But, I've managed to finally finish a series that I'd heard nothing but good things about. Seriously, so many good things. And you think "no way it can be that good." Because you know things never live up to the hype. I'd tried to watch it before. I'd managed to sit through the first 2 episodes twice and then Hachi drove me nuts. But I was determined because everyone loves this series. So I tried again. And then I got maybe 10 episodes in, probably not even 10, more like 7 or 8, and I knew. This wasn't that good, it was better.
What can I say about NANA? It was 47 episodes. A random number I know. They came to the end of the published manga at the time and stopped. Because you don't fill the space with this series while you're waiting for the next chapter. It would be a huge disservice. Perhaps, the greatest compliment I can give NANA is this: it's the anime (and probably the manga though I've not read it yet) that you show to people and say "Look, it's not all giant robots and magical girls. It's real life too." And it is, perhaps as real as you can get. So real that it hurts all the time. It's not a hopeful show. It's a show about how life is sacrifice, that we so rarely get to live out our dreams. We compromise. We give up on the things we want because of the things we need. We settle. Or we don't and we steal happiness from ourselves because we're afraid, or we're proud. That's NANA. Every single character has to sacrifice. Every single character exchanges their dreams for comfort, or because it's all they can do. They survive. They hurt each other. They hurt themselves. They don't say the things that need to be said. It's real life, and it sucks.
So why do I love NANA? Because it's real. Sure, it's horrible and painful and you just know, deep down, that no one will be happy in the end. But it's so rare that any form of entertainment manages to capture humanity so well, so honestly. And you love these characters. You cheer for them. You cry with them. You ache for them. You want to rage at them when you know they're being stubborn and stupid. You know them. In every character, you see facets of yourself, of your friends, people you've known. They're all there. In Nana, in Hachi, in Nobu, in Shin, in Yasu, in Ren, in Takumi, in Reira.
I could tell you the stories. I could lay out their lives. But everyone should experience it for themselves. It's magical. 47 episodes and every single one was necessary. Every single one was worth it.
I can't tell you how it made me feel. The complexity of emotions, it's impossible for me to talk about it. You feel this show. It broke my heart in the end, the weight of it all. But it was more than worth it. I don't know that I can say it's the best series I've ever seen. There are shows like Haibane Renmei that compete. But that's a different sort of show and comparing them would be unfair to both. I could sit right back down and watch it all again. I could watch it in one sitting. It's that good.
No.
It's better.
So much better.
indescribable
accomplished
listless
amused
productive
drained
tired
contemplative
ditzy
excited
pessimistic
restless
melancholy
disappointed