To be "depressing" is to shatter beautiful things.
And to "heal" is to restore that shattered beauty.
There is a reason CLANNAD was so highly esteemed by anime fans in Rei's previous life. Even twenty years later, whenever romance, tear-jerkers, or the pinnacle of healing anime are mentioned, most people still think of it first.
It's because it pulled off a top-tier reversal from depressing to healing within a few short episodes.
Perhaps some anime fans in Rei's previous life felt that the ending of CLANNAD was a bit of a deus ex machina. How did it suddenly reverse like that?
That is a common flaw in anime adapted from Galgames, though. It's impossible to present the entire game's plot in exhaustive detail.
Players of the game would know that across the many routes of the story, except for a few gag routes, an kagayaku tama is collected after completing each route.
One must collect all thirteen kagayaku tama to enter the final plotline.
As for the purpose of collecting the kagayaku tama, there are hints scattered throughout the game's massive amount of dialogue. They can trigger miracles.
Putting it plain, it's similar to how gathering the seven Dragon Balls in the Dragon Ball manga allows for a wish. The game isn't that explicit, but players immersed in the story can guess it with high accuracy.
In Fuko's route, there is a plot point where an kagayaku tama is consumed to save Fuko Ibuki. This plot point must be triggered in Fuko's route to obtain two kagayaku tama from Fuko and her sister Kouko in the second part, the After Story.
If you're unwilling to invest early on, there are no returns later, and players wouldn't be able to collect all thirteen orbs.
Then, Nagisa Furukawa's route has to be completed three times, which is very agonizing. In the first playthrough, Nagisa and her daughter pass away from illness.
In the second playthrough, the player collects the kagayaku tama from the parents-in-law.
The third playthrough is the final "True End."
There's also the girl in the world that ended and the purpose of the robot, which are revealed much more than the limited screen time in the anime allowed.
If it's a game player, they get the plot settings after entering the After Story. There is only one goal. Unlock all hidden conditions and reverse the worldline. And that is the only reason that draws players to keep playing the After Story.
However, Japan does not have the original CLANNAD game. Due to the limited length of the anime script and the lack of similar works in Japan, the audience's imagination cannot draw from other works to fill in the blanks. So, by the end of episode 21, the audience's mood was basically one of despair rather than hope.
No one knew what purpose those kagayaku tama, which emerged from key characters after every major story arc, served.
No one could guess how the plot involving the girl in the world that ended and the robot would reverse the final ending.
Everyone just knew.
Ushio Okazaki was dead.
In this romance anime, everyone spent over twenty episodes watching Nagisa Furukawa and Tomoya Okazaki fall in love.
Then they spent 16 episodes watching them get married, have a daughter, and then Nagisa die of illness.
Then another 5 episodes watching the most adorable daughter, Ushio Okazaki, follow in her mother's footsteps.
The viewers of CLANNAD fell into despair after episode 21 of the second season aired.
"We've followed this anime for a year just to see this ending?"
"Shirogane, you've got guts."
"Hahaha, I'm so angry I'm laughing."
"Is there even any point in watching the final episode of CLANNAD next week?"
"It'll probably just be the plot of Tomoya Okazaki holding a funeral for his daughter."
"Sigh. I don't even know how to evaluate this."
"Sob sob sob, this made a grown man like me unable to sleep all night. Was this necessary, Shirogane?"
"I'm so angry I don't even want to curse anymore. I'm tired. I feel like I don't want to watch any of Shirogane's works ever again."
"I don't even want to watch anime anymore. I used to hear that super-depressing works could make someone quit being an ACGN fan, but I didn't believe it. Now I believe it. I'm done."
"Shirogane-sensei, please withdraw your divine powers. I'll allow you to retract tonight's episode. This anime's ending can be sent back to the drawing board. I'll pretend I never saw it. Can't you just set a new plot? There's no need for a reversal for the sake of a reversal.
A normal plot where Tomoya Okazaki sees his daughter grow up and becomes an old father watching her get married and have kids would be enough. That would be the most perfect ending for CLANNAD. What are you doing?"
"Don't say it. Shirogane is so immersed in his own artistic plot that he's lost touch with reality. I've been watching anime for thirty years. I've seen this situation many times."
"When creators start getting all 'artsy,' they usually have a few common flaws. To prevent their plot from being guessed, they stop playing by logic and create plots that even a psychotic screenwriter wouldn't think of, just to spite people.
Plus, they think happy endings are too cliché and insist on tragedies. And after being blasted by the market and the audience, they'll say something like 'my work is too ahead of its time' or 'the audience of this era doesn't understand' just to save face."
"The first two are spot on. Now we just have to wait for the third one."
"So, are we still watching the final episode next week?"
"Watch it, why wouldn't we? This plot is basically beyond saving, but I still have to finish this work."
"CLANNAD as an anime is innocent, and Tomoya Okazaki's family has moved me countless times. The real evil is the fate the Creator God arranged for their family. I have to finish it properly to see what other nonsense Shirogane, this Creator God, can pull off."
"If you're so capable, why don't you have Tomoya Okazaki die in the final episode too?"
In the past, Rei's fans were relatively restrained when bashing him, mostly expressing an emotion or attitude to let Shirogane know that they, the die-hard fans, didn't like this kind of plot and to not do it next time.
Tonight, the wording was far more intense. Many people's psychological defenses were broken in full.
Many peers in the Japan's anime industry watched with regret.
From an objective perspective, wasn't this a form of success?
It proved that this work had almost reached godhood. Otherwise, how could so many viewers have such strong immersion?
It was one step away.
Besides regret, these peers also felt a sense of schadenfreude.
The current Shirogane, even if he created ten huge flops, wouldn't have his reputation or status affected.
Fans wouldn't remember Shirogane's bad works. If they didn't like them, they wouldn't watch. Their mindset would be: Shirogane just underperformed occasionally, the next work will be better.
The most fearsome thing is this kind of work that is only an ending away from godhood, where all the die-hard fans are lured in only to be slaughtered, and then for the ending, you produce a piece of trash.
Normal people won't eat trash if they see it, but Shirogane, you wrapped the trash in a sugar coating. Once the sugar melts and the rotten taste of trash inside hits. Then there's no saving it. Fans will not easily forgive this deceptive author.
In one night, a million critical comments flooded Rei's account.
Tens of thousands of insulting private messages were sent to Rei's account.
A large number of anime media outlets began to cater to the fans' emotions, harshly criticizing episode 21 of CLANNAD.
CLANNAD's broadcasting station, Tokyo Television Station, received a pile of official complaints demanding that the CLANNAD anime be taken down.
The director of the CLANNAD anime was also cursed out by the vast number of fans.
Normally, an anime screenwriter's status in a project team is slightly lower than the director's. Why didn't you stop this kind of plot when the anime project was being initiated?
Did you just endure it because Shirogane is your boss? For money, did you even sell your professional ethics and spirit as an anime director? If this is the ending for CLANNAD, Shirogane takes 90% of the blame, and you, the director, take 10%.
A group of people even threatened to boycott the director's next work.
"Played by you again. Why do you think so many people in the Japan's anime industry never learn?" Misaki said when she met Rei at the company. "Clearly, so many works have had reversals at the end, and they've already followed it until right before the final episode, yet they couldn't hold back."
"During the previous plot of Nagisa Furukawa's death, many viewers expected me to bring her back to life later or have some superpower development like Fuko's spiritual state. But in the subsequent plot, the heroine Nagisa really died. With that precedent, they have no choice but to believe that Ushio Okazaki is really dead too." Rei laughed.
"And most importantly, I have a large number of old fans who have learned their lesson and are waiting and watching instead of jumping out to bash me, but the Japan's anime industry always has newbie fans. They don't have so many thoughts. If they're unhappy with what they see, they bash it. It's normal."
"It's also thanks to you being relatively merciful in recent years. Since Demon Slayer and Titan, you haven't created any more depressing anime," Misaki said. "Otherwise, if CLANNAD followed this plot to a Bad End, that would really be."
That would just be the game's Bad End. Incomplete.
Rei complained a bit in his heart, then took a deep breath.
"In a few days, after CLANNAD finishes, this year will be over."
"Yeah, another year." Misaki pulled open the blinds in the office and looked out the window.
In the huge circular commercial district spreading out from the Shirogane Animation company headquarters, under the leadership of a client like Rei who didn't delay payments and had abundant funds, the area had been mostly renovated in just a year or two.
80% of the main structures for the demolition and reconstruction project have been completed. Some newly acquired buildings that didn't require reconstruction but needed renovation for functional purposes have even finished their interior work.
A large portion of these renovated buildings are owned by Shirogane Animation. Some are commercial office buildings invested in by the Tokyo Municipal Government, and others are equity properties held by giants of the Japan animation industry who have long-standing cooperative relationships with Rei.
"In another year. This place is going to become very prosperous." Misaki said in a soft voice.
"In less than ten years. This will become the world's most prosperous ACGN business district." Rei added at this moment.
"You certainly have a lot of confidence." Misaki looked at Rei. "If it becomes that prosperous, this place will be among the most bustling commercial districts in downtown Tokyo. When that time comes, you won't even need to run an animation IP company. Just collecting rent from the property would probably make more money than the company does now."
"Real estate commercial income doesn't mean much to me. I'm still more interested in dedicating myself to animation." Rei said. "Doing all this is to make it more convenient to promote the Shirogane Animation IP."
Rei and Misaki's discussions always revolved around company development and profits, and then, at a certain point, both would stop and change the subject.
Over the next few days, Rei kept busy negotiating collaborations with several world-renowned animation IP companies alongside Miyu.
Under these circumstances, Clannad reached another Saturday, its broadcast day.
The CLANNAD fans, who had been holding it in for a week, didn't have their anger dissipate after a week like they usually did with Shirogane's works.
They felt more and more uncomfortable, as if something was blocked in their chests and they had to let it out.
Most of the fans who said they would drop the series next week still turned on their televisions tonight on instinct.
The reason was simple. No matter how much they suffered from the plot of CLANNAD After Story, everyone still wanted to see Ushio Okazaki's ending with their own eyes.
The higher their anger toward Shirogane, the more they loved this anime.
Even now, it was hard to find anyone on the internet saying that CLANNAD After Story was a bad anime.
The character portrayals inside were all excellent. No character behaved as if they had lost their mind.
The real problem was that the characters' fates were too heartless.
Starting from the afternoon, the angry insults directed at Shirogane on the internet climbed once again.
The climax arrived at seven o'clock.
Rei's old friend of many years, the person in charge at Tokyo Television Station, was still incredibly nervous.
The TV station had performance requirements, and the contracts with advertisers weren't without restrictive clauses.
If the ratings for the CLANNAD After Story finale were too low, the station would lose a lot of advertising revenue.
When the time reached 7:50, the person in charge breathed a huge sigh of relief.
"Highest-rated episode since the broadcast began, hands down."
It hadn't even started yet, and the ratings were already at 6.68%.
With this performance, what would happen once it actually started?
"Infamy is still fame. As long as the ratings meet the target, it's fine," the person in charge thought.
Hardcore CLANNAD After Story fans like Ryosuke were anxious.
The process of waiting for the finale to broadcast was excruciating.
He could only vent his emotions by cursing on the internet, but once eight o'clock arrived, he focused his mind.
"It's the last episode."
Ryosuke watched the opening song with a melancholy heart.
This would be the last time he watched the OP.
He thought to himself that he wouldn't watch reruns of CLANNAD After Story or buy the Clannad BD discs in the future.
He didn't have the courage to watch it a second time.
With a sigh, this man, who had been a fan of Shirogane for eight years, from a high school student to a university graduate and now married, looked at the television.
As soon as the plot of the final episode of CLANNAD After Story began, it left Ryosuke confused.
Last week's plot had cut off with Ushio Okazaki dying in Tomoya Okazaki's arms.
Then, a segment was used as a metaphor for Tomoya Okazaki's regret. Regretting his meeting with the female lead, Nagisa Furukawa.
As this week's plot began, it shifted back to the story of the girl in the Illusionary World and her robot with self-awareness.
The girl lay in the snow of the Illusionary World, together with the robot.
"What kind of foreshadowing do these two have anyway? I don't understand it at all." Ryosuke couldn't help but mutter.
They only showed up for a minute every few episodes to show their existence, but from the first season until now, the plot of these two could add up to over ten minutes.
So far, it wasn't clear what intention Shirogane had for this plot.
It couldn't be for padding the story, could it?
Ryosuke shook his head.
Then the animation frames began to connect with last week.
It switched back and forth between the girl in the Illusionary World and the inner turmoil in Tomoya Okazaki's world.
It was as if his consciousness had returned to that day. The day he met Nagisa Furukawa.
Cherry blossoms were falling, but his world was a dull gray.
Until Nagisa Furukawa turned to leave, passing him by. If he let Nagisa Furukawa leave here, the two would never cross paths again for the rest of their lives.
The plot switched back to the Illusionary World, where the robot was desperately trying to save the girl covered by heavy snow.
Ryosuke's expression was speechless.
Shirogane-sensei, what are you doing?
It's the last episode. Can you stop with the stream of consciousness?
Give me some main plot that I can understand at a glance.
I don't even know what this plot has to do with Ushio Okazaki's death.
No matter how much Tomoya Okazaki regrets it, what can he change?
Could it be that if he just imagines in his head that he and Nagisa Furukawa never met, they really wouldn't have met?
Would Nagisa Furukawa be able to not die then?
The camera switched again. The girl of the Illusionary World, waking up in the heavy snow, was able to communicate with her robot through their hearts in this situation.
The dialogue between the two revealed a lot of information.
The girl was the incarnation of this world.
If she left this world, the kagayaku tama in the Illusionary World would become unhappy.
Beside this world, there was another world.
"Right, that's the real world. And then?" Ryosuke blinked, barely beginning to understand the new setting.
The girl spoke the key information to the robot.
[You understand, don't you? You exist in two worlds at the same time.]
Ryosuke's brow furrowed.
A science student's brain is useful. He linked this with the string theory occasionally mentioned in the Kotomi Ichinose arc.
Putting it plain, it was a multiple parallel worlds setting.
Since the robot exists in two worlds at the same time and is a robot in this world, who is it in the real world?
A reflection? A projection?
And who is this girl of the Illusionary World?
[Now, you must shut down your consciousness and wake up in the world on the other side. You will meet many people and many things, and then, you will meet me.] The girl said to the robot.
So this girl also exists in the real world at the same time?
The light orbs have been fully collected. She is going to send the robot to the real world to complete her purpose.
Ryosuke's mouth hung open. He felt like he was catching onto something, but the flash of inspiration passed too quickly and didn't give him a chance.
Until.
The girl lying in the snow of the Illusionary World began to hum. Dango Daikazoku.
Is she Nagisa Furukawa?
Ryosuke reacted at once.
In this anime, the only ones who like to hum this song are Nagisa Furukawa's family.
Since it's a female, then it's Nagisa Furukawa, without doubt.
The robot reacted immediately.
[This song, I know it.]
[Yes, this is the song you have always hummed to me.] The girl looked at the robot.
Ryosuke's inspiration surged again.
Why.
According to the girl's words, she would only meet the robot on the other side after she sends it to the other world.
She already knows now that the other party will hum this song to her after they meet in the other world. This means this girl is, in a sense, omniscient.
But Dango Daikazoku is something Nagisa Furukawa likes to sing. Who would hum this song to Nagisa Furukawa?
The setting wasn't given in the animation. It seemed Nagisa Furukawa liked this song on her own, and no one taught it to her.
And who is the robot's identity in the real world?
At this moment, the brightness of the animation screen soared, and light scattered the girl's body and the robot's body.
This power would transport the robot into the world next door.
The price was the girl sacrificing herself and this world that was bound to her.
Before the robot's body was scattered, the girl smiled and said to it:
[Goodbye. Papa.]
Ryosuke's mouth hung wide open.
In the next instant, tears welled up.
He understood.
The previous guess was overturned, and a new logic was established.
It was like finally solving a difficult science problem after much contemplation.
With just one viewing, the thoughts racing through his head helped him deduce the entire truth.
This girl is Ushio Okazaki.
This robot. Is Tomoya Okazaki.