I watched this anime so long ago after seeing a sketch of Mitsuki and I remember it left me really sad. I wondered if it will hit just as hard all these years later… and it absolutely did. Kyoto Animation is a goated studio and Kyoukai no Kanata is another amazing series by them. It is honestly amazing how this anime manages to hide its true nature from you right till the very end.
So welcome back to another edition of our anime recommendation series. This week let’s take a look at Kyoukai no Kanata. An anime that I absolutely think deserves more love than it gets. It was pretty famous back when it came out, but now it is kind of forgotten, which is unfortunate because I feel this anime will resonate with a lot of newer audiences. Oh well, let’s just get started,
Introduction
Kyoukai no Kanata or Beyond the Boundary is based on the LN of the same name by Nagomu Torii and illustrated by Tomoyo Kamui. The anime is made by Kyoto Animation, it has 1 season of 12 episodes, recapped into 2 movies and a few spin-off ONAs. I personally recommend watching the series first and then the movies. That way you can see the minor changes in the recap movies. Let’s move on to
Plot
Youmu are the physical manifestation of negative human emotions. They cannot be seen normally and don’t cause problems normally. When they do cause problems, “spirit world warriors” are sent to finish them off. Our protagonist is an immortal half-youmu who saves a spirit world warrior from committing suicide. He helps her gain confidence in fighting youmu so that she may stop trying to kill him as practice.
The plot sounds fairly simple and even light-hearted, right? Well, that would be correct for the first half of the series. Kyoukai no Kanata is actually a fairly sad and dark story. There are always hints about the stuff coming, you just don’t notice it because of the tone of the first half of the story. The plot is absolutely amazing, and really well handled. Now, another thing important to the plot
Characters
Kyoukai no Kanata really relies on his characters to tell the story. And it works flawlessly. For most of the first half we follow Akihito but then when he “disappears” we switch perspectives to Mirai. It works really well and helps us understand both characters more. Then there’s the amazing supporting cast, Mitsuki, Hiroomi, Yui, and Sakura. I wish Izumi got a little more screen time but her character is also really well done.
Animations and Soundtracks
I mean KyoAni, do you even need a further explanation than that? KyoAni excels at character animations and that goes perfectly with this series. The animations are really smooth and look great as well. They even added an anime original character to expand character development further. The soundtracks once again are amazing. The ending theme especially is so good, I still remember every word of that song, and the visuals are amazing as well.
Why should you check out Kyoukai no Kanata?
Quick pointers on why you should watch this anime:
- Amazing plot
- Great characters
- Awesome animations
- Great soundtracks
Conclusion
That is all for now. Let me know what you guys think in the comments. I will take my leave here. Please check out Kyoukai no Kanata, it is well worth your time. With that said, See ya!
