Weirdly enough, a drinking game for each time I say Yuki in this triple review is more dangerous than for when I say Haruhi.
Welcome to what I'm dubbing a combination review, where I combine multiple reviews that I've already done into one post. This is for the sake of anyone wanting to marathon reviews from a specific series, convenience, and to see if a 30+ minute post can break my website.
In this case, this review consists of the three anime I reviewed from the "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" Series—"The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya," "The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya," and "The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-Chan."
I'll be skipping "The Melancholy of Haruhi-chan Suzumiya" Since I haven't seen it and because 3D Chibi characters scare me.
My biggest fear that I always keep bottled up inside me to the side, let's get Haruhi-ing. Or, as I like to call it, Yuki-ing.
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya
Here's a drinking game for those of legal drinking age: take a shot every time I say Haruhi in this review, I'm sorry in advance.
"The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" is a slice of life, comedy, mystery, and sci-fi anime aired in 2006. Season two of "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" aired in 2009.
The anime has a chronological order and broadcast order, as it was intentionally aired out of order when broadcast for the first time. For example, the second chronological arc finished before the first chronological arc in the broadcast order.
I don't know why they did that; I'm so confused that I just used Wikipedia as a source. From speculation I found, the first season only had one major arc, while the rest of the season were smaller episodes. The smaller episodes filled in the gaps of the season, spreading out the main plot. That's just a theory though.
"The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" was animated by Kyoto Animation, which are well-known for their other works such as "A Silent Voice," "Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid," "K-On!," and more.
"The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" originated as a series of light novels, light novels are typically short books that have images in the same style you'd find in a manga, but with colour. However, light novels don't always follow that set of rules.
"The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" was written by Nagaru Tanigawa, with illustrations by Noizi Ito. The light novels started publishing in 2003 and are currently ranked in the top 100 manga on MyAnimeList.
"The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" is extremely popular, both the anime and franchise. It's so popular that a character that only showed up in one episode got her own character song.
This song is longer than her screen time in the anime. If that doesn't spell out success, I don't know what else will. However, does it hold up to someone like me, the smartest person when it comes to the topic of carpets? Only one way to find out.
The Insanity of Haruhi Suzumiya
"The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" starts off simple with our protagonist, Kyon, in the same classroom as Haruhi Suzumiya. Haruhi Suzumiya is an eccentric person who makes it clear she's only interested in the supernatural in her classroom introduction.
This is surprisingly the most normal thing she does. She also changes her hairstyle each day, dates & instantly dumps every guy who asks her out, and changes into her gym uniform... In her home classroom! With other people still inside! Some of them are boys!
However, Kyon manages to become "friends" with Haruhi, even creating a club together, the SOS Brigade. The goal of the club is to find, investigate, and hang out with supernatural activity, with Haruhi as its president.
Other club members that join include Yuki Nagato, a deadpan girl that speaks little; Mikuru Asahina, a timid girl who's basically kidnapped & forced to join; and Itsuki Koizumi, a chill transfer student.
[Credit: Funimation; Animation Studio: Kyoto Animation]
So far, this seems like a basic high school slice of life anime, but with a psychopath as a main character. Well... That's only half of the premise.
At the end of episode two, Yuki tells Kyon that she's an alien A.I. sent to Earth to watch over Haruhi. In episode three—Mikuru tells Kyon she's a time traveler who's stuck in the past, and Koizumi tells Kyon he's an Esper & that Haruhi made him one.
[Credit for first two images: Funimation; Credit for last image: IMDb]
Not only that, but Haruhi is literally God. She can alter reality however she wants, hence why time travelers and Esper's exist, but she's unaware she has such a power. It's hard to believe at first for Kyon, but it's not too far-fetched. I mean, does this look like the face of mercy to you?
Within the first three episodes, the anime takes its premise and flips it on its head. Instead of being an average high school slice of life anime, it's an average cult slice of life anime.
The Visuals of Haruhi Suzumiya
"The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" looks incredible. It's one of those shows where the animation and visuals just ooze passion. Wait, that's a gross analogy... Poops passion.
The animation is smooth with detailed, vibrant visuals, making for wonderful eye candy. The anime also has a nice style to it that's visually pleasing, but also adorable.
[Credit: Funimation; Animation Studio: Kyoto Animation]
The music is good too. It isn't something I'll listen to while doing work, but it fits, and it sounds pleasing to the ear. Some songs stand out more than others though, such as "God Knows" and "Lost my Music." These songs are iconic and for good reason, with the English or Japanese VA, they sound wonderful.
This one segment cultivates everything that makes "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" such a stunning anime visually. The lip syncing is off due to the compression, but it's still a joy to watch.
I can only comment on the dub VAs since I watched the dub version, but the voice actors do a wonderful job portraying the characters. Their voices, tones, and more fit the characters perfectly.
The only voice I minded was Stephanie Sheh as Mikuru, but that's only because of my personal preference against soft high-pitched voices. However, it's still a satisfactory performance.
The two Openings are amazing too. While the first OP's song isn't my preference, they both have excellent animation that knocks it out of the park. Although, by this point, that shouldn't be a surprise.
The two Endings are also incredible too since- Okay, guys, I'm running out of ways to say something is well animated.
Warning: The second ED seems like it could cause seizures due to quickly flashing images. I'm not an expert on this stuff, but if you're photosensitive/epileptic, please continue with caution.
"The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" would be an easy S rank from its presentation alone. However, there's still a story to dissect and critique. The presentation is only one half of a show.
The Characters in the Life of Haruhi Suzumiya
I'll get this out of the way: I don't feel strongly for any of the characters. I like Yuki and Ryouko Asakura, but the rest I just don't care for. I tried to like them throughout all 28 episodes, but I just couldn't, especially Kyon and Haruhi, who I found beyond annoying.
Kyon is a cynical guy that's annoyed by Haruhi's antics, which is fine, but his narration drives me crazy. He has a habit of narrating things that don't need to be narrated and without moderation. I get the source material is a light novel, and novels have a lot of narration, but it doesn't translate well to a visual medium.
Narration can work when well-paced. Too much narration can drive a person to return to monkey.
As for Haruhi, she's a meanie to everyone around her. She's selfish, has no social or ethical awareness, rude, and never thinks of the consequences. She's a spoiled brat basically.
Although, that isn't a terrible thing by default. Big meanie characters can be hilarious. Take Miki from "Ramen Fighter Miki" as a good example, she's hysterical. Also, yes, I am plugging a niche anime most people haven't heard of. Who's going to stop me? The IRS?
Haruhi Suzumiya has those moments of comedy gold, but they're rare. Haruhi Suzumiya is mostly just rude without a punchline, at least without punchlines I found funny. Comedy is subjective, and I get that, you know what I also get? Consent.
Haruhi Suzumiya becomes insufferable when she has any sort of interaction with Mikuru, as her treatment towards her can only be described as illegal. I'm not even joking, Haruhi physically forces Mikuru into outfits she's not comfortable wearing; forces her to do stuff without consent, such as going out in public in a bunny suit; and even gropes her- Ugh...
It's disgusting, it's uncomfortable, and I hate it. Even worse... Well, not as worse as the sexual harassment thing, is that Haruhi never receives consequences for her actions, so she never learns her lesson with... Anything. For me, part of the fun for mean characters is them getting consequences, without consequences, they drive me up the wall.
As for Mikuru and Koizumi: Mikuru is bland given she's shy and timid, not much else. It feels like she's only there for fanservice and to be the butt of some jokes. Koizumi is fine, he has some neat moments, but not enough for me to like him.
[Credit: Funimation; Animation Studio: Kyoto Animation]
I found myself liking Yuki and Asakura. Yuki conveys a lot of emotion despite saying so few words and showing the same expression. She also doesn't pick up social/ethical problems, but with her, it's more interesting because she's a literal alien. With Asakura, she has blue hair... Yes, I am weak.
[Credit: Funimation; Animation Studio: Kyoto Animation]
Apart from a few jokes, I can only say I only found the characters funny on rare occasions. Most of the time the comedy just doesn't land, which is fine, comedy is subjective after all. Except for deez nuts jokes, those are objectively peak comedy.
So... Not a great start, not liking most of the cast to an anime. However, a story can still be enjoyed if the writing holds up.
The Arcs of Haruhi Suzumiya
I'll be going into the three major arcs. I'll be skipping the Remote Island Syndrome arc since there isn't much to talk about there. To summarize my thoughts on it though: it's okay, nothing special, but harmless, I'd give it a C-.
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (A)
Continuing from the The Insanity of Haruhi Suzumiya section, Kyon isn't sure whether to believe Yuki, Mikuru, and Koizumi with what they told him. To be fair, it's hard for anyone to believe aliens, time travelers, and Esper's exist within about two days, especially without hard evidence.
However, that changes when he chats with Asakura in episode four, part-time classmate, full-time best girl.
Ryouko Asakura asks Kyon about change. She goes on about how people regret what they don't do more than what they do, how change should be forced to prevent a dire situation from becoming worse.
While she's not wrong, this conversation is just strange. Ryouko Asakura has never brought up anything about change before and how she goes about the conversation is odd. She even says something about her superiors like Yuki did before, it's as if she's an-
OKAY, RUDE! Yeah, Asakura, like Yuki, is an alien A.I. sent to watch over Haruhi. Unlike Yuki though, Asakura is corrupted. She's fed up with being an observer and watching the same things repeatedly. She feels if she doesn't force change, things will only get worse. To fix this, she decides to kill Kyon, which is a bit of an overreaction.
This is unexpectedly philosophical for this anime, but it's also why Asakura is my favourite character, she's compelling. She hates seeing nothing change, stuck watching over everyone while she can't do anything about it without risking her destruction.
In the end, she decides to force change, to see how Haruhi will react to Kyon's death. It's a fascinating premise. I'm honestly sad she dies so early on, this moment is easily my favourite part of the anime, especially the fight scene between her and Yuki. The visuals, the music, the animation, it's a fight that's absolute hype.
So, aliens exist for sure now. Combine this with Kyon seeing the grown-up Mikuru from the future, Koizumi's abilities as an Esper, and he's now a believer. Koizumi also explains the Anthropic Principle and closed spaces, which is long, but interesting.
Basically, Haruhi's negative emotions cause giant beings called Celestials to appear in closed spaces. Only Esper's can go to closed spaces, but can bring others with them. Esper's go there to destroy Celestials as the Celestials can permanently change the world from within the closed spaces.
It's interesting seeing Koizumi's powers in action after all his exposition. Itsuki Koizumi also explains his own philosophy on Haruhi's place in the universe, being that of a God, due to her powers. It makes sense though, Gods are known to reshape, destroy, or create things, all of which are things Haruhi can do.
Later, we also get Haruhi's explanation for why she looks for the supernatural from herself. When she went to a baseball game, seeing the thousands of attendants made her realize she was a small, ordinary part of the world.
She resolved that if anyone should lead an interesting life, it should be her, and what's more interesting than the supernatural?
It's a great explanation for Haruhi's desire to find the supernatural and why she's so disinterested in ordinary people, as ordinary people will cause the ordinary life she's actively avoiding. I think we've all had the realization we're all ordinary people and that we aren't special, but still strive to make our lives unordinary.
Haruhi Suzumiya just takes it to an extreme by blocking out the ordinary. To her, living an ordinary life is worse than death.
This all comes to a head in the finale when Kyon and Haruhi transport to their school in the middle of the night inside of a closed space. Haruhi Suzumiya finally gets bored of the world and is now unknowingly creating a new one.
By using a hint dropped from future Mikuru, Yuki's help, and Koizumi's information of the situation, Kyon kisses Haruhi to escape the closed space finally. With that, everything goes back to normal- Well, as normal as it can be with an alien, time traveler, Esper, and God.
It's a satisfying ending to the arc as each character played a key role, the world is safe, and Haruhi won't be risking the destruction of the world anytime soon now that she has a clear crush on Kyon. Before, it was implied Haruhi had a crush on him, but now the writings on the wall.
Sure, the narration and me not liking the characters did get in the way unfortunately, but it's still an insanely entertaining arc thanks to the storytelling and premise. It had me invested as soon as Yuki dropped the alien reveal, while making me want more philosophy, romance, and compelling character moments from the rest of the anime.
Endless Eight (E-)
So, this is what they call "digging your own grave." Even if you've never seen "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya," you've likely heard of this infamous arc. Some consider it one of the worst arcs in all of anime and... I can see why.
At first, Endless Eight is quite enjoyable. The First Episode has the SOS Brigade spending the last two weeks of summer doing multiple activities. Going to the pool, baseball, watching "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," and more.
However, in the next episode, everyone does the same things with the same dialogue. Halfway through the episode, it's revealed time looped. Due to Mikuru being unable to contact her people from the future, they conclude they're stuck in a time loop.
The reason why- Oh, come on, we already know, Haruhi. Haruhi Suzumiya wanted to do more stuff in the first episode of Endless Eight, as she felt something was missing. Problem is, Kyon and Koizumi don't remember earlier loops, they can only sense Déjà vu. Only Yuki is unaffected due to being an alien A.I..
However, by the second episode, they've already looped over 15,000 times, over 500 years. Yuki remembers all those years, and you do see that she's suffering.
Admittedly, Mikuru not sensing Déjà vu feels like a plot hole. She's just as close to Haruhi as Kyon and Koizumi, so she should sense it too. Although, this isn't that big of a deal... At first.
The second episode highlights the depressing nature of the time loop. The use of low saturated visuals whenever Kyon senses Déjà vu or when everyone finds out gives a sense of languishing inevitability.
However, the next episode is the same thing... Then the next.... Then the next... Then the- Do you see the problem?
[Credit: Kyoto Animation]
An arc that should realistically be three episodes, is dragged out for eight episodes until the time loop is resolved. You're practically watching the same episode eight times. Haha Endless Eight and eight episodes, hilarious, BUT I'M IN PAIN!
It's obvious that practically watching the same episode eight times, especially as the latest content, is mind numbingly boring. Even the discovery of the time loop is looped. This is the reason Endless Eight is so infamous, watching the same thing repeatedly is just boring.
Therefore, the plot hole with Mikuru frustrates me, because the writers never caught onto it or didn’t fix it, which is weird if they didn’t since they wrote the time loop discovery scene seven times.
Endless Eight is missing what makes the Groundhog Day scenario so much fun. The scenario focuses on the protagonist trying to stop the loop, which results in them growing as a person or sacrificing something to become a better person.
Since Kyon only senses Déjà vu, with Yuki being the only one unaffected but unable to do anything because of her observer role, Kyon never tries anything different to stop the loop until the plot decides he does.
Even worse, Kyon has multiple ways of resolving this problem, but never tries anything different. In fact, he has eight or more solutions to try.
Ask Yuki to tell everyone (minus Haruhi) that they're in a time loop early so they can brainstorm solutions
Ask Yuki what they've done to stop the time loop in earlier loops
Cancel the summer plans with Haruhi
Get minor or major injuries so they can't do summer activities
Have Kyon kiss Haruhi
Try doing different activities
Do something on the last day of summer since Haruhi put that day to the side
Criticize "Harry Potter" so much that Haruhi won't even want to see "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" anymore
Will this work? Realistically, probably not, but they're at least worth trying, it's better than twiddling their thumbs. I didn't even feel relief when Kyon broke the loop, I just felt empty, like Kyon's hopes and dreams before that point.
The weirdest part is that Kyoto Animation put a ton of effort into the visuals and animation. Characters wear new clothing each loop, scenes are reanimated, new angles, and more.
[Credit: Kyoto Animation]
Why did Kyoto Animation do this? What are their motives?!
All I have left to say is that you know something is seriously wrong when the Disney sitcom "The Suite Life on Deck" does a superior job in doing a time loop scenario in one episode and manages to make it more rewarding and even kind of compelling. A Disney sitcom... AND THIS ISN'T EVEN MY LEAST FAVOURITE ARC IN THE ANIME!
The Sigh of Haruhi Suzumiya (F-)
This arc shatters my heart since the concept of the SOS Brigade making a movie sounds like comedy gold. While the final movie is indeed comedy gold, the creation process is excruciating.
While making the movie, Haruhi believes in her movie so much that the script of the movie is being merged into real life. For example, at one point, Mikuru fires a genuine laser.
Although, I didn't find this conflict interesting. By this point, the supernatural stuff didn't interest me as much since it wasn't being used for intriguing scenarios like in the first arc. After a while, it just feels like Haruhi's powers are an excuse to add conflict to stories.
Also, before this point, we've had the entire world at stake and a time loop lasting over 500 years, the stakes here just seem minor in comparison. The only interesting aspect is that Yuki is the one getting hit by the lasers, so no one dies, and it's hard to not feel bad for her. Good on Yuki, I'm not a fan of death either.
However, what makes me hate this arc in comparison to Endless Eight is because the anime now decides to take Haruhi's abusive treatment towards Mikuru, which the court system would have a field day with, seriously.
However, this time, Haruhi verbally abuses Mikuru by harshly criticizing and blaming her. She even makes Mikuru get thrown into dirty water, gets Mikuru's friend Tsuruya to spike her drink with alcohol, calls Mikuru her toy, and even hits her on the head.
It just comes off as a weird double standard to me since Mikuru being sexually harassed by Haruhi, forced into outfits, forced into joining a club, and doing stuff she's clearly not comfortable with before this arc isn't treated seriously. Don't get me wrong, this stuff is horrible, it's just odd to take it seriously now when it's been a problem since episode two.
Haruhi Suzumiya is honestly at her worst in this arc because she goes from "not funny but pretty interesting" to "wow, what a peepee poopoo!" She's so insanely unlikeable here. She doesn't even learn her lesson, she gets away with this stuff scot-free, and is even rewarded for it because her abuse of Mikuru ends up in the movie.
SHE STILL SEXUALLY HARASSES MIKURU AFTER THIS! If you want a character to be mean in an arc so they can learn a lesson, fine, but if they don't learn a lesson, then it just makes the arc intolerable and feel like a waste of time unless they're an antagonist.
If it wasn't for the iconic Live Alive episode where Haruhi plays in a concert, doing something selfless for once, I would've come out of this anime disliking Haruhi.
Kyon isn't safe from being unlikeable here too. He wants to protect Mikuru, but does little actual protection. I can give a pass on the dirty pool thing since Koizumi prodded him to not stop Haruhi due to the universe being at risk, because Haruhi, but the rest of the time there isn't much of an excuse.
At least with Koizumi, he dislikes what Haruhi is doing but lets it happen because it'd create Celestials in the closed spaces. As for Yuki, she's an alien, I don't think she recognizes why Haruhi's behaviour is socially unacceptable.
However, Kyon does eventually properly call out Haruhi after multiple episodes of abuse towards Mikuru... When Koizumi is about to kiss her for the movie. Kyon only finds out a bit later that Mikuru was drunk.
Although, it feels shallow of Kyon to say enough is enough when his own personal romantic desire towards Mikuru is threatened. Sure, what crosses the line is Mikuru's drink being spiked, some physical abuse, and Haruhi calling Mikuru her toy, but still... It rubs me the wrong way for why he initially intervenes.
It's not often an arc leaves me genuinely angry, and I sat through Endless Eight. This arc is just uncomfortable, and while it has a few positives, like a few jokes, I can only count the redeemable qualities on one hand.
The best part is Yuki's witch costume since it's adorable, that's the only major positive.
Overall (E+)
I think I set myself up for disappointment with the first arc. I was expecting more subversion of expectations, philosophy, interesting character moments, expansion on character, and more from the rest of the anime. Instead, the first arc was the only part of the show I was heavily invested in and my opinion on the cast never improved afterwards.
I wasn't that interested in the supernatural stuff after the first arc, the cast is bleh, the cast rarely feels expanded on after the first arc, the comedy didn't land for me, the arcs only lowered in quality overtime, and I can't say there's any special takeaway I had from the anime apart from the first arc.
Sure, the anime looks and sounds amazing with the stellar animation, visuals, and great voice acting. However, it can't save a story someone isn't invested in.
I don't think "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya," despite its questionable decisions, is bad. I think my expectations just got subverted into the wrong expectations. One of these days I need to revisit it expecting a slice of life, not something philosophical.
The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya
I don't get the title, Haruhi is right there.
"The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya" is the finale to "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" anime series. The "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" light novels would continue though. "The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya" released in 2010, animated by Kyoto Animation.
Warning: The following has spoilers for "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya," if you haven't seen nor read "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya," I recommend doing so or reading my review, whichever one works best for you.
Christmas Party Preparations (Gone Wrong)
One week, Kyon and the SOS Brigade are preparing for a Christmas Party under Haruhi Suzumiya's command. However, during that week, Kyon wakes up one morning to find things have changed. Just minor stuff though, like how there's a cold going around, Taniguchi is sick, Ryouko Asakura is back-
WAIT?! ASAKURA HAS A RED COAT?!
In fact, even weirder, Haruhi and Itsuki Koizumi are nowhere to be seen, no one even knows them. Mikuru Asahina doesn't recognize Kyon, and Yuki is now a shy, normal girl instead of an alien A.I..
These changes should hurt me, but normal girl Yuki is so adorable!
The plot perfectly nails how jarring and how much of a fish out of water Kyon is to... Whatever happened. The way he finds out, the way he reacts, and the genuine pain he feels sells the weight of these reveals. It's painful seeing Kyon find someone like Mikuru or Yuki, since as the audience, we already know they don't recognize him.
The pacing this time around is slow, which lets these moments sink in appropriately and effectively. "The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya" is the longest theatrical animated movie for a good reason, the slow pacing adds so much to the plot.
It goes back to the roots of "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" arc by providing an intriguing premise with stellar execution. I was invested as soon as I heard Asakura's voice off-screen and saw Kyon's reaction. I knew this was going places, not only because Asakura is my favourite character, but because Kyon's reaction felt so real.
Whenever Kyon felt defeated, I felt sad for him. When no one remembered Haruhi, it was painful to watch. Whenever Kyon made progress, I was genuinely happy. Despite not caring for Kyon as a character, I was invested in his journey to conquer this challenge.
The mystery is so interesting too. At first, you think the answer might be that Haruhi caused this, but as the movie goes on, you become more unsure that's the case. To the point where the answer behind everything took me off guard hard.
Kyoto Animation Does It Again
What happens when you take an anime that already had fantastic visuals and animation, but give the studio behind it a bigger budget? Even better visuals and animations that keeps the spirit of the original anime.
[Credit: IMDb; Animation Studio: Kyoto Animation]
The visuals honestly speak for themselves, they look gorgeous. Some of the backgrounds look so detailed and realistic, as if you're looking at a souvenir photo, it's that good.
Another improvement is the soundtrack, which packs a greater punch to help elevate scenes. Tracks for me are more memorable and I find myself listening to a few tracks in my spare time, such as "Suzumiya Haruhi no Tegakari."
My opinion on the English voice acting is the same too, it's just as great as before. Like the anime, the visuals and audio are a S rank alone.
The Reincorporation
Now it's major spoilers time, as the reincorporation plays a huge role in the story of "The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya." "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" has been building up to this, with multiple signs in the anime, which enhances the plot.
The most obvious is with Yuki, as Yuki experiences the same corruption Asakura goes through in the anime. Ryouko Asakura even says Kyon will one day face another alien A.I. seeking radical change, and she wasn't wrong.
[Credit: Funimation; Animation Studio: Kyoto Animation]
Best girl is so good that she predicted the movie's plot. Like Asakura, Yuki got sick of being on the sidelines, seeing the same things repeatedly, of Haruhi being a peepee poopoo. Okay, maybe that last part is exclusive to Yuki. Yuki Nagato, like Asakura, wanted change and forced it to break the monotony.
However, unlike Asakura, Yuki didn't force change through violence. Instead, she altered the world and everyone's memories so she could be a normal girl, so Haruhi would disappear to a new school, and so the SOS Brigade wouldn't exist.
Fortunately, because she trusted Kyon, since Kyon looked out for Yuki when no one else did, she let Kyon choose to reverse her actions. Without this, Yuki's world would've gone uncontested.
Despite Yuki's corruption, her trust towards Kyon could never go away. That's what separates her from Asakura, as Asakura couldn't feel empathy, nor did she ever care for Kyon or Haruhi.
However, how did Yuki come to become corrupt and desire change? Simple, the Endless Eight arc. She saw the same events for over 500 years. A.I. or not, no one would be the same after that.
Keep in mind, most people like myself can barely stand watching the same events unfold for up to eight episodes. That's only a miniscule fraction in comparison to what Yuki went through. I see why the anime extended Endless Eight. By enduring the eight-episode arc, we feel and better understand Yuki's pain.
Now, am I saying Endless Eight is good? Absolutely not, it's a masterpiece after all, but I see what Kyoto Animation was going for. This revelation makes Endless Eight worth enduring... Kind of...
The reincorporation helps to make other reveals amazing. My favourite example is the detail that Taniguchi knew Haruhi back at his old school. It's a small detail from the anime I honestly forgot about since it was minor. Here, it becomes the most important clue for Kyon to find Haruhi.
Or how Yuki puts her clue in the book she let Kyon borrow at the beginning of the anime. Or also how the episode where Kyon helps younger Haruhi draw hieroglyphs on the school grounds, and how that experience is what convinces Haruhi that Kyon knows her.
Not only does it give significance to multiple arcs, but it also gives a phenomenal payoff to these plot elements and arcs from the original anime. It makes the revelations more natural as everything by this point has been set up for Kyon and the audience, it's just a matter of piecing everything together.
The Faults in Our Haruhi- Lack of Haruhi Suzumiya
Unfortunately, "The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya" isn't perfect despite what most cults say. My main gripe is Kyon's narration. I already minded how much he narrated needlessly in the anime, but here it becomes downright unbearable.
He narrates so much, way too much. While I think it works in some cases, like when he's making his decision between a world with or without the SOS Brigade, most of the time, it's just distractingly aggravating. Having to endure it for over two hours makes Endless- The Sigh of- Point is: it drives me crazy.
On a related note, about his choice between both worlds, I think while this scene is well-executed, it does irk me that Kyon doesn't focus on Yuki that much. Not in the sense of choosing a world between Haruhi and Yuki, but more so choosing between both Yuki's, since regardless of his choice, a Yuki is going to cease to exist.
[Credit: IMDb; Animation Studio: Kyoto Animation]
This is personal, but in my opinion, Alien Yuki and the Yuki in the world without the SOS Brigade are two different individuals with their own souls. They have their own memories, personalities, and more. I think it's weird that the plot glosses over it.
I also think the cold makes no sense story-wise. From a writing perspective, it's there so Taniguchi is sick. That way when he comes back, he can drop the "I know Haruhi" bomb. I thought the cold would play a bigger role, but it didn't even act as a clue. It makes me question why Yuki added it into the altered world in the first place.
Finally, like with the anime, I find the cast boring. My opinions on the characters haven't changed much. Like before, I only like Yuki and Asakura, with only my opinion on Yuki changing slightly. Even then, I still don't feel too strongly towards Yuki. However, I will admit that I root for normal girl Yuki's crush on Kyon, it's so adorable.
While this didn't hurt most moments, the impact was softened at times for me. For example, when Kyon finally finds Haruhi, it should be this huge reveal. However, I don't care about Haruhi, and I find her annoying, so this moment didn't work as well for me.
Overall (A)
I see "The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya" as an extended episode from the anime with higher production value. Which is a good thing, since it gave me the same vibe and quality as "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" arc in the anime.
The journey the characters go through is intriguing, the mystery is excellent, the pacing is incredible, the presentation is top notch, and the payoff is excellent. It's a shame the cast and Kyon's narration are still major problems I have, but this is still great.
While I prefer "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" arc more since I find it more intriguing and entertaining, "The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya" is critically better than the entire anime.
The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-Chan
Here's another drinking game for those of legal drinking age, take a shot every time I say Yuki in this review; I am such a good influence.
"The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-Chan" anime aired in 2015 and was animated by Satelight, who is most well-known for "Fairy Tail."
"The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-Chan" originally started as a manga in 2009, ending in 2016, as a spin-off to the "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" Series. The manga was written and illustrated by Puyo, who also worked on the story & art for "The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi-chan: The Untold Adventures of the SOS Brigade" Manga.
Warning: The following has spoilers for "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" and "The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya." If you haven't seen nor read both, I recommend doing so or reading my review(s) on both, whichever one works best for you.
The Refreshment of Yuki Nagato
"The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-Chan" is based on the world in "The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya," with Yuki Nagato as a normal girl, Ryouko Asakura as her best friend, and with Haruhi Suzumiya & Itsuki Koizumi at a different school.
[Credit: Funimation; Animation Studio: Satelight]
I say "based on" because the spin-off has differences. For example, this is a different timeline, not a world created by altering the memories of others. Kyon is born in this world, and even meets Haruhi as the crazy bush lady instead.
Every anime NEEDS to have the crazy bush lady.
Yuki Nagato and Asakura also have different personalities compared to their altered memory counterparts. Yuki is still shy, but with more flustering reactions to stuff like holding Kyon's hand, is easily distracted, plays video games, and etc..
Ryouko Asakura however, is like a mother as she cares deeply for everyone's safety, easily angered when people mess around with their responsibilities, is the only responsible character, and more.
[Credit: Funimation; Animation Studio: Satelight]
In comparison, the original "Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" anime Yuki was deadpan. Original anime Asakura lacked empathy and her responsible nature was only in status.
Additionally, the SOS Brigade isn't a thing in the spin-off, with the focus being on the literary club run by Yuki. In fact, there's nothing supernatural in the anime, everything has a grounded explanation. Although, that doesn't stop the anime from having over-the-top moments with its comedy.
The plot this time around is about Yuki trying to confess her feelings to Kyon. However, due to her lack of self-confidence/assertiveness, this is difficult for her to do.
While the premise may seem weak in comparison to keeping God at bay in the original anime, it's beautifully executed with engaging characters and drama. However, before delving into that, how do things differ from the manga?
Differences from the Manga
There are a surprising number of differences, but given the anime episode format, I can see why. For example, the manga is mostly colourless, that's wacky... Wait, that's most manga... Okay, bad example.
Better example: Mikuru Asahina's and Tsuruya's introduction. The duo is introduced in the school in the manga, with Tsuruya accusing Kyon of two-timing Mikuru because of his seat in the Mikuru fan club, which may or may not be doctored by Tsuruya. In the anime, they're introduced in the mall, although this interaction still happens in the manga.
Some small conversations and jokes are both cut out and added. In the anime, Asakura pushes Kyon into the laundry room to talk with Yuki after something embarrassing happens. Is it funny? No. Is it efficient? Absolutely.
In the manga, Asakura convinces him to talk to her, even saying she'll bow down on the ground for Kyon to do so. It's cute and funny.
In the same laundry room, Kyon thinking carefully about his answer to one of Yuki's questions leads to Yuki doing the same thing with trying to explain to Asakura why she wants the Christmas Party in the Literary Club room. In the anime, Kyon asks Yuki why she wants the Christmas Party in the clubroom, with Asakura overhearing Yuki's answer.
Or how the flashback story for how Yuki saved the clubroom is shown after the Christmas Party in the manga instead of during like in the anime.
I wouldn't say these differences are better or worse. While it's a shame some things got removed, the added stuff also works well. For every removed gag like Yuki getting distracted with writing her party plans by drawing romantic stuff about Kyon, there's a new gag like where Asakura melts a snowball out of anger.
The Redemption of Yuki Nagato
The Characters in the Life of Yuki Nagato
My only expectation going into this was to like Yuki and Asakura more... I came out of the spin-off liking every character more than their original anime counterparts. Every character in the spin-off is vastly more likable and interesting in comparison. I know those are fighting words, but I'm ready to fight back... WITH MY SCIENTIFIC CALCULATOR!
Let's take Haruhi for example. I nearly disliked her in the original anime because she was rude, did uncomfortable things, and never got any consequences. While spin-off Haruhi is still rude, her mean behaviour is genuinely funny. What adds to the humour is that she doesn't always get her way and gets consequences, which is funny and satisfying to see.
[Credit: Funimation; Animation Studio: Satelight]
However, what makes this version of her incredible to me is that she helps her friends by giving solid advice. She's even humble about it, such as when Yuki is about to thank Haruhi for giving her confidence, Haruhi tells Yuki not to thank her. Yuki Nagato solved her own problem so Yuki should have the credit, Haruhi was just doing her own thing.
That's... Honestly admirable and mature. It's a huge contrast to the original anime Haruhi who would've likely taken credit. While this Haruhi can still be rude, she feels more... Mellowed out.
Another good example is Mikuru. While Mikuru is still bland, I find myself liking Mikuru in the spin-off because she works better with the characters.
Take the interaction between her and Yuki when Mikuru encourages Yuki to buy a matchmaking charm to increase her chances of getting with Kyon as an example. To get Yuki to buy the charm, which Yuki genuinely wants to buy, Mikuru tells her that nobody's watching. She even closes her eyes so even she's not watching.
There's no joke, it's just Mikuru being extremely sweet to Yuki. It's moments like this that make these versions of the characters shine so bright for me.
Mikuru Asahina in general is also sexually harassed far less, only in the Opening and one episode twice. While it's still horrible she's sexually harassed because anime comedy, this is a massive improvement from the original anime that had it as a recurring thing.
I could go on and on, but every character is likable from Koizumi to being more interesting now that he's in love with Haruhi, to Kyon not narrating as much & being a delinquent with a heart of gold, and to Tsuruya being a riot.
[Credit: Funimation; Animation Studio: Satelight]
However, I'd be remiss to not bring up Yuki and Asakura. Yuki Nagato is so adorable, what the h*ck? Everything she does, from her expressions, love for Kyon, shyness, flustered reactions, and more makes every scene with her a blessing. Yuki Nagato never failed to put a smile on my face.
[Credit: Funimation; Animation Studio: Satelight]
As for Asakura, for me she went from my favourite character in the series, who I only really liked, to one of my favourite characters of all time. I even have a figure of Asakura.
Also, yes, I am glad my family doesn't read Japanese. While I admit Asakura isn't as compelling with her philosophy on change like in the original anime, she makes up for it tenfold by being so loveable.
Ryouko Asakura is the "mom but not actually a mom" archetype. She's strict, caring, smart, and is refreshingly responsible in a series full of absolute mad lads. She also acts as a wingman for Yuki so Yuki can date Kyon, such as helping and encouraging her/Kyon to do stuff they wouldn't otherwise do. Kyon doesn't realize the implications.
Ryouko Asakura stands out a lot from the other characters, making for a lot of fun dynamics with each character for her. Ryouko Asakura is also relatable for me too as someone that can be strict, caring, and smart. I mean... Only smart people threaten to fight with a scientific calculator after all. However, Asakura has her faults as a person.
She's harsh/self-critical on herself when her attempt to help Yuki fails in the Valentine's Day episode. In the golden week trip arc, she tries to sabotage Yuki getting with Kyon, which she's horrible at doing by the way, due to being afraid that she'll become a third-wheel if Yuki goes out with Kyon, making Yuki & Asakura more distant.
That fear humanizes Asakura and her wingman help, since it's a genuine insecurity for any friend to have. Asakura wants what's best for Yuki, but what's best for Yuki also scares her.
This reveal settled Asakura as an all-time favourite for me, it's just... Seeing a wingman character go through these insecurities like this is something I never expected to see, but never realized I always wanted to see until seeing it. It's like a void has been filled for me, it's weird.
Onto more general things, the dynamics in the spin-off are great. They complete the cast, such as Koizumi's & Kyon's bromance, Asakura & Haruhi's friendly rivalry, and more.
The characters are also hilarious, with special mention to Yuki, Asakura, and especially Koizumi with the use of expressions and punchlines. Seriously, Koizumi is comedy gold.
The Love of Yuki Nagato
Remember when I said that I ship Yuki and Kyon in "The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya" review? Well, this anime is a goldmine of Yuki x Kyon content.
They share so many cute moments whether it's sitting next to each other, with Kyon's jacket acting as a blanket while it's snowing or looking at the stars, these two melt my heart.
[Credit: Funimation; Animation Studio: Satelight]
While Kyon doesn't have feelings for Yuki, he still acts flustered with romantic stuff. The same applies to Yuki, although her flustered reactions are more brash, like when holding Kyon's hand without protection.
I don't blame her, h*ndholding is hardcore stuff.
Like in "The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya," Yuki falls for Kyon because he helped her get a library card. However, Yuki's crush is deepened thanks to Kyon joining the literary club when it was at risk of abolishment due to needing five members.
As far as I can tell, the other two unnamed members exist in a void separated from reality for plot reasons. Either way, Kyon helped save the literary club, which means a lot to Yuki.
What also adds to the romance is the subversion of annoying romance tropes. For example, in the Valentine's Day arc, Yuki witnesses Haruhi giving Kyon chocolate on Valentine's Day, running away while dropping her chocolates for Kyon. It turns out Haruhi was just giving Kyon courtesy chocolate.
I usually despise misunderstandings like this given people of the opposite gender can do stuff/hang out without it being something romantic and the unreasonable reactions that follow from jumping the gun. Fortunately, while Yuki does misunderstand the situation, her reaction is perfectly reasonable.
Yuki ran away to give Haruhi alone time with Kyon, since she'd want the same if she was in Haruhi's shoes. She also only accidentally dropped her chocolate for Kyon, she still planned to give it to him.
That's a cool subversion, it genuinely caught me off guard. Here's another example, in episode six, Yuki thinks Kyon and Asakura were about to kiss in class when they were close to each other, which terrifies her. However, she quickly rationalizes that it must've been something else.
[Credit: Funimation; Animation Studio: Satelight]
Yuki Nagato is half-right, but it's not eye-dust related. While it's another misunderstanding, Yuki clears it up internally to herself in under a minute. Instead of being forced drama, it's a genuinely funny moment.
Yuki Nagato's avoidance of this trope makes me love her more because, sure, she's not the smartest nor the best at self-control, but she's reasonable. When she misunderstands a situation, she reacts reasonably. Misunderstandings are natural, but a poor reaction usually isn't.
The Adorableness of Yuki Nagato
From the screenshots, you can notice the art style change, colouring, and animation quality with Kyoto Animation not working on the spin-off. The art style is more modern, the colouring is soft, and the animation doesn't have the same smoothness.
[Credit: Funimation; Animation Studio: Satelight]
I'll admit the original anime surpasses the spin-off in terms of animation quality given Kyoto Animation animated the same episode eight times... They're on another level both skill-wise and mentally. However, the spin-off's art style and colouring works perfectly for its tone.
The soft colouring gives a calmer vibe which fits with the absence of supernatural elements and less high-risk plot in terms of the danger characters face. The art style also looks great. The presentation helps to make the spin-off stand out from the original anime.
[Credit: Funimation; Animation Studio for first picture: Satelight; Animation Studio for second picture: Kyoto Animation]
Although, what's most important is that the spin-off nails the adorableness factor and has those essential ripple effects.
Is life even worth living without ripple effects? The Opening and Ending, with the Ending being embedded later in the review, are solid too with bouncy visuals for the Opening and beautiful visuals for the Ending. Both songs are also catchy, with the Opening having the Japanese female VAs singing it.
The soundtrack is also good too, nothing sounds displeasing and some tracks are especially catchy. The soundtrack also has my favourite version of "We Wish you a Merry Christmas," so it's an automatic 10/10 now.
The English voice actors all return and do a fantastic job as always. While it can be jarring hearing Asakura and Yuki's voices at first, given both characters have different personalities, you get used to it. The performances compliment the new personalities.
The Real Disappearance of Yuki Nagato
Now, you might be thinking: "why is this called "The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-Chan?" For over half the anime, you'll be left pondering that question, and I was ready to give this anime the big poopy award because I expect completely correct titles. However, when you realize... It gets you good and leads into the best arc of the anime.
While all the five arcs in the anime are fantastic, most of them are excellent for the reasons I listed above: the dynamics, characters, and more. The only thing I can add by this point is that the drama is non-world endingly great.
[Credit: Funimation; Animation Studio: Satelight]
However, the "The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-Chan" arc stands above the rest, and in my opinion, it surpasses anything the movie or original anime does. Don't worry, I have a second scientific calculator to throw down with.
This arc starts in the after-credits scene of episode nine, with Yuki almost getting hit by a car. It's a huge tone shift from before, and this new tone won't go away anytime soon.
This becomes clear as after the accident, Yuki acts... Off. She's deadpan, she's reading books instead of playing games, and she's having no romantic moments with Kyon.
She's acting so much like Yuki from the original anime, which while cute in the original anime, here it's... Depressing seeing this once expressive girl be so devoid of emotion. The anime seems to agree, as the colouring becomes less saturated and the comedy is minimal. It's like watching a completely different anime and person, which...
Isn't that far from the truth. Yuki Nagato is experiencing dysmnesia or something like it. Someone with dysmnesia suffers disordered memories or an impairment related to their memory.
In this case, a new personality has taken form from Yuki's consciousness who has the same memories as the Yuki we've come to love in the spin-off, but not her personality.
For reference, this new personality Yuki, who acts like Alien Yuki, will be named New Yuki. The more expressive Yuki will be known as Old Yuki.
[Credit: Funimation; Animation Studio: Satelight]
New Yuki has Old Yuki's memories, but New Yuki says they aren't her memories. New Yuki is like an observer in a way, which the Ending version for this arc reflects.
New Yuki knows who Mikuru, Haruhi, Tsuruya, Old Yuki, and Koizumi are... However, she doesn't know them personally. To her, they're basically strangers.
It's as if someone else is in Yuki's body. Kyon and Asakura do their best to work around it, spend time with the New Yuki, take care of her, and so on while considering New Yuki's personality. The other characters are away during this arc.
However, while they come to care about New Yuki as much as Old Yuki, they still miss Old Yuki. It's only natural given...
The obvious. Unfortunately, this is a lose-lose situation for Kyon and Asakura. Old Yuki can only come back if New Yuki disappears. New Yuki will only stay if Old Yuki never comes back. Either way, a Yuki will disappear, and I mean disappear in the grimmest form.
While New Yuki is her own personality, with her own soul and whatnot, physically, she's just a personality. Something that only exists as a part of one's personality has no afterlife to go to. When New Yuki disappears, she's gone for good.
This is a similar case to "The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya" for when Kyon had to choose between a world with or without the SOS Brigade, each world would mean the other would be erased, and along with it, a Yuki. However, unlike the movie, the spin-off delves into the grim reality of it.
This is clear when Old Yuki's memories and feelings start coming back to New Yuki, such as Old Yuki's feelings for Kyon. This confuses New Yuki though, making her slowly realize she'll disappear. She even becomes aware of when her last day on Earth is.
She doesn't want to disappear, but she must accept the reality of the circumstances to enjoy her last day alive. In the end, she disappears with almost no regrets, as the last thing she does is confess her feelings to Kyon over the phone. She falls asleep, and the next time she wakes up, Old Yuki comes back.
The spin-off treats this as a death scene, and a tragic one at that. Both Kyon and Asakura (off-screen) cry in mourning for New Yuki. Ryouko Asakura cried so much off-screen too. New Yuki's disappearance and how Asakura & Kyon react genuinely hits hard, it's the cherry on top of one h*ck of an emotional roller coaster.
New Yuki's confession has its repercussions too, with Kyon feeling awkward around Yuki and distancing himself from her. As a result, this hurts Yuki. He doesn't know what to think of the confession, and he can't even tell who confessed what he thinks. This becomes the main conflict of the final arc, and it's an intriguing one.
It takes Haruhi's and Asakura's advice to push himself to finally tell Old Yuki how he feels about New Yuki's confession, that he bet he would've fallen in love with her. While Old Yuki doesn't hear it because of the fireworks, romance anime's biggest villain, it's shown that New Yuki did hear what Kyon said.
[Credit: Funimation; Animation Studio: Satelight]
With this, everything goes back to normal. Interestingly, as a friend pointed out, the anime ends on an Endless Eight reference. It's fitting though, given Endless Eight was the biggest cause of the original anime Yuki's actions in the movie.
"The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-Chan" arc is a huge love letter for me because it takes one of the most compelling concepts from the movie, and gives it the expansion & depth it deserves with stellar execution. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time, and even came to love New Yuki a lot, so her disappearance hit hard.
It's surprisingly dark, ends on a bittersweet note, is compelling, and expands on Kyon & Asakura extremely well with how they view & handle the situation. This arc just gets me emotional, it's a masterpiece of storytelling in my book.
Overall (S)
"The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-Chan" feels like a combination of everything I love: romance, comedy, drama, mystery (minor, but still present), and more. The characters are loveable and hilarious, the drama is engaging, the presentation is solid, it's adorable, the romance had me hooked, and many more elements that just makes this anime work.
Although, I see why it may be jarring to "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya" fans. There aren't any supernatural elements, the characters act differently, the comedy is different, and the new art style is different. However, that’s why I love the spin-off, because it's so different, it solves nearly every problem I had with the original anime.
There's no overbearing Kyon narration, the cast is likable & interesting in comparison to only Asakura & Yuki from the original anime & movie because they're different, the comedy works for me, I never felt uncomfortable like with the original anime's sexual harassment towards Mikuru, and the supernatural stuff being absent works better for me.
I can't say "The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki-Chan" is perfect, but it's awesome in nearly every department. I have no hesitation declaring it one of my favourite anime of all time.
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