I'll be honest when I first read the synopsis my first thought was a loud "Nope." I have read/watched many stories with those key words and most of them were terrible. Having said that I am soooo glad I heard reviews that convinced me to give this a try. One of the themes is a very hard issue to tackle realistically, What it means to follow your dreams. If anyone says they could see that theme from the synopsis then you know at least one liar.
Story: Despite the fact that it is a slice of life anime the plot isn't very sporadic. It actually has a lot of tension which is rare for a slice of life. Much of this is based on the love aspect, which I must admit is fairly obvious who the author wishes to pair. One of the key points of the story is what it means to follow your dreams and what the consequences of said action can be.
Art: I'm not a big art critic so I'll keep this simple. Everything transitions well even with detailed animation. Not the best art I've ever seen but it is better than your average anime.
Sound: One of the best soundtracks of recent anime. The voice actors are what really make the sound work. Everything was believable if at times slightly hammy.
Characters: I didn't like all of the characters but I cannot in good conscious say that it was anything but a strength. The type of development the mains receive is what every show should strive for. Sorata in particular grows the most throughout the story and shows the most depth, even if I don't like how much of a pansy he can be for a high school boy (a problem I have with most anime. Seriously guys aren't that afraid to make a move on a girl, especially with as many signs as some of these guys receive). If you're wondering which of the characters I didn't like it was Mashiro for a variety of reasons, but mainly because despite this story being about success and failure she doesn't experience much of the latter.
Overall I am glad I gave this anime a shot. It echoes the nature of life in many ways and tugs at the heartstrings. An easy 92 out of a hundred and a must watch if you enjoy anything other than buff guys beating the crap out of each other.
