A Look at Your Lie In April

As a former music student, you can say that I have a pretty big interest in the realm of anime that center around music. Its the reason why I was able to take to K-ON! fairly well; it had a band learning to play music together as its central focus. So when I was told about Your Lie in April, I was curious, but skeptical. I mean, sure, the them around music was a definite pick-me-up, if you will, but there was definitely something that told me that I was in for quite the experience, that I was in for a VERY wild ride. And oooh boy, was I NOT prepared!

Story

So what is this story about? Well, the show revolves around a boy named Kousei Arima, a young pianist who at this stage in the story, has shunned music due to the death of his mother. It is revealed that, at a young age and during a music recital, he suffered from a sort of mental breakdown, and became unable to distinguish pitch (tone-deafness). This leads him to quit music for a good number of years until the end of middle school, when he meets a girl named Kaori Miyazono, a tsundere violinist who is in need of an accompanist for a violin recital. Despite his initial relucatance, he ultimately decides to help her, resulting in an emotional journey to discover himself and what he wants to do.

This story is truly a great example of redemtion. Kousei is a student who is afreaid of moving forward, of fighting his battles. And yet, it is also a story of overcoming his fears, and of truly doing what he loves for himself. This spoke volumes for me, and was a theme I was sorely needing when I first watched it, as a student looking at college applications and striving to apply to as many schools as possible.

Character Development

Warning: In order to truly explore the nature of the development in this show, spoilers will have to be made. I suggest that at this point, you either skip to the end or watch the show for yourself to get a sense for what I will be explaining here. Otherwise, you have been warned! :P

This show is just littered with loads of character development. Every character that we get a major look into (yes, even the supporting cast), gets some form of actual growth or another. However, for the sake of sccuintness, I will keep my focus on the two leads: Kousei Arima and Kaori Miyazono.

Where to start with Kousei. When we first get a glimpse into his world, we see a boy who was mentally scarred. A boy who, from a young age, became famous as “The Human Metronome”, having a natural talent for the piano. We get a feeling for his sentiment towards playing music again, too. He is shown a little later to be transposing music for bands, suggesting that he is in fact able to discern pitch under normal circumstances. However, put him in front of a piano, and he is shown to break down and begin to play random notes, struggling to get them in place. He struggles to conquer his tone-deafness due to the upbringing of his mother and her intense music lessons. We also learn that the biggest challenge for Kousei is living with the pain of knowing that the las interaction with his mother was not a pleasant one, and as a result, haunts him while he’s on stage. Upon meeting Kaori, he begins to really tackle those challenges, slowly coming to the conclusion that his future is up to him. That he has the right to choose what he wants to do, and to him, that is to play music. He slowly begins to rebuild his self-confidence, and begins to be able to discren tones on stage again, as he begins to mature and realize that a lot of this is chained to guilt. Guilt that he didn’t do enough to help his mother. That he failed her, and by extension, himself. His shame also ties into his belief that he was the cause of his mother’s death, since not long after his second to last recital, she passes away, leaving him alone.

Kaori is a person who also grows, but not in the common way. For Kaori, life was never really great. We learn that she is a violinist, and a very bold one at that, VERY early on. Kaori is a girl who pushes those around her to do the same; to live life to its absolute fullest. And despite her condition (which is revealed to be a life-long and life-threatening condition that was never really named), she had a drive to do what she wanted. She had accepted that while her life may be cut off at any moment, she will not allow that to stop her enjoyment of it. She is the one that ultimately made Kousei come out of his shell and to accept everything that had happened to him; to live for today and for the future. Kaori, despite not really showing an active path of growth, is the source for that growth for Kousei, and many other characters as well (particularly the second girl of the friend group, and her best friend, Tsubaki).

Themes

A lot of the minor themes can be condensed into one main concept - to let go and push forward. What Kousei and Kaori BOTH embraced was the idea that “You only have 1 life in this world, so you have to really make the most of it.” For Kousei, this means to let go of the pain of his mother’s passing, and the grief he had yet to really let go, and to push ahead toward his dreams. For Kaori, this meant to live as though her life depended on it, and to never regret a decison. If being a frequenter to the hospital taught her anything, its to always trust in your heart, and to do what you want to do. She didn’t let anything really stop her, and it inspired Kousei to do the same. Kousei learned to follow his dreams and his passions from Kaori, and it is what let him truly appreciate the little things in life.

Round Up

When I first picked this show up, I expected a simple slice-of-life show about the sturggles of competitive music, and for the first few episodes, it portrays as much. However, this deception of the main story line is not only what gives this show its title, but it makes the ending feel complete and fulfilling. Your Lie in April is an amazing show that really puts on display what anime can do in terms of storytelling. The story of the boy, who meets a girl that saves him from himself is usually a pretty cliche trope in fiction, but Your Lie in April takes a more nuanced approach. An approach that emphasizes his own self-discovery and his move to change. That is what makes this show a must-watch for me, and it is why I will continue to recommend it.

Written by David Madarigal-Hernandez who lives and works in Los Angeles building useful things. You should follow him on Twitter