Nagi-Asu: A Lull in the Sea (Nagi No Asukara) - Anime Review

NAGI NO ASUKARA SCORE: 9.5

INTRODUCTION & SYNOPSIS

This anime unexpectedly stirs the emotions within you through the use of relate-able characters, voice actors with great emotion, and an intricate and emotional story line. Simply put, If you want to go on a serious romantic feels trip, Nagi-Asu: A Lull in the Sea (Nagi No Asukara), is the one for you. 

Our story begins with a group of four middle school students who have been close friends since childhood: Hikari, Manaka, Chisaki, and Kaname. Seems like your basic feelsy-romantic anime cast right? Wrong! There is a twist. All four of them are from the sea; they live underwater in a beautifully animated sea town in which their middle school has been shut down, and they are all now forced to go to school up on land. In the first episode we discover our main male lead Hikari is in love with Manaka, but Manaka's bestfriend Chisaki is in love with Hikari, Manaka meets a boy on land Tsugumu and an attraction sparks, and Hikari's bestfriend Kaname steps in with a confession to make things even more complicated later on.. &So the plot thickens...

PROS

To start off with, something I normally don't mention, but has to be said for this anime: This anime is so beautiful to look at. The animation just kept me engaged and in awe the whole way through. This anime aired 2013-2014 so it would be expected, but Nagi No Asukara really stands out in this right. All of the backgrounds were serene from the schools, from land, to sea, and the characters all have unique and adorable designs that make you want to fall in love with them right off the bat. Not only are their designs well-done, but each character has excellent development to compliment this. I related with nearly every character and the relationships that would form between them.

Speaking of relationships, this anime has a lot of OTPs (one true parings) for romance fans out there. I have to give props to them for breaking the romance anime mold of all of the girls liking the main character, and instead spreading it out through a web of relationships amongst three male characters. The whole way through I would be rooting for different girls to be with Hikari, Tsugumu, or Kaname. My favorite female character in this story is Miuna. We get to see a lot of her development in the later half of this 24-episode series, and I loved seeing her romantic developments as well as her struggle being from the land and later forming "edo" and the mystery behind her being possibly from the sea as well. 

My last pro is the overall story-line and plot. I feel like this story and plot was so interesting and unique. I love when animes add a second element to romance stories to give it more depth and interest, which Nagi No Asukara pulls off excellently. The fight between land and sea was surprisingly enthralling, emotional and well-done.

CONS

Nagi No Asukara pulled off so many elements of this anime perfectly, leaving me with little bad to say. There are only a few things to mention that have to do with one of the characters: Kaname. Kaname is the lead's best friend, and we honestly don't get to learn very much about him. We learn hardly anything about him in the first 12 episodes, and we slowly learn a little about what's behind his feelings in the second half, but still just not enough. I understand there wasn't time to develop every single character as there were many, and they did through in a side story for him with Miuna's best friend Sayu which was cute to see. Still, this is a con for me, as many of the side characters interested me more than the main characters Hikari & Monaka. Lastly, not really a con, but a warning, the drama is laid on thick in this anime as it is a romantic drama. Be warned if you don't like emotional stuff you'd want to skip it.

FINAL THOUGHTS

This anime really exceeded my expectations for it. Originally thinking I would be watching a sappy story with a make-shift story line, I was blown away with what I got: a well-animated emotional and intricate story, interesting throughout, with love-able characters. This Anime is a 9.5/10 for me. Nearly perfect with little short-comings. 

Watched On: YouTube (free source)