Full Moon Wo Sagashite

Episode Reviewed In: Episode 46

Alternate Titles: Fullmoon, Furumyu, Looking for the Fullmoon

Original Japanese Release Date: 2002

Episode Length/Run-time: 52 ( 30 mins ea. )

Summary:

Kouyama Mitsuki, a 12 year old girl, is diagnosed with a malignant tumor of the throat. She made a promise to the boy shes loves that she would one day become a singer, however her illness made this impossible. Two angels of death, Takuto and Meroko, appear to tell her she only has 1 year left to live. With a bit of divine intervention and a boost of motivation, Mitsuki begins her quest to become a professional singer so she can be reunited with Eichi before her time left runs out.

Review:

If you dont like animes that make you super depressed throughout them, dont watch this anime. This anime is sad enough to make even the manliest of men sob like an infant with a tooth ache. But yet, its fantastic. This anime proves that you can’t judge a book by its cover.

At first glance, the anime seems kind of monotonous. A 12 year old that wants to sing but has cancer. Right… but wait, she gets turned into a 16 year old singer by 2 Shinigami (gods of death)… The series acknowledges right away that the lead character is going to die in a year. By doing this, the plot may seem to some rather dreary. But upon watching it, its discovered that the creators incorporate enough happy moments to balance out the severely, horrifyingly depressing, parts.

The 3 main characters aren’t anything special at first. Meroko is a shinigami with a pure heart, and bunny ears, whereas Takuto is a pretty-boy shinigami with a belly shirt. However, as the story moves on, the chemistry between these 3 becomes heart warming. The two shinigami help provide some comic relief, such as when Meroko continually announces her burning love for Takuto, who obviously is not interested. When you throw in Mitsuki, a bit of jealousy, and Meroko’s bunny ears and top hat, one can’t help but laugh at the sometimes heated conversations that occur between the three. These moments help keep the viewer engaged enough to not have the “Mitsuki is going to die” plot line push them away. One thing I loved about these characters is the degree of development that goes into them as the story progresses. They dont stay the same as many other characters in other animes do, which helps keep this anime interesting and pulling the viewer back for more. You won’t be able to put this anime down once you’ve picked it up. Unfortunately, its going to leave you sobbing and so depressed you may actually soil yourself while your curled up in the fetal position unable to move. Best have a stock of tissues on hand.

The music in this show is really one of the captivating aspects of it. As Mitsuki grasps hold of her singing career as the artist “Full Moon”, she sings three songs, “Myself”, “Eternal Snow”, and “Love Chronicle” throughout the show. One would think they might get old, but their emotional links to the series somehow keeps them heart-wrenching and fresh. As the story progresses, and she makes her way to performing her final concert, you’ll find Mitsuki instilling feelings of emptiness and love in you, both at the same time. A very odd feeling I must say.

Unfortunately, the character design and artwork are fairely generic, but the character development makes them work. The animation is good as well, but nothing spectacular.

If you want to feel real emotional ties to characters that will actually leave you with what Mitsugi and I call “Post Anime Depression” (PAD), this is the anime to watch. This is one of my favorites, and easily earns its 4.5.

[starrater]