Audience reviews
20 · Sample from the first available page, separate from the total number of ratings.
Mr_Cherry
ef : A tale of memories..
This is my first review of an anime or it would be better if i said the first time i though of writing one...
I was attracted to start watching this anime only because of its overall but it seems to be far more fascinating than i expected it to be..
Lets go straight at my impressions as far as the story, the characters and the effects of this anime are concerned.
Story (10)
The first episode, which i tried to watch with a friend but i never finished it, was very complicated for me. There were many blanks at my mind and many things i just could not understand. Remember that this is not a romance story like others and this can be revealed even from the first episode. As i said i wasnt very attracted by the first episode and so will you. But as the episodes were…
Read at the sourceDemi_V
Ef: A Tale of Memories (or rather, the ef series altogether) is what I consider one of the best romance anime out there. It’s not the cliché high school types with hesitant characters. Memories is far greater than any of those from its amazing artwork and unique cast. The characters are blunt and do not beat around the bush to slow down any development. The romance is not rushed, and the anime takes its time showing the memories the characters’ create together.
Memories has two separate stories. It focuses on the development of characters’ relationships while delivering the fantasy/supernatural aspects (e.g. Chihiro’s memory loss). The characters’ meetings are distinct and unexpected, and it becomes valuable throughout the anime. They all create both good and bad memories together to only…
Read at the sourceInfatuate
ef: A Tale of Memories. An anime that I had never heard of yet somehow made its way into my list.
In my abruptly deceased quest to find a show that could move me, I stumbled upon this gem. It was a coincidence really, I can't remember clearly but there it was, in the MAL top user recommendations for a certain drama anime that I enjoyed.
So I got curious, checked out the synopsis and art. Looked good. Checked some scores and they were even better. What could possibly go wrong?
Well, everything did.
Now with the uninteresting prologue finished, I'll move on to the actual review.
We are introduced to a fairly small cast of characters, split into two different and simultaneous story arcs that never connect between each other despite having characters of the same family in both.
The fir…
Read at the sourceOmegaSiets
Are people merely a collection of their memories, or is a personality innately part of one's self? Ef: A Tale of Memories attempts to explore interesting questions like these, and while its heart is often in the right place, its execution ends up being problematic for numerous reasons.
Ef could really be thought of as two tales combined into one, as it follows two different sets of protagonists in their struggles to overcome their life problems. Hirono, an unmotivated high school student and fledgling manga artist, often has to have his longtime best friend Kei pick up the slack for him and make sure he keeps up with his education. One day however, Hirono encounters a girl named Miyako who frequently attempts to drag him away from his studies, which not only angers Kei for distracting him…
Read at the sourceBrii90
I can't even begin to fathom why people love this series so much. The story is incredibly, mind-blowingly generic, and the characters are so typical that I feel like I've seen them in dozens of other shows. On top of that, the "artistic" style of the anime was so distracting and ridiculous. I found myself laughing every time the scene became obnoxiously distorted or the colors changed, because it was so non-discrete and it never quit. Yes, this anime is pretty. But it's pretty in a way that makes it clear that it's trying way too hard to be beautiful and artistic. All in all, this anime was painful to watch. It was not deep nor creative like it tried so hard to be.
Read at the sourcesilentsennin
"Letting go of a bond that you have created will cause you the same pain as having your body torn apart."
Bonds and dreams- they are two of the things which connect human beings on a universal level. Humans are social creatures, they need bonds in order to keep on living, and they also need those bonds in order to strengthen their confidence in themselves when things do not seem to be going the way they wish them to go. Unfortunately, life works that way sometimes and as result, the bonds formed between lovers and even friends are at times necessary to remind us of who we are and that which we wish to become.
"Ef- A tale of memories", is an anime that showcases these ideas beautifully and in a way that is instantly relatable to the viewer who is watching it. These ideas are conveyed thr…
Read at the sourceFonbella
I decided to watch this anime after watching some AMVs. I've always despised the art style of this anime (big heads, pentagonal faces and skinny characters don't really appeal me), but the animation was gorgeous, which motivated me.
Story: 5.
The story doesn't pick up until episode 5. I almost dropped watching it because it's boring at first, but it does get better as it goes, and since it's actually a short anime, I recommend watching it all. This anime could be divided in three stories. Sadly, aside from Renji and Chihiro's part, the story is very poor. If you're looking for a more complex, mind blowing story, I recomend not watching this. While I love drama and I respect the director's decision to stage it in a unique way, some of the most dramatic parts in this anime are laughable, Li…
Read at the sourceKaminaKai
“Put your wishes into the memories you do not want to forget…”
Ef – a tale of memories is one of those anime that will probably stay in your memory and will be used as a standard to compare with other similar series in the future. Why in the future? Because the entire series is so beautifully made that there is only a very small handful of shows that are worth comparing it to at present time. In fact, as far as animation quality and technique are concerned Ef – a tale of memories is one of a kind and will most likely remain so for some time to come.
The unique animation style is first shown in the first OP. While colourful images and sceneries directly taken out from the anime itself often proved to be an effective foreshadowing device (and a good way to capture viewers attention), the e…
Read at the sourcemichaelfeb16
I was inspired to write this view to provide an alternative viewpoint on this good, but not great, show.
Story - 4:
The story suffers from trying to cover too much. By covering six main characters, the show dilutes the huge potential it had. In the first half of the series, the story abruptly jumps from character to character requiring jarring adjustments of the mindset of the viewer. Although it is possible to jump between situations and tell a good story, it is a difficult task that ef has failed to meet. I believe that, given more time to develop context and maintain fluidity, this show could have been a perfect ten.
Of the two main stories told, the relationship between Chihiro and Renji is the most enthralling. The emotional struggle over the value of memories, while a familiar topi…
Read at the sourcezSolaris
I'm not quite sure how I should write this. More or less, this series had the potential to be either a grand slam or a game ending triple play. In fact, the first time I watched it I thought it was pretty bad. I dropped it after watching half of the second episode. However, I picked it back up on a whim and boy was I surprised. This epic drama is probably the perfection of Greek drama on top of the romantic expectations in this day and age. But here is a warning, ef - a tale of memories demands more of the viewer than the average drama does.
In most dramas, you can predict a lot of the things happening. There will be "X" love triangle, there will be "Y" incident, etc. In a sense, one of the two stores in ef -a tale of memories does that (the one reloving around Hirono). However, it is the…
Read at the sourceCeptryn
Stumbling across Tale of Memories amongst the sea of eroge adaptations is akin to finding a piece of artwork rivaling the Mona Lisa in playboy. Something so rare that its likely to be met by skepticism by friends till they experience the most unlikely gem themselves.
The premise of Tale of Memories isn't exactly original. It details the story of two guys. One who helps a girl who can only remember events for 13 hours achieve her dream. The other who must get over his indecisive nature before his love triangle becomes School days (i.e, deadly). But then, the Mona Lisa is just a picture of some chick smiling. The devil is in the details, and Memories tells these stories so flawlessly that you'll likely experience the joy and despair that each character faces first hand.
The second half of…
Read at the sourceMiakaDiva
I recently watched this series after I saw some recommendations about it when surfing the Kimi ga Nozomu eien page. Did it live up to my expectations ? Well, let's see....
Story
First off, please don’t let the first episode turn you away especially if you never looked at summaries or played the games. I admit that I was confused after watching the first episode. After the first 3 episodes, it should be smooth.
Aside from this, the story is excellent. For a 12 episodes anime, the character development is great. By the end, you pretty much know all of the main characters, their past and why they act in such a way.
The ending is satisfactory although it leaves plenty of intrigue for another season to happen. Also, it certainly has a great replay value.
Lots of things will make a lot…
Read at the sourceqwel76xyo9
I almost dropped this anime, but since it only had 12 episodes, I kept watching. I'm not saying it's a crappy anime, but I didn't like it. And there are reasons. Lots of them.
Story
The story is pretty easy to follow, even though it's actually more like two stories and not just one. I don't see the idea of having two stories, though. Although they are somehow related, I really don't understand it. That put aside, the story is quite basic with a few things that make it different to your normal anime story, but if you don't think about these few things, it kind of seems like you have seen the anime before somewhere. The way I look at it, this story doesn't have a plot worth talking about. It just revolves around some teenagers with some problems, and that's about it. Of course the problems…
Read at the sourceBakaScarlet
I loved this anime very much. It is extremely emotional and very well written. First of all, this was NOT a typical romance/love triangle anime.
Story:
The story is very well thought out. It can be confusing at times, but is quickly cleared up. It is full of surprises, morals and everything a fan of anime would love to see. Its split into two parts with two stories following extraordinary events (damn, sometimes i wish i was him.) and is set in the same place. I believe that the time of the stories were different, however, it is plain to see if you watch this series which i highly recommend. Despite the switching between the two "stories", it flowed extremely well with each other. A climatic event may be coming up soon, but it suddenly switches. This was perhaps, the only flaw that i fou…
Read at the sourceTheLlama
Several love stories... they will make you cry. Definite recommendation.
Love. Tragedy. Sadness. This show has all the basic ingredients that's needed to make me cry. . However, not all shows with those basic ingredients have done so. What made this show so special then?
I guess the characters, and the way they were portrayed. They were all struggling... struggling with their dreams. What to do. Who to be with. That was portrayed in such a way that I completely fell into it, with my entire mind. It was as if I was standing next to them, having to watch them struggle through their dreams and loves... forcing me to cry, both in the good and bad times they were experiencing. Also, the animation and the way the scenes were made was really beautiful and enjoyable. It was something I've never s…
Read at the sourcegame8910
When I was recommended ef - a tale of memories, I was not expecting much since it looked like another romance/drama show, and in the end it was, but it was not just like any other series out there...this one felt a little unique in its own way. Mostly because of how everything was delievered.
Story: This anime is mainly divided by two main stories happening simultaneously. Most of the episodes would focus half of its airtime to one story and they switch to the other one. IMO this didnt bother me but it does kill some momentum if there is something important going on. This story is really powerful and has some really shocking, sad and happy moments as well. I'll be honest and say that I favoured Hirono's story more than Renji's even if Renji's was filled with more tragedy while Hirono's ha…
Read at the sourceWasabi
ef - a tale of memories is another brilliant work produced by Shaft, responsible for Negima!?, Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei, and Hidamari Sketch. Based on the visual novel of the same name, ef is split into two different storylines told simultaneously across 12 episodes. As it being a romance story, you can expect many cliches, but this is definitely one of those anime that molds all of that into a brilliant plot.
Story: The plot is split between two stories, both told simultaneously throughout the show. It follows through different scenes of melodrama, emotional distress, and many touching scenes. The plot is slightly slow for the first two or three episodes but picks up to an amazing finale.
Art: Shaft's presence is definitely noted in this show as well as their other works. The art design…
Read at the sourceNightNLght
Masterpiece, quick and easy.
Everything about this series spews "masterpiece". Very rarely does something totally defy and captivate me the way this series did. So what qualifies it to be a masterpiece?
The story: Far to often stories are "predictable". You can see so and so breaking up with so and so ten miles away... ef~ gives the to predictability vibe the entire story... But you end up WRONG every time! And what is awesome is; it doesn't lightly hit you with your wrongness, it loads into the cannon on an M1 Bradley fighting vehicle, puts the barrel about an inch from your head and lets you have it!
*SPOILER*
Ex. Just when your expecting Chihiro to toss her small body from the roof of the school... Something FAR FAR more devastating happens.... I don't want to spoil to much for you guy…
Read at the sourceMaxwellLily
ef - a tale of memories had everything to be just another harem show adapted from an eroge. The season also brought the incredibly antecipated Clannad, so many wouldn't have given this show a second thought. However, the way such a simple story was developed is different from any other eroge adaptation that has seen the light of day so far.
The story isn't that original if you think about it. Dependable girls that simply need the protagonist, a dose of drama here and there. You're certain you've seen it all before until there were twists you weren't expecting. Somehow, the distant story feels all the more reachable, that it doesn't seem like just another story anymore. The hurt, the love, the helplessness, it is easier to connect to them than you'd have thought, and although the pacing ma…
Read at the sourceMaster10K
ef - A Tales of Memories is a Psychological, Romance, Drama that may seem like all the other romance anime based of a visual novel (dating sim), yet there is something special about this one.
Video Alternative
The first episode of the series may seem pretty confusing and hard to follow, as the viewer is dragged, from one situation to another. However once you’ve grasped the concept, it quickly becomes clear that this series is made up of two separate, main stories. From then on the show becomes easy to follow and to enjoy, for its uniqueness. There are so many twists and turns that are able to turn any anime cliche into a work of art.
The characters are great and very well defined, as they all developed in their own way, throughout the story. You will have some that are involved i…
Read at the source