Previously, I tossed out a review of the original version of Kanon, which first aired in the first quarter of 2002. I’ve made mention of it as well in my personal top ten anime post and in that particular post I stated my preference for the original over the remake, despite its dated animation. Having recently rewatched the remake of Kanon which aired in 2006, I might have to rethink that opinion a bit. Anyways, on to the story.

The story centers around Aizawa Yuuichi, a second-year high-school student, and a group of 5 girls (mainly) who are in some way connected to him and his past. I say this somewhat loosely, because the one girl, Misaka Shiori, has little relation to Yuuichi’s past.

As the story starts, we see Yuuichi returning to the town his cousin, Minase Nayuki, resides in for the first time in seven years. Initially, Yuuichi has little to no memory of the past times he used to spend in the town – however, on his first day there he bumps into – or rather, gets knocked over by – a young girl, Tsukimiya Ayu. Ayu is his first encounter (apart from Nayuki) with the girls who form part of the main storyline, and he gradually also meets Sawatari Makoto, Misaka Shiori and Kawasumi Mai – each of which is the key to unlocking a part of his lost memories, although complete recollection doesn’t come until near the end of the series.

The remake of Kanon was animated by Kyoto Animation, who had also previously animated another Key production Air, and who would immediately after Kanon 2006 continue on to Clannad (also a Key game). The first and foremost thing any watcher will notice is the improved quality of the animation. While all the characters retained their initial appearance (with the exception of Yuuichi), the character designs had been completely redrawn, and individual character animation was also a great deal smoother. Below are a couple of comparative screenshots – featuring Nayuki, Ayu and Makoto.

The series was also expanded to 24 episodes, as opposed to the original’s 13 – leading to a greatly expanded storyline that left a lot of room for character development. In particular, much more time was spent on Shiori and Mai’s stories – with quite a bit of Mai’s past being revealed this time around, adding a much clearer picture of the reasons she was in school each night fighting demons.

The studios retained the original seiyuu for the characters – although, once again Yuuichi received a make-over, this time around being voiced by Sugita Tomokazu – watchers may recognise his voice as that of Kyon in The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya and Tsuchimi Rin in Shuffle! He brings a whole new element to the character of Yuuichi which wasn’t present in the original (side comments and dry humour included).

The final major change made to the series was the adaptation of the soundtrack – with the opening and closing tracks being changed to the opening and closing themes from the original game – the opening track being Last Regrets and the closing track being Kaze no Tadori Tsuku Basho (The Place Where the Wind Arrive), both of which were performed by Ayana. Background and insert music were, as was the case in the first series, left the same – although some of the tracks were reworked slightly.

Other little changes include the introduction of a rather dangerous jam, and we get to meet the original Sawatari Makoto.

All in all, the reworked animation, atmospheric soundtrack and excellent direction and storytelling have once again managed to make Kanon into a proper tear-jerker, and its a definite must see if you enjoy dramas, and I would also recommend it if you enjoyed either Air or Clannad.

Finally, we turn to Anime News Network for general viewer rating – 8.7 out of 10 on average, so I get the feeling there’s a majority that agree with me. If you don’t like emotional dramas and slowly unfolding storylines though, you might want to pass on this one.