Natsuyuki Rendezvous Review

As an animation major, I've heard a lot of flack when it comes to Anime.  It could be because of the frame rates and sometimes poor animation but I've never seen shows that speak so loudly about life from any other country.  It's more open for serious stories and experimentation.  I'll always love anime because of the untold stories that it dares to tell.  Natsuyuki Rendezvous is one of those shows that could only happen in anime because of this freedom

Story

I've already gone through the basics of the story in my first impression post, but the story really started to become interesting the moment Ryousuke lends his body to Shimao.  It's nearly the perfect "What if" scenario of a widow and if her dead loved one had a chance to see her one last time.  What would they do?  Shimao tied up loose ends left undone after his death but near the end I really did hate him.  At first I thought he was innocent but that's because I was applying my life and beliefs to the story.  In a way Shimao is a vengeful spirit.  Left to roam the earth because he can't let go of a "possession."  The ending was very satisfying but had just of that anime "horribly depressing ending" to it where you can't take your mind off of it.  It did make me cry but not in a bad way.  The show was actually very light hearted and was a lot more pleasant of a watch than Wolf Children was.
The Good
the story is so satisfying, especially after going through a death of a loved one yourself.  I've never seen a character in book or show that mirrored my mother as much as Rokka did.
The Bad
It may be a little hard to understand a lot of these complex emotions or scenes if you don't know a young widow.  Also it may be a little hard to watch if you become attached Shimao at the beginning.

Characters

There are only four characters in the whole show.  Rokka, the young widow.  Shimao, her deceased husband and Ryousuke, a 22 year old nobody.  The fourth character is Shimao's sister that shows up every once and a while but for rest of the show, it's just these three.  I really didn't like Ryousuke at first.  I though he was selfish and immature but half way through the series his
character changed and surprisingly, you find that Shimao is very controlling and almost villainous.
It was hinted at at one point by the way that he worded things.  I noticed by the way he would refer to Rokka that he had become very possessive and abusive and Ryousuke eventually confronts him about it.  My perception of both of these guys flipped in that one scene.  Two sentences were all it took.  All these characters are delightfully complex and grow over time and I love how Ryousuke eventually came to accept and even help shoulder Rokka's emotional burden.  It was exactly what I needed at the moment.
The Good
There is a moment in the end where the character do a complete 180.  While it was hinted at here and there, I thought they were just trying to distract me from what was really going on.  They're all very realistic and human.
The Bad
It takes a while before you know who's good and who's bad and if there really is any villain. Also a lot of things that Rokka does could be confusing or annoying to any one who has not been around a young widow.

The Art

The backgrounds, flower shop and ending theme are just absolutely gorgeous.  There's art shifts here and there when Ryousuke is out of his body but they never pull away from the story.  The music is great, especially the end.  It just left me feeling so good.

The Good

Fantastic backgrounds and colors.  The flower arrangements were really cool

The Bad

Josei style takes a bit to get use to.  It's a little jarring at first but it grows on you.

Over all score and find thoughts

Story: 9/10 Very interesting and unique romance for those who've ever wondered what passed loved one's would say to them now. The only problem is that in the end, Shimao ended up sort of like the bad guy and that can be very offputting to a lot of people.

Characters: 9/10 Excellent character growth and you sincerly feel their emotions with them.  Only problem being that it might be hard to relate to them since this story sort of for a nitch group of people.

Art: 9/10 Beautiful backgrounds but it might be hard to like because of the ugly clothes and Josei style.

Overall score: 9/10 This show is very deep and I wish that people would give it a chance, especially if they know a widow.  It explores that untapped emotions and complications of falling in love again after a death.  It's one of the most real and sincere anime that I've ever had the pleasure of watching.  I may be biased but I do think that it should be given a chance, especially if you like romance.  It may be a bit slower for some thought so just be prepared for 5 episodes of basically the same thing.

I'd love to watch this again int he future and I know that with each watch I'll see something that I didn't the first time. I loved it so much.

Natsuyuki Rendezvous: First Impressions

I've already mentioned my family's situation a few times in my blog but I've never directly talked about it.  Unfortunately it's given me a few severe triggers when it comes to violence and death scenes in movies, especially suicides or anything that's close to it.  One thing that I was not expecting though, was how impossible it would be fore me to watch movies about young widows.  Just mentioning Wolf Children to me ruins my whole day.  Sure it was a cute movie but it just makes me sick to my stomach thinking about it.  I wish I could watch shows like this and not have any kind of reaction to them.  To just shrug them off as fantasy or just a story but I cant.
Natsuyuki Rendezvous is starting to become one of those shows for me.  I've only made it through 3 episodes but I know that it's going to make me cry a lot in upcoming episodes.
The story is about a quiet and dull college student named Ryousuke (same voice actor as Nozaki-kun... I'll review that later) who falls in love with a young widow who owns a flower shop.  After getting a job there to get closer to her, he finds that he can see the spirit of her deceased husband.
Despite the subject matter, the show is actually really sweet and funny at times.  The drama comes from Rokka's husband trying to keep Ryousuke away from his wife and I can relate.  Ryousuke is kind of a  horny loser.  While at first it just seems like her husband is just stuck in the past and doesn't want to let go of his wife, I can see that he's just trying to protect her from this guy.  I'm sure that the two get to know each other better and that Rokka and Ryousuke will end up together with her husband's best wishes.  That's just my guess though.  If I know my anime, they like quickly thrown together and disappointing endings.
What I love most about this show is just how real Rokka is.  At first I was a little put off by how fast their relationship was moving but then I realized that my mother had told me many times how much she missed intimacy.  How she'd ended up in these kinds of situations with her new boyfriends (despite being mormon)  Rokka, unlike most female protagonists in anime, wants intimacy.  It's interesting whenever a show brings this up because many shows and culture treat women as a force to be acted upon with no real will or feeling.  We're taught that the only kind of women that want it are sluts.  We forget that women are human with flaws and wants.
On another note, Rokka is still in mourning even after 3 years.  While most people would be upset that she's still sensitive about the subject, it's very real.  You never do get over a death of a loved one and I hope they bring this up.  I still think Ryousuke had no right to say anything bad about her husband even though he's been a road block the whole show.  He deserved worse than a slap.
To be honest, I'm starting not to like Ryousuke.  At first he was cute and shy but now he's just... Desperate?  Selfish? I'm not sure what it is but the more I think about it, I'd try and scare him off too if he doesn't change.
The music reminds me of Mr. Rodger's Naughborhood for some reason.  It's got that same feeling to it.  It's a nice change but I won't be looking for the OST.  What I will be looking for is the end song.  It's absolutely gorgeous!
As for the animation and style, I'm liking it because I like more Josei styled anime now that I've gotten older.  It's simple but nice.  It's also fun seeing Rokka's husband floating through things and what they got to do with that.
I'm excited to see more episodes but I'm afraid of where it's heading if Ryousuke doesn't change and be a little more sensitive towards her predicament.
I'll try my best to get through this show.  It will either become a favorite or one I'll never want to touch again, it's walking a very fine line.