ReLIFE: Kanketsu-hen

[Ryu]

Title: ReLIFE
Japanese: リライフ
Airing dates: 1/7/2016 (TV series 13 episodes) and 24/6/2016 (pre-streamed)
Genres: Comedy, Romance, Science fiction, Drama, School, Slice of Life
Original creator: Yayoiso
Director: Tomochi Kosaka
Written by: Michiko Yokote and Kazuho Hyodo
Music by: Masayasu Tsuboguchi
Character designer: Junko Yamanaka
Art director: Kentaro Akiyama
Sound director: Shoji Hata
Director of photography: Nozomi Shitara
Art setting by: Mari Fujino and Tomoko Zama
Color design by: Miyuki Isogai
In-between animation by: Anthony Albertini
Editing by: Kumiko Sakamoto
Studio: TMS Entertainment
Network: Tokyo MX, GYT, GTV, BS11
Opening theme: "Button (ボタン)" by PENGUIN RESEARCH (ep.13 ED)
Ending themes: "Iijū Rider (イージュー★ライダー)" by Tamio Okuda
#2 "HOT LIMIT" by T.M. Revolution
#3 "Timing (~タイミング~)" by Black Biscuits
#4 "HONEY" by L'Arc~en~Ciel
#5 "Kore wa Watashi no Ikiru Michi (これが私の生きる道 / This is the Way I Live)" by PUFFY
#6 "Sunny Day Sunday" by Sentimental Bus
#7 "Saudade (サウダージ)" by Porno Graffitti
#8 "Yuki no Hana (雪の華 / Snow Flower)" by Mika Nakashima
#9 "There will be love -Ai no aru Basho- (愛のある場所 / A Place where Love is)" by Brilliant green
#10 "Asu e no Tobira (明日への扉 / The Door to Tomorrow)" by I WiSH
#11 "PIECES OF A DREAM" by CHEMISTRY
#12 "Natsu Matsuri (夏祭り / Summer Festival)" by Whiteberry
MC:
Arata Kaizaki (海崎 新太) voiced by Kenshō Ono
Chizuru Hishiro (日代 千鶴) voiced by Ai Kayano
Ryō Yoake (夜明 了) voiced by Ryohei Kimura
An Onoya (小野屋 杏) voiced by Reina Ueda
Students: Rena Kariu (狩生 玲奈) voiced by Haruka Tomatsu
Kazuomi Ōga (大神 和臣) voiced by Yūma Uchida
PV:
Honoka Tamarai (玉来 ほのか) voiced by Himika Akaneya
Nobunaga Asaji (朝地 信長) voiced by Daisuke Namikawa
Akira Inukai (犬飼 暁) voiced by Noriaki Sugiyama
Teachers: Kokoro Amatsu (天津 心) voiced by Miyuki Sawashiro
Kōshi Usa (宇佐 浩史) voiced by Wataru Hatano
Sumire Inukai (犬飼 すみれ) voiced by Ryōko Shiraishi
Supporting cast: Michiru Saiki (佐伯 みちる) voiced by Shizuka Itō

Official sites: http://relife-anime.com/ & http://www.comico.jp/articleList.nhn?titleNo=2 (web manga)

Synopsis: Arata Kaizaki is an unemployed, single 27-year-old who has just been cut off from his parents' financial support. Unable to find a job due to him leaving his previous employer within three months, he is stuck. One night after drinking with a high school friend, Arata meets Ryō Yoake, a man who offers Arata pills to turn him back into a 17-year old so he can redo his life. After agreeing to the experiment, Arata joins a high school class, and meets Chizuru Hishiro, a socially-awkward silent beauty who yearns to have friends. Through connecting with her and other classmates, Arata must find what he lacks to live a happy life in the real world within a one-year time limit.

QUOTE (gdpetti @ May 25 2016, 06:29 PM)have been better served with varying age groups, this hs or ms setup is so boring after awhile, has to be for those in that age group as well.... too much of the same thing, and usually, if given a more 'adult' atmosphere, the plotlines get better setups... that's been my experience
QUOTE (gdpetti @ Jun 18 2016,04:07 PM)him in high school or something like that.... they didn't know what to do with him as an adult, and if most of your audience is young.... make your MC young again!

telling by pre'streams this series mix both, is rare that all eps got different ED

 

[nijlandp]

I think i will give this series a try. It looks interesting.

 

[Ryu]

QUOTE (nijlandp @ Jul 01 2016, 01:15 PM)i will give this series a try.Before marathoning it as many people did already i thought, what's the point of airing eps weekly if All are pre-streamed?... Instead I compared its first 2 vs TV and they're alike, but i prefer fansubs so far (-it kinda looks like you -Meow)

 

[gdpetti]

could have potential... but of course the setup is so Cinderella... instead of midnight, our MC gets a whole year... if no memory loss, then it reminds me of Boku Dake only older.... using the typical HS setup isn't a bad idea in this manner. We have to assume the audience is mostly middle to high school, right? which explains this default story setup/format... almost a necessity for getting financing approval?

 

[Ryu]

QUOTE (gdpetti @ Jul 02 2016, 06:48 PM)could have potential... but of course the setup is so Cinderella... instead of midnight, our MC gets a whole year... if no memory loss, then it reminds me of Boku Dake only older....just found the ep.3 release aired on TV last friday but again, I didn't find any differences with its pre-stream like extended scenes... yet i'm liking it fansubbed which for me translates better and adds more notes than subs simulcasted in July 1st

 

[Norren]

QUOTE (gdpetti @ Jul 02 2016, 05:48 PM)using the typical HS setup isn't a bad idea in this manner. We have to assume the audience is mostly middle to high school, right? which explains this default story setup/format... almost a necessity for getting financing approval?

I've been following the webmanga for this one since the translation started... I was expecting a creepy highschool romcom... instead it ended up being an awesome and well thought out deconstruction of the classical highschool romcom.

Kaizaki is the adult in the room pointing out the obvious. Everything we've ever shouted at the screen/pages or thought about screaming at the screen/pages of a regular RomCom where all the characters are clueless? Kaizaki lets all that fly on our behalf.

All the while, the series is subtly giving a poignantly damning criticism of the Japanese job market through the spectre of what happened at his last workplace.

I want to see a cross over between this and oregairu. Kaizaki, Onoya, and Hikigaya would be the ultimate evil tag team.... and the duo of Yukinoshita and Hishiron... well... I think that insanity should be self-explanatory. XD

I am surprised they released the entire season at once. Anyone know more of what was up with that?

 

[gdpetti]

No idea, but does seem to be the emerging trend in productions... .make them more like a film, complete in one release... download... we just don't feel like waiting anymore, right? especially as most stuff is so predictable, repetitive, boring etc... so, if you have a mediocre product, release in one go for better box office/profits.

The commentary on Nippon economic reality is interesting... not surprised it finds its way eventually into anime, as it seems outlawed in their mainstream media, same here in the States.... if you want to work in any mainstream format, you have be 'on board' with message control, as in propaganda... love it or leave your job prospects in your dreams/nightmares. Controlled societies are just that, controlled, and as it reaches its final resting place/death, the obvious reality of the situation can no longer be kept in the closet.

Just read an article on the election there and the lack of any assistance for the small to medium businesses... same here in the States.... as the system gets hollowed out by the puppets and pyschopaths in power... all expendable in the end, just like the cops, troops, propagandists, et al... The oligarchs don't need any of them in the end, but expect them to cover their asses as they go underground... when the real SHTF.

Liked your review, I was thinking of checking it out anyway, especially if they released the entire first(only) season at once... that's keeping with their audience preferences don't you think?

 

[Ryu]

QUOTE (Norren @ Jul 03 2016, 04:52 PM)I am surprised they released the entire season at once. Anyone know more of what was up with that?
QUOTE (gdpetti @ Jul 03 2016, 08:29 PM)No idea, but does seem to be the emerging trend in productions... .make them more like a film, complete in one release... download... we just don't feel like waiting anymore, right? especially as most stuff is so predictable, repetitive, boring etc... so, if you have a mediocre product, release in one go for better box office/profits.

maybe an experiment on what format gets more rating, releasing it all to watch online (like Netflix) or aired on TV as usual?... damn I'm tempted to see what is next by ep'4 cliffhanger, but as i'm enjoying weekly fansubs i'll wait tomorrow

 

[Ausdoerrt]

QUOTE (gdpetti @ Jul 02 2016, 07:48 PM) We have to assume the audience is mostly middle to high school, right?
It's more like seinen, actually.

Marathoned it last night, gotta say it's pretty good and definitely worth a watch. The likable and realistic characters definitely carry the show.

That said, the show is not without issues and plot holes - primarily because of trying to jam too much stuff in and less than perfect pacing. For example, the "big shocking (not) reveal" toward the end gets at most 10 minutes of screentime, while the backstory of the "support staff" I didn't particularly care about took up an entire episode. In general, the show would've been better off focusing on the "glue" that is the main character rather than the individual stories of the surrounding support cast, especially since those don't mesh too well together. The "time limit" idea was also too underplayed for my liking.

Anyway, good show, but releasing everything in one does kill the first impressions a bit. Coulda easily hyped this to the levels of BokuMachi with some effort.

 

[Ryu]

QUOTE (Ausdoerrt @ Jul 05 2016, 04:56 AM)I didn't particularly care about took up an entire episode. In general, the show would've been better off focusing on the "glue" that is the main character rather than the individual stories of the surrounding support cast, especially since those don't mesh too well together. The "time limit" idea was also too underplayed for my liking.

Anyway, good show, but releasing everything in one does kill the first impressions a bit. Coulda easily hyped this to the levels of BokuMachi i agree ;/ that's why Im still watching weekly aired eps with fansubs, for me #5 was more serious after fun PE tests... About frustrated Kariu's envy on her new friend Hishiro, who must learn to smile properly without misunderstandings

 

[gdpetti]

True, but overall, I prefer this type of release when possible, makes it more like a film project with a completed (usually) storyline. I just finished it and it's obviously setup for a 2nd season to finish what they started as it is only summer vacation and they have the rest of their 3rd year to finish this ReLife program... not too surprising the girl is in ReLife as well, after a while, I started to think that nearly everyone that got any screen time was in the program!

Our MC could just check online for their profile if they have any presence in social media, blogs, schools etc... and see who shows up where and when. I thought this especially in the first ep during introductions... another transfer in the same class was suspicious, but I really don't know Japanese school systems, especially in the cities that aren't dealing with a declining birthrate et al... closed schools, consolidations etc.... at least they made the MC living alone seem odd and not the norm as it seems to be in so many anime.

I liked what they did with the concept... of which, will probably be given more detail in the next season and if popular, they could just replace certain cast characters and do it all again, over and over with new test subjects.... until the audience gets bored with the concept of course.

At least all the 'adult' musings, comments and such had an excuse given that so many of the characters are actually 'adults'... though I wonder why this drug makes their bodies look young, but not actually 'young' inside? The body is the body, so that doesn't make sense... but it seems they wanted a weakness in the drug's abilities or something to keep the story going at certain points and events like P.E.

Liked it... look forward to season 2 next week?

in which subject #1 will probably get backstoried like the support staff did.

 

[Ausdoerrt]

Have they actually announced a second season? I took it more as a sort of typical "kore kara desu" ending, which leaves us to wonder what happens next, but doesn't really cover the "happily ever after" part.

And I mean, considering that most of the issues have been resolved, what else is there? Othet than tacking on new characters etc.

 

[Barbobot]

There's the entire reveal of Subject 001 that is more or less ignored. It's a mystery that's there throughout the entirety of the season that is only finally revealed halfway through the final episode. But then nothing is ever done with that reveal. We the audience know it now, but nothing new is ever revealed to any character in the show and thus has no impact.

It felt like they were maybe leaving that for a future season, but I can only hope for one at this point as there is no announcement. Just a non-ending.

 

[Ryu]

QUOTE (Barbobot @ Jul 07 2016, 01:46 PM)There's the entire reveal of Subject 001 that is more or less ignored. It's a mystery that's there throughout the entirety of the season that is only finally revealed halfway through the final episode. But then nothing is ever done with that reveal. We the audience know it now, but nothing new is ever revealed to any character in the show and thus has no impact.

It felt like they were maybe leaving that for a future season, but I can only hope for one at this point as there is no announcement. Just a non-ending.
QUOTE (gdpetti @ Jul 06 2016, 09:54 PM)not too surprising the girl is in ReLife as well, after a while, I started to think that nearly everyone that got any screen time was in the program!

Our MC could just check online for their profile if they have any presence in social media, blogs, schools etc... and see who shows up where and when. I thought this especially in the first ep during introductions... another transfer in the same class was suspicious, but I really don't know Japanese school systems, especially in the cities that aren't dealing with a declining birtthat's why at first i had my suspicions this An was '001', if not some confidential subject until seeing ep.6 recently... still I can't believe she is a ReLife employee like Ryo, but with grades as bad or worse than Kaizaki xD WTH appointed her

 

[Ausdoerrt]

I dunno, for me the reveal itself was pretty obvious by about halfway through, because 1) there are numerous clues to it throughout and 2) it's just required for a "happy end". The former is a sign of decent writing, though, so I'm not complaining.

The latter, though, is the weakest part of the show - subject 001 backstory is simply dropped in as a way to shoehorn a happy ending. They do give us the support staff's detailed backstory instead (which kind of relates to 001), but I don't think it is a good replacement.

The last ep is just kind of crammed in general - they try to do Rena x Oga, subject 001 and general story wrap-up in just 20 minutes, which is crazy. That also results in some plotholes/unexplained issues that really tug on my suspension of disbelief, such as how come Hishiro is doing a second year of ReLife? . Another one I've had hard time believing is that a 26-year-old would need to google "what is love". I mean, even if she's a completely unsociable shut-in, that's just way unlikely.

I guess these issues arise from the fact that, apparently, the manga is ongoing and there IS no ending, so they just stopped where they thought would be a good point. That said, I actually liked this better than ERASED overall, because it doesn't get distracted and does the important things right. ERASED, on the other hand, completely drops the ball on the "personal reassessment" front and focuses on the mystery.

 

[Ryu]

QUOTE (Ausdoerrt @ Jul 8 2016,3:00 AM)pport staff's detailed backstory instead (which kind of relates to 001), but I don't think it is a good replacemeI know what you mean after watching #7, serious half-prequel episode but nice about Onoya and especially Yoake as MC... interesting to see his PoV before he stalks keeps a distance from Arata at HS, pretending to not get along with An

 

[Norren]

QUOTE (Ausdoerrt @ Jul 08 2016, 02:00 AM) I dunno, for me the reveal itself was pretty obvious by about halfway through, because 1) there are numerous clues to it throughout and 2) it's just required for a "happy end". The former is a sign of decent writing, though, so I'm not complaining.

...

I guess these issues arise from the fact that, apparently, the manga is ongoing and there IS no ending, so they just stopped where they thought would be a good point. That said, I actually liked this better than ERASED overall, because it doesn't get distracted and does the important things right. ERASED, on the other hand, completely drops the ball on the "personal reassessment" front and focuses on the mystery.
In the WM, Hishiron's level of pure messed up is becoming more and more obvious, they're way past the Fireworks event now and Hishiron... well, the latest chapter is titled "Broken Robot" and that should tell you how bad her progress on learning to be a person is.

The entire next plot arc in the manga is reveal on Hishiron's past and why she's pretty much... broken inside. We saw a little bit of it with the "constantly moving" bit, but she turned into a perfect drone-employee adult with no regard for feelings after failing at them enough times as to get even worse at them, and just start ignoring everything that wasn't work related.

The Fireworks event was a bit rushed in the anime, in the manga it was paced a little better and the Hishiron reveal was a bit of a mindscrew because they'd put in a few red herrings that the anime omitted/blunted. (Pretty sure they also omitted Hishiron's devastating sly grin after Kaizaki hugged her, but I'll admit to having been multitasking at that moment.)

The story's already promising at least two more seasons of content, we'll see if any of it gets animated. I'm really hoping, I enjoy this story for all kinds of absurd reasons like how funny Hishiron is, but more that all the pieces for a happy end are there and yet there is no happy end even remotely in sight. Things could come together for a tragic ending at pretty much any point with even the slightest mistake.

... I'm not sure what's more tragic here. That Hishiron got to adulthood as damaged as she is, or that Kaizaki missed his calling in life as a school guidance counselor.

 

[gdpetti]

Which points out the process of choosing candidates for this study.. ReLife... which could be covered in future eps as well, as some of the company's backstory has been shown through the two watchers, or whatever they were called... some of it may seem blunted or limited, but that can always been flushed out another season, tied in with the selection process, which, given the difference between our two MCs, 001 and 002, seems to be an evolving process for the company itself... their first two test subjects. Obviously, as I said earlier, if the pill makes them younger looking, then they simply are physically, though they would have to get used to it again... like missing so many weeks in any training schedule... takes time to get back to 'normal'... that aspect could be touched upon as filler in another season... same as the company info.. filler around the characters... I take it that someone at the school is in on the company's testing .... near the top, if not the head honcho... maybe he/she's a member of the company's board of directors, main investor or something or both as this pill is undergoing live testing in real world situations. Another aspect to include is the Japanese societal aspects regarding the workplace, school, homefront, etc.... more filler to trigger the character/test subjects experiences...some of which have to be unexpected, such as the visit to the graveyard, which was seen when they were watching him as a potential test subject. Obviously, 001's case could be used as comparison on many levels.

Then, not knowing the manga, this storyline could easily continue with new test subjects... we can watch them being considered, chosen etc... the process, kept interesting, as we watch their problems on display... why they are under consideration...

... perhaps a look at the inherent 'bad' side of this pill, which usually shows up regarding military/industrial uses, even AI development... as so much of this research is funded by them.

It has taken the usual elements and combined them in an interesting form.

 

[Ryu]

QUOTE (gdpetti @ Jul 8 2016,03:56 PM)the company's backstory has been shown through the two watchers, or whatever they were called... some of it may seem blunted or limited
QUOTE (Norren @ Jul 8 2016,1:37 PM)Hishiron's level of pure messed up is becoming more and more obvious, thfinally ep.8 hints so xD a main reason I'm loving this series, but now as friends I'll miss Rena taking her smile the wrong way... good to see more comedy than its previous one, this time focused on Honoka and girls envying her talent

 

[Nioki]

I loved the show

I'm closer to being sad that they didn't give us any more service in the form of relationship progress, even if it was hints of what went on after the ending, but overall the whole anime was a sweet dream for its whole course. Also found many parallels between myself and Hishiro... too many in fact..

Everyone else finish it yet?

so hard not to spoil anything T_T

QUOTE (NecroRyu @ Jul 21 2016, 04:00 AM)QUOTE (gdpetti @ Jul 02 2016, 06:48 PM)could have potential... but of course the setup is so Cinderella... instead of midnight, our MC gets a whole year... if no memory loss, then it reminds me of Boku Dake only older....just found the ep.3 release aired on TV last friday but again, I didn't find any differences with its pre-stream like extended scenes... yet i'm liking it fansubbed which for me translates better and adds more notes than subs simulcasted in July 1st

I should watch it properly subbed again, I suppose.