Relife is a Slice of life anime that first aired on July 1st, 2016 on Crunchyroll. This is an anime I don’t hear enough people talk about. Whether people have not heard of it or it’s underappreciated, I thought reviewing it might get more people to give it a try. Also, not many people I know like slice-of-life anime so this review gives me a chance to talk about what I like about this anime. This show is one of the first Slice of life anime that I watched and made me appreciate the genre as a whole. It showed me the kind of stories that a Slice of life anime could tell. Not one about saving the world or fighting evil, but one about life’s struggles. One that isn’t hard to relate to.
Relife’s story starts with our main character, 27-year-old Arata Kaizaki. A man down on his luck, searching to land a better job while working at a corner store. He quit his previous job after only 3 months which makes him seem unreliable and overall not worth hiring. Only getting by with the help of his parents. This all changes when his parents decide to cut him off and stop their support. Without any options after just getting rejected from an interview with a company. He is approached by a man with an offer. An offer to participate in an experiment in which his living expenses will be covered for a year and offered a job after the experiment. He accepts and is handed a pill that he is told will make him look younger again. He will have to go back to high school for a year. Not wanting to pass up the offer he takes the pill and heads home. He wakes up the following day to find he looks like he did in high school.
Throughout the story, he experiences high school once more and the troubles along with it. He makes friends, takes tests, and attends a normal high school like any other teen. He struggles to conform to student life once again. Having to give up smoking since he can’t buy cigarettes looking like a high schooler. Relearning subjects he has long forgotten or not being able to keep up with his classmates in gym class. But he comes out better because of it. He slowly regains his confidence as he helps friends with their teen problems and participates in school activities. He also heals from his wounds that adult life has caused him. Learning to support others he cares about despite what others think.
I enjoy these types of shows. Ones where the main character betters themselves despite what they have been through. I enjoy seeing them overcome their hardships and change for the better. What I like about Relife in particular is seeing how Arata starts to enjoy school life. Even wanting to continue going to school with the friends he has made after the experiment. Though he knows that is impossible. He makes the most out of his time with his friends in school while he can and encourages them to do the same. Agreeing to still be friends with them next year even though he won’t be there. The ones running the experiment will erase his friend's memories so that when he returns to being an adult no one will notice. As the experiment reaches its end, he soon begins to realize his feelings for one of his classmates. He slowly dreads the end of his year at school as he becomes closer to one he has feelings for. He knows she will forget him in the end but helps her out anyway when she needs it. Getting close to the point where she likes him as well. Spoiler warning for those wanting to watch this anime as I will talk a little about the ending.
The classmate he likes Chizuru turns out to be a test subject like Arata. Them having feelings for each other is sad as they will forget one another after the experiment. Chizuru was helped by Arata many times and in turn helped him. Chizuru is more perceptive than Arata and goes on to connect the dots finding out he too is a test subject. They fear the end of their year together as the school year comes to an end. That's as far as I spoil but I will say that I liked the last episode, I liked it a lot. This anime is one of the few that actually has an ending. It was one of the better endings in my opinion. My first time watching this show I did not see this coming. It came straight out of left field and was all the more impactful. In my opinion, it was a good plot twist that left me surprised. I always recommend this show to others who might want to try it. It’s one of my favorites and hopefully will become one of yours as well.
