TV Wednesday: Haikyuu!! (Spring, 2014)

I don't watch much sports anime, except for Slam Dunk when I was younger. Not even the popular Kuroko no Basuke can make me watch anime centered around sports. This time, however, I got hooked. Haikyuu!! is a sports anime about high school men's volleyball. Believe it or not, I was a volleyball player when I was in high school and our school team even won first place in a big inter-school event. Our team wasn't that good in volleyball because most of us haven't really participated in volleyball competitions in the past. However, with much training and dedication, we made it to the top. I was a receiver since I really don't have much talent with setting or spiking, but I wasn't the libero (the one with the different or contrasting uniform from the rest of the team and enters the court freely but can only replace the players in the back positions). Anyway, I know volleyball and I like anime stories about male camaraderie (like Kimi to Boku perhaps), and so I watched Haikyuu!!

There are currently seven released episodes and I've watched all of them. I still don't have a favorite character but Tanaka-senpai and Tsukishima might just be one of the candidates (yes, both are not main characters). 

Tanaka-senpai and Tsukishima.

The screenshot above might give false impressions on the anime, but that's a memorable scene for me, from episode 6.

I didn't have much idea of the flow of the story before I watched it that's why I won't bother sharing it here. Just the information 'volleyball' and 'male camaraderie' or bromance as I like to call it, are enough to make a person watch or not watch the anime. 

I think that's it! Let the plot surprise you, if ever you're planning to watch this anime. It is good though, in my opinion, which might be an opinion of most shoujo-manga/anime avid watchers.

J-Wednesdays 水曜日だ！: Hal「ハル」the movie (2013).

Hal is an animated movie that's depressingly beautiful. It's a sci-fi romance themed animated film that has a twist at the end. I can say that it's pretty good, but I'm not just a fan of the kind of animation for this. The story though was good, and will definitely leave you hung over the main characters after watching.

The story is set on a time when robots can completely act like humans, and I assume that anyone can own one if they can afford to..

Hal is the guy in the picture while Kurumi is the girl. They are in a relationship when Hal suddenly died from a plane crash.

Kurumi was left devastated..

Then this old man asked the robot, Q01, to become Hal so that he could comfort Kurumi who's suffering from Hal's death.

When Hal the robot showed up, Kurumi didn't easily open up to him because she's still afraid.

However, as time went by, Kurumi opened up to Hal the robot while he makes some of Kurumi's wishes come true. (Her wishes are written on rubix cubes that are completed and Hal had to solve each of the faces to be able to read the wish).

Hal also started to get to know the old Hal. Robot Hal tried to understand what kind of person Hal was back then..

Hal and Kurumi started hanging out again and went to a festival together.

After having fun, a guy by the name of Ryu who is supposedly Hal's friend showed up. He expressed his desire to sell Kurumi..

Hal and Kurumi ran from Ryu and his apparently gangster-like friends. 

While running away, Kurumi fell in a gushing river, and it was also raining hard.

I will end my story-telling right here, since anything beyond this scene will be huge spoilers. I think the beauty of this movie is the plot twist because right there, the reality of this story was revealed. Even in this advanced society, there is the existence of humanly feelings of regret, depression, and love. The reality in the story reveals the true essence of it, which is supposed to be telling a story of love between these two people who became victims of a harsh fate.

That's all I can say about this movie. It gave me the chills, and the feeling of finding the meaning of life upon watching it. I'm not even exaggerating. 

J-Wednesdays 水曜日だ！: Daisy by Stereo Dive Foundation (Kyoukai no Kanata ED song)

Daisy by Stereo Dive Foundation

This beautiful song is Kyoukai no Kanata (fall anime 2013) ending song, and just by listening to it, it gives so much emotions (and feels) about the anime. Kyoukai no Kanata has a somehow tragic storyline, and this song is able to capture the essence of that. I personally prefer songs like this, with the smooth melody mixed with strong beats. Isn't that like the story of Kyoukai no Kanata? It gives off an aura of cuteness and being light-hearted, yet beyond it is a tale that's very mysterious.

Alright, I'm going to confess. I do love this song and Kyoukai no Kanata, but these days I'm really busy with everyday of the week occupied with lots of stuff to do for grad school. You see, I'm still starting to adjust to the atmosphere and I'm keeping myself busy. For three weeks already, I haven't even posted a Reel Thursday entry. I was planning to do a Catching Fire post, but it was too difficult to not include a spoiler. Nonetheless, I'm thinking of doing a Christmas Special of Reel Thursday and next week I'll be on a 1-week hiatus. I promise to bring quality blog posts when I come back.

Do listen to Daisy by Stereo Dive Foundation, because it's a beautiful song.

J-Wednesdays 水曜日だ！: Super Seisyun Brothers (Anime 2013)

Chou Seishun Kyoudai-s (超青春姉弟s) or as the animators put it, Super Seisyun Brothers, is a slice of life anime based from the manga of the same name. Kyoudai literally means brothers but it is also widely used for siblings regardless of sex or gender. The 4-minute anime is about two sets of siblings, the Shinmoto's and the Saito's who are complete opposites of each other yet are the best of friends.

The Shinmoto siblings.

Shinmoto Chiko, a 2nd year university student, is your "average" chic girl, as what she likes to be considered as, yet very unpopular among men (and also probably women.. or animals..). The reason for that is because she is your (not so) typical "otaku" who likes to go to Otome road from time to time, collect character figurines, and the like. However, she's still your typical girl who wears make up and dresses up nicely, and also a really annoying older sister to her younger brother, Chika.

Shinmoto Chika is a 2nd year high school student, and is the younger brother of Chiko. He is similar to her sister in a way that they both like beautiful people, and only beautiful looking people. Chika is popular among girls and boys alike, which is the subject of his older sister's vexation with him.

The Saito siblings.

Saito Mako is Chiko's best friend. Mako is also the elder among the siblings and she's a freeter. A freeter is a person who has different part-time jobs to earn a living instead of having a full-time job. Mako is also popular among all sorts of people (including cats, dogs, and even birds), which adds to Chiko's broken ego.

Saito Mao is Mako's younger brother, and he's in his 2nd year in high school. Much like her older sister, he is also weird and has a calm looking face. Again, like his sister, he's popular among all sorts of people. Whenever these siblings are bored, they go visit the Shinmoto's. 

Even though each episode of this anime series lasts for only 4 minutes, it's fun-packed and interesting, and I especially find Mao cute! Looking forward to more episodes since I'm only in episode 2. Finally, the ED song for this anime also sounds nice, and the artwork looks lovely.

J-Wednesdays 水曜日だ！: Kyoukai no Kanata

In addition to those Fall Anime 2013 that I mentioned here, I would like to talk about Kyoukai no Kanata or Beyond the Boundary. It first aired last October 2, 2013 in Japan, which also makes it a Fall Anime. Why I didn't include this to those anime that I mentioned in my Fall Anime 2013 post is a mystery to me, but one speculation that I have is because it's set in high school and is a supernatural/action type of anime. I don't usually watch those types of anime (I'm more of a slice-of-life fan) but I do watch some rather interesting ones such as this.

Kyoukai no Kanata is mainly about two supernatural beings with special powers (of course), namely Kanbara Akihito and Kuriyama Mirai. I will try to introduce the anime series without much spoilers.

Kuriyama Mirai is the lead female in the story. She is on her first year in high school, and wears a cute red glasses. She is some kind of an exorcist (Spirit World Warrior) who's able to get rid of "youmu." (spirits) She's able to make use of her blood (and manipulate it) as her weapon, literally, since she uses it as a sword in order to kill a youmu. She lives alone, and she makes use of money she earned from killing a youmu to sustain her lifestyle. When a Spirit World Warrior defeats a youmu, it turns into a stone of some sort and those can be traded for money.

The male lead is Kanbara Akihito, a second year high school student. He's an immortal, but he can also still feel pain when hurt. His existence as an immortal is the result of being half human and half youmu. He finds Mirai attractive because he apparently likes girls with glasses or he's what we call a "megane mania."

Akihito and Mirai met when Akihito tried to save Mirai from attempted suicide. Mirai was not pleased with what Akihito did and ends up piercing her blood sword into his body. That's when Mirai discovered that he's an immortal, and so afterwards, Mirai would always attempt to make Akihito her practice dummy (for defeating youmu). 

Finally, we have the two supporting characters, Nase Mitsuki and Nase Hiroomi. Mitsuki is also in her second year in high school, while Hiroomi, her older brother, is already in his last year in high school. Mitsuki and Hiroomi are both Spirit World Warriors and their family (Nase) is a well-known family of Spirit World Warriors especially in their town. Mitsuki, Hiroomi, and Akihito are all members of the Literary Club in their high school. Mitsuki is a 'cool' type of girl who knows how to handle Akihito and her brother well. On the other hand, Hiroomi is a guy who is a 'siscon,' (obsessed with the idea of a sister, or well, their own sister), and so he usually gives in to her younger sister, Mitsuki.

There are more interesting characters in this series, but I don't want to discuss any more information about this series in this post, since it's just an introduction. Also, one thing I really like about this anime (besides the story) is its animation. I actually tried watching it because I saw that it had a really attractive animation style.

That ends my post, and will continue to look forward to more Kyoukai no Kanata episodes from here on!

J-Wednesdays 水曜日だ！: Horimiya (Manga)

Poster taken from here.

Horimiya is the shortened version of "Hori-san to Miyamura-kun." However, the title "Hori-san to Miyamura-kun" pertains to the four-panel manga by HERO. Horimiya, on the other hand, is the usual manga also by hero, but illustrated by Hagiwara Daisuke. The one I'm reading is Horimiya.

The story is about a responsible high school student, Hori Kyoko, who has good grades, is popular in school, but at the same time, takes care of their household especially his little brother, Hori Souta. The other titular character is Miyamura Izumi, a silent-type high school boy who has many piercings and a huge tattoo on his torso and upper arm. He is usually covered up in school, from his hair to his clothes, because he wants to conceal his piercings and tattoos. The two are classmates but they got closer because of an encounter outside school. Souta got lost while he and Kyoko were outside, and Miyamura was the one who helped Souta find his sister. Souta ended up liking Miyamura as an older brother, and that's why Miyamura kept visiting their house to play with Souta.

Screenshots (of Hori and Miyamura) from the OVA of Hori-san to Miyamura-kun.

The OVA is based from the 4-panel manga's illustration, and not from Horimiya. It was also cute though, because it's somehow a short version of the first few chapters in the manga.

Screenshot from the OVA.

The purple-haired guy in the screenshot is Ishikawa Toru, Hori and Miyamura's classmate. He became friends with Miyamura because of Ishikawa's feelings for Hori. Ishikawa confessed to Hori about his feelings but then got rejected. After he was rejected, he and Miyamura became good friends.

Screenshot from the OVA.

The yellow-haired girl is Yoshikawa Yuki, also a girl from their class and Hori's close girl friend. She is an air-head. 

Screenshot from the OVA

Lastly, we have Hori Souta, Kyoko's younger brother. Souta is close to Miyamura and plays with him a lot. He's a smart kid.

So that's it for the manga, Horimiya. I actually found out about this manga just last Monday and finished reading until the current chapter last Monday night. It only still has 26 chapters scanlated online and I really want to buy the manga magazine where it's being published, or the tankobon if it already is in one. The story's really fun and it got me into reading (new) manga again so I thank Horimiya for that. Haha! I hope it gets to have a full anime season in the future when it has material enough for a full season anime. In the mean time, I'll be waiting patiently (and in agony) for new chapters.

J-Wednesdays 水曜日だ！: Fall Anime 2013

Poster taken from here.

This anime is entitled "My Mental Choices are Completely Interfering with my School Romantic Comedy," in Japanese, Ore no Nounai Sentakushi ga Gakuen Love Come o Zenryoku de Jama Shiteiru, and in short, Noucome. It began airing in Japan last October 10, 2013. The story of the anime is fairly easy to understand just by reading the title. It's about a male student, Kanade Amakusa, who is suffering from his weird "mental choices" because he's usually forced to make a decision or choice between things that are not really reasonable choices. While he suffers from the curse, he meets three girls: Chocolat, a girl who fell from the sky, Furano Yukihira, Kanede's classmate who's beautiful but tells weird jokes, and Ouka Yuoji, (also Kanede's classmate) a rich girl who's air headed.

I haven't watched any of these anime that I will be talking about, but I am planning to after this busy week. Noucome is pretty interesting, and I hope that when I watch it, it would still be interesting. Sometimes when I look for new anime series to watch, I end up not continuing on watching the series just because the first episode did not give me a good first impression. I do hope that this one will not disappoint.

Poster taken from here.

Next anime is Golden Time. It's about Banri Tada, a freshman student in college. Like a typical college freshman, he's looking forward to a brand new life in college where he'll supposedly experience new things like love, and also make mistakes. It's also in the supernatural genre, because there will be some things involving Banri Tada's soul escaping his body. This anime is from a light novel with the same title, and was written by Yuyuko Takemiya, the one who also wrote Toradora!

This anime's setting is in college, and I'm very much excited to watch an anime in different settings other than in high school. Slice of life anime series are usually set in high school and I usually like slice of life but I want to watch something different this time. Servant x Service is set in a workplace yet it's also a slice of life anime, that's why I really was interested in it and ended up liking it very much. I expect huge things from this anime, because I also really like Toradora! I'm really excited to watch this one.

Poster taken from here.

Lastly, we have White Album 2. This anime series was originally from an eroge or an adult visual novel. The story is about a male high school student, Haruki Kitahara, who's a member of the light music club in their school. He plays the guitar. Their school's light music club was almost dissolved because of the other members graduating, until they put an effort into recruiting new members. 

I think that with its genre being a romance drama, it'll be full of sad romance instead of funny scenes. It would be much like Bokura ga Ita, wherein there would be a depressing aura in the series. Also, I can't help but think of the anime School Days, since it's also an eroge. School Days was a bit sick though, and I hope this would not be the same.

I look forward to watching the debut episodes of these anime series and will decide which series to watch and which ones to just leave.

P.S.

Noucome and Golden Time have trailers (with English sub) in the links that I provided.

J-Wednesdays 水曜日だ！: My Favorite Anime as a Kid.

I love anime. I'm one of those people who have claimed, at some point of his/her own life, that he/she's an Otaku. I'm not really one though. I would be a shame to all of the more dedicated anime Otakus out there. Anyway, I've started to like anime ever since I was a kid, since back then anime generally dominated the morning and afternoon airing slots in TV stations. Anime in the Philippines are dubbed in Tagalog much like the Korean dramas. As a kid, I was attracted to those magical girls who fight bad people. Can you already guess what my number one favorite was? It's Cardcaptor Sakura! If you were my age, and you basically spend all the time watching anime on TV when you were kids (in the Philippines) then you must be familiar with Cardcaptor Sakura. 

Photo taken from Wikipedia

It was the very first anime series that I've ever been so into. Before the most popular Sakura (from Naruto) even existed, this Sakura was the queen first. I admired everything about it. Sakura's costume, her best friend who's always making her new clothes, the love-hate relationship with Li Syaoran, the different 'Clow' cards, and the two handsome onii-chans. I first watched it on a free-to-air TV channel in the Philippines, and continued on watching it on Animax in English dub. Even now, I would still watch if it airs again on any TV channel. I actually bought a 'Clow' card set for myself 2 years ago, to fulfill my childhood dream of having one.

Photo taken from Wikipedia

Another magical girl anime series that I loved as a kid is Ultra Maniac. When I started to watch Cardcaptor Sakura on Animax, I also got hooked on this anime. It's quite similar to Cardcaptor Sakura because of its magical girl theme. I was interested in this anime (and still is, it's awesome!) first because the witches had awesome little computers instead of old books and potions.

Photo taken from Wikipedia

I've watched Chobits when it first aired on Animax. This anime really has a particular space in my heart that can never leave. I really am attached to this anime series, not only because Chii (main character) is so cute, but because of the overall somehow deep story. I've learned a lot from this anime from actual Japanese society and culture, and philosophical and depressing stuff. Imagine watching this as a 9-10 year old. I even have Chii's name as my e-mail address that I, in fact, still use.

Photo taken from Wikipedia

Last but not the least is UFO Baby or Daa! Daa! Daa! This anime also aired in a free-to-air TV channel in the Philippines, but it only aired on weekends. I sometimes could not watch it and continued on watching online. However, not all of the episodes are subbed in English, that's why I couldn't watch the ending properly. I remember that I've watched it when I was in high school but couldn't understand what they were saying but still got something out of it. Which reminds me, I've got to watch the RAW video again and see if I can understand it now. I definitely miss Ruu-chama, Wanya, Kanata and Miyu! I think I still have the subbed copies of this anime. Definitely going to re-watch it.

P.S.

Fact: These anime series are all from manga series (hence the pictures), but I've only watched the anime versions of all of them.

Fact: All of them either involves magic girls or sci-fi.

Fact: All of them are Romance Comedies.

J-Wednesdays 水曜日だ！: Kaze Tachinu & AnoHana movie

I'm writing this post on a Thursday, because I was out all day yesterday. I got no other excuses. Haha! I had actually planned on writing this after the Running Man entry but I was just too tired. Anyways, now that summer is ending in countries that have four seasons like Japan, the youthful spirit of the hot summer will decrease and coldness will now envelop places. What better way to end the summer than by watching animated films that will touch our youthful hearts? I now present to you two animated films that are currently airing in Japan.

First is Kaze Tachinu or The Wind Rises, written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki. This movie is in fact Miyazaki's last animated feature film. It is based from a short story by Tatsuo Hori and is also a fictionalized biography of Jiro Horikoshi, the chief engineer of the Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighter plane (used in WWII). 

The story basically revolves around the main lead's "meeting and parting with an ill-fated girl called Naoko," and his journey in becoming and being an engineer.

In the trailer, it's also mentioned that the movie depicts half of Jiro Horikoshi's lifetime.

I am a fan of movies that are based on real life events, most especially if it's about the people during a war. It's even more exciting how the male lead's struggles are not only in is career but also his love life. I will definitely watch this movie once I get a copy. You can watch the trailer here:

Next movie is Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae wo Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai Movie or in short, AnoHana Movie. 

AnoHana is actually an anime series that aired back in Spring 2011. This movie, on the other hand, will be told in a different point of view. The story is actually about a group of childhood friends who drifted apart after their friend, Menma, died in an accident. Menma is still in their hearts, however, even after ten years. Menma returns as a ghost and one of the friends, Jintan, could see her. 

The movie will then be told in Menma's point of view, which I think will be more sad. It was released last August 31, 2013 and is still showing in selected cinemas in Japan. Even though I got quite depressed and lonely after watching the anime series, I still want to look back at what happened through their battle in getting over the incident that happened ten years ago. Especially in the movie, where it would be re-told in Menma's point of view. I look forward to another tear-jerking and touching story. Check out the trailer here:

These two movies, Kaze Tachinu and AnoHana movie, will definitely touch our hearts and help us have a different perspective in life. I assure everyone that the stories will help even a cold person be touched after watching. For us people not living in Japan, let's just patiently wait until their DVD release!

J-Wednesdays 水曜日だ！: Hayao Miyazaki's works.

Spirited Away, My Neighbor Totoro, Castle in the Sky, Howl's Moving Castle, Kiki's Delivery Service, etc. One way or another, everyone I know is familiar with at least one of these films by Hayao Miyazaki who co-founded Studio Ghilbi. Sadly though, our beloved Hayao Miyazaki announced his retirement, just recently, from making feature films. He has contributed a lot to Japanese animation, and I believe that it's also time for him to let other talented animators get the spotlight. 

In this article, I'm going to write about some of Hayao Miyazaki's works which includes Spirited Away, Howl's Moving Castle, and My Neighbor Totoro.

First movie is Spirited Away. It's about a little girl who gets lost and enters an alternate world full of spirits. It's the first movie by Hayao Miyazaki that I've watched and I was convinced then that he's a genius. I was fascinated by all the weird things in the movie, it's like I was dreaming. An intricate dream, which you'll never question with regards to its eccentricity. Like all of his films, it's not simply an animation for kids to watch because even a full-grown adult will be shocked and would decipher the real meaning behind every symbolism in the film.

I actually watched this after taking a course on Japanese Religion and Philosophy, and upon watching Spirited Away, I was amazed of how the Japanese philosophy is widely seen in the movie, and that's why I love it more.

Next movie is Howl's Moving Castle. This man right above is Howl, the owner of the said moving castle. He is still gorgeous, no matter how many times I look at him. This movie is somewhat a love story between Howl and Sophie, those two people above. Like many (or all) of Studio Ghilbi's films, it's also full of meaning with Sophie being sort of a dual character, and with the secrets of the magical moving castle.

The last movie I'm going to talk about is My Neighbor Totoro. Some might know Totoro because he's kind of the mascot of Studio Ghilbi and some like how cute he is. The movie My Neighbor Totoro is about two kids who goes on a summer adventure in their new house and neighborhood. I have to admit that this is my favorite among all of Studio Ghilbi (and Hayao Miyazaki) films. What I love about it first is that it is set in summer. I usually like Japanese animations when it portrays summer in Japan. It just seems so peaceful and quiet and all you hear are crickets all day. Second reason is the story itself. It seems like the movie is just about the happy adventure of the two sisters but then it also breaks your heart at some point. However, it's still a feel-good movie for me. Last reason is because of our cute Totoro. I had imagined him to be gentle before I watched the movie but then he's just a huge fluffy beast.

I have yet to watch some of Hayao Miyazaki's movies like Ponyo and his latest film, Kaze Tachinu. I hope to watch these two soon, though. In general, Hayao Miyazaki's films brings us our childhood imagination that we might or might not have lost in the process of growing up. Although his films are imaginative and playful, it still instills us valuable messages that will get us thinking.

Next time I also want to talk about Joe Hisaishi's works. He has composed songs for Hayao Miyazaki and they've worked closely with almost all of Miyazaki's films. If you've watched any of Miyazaki's films, I know you'll notice the songs because it really gives life to the animation itself, all thanks to Joe Hisaishi.

J-Wednesdays 水曜日だ！: Bokura ga Ita

Bokura ga Ita, when I was in high school, was just a shoujo anime series (and a manga series, which I wasn't aware of). I finished the anime in high school but never really got to know the ending because the ending of the anime was open ended. It turns out that the manga was not yet finished at that time, and so the creators of the anime didn't have material to continue the anime series. Upon entering college, I heard the news that the manga was coming to an end, and that there would be an upcoming movie version split into two parts, which will include the conclusion of the series. I didn't get to read the manga because I was too busy with other series and fandoms and of course, my priority (HAH) which was studying. And so I waited for the movie to come out and unfortunately I was not in Japan and had to wait for almost a year to have a copy of the movies. For the reason that I am facing a sort-of withdrawal from the series (back in college), I purchased some English translated manga by Shojo Beat and the last volume of the Japanese version manga.

When I already had the copy (of the movie), and had so much time in my hands, all I needed to do was watch it. I then watched both movies and boy was it satisfying. Imagine the time I had to wait for just to know the ending to this lovely story? It was in 2007 that I finished watching the half-done anime series and I was dying to know how it ends. I've read some spoilers, I admit, but it wouldn't compare to when I actually watch it. Without further ado, here comes the story of Yano Motoharu and Takahashi Nanami entitled Bokura ga Ita, or We Were There.

The movie starts with Takahashi Nanami or Nana-chan reminiscing about her first love, Yano Motoharu, in what seems to be their old high school. She's all grown-up at that time, and while looking around, she's wondering what had happened to Yano, what he's doing, or where he is.

Then the story starts. Yano and Nana met in high school. While Yano is so popular among the girls and also some of the boys, Nana is just a simple high school girl who does not excel in her studies. When Nana met Yano, she didn't like him at first but came to be somewhat attached to him. They started dating but the thing is, Yano has a huge baggage that Nana-chan didn't know about and so that greatly affected their relationship.

This girl right here is Nana-san, who is Yano's ex-girlfriend. She died in a car crash when Yano and Nana-san were still dating in middle school. Yano has heavy resentment for her because of that.

The guy beside Nana-chan is Takeuchi-kun, Yano's best friend. He will develop feelings for Nana-chan as they continue to interact with each other while Nana-chan tells Takeuchi her woes about her and Yano's relationship.

The girl in the glasses is Yamamoto-san, Nana-san's younger sister. She had an affair with Yano after Nana-san died which happened because of their remorse for Nana-san.

Even though Nana-chan and Yano's relationship will eventually work out well, a huge trial will come to them that will cause their break-up. Yano will move to Tokyo because of his mother's job, and though their relationship will not end there just yet, slowly, they will drift apart.

What I've written was the summarized version of the already summarized first part of the movie. In the anime, lots of detailed scene was shown, like how Yano and Yamamoto-san had an affair, or how Yano and Nana-chan's relationship was developed.

I don't want to spoil the second movie here, because I think that's the most important part of the story. How come the title was "We Were There?" Of course, the story is stylized as something that had happened in the past, where they fell in love, grew together, and have grown apart. The second movie will have all the answers that some of you might also have been waiting for ever since you finished the anime series. However, I will not just leave this article like this, and give some snippets of what might or might not happen in the second movie.

Yano will still contact Nana-chan after he arrives in Tokyo. They would talk everyday and send pictures to each other.

Yano's mom will quit her job, because that's the kind of woman she is, but will eventually become really sick.

Yano will meet a girl (Sengenji Akiko), the one whom she will consider a "best friend in Tokyo," whom he confides in.

Because of his mother's fickle-mindedness and illness, Yano will end up working many part-time jobs just to have money to pay for his tuition fees, daily expenses, and hospital fees of her mom.

That's just the first part of the movie. Something terrible will happen to Yano that he wouldn't be able to maintain his relationship with Nana-chan anymore and will leave her hanging. It will be a roller-coaster ride from then on, and lots of things will happen to these five characters of the story, Yano Motoharu, Takahashi Nanami, Takeuchi Masafumi, Yamamoto Yuri, and Sengenji Akiko.

Despite the bitterness and sadness that these characters will be put through in this story, I can assure you that they would eventually attain their well-deserved happy ending. It's a story anyway. Right?