[Contemplation] Orange
Orange carries a compelling theme of leaving no regrets that may be common for most stories but delivers its purpose in the most relatable way possible: Friendship.
Orange is based on a popular manga by Ichigo Takana that was adapted into a live action movie starring Kento Yamazaki (Yes, again. haha) and now adapted into an anime! *confetti* The first time I encountered this was a few years back when I was craving for a really good but short manga to read and Heavenly Father gave this to me! From then on, my little wish was to have this turned into an anime. But I was surprised to see that it was made into a movie first before they started working on my wish. I waited patiently for that one episode per week scenario until I finally watched it now! (And yes, I was late.)
Here is the story btw:
One day, Naho Takamiya receives a letter written to herself from ten years in the future. As Naho reads on, the letter recites the exact events of the day, including the transfer of a new student into her class named Kakeru Naruse. The Naho from ten years later repeatedly states that she has many regrets, and she wants to fix these by making sure the Naho from the past can make the right decisions—especially regarding Kakeru. What's more shocking is that she discovers that ten years later, Kakeru will no longer be with them. Future Naho asks her to watch over him closely.
It's a slice of life/drama/romance that opens up the hearts of those friends who you thought didn't need your help. It's that friend that smiles on the outside but fights an unknown battle inside. It's that feeling of regret that you could have done something at that time - only if you had known it. It's also that leap of faith that you have to trust yourself and your instincts to move forward. So the six friends here had the chance to have a second shot of erasing those regrets by knowing what's ahead of them after receiving letters from their future selves.
In terms of the difference between the manga, movie and anime: I'd say the core was still there and the plot presented in the manga was still as cohesive as it was in both the movie and anime. I really like it when they inserted additional scenes to the anime because it deepens the plot and might as well have saved a few plot holes. When I read the manga back then, I thought the characters were in middle school even though it was stated High School. So in the movie and anime, they had the chance to redraw the characters and made them mature that's tailored fit for the role.
So for a past time story that will surely warm your heart, Orange is here waiting for you like a friend you never had, offering you tissues as you weep away. *cries in the corner*
My Rating:
Plot: 8.5/10
Characters & Dialogue : 8.7/10
Structure & Pacing: 9.3/10
Theme: 9.0/10
Style & Tone: 9.5/10
OVERALL RATING: 9.0