Yoromoi", "Ano Hana", "Nan to Joe Sensei" - "6 Crying Anime Selections" recommended only now! Akiba Research Institute Writers' Choice: Anime Samurai Selection No. 1

Since the first case of novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) was confirmed in Wuhan, China on November 22, 2019, the infection has spread throughout the world, and Japan is still in the middle of the vortex.

As you know, the anime industry has also been greatly affected by the corona virus. The postponement of broadcasts has affected not only animations for the July season, but also those for the October season.

Naturally, related events have also been forced to cancel one after another, and "Animelo Summer Live" (commonly known as "Anisama"), which is held every year at the end of August, has decided to cancel the 2020 event.

While many people refrained from going out due to the declared state of emergency, many people took the opportunity to enjoy a variety of anime works. With the situation still unpredictable, and with fewer opportunities for anime to be rebroadcast on terrestrial TV, we would like to introduce some good anime from the past, especially those that made us "cry". This is a topic that is very close to my heart as I am getting older and have loose lachrymal glands.

A Place Farther Than the Universe

When I first thought of an anime that makes me cry, the first anime that came to my mind was "Yomoi," or "A Place Farther Than the Heavens," aka "Yomoi.

It is a work of 2018, and many people have probably already seen it, as it was selected as one of the best anime of the year by many people. It was also ranked fourth in the "Akiba Research Institute Anime Awards 2018. Still, it is a work that I would like to recommend again.
⇒ Let's decide the best anime of the year! Akiba Research Institute Anime Awards 2018

The story begins when Tamaki Mari (a.k.a. Kimari), a high school sophomore, meets Kobuchizawa Hose, whose mother has disappeared in the Antarctic, and follows her journey to the South Pole with Miyake Hinata and Shiraishi Yuzuki, reaching and returning home. In a nutshell, it is a story of four girls coming out of their shells through their journey, but the script and direction are filled with a lot of foreshadowing, and the drama created is very rich.

However, these foreshadowing lines were neither mysteries nor tricks to dramatically develop the story, but were there to express the depth of the characters. We would later find out that this child was saying this at that time because this is how she was feeling. The flow of the story is as if, you had an omelette last night, so you said soba tonight. It showed me the natural connection that people show in life.

I believe that director Atsuko Ishizuka's strong conviction to depict realistic girls was there.

The four girls were imbued with a realistic sensibility that only women can have. Therefore, every word, action, gesture, and facial expression they spoke struck a chord with me. I could feel the emotional swings and subtleties. I felt that I was able to empathize with, understand, and become friends with the girls as I watched them, not through dialogue or over-the-top actions.

I also owe a lot to Juki Hanada, who wrote the script and composed the series, and who worked with Director Ishizuka to create the story. The same goes for Takahiro Yoshimatsu, the character designer, who worked with Director Ishizuka to create the adorable girls. No, no, no, everyone, from the production staff to the art directors and cinematographers, put their efforts into creating the graffiti that Director Ishizuka wanted to depict.

I had the privilege of working on the booklet included in the Blu-ray and DVD of "Yoromoi," and was able to talk to many of the staff members. I know how passionately and lovingly the staff members worked on the film. All the characters, backgrounds, and stories were carefully and meticulously depicted.

Conveniently going too far to Antarctica?　Is the setting not realistic?

Some people said so, but the setting is just that, a setting, and what should be realistic is the portrayal of the characters. Why do we cry over an imaginary girl who lives only half our age? It is difficult to empathize with a creature born and raised on a distant planet with a different language and culture.

But Kimari and her friends were not the kind of girls who would be protagonists in other works. They were neither leaders nor heroines, outlaws nor victims. They are ordinary girls who enter the extraordinary world of traveling to Antarctica and then return to their everyday lives. Except for Houze, they would not aspire to be observers in the future. Even though it is a different world, I don't think they will become mature adults who will make something of themselves. Life's journey does not change course so easily. But if you imagine what is in the hearts of these women, you will see a great deal of growth.

In the long run, their journey to Antarctica will have been a turnout switch, and each of them will have entered a different track. The destination will surely be a little different. In these girls, I find the path I once took, the path of longing I wanted to take, and I empathize with them, am moved by them, and end up crying.

High Score Girl

Incidentally, although it is not a "crying" anime, in 2018, the same year as "Yoromoi," this writer once again comes in contact with the site where an anime is created with great passion and love of the staff. It was called "High Score Girl" and "High Score Girl II.

The original work is a nostalgic romantic comedy manga about the battles and loves of the hero Haruo Yaguchi (a.k.a. Haruo) and the heroine Akira Ohno, set in a game center during the fighting game boom of the 1990s. The staff has gone to extraordinary lengths to recreate the game screens, game cabinets, and other game-related situations that appear in the manga. This was truly a case of "God is in the details.

This is due in no small part to the determination of the production and animation producers and directors. In particular, Shingo Fukuze, director of photography for popular J.C.STAFF anime series such as "Toaru" and "Danmachi," said, "I only want to do high score," and "Even if I finish my anime life because I could do high score," which was a joke 90% of the time, it still pierced my heart. The director Yoshiki Yamakawa, who is known for his skill in depicting drama, carefully depicted the emotions of the other heroine, Koharu Hidaka, making the anime a "tear-jerker. Please check it out as well.

The Young Lady is a Shogakusei

In 2018, there is one more "tear-jerking" anime that I would like to introduce.

The "Wakaoka wa Shogakusei" which was released in September 2018 is one of them.

The TV series also aired from April to September of the same year with a total of 24 episodes, but I personally really like the movie version which simply makes you cry. I was also very excited when it was broadcast on NHK the other day. I think you can enjoy the movie version if you get a general idea of "Wakaokami" and then go back to the TV series that describes the struggles of the young wolf.

Based on Hiroko Reijo's masterpiece of children's literature, the main character is a sixth grader, Oriko Seki (a.k.a. Okko). Okko lost her parents in a traffic accident and is taken in by her grandmother, Mineko, who runs a ryokan (Japanese inn). Naturally, the "young lady is an elementary school student!" but she is not strong enough and cannot do anything on her own yet. But with the kindness and encouragement of the adults and Yurei and others around her, Okako desperately tries to look forward and do her best, and we are struck by her stoutheartedness. It makes you realize how unworthy you are as an adult.

We still don't know the name of the flower we saw that day.

One of the most memorable anime that makes you cry is "Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae o Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai" (We Still Don't Know the Name of the Flower We Saw That Day. (also known as "Ano Hana"). It is an anime that became a big hit, but many people may be surprised to know that the TV series was broadcast in 2011 and the movie version, which depicts one year after the last episode, was released in 2013.

Anohana" tells the story of the friendship of six people who were close friends as the "Chouheiwa Busters" when they were in elementary school but are now estranged.

The reason for their estrangement is the accidental death of Meiko Honma (a.k.a. Menma). However, Menma turned into a ghost (?), and Ninta Shukkai (a.k.a. "Ano Hana"), the daughter of the deceased, became a ghost. The past, which had been stagnant among the five of them, begins to flow when Memma appears as a ghost (?) in front of Jintan Shukumi. Perhaps because of the faint psycho-horror flavor of the setting, there was not much buzz before the program began airing, but as soon as it started airing, it was highly acclaimed and became so popular that many pilgrims visited the sacred place in Chichibu where it was set. It has also been adapted into a live-action drama, which is unusual for an original anime.

The key figure behind the creation of this hit work, along with director Tatsuyuki Nagai and character designer Masaga Tanaka, is screenwriter Mari Okada, who says that she was very careful to depict naturalistic youths. The words of the six members of the Chouheiwa Busters are fresh, and the anguish of the five, bound by the past, is palpable. The animation is very theatrical, as is typical of today's anime, but it does not cross the line, so when they are freed and purified by their reunion with Menma, who can be called the incarnation of innocence, in the final episode, it does not tighten my tear glands.

By the way, both "Yoromoi" and "Wakaokami" are Madhouse productions, and director Tatsuyuki Nagai also directed and storyboarded his first Madhouse production, "Chobits". I am imagining that Madhouse may be the key to making me cry, but that is also the pleasure of enjoying anime at home. If you are going to go through the trouble of enjoying anime at home, you may be able to make some interesting discoveries by being exposed to a variety of data and information.

Tale of Young Grass: Nan and Dr. Joe

In terms of the number of times I cried watching animated films, the overwhelming majority of them were from before the 2000s. Therefore, I would very much like to introduce the animation that made me cry the most in the 1990s.

In 1993, a work was born from the "World Masterpiece Theater" series that gave birth to "A Dog of Flanders" and "Rascal the Raccoon". It is called "Wakakusa Monogatari Nan to Joe Sensei" ("Tales of Young Grass, Nan and Joe").

The original story is "The Third Tale of Young Grass" by Louisa Alcott. As the title suggests, it is a sequel to "Wakakusa Monogatari." "Wakakusa Monogatari" was also animated in 1987 as "Ai no Wakakusa Monogatari" (Tales of Young Grass) on the same World Masterpiece Theater, and is the only sequel work in the "World Masterpiece Theater" series.

It was the only sequel in the "World Masterpiece Theater" series. It was a work that carefully depicted everyday life as a return to the roots of the "World Masterpiece Theater," and it was a tear-jerker. You don't need to know the previous work to enjoy it.

Unlike the original, the main character is changed from a boy named Nat to a girl named Nan, and it is not good after Nan's appearance. The story is set in a private school called "Plumfield," and depicts the events that take place between the children and the adults around them. In particular, the love that Mr. and Mrs. Bear (the wife is Jo, the second daughter of the four Wakakusa sisters), who run the school as a married couple, have for their students is wonderful, and their sometimes gentle, sometimes strict attitude toward the students, and the way they treat students who get into trouble is impressive.

Also, as if based on classic literature, he has a wonderful way with words. It has been almost 30 years since I saw the movie, but the one that still captures my heart and keeps me going is a quote from Mr. Bear referring to his friend, John Brook.

John was a good man ("Good" in the original). That was all that mattered. But that is why I am proud of him."

John Brooke was not a man of wealth or great accomplishments. He was simply a good man. But that is why I say I admire him. It was a moment when I learned how difficult it is to be a good person. Eiko Yamada, who played the role of Dr. Joe, appeared in 10 "World Masterpiece Theater" series, the most among all voice actors, and starred twice, but she started to cry during the recording of the last episode. The other cast members, including Hazuru Matsukura, who played the lead role in the series, also broke down in tears.

Director Kozo Kusuba, who has directed a total of seven "World Masterpiece Theater" films and is known as the general director of the "Doraemon" movie, directed the film with meticulous attention to detail. Yoshiharu Sato, who worked as animation director on "My Neighbor Totoro" and "Omohide Poroporo," and who came to Nippon Animation because he wanted to make animated films like those in the Masterpiece Theater, has designed the characters, who are adorably portrayed by boys and girls. I hope you will complete the 40-episode series.

■Mr. Ajikko

If you have the time, "Mr. Ajikko" is the one you should get your hands on. Many of you may only know the original story, or the strange behavior of the tripping anime version of Mr. Ajikko. And there are 99 episodes in all.

However, the original plan was to have 25 episodes, but after many extensions, episodes 25, 50, 74, and 99 are practically the final episodes of the series.

The fourth series from episode 75 onward is mainly serious, and from episode 97 onward, which is the climax of the series, you can cry anyway. This is because director Yasuhiro Imagawa has sublimated the original story, which was a cooking manga, into a human drama as a result of his pursuit of "what is cooking" and "what is delicious. In this respect, I consider "Ajikko" to be a great work and a teaching tool that teaches us what it means to be animated, and what the significance of animating is.

Director Imagawa created the invention of the overacting of the Ajiko-ko, and he was very skillful in directing the control of emotions. He made us explode because we were strongly moved by the food, but at the same time, he also brought a direction that amplified the sadness when emotions stored deep in our hearts spilled out. The result is a rich human drama work that is emotionally moving.

The animator Sawako Yamamoto, who participated in drawing the animation, was the first animator that I became aware of. I noticed that when "Ajikko," who usually has a cute taste, becomes cool, her name always appears on the ticker. Episode 97, in which Kazuma makes me cry, was also supervised by Ms. Yamamoto, which probably influenced me in terms of crying. Ms. Yamamoto is the character designer, animation director, and general manager of the "Love Live! series, but I learned that he passed away in May of this year. We would like to express our heartfelt condolences to her family and friends.

With the Corona disaster, you have been spending more time at home and have had the opportunity to see various works, but I hope that now is the time for you to get in touch with past animated works that had a number of episodes.

The stories that are depicted over a long span of time contain a large range of joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness, with times that make you laugh, times that make you burn, times that make you cry, and often go in directions that you may not have expected in the first episode. We hope you will find one just for you.

Oh, and be sure to check out "Neon Genesis GPX Cyber Formula" (especially the flow from the TV series to the OVAs "-11" and "-ZERO" really gets the blood pumping), which can make a man cry.

<Writer Introduction

Koji Shimizu

Shimizu Koji

Editor and writer. Publication projects include "What I learned when I had a child" and "Cyber Formula 25th Anniversary Design Works. Edited items include "Fire Emblem Compendium", "animelo summer live" official pamphlet "Todai Ou: Challenge the Wall of Intellect! Strongest Quiz Drill" and various anime BD/DVD booklets. He also composes and directs "Ma-yo-kai". He is a Sanhora comedian. Pitches right-handed and bats right-handed.