Oh, Kanon. I watched the 2006 version of this anime back when it first aired and got fansubs, and while I did get a majority of the DVDs, I never managed to finish the English dub beyond the first few episodes due to other obligations. I wasn't sure if I'd ever go back to Kanon, even though I liked it. But due to...recent events involving the original visual novel, I decided it was high time I stopped putting it off and rewatch it. I wondered if my feelings for Kanon would change in the decades since I first watched it. I liked it back when I was younger, and rewatching it now as an adult...surprisingly, I still like it, even if I find other shows that came later to be better. The original visual novel from 1999 was Key's first solo foray into the eroge business after they split from Tactics, and it not only became a runaway success, but redefined the entire visual novel format. Toei did make their own anime adaptation of Kanon in 2002, but...I don't recommend watching it. It makes a lot of changes from the game and it did an absolutely terrible job at translating Itaru Hinoue's character designs to the silver screen. Thankfully, Kyoto Animation decided to do their own adaptation, hot off the success of their anime for Air, and sure enough, many consider this to be the better experience, me included, even if this version still has its own share of issues.

So what's the story, you might ask? High school student Yuuichi Aizawa used to visit his aunt Akiko Minase and her daughter, cousin Nayuki, in their quiet little town every holiday, but one year something happened and he left for seven years. When he transfers to Nayuki's high school, his memories of that time remain a blur. Upon his return he encounters a number of mysterious girls from his past who all need his help. Energetic taiyaki thief Ayu Tsukimiya is searching for a precious lost item she cannot describe. Quiet and serious Mai Kawasumi hunts demons in the school after dark. The childish tsundere Makoto Sawatari suffers from amnesia and has no place to go. Elegant, demure Shiori Misaka is estranged from her sister and never present at school due to a sickness. Finally, there's the lonely Nayuki, weighed down by rejection and tragedy. Yuuichi resolves to help them, but as he gets involved, he discovers that there is far more to the girls than meets the eye. Mystical happenings lie hidden in this strange town, tied to Yuuichi's forgotten past. In assisting the girls with their problems, Yuuichi must face his lost memories. What happened seven years ago, and why can't he remember any of it?

Do I really need to say anything about the animation here? KyoAni gave Kanon the exact same treatment they did for Air, which is give it the royal treatment in terms of both its character animation and actually translating the series' setting and character designs to the silver screen. I've said it before and I'll say it again, I never had any issue with Itaru Hinoue's character designs, and I still don't, with some exceptions, and that remains true here. Granted, while the original VN for Kanon came out before Air's did, the anime version was made a year after the anime adaptation of Air came out. Though unlike with Air, KyoAni was able to give Kanon the full 24-episode treatment, really allowing them to flesh out the characters and their individual arcs without rushing the pacing. Not only that, the staff at KyoAni clearly did their research when it came to the visual novel and made sure to retain a lot of important details like the characters' birthdays and having them take place at the right time, which is important since the game clearly takes place in the year 1999, the year the VN was made, over the course of about a month or two, I think. This is especially notable because the 2002 anime by Toei was pretty infamous for not only cutting out a lot of content to fit a 12-13 episode run time, but having some serious continuity errors.

I don't have as much to say about the soundtrack, as its nice and does its job, and the opening and ending, while not as good as Air's opening and ending themes, are pretty good. Plus, they're the same songs used for the game, so that helps. Now, something to keep in mind about the 2006 remake of Kanon is that the original VN came out a year before Air's, and the anime remake came out a year after the anime for Air was made. It's easy to think that Kanon came after Air if you look at just the anime for them, but you have to remember that Kanon the visual novel was the first truly plot-heavy, character driven VN that became popular. I haven't played the VN yet, but a lot of the game's hang ups have carried over into the anime, including the way the characters are written. It can be easy to dismiss all the characters, especially the girls, as walking talking moe cliches who lean really hard into their individual quirk, and I can agree that the series tries way too hard to make the girls cute, especially with their catchphrases. Ayu and her "uguu," Nayuki with "unyuu" (Which gets cut from the English dub), and Makoto's "auu!" got old after the first three times and definitely feel forced, and if you can't stand cutesy high pitched voices, you'll either want to put them on mute or watch the English dub, which makes the girls sound much closer to their actual age than like five-year-olds. Speaking of the dub, would you believe me if I told you this and Sasami Magical Girls Club were my introduction to Brittney Karbowski?

But problems with the characterization aren't limited to just their shoehorned in vocal quirks. There are several characters who I felt could have been utilized more. Poor Mishio Amano is literally just there to be an exposition dump in Makoto's arc and disappears after it's done, never appearing again unless its in the background. I also actually liked Kitagawa way more than I thought I would, and he spends most of the series being the put upon butt monkey even though he has quite a few moments where he really helps people out significantly. As far as the main ensemble goes, I think Shiori is the most well-realized character even though she's neck deep in the "girl is secretly dying from unnamed disease so please cry for her" trope. The main ensemble is okay, though their development is rather predictable and nothing that'll bring the roof down. I do think Yuuichi is the best out of the characters, not because he's a continuous wise-cracker, but because he's a flawed human being who made a lot of mistakes in his life, and Kanon's at its best when he's made to realize what an idiot he's been and learn from his mistakes. He's definitely a major step up from One: Kagayaku Kisetsu e's Kouhei Orihara for sure. What, did you really think I'd miss a chance to dunk on Kouhei Orihara? That absolute asshat deserves all the dunking!

For as much as I appreciate Kyoto Animation's efforts to tell the story of Kanon in a TV format, I think the plot suffered the most in the transition from game to screen. Then again, Kanon's plot in general isn't all that riveting. Yuuichi goes around helping various girls with their problems, complete with hearing their melodramatic backstories. I admit I didn't cry watching the show, and Kanon's main problem is that it clings to its harem roots too much. Several times, Yuuichi will befriend a girl and help with her problems, then drop them off at the hospital and move on to the next one, granted since the game's routes are standalone and focus on just one girl each, there'd be no real way to translate that into TV. There are also times when the show just forces drama just for the sake of it, the main offender being Nayuki's mother Akiko suddenly getting into a car crash. I'm sure this happened in the game, but even here, I felt like the creators were like "We need more drama! I know! Let's have Akiko get in a random car crash for extra tears!" There are a few more of these contrived plot twists that feel like they only serve to keep the story on the right track, rather than to get the best out of the characters (Like one character losing her powers after her arc is resolved. You know the one), not to mention the final episode end on one HELL of a Deus Ex Machina that pretty much magically solves every single problem ever. Yeah, Key has always had a problem with wanting their audience to stretch their willing suspension of disbelief to ridiculous degrees, and Kanon seems to be the progenitor of that for them.

That's not to say everything about Kanon is bad. I actually enjoyed the lighter slice-of-life segments, I feel Makoto's arc was the best out of them, and the air of mystery was also pretty well-executed, along with all the other positives I mentioned earlier. I do feel Air and Clannad are stronger, more improved versions of Kanon, as their VNs came out after the latter, their anime adaptations also being stronger in terms of pacing, plotting, character development, and continuity. That said, even with the show's problems, I still enjoyed Kanon and found myself nostalgic for it, even if my attachment to Air is stronger. For what the anime adaptation does well, it really manages to succeed in creating a heartwarming romance series, and if you like stuff like this, Kanon will definitely keep you fed. But if you're not into moe stuff or Key properties, with all their quirks and melodrama included, Kanon probably isn't going to change your opinion. Kanon by itself isn't all that ground-breaking or outstanding. It's just a fine series, and one I'm glad I got to go back to.