Clannad After Story adapts the second part of the visual novel and continues from the first part of the anime. It comes in at 22 episodes long with 3 extra episodes / OVAs. Unlike the visual novel, the anime continues on with the high school life and carries the same lighthearted tone, at least in the beginning.
After Story adapts some of the various remaining scenarios that they didn't manage to fit in the first season and it does seem like the pacing and humor is better here. It actually takes the time to build the atmosphere more solidly such that when the punchline comes, you feel the same emotions as the characters would be feeling. By spending two to three episodes for each scenario and having it at a slower pace, it allows the viewers to invest into what's happening more.
The anime has a strong first episode where it continues to build up the friendships established in the first season to great effect. As all the characters cheer for each other during the baseball game, you can't help but feel positive and happy for Tomoya. It is good to see all the characters again and how they interact with each other since it felt that the first season breezed by them so quickly. Fleshing out the rest of the supporting cast was a good choice and reinforces the story that develops later on, emphasizing the friendships and experiences that Tomoya had.
The mysterious girl and her robot reappear, and in addition, certain strange things happen after the major character arcs. These end up being vague foreshadowing of what will happen in the later part of the anime. The jokes and gags seem to work a lot more and are genuinely funny. Not only are the ones from the visual novel executed perfectly, the anime original ones are great too (the best part being Nagisa presenting the Hyper Rainbow Bread). The story lulls you into a false sense of security with a happy and heartwarming first half before slowly becoming sadder and sadder, until it destroys you with emotional hit after emotional hit.
One of the best things about Clannad After Story is the themes that it deals with. You understand the love stemming from the selflessness of family to the warm embrace of your friends. It deals with the concept that time goes on, even when you want to stop at a particular place that you were happy to stay at forever. Tomoya graduating, along with the rest of his friends, really reinforces this aspect. It's from this point on that the season has a massive tonal shift.
Tomoya experiences heavy character development as he thinks about his future and then become mature, taking responsibility for himself instead of lazing around. We see him deal with the normal day to day struggles of working, supporting himself, and this is punctuated through by the sweet tender moments with Nagisa. What makes Clannad resonate with you is how the characters go through the tough times as well as the happy times. Tomoya and Nagisa encounter problems and by working through those rough times together, they build a bond that's believable and idealistic at the same time. Seeing Tomoya try so hard to make it work as well as Nagisa being understandable to the issues Tomoya is currently experience feels special.
As Tomoya and Nagisa's journey together continues on, they move through the phases of their relationship. There really isn't anything extraordinary about it, but because it is so natural and normal, it makes you appreciate it all the more. With each hurdle that they encounter and overcome, both of them grow stronger with each other's support. After Story is an inspiring and moving story.
It's pacing starts to move faster, maybe a bit too fast and that is when you know a big event is coming up. Blink and before you know it, things have progressed significantly. Considering the decisions made by Nagisa, you start to get an inkling of what might happen. This sense of unease and foreboding atmosphere only increases. It is a little bit frustrating since there's no rational reason why Nagisa is doing the things she is doing. What she ends up deciding upon on serves to hurt everyone all the more. With each affectionate moment that happens between Tomoya and Nagisa, it will only come back to haunt you later on. It takes on a whole different set of meaning.
The anime does a better job of justifying why the events happened as they happened when compared to the visual novel. On the flipside, it cuts out some of the dialogue which made it so Tomoya seemed a bit more selfish. The thing with Nagisa is that while she is innocent and naive, she is so positive and adorable that you can't help but want to protect her. You understand why Tomoya would stick by her through tough times and do his best to grant her what she wants even though it hurts him.
The heaving hitting scenes just keep on coming. You aren't given enough time to recover from the previous one before the next one hits. After Story loves to get your hopes up as things get better only for another thing to happen. It is actually painful to watch. Painful as in it is heart-wrenching and soul despairing yet it highlights the warmth and strengths of others. It's the effect that the events have not only on Tomoya, but all the other characters, that gets you. The way that they are suffering yet find a way to deal with it and continue on is inspiring.
After Story has the same music as the first season and the visual novel, and the most emotional scenes use some of the most moving music. The atmosphere is so perfect that even the characters saying a simple name could be so powerful and meaningful. The ending can be a bit messy and confusing. While supposedly there was foreshadowing throughout the whole anime, it doesn't spell it out for you. Nevertheless, after this long, long journey, going through so many ups and downs, and basically experiencing Tomoya's life, it is a satisfying ending. The scene where it calls back to the first season felt perfect and the dialogue was moving. You really can't help but smile during the final scene when the song plays.
There are three extra episodes / OVAs after the last episode. The first one is a prequel taking place one year before the events of the first season. It follows Nagisa in her senior year, and Tomoya, Sunohara and Kyou in their second year. We see how Tomoya and Kyou got to know each other, and as a bit of a bonus, how Tomoya and Nagisa briefly crossed paths. The second extra episode is a recap episode presented in the guise of Tomoya reflecting on his past (and elaborates a tiny bit more on the ending). As it summarizes two seasons' worth of story into 20 minutes, it is very brief.
The last OVA is similar to one from the first season but starring the alternate route of Kyou. Unfortunately, as it fits the whole scenario from the visual novel into a 20 minute episode, it is super abridged and loses a lot of the nuances and emotions. That being said, it is nice to get closure to since Kyou's feelings were hinted more than a few times during the anime. This final episode pretty much completes the set and the anime has covered all the scenarios from the visual novel.
Overall, Clannad After Story starts off similar to the first season, as a slice-of-life with seemingly little direction. However, once it gets going and becomes a lot more focused in its plot, it only gets better from there. It is one of the saddest stories you will ever experience but the themes that it explores family being the biggest one) makes it much more personal than most stories. Personally, the visual novel is hands down much more superior but as far as anime adaptations goes, this is a damn fine job.
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