Those of us who grew up with Hollywood fare are familiar with, and even possibly tired of, the retreads and reboots of various story properties. There isn’t as much of that in the anime world but there’s one very notable example. It’s the visual novel so nice they animated it twice…

What is it?

Kanon, the 2006 version, is a 24 episode anime based on a visual novel (if you’re wondering: a sort of choose-your-own-adventure computer game). There was a shorter anime made four years prior which, depending on who you ask, is barely remembered or viewed with indifference or held in contempt.

What kind of story is it?

Boy meets girls. Boy moves out of town. Boy forgets girls. Boy moves back to town. Boy meets girls again, only to discover various mystical and/or tragic circumstances for each of them. Boy is perfectly willing to be a total dork if it makes them laugh, though, so he’s got that going for him. Boy has his own mystery to solve as well.

Let’s be clear: While there’s a lot of comedy woven into the show, there’s a reason it’s often referred to as the “sad girls in snow” series.

Why do you like it?

As has been noted time and again here, if you give me the right group of characters I’ll follow you anywhere. In this case you have a male lead who might be somewhat of a blank slate but is a marvelous deadpan snarker. He interacts with a varied selection of lively and interesting (to varying degrees) girls. What more could you want?

Oh right: You could want the show to look fantastic. Luckily, Kanon is a visual feast. The Kyoto Animation company was making a name for themselves in the arena of high-production-values animated television in the mid-2000s and they knocked it out of the park with this one. There’s no question that this show was crafted with caring attention to detail.

What might one not like about it?

How do you feel about crying? If you’re severely averse to having your heart put through the ringer, well, I guess you should watch something else. I think the story earns and supports the emotional gut-punches you receive (and balances it all with humor and thoughtfulness) but your mileage may certainly vary.

Also, if you can relate to this rant, you may have difficulties with a recurring musical theme here. Kyoto Animation decided to work riffs on Pachelbel’s Canon in D into the plot because of the names being alike. Yup.

Other thoughts about it?

Kanon is utterly relentless about its melodrama. Yes, it’s heavy-handed when it turns serious. Yes, it goes for the gut-punch time and again. Sometimes that’s the kind of show you want. If nothing else, it’ll help clear out your tear ducts.

Where can I watch it?

As of this writing, Kanon is still in Funimation’s streaming library.