5 Centimeters per Second

I was 14 when I saw the first part of the anime on TV. It was melancholy and beautiful, and I loved it immediately. I didn't know there was more to it until five years later, when I watched it again. After watching part 2 and hearing Kanae's story, I cried harder than I had ever cried since I was a child. After that I had to read the manga. The art is AMAZING, much more satisfying than Shinkai's anime, and there is a lot more development to the characters that allows you to understand where they are coming from better. The epilogue that is part 3in the anime is also much more expansive, so there is a lot more about what happens to the characters in adulthood. If you were on the fence about reading it, that in itself is enough reason to do so. More than anything else I have ever seen, this manga perfected the portrayal of unrequited love: from the anxiety of trying to admit your feelings, to the lightheaded joy of finding that your crush has the slightest thing in common with you. It made me cry all over again, and Sumida Kanae has become one of my favorite characters in fiction. I find myself opening it and re-reading my favorite scenes dozens of times. If anyone asked me my favorite book, I would have to struggle not give this manga as my answer.

===== SPOILER REVIEW HERE===== Disappointment. That is my opinion about this manga. MC is literally piece of shit, and he got what he deserved. Story (6/10) : This is about a guy who cannot move on, and got stucked in the past, but refuses to do anything about his condition. He is free to do anything, he got the time, he got the means available to look for his beloved, but no, nothing happened. **SPOILERS** So MC is separated with his first love, and after some time, they lose contact of each other. MC clings to his past, believing she is the only one for him,yet he refuses to contact her, in any way. He refuses to go to class reunions, which one of his classmates MIGHT have FMC's contact. He went to the town where FMC used to live, but he stopped at the station. He thought to himself that she might not be there anymore. Yes, FMC MIGHT not live there anymore. But it's not like there is nothing left there. Her neighbors? no, he didn't try to contact them. Looking for information about her? nah, not worth trying. Ask his classmates? no, they won't know anyway. Literally nothing. Art (7/10) : Gotta stay objective, the art is decent, it is not great, not bad either. Character (1/10) : This is where it gets frustating. There is no character development. Time passed, but there is no change in MC's behavior. Literally nothing, it's like MC refuses to grow up, or even do something about his condition, then proceed to hurt people around him. He is only expecting other people to do something to his situation. MC is like your edgy teenager where he always whine about his problems, but refuses to do anything about it. Without doing something, you will get no result, and when you get no result, don't rub it on another people's face. Glad FMC moved on. She dodged a bullet there. Enjoyment (2/10) : Very frustating MC, not really enjoyable. Overall (4/10) : This manga has potential, but is wasted on its characters.

After I had watched the movie "5 Centimeters Per Second: a chain of short stories about their distance", directed by Makoto Shinkai, one of the biggest problems with the movie I had was the lack of depth in the relationship between Kanae and Takaki. In the manga, however, I feel like this relationship was explored more in depth, which left me with a more complete feeling after reading the manga. This also helped build both Kanae, Takaki, and Akari as characters, because narration from Kanae about her feelings revealed more dimensions to each character than what was depicted in the movie. If you enjoyedthe movie, I believe that you will definitely enjoy the manga. For me, it started slow. The first few chapters, covering the childhood relationship between Takaki and Akari were dull for me, and it was a struggle to continue reading. Thankfully, once Kanae was introduced and the characters weren't children anymore, the emotions and the way that they displayed them seemed more real, causing an overall maturation of the manga as a whole. I will not write a whole summary of what happens in the manga because I am sure that many of you have seen the movie; however, I will say that in my opinion, the strength of characters is MUCH stronger in the manga, and I am able to return to the manga, re-read it, and still enjoy it, which I unfortunately cannot do with the movie. (Just not the same as the first time when rewatching the anime version in my opinion :[ ) I rate this an overall 8/10 for these two reasons mainly: -The slow start, if continued, would have earned the manga an overall 5 in my opinion. However, -the manga after the first few chapters was EXCELLENT, a 10/10 in my opinion. Because more of the manga was in the "after first few chapters" category, (8/11 chapters?) I give byousoku 5 Centimeters per second an 8/10.