The story revolves around Arima Kousei, a washed up ex prodigy who used to play the piano. He had been the stuff of legends, but when his mother passed away, everything came crashing down. On the day of his most important piano recital, Kousei suffers a mental breakdown and becomes unable to hear the sound of his piano. And now, he's stuck in a monotone- colourless world, and unable to move forward. Everything changes when he's roped into accompanying his best friend on a blind date as a 'wingman' of sorts, and there he meets...her. Miyazono Kaori.
The story begins from there, and it's a beautiful yet tragic ride and shows that it is possible for an anime to be funny, yet heartbreaking. Cheerful yet sad. I can draw these parallels all day.
Story : 7/10
For the most part, the story has good pacing, and follows kousei on his journey back into the musical world. The anime sells itself on the romance between him and Kaori, but I feel that is much deeper than that. At it's core, Your Lie in April is a story of self-discovery, and reminds us that we are only human. That it's okay to fall and skin your knees, because what matters in the end is that you pick yourself up and keep going. Kousei's journey was much better than I thought it would be, and watching his journey was like watching a close friend of yours trying to pick themselves up from that dark, dank hole they've fallen in.
Your Lie In April deals with the topic of death, and our darker sides fairly well. It doesn't preach and picks apart the topic tastefully. The only bad things I can nitpick about the plot would be the large amount of foreshadowing. There are many, many scenes where the foreshadowing becomes a little too obvious, and it feels like the creators aren't giving us enough credit to figure it out. Toward the middle of the anime, the plot becomes slightly more predictable, and because of all the foreshadowing, you already know how it will end. Fortunately, none of these takes the excitement out of watching it, and it was still very enjoyable.
Characters : 8/10
The character development for Kousei is phenomenal. He grows from a meek, mild mannered boy to a confident and matured individual. His growth is handled beautifully, and by the time the anime was over, I found myself wishing the best of luck to him. He tries to give up numerous times, but the people around him won't allow it, especially Kaori. And it occurred to me that she's like that friend who constantly pushes you to challenge yourself, to excel, and shows us that sometimes, what we really need is not a a comforting hug, but a great big shove.
As for Kaori, I didn't find her character development as great as Kousei's. But this has more to do with how the anime presents her, an 'mysterious' and 'enigmatic' figure that Kousei can't figure out no matter how hard he tries. And since Your Lie in April plays out from his perspective, we only get to see certain sides of Miyazono Kaori.
There's no supporting character worth mentioning more than Tsubaki. She gets a fair amount of development as well, which is great!. Tsubaki had me rooting for her for almost the entire length of the show, and for good reason. Unlike most of the 'childhood' stereotypes in rom coms of today, she actually takes a stand. Yeah you heard me, she takes a freaking stand. She acknowledges that Kousei is head over heels for Kaori, but she doesn't give up. The best part about it, is that she wasn't horrible about it. Tsubaki didn't try play saboteur to the budding romance between them, and deals with her own set of confusing feelings. There were a few heartbreaking scenes of Tsubaki just trying to deal with the lowest point in her short, teenage life, and it was fan-fucking-tastic.
Music : 10/10
One of the best parts of Your Lie in April was the music score. Oh god the music. There is nothing much to say other than that it was an absolute treat to my ears. Classical music has always been a soft spot for me, and hearing the recitals, piano/violin performances in the anime reminded me of how good this genre could be. It also worked extremely well for setting the mood. One of my favourite songs would be 'Love's sorrow' and it's been on replay ever since I first heard it.
Animation : 10/10
Your lie in april was a feast for my eyes. I have never been more grateful for a good computer monitor until now. The scenery in this anime was glorious, all the colours come to laugh and become more than just that, and how the creators used it here is a testament to how good animation can really be.
The anime had a interesting way of using colours, For example, the character's mood or state of mind were conveyed were conveyed using a brilliant colour palette that just made me go 'wow, I never knew they could do that' with every episode. Overall it was very imaginative and very impressive.
A definite must watch for music lovers, romance enthusiasts, and anyone looking for a anime with a good plot, solid character development and great animation. I will definitely be coming back to watch this again.
Recommended: 5/5
