I've heard a lot about Angel Beats! over the years, with many people recommending it and talking about how depressing the ending is especially. I finally got around to it and I felt it was a bit of a waste of time. The characters aren't super well developed (with only 13 episodes the creators really didn't give themselves enough time to fully develop everyone), the story is overall pretty weak, and the concepts aren't explained well. Angel Beats! is definitely a character driven series, but I didn't feel like the characters were even that great to begin with. Some of the characters were actually pretty annoying, which I understand that's just something that comes to be expected with anime, but I found characters like Yui to be much better/more likable/more realistic than others like Naoi. Yui was defined by a certain trait, which was her energy. Naoi was so bent on the fact that he was god to the point where it didn't even make sense why. It was made clear that he'd abandoned that idea, and although it was funny the first time, it got annoying real quick and made him feel a lot less real that he could have been. Maybe it's just because I prefer the character type that Yui is, but nevertheless hearing Naoi throwing around the 'I am god' line in the last episode really made it difficult to care about him. Some relationships (specifically all the romantic ones) felt extremely forced, and all happened near the end. They felt rushed, when two characters might be hating each other and constantly fighting one moment, the next they fall in love out of absolutely nowhere. It just didn't make sense to me how it suddenly just appeared. I was happy that they didn't give into the anime cliché of every character spilling out their life story in the first few episodes for no apparent reason, which added to the character development more than it did take away. The characters didn't all feel the same in that they're all just a bunch of kids who can't control their emotions. Plus it gets awfully tedious to have to listen to a new life story every twenty-five or so minutes, especially if your only just introduced to these characters.With a story as unique as this one, it would be kind of hard to get it right, but that doesn't excuse the fact that it wasn't well done. The creators took a risk and it didn't work out. The coolness of the idea gives it some extra points in my book, but it wasn't carried out well. It definitely could have been better if the creators had worked a bit harder. A few of the key concepts I felt like could have been better explained, like the difference between obliteration and disappearing, and how to achieve both of these. Generally I understood it, but it still wasn't explained as well as it could have been. Overall Angel Beats! is only worth checking out if your very interested. If not, there's really nothing to see here. The characters aren't as fully-explored as they could have been, the story could have been done better, and the concepts could have used some more clear explanations, so overall the show was just lacking. I did quite like the ending though, it seemed a bit sad at first (more just made one character out to be a bit of a huge jerk), but in the very last scene after the credits rolled there were a few more things explained to me and the series wrapped up really nicely. If you loved it, great, and if you didn't, that's cool too. I wouldn't recommend it, but if you really want to watch it, then go for it.

So....I have this list of anime to watch. And last week I had decided to edit it and add any anime that seemed like I had been ignoring. The first one to come to mind was Angel Beats! and somehow someway it ended up at the top of my list within minutes. I don't know how but I'm REALLY glad it did. The first episode could have been a lot better, but from there on out it was simply amazing! Everything from the absolutely brilliant music to character development and anything else you could ask for from an anime. The storyline is very original and the characters are all unique and memorable in there own ways. Tachibana (Kanade/Angel....I just call her Tachibana) could quite possibly be my favorite anime character of all time. No joking, the way her character develops and the mystery remaining behind her as well as her somewhat unintentional and unexplainable charm will leave you breathless. Yuri, Iwasawa, Naoi and Yui's backgrounds and stories will leave you thinking, feeling, and pondering your life, in a good way of course. Otonashi as the main protagonist does a fantastic job of not hogging up the spotlight throughout the series yet does exceptionally well at maintaining a good guy status and being very likable. Lets get the elephant out of the room.....THE ENDING THOUGH. This definitely isn't the first time Angel Beats! will play with your emotions. Me personally, for awhile I had been wanting to see Tachibana and Otonashi embrace....not even necessarily kiss or confess there love. But just see Tachibana let her emotions out. And the ending made that happen in a bold, beautiful, sad, and bittersweet way. I truly, cry every time. Overall, this isn't my TOP show that I've seen. Its verdict on that part probably comes from its shorter length and occasional gaps in the plot. Personally I would have loved to have seen more of Tachibana coming out of her shell. The way she did in the last two episodes or so was remarkable and I wanted alittle more of that. Also, the show tried to hard for awhile to mix its serious themes with humor sometimes, which left me confused how to feel sometimes. Nevertheless, its positives far and beyond overpower any down points to the point where I would rate it a perfect 10. HIGHLY Recommended.P.S. Watch the SUB please :D

Ah, Angel Beats. Let me first say, this anime and Ouran NEEDED a extension of episodes. Beside that I really like this anime but it is VERY rushed. Many of characters were introduced and you never learned their backstory which really REALLY sucks. All of the characters are great but the main character is extremely bland and so is his love interest, Kanade. If the anime had focused on Yurripe or Hinata (which I believe the manga does), it would of been better. Its a nice watch though, yes it is overrated but good. Great soundtrack, awesome animation, a decent English dub (it's not super annoying, honestly it isn't), and nice comedy. If you've watched Clannad and want to watch another anime before Afterstory then put Angel Beats in there. It's a nice anime and has a series of emotional back stories. I liked Angel Beats and it was nice but it could of been more. I have considered reading the manga as well which I believe doesn't have Otonashi nor Kanade so cool. But anyway, it's a nice watch and decently enjoyable. Good writing just wished it was longer. No second season please, just a extension.

Honestly, I think this anime had a good concept. The story could have been much, much better. It was draggy and boring in some places, and too soppy in the others.I personally feel, a story should not force you to shed tears. A story should help you shed tears. I felt that the emotion in 'Angel Beats' was too imposed, like the makers wanted you to feel in a certain way. For me, it was just fake. It took away from the entire series, and i watched it only so I could finish it.As far as I can remember, I felt the character's sorrow/joy only in two episodes. Once when Yuki disappears and the other when Yuzuru dies. Otherwise the amine was pretty tasteless.Somehow, I did not/ could not connect. It was good in bits, but as a whole it did not quite make it.