CLANNAD: Their journey starts, on this long, steep slope

[TWWK]

I was one of the few that enjoyed the ending. [spoiler]I think there was a certain "It's a Wonderful Life" vibe to it and with both the realism of Tomoya's character and transformation and the suffering he endures, the ending was particularly heartwarming and expected.[/spoiler]

My favorite part? The entirety of episode 18. I now encourage you to read my post on the episode.

[blkmage]

The ending is excellent.
[SPOILER]I think the game makes it a lot more clear that the Good End is the only logical conclusion to the story. For one thing, the timeline jumping shenanigans are a lot more apparent. And the light orbs and the whole plot in the imaginary world is a huge part of the overarching story. None of this really stands out in the anime because it's spread all over the place and it takes a bit of work to connect all the dots, which is why a lot of people don't like the ending on their first encounter.[/SPOILER]

[Mouse2010]

I liked the ending, too, but I don't think it would have worked for me if I had not been aware that the movie was based on a game. Knowing that really does make the ending make more sense.

[spoiler]Besides, I'm a sucker for happy endings. While I can see why some people might see the happy ending as a cop-out, I liked it.[/spoiler]

[Tenchi]

Another Clannad fan - yesssssssssss.

It's a wonderful series.

And here's another one. I recently finished the series, and I just can't get it off of my mind how awesome it was.

I'm a real sucker when it comes to emotional moments, especially when they involve love. After all, God=Love. And you should love everyone. Like they're all one big family.

[spoiler]Like the Dango Daikasoku. XD (spoiler for obvious reasons for those that have seen the ending)[/spoiler]

Really, it gets me pumped about going out in life and helping others out.

[spoiler]I just absolutely LOVE Nagisa's personality of indescriminate love, not giving into doing anything that will wrong anyone, and even striving to become stronger no matter what, and no matter how weak she may be and how hopeless it may be in the first place.[/spoiler]

And to randomly throw in a comment about the movie... animation... ugh... plot reinterpretation... ugh...

[spoiler]Nagisa... always... smiling... so... strangely... Ugh! XD[/spoiler]

I actually played the entire clannad game before watching the anime series, going through each path. Watching the anime series, I seriously cannot remember any lines that WEREN'T in the game that were present in the anime series. I mean, I'm sure they were there, but I'm just saying that the anime so closely followed the scenarios from the game that it was scary...

[spoiler](well, except for the yukine arc, as well as the fact that Tomoya and Nagisa's relationship developed more slowly)[/spoiler]

and a lot of things were left out, even. I'd say only about half of the after-story from the game was actually included. Although, I guess I'm just complaining because I completely love watching the relationship between Tomoya and Nagisa. (Yeah, call me a hopeless romantic if you will, it's true. XD)

Anyway, onto my interpretation of some things. Obviously, I cannot leave the events of

[spoiler]Episode 16 left untouched. Such heartbreak... I've only cried once watching an anime before (my username kind of hints to that, but it's a subject I'd rather not talk about), and definitely not as hard as I have here. Really, though, the same thing has been said over and over again, so let me say more than the fact that I cried. XD

What I found added to the emotion of Nagisa's death is the fact that she decided that she didn't want to take the life of another for even her own life. She was weak, both in mind and emotion, and even came down with that mysterious illness, but the incredible risk didn't daunt her. She honestly had a kind heart full of love and compassion, and couldn't bear the thought of killing anyone, the child in her womb included.

Perhaps this didn't strike you guys as much in the anime, as the version I watched didn't include the word "abortion" at all, but in the game the word was used a few times. It is something that Nagisa continually turned down. She had an ultrasound as well, and saw the life that was growing within her. It was discussed how the two were going through the process of creating life with each other. It really added a lot of emotion to it for me, these thoughts.

Applying this to the world today, I hope I don't offend anyone, as I think this isn't stepping out of line, this being a christian forum, but I think that this just shows how selfish the world is today. Today, so many people have no respect for the miracle of life and family that God has given us. People who have nowhere near as much risk as Nagisa did in the anime have abortions all the time in our world, and the clear reason pointed out here is a lack of love. Although this anime isn't christian, as well as anime in general, I guess, I think there is a lot to learn from it about the love that God intends for us to show to the world.[/spoiler]

Anyway, now I'm ranting. I could go on for a while more even, but I should stop. I just love this anime so much. Definitely my new favorite. Goodbye, Code Geass. XD

[blkmage]

About a week ago, I finally got a chance and spent about a week playing through the visual novel. My first impression was that the game is hard and that Key are horrible people for expecting anyone to figure out how to reach After Story, let alone reach the good end. I mean, it's no Kagetsu Tohya, but that's the first time I've seen stuff where you need to complete certain routes immediately before other ones.

There's definitely enough difference in adaptation that if you liked the Clannad anime, it's worth going through the visual novel if you have the time and patience. For one thing, all of the characters get a lot more fleshed out. Most importantly, the role that the imaginary world plays in the plot is a lot more obvious, which is crucial to understanding the ending.

What's amazing is that there are parts of both the visual novel and the anime that I prefer over the other. That's a sign that KyoAni did some amazing work. As far as I know, it's the best anime adaptation of a multi-route visual novel that incorporates most of the side routes.

[Tenchi]

About a week ago, I finally got a chance and spent about a week playing through the visual novel. My first impression was that the game is hard and that Key are horrible people for expecting anyone to figure out how to reach After Story, let alone reach the good end. I mean, it's no Kagetsu Tohya, but that's the first time I've seen stuff where you need to complete certain routes immediately before other ones.

There's definitely enough difference in adaptation that if you liked the Clannad anime, it's worth going through the visual novel if you have the time and patience. For one thing, all of the characters get a lot more fleshed out. Most importantly, the role that the imaginary world plays in the plot is a lot more obvious, which is crucial to understanding the ending.

What's amazing is that there are parts of both the visual novel and the anime that I prefer over the other. That's a sign that KyoAni did some amazing work. As far as I know, it's the best anime adaptation of a multi-route visual novel that incorporates most of the side routes.

Yeah... Not sure if playing the game AFTER the anime makes things any different, but I personally found the game to be much more emotional, as the relationship between Nagisa and Tomoya felt much more personal. (Considering the fact that you WERE Tomoya. XD) I cried so hard during the first time going through After Story.

Thing about the visual novel, though, is that it requires so much patience that you'll probably spend many more hours on it than even on the anime. I went through it in about a week, too, though. So addicting... especially when I desperately wanted to unlock After Story. I just couldn't let my favorite arc end like that.

Anyway, yes, patience is required, but as has been said, MUCH more development of the characters is in the novel. The anime was really so faithful to the game, word-for-word, with few exceptions, that it was scary. This, however, was only in what it decided to include. The anime probably was only half the overall content of the game. XD

Ah, Clannad. I can never get enough of it.