The time is the near future. The place is Sugimori City. What seems like a normal bedroom community is in fact a large scale test site for an experimental project known as the Kizuna system. The system aims to break down the doors between people’s hearts by allowing them to literally share each other’s pain. Enter young, emotionless high schooler Katsuhira. He along with his classmates are chosen as test subjects for the Kizuna System project. What does fate have in store for Katsuhira and the gang and who is the mysterious girl Noriko who seems to be behind the entire project?

Kiznaiver immediately gained early fanfare due to its writer Mari Okada, who also wrote AnoHana along with its animation studio Trigger. You may remember Trigger for such anime as Kill La Kill and Ninja Slayer From Animation. Kiznaiver inherits both Triggers’ bold visual stylings and Okada’s strong character drama work. The Kiznaiver aspect gives this work a bit of a science fiction/mystery flair but the story stays grounded in the interpersonal relationships between the characters. As you can see from the trailer, this is definitely a show to watch in HD!

Staying on the penned by Okada train, we make our next stop at Hanasaku Iroha. This show follows 16 year old Ohana Matsumae, a level headed girl if somewhat dissatisfied with her life. It would be hard to be satisfied, always having to pick up after her lazy mother. One day, when her mom randomly springs the “I’m going to elope with my boyfriend” card out of nowhere, she foists Ohana off to the country to live with her grandmother. Seems to be just the jolt Ohana thinks she needs to shake up her dreary life. Only she finds that she is foisted off to an inn TO WORK where her grandmother is in charge and is the boss from Hell!

Hanasaku Iroha gained a sizable fan following due to the grounded character interplay and developing relationships between the inn’s employees. At the core of it all is Ohana, a cute little dynamo of positivity and initiative. While she and the rest of the workers have their own flaws and hang ups, it is a thrill seeing them grow as people and as a unit. While it is more optimistic and less moody than her other works, it still has the strong Okada touch of realistic dialogue and character growth. The great animation from P.A. Works doesn’t hurt either.

We take a slight detour from Okada-ville and head into the bright lights of Ghibli City! The famed studio has created many a beloved film, mostly under the helm of Hayao Miyazaki. However, this film is one of the few Ghibli films not directed by him. That being said, it maintains the high standard of Ghibli quality. The story revolves around introverted 12 year old Anna who moves from Sapporo to the country to live with her aunt and uncle. While there she notices a strange abandoned mansion where she sees a young blonde girl who appears and disappears at night. Anna meets the young girl named Marnie and learns about her life and the mystery surrounding her existence.

Similar to Spirited Away, this film focuses on an inward looking young girl adjusting to a new environment. It also has a touch of fantasy, although the mood here is much more subdued and restrained than in Miyazaki’s masterpiece. Still it has the requisite high quality music and animation that we have come to expect from Ghibli, along with quite the tear jerker of a story. You will definitely need the tissues around during the end of this film.