The flower that we saw that day anime

Anime / Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day

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When a loved one dies — be it a friend, a classmate, a significant other, or a family member — it strikes a chord. Things change. Close friends drift apart. Some move on, and some stay firmly rooted in the past.

The latter is what happens to Jinta «Jintan» Yadomi, a high school-aged Hikikomori. After the death of Meiko «Menma» Honma, Jintan and their four other friends — Naruko «Anaru» Anjo, Atsumu «Yukiatsu» Matsuyuki, Chiriko «Tsuruko» Tsurumi, and Tetsudo «Poppo» Hisakawa — begin to lose touch with each other and move on with their lives. Five years later, Menma’s ghost pays him a visit, asking him to help her fulfill a wish. Just what that wish is, she doesn’t completely remember, but getting the old gang back together is a start.

Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae o Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai. («We Still Don’t Know the Name of the Flower We Saw That Day.»), also known as »anohana» for short, is a Spring 2011 Anime First series shown on noitaminA and produced by A-1 Pictures. It has been licensed for North American release by NIS America in July 2012. There’s also a movie of the same name licensed by Aniplex USA which retells the story one year later, which premiered on August 2013.

Aniplex USA announced at Sakura-Con 2017 that they have license rescued the TV series, and it is receiving an English dub via Bang Zoom! Entertainment with Patrick Seitz as the ADR Director.

A special 10th anniversary anime project has been announced for August 2021, likely as a connection to the ending song. It features updated character designs of the cast as adults drawn by the official character designer and chief animation director. More information can be found on Anime News Network.

Viewers in the US may watch this show legally on Crunchyroll and Netflix.

Ano-Hana provides examples of:

Exploring the World of Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day

Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day (Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae wo Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai or We Still Don’t Know the Name of the Flower We Saw That Day) is the popular 2011 anime series which revolves around a ghost girl Menma and her childhood friends Jinta, Anaru, Tsuruko, Atsumu, Poppo and a couple of other supporting characters. The anime is based on the manga illustrations by Mitsu Izumi while the anime was directed by Tatsuyuki Nagai and produced by A-1 Pictures.

Many fans have lost their hearts to the intriguing characters and the beautiful world of Anohana, and in this article we are going to explore the background and what makes this anime so unique and lovable.

SETTING

Anohana is set in modern day Japan, or more precisely Chichibu city (Saitama prefecture, north of Tokyo). If you are lucky, you may have already visited or you may go there one day and explore the breathtaking landscape including every nook and cranny that was used in the anime. As with most anime series that are set in the modern time, Anohana features many scenes that were inspired by real areas of land and urban life.

Chichibu Bridge is one of the most frequent places used in the anime. Menma and her childhood friends used to cross this bridge all the time when they were going to their clubhouse in the woods and some of the most touching confessions have been said on it. This bridge can also be seen as a connection between their childhood and adulthood.

Another famous place used in the anime is Shibazakura-No-Oka, which is a pink carpet of flowers located in Hitsujiyama Park, placed on the hill with a panoramic view of the whole town. You have probably noticed that in the opening scene. Ryusei Kaikan is also an important place at which everyone gathers in the last episode to bid farewell to Menma. It is where the local people launch handmade rockets and fireworks every year during the Ryusei Festival (held on the second Sunday of October).

Jourinji Temple is one of many other temples in Chichibu, and it is used as a place where the gang (the Super Peace Busters) meet and eventually come in terms with their emotions and scars from the past. The episode which features this scene takes place at the front of this temple and it is also one of the most emotional ones in the anime.

One of the reasons why Chichibu was used as inspiration for the anime is probably because that town is the birthplace of Mari Okada, an anime screenwriter, the writer of the serial novel and manga of the same name.

UNIQUENESS

Anohana is a slice of drama filled with supernatural elements. The emphasis is put on the characters’ development and their transitions from childhood to adulthood, including their struggle in overcoming traumas from the past. You could probably be able to name a few titles that cover such issues, but what makes Anohana unique is the way it uses a ghost as means of reuniting the old childhood friends and opening their wounds again so they can finally heal.

Since this is a character driven anime, a lot of effort is put into dialogues between the characters and on beautiful visuals which serve as highlighting and emphasizing the changes in emotions and the changes that have or have not occurred during the past ten years. The Super Peace Busters was a group of six and their clubhouse was their sanctuary, however, after Menma died in a tragic accident, haunted by the pain and regrets, each member drifted away and they grew apart.

The story manages, besides having certain supernatural elements, to be very realistic and to portray in a very sentimental and emotional way how certain events can influence our lives and shape our personalities as we grow older.

SIMILAR ANIME TITLES

There are many anime titles that can be said to cover the similar or the same issues as Anohana. Some of them have certain supernatural elements, while some do not. Here are some of them.

Nagi no Asukara is a great choice, because this anime portrays a group of friends (also six of them) whose lives get changed due to some difficult circumstances and all of them need to cope with them and face their own problems. All of them have grown up and played together, just like the ones in Anohana and they are all connected in some way. There is also the theme of love covered, having in mind that each character has painful secrets and hidden feelings that cannot be easily said aloud. The anime is set in the present, however, it is a completely different world with many supernatural elements.

Tokyo Magnitude 8.0 does not have supernatural elements like Nagi no Asukara or Anohara, but the plot is focused on children and young adults who are trying to overcome the losses of their loved ones. That is one of the major themes in Anohana too, and that is why these two anime series are more than similar in that aspect.

Another great anime is Kokoro Connect which is a both slice of drama and a supernatural anime filled with romance. Kokoro Connect features yet another group of friends whose feelings and past traumas get revealed only when they experience a shocking change – they start switching their bodies without any warning or rule. At first they find it confusing and funny, but later on they will realize that with this change their own secrets and feelings get exposed because they are not able to hide them anymore.

All in all, there is no show identical anime to Anohana. However, all of the anime series mentioned above should prove to entertain those who enjoyed Anohana.

WHO SHOULD WATCH IT?

Anime fans who like watching slice of life and romantic shows in general would certainly find Anohana entertaining and appealing. Anohana also features elements of supernatural and melodrama, therefore if you have liked such genres in the past, you should definitely check out this anime.

Even though the story revolves around a young ghost girl and her childhood friends who are now high school students, this anime is not aimed only at the younger audience. At first glance, Anohana may be about old friends who have grown apart and now are trying to overcome the distance between each other, however, the simplicity and its sentimental values can be something that even adults can relate to.

Losing a beloved person is difficult for everyone, whether child or adult, and everyone copes with loss in their own way. Anohana explores these old wounds, hidden secrets, and suppressed feelings in a beautiful and original way, and that makes it worth checking out.

To sum it up, if you are ready for an emotional story filled with some minor supernatural elements which explore the depth of friendship, love, and loss, then Anohana is an anime that will probably touch your heart and perhaps even change your life.

Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae wo Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai.

Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day

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Synopsis

Jinta Yadomi is peacefully living as a recluse, spending his days away from school and playing video games at home instead. One hot summer day, his childhood friend, Meiko «Menma» Honma, appears and pesters him to grant a forgotten wish. He pays her no mind, which annoys her, but he doesn’t really care. After all, Menma already died years ago.

At first, Jinta thinks that he is merely hallucinating due to the summer heat, but he is later on convinced that what he sees truly is the ghost of Menma. Jinta and his group of childhood friends grew apart after her untimely death, but they are drawn together once more as they try to lay Menma’s spirit to rest. Re-living their pain and guilt, will they be able to find the strength to help not only Menma move on—but themselves as well?

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Background

Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae wo Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai. reunites the lead production staff of the 2008 anime series Toradora! It was first teased in December 2010 as a joint production of Aniplex, Fuji Television, and animation studio A-1 Pictures under the title AnoHana Project. The series is set in the city of Chichibu, Saitama Prefecture.

The first Blu-ray volume, which went on sale on June 29, 2011, sold more than 31,000 copies in the first week of release. At the time, that first week sales figure was the third highest for a first volume Blu-ray release of a television anime, after Mahou Shoujo Madoka★Magica (2011) and K-On! (2009). AnoHana received a Jury Selection award in the Animation division of the 15th Japan Media Arts Festival.

A visual novel adaptation for the PlayStation Portable, which diverges from the story of the anime and contains an original ending, was developed by Guyzware and published by 5pb. on August 30, 2012. AnoHana was also adapted into a special live-action television drama, which aired on Fuji Television on September 21, 2015.

Related Anime

Characters & Voice Actors

Honma, Meiko

Yadomi, Jinta

Anjou, Naruko

Hisakawa, Tetsudou

Tsurumi, Chiriko

Matsuyuki, Atsumu

Yadomi, Atsushi

Honma, Satoshi

Yadomi, Touko

Staff

Opening Theme

Ending Theme

Kimi ga Kureta Mono

(10 years after ver.) (secret base 〜君がくれたもの〜（10 years after Ver.）» by Meiko Honma (Ai Kayano), Naruko Anjou (Haruka Tomatsu), Chiriko Tsurumi (Saori Hayami) (eps 1-10)

Reviews

Dealing with the death of a friend or loved one isn’t easy, no matter how old you are, and everyone comes to terms with their loss in different ways. Adults can drink themselves into a stupor in an effort to dull the pain, take off on a journey of self discovery, bury themselves in their work, or find some other coping mechanism. Unfortunately the same isn’t true for children, and all too often they are unable to truly deal with the emotional turmoil that occurs.

The story opens with Yadomi Jinta, a seemingly grumpy teenager who is playing a game in his room on a hot summer’s day whilst his childhood friend Honma Meiko (Menma), pesters him repeatedly. Having had enough of the game, Jinta decides to make lunch, but only for himself and his father which annoys Menma no end as she also wants to eat the ramen he has made.

On the surface AnoHana looks like a fairly straightforward tale of teenagers learning to deal with a past trauma and maturing in the process, and for the most part that’s a fairly accurate perception. The plot is well constructed and takes a measured, almost methodical approach to events which is reflected in the often placid tone of the narrative. Unfortunately this leads to a degree of predictability as certain events in the storyline are clearly foreshadowed, and while the series promotes a degree of empathy for the characters and their situation, there may be occasions where viewers want the story to get to the point.

One surprising aspect is the manner in which flashbacks are used to punctuate specific occurrences or emotions, whilst adding historical context to the relationship between Jinta, Menma, and the rest of the «Super Peace Busters». These sojourns into memory act as a nice counterpoint to the current state of relations between the characters, and highlight just how much has changed for each of them over the last ten years.

This contrast is also reflected in the visuals, and while there is a marked difference in the appearance of almost all of the Super Peace Busters, it’s actually the subtle contextual setting that makes the change much more pronounced. The key thing to remember is that people often romanticise personal history and memories, especially if one has undergone some kind of trauma, and AnoHana plays on this by sharpening the focus and darkening the tones on the present day, which contrasts with the soft focus flashbacks that are often filled with «light».

The design itself is well handled, but while efforts have been made to really highlight the changes ten years can make to a child’s physical growth, it’s the character animation that stands out. A-1 Pictures have tried to visualize the movement differences between a child and an adolescent, and while there are a few niggles here and there, the overall effect promotes the sense that the characters are no longer the children they once were.

AnoHana features a number of slow pieces of background music performed on piano or guitar that reflect the measured plot and add a slightly bittersweet air to the storyline. The opening theme, Aoi Shiori by Galileo Galilei, features a sequence that shows the characters in their past and present forms and hints at the the reason for their emotional difficulties. The ending sequence features a montage of the three girls of the Super Peace Busters, Menma, Anjou Naruko (Anaru), and Tsurumi Chiriko (Tsuruko), and is set to Secret Base

Kimi ga Kureta Mono

(10 years after Version), which is a cover of the 2001 single by Zone and is performed by Kayano Ai, Tomatsu Haruka and Hayami Saori, the seiyuu who play the roles of Menma, Anaru and Tsuruko.

Now given the nature of the series and the near constant focus on the characters, certain viewers may assume that AnoHana should feature almost continuous development, so it may come as a surprise to some people that the show takes more of a «stop-start» approach. Because of the attempt to apply a degree of realism to the characters and the emphasis on depicting them as plausible, any attempts at continuous development would seem overly contrived.

Balancing that though, is some rather strong characterisation. One of the key things to remember about each person in the story is that they have experienced a specific defining moment in their lives, and that allows the characters to be depicted as individuals from the start. The strength of the characterisation is even more palpable if one compares the present versions of the Super Peace Busters with their past selves from the flashbacks. That said, there are occasions where the story has difficulty finding a resolution to a given situation so it can sometimes seem as though events are being dragged on in a effort to develop the characters.

AnoHana is a surprisingly simple, yet slightly over sentimental, look at the coping mechanisms of children and adolescents when coming to terms with a past trauma, and in that respect it’s one of the more surprising titles of the last few years. The series errs more on the side of soap opera than outright drama from time to time, but like many of the other relatively minor flaws, this can be forgiven in light of the fact that the subject matter is well managed and delivered. In truth, the closest neighbour to AnoHana would probably be Tokyo Magnitude 8.0 as that also highlights the difficulty children have in dealing with the sudden loss of a loved one.

It’s difficult to say whether I actually enjoyed the series or not. On the one hand it has some genuinely entertaining moments, but on the other the series deals with an issue that has little enjoyment value (unless watching kids coming to terms with emotional scars is your thing), and even though AnoHana isn’t a story without flaws, that doesn’t mean it’s bad. In fact, the reverse is true as while the series does take a slightly romanticised look at the characters and events, the constant element of realism that runs through the narrative sets this anime apart from many others.

If nothing else, AnoHana is a great example of how good a completely original anime can be.

There’s nothing quite like the loss of a loved one for changing a person. We always feel that death is such an alien concept, it exists but is somehow detached and unrelated to our own little world until it comes knocking on our doorstep. Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae wo Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai (We Still Don’t Know the Name of the Flower We Saw That Day), tries to show us just how powerful an effect death can have on us.

Before we go on, I would like to state for the record that I absolutely endorse this anime to anyone who asks, reasons which are perfectly illustrated in Archaeon’s neatly succinct review, of which I direct you to. There really is no reason to write another straightforward review reiterating everything he’s said when you can just go and see his. Instead, for those who have already finished the anime and are looking for a more critical approach to viewing AnoHana, it may interest you to read further here.

There’s no denying AnoHana is fine piece of work. Everything from animation to sound, characterization to story are all quality material and together form both a visually and emotionally satisfying experience. The anime is far past the point of debate about whether watching it would be enjoyable and worth one’s while, because it most certainly is. The proceeding point of scrutiny would be to examine the anime at it’s core fundamental level. This is the point where the ‘really good’ pieces of work are separated from the true masterpieces. This is also the point where AnoHana unfortunately falls flat. Specifically speaking, AnoHana’s screenplay just isn’t very good.

In fact, considering how well rounded the anime feels as a whole, the screenplay is actually deceptively and surprisingly bad.

Okada Mari, one whom I respect greatly for her work on Tordora and Kuroshitsuji is back again; this time she is chief script writer for AnoHana. Unfortunately Mari’s apparent inexperience in writing shines through clearly in the screenplay. There is no doubt she has talent and a knack for good ideas, which makes it disappointing to see she still stumbles on some basic areas of writing. The narrative for example, is sorely lacking in woven exposition, with the many aspects of the story left feeling one dimensional and underdeveloped (more on that in a moment).

The dialogue is also inconsistent; the majority of the time it is written and delivered beautifully, but there are frequent punctuations of awkward, out of place lines that leaves something to be desired. Most of these instances are offset by the talent of the seiyuu who try their best to bring emotion to these parts, but the moments are still unavoidably noticeable. For instance, count how many times this scene happens: Jin-tan glances to his side at Meiko and mutters ‘Menma. ’ another character looks at him, confused, and questions ‘Yadomi?’

There are very clear distinctions between the lines that have significance to the plot or the character, and lines which are simply conversational pieces, with almost no blending of the two types. At times it feels like the latter lines have no contextual meaning at all and are simply there to fill in time because the script writer couldn’t think of anything else to write. For an anime like AnoHana where the entirety of the narrative is delivered via dialogue and character interaction, this is a very dangerous habit to fall into.

There are many good things that Okada Mari brought from her experience working on the series compositions of titles like Toradora, Fractale and Gosick. Unfortunately one of them also happened to be the abysmal pacing that they all suffered from at one point or another. Naturally, the structure Exposition-Rising Action-Climax-Falling Action-Resolution can’t possibly be adhered to as strictly for anime as it does for say, novels or films, simply due to the episodic nature of anime; there is an underlying need for each episode to be standalone in it’s own right, even if it is meant to contribute to the overall story. However that isn’t to say we shouldn’t at least make an effort.

The problem with AnoHana is that it simply tried too hard to be episodic. Each episode’s substory warranted so much attention that there was very little room left to develop the main plot. Although each individual 24-minute segment was neatly tied into a little package with it’s own structure, which seemed fine at the time of watching, suddenly we reach the end of episode 9 and we realize with 2 episodes to go we’re still on the exposition part of the main story. This is again, partly due to the fault of the narrative not having any woven exposition in itself, relying instead on almost purely dialogue and flashbacks to establish the backstory, an alternative which is both more time consuming and less efficient. (To throw an example out there, think how easy it would have been to tell stories of Popo’s adventures around the world by simply including a few souvenirs from his travels in his little hut. A few frames to easily explore an episode’s worth of exposition, which can then be used to add elements to Popo’s character without the need for spoken exposition.)

I am strongly hesitant in calling AnoHana a melodrama. The constant hint of realism in both the visuals and characters suggest otherwise, as does the very real themes that it tries to convey. The anime obviously works very hard to provoke an emotional response and I wonder at times if it is trying a little too hard. Not a scene goes by without Yadomi frowning at something, and the prevalence (or rather excess), of falling tears in every episode almost screams at me: “Here is an emotional scene, indicated by the tears. Feel sadness you sheep!” The need for AnoHana to constantly use the act of crying to convey sorrow seems almost shortsighted, and while they are a good tool for reinforcing the emotional instability of the characters, they seem to serve little other purpose.

All this cumulatively leads to the biggest flaw of AnoHana: as an anime observing death and how people cope with it, there is shockingly little character development observed. What AnoHana tries to offer instead are single characters at two points in time. On one hand we have the happy-go-lucky childhood of the super-peace-busters, on the other we have the sullen, withdrawn adolescent individuals of those friends, drifting apart and trying to move on with their lives. At first sight it is amazingly easy to mistake this contrast of past and present for ‘character development,’ however true character development demands something a little more in-depth than, ‘friend dies, people become sad.’ Yukiatsu is arguably the only character who experiences true change, *spoiler alert* in his brief contact with Menma *spoiler alert* he experiences denial, confusion, jealousy and anger, and in doing so, realizing his self-loathing attitude and changing himself. Yadomi’s development is also arguable, though I remain skeptic as to whether what seems to me as merely an overdue self realization can be categorized as development if it were there subconsciously all along. In comparison, the other characters, experienced only minimal changes, exchanging confessions and realization which, while heart-moving, can hardly be justified as ‘development,’ begging the question of whether there was any point to the whole thing other than being an emotional roller-coaster of adolescent diversions.

If you’ve managed to read this far and haven’t yet ‘unhelpful’d’ this review or thrown your mouse across the room in anger, then props to you, and perhaps you’d like stay a bit longer and allow me to explain where all this nonsense is coming from.

The mindset of a critic is slightly different from that of an average viewer. We’ve seen, considered and analyzed far more than what would be considered healthy for a normal human being and as a result, we view things a bit differently. Cliches and archetypes you’ve seen maybe half a dozen times, we’ve seen hundreds of times. We get bored quickly, we’re more easily dismissive, we hone in on small mistakes like vultures, we’re very excited by originality and we’re far more disappointed when a promising series falls short just inches from the finish line.

Nine out of ten times, the things we watch are mediocre at best. Stuff that’s so average that it takes all of our willpower just to struggle through a normal review; talk about some story, mutter about some character, drag on about some animation and call it a day. But then something like AnoHana comes along, something new, something exciting, something to sink our teeth into. We may end up enjoying it, we may not, but the fact that it had piqued our interest meant it had already established itself as something special, something good enough to be able to be improved upon in the future, something we WANT to spend time thinking about, something actually WORTH criticizing.

Think of this review not as a “everything that was wrong with AnoHana” review, but as a “AnoHana was this close to being a true masterpiece, I found myself taking time out of my busy schedule to watch it twice and write up this critique, if only it had improved on these points, I might have given out my first ever 10/10″ review. In fact, consider this review a praise by exception, in that everything I DON’T mention is absolutely friggin’ brilliant. That’s a LOT of stuff.

Just what was the flower we saw that day?

In Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae wo Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai,
(Lit. «We still don’t know the name of the flower we saw that day»), there’s a recurring theme of flowers revolving around Poppo, Menma, and the Opening/Ending of the series.

Just what is this flower? Is it what Poppo keeps putting in the jar of flowers where Menma’s memorial is? And just what is the «Blue Bookmark»? (Aoi Shiori)

1 Answer 1

The flower in question is a Forget-me-not.

McGonagall’s Gem, Abridged

In the poem, a knight falls into a river after foolishly leaping over a river to fetch his betrothed a flower which she asked for, then realizing he couldn’t swim (. while swimming back), finally crying «Forget me not», while handing her the flower.

It would seem Jinta plays the role of the Maiden, and Menma the role of the Knight.

The other theory is that Menma is coming back to remind Jinta et al that she’s still there; many of them have become withdrawn, and want to forget about her death.

Poppo actually puts various flowers into the jar at Menma’s death site, Daisies being among them. Something tells me he’s not in on the whole Forget-me-not voodoo.

And finally yes, the Blue Bookmark is also a Forget-me-not.

_{1: He is arguably one of the worst poets in British history, which makes me ponder why such a gem was chosen for a noitaminA show. 2: There is no official word of this, but McGonagall’s story seems in-line with the circumstances of Menma’s death; they’re both based on the forget-me-not, and they’re both accidental drowning while their loved one watched.}