Looking Up At The Half Moon

Synopsis:

Yuichi Ezaki has been hospitalized for some time now due to Hepatitis A. Even though he's been told that his condition is getting better he continually sneaks out at night to visit friends or even just to go for a walk. Upon his return however he is scolded by the night nurse Akiko Tanizaki to the point of where she starts locking him in his room. One day Yuichi notices a girl on the other side of the hospital in the east wing staring out the window. Even though he doesn't say anything, nurse Akiko can sense his interest the girl and encourages him to visit her. With this, Yuichi befriends the girl and after talking with her for a while she says her name is Rika and she has been hospitalized her entire life due to a weak heart valve and because of this, she has no friends and spends all of her time reading books. Through Yuichi's desire to get back to the world outside the hospital he shows Rika how simplistic things make life worth living and the real world she has been unable to see for the past 17 years.

Number of episodes watched: 6

Review:

Okay, the first thing that you may think is "two kids in a hospital, one has a serious health condition... this is going to be depressing as hell." Well... yeah, that's what I thought at first too but as it turns out this little series doesn't use any heavy-handed drama or lightweight fluff either. It seems to hold a middle ground very well giving you a bit of drama but then offsets it with a tad of comedy or well-rounded romance progression. This is what pushes you to move to the next episode. Although character depth really isn't necessary, it's still given to you as you learn about the hospital staff that are responsible for Rika and Yuichi's care and makes them just as important to the whole story along with our main characters and even makes you wonder who they really are making them just as interesting as Rika and Yuichi. That same character depth also helps to explain Rika's mild tsundere type attitude which in all honesty, she's in no position to have, but it makes her an intriguing yet somewhat annoying person that can still exude an aura of cuteness and get sympathy from the viewer at the same time.

Even though the animation may seem average, and the plot depressing, this 6 episode series not only tells a great story with an interesting group of tight knit people but also gives you one hell of a message. Enjoy life for what it is whether it may be for 2 days or 2 hundred years, don't dread the future, live for the now. A great little series that should be watched while you're waiting on pins and needles for the next episode of you favorite anime to be released.

Looking Up at the Half Moon (opening)

Recommendation: |Above Average|