Saikano Review

Today I'm going to take a look at an anime series called "Saikano (The Last Love Song on this Planet)".  I hope you'll enjoy my review~!  If you want to skip straight to my recommendation just check the very bottom of this post.  Don't worry, I will be marking any spoilers so that I won't accidentally ruin anything for you.  If you have read or watched this series I'd love to hear your thoughts as well, in the comments below.

General Overview

This is a short series, only 13 episodes, so expect it to move a bit quickly.  To me this was a good thing as it allowed us to jump right into the plot with no chance of pointless filler episodes.  The art style might take a little getting used to, but it grew on me.  They appear to constantly blush, once they *actually* blush, though, you'll see the difference and notice that its just part of the art style.  It is called "The Last Love Song on this Little Planet" for a reason as the plot entwines war and romance.  We follow Shuuji and Chise as they attempt to have a normal relationship during an ongoing war.  However this is just the tip of the iceberg as we quickly find out that Chise is actually a experimental government weapon who must fight in each raid.  Being so shy and clumsy, no one would expect this of her, and all she wants to do is find love before the end.  These two struggle through many problems; ranging from the usual relationship trust issues to terrible issues involving her transformation into a weapon and involvement with the government. 

We are also introduced to a few other characters who play big roles in this short story.  Akemi is the childhood friend of both Chise and Shuuji and is the one who initially pushed Chise to ask Shuuji out.  Atushi is Shuuji's best friend who has a crush on Akemi and eventually decides to join the military to try and protect his loved ones.  Tetsu is a commanding officer that works with Chise and Fuyumi is one of Shuuji's past flames so to speak.  Of course the stories involving these four go deeper than my summary here, but this is the non-spoiler section so that's the best you get for now.  We also meet a few more classmates as well as parents and government officials, but their roles are minor in comparison.  If you watch the OVA you get one more important character named Mizuki, who was the first experimental weapon.  The music in this series was good, it didn't stand out to me as amazing but it certainly wasn't bad either.

We never get a lot of detail about the war that has been going on since this series is meant to focus on the relationships of the people involved and the tragedy of it all.  However if Saikano leaves you hungering to learn a little more about the weapons and the war, there are 2 OVA episodes that touch on those topics a bit more.  As a bonus you also get to see what Chise was up to some of the times when she was apart from Shuuji on military missions.  Overall this series is extremely emotional and can really tug at your heart strings.  Interestingly it handles the romance from the males point of view and this really helps it to appeal to both genders; I know multiple men who don't normally watch romance that really love this series.  So as you see, I think that the plot and character development in this series is very well done.  Its a Seinen, meaning it is targeted towards older male audiences for the most part.  I'd say that either gender can enjoy this as long as they are mature, though.

*** WARNING!!  This section of the post will include SPOILERS!! ***

Highlight/Mouse over the text below in order to read on. You have been warned~

Alright, lets talk a bit about the details in this spoiler section.  Turn away now if you plan to watch the series, because this will ruin it for you.

I loved the theme of love here, considering that their love is literally the only thing in the entire series that survives the end of the world.  I'm a sucker for love conquering all, I admit.  Of course the ending is a bit odd, even odder in the manga when she turns into a ship of some sort.  As I mention later I cried many times throughout the series for oh so many reasons.  It also touched some really sensitive spots for me with a few plot points.  Specifically the fact that they each sort of.. kind of.. cheat one each other?  The trust issues, knowing whats going on behind the scenes, but still feeling that love and trying so hard to make it work is all so realistic for me.

Akemi loving Shuuji but still staying on the sidelines so that he and Chise can be together was also a great part of the plot.  Watching her confess her feelings and die in his arms while he is in tears really got to me, I felt terrible for her and admired her at the same time.  The girlfriend of the guy who dies in the first episode also surprises me by trying to avenge him and never forgetting her love for him even though she tries to appear as if she has moved on.  Tetsu and Fuyumi's whole ordeal and the fact that all they wanted to do was see each other before the end despite being less than loyal to one another was another depressing bit.  As was Atushi fighting for Akemi even though she never really loved him, it was his delusion.

*** End of Spoilers! ***

Recommendation / Afterthoughts

This is a series that I highly recommend, I'd personally give it a 8.5 out of 10.  Definitely give it a chance if you can, though I'd warn against doing so if you are currently feeling depressed (it would probably only make you feel worse in that case).  Expect maturity, there are sexual scenes that are handled well (they don't show too much but let you know what is going on) and the situations and emotions are all quite mature as well.  There are many mixed reviews for this series out there.  It seems to me that a lot of people complain that the main characters cried too much.  Personally I feel that if they *didn't* cry that much in the situations that they were put into then well.. they'd be a bit unrealistic or heartless.  Heck, I cried during almost every episode!  Then again I'm a bit of a wuss, a better example would be that my boyfriend even cried once or twice which is extremely rare for him.  There are certainly some cute scenes and funny moments as well despite the depressing plot. 

A few aspects are unrealistic (the ending and her turning into such a weapon come to mind) but every other aspect is quite realistic.  I feel that those things were blown out of proportion on purpose to add to the drama and emotions involved.  I truly related to and enjoyed watching them grow more mature and change over time throughout the series as well.  You can see Shuuji overcome some of his indecisiveness and Chise become more outspoken about what she wants.  If you like to be emotionally connected with the series and characters that you watch then this anime is for you.  I believe that the manga is pretty much the same with a slightly different ending, if you'd prefer reading over watching.  (But I'm not 100% sure!)
There you have it, now go check it out.  ^_^