Kanon Volume 1
by Pedro Rodriguez
The video game "Kanon" has been around since 1999, and has had its share of the spotlight in Japan. In over eight years it has been ported into several platforms, adapted into a manga, a light novel, and in 2002 an anime series (TV + OVA) by Toei Animation. After the success of the anime series "AIR", Kyoto Animation was given the opportunity to adapt the series a second time. The new 2006 series follows the same formula as the original with some reasonable artistic license. The main protagonist Yuichi Aizawa has been sent to live with his cousin Nayuki Minase and his aunt Akiko. He used to stay with the two of them when he was a kid, but the visits came to a halt seven years ago for reasons (literally) beyond his recollection. Things begin to slowly unfold, while touring the city, when a young girl in a yellow jacket and nifty backpack named Ayu Tsukimiya knocks him over, and drags him away. After everything is settled, the two promise to meet up sometime in the future. It is then that Yuichi feels a sense of Déjà vu, but brushes it off; the ordeal seems to be just a random encounter between two strangers and it ends just as quickly as it began. It's not until the end of the first episode we see that the two of them did meet before in a similar situation when they were kids.
As the volume progresses Yuichi is introduced to a handful of other characters - mostly girls. Whether or not he knew any of them from before is unknown, save for one Makoto Sawatari, a young red head girl who is suffering from an odd case of amnesia. If there is any connection with the remainder of the group, it has yet to be revealed. While Yuichi's past plays a predominant role in the show's plot, the first few episodes focus on introducing the different characters, and emphasizing some of their quirky personalities. Natsuki is a heavy sleeper who is the captain of school's track team, and becomes easily disappointed with her cousin whenever he breaks a promise. Ayu has a thing for taiyaki, and has a tendency to say "Uguu" whenever she is upset or frustrated. There is a counterbalance to the cuteness and fluff, as the first volume is also driven forward at a moderate pace by Yuichi's interaction with the other characters. The level of interaction varies between characters; sometimes it's just a simple conversation, other times it's a cameo. While there doesn't seem to be much conflict or absolute direction, things do seem to be unfolding, and there does seem to be some progress.
The animation lands its mark for the most part. Being a fan of the first series, I was very attached to how the characters looked back then, and I was a bit worried as to how they would look now. My worries were put to rest when I saw how today’s technology has improved the appearance of the series. In an ironic twist there are times where the character expressions have an eerie similarity to another Kyoto Animation series "The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya". This is especially the case with Yuichi Aizawa's character design. I could criticize the series for the times where background characters will remain in the same position for a small amount of time, but now I'm just nitpicking. Although the ratio between boys and girls makes it a perfect candidate for a "harem" series, the girls don't seem to be showing as much skin as other titles - darn winter. Anyways in keeping with its dating sim roots ('scuse me Japanese Visualization Novel), there is an abundance of fan service in the shape of body language, female school uniforms, and their overly cute way of speaking.
The Audio is sharp as a razor; you know it means business when you hear that train screaming down the tracks in the first scene. I was surprised when I looked at the back of the box and learned that it's only presented in 2.0 Dolby, and not in a higher channel - not that I'm eager to hear "Uguu!" in 5.1 Dolby Digital. The bottom line is the available audio features are more than adequate for the job. Most of the cast has returned to reprise their original roles. The only one left out of the roster is Atsushi Kisaichi; his role as Yuichi Aizawa has been replaced by Tomokazu Sugita. Again it can be a little weird hearing him sound just like Kyon. Kudos is also in order for Yui Horie who is the voice of Ayu Tsukimiya. Looking back at other titles, Ayu has a distinct way of talking compared to other characters she has voiced for. Compared to her performance back in 2002, she hits the mark even better now than she did back then.
The localization and packaging has its ups and downs. Rather than having the female cast sound "cuter than usual", the girls speak in a manner that is more natural to American English. So on one hand you have phrases that would've been difficult to express in English have been spared, and the story retains a good portion of its original ideas intact. Brittney Karbowski did her best to slip in Ayu's famous catchphrase from time to time, and attempted to blend it in naturally. On the other hand there are times where artistic license takes its toll and comparing the new lines to the original is like apples and oranges. ADV does deserve some credit for using the original cover as the Region 2 cover in Japan. Aside from clean opening and closing sequences, there is also a short clip that features the workings of an anime production house.
While the show is well endowed with "moe" content, its foundation is also deeply rooted with a storyline full of drama and comedy. There is a functional compensation between the lack of racy content, and the abundance in other forms of fan service. For fans of the genre the biggest argument against it would have to be the repetitive dream sequence at the beginning of each episode. Beyond that it's a very solid piece of work worth picking up.