Created By: Jun Mayuzuki
Directed By: Ayumu Watanabe
Studio: Wit Studio
Episode Count: 1 – 12
Audio: Japanese, English
Subtitles: English
Certification: 12 (BBFC)
Format: BluRay
Licensed By: MVM Entertainment
Release Date: Available Now
Akira Tachibana is a young high school student who works part time at a family restaurant. This is the story of how she found this job, quit the track team and fell in love with her struggling, forty five year old divorced manager. All after a chance encounter during a heavy rainfall, Akira’s life takes a new direction ‘ After the Rain’.
‘After the Rain’ is a coming of age story for injured athlete Akira Tachibana. Having suffered a serious injury that has taken her away from the running track, Tachibana left her team behind and instead dedicated herself to her new part time job. Not long into her recovery, she walks into a random family restaurant to escape a sudden downpour of rain. Whilst waiting inside, she is served a cup of coffee by the manager – Masami Kondo. Through a simple magic trick and a generous act of kindness, Tachibana becomes infatuated with the man. Leading her down the path to working in the same restaurant as him. Through their shared work schedule, Tachibana’s feelings build upto the point that she confesses to him.
Kondo on the other hand is 45 years old, is a divorced man and has a young son in middle school. He is a bit uncertain in himself, is constantly apologising for the slightest thing and truly lives by the rule – that the customer is always right. So much so, there is little to no respect for him from the rest of the staff. Outside of work, he has struggled to continue his writing as he once dreamed of being a published author. Can Tachibana and Kondo help one another realise their dreams and get back on the path to achieving them? Or will they forever be stuck in the rain?
This really is a coming of age story, both for Tachibana and Kondo. From Tachibana’s viewpoint as she encounters her first love after the bitter heartbreak of leaving her track team behind. Now feeling a bit isolated, as her friends continue training for their track meet, Tachibana focuses on her new job and trying to suddenly get to know her boss more. For Kondo, we see many flashbacks into his past, from a college student focussed on his writing, to his failed marriage and living the life of a secluded single man. He is a bit of a mess, as we can see from his apartment alone. He doesn’t seem interested in pursuing his ex wife, or a new relationship. Yet kind of falls in line, when he mistakenly agrees to meet up with Tachibana outside of work. Which gives her false hope, kind of stringing the young girl along a bit. Yet he seems to be completely unaware of this, believing that she can not possibly be in love with him as he is. The two do strike a mutual friendship, and perhaps over time they may grow closer together once Tachibana gets a few years older. College may change her, add some maturity, who knows? At the moment, these two lost souls just need someone to push them a little back on track towards their passions.
‘After the Rain’ is a Japanese manga series created and illustrated by Jun Mayuzuki. It first began serialization in 2014, having featured in both the Monthly and Weekly Big Comic Spirits magazines. It ran for almost four years, with a total of 10 manga volumes with the publishing company Vertical handling the English translation. This anime series was then released in 2018, just months before the final volume was to be released. With a 12 episode series being produced by the legendary Wit Studios. The same studio behind ‘Attack on Titan’. The adaptations didn’t end there however, as within the same year a live action movie was released under the same name from Toho studios.
Bonus Features Include:
Clean opening and ending
Japanese Promos
Sentei trailers
‘After the Rain’ is almost a bittersweet coming of age story, with moments of romance but still with a strong footing as a slice of life. It’s no fairy tail, there are more moments of sheer reality in this than any show you may watch. This is sure to be a favourite for people that have a deep appreciation for the genre.
Overall: 8/10
