A Lull in the Sea
Synopsis
Long ago, all humans lived beneath the sea. However, some people preferred the surface and abandoned living underwater permanently. As a consequence, they were stripped of their god-given protection called "Ena" which allowed them to breathe underwater. Over time, the rift between the denizens of the sea and of the surface widened, although contact between the two peoples still existed. Nagi no Asu kara follows the story of Hikari Sakishima and Manaka Mukaido, along with their childhood friends Chisaki Hiradaira and Kaname Isaki, who are forced to leave the sea and attend a school on the surface. There, the group also meets Tsumugu Kihara, a fellow student and fisherman who loves the sea. Hikari and his friends' lives are bound to change as they have to deal with the deep-seated hatred and discrimination between the people of sea and of the surface, the storms in their personal lives, as well as an impending tempest which may spell doom for all who dwell on the surface. [Written by MAL Rewrite]
Audience Consensus
Audience sentiment is strongly divided. Many viewers praise the show's beautiful art, music, and initial slice-of-life charm, while others criticize its contrived romantic drama, nonsensical plot developments, and unlikeable characters. The latter half of the series seems to be particularly divisive, with some finding it traumatizing and a departure from the earlier positive aspects.
Strengths
- Beautiful and unique art style with vibrant colors, especially the turquoise color scheme for sea characters.
- Well-paced character and plot development.
- Compelling drama stemming from the unique setting and characters.
- Excellent soundtrack with memorable openings and endings.
Weaknesses
- Romantic drama is overdone.
- Plot is nonsensical, skipping over important world-building elements and failing to explore the setting.
- Characters are unrealistic and unlikeable, especially the overly dramatic teenagers.
- Ending devolves into degeneracy, including time skips, kids, and incestuous themes.
- Series becomes traumatizing and horrendous towards the end.
- Unexplained mechanics of the sea village.