. Id’like to know more about that char and its antics, but he was guilty left without any form of development. We just know he acts like a rapper and speaks engrish sketches. He delivers some nice humour, and that’s his only role in the story, but it neverthless bugs me we never get to know why and the reason he’s in purgatory too.
TK’s a very unique character and he’s certainly made a huge impact among the fans even with so little screen time. I think he just didn’t work for me for some odd reason.
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My only gripe with this show is that not all the members of Neo-SOS had a chance to shine in the spotlight, but it’s understandable since they only had 13 episodes to work with. Also some upcoming bonus episodes.
Other than that, Angel Beats is yet another masterpiece by the almighty master of teary rivers, KEY. I have only seen this show and Air so far, which means I’ll tackle both Kanon and Clannad later on. If there’s one thing I’ve learned from KEY it’s this: “Always have a box of tissues ready before watching a Key anime or visual novel.
This series needed to trim down on the number of characters, themes, and arcs. With only 13 episodes, the production should have planned it better.
Air really is a tear jerker. I cried so much during that… Angel Beats, not as much, but it was still emotional at times. I think my eyes watered during several scenes.
“Always have a box of tissues ready before watching a Key anime or visual novel.”
Agreed!
o.m.g i really like this anime it makes me cry im really love this anime
It made me cry too!
I think that Angel Beats! had too many characters for it’s own good and it having only 13 episodes surely doesn’t help.
I don’t think the series was bad though. There were quite some emotional parts that at least made my eyes water but I think what Angel Beats! lacked most was character development, among other things, because of lack of budget(?) and time constraints. I would have appreciated it more if they elaborated more on Yuri and Kanade’s stories, but what it delivered was simply a teaser of sorts, causing me to anticipate another season. However, those hopes were shattered when they ended the story abruptly with some huge plot holes left. I heard that there is going to be a second season with entirely different characters, though.
(Anyway, doesn’t anyone wonder why Kanade was present in that world before Otonashi arrived even though he supposedly died first?)
Timing killed everything. They couldn’t meet their ambitions with only 13 episodes.
Agreed about the character developments. I really wanted to see more of the core characters. Yuri and Kanade especially. For two such pivotal girls in the show, we know nearly nothing about them beyond the shallowest facts.
I hope there is a second season… This desperately needs more episodes. Still, despite all the criticisms, it was enjoyable.
“Anyway, doesn’t anyone wonder why Kanade was present in that world before Otonashi arrived even though he supposedly died first?”
I’m guessing the flow of time-space around that limbo world is probably somewhat distorted.
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Hi Yi, I learned about Japanese Anima when I was in the Military… I joined the U. S. Navy on October 11,1990 ( was an enlisted man ) & I was discharged from the Navy on June 23,1994, so I was in the Navy from 1990 to 1994… Anyway when I was in the Navy, after work when I was off duty, I would go to the Video Stor & I would rent some Movies & some of these Movies would be Anime… And I was wondering if you ever heared of Guyver, ah let me tell you about… It is the story of a young man he was twenty something years old, anyway he found a piece of technology that was stolen from a laboratory ( it was called the Guyver unit )… It was a little bigger then a baseball, when he Activated it Tentacles Sprang Out as if to Attack him, he Freaked Out ! ( Wouldn’t you, I know I would ? ) But in a Moment he was Encased in Organic Living Armor, this Armor gave him Super Powers, he was Stronger, Faster, & he had Superhuman Agility… He would Fight & Slay Monsters, he was a Japanese Superhero called Guyver… I thought that this Anima was Realy Cool… Anyway I did not know until after I joined the Navy that Speed Racer was a Japanese Cartoon… When I was a little boy I Love Speed Racer, & when I grow up I wanted to be a Race Car Driver Just Like Speed Racer, I wanted to Drive the Powerful Mock 5, this was a Supercool Race Car ! Yah I can feel the Power Now ! lol ! Ha ha ! Anyway I want to talk to you more about Anima, but I need to Look up some thing on the internet & I need do a spell check on some words & so forth… I am Look Forward to your Comments on all this… Thank You Much ! Joy, Peace, & Love, from the cooljazzman…
Ooh so you were in the Navy. That’s really awesome!
Anyway, I haven’t heard of Guyver, but it sounds pretty cool. An organic living armor that encases you and gives you powers… That’s awesome! This isn’t exactly my thing (I tend to prefer less action packed anime, and more relaxing stuff), but I don’t mind anime like this once in a while.
Anyway, I just opened up a recommendations page for people to post public recommendations. You could also just contact me if you want to talk about anything off topic from the post.
Cheerios,
Yi ^ ^
Hi Yi, I read your review on Angel Beats… At first I didn’t know if I would like this Anima or not, but after I read past all the criticsms, in your review you did redeem it & you made sound like it could fun… I know I like Action Packed Anima more so, however sometimes I like the Softer Stuff too… : ) Joy, Peace, & Love, from me to you…
It deserves a lot of its criticisms, but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t enjoyable. I liked it. I think we can put aside our critic mindset for a few moments and just go along with the wild ride, we can have some fun. I hope you enjoy it.
Joy, peace, and love for you too. ^ ^
I thought the ending was too rushed. I figured that they would show how each of the characters died and how they fix their regrets in order to pass on.
I really wanted to find out how Yuri died, we know what happened with her family but we don’t know how she died. Although she did mention something about suicide, by saying she didn’t do it; but I think that might have been what she did do.
Another thing that bothered me was the relationship between Otonashi & Hinata and Otonashi and Naoi, there was totally a boys love in both relationships; but Otonashi and Hinata both ended up with female characters. I would have liked it if Naoi had said that he liked Otonashi romantically, although this is never revealed if it’s true or not; but the graduation ceremony was the perfect time for it. But instead of saying he liked him (if he did) he just said thank you; I was so annoyed at that! I mean they could have at least made it that Naoi did like Otonashi but it just never went anywhere cause Otonashi likes Kanade and Naoi disappears first.
Also, about Otonashi and Kanade; I personally didn’t feel it. The spark wasn’t there to me, I didn’t see it at all. If anything, I think Otonashi would have been better with Yuri if anything; not Kanade.
But I don’t know, I am not much of a fan of heterosexual romances really; so that could have something to do with it.
My other thing was they never got to see each other again, we only see that Kanade and Otonashi meet up again after they all disappear . But what happens to everyone else? They vanish and we never hear from them again? I thought we would at least see Yuri again.
Overall It was a good anime, but I think they should have filled some things in. And I really wanted to see Naoi say he liked Otonashi, I was really hoping that would happen!
Good point about Yuri. For as important as she is in the story, she had so little character development. I would’ve loved to see more of her life before she died, including how she did die. However, Angel Beats seemed to have just glossed over her character somewhere in the middle, and she became a mere plot device.
As for the BL thing, I felt like they included those pairings more for comedic value, but never planned on making it a serious part of the story. (It’s something anime often does with both yaoi and yuri… It’s more just fanfiction bait than anything else. 😦
Agreed about Otonashi and Kanade. That romance is so randomly inserted into the series with little (or no) lead up. One episode, they were just people who were sympathetic to each other, and the next, they’re apparently in love. Further, like you, I also thought Otonashi was going to end up with Yuri. The anime seems to start in that direction, albeit only weakly, but still more so than Kanade. The romance surrounding Otonashi is just one huge mess!
I’m not as disappointed by the final ending where we only see a glimpse of Kanade and Otonashi. I felt it left more for the audience to imagine. I did have a problem with Yuri suddenly getting written off the lead role though and getting replaced by Kanade… In only twelve episodes, a shift in the female lead is hard to do, and Angel Beats! didn’t do it well.
“Overall It was a good anime, but I think they should have filled some things in.”
It’s a nice ambitious anime. I would have preferred if they actually took some stuff out and focus and develop less things better. Still, Angel Beats! was fun.