It’s a happy coincedence that I’ve just finished Clannad at the same time as analyzing the aspects of Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure, since now I can attempt to link my criticism’s to literary references, like a REAL anime writer.
Contains spooilers for Measure for Measure and Clannad ~After Story~.
If you couldn’t already guess, I disliked the ending of Clannad After Story because, say it with me now, it trivialised the emotions we and Tomoya experienced after Nagisa’s death. By the end of episode 21, I’m expecting a “tragic” end, much like I was expecting for Measure for Measure by the end of the penultimate act. First off, let me say that I’m not trying to pigeon-hole either of these shows as purely tragic, comedic or simply a combination of the two. These are just two words I can use which are most apt at describing my disaste for the endings of both the play and the anime.
Throughout both Clannad (as a whole) and Measure for Measure there is a balance of comedy and tragedy, though the latter outweighs the former. For every light-hearted introduction to an arc, there’s an ineivitably drama-filled conclusion and for every seen where a scene where a bumbling police officer attempts to convict a crafty pimp there’s a scene discussing the responsibilities of a ruler and his kingdom. But the fact that the tragedy outweighs the comedy affects my opinion about the eventual conclsuion. In fact, by this point I’m not only expecting a tragic ending, I wish for one. I’ve seen what the show or play is capable of when handling tragedy and, though it may depress me, I admire it for the way it handles such a subject. There’s also the fact I believe the comedy is meant only meant to be entertainment in the grand scheme of things, preamble for the meatier aspects of the show, so by the time we’re approaching the ending, I’m all set up for a thoughtful, engaging, stirring, conclusion.
Only that’s not what I get. Instead, I get a happy-go-lucky reset which trivialises the preceding episodes and, in Measure for Measure’s case, an ending where all the main characters are paired off and made to marry each other by one egotistical ruler. I receive a comedic ending which completely undermines what I most enjoyed throughout the play and destroys my expectations.
In the end, I’m just left thinking “what was the point of all that drama if we’re going to end it an as stupid a way as this?”
Grand Punk Railroad 
I wished that
a) They kept the ending and made an extra w/ the good ending, or
b) They take their time to explain everything instead of making it feel like a time reversal.
Either way, no Kyou route ending makes me a sad man.
my god man, like I said before, have you been following the discourse on this a la ponti/nazarielle? slowbrow.png
@Kevin
As it does us all.
@lelangir
And as I said before this is my take on the subject. I had this planned ever since the show ended, I just have written anything up till now. It’s not like everything that can be discussed is done so via Superfani means anyway, if you don’t value my opinion at least say some thing constructive rather than just saying “It’s been done”.
This basically summarizes my feelings about the ending. I think they
…. were trying to foreshadow the deus ex machina during the whole show. But even considering that, the fact that they revived Nagisa is just out of place. The whole point of the last arc is to make him come to terms with all the shit that has happened him during his life. If you’re going to give him a miracle, without killing all his character development, the more rational way is to save his daughter, and let him keep going foward with a more positive view of life. Otherwise, you’re just undermining all you tried to build during the previous episodes. You’re just telling you’re critics they’re right: you’re just doing an escapist sappy lame romance for pathetic men who can’t just move foward in life and wait for some miracle to happen (spoilers: it’s never going to happen).
I haven’t watched CLANNAD but might as well not, seeing how I just gave up avoiding spoilers after a certain character first died. But your post does remind me of my very first blog post. The idea was that some stories (hollywood flicks for example) trivialise and internalise these feelings by basically giving the audience what they want, which is one of my problems with Pixar works. Some stories however are not afraid of thrusting and externalising these issues that are difficult to confront, but by doing so brings forth a sense of cruel beauty that rings more deep and profound inside us.
I’m not saying this is related to CLANNAD, just that your post reminded me of what I wrote months ago, so please don’t attack me anyone who thinks otherwise!
@lametastic: I had a slightly different take on the ending of Clannad After Story, but I think they really dug themselves a hole when they *spoiler* killed Ushio *spoiler* because at face value her death just seemed unnecessarily cruel and meaningless. If they left her dead, it would have been bitter (extremely so), if they revived her it would have been cheap. They went for the latter. I don’t completely blame them, but I don’t think they should have *spoiler* killed Ushio *spoiler* to begin with.
[…] dude omisyth is slow: I get a happy-go-lucky reset which trivialises the preceding episodes and, in Measure for […]
Well, that’s what happens when robots have feelings.
Interesting comparison to Measure for Measure. I haven’t read that one but I did see All’s Well that Ends Well, one of his other so-called “problem plays” that has a strangely upbeat ending.
Come to think of it, have you seen the Clannad movie? You might like its ending better.
I like this post. Indeed some people would find the ending to have undermined their catharsis.
Btw… Can tragedy and comedy work hand in hand? I dunno lol. I do not study literature.
In regards to Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure, the whole pairing off thing seems to be something he liked doing. He did it in ‘Much Ado about nothing’ aswell. And in ‘A Winters Tale’. I’m sure he did it in more. But I’m going by the stuff which I’ve read in school. Or seen/heard Tennant in lol.
@lametastic
I also think that that would;ve been the best conclusion. But perhaps KyoAni were feeling “benevolent” after trolling their fans with the fake announcement of a new season of Haruhi.
But there’s no way that Tomoya’s “pathetic”. Even up to the point of Nagisa’s death he’s grown and matured way too much not to give him credit for.
@gaguri
Definitely, if only Pixar didn’t have to cater to the family aesthetic that it’s movies are essecntially made for. A crisis with a speedy and hollow resolution is never satisfying.
@Baka-Raptor
Damned imitations of life. Burn in hell.
@LBrevis
I’ve been putting it off after hearing that it had spoilers for the After Story but now would be a good time to check it out. Thanks for reminding me.
@TheSojourner
I do and I still don’t know *shrug*
@meimi132
He is just a frantic shipper.