Ano Hi Mita no Namae wo Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai – 11 [END]
One word: Tears.
Good lord. It’s over. I…I don’t even know what to say. I had to brace myself for this episode because I had a feeling that I would be sobbing at the end. Of course, I did just that. Not only so, but also I forgot to arm myself with tissues so I ended up wiping all my snot and tears on my new, just-bought-the-day-before shirt. It was so worth it though. I REGRET NOTHING!!!! Man, I’ve enjoyed AnoHana so much and, as I have said numerous times before, it is my favorite anime of this season and, possibly, the entire year. Naturally, I’m quite upset that it’s over, but I was pleased with the ending so, in the end, it’s all good. Also, I would like to point out that if I seem rather calm about all this, it’s only because I’ve had a day or so to get over it. I was a lot more…ah…grieved when I first saw the final episode BUT IT WAS SO BEAUTIFUL! Read on my darlings!
After the firework-fail, the whole gang is rather somber as Saa thanks them all for what they’ve done for his sister. The moment was made lighter as Menma was touched that her parents had come to see the firework go off as well. Later on, Menma notes that the firework wasn’t her wish after all and jokes about how she had gotten attached to a show on TV anyways. After she has fallen asleep, Jinta receives a phone call from Yukiatsu asking that he meet up with everybody else.
Jinta arrives at the shrine to find the others questioning why the firework didn’t work. Anaru admits that she didn’t care about Menma’s wish. All she wanted was for Menma to go to heaven so that she wouldn’t have to see Jinta only think about Menma. Yukiatsu then reveals what we all knew already: he was jealous of Menma being Yadomi’s and wanted her to go to heaven so that it would be easier on him. Tsuruko calls him horrible to which Anaru snaps back that she is no better than them. She accuses Tsuruko of being jealous of Menma and wanting her to go to heaven because of Yukiatsu. It turns out however that Tsuruko was never jealous of Menma…she was jealous of Anaru.
Yukiatsu and Anaru had plotted together to test Menma’s feelings for Jinta. Tsuruko was jealous of the bond that Yukiatsu and Anaru shared and decided to tattle on them to Menma. In the end, Tsuruko knew that she would never be able to measure up to Menma and was just upset that she wasn’t the one by Yukiatsu’s side. She wanted Menma to go to heaven so that Anaru could have Jinta such that she would then be able to be the one with Yukiatsu. She was just as terrible as the others. Yukiatsu then states that, with all their feelings, it was impossible for Menma to go to heaven.
At this, Poppo says that their feelings don’t matter – all that matters is trying to make sure Menma goes to heaven. He believes that, if Menma doesn’t go to heaven, she will never forgive him. On that day, he actually saw Menma die. He tried to run away from it, to forget about it, but he couldn’t get away. Sobbing, Poppo falls on his knees and begs for Jinta to make sure Menma goes to heaven. It may be selfish of him, but otherwise, he will never be able to get over the image of Menma slowly drifting away from him. Jinta realizes that everybody wanted Menma to go to heaven for their own reasons. They weren’t taking her wish seriously.
Anaru decides that she will apologize to Menma. However, Jinta interrupts her by informing her that her fake eyelashes have come loose. Everybody begins laughing at her expense and they all realize that they’ve gone back to using their nicknames for each other. Jinta then confesses that he was actually secretly happy that he was the only one that could see Menma. She didn’t feel the same way though. Menma wanted to be able to speak with everybody and as such wanted to go to heaven so that she could be reincarnated again. They all decide that they should all talk to Menma try to fulfill herwish again because, after all, there were six members of the Super Peace Busters…not five. Jinta runs off to bring Menma to the secret base but arrives home to find that her wish had already been granted.
Menma had made a promise with Jinta’s mom. His mom was fine about passing on but she was worried about one thing; ever since she had fallen ill, Jinta seemed to be holding all his feelings back and forcing himself to be strong. She wanted Jinta to be able to laugh and get angry and cry. Menma then promised her that she would make Jinta cry no matter what. She didn’t know how to do it, so she called the rest of the gang together that day to ask for advice. Jinta begins to cry as he hears this and Menma notes that she’d always liked it better when he smiled. She starts to say goodbye but Jinta stops her. He tells her that all this time he had wanted to see her, to apologize, to tell her that he loved her but he wasn’t the only one – everybody else had felt the same way. With this, Jinta piggybacks her and runs back to the secret fort.
Once he arrives, Jinta realizes that he can no longer see Menma. She tells him that she’s playing hide and seek and they all rush outside to find her. They cannot find her and assume the worst when Anaru notices that there are pages from the diary under a tree. Menma has written something to all of them and is happy as she feels as though she has given a proper goodbye this time. Still, Jinta protests to this sort of goodbye. They were playing hide and seek weren’t they? The game cannot end until they find her! They all ask if she’s ready yet, chanting it over and over again, until she finally shouts out that she’s ready. And finally, every single one of them can hear her…and see her.
Finally, with her wish granted and all goodbyes said, it’s time to end the game of hide and seek. And thus, Menma passes on to heaven with a smile on her face. Time passes, the Super Peace Busters grow up together and, though they can’t remember the name of the flower that bloomed during that season, they’ll always keep granting its wish forever…
“We found you Menma!!!”
“You found me…”
End Thoughts:
I just wanted to start off by saying that the flower that bloomed during that season, the one that they couldn’t remember the name of, was a forget-me-not. At the end of the episode, they showed that flower at the tree where Menma finally passed on which suggests that she was possibly reincarnated as one. Also, seeing as they’ll always be fulfilling the wish of that flower, they won’t forget Menma. That’s really sweet. Awww…perfect ending! Show ▼
Just as expected, Menma’s wish had to do with Jinta’s mom. I found it to be a lot simpler that I had anticipated and yet, quite fitting. Jinta definitely had a rough childhood and he had to hold back a lot of his feelings. It took a while for him to reach the point where he was able to let it all out and finally be honest with how he felt. Though Menma may not have understood the magnitude of what her promise entailed as a child, what it came to represent was Jinta’s growth emotionally. In the process of granting the wish, the Super Peace Busters came together again, so she kind of hit two birds with one stone there. Good job Menma! xD
So, I found that whole confession session to be slightly forced and more-than-slightly annoying. First off, it was just one massive, hormonal, butthurt cryfest. I was rather aghast at how Yukiatsu, Anaru and Tsuruko were still so hung up over childhood crushes. I understand that it must have been difficult for them, especially considering how the center of the love quadrangle (or whatever it is) died, but I still found it very hard to sympathize with them. I mean, come on! You can’t have possibly been in love with these people. You were CHILDREN. I refuse to believe that sort of crazy, dramatic, romantic desire exists within children. No way. Sorry. Not only so, but also, the whole eyelash part where they just started laughing out of no where was pretty forced. I understand that the entire scene was meant to be a catharsis of sorts for the characters; they were all fully being honest with how they felt and letting it all out. Quite honestly though, the way they all just decided on the spot to try and fulfill Menma’s wish again was unrealistic to me. I couldn’t find it in myself to believe that they were genuinely trying to fulfill it. I think that the main problem with the scene was that it should have been an event that spanned a bit more time. But, given that they had one episode to finish it all off, I think they did an alright job. What slightly fixed the scene for me was the fact that Menma was disappearing a lot more quickly than they had anticipated. Thus, they were all sort of forced to get over it.
Of all the characters, the one I felt the most sympathy for was Poppo. Hell, this kid saw one of his childhood friends die. No wonder he wanted Menma to go to heaven so badly. I don’t think that he should have blamed himself for it, but his reasoning for Menma going to heaven was the most justified in my opinion. Prior frustrations aside, I’m glad they left Poppo’s grand reveal for last because his trauma was the greatest and it definitely added to dramatic effect. Not only so, but his past gave a whole new meaning to what he had said in the previous episode about only being able to watch.
The final hide and seek game was really beautiful. That whole stretch from when Menma’s wish was revealed to when she finally passed away had me SOBBING. I was crying so hard. I’ve watched this episode several times and I cried every single time. There is a fine line between sweet and sappy, and this part was borderline, but it was SO GOOD. I love how she wrote them all individualized messages and admitted to wanting to stay with them more. Of course, this part was ruined for me the first time I watched because my sister came in, took one look at the screen and busted out laughing while I proceeded to rage at her, but the beauty of the scene was clearly not lost on me. xD It really was a gorgeous ending though. What better way to send off a childhood friend than with a game of hide and seek? They were all able to express how much they loved her, they were all crying and that was realistic to me.
You’ve gotta admit, they tied up all loose ends quite nicely with this episode. First, and most importantly, Menma’s wish was revealed and fulfilled and she passed on happily. All the Super Peace Busters divulged and supposedly got over their grievances to become true friends again. There was even a sense of closure with Menma’s family, along with glimpses into what kind of future the Super Peace Busters would have (I’m not the only one who though Poppo studying was ADORABLE right? xD).
All in all, I absolutely adored this show. It has earned a spot in my top ten shows EVER (thus far) and for good reason. The plot was super sweet and emotional. Also, the animation throughout AnoHana was absolutely beautiful and the seiyuus of course did a brilliant job. Even the background music was gorgeous; at times, it was the music that finally caused my tears to spill forth. *sniffles* Back when I first heard of this show and saw the preview, I immediately knew that it was going to be my favorite show of the season and that it was going to be pretty amazing. I’ll miss the Super Peace Busters. ^_^
About Zabobinator
Doesn't get enough sleep. Dork with a rather eclectic taste in manga and anime. Adores Studio Ghibli films.
POWUH: Beginner (20-35) with 28 comments
I cried bucketloads.
It wasn’t pretty.
…AGGGHH I’M GONNA MISS IT SO MUCH it made me cry more than clannad >n<
POWUH: Lovely-pyon~ with 323 comments
It’s never pretty. xD
I’m gonna miss it tooo~ OMG. Oh really? I heard that Clannad was a massive tearjerker as well. I should probably check it out eh?
POWUH: Meta Resident with 1557 comments
You’ll probably cry a lot, as long as you’re not heartless like me and didn’t care one bit about the main heroine… I really liked the special arcs much more.
POWUH: 800-899 and Self-proclaimed Manga Queen with 874 comments
~So I ended up killing myself watching an Ano Hana marathon from episode 7 to this last episode ;A; I didn’t cry in the episodes leading up to the ending, mostly because I wanted to punch Yukiatsu in the face SO BAD.
I agree, that last hide and seek game was so beautiful. That was such a nice touch. I couldn’t stop crying after that and I just sat there for five minutes after the episode ended just sobbing |’D (JUST THINKING ABOUT THIS NOW MAKES ME WANT TO CRY)
I think what gets me the most, music wise, is the OP. Every time I hear it, I can feel the back of my eyes burn and Im sitting there like, “I WILL NOT CRY, I WILL NOT CRY…”.
I’m so glad I ended up watching this ;A; Thank you for
threateningpushing me to finish it!POWUH: Lovely-pyon~ with 323 comments
I’m so proud of you. 😀
Wasn’t it? I ALWAYS TEAR UP TOOOOO!!! Especially when Menma’s like “You found me…” and I’m just sitting there SOBBING. It’s like Niagara Falls on my face. xD
Ah yes, the OP. It’s beautiful. I’ve got it memorized. Bam. I should probably do karaoke for it or something. The ED was super awesome as well though! It always made the ending scenes of each episode that much more…heartwrenching. *sniffles*
No problem! I shall
threatenpush you anytime to watch awesome shows! I’m gonna watch A Channel and start watching the anime for Ao no Exorcist just for you too. xDPOWUH: Lovely-pyon~ with 304 comments
I cried so hard. This was such a beautiful ending. The scene with everyone’s confessions did seem a bit over dramatic, but when Poppo talked about watching Menma drift farther and farther away, I lost it just like everyone else did at that moment. That whole scene felt like something I’ve experienced with my friends and family before, so it really hit me hard. This whole series did. I’m kind of glad it’s over because I always feel depressed after I watch it. This was definitely the best anime of the Spring season, and so far, of the year. I wonder if anything this summer or fall can top it.
POWUH: Lovely-pyon~ with 323 comments
Ah yah, it was overdramatic, but Poppo’s part was the most realistic to me. I didn’t start crying but I was tearing up for sure.
I mean, I’ve experienced similar situations as well but I still couldn’t get very into it. It was mainly what they were crying over. Childhood crushes? Seriously? T_T
Best show fo’sho. I love it. <3
POWUH: iLurker with 12 comments
It was a nice, honest “healing show”. I can get behind that. I wish more anime would have the balls to be forward with their drama, rather than always trying to shock and awe us with wham moments. Because of that, it could end in a sappy way without feeling utterly stupid.
POWUH: Lovely-pyon~ with 323 comments
I like your take on it and I totally agree. I’m typically not a fan of sappiness and I adored this show. 😀
POWUH: Metanorn Regular with 79 comments
I thought that the wish was pretty clever, when we learned what it was. The SPBs really were working to fulfill Menma’s wish the whole time, even if they didn’t know it themselves. I think I might have to watch the show again with this in mind to see everywhere that Jinta laughs, cries and shows emotions other than his usual.
I’m really glad that I watched this show, now that it’s over. They clearly had to rush some things for the finale, but overall I thought it was a very good examination of moving on from grief from the perspective of the SPBs and some of the side characters as well. It’s definitely in my top 5 for the season.
POWUH: Lovely-pyon~ with 323 comments
I’m definitely gonna rewatch this sometime. Hopefully I won’t cry as much. xD
TOP 5 FO’SHO. Numero uno actually.
POWUH: 1100-1199 and Meta's Evil rice-flour Product with 1137 comments
NONONONONONONO i lasted up until this episode without tearing up, goddamn it, arewlajflkasdjfl raaaaaaage, so gooooood
POWUH: Lovely-pyon~ with 323 comments
You’re not alone. xD
POWUH: 400-499 with 489 comments
DAMNIT IM SO BEHIND but i love this anime it’s one of the only few that make me cry
POWUH: Lovely-pyon~ with 323 comments
CATCH UP. NOW. I COMMAND YOU. GO GO GO!
POWUH: and Yaoi Fangirl~ with 2320 comments
yup, time to marathon it next week
POWUH: Lovely-pyon~ with 323 comments
Please do waifu dearest. I’ll read Gintama for you. 😀
POWUH: 1000-1099 and Critique with 1024 comments
CRYINGFOREVER.jpg
POWUH: Lovely-pyon~ with 323 comments
ME TOO!!!!
POWUH: Lovely-pyon~ with 339 comments
Oh god many tissues. This honestly so beautiful.
And a forget me not? Cleaver, very fitting <3
POWUH: Lovely-pyon~ with 323 comments
I thought it was quite clever as well. Perfect. 😀
POWUH: 400-499 with 428 comments
Super Peace Busters are friends forever! God, the ending is so good, I know, I agree the cryfest was a bit forced but that was the only problem really. I’m glad that Poppo and Tsuruko (especially Tsuruko) finally revealed their true feelings…and the ending…so beautiful, from Menma’s final letters to the final goodbye (we found you!). So glad they could see her at the end, a realisation of being true to themselves…and how they’re working towards that wish of the SPB being friends forever is honest and pure, expected of Menma really…on that note, we say farewell to the flower we found that day 🙂
POWUH: Lovely-pyon~ with 323 comments
*sniffles*
It was such a beautiful ending. Those letters were adorable. Best game of Hide and Seek EVER. 😀
POWUH: Meta Team and PreCure Mastah with 9203 comments
Dawwww great series here! Lovely ending and I sort of figured it had to be something with Jinta’s mom’s last wish, anyway fun series! And damn sad <3
Congrats zabob on finishing your first series on Metanorn! Wooooo!!
POWUH: Lovely-pyon~ with 323 comments
So sad, but a decently happy ending.
And thanks!!! 😀
POWUH: 400-499 and Manly Russians lover with 401 comments
K-ON was sadder.
POWUH: Lovely-pyon~ with 323 comments
As heart wrenching as K-ON must have been, I’m still gonna have to say that AnoHana was sadder. xD
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
Oh crap. I cried at the end of K-ON. How much will I cry here???
POWUH: Lovely-pyon~ with 323 comments
A lot. I assure you.
POWUH: Metanorn Regular with 83 comments
Anohana ended beautifully. As you said, the confession scene felt really forced. While I was watching that I was actually thinking in my head “Woah, who put a bunch of hormones into their cereal bowl this morning?”
Gotta blame plastic milk bottles for their early development of hormones when they were kids. That must be what caused the huge splurg of romance between the Super Peace Busters.
I really loved everything after the huge confession scene – everything else just felt more natural to the series (Maybe A-1 pictures did that on purpose for contrast, ahh). Although the waterworks didn’t come, I did tear up a lot inside. Especially at the part with the paper opening.
Oh man, this series is great. Congratz Zabobinator for finishing your first series at Metanorn! Keep up the awesome work!
POWUH: Lovely-pyon~ with 323 comments
Dude seriously. SO HORMONAL. THEY WERE ALL PMSING OR SOMETHING. Yukiatsu was the whole time though… xD
I can’t believe you didn’t cry. Jeeze.
Thanks!!! 😀
POWUH: Meta Team and Megane-chan with 3214 comments
I refused to watch this because I just KNOW that I’ll cry but now that it’s over I’ll proabably marathon it and get the tearfest over with.
POWUH: Lovely-pyon~ with 323 comments
Dude, seriously, go marathon it right now. Like seriously, now. Go. Watch. Now. <3
It's so goooooddddd~
POWUH: 400-499 with 406 comments
You found meee~.
I cried so hard at Poppo’s confession. Ugh Poor guy.
This anime was so amazing. Brb crying forever.
POWUH: Lovely-pyon~ with 323 comments
His confession was so heartbreaking. Like, wow. That’s a terrible thing to go through. He’s such a sweetheart too. *sobs*
Here. Have some tissues. <3
POWUH: Beginner (20-35) with 25 comments
I just watched the whole series in one go. Wow, did my mascara smear. I had to lock my door cause I was crying so often. 🙁
Poppo was the saddest for me. For him to have been that happy throughout the series when he practically got the worst trauma of them all…it was wow.
I think the entire fight through the confessions were pointless. At the end, it became more about their resentment than Menma -___-.
Either way, this was completely worth the watch. I don’t I would ever watch any anime even remotely the same because I don’t like them. This was the EXCEPTION. That’s how good it was.