This is rare

I can't choose sides, for once. I can't dislike any of them for the actions, choices, and decisions they made. I can sympathize with all of them without hating the other side of the argument.

I'm talking about the characters of the anime series Bokura ga Ita (We Were There).

*sigh*

From the onset, the story gave me this feeling of things being surreal. Hazy backgrounds, soft piano music, characters' faces drawn in shadows or lacking eyes, and the way Nanami narrated things in the past tense. It's like a warning that everything is just a dream, that it would not last. Twenty-six episodes later, it still felt the same with the way the animators chose to end the anime's story. Bittersweet. Open-ended. They live on.

What's rare is that I can't help but root for all of them. Yes. Even Yamamoto Yuri because she's just going after what she wants, after all. I seesawed between liking Takeuchi and Yano because both guys were essentially good for Nanami in their own ways, and disliking them both for her because of their weaknesses. I alternately cheered and got exasperated with Nanami for her reactions to Yano's actions. The characters are just well-roundedly written.

All the major characters, heck even minor ones like Mizu-chin (I can't remember her full name, sorry) went through some sort of change throughout the whole series. I liked that Yuri tried to step out of her walls, signified by her getting contact lenses. I liked that Takeuchi found confidence in himself. I liked that Yano finally opened up and became honest. And I liked how Nanami started to believe and trust in Yano and herself.

I understand that the manga continues several years later where the anime left off, and that the story in the manga is a lot more painful for all the characters. I guess the animators sugar-coated the anime quite a bit, but I'm satisfied with it as it is. I'm still debating whether to find and read the manga though.