Your Lie In April - The Anime That Shattered My Heart

Your Lie In April - The Anime That Shattered My Heart

Synopsis

Your Lie In April follows Kōsei Arima, who gave up piano at a young age. After meeting a violinist, Kaori Miyazono, both their lives become entangled. 

Kosei and Kaori in Your Lie In April

Introduction 

I'm going to be honest, guys. I don't know what to say. When I watched Studio Ghibli's Grave of the Fireflies awhile back, I cried a lot. A lot. I didn't think I would ever watch something that would make me cry more than I did then. I was wrong. Your Lie In April warmed my heart, and then crushed me and destroyed me again and again.

Kosei and Kaori in one of the best scenes of the anime

Characters

Let's start with the characters. The wonderful thing about this anime is that their characters feel extremely grounded. Themes of loss, abuse and love are explored very well through our characters, and every one of them are extremely well written. Every character had a part to play, and contributed to making this anime being as perfect as it is. Kaori has to be my favourite character. She radiates happiness, and her endless positivity plays a huge part in getting our lead character, Kosei, back on his feet. Kosei's close friend, Tsubaki, is also a great character. Although she is a supporting character, she has a lot to her character. Tsubaki is extremely relatable, and goes through a great character arc. All of them do, really. As for more minor characters, they also get a lot of focus and every character gets their time as a spotlight. This anime doesn't have throwaway characters, which is something I appreciate. Combined with the great voice acting, the characters in this anime are something special. 

Childhood Friends Kosei and Tsubaki

Animation and Cinematography

Moving on, the animation is great here. The animation flows smoothly and melodically, like a song, and provides beautiful imagery for the viewer to be immersed in. Many different animation styles are made use of, each to their own success. The cinematography is really gorgeous, especially during more intimate scenes. It really feels like I'm being brought along for the ride with this anime, it is so intimate and so grounded that I connect with it effortlessly. For the musical performance scenes, the animation is truly phenomenal, and from what I've seen from musicians' comments, is extremely realistic and follows the music accurately. Besides its accuracy, it also shines so beautifully, making the scenes such a joy to watch.  

One of my favourite shots in the anime

Score

Perhaps where this anime shines the brightest though, is its score. The anime revolves around classical music, and the music is flawless. Perfectly emotional, and perfectly reflects the respective characters. I am not be an expert on classical music, but I can feel the different types of energy that comes off of the different pieces of music. Listening to the intro and outro songs are enough to make me tear up too. I'm listening to one right now, in fact. I'm actually hooked on some of the classical pieces that were played in the anime. That's how good the music and music choice is. The performance scenes are truly breathtaking, and it's largely due to the music being phenomenal. 

Kosei and Kaori performing "Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso"

Personal Impact 

This one hit me hard. The very core of this anime has to do with love and loss, and that hits me where it hurts. Perhaps it's because I've gone through it before, or simply because the characters are that well written. Whatever the reason, Your Lie In April hurt me, but in a good way. This anime is relentlessly cruel in the way it tackles themes. Throughout the entire series, the feeling of sadness and gloom hung over me, and at the end, every last bit of sadness was squeezed out of me in the form of tears and sobs. I feel so bitter, so bitter. But all I can do is accept the bitterness with a heavy heart. I'm struggling to even write this review. That's how much my heart is hurt. 

"I'm so bitter." - Tsubaki's heartbreaking lament

Conclusion 

I don't think I can put into any more words how special this anime is to me. It fills my heart with joy and sadness at the same time, and the mere thought of it is enough to send me into a downward spiral. Your Lie In April is far beyond perfection in my eyes. In closing, I implore you to give this anime a watch, as it is truly something special.