Memories – remembering and reminisching – are a few of the things that people would think about from time to time, that is if you would even have any. And even if you did, sometimes the past looks more comforting than what you have now in the present, and sometimes it is a very difficult life lesson. ef: A Tale of Memories mainly focuses on these two scenarios. The plot is very interesting and the music in the background saves the story from the deafening silence of tension, but the voicing is less passionate than expected, though it makes up for it with the cleanliness of the visuals.
*Japanese names in this review are written surname-first*
ef is actually made up of two stories, with a mysterious couple connecting the two. The first one involves a manga artist by the name of Hirono Hiro and his love triangle with his childhood friend, Shindo Kei, and classmate, Miyamura Miyako. There is also Hiro’s friend, Tsutsumi Kyosuke, who has a pure view of filmmaking and wishes to make a film with Kei as the sole character. A few times do these people meet a woman named Amamiya Yuko who appears in their times of trouble, but disappears just as suddenly. The second part is about Kei’s twin, Shindo Chihiro, who suffers from losing her memories after thirteen hours and Asou Renji who she meets in an abandoned train station. Over the course of their meeting, Chihiro wishes to write a novel where Renji helps her remember the details to progress, and in doing so they end up having an intimate relationship. The other of the mysterious pair, Himura Yu, is Chihiro’s caretaker and repeatedly warns Renji should he wish to become closer to Chihiro. Yu also says that he has been waiting for a person a long time in a cathedral that Renji visits. Both stories happen simultaneously in the anime.
The essence of the stories, which is also seen in the title, is constant: memory. Every episode revolves around it in someway. From Chihiro’s mental illness to Kei’s and Miyako’s childhood memories, and even the memory Yu had of the person he is waiting for. It is very coherent and can be thought-provoking at times. There may be a few scenes of slight explicit content due to nudity and may have been unnecessary, but the story is still very interesting and realistic when it comes to the relationships of the people. Also a thing I had noticed in the anime was the amount of background music. It was not lacking and was very appopriate whenever heavy and heartwarming scenes came.
As expected of SHAFT, there were quite a number of erogenous zone shots, head tilts and large expanses. But what I had liked about the animation was that it was clean and not always in the same colored state. There were times where it was left in sketch, times where they were only solid color silhouettes, and times where static interference appeared. And they all felt very meaningful, showing contrast between the outside appearance and the thoughts of the characters, and sometimes even how loss of information occurs between two people.
ef may have a few things lacking on the outer content, but the story and the themes of the anime were quite well-made. Remembering, recalling, reminiscing, and even forgetting and inferring. Memories matter. And if the memories change, then so will the perspective of a person. And two people will almost always have different views on a single event. We base our decisions and judgement from these memories, firmly believing that it is the logical thing to do. And sometimes, we logically think that a miracle can happen, which we make true with our own power.
Rating: 8.00/10
Written by Moe