#fall anime

I’ve never actually read Anne of Green Gables. I’ve heard about it for years, mostly as one of those childhood classics you “should” read, the kind of book I mentally put next to A Little Princess, which I do love. But I never really felt drawn to it.

Then I watched the anime, and honestly, I adored it. I was curious to see an adaptation that felt closer to the books’ tone, because Anne with an E created something a bit more modern and alternative (still beautiful in its own way, but different). This anime felt like returning to the roots of Anne’s world. The art was gorgeous, the colors soft, the atmosphere almost meditative. There are so many frames I found genuinely relaxing to look at. It became my cozy weekend anchor, the kind of show you play just to breathe again.

I loved how the 24 episodes gave such a graceful sense of growth. You feel Anne maturing through each stage of her life, while keeping the warmth and spark of who she’s always been. The music was beautiful, the voice acting charming and the whole thing just had this peaceful flow.

For me, there were two main narrative threads. The first was community: what it gives us, how it shapes us. Anne arrives as an orphan with no family, but in Green Gables she builds one through Marilla, Matthew, Diana, Gilbert and so many others. Watching how her friendships evolve, how she carries that sense of belonging into her adult life and her studies, was genuinely moving.

The second thread was love. I loved how the show explored different kinds of love : from Lavender’s story to Diana’s romance to Anne’s friends at university. It quietly asks what kind of love lasts. The passionate, all-consuming kind the world keeps selling us or the steady, warm, everyday love that actually carries you through life? It reminded me that real love often looks a lot like deep friendship.

And while I don’t know the books yet, I was a little surprised by how much freedom Anne has in this adaptation : studying, teaching, choosing her partner. It made me curious about how much of that is in the novels and how much is artistic liberty for the anime. So yes, I think I’ll eventually pick up the books. Maybe not this year, but it’s definitely on my list.

I’ve also loved seeing people on Tumblr post gifs from the anime alongside quotes from Montgomery’s text. Thank you for those! They made me even more eager to read the source material and see how the story unfolds after Anne and Gilbert’s marriage. There’s such maturity in how Montgomery seems to understand love, growth, and community.

BLEACH Anime 20th Anniversary!