maggie52 - 2014-10-26 04:35:01

Kanon (2006) is a 24 episode anime which is labels as romance, slice of life, drama, and supernatural. While I would not label this as having as much of a "slice of life" as clannad or others, it was more of a drama than anything else. 

I am going to keep this "review" nice and short. Kanon was overall very good, but the ending was rushed. There was only a little bit of romance in it and was definitely more drama. Watch Kanon if you like dramatic, sad stories with a happy ending! 7/10

willms.derek - 2014-07-04 08:37:51

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ggrady - 2014-05-11 18:49:30

http://quanreviews.blogspot.com/2014/06/anime-review-kanon2006.html

jessyca.kilback - 2014-01-23 02:41:51

This story of this anime is beautiful >__<
I got attached to most of the characters cuz they are just adorable ^-^

haag.renee - 2013-11-21 06:53:20

I have seen a few anime before kanon 2006 but it was this anime got me interested in the world of anime. Because of which, I have an attachment towards this anime that most other people don't. I also consider it as my 2nd most favorite anime. So keep that in mind before reading this review.

Story 10/10 - The story follows Yuuichi Aizawa as he returns to live with his Aunt and cousin after 7 long years because his parents have to go on a long work related trip and they needed someone to take care of him. His Aunt happily takes him in and Yuuichi is now part of the Minase residence. He doesnt have any memory of what he did in this town when he was a kid. But slowly, as he meets people in the town, makes friends and continues to live his life, he starts to remember events that happened in the past and how they are related to him.

[Minor SPOILERS in the next paragraph]

What I love about the story is that it is very subtle in the start. i was surprised to notice (while rewatching) how cleverly the dialogue is written. At certain times the dialogue was literally giving hints as to what is going to happen in future episodes. The arcs in the anime touch on various different types of problems, like loss of a loved one, loneliness, death, and broken promises. And each one of them is done very well. Some arcs have a very satisfying conclusion and others have a very mysterious conclusion. Kanon 2006 also has many hidden story elements that require thinking to realize or sharp eyes to spot. I actually spotted a major story element while watching the anime for the 3rd time and its something that 90 % of viewers probably didn't notice.

[End of SPOILERS]
Characters 10/10 - All the characters are dynamic and realistic. I actually felt like they were real people. Some characters are very easy to understand, while other characters will take some thinking and time to figure out, which is an aspect I absolutely love. Some viewers might have a problem with the large eyes that all the female characters have, but if thats something that doesnt bother you or if its something you love, then you shouldnt have any problem at all.

Sound 10/10 - The music is beautiful. Most of the songs are taken from the original visual novel the anime is based on, and many of the songs are remixed too. The entire soundtrack is magnificent. I listen to the soundtrack very often on my phone. My favorite OST from the anime is called Girls Poison (Mai's theme) . Check it out.

I'm going to do something new. I'm going to give an award to one of the voice actors for how awesome they were in their roles, I'm going to do this with every anime I review, and only the english dub cast are the contenders for this award, because i dont know Japanese so I wont know if the voice actors are actually acting well or not.

The English dub voice cast is really good. Honorable mentions are Chris Patton who is the main protagonist Yuuichi and Brittney Karbowski who is Ayu. But my award for best voice actor goes to Maggie Flecknoe who is Shiori. Maggie did an awesome job as Shiori. Infact, she was so awesome, that if Shiori was just talking absolute non sense, I would still happily listen to her because her voice is very comforting to me for some reason.

Animation 9/10 - Kanon 2006 as awesome visuals. Although i wont give it a perfect score, because at certain points in the normal conversation moments at home, the animation become a little jerky. Kyoto Animation definitely deserves praise for making the backgrounds feel alive with the sunlight effects, snow and background characters. And during the drama moments, the visuals look absolutely stunning.

Enjoyment 10/10 - Kanon 2006 holds a very special place in my heart. I wasnt bored for even a second. The normal conversations and the drama moments, both entertained me. Plus the music was so good that I was shaking my head along with the music many times.

Who is this anime recommended to - Fans of drama, romance and mystery anime will most probably love it. If you love Clannad, AIR or anything else from Kyoto animation, there is a very good chance that you will love Kanon 2006 as well.

Dubs VS Subs - The Japanese voice actors are trying to be as cute as they possibly can, while the english voice actors are trying to make all the characters sound their age, meaning 17 year old girls sound like 17 year old girls in english, and in Japanese all the girls sound super cute and moe. So your choice entirely depends on your taste. If you like moe voices in the anime you watch then go for Subs. If you dont like moe voices or if you prefer characters to sound realistic and normal, then go for the english dubs (which is what i did). The english dub is very good.

My final thoughts I wanted to say are, you should remember that every review is an opinion, and all opinions are subjective. So even though i am recommending this anime to certain people, I cant fully guarantee that they will like it. But I do try to consider everything when recommending anything to anybody. Hopefully, the people who I recommend this anime to will enjoy it.

This the end of my review. Thank you for reading. So for now, bye bye, and have a great day.

eldridge88 - 2013-11-02 11:15:13

A heart warming tale. Romance, comedy, slice of life and a hint of mysticism. I would reccommend to anyone, most enjoyable.

walker.geo - 2013-08-23 05:07:22

Oh, the wondrous Kanon. Manly tears were shed on many occasions over the course of this anime, as is standard fare with any Key/Visuals work, like Angel Beats or Clannad. While some argue that the animes Kanon, Air, and Clannad are basically all the same anime with different characters, there are many things that I feel make Kanon stand out from other Key/Kyoto Animation adaptations, and while it is not the best, I feel it is the most unique.

Story

Kanon takes place in a city whose name is not mentioned, and we see this city through the eyes of Yuichi Aizawa, a high school student who moved here to live with his cousin, Nayuki Minase, and his aunt, Akiko Minase. It has been seven long years since Yuichi has visited the town, and for reasons unknown to him he has no memory of what transpired during the times he visited the town. However, in assisting five girls that he meets during his time in the city, Yuichi begins to remember pieces of his past, some memories being good, and others being the very reason why he wanted to forget.

Kanon, like it's siblings Air and Clannad, likes to dabble in the supernatural from time to time, from dealing with spirits to foxes turning into humans. The story of Kanon ranges from upbeat and comedic, to extremely sad and heartbreaking. Like many visual novel adaptations, Kanon goes through a series of arcs, one for each major female character in the show. The overall story for each arc is very well done, and the ends to each arc are excellent and very satisfying, especially the ending of the show, which is one of the better endings in anime. However, this is a Slice of Life, so for those of you who are easily bored by this genre, this anime will not change your mind.

+Unique character arcs

+Excellent drama and comedy

+Satisfying ending

-If you dislike Slice of Life this show will not change your mind

Verdict: 4/5 - Great

Characters

As previously mentioned, the main character of Kanon is Yuichi Aizawa, a seventeen year old high schooler who lives with his cousin and aunt. Yuichi is a very sarcastic an humorous character, often teasing/mocking the female cast of Kanon in many hilarious ways. Example:

Overall, Yuichi is a great main character. He can be funny in the lighthearted scenes, but is able to be believable and realistic when the drama comes in. I wish other storywriters would take note that THIS is an example of how you make a main character.

The remainder of the main cast consists of Ayu Tsukimiya, the female lead and childhood friend of Yuichi; Makoto Sakagami, a childhood crush of Yuichi; Nayuki Minase, Yuichi's cousin; Shiori Misaka, a sweet girl with a terrible chronic illness since birth (similar to Nagisa Furukawa of Clannad); and Mai Kawasumi, aka one of many Rei Ayanami clones spawned since the advent of Evangelion, which means she's quiet yet kind. All the characters, while filing into the stereotypical archetypes that anime is known for, are very enjoyable to watch, and are very well realized.

The character designs are also really unique, as every character looks different, which is always a plus given that many characters wear the same school uniform.

+Great Main Character

+Varied character designs

+Good overall cast

- Moe might be a turnoff to some

Overall: 4/5- Great

Animation

Oh boy, this is the part where we can compare the anime to the 2002 version. The animation studio that created Kanon 2006 was Kyoto Animation, who also produced works such as K-On!, Full Metal Panic: Fumoffu, and because I haven't mentioned them enough in this review, (*COUGH* sarcasm *COUGH*) Air and Clannad.

Kanon 2006 was remake of 2002's Kanon, created by Toei Animation. It features updated visuals and animation quality. And when I say updated visuals, I mean that it puts 2002 to shame in terms of art style and animation quality.

Left- Kanon 2002 Right- Kanon 2006

That being said, Kanon still looks very nice both animation wise and art wise, still easily being beautiful seven years after release. My favorite parts of the animation are actually the very very sparse action scenes in the anime, which while they aren't Fate/Zero or Attack on Titan are still great to watch, and gives suspense to an otherwise pure comedy/drama/slice of life.

+Beautiful visuals

+Good animation

+Looks great compared to 2002 version

+The few action scenes are a treat to watch

-Moe may still be a problem for some

Overall: 3.5/5- Good

Sound

The soundtrack in Kanon was composed by Jun Madea, who composed the music for all Key works. He has done the music for the Key/KyoAni adaptations and Angel Beats, and also did the music for the respective visual novels. That being said, the sound in Kanon features remixed versions of the original visual novel. Unfortunately, however, there aren't many songs on the track that I find memorable. The obvious choice would have to be the opening, which makes sense because you listen to it 24 times over the course of the anime, and the song linked above, "Remnants of a Dream," which is basically the same tune as the opening.

In terms of the English dub, it is very dependent on how much you like moe. If you aren't crazy with moe like I am, then the English dub should be fine for you, as many of the voice actors do not even attempt to sound moe, with the exception of Brittney Karbowski as Ayu, who does a pretty decent job. If you do love moe though, the English dub will infuriate you, due to the previously mentioned lack of sounding cute.

-Good yet forgettable soundtrack

-English dub will suck for moe fans

Overall: 3/5- Decent

Conclusion

Kanon's big strength is in delivering a great story, with richly designed, loveable characters that equal out to be the highlights. The animation and visuals look nice, and can still hold up to other animes of the genre. However, the sound is where Kanon falls short, as the soundtrack was forgettable, and the English dub will be a turnoff to moe fans. Despite that, Kanon is a great addition to the drama genre, and is well worth the watch.

To top things off, if you enjoyed my review, be sure to check out my School Days and Sword Art Online reviews. I intended to leave a gif here, but it broke.

von.kristin - 2013-07-08 00:30:06

Bottom Line: Heartwarming series, incredible remake, and an awesome classic. Its must watch!Kanon (2006) is simply a masterpiece. I can confidently say it is my favorite series of all time. Produced by the infamous Kyoto Animation which also introduced international hits such as The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya and Full Metal Panic series, you wouldn't expect this series less than awesome. Kanon (2006) certainly lives up to that expectation.Story: The episodes of the anime are basically separated into "arcs" for each girl. Each girl has her own background story associated with Yuichi either 7 years ago or early on in [the episodes] the current timeframe of the series. Each girl struggles through her her story whatever it may be with Yuichi and grows closer to him, and ultimately a miracle takes place.Outstanding plot and synopsis. The flow from arc to arc was a bit rigid, but still excellent nonetheless. Kyoto Animation did a incredible done job on using the several scenarios and each girl's path and combining them together into a single story that can move an audience into tears. Kanon touches on several themes such as Memories, Miracles, the Supernatural, and of course Love. The series does have great light-hearted and comical moments as well often bringing a smile or a chuckle to your face as well.The moving plot earns a 10/10 from me.Art: Excellent work by KyoAni (abv. for Kyoto Animation for the rest of this review). The design was simply beautiful and a great leap up from its first version (Kanon 2002). The backgrounds were incredibly detailed and well-drawn. The character designs were well-done as well, though Yuichi stuck out a bit too much compared to the rest of the large-eyed cast. But its not a very significant factor.The overall presentation quality is top-notch and it gets a 10/10.Sound: The Soundtrack contains a mix of classical instrumental music (such as Canon, hence the series name: "Kanon"), composed music from the original game, a few techno songs (Such as the Last Regrets Remix Insert Song and the ED song). The only complaint I had was that the OP song was a bit tiring after a while and seemed much too long.Although the OP got on my nerves for a little, it gets a strong score of 9/10.Character: The cast is truly unique. Probably one of the strongest points of Kanon is its lovable cast. Each is character is filled with emotions like real people. Over the course of the show you begin to develop sympathy for the majority of the cast, if not all of the cast. The only problem I having is choosing my favorite girl from the main cast.This awesome array of incredible characters earns a 10/10.Enjoyment and Overall: Really I enjoyed this series from start to finish. The story, the characters, and the flow was moving. I've rewatched the series several times and I still love it as much as the first time. It is an outstanding series, and I recommend it to anyone, even if you are not fond of drama/romance. This is definitely a series you should check out.As I said at the beginning, it is my favorite series of all time and still is, it earns a 10/10

leanna85 - 2013-06-30 06:13:14

Very dramatic at times, very funny at times, very slow at times, but overall it was very well done. The whole supernatural part wasn't a plus for me but that's just my opinion. I also disliked how they kind of shoved away Mai and her friend. I would have liked it more if they kept playing a active role. It was also quite weird how the little Ayu was wandering around and how she actually made a physical impression on everybody (once again, supernatural). I think episode 23 (the saddest episode imo) was the best though. I sometimes prefer sad endings and I think that they should have wrapped it up at episode 23. The happy ending was good though but that is why I gave this anime a 9/10 and not a 10/10.P.S.The illusions/reality totally threw me back to how season 5 of House ended. A very complex theme to incorporate in a show, but when done correctly, it can be something amazing.

ofelia.bednar - 2013-05-17 03:17:02

"Do you know the title of this song? It's Canon. Pachelbel's Canon. It repeats the same melody and crescendos gradually, peacefully, and beautifully. It would be nice if life changed like that: slowly but surely, while being seemingly unchanged from day to day."— Kurata SayuriKanon 2006, if you don't already know, is the second attempt at adapting Key's 1999 visual novel into the anime format. I've not yet seen the original 2002 anime, but the visual novel was actually my first visual novel ever, and since reading it, I've watched the 2006 anime twice. Needless to say, I wouldn't have watched 48 episodes of anime if I didn't like the story. So why the relatively low score? Well, MAL's suggested rating scale calls 7/10 "good," so there's that, but why not a 10/10 masterpiece? Read on, and I'll explain myself.MAL suggests 5 categories for judging in reviews: story, art, sound, character, and enjoyment. So first off, I'll discuss the story. You already have a synopsis written for you on the anime's page, so I'll just boil it down to "17 year old boy moves back to the town he left when he was 10, doesn't really remember anything, acquires harem of girls, drama ensues." Now, the anime improved pretty greatly on the visual novel in some areas, which I'll get to later, but the story suffered a bit from the adaptation. In the visual novel, there are five different story routes, one per heroine, and the choices you make decide which route you follow. Each route takes place primarily in the month of January, and has its own dramatic and romantic happenings that don't usually bleed into other routes. It works very well, and the stories of the individual routes (or character arcs, in the anime adaptation) are generally quite good. Two routes in particular -- I won't say which -- stood out above the rest, in my eyes, in the visual novel, though one of those two (the one that affected me most in the visual novel, unfortunately) suffered a bit in the anime. The other is still phenomenal, and I still teared up at one point despite having already experienced it twice before -- the first time, I have to admit, I bawled my eyes out >.> And that wasn't the only time, either. If there's one thing Jun Maeda is good at, it's creating very emotionally moving drama.The biggest problem with the anime adaptation, though, comes from trying to connect those five independent routes from the visual novel in a coherent way. KyoAni did the best they could (the best anyone could, really), but it still wasn't quite good enough. For one thing, it's kind of...drama-overload at times, if you know what I mean. In the visual novel, they're separate stories, but in the anime, you basically end up getting five stories' worth of drama packed into one. And it doesn't help that so much of it is so similar -- half the characters suffer from plot-device amnesia, and/or "Key AIDS." On their own, each dramatic happening is very well done, but all in a row, it feels a bit excessive. Some of it just isn't even necessary -- there's one particular moment in one of the later episodes where a bit of drama just slams right into you out of nowhere, and I actually laughed out loud at how sudden and unnecessary it was. The romance aspect suffers from adaptation decay, perhaps even more than the dramatic aspect. There's a point in the series where Pimp Daddy Yuuichi gets the cutest kiss ever from one girl, and you're all "awwwwwww :'3," but then literally one episode later, he's kissed by and confesses his love to a different girl who had barely even appeared at all in the previous several episodes. I was re-watching it with my girlfriend, who'd never seen nor read it before, and I believe her exact words were "whoa, what? Sudden!" I had to shrug my shoulders and say, "just pretend he hasn't been involved with any of the other girls and roll with it." The last problem with the story that arose from adapting all the arcs into one linear story was the final episode. I won't spoil anything, but it's rather forced and confusing. People say that about Clannad After Story's ending, but this is significantly harder to swallow, in my opinion. It doesn't ruin the whole story, but it does cost it yet more points.Now, onto art! As I mentioned earlier, the original visual novel came out in 1999, and the art for it was...less than stellar. Frankly, I don't think it was any worse than the art I've seen from the 2002 anime, but it's still pretty ugly. The 2006 KyoAni art, though, is MUCH better. Yeah, okay, their mouths and noses are still almost comically tiny and in the very center of their faces (except for the males), but it definitely looks good if you aren't bothered by that aspect of the style. The animation isn't always completely fluid, but it's definitely much better than average. Even if it's 2006 KyoAni, it IS still KyoAni we're talking about here.Sound is definitely a strong point of Kanon's, and of everything Maeda does the sound for. His compositions set the mood perfectly, 100% of the time. Well, other than the ED song, maybe, which is sometimes jarringly bright and cheery after a dramatic cliffhanger episode ending, but I won't hold that against it. The OP is fantastic, and every background track is perfect. The voice acting is solid, as well, in the original Japanese. Not a fan of the English dub, due to uguu, auu, etc. 10/10 sound.Character...This is a bit of a tricky category. On the one hand, the bulk of the cast are little more than one-dimensional moeblobs, but on the other hand...they are SO MOE. I'm not usually a "moe" guy, but geez. Maeda knows how to write some moe waifus. Frankly, the romantic aspects of certain routes -- particularly the h-scenes in the original visual novel -- felt a bit awkward to me, because not only do many of the girls look incredibly young, but they also *ACT* incredibly young, often giving off less of a "girlfriend" vibe and more of a "pet puppy dog" vibe, if you know what I mean. It's not a huge deal, since ultimately all that matters for the viewer, in this case, is that he or she becomes attached to the characters and wants (Yuuichi) to love and protect them, and I think most viewers would agree that Key was successful there. Some people might find the characters to be "obnoxious moeblobs," but most will adore them. My girlfriend thought Ayu was annoying at first, but it didn't take too long for her to fall in love with her :PEnjoyment is the trickiest category, I think. I mean, typically, if I gave the other categories high scores, I'd give this one a high score, and if I gave the others low scores, I'd give this a low score, you know? But I can't just average them together and call that my enjoyment score, because for me, it was more than just the sum of its parts. I criticized the various failings of the story earlier, but when I first read the visual novel years ago, I adored it. I knew the art was bad, and I knew the plot depended on too many conveniently forgotten memories and "Key Magic," but I didn't care. It made me laugh, it made me cry, it made me gasp, it made me sigh...It just moved me, emotionally, more strongly than most anything in fiction. I really enjoyed it. I didn't enjoy the anime quite as much, but the visual novel might have made me slightly biased compared to a viewer who's never read it. That doesn't erase the flaws in the story that I described earlier, but they might not bother new viewers as much as they bothered me.So to sum it up, Kanon is a VERY emotional, though somewhat flawed story, with solid art for its time, lovable characters, and the perfect musical score. It's not perfect, and viewers less tolerant of forced drama, moeblobs, and "Key Magic" will probably tear it apart, but I'd definitely recommend it to anyone who thinks they might be interested. Watch it in the snowy winter, with someone or something to hug when things get serious. I think you'll enjoy it.