Kimari's Wake Up Call in A Place Further Than The Universe 

Such a wasted opportunity to quote the great philosopher Hinata.

"It's never too late to start, and it's always too soon to stop." -From an old man I met at a JCC Fitness center.

I relate to Kimari so much it hurts to think about. My whole life I've just kinda gone wherever life took me, only making the decisions that felt right. But now that I'm out of college and I've been employed for a little while, I've let myself become stagnant. I don't enjoy living where I do anymore. I don't socialize half as much as I used to. My life has essentially become a boring cycle of "wake up - work - watch a bit of anime - go to bed - repeat". I want to write. I want to make animation screenplays, get noticed, and maybe even direct. Even if I never get that far, I know I will hate myself if I don't try. But it's so hard to find the motivation - I keep being struck by that same doubt and hesitation that Kimari dealt with at the very beginning of the show. Yet I have to start somewhere. After months of doing nothing but yearn for a way out, I'm finally trying to write an animation script that I think will be interesting. It's not fast. It's not easy. Hell, I have no idea what I'm even going to do with it once I finish. I'll probably keep struggling to keep pushing forward. But I have to. Otherwise, I'll feel like everything has been a waste. Anyway, sorry for my rambling. That isn't exactly why I came here, I originally just wanted to post something like "anime of the year!" or whatnot. But then I remembered how deeply this show hit me and before I knew it suddenly I'm venting to the internet. Funny how that works.

"am I doing enough, according to WHO" -> point struck! I loved how Kimari's room in the first episode is a total mess and in the final episode is completely in order. These details are superb.

Oof. I hadn't even considered that point about Megumi. Beyond that, though, this video perfectly captures a key part of why this anime was so special to many including myself. (Extra cool points for the use of that insert song at the end, MrNiesGuy!)

It's been over 4 years since you released this video. I was in my sophomore year of hs when I watched it. I wanted to thank you for making the video. I made the choice to travel to the edge of the world as well (except up north instead of down south) largely because of the words from this video. The potential of the universe was laid out on the table and I took the leap. It hasn't been easy but I'm very, very thankful that you posted this. I wouldn't change any decision I have taken. I have grown to view the world in a completely different manner and I've found myself. I don't know where you all are now but thank you. Truly- you have physically and mentally brought to the edges of the world. That world is so beautiful and I'm so happy that I listened to what my heart was telling me. And I found my place further than the universe!

"We all have to find that place, our place, further than the universe" :'( crying so hard right now. I'm still trying to figure out what my place is...

This video really hits quite close home. Being two months away from graduating highschool (here in Germany there's nothing between highschool anf university) leaves me in a rather similar position. Seeing everyone around me planning to embark on their own journey around the world while I'm sitting here forced to stay at home and soon to study a subject I don't really want to study while simultaneously working all the time leaves me with a really really bad taste in my mouth. Part of it is jealousy but imo the bigger reason is a feeling of emptiness. I have kind of wasted my youth so far and I'm already on track to spend the next 4.5 years trapped in something I'm not sure about. As you said in the video I can't seem to find a way out and even if there was one I'm not sure if I had the courage to take that step. Thanks to everyone who took the time to read all this. I wish you a wonderful day!

"Am I doing enough" soon becomes "Did I do enough". Part of my musings on life has been pondering these questions myself, and coming to the realization that it doesnt really matter. It will have been done, and every new day you have will be a gift. There is no such thing as a regret-free life. I consider what "great" people have done, then I thought about their deaths. What Einstein did in his middle age, I doubt it mattered much to him as he neared his tomb. He, like all others, must have had regrets, but instead of dwelling on them he focused on enjoying the days remaining. All of my relatives who I have spoken to before they died, none of them talked about death. None of them spoke of their mistakes. Dwelling on those things is painful, and pain is the last thing you need when you are about to die. Instead, my relatives simply enjoyed the company of those who visited them. Talking and chatting as they normally would. Thats how we all go. When you approach your death, there will always be things you wish you had done. There is no such thing as a regret free life. But you push those regrets aside to enjoy what remains in the present. Then, you leave.

I can confirm this is pretty much what happened to me when I took a gap year in between high school and college to do a service trip in Indonesia for 8 months. It was 100% worth it. edit: Props for ending with the best insert song.

I absolutely loved this show, and it hurts that the last year and a half of my high school years were spent locked indoors staring at a screen. I only have 4 months now until I leave for college, a 9 and a half hour drive from home, and I've never been so excited and scared in my life. I think I might just take that leap with my friends, before we leave each other behind forever, and find my place further than the universe.

I am not an emotional person in any way, quite the opposite actually, but for some reason I was on a "near-cry" state during all episodes of this show and during this video as well. I think this just hits the correct buttons, I related to a lot of the themes presented on this anime, and although it made me happy most of the time and I gave it a 10, it still made me feel even more pissed and disappointed at myself than normal.

This hit really close to home. What you said about Megumi made me realize why I found myself disliking her character. I identify with her. I’ve been feeling left behind for quite a while now, all of my friends (or former friends, I should say) have advanced with their lives, either going on to university, traveling or working. And here I am, stuck at home, with my adolescence completely wasted thanks to my fear of screwing up and my objectives in life almost lost. I was always scared of the future, I always wanted to “follow my dreams” (I know it sounds cheesy) and not settle for the norm, like everyone surrounding me did, but at the end I wasn’t brave enough to follow through all the way and ultimately hit an invisible wall that wouldn’t let me go forward. Wow this got depressing lol sorry. Really great video! It really made me think and realize a lot of stuff.

I opened my eyes a few months later after I was diagnosed with sclerosis and then I decided to be open to try new things and enjoy my surrounding, travelling to new places and the result was the best year in my life even that I got this I am happier than ever, I am near my 30's and two years have passed since then but I am optimistic and happy. That's why I love this anime I could see myself in those girls

Watched the first 2 minutes before deciding to hold off because this struck too close to home. I have a group meeting for a senior project in 15 minutes and I'd like to show up without having relived my own wake-up call from last year.

Honestly, how do you do so that everytime i reach one of your video's conclusion I get goosebumps? Great video!

I find myself coming back to this video whenever, I feel my life lacking something. I come here alot. This video makes me happy Thank you

Every Journey begins with *One Step.*

I loved A place further than the Universe!! The finale brought me to tears. I hope we get to see more of these characters in the near future.

If Megumi could do it, you could as well!

what a video essay man, this was truly a legendary expirience

I loved this anime so much!! 😭 Tuesdays are a lot sadder now that it's gone. This video was fantastic! Thanks for hitting me again with the feels and great analysis/thoughts UTS. 😂

The first episode was so enchanting that made me fall in love with this show. Really worth the watch. Really enjoy your vids ^^

Great video on exactly what made me love this series. Thanks for making this^^

I've recently had a wake-up call myself, it was perfectly tied in with watching this anime. It made me cry a lot because of the stuff I've finally realized. It was incredibly powerful, both the anime and this video, I'm going to Japan soon (actually living out there for work and school) and this anime and this video along with my recent experience (it was a pregnancy scare with my girlfriend) helped to spur me forward. I'm genuinely looking forward towards my future and here's hoping everyone can one day take hold of their future! カンパイ！

You are AWESOME!! In my opinion, the director Ishizuka Atsuko is also one of the directors who knows how to tell a story through the screen/pictures but not only through lines, same as Yamada Naoko. This is a good film review !!

What a fantastic video, now let me a couple of minutes because I am crying quite a lot. Thank you very much! This is the content I really really enjoy

that intro was insane. Great work. Videos like this really convince me that analysis and critique is an important art form

i come back to this video multiple times a year. shit is so real. thank you for making this

I accomplished something similar to what these girls did, and It was truly life-changing. But you constantly need to be reminded of that or It will fade and you'll be back at your routine in no time. But your vids are brining me those feeling back and they feel fresh. Your videos bring color to everyday life. And I'm so grateful for that.

Awesome video, I love when videos like this help you really think about the core themes of a show, and how they relate to your life. Thanks, you've given me a lot to think about, and keep making great content.

This was a thought provoking video. I agree with yorimoi's theme that growth and fulfillment doesn't necessarily come from the sights you see in your travel but rather the people you meet, your interactions with them and how those could influence you. And of course, having a quality squad is always good.

This anime really changed the way I used to look at our world. Thinking on the chances of going somewhere far from home, fears and hard times... its all about living. And I gone on a trip after watching this show. It truly made me feel a big happiness, that still echoes in my heart till this day. I watched this show one year ago, and this video bellow still makes me cry all the time: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-PI3BFVl5rNs.html

Hey man, you have such an analytical and refreshing discussion. Your points about Sora Yori really makes me think, and I thank you for making clear my feelings about this anime. You're the absolute best and I wish you become more popular.

your video is always amazing, thanks for making it

Thanks for the video!!! I love this series and think you really struck right to the heart of its message

I had that same urge to do something different back in my high-school days but never got around to doing anything exactly because of the same reasons as Kimari: lack of funds and lack of a job. Now almost 10 years later from graduating and having a stable job and a good amount of funds I can finally make my biggest dream from back then come true! I can finally travel to Japan and explore my *place further than the universe* I've longed and admired for so long~

Such a great video. I can't wait to watch the show!

This and Yuru Camp were my sunshines of this season. Though I can't bring myself to think of them above an 8, I haven´t been that emotionally engaged with a show in a while now, specially with A place further than the universe. At the beginning I though it was rather stupid, but as more episodes came out I got more invested in the characters. Good stuff.

I'll definitely be watching this when I get the chance. It is just so close to what I am going through now in life. I'm 22 going to college in my hometown while holding no job, having no future plans other than hopefully finding a job with my degree, etc. I finally realized being an adult and doing so little with my life up until this point that I am wasting it. I am now currently taking construction work with my Dad when I can and working harder at school with the hope to spend some time traveling. For that I need the money from working, and I want to get my degree done so I don't leave that unfinished. But just setting up this grand plan has really started making me a better person, working harder to achieve the things I need to achieve for this dream. IDK if this show is a masterpiece, but I bet it will feel like it to me. If you're younger than me, I would warn you that it can be much easier to get through childhood living in the present. But eventually, that way of living will probably make you unhappy. I am glad I started seeing this now than later, but I definitely wish I had realized it by the time I was leaving high school at least.

Glad to see you made a video of it.. Thanks

The personal bit at the start hit me so hard! I'm only in my second year of 5 in film school and "am I doing enough" is already haunting me every single day. Absolutely amazing video!!!!!

Your videos always make me have goosebumps and I don't know why....

Did not expect this type of video, loved it! subbed :)

Liked and favorited and crying. I binged APFTTU earlier this week and it replaced Chuunibyou Demo Koi Ga Shikai as my favorite anime ever, specifically because of everything you said here. Wanting to leave but not finding either the opportunity or the courage to do so, fear of staying stuck and grinding your life away, sadness over the time you have already had but didn't spend wisely enough... they are all things I am truly familiar with, and that I wish I knew better what to do with. Thanks for this.

This video is a piece of art, thank you for this

This was the best of this season. Humorous, touching and inspirational.

Another great video explaining something I felt, but could not express.

Nicely analyzed, interesting, and relatable. Subbed.

Such a beautiful anime. Thanks for the video.

Beautifully put.

This was beautiful

When any song of this show plays, I just wanna cry. This is a masterpiece about life. I hope I can make the feeling that it has left me with last, because I really need to change somethings, to put my youth is in motion... Love for you all!

Damn. This series made us question ourselves - where we've been in our life right now, made us somewhat poetic and analytical, and made us cry like a baby. Perhaps we too need to embark on a journey of our own.

This hit hard, thank you.

Your presentation is on professional level.

just finished this and its soooo good. would love 2 see a S2 or Movie of them building the astronomy building

what a wonderful video

Great video man, and good luck with your degree!!

Thanks for covering this too little known anime. I don't know many people who gave this show a chance back at the beginning of the year.

im watching this now, I watch/read everything he covers

nice ending to the video that was really great gave me goosebumps

Thanks you man, recently these were exactly the questions I started asking myself. Am I falling behind everyone else? Will I be able to do what I want in the future or do I not have the requirements for it? The quotes and points you brought in this video answered these questions for me. Stop worrying and let it come as it comes!

I saved this show for when it finished since the first episode was just so phenomenally amazing Now I know I gotta watch it soon so I can watch this video

Your videos are always fucking amazing. Please make more stuff.

Thank you for this

thank you 4 the video ^^

Started to watch just today!!

Love your vids

Love it

Agreed a definite favorite if the winter anime season .If anything I see this being so popular on the crunchryoll awards .I can expect megalo box happening in the future

Heey, nice video! If I have any complaints, it would be that the first minute about how you came to question on whether you were doing enough or not dragged on a bit too much for my liking. I too made a video on Yorimoi, but I felt like you went in-depth on something more specific, while mine is a bit broader, so your perspective is nice. I like the quotes you used by John-Wren Lewis since it helped me get into your mindset! Also, I really appreciate you sourcing it as well; some people don't source like they should, so glad to see you did it! To quote a former monk: "Cite yer shit people". Again, nice video; keep at it!

Damn. Good video!

If I ever am having a bad day I just put on UTS and it instantly gets better. I am traveling and also starting work on a masters because of this very feeling and am determined to make the most of it.

*Adventure waits for no man. You have to reach out, and take it. Go the distances that are required, overcome the challenges along the way, and make your adventure happen.*

After watching this series, and especially your video, I realise that, at 32 years old, I haven't done anything significant. I really want to do something big before I hit 40 years old. Thanks for opening my eyes.

thank you

It's interesting how people expierience this anime in such different ways. For example, I'm the sort of person who doesn't hesitate to do whatever I feel I need or want to do. For that reason I couldn't relate to Kimari all that much and my enjoyment of the first half of the show was limited. The second half was wonderful though. It focused much more on concrete dilemmas like how to move on from a personal loss and that's something I can relate to. Every experience Shirase goes through as she gets closer to the place her mother lost her life touched a cord with me. Kudos to the staff who managed to craft a show that can speak to people with very different concerns.

I don't usually comment but I was genuinely hoping for you to review this ;; you've made a video on Hibike Euphonium called "How Warm it Sounds" and honestly, this anime gave me the same vibes and inspiration to improve as Hibike Euphonium as if it was a sequel If Hibike was me realising my motivation A Place Beyond the Universe was me pursuing it

I love this anime hopefully there's a season 2

What a great video 😶

Thank you so much for this. "Am I doing enough" has always been my biggest fear. The wake-up call is a term that exactly describes what I've been through. I did not go through a trauma or embarked on a journey, because I couldn't have gotten myself to do that. Instead, it came from a fictional world. I played Nier: Automata, got hit with so many existential dilemma, then watched A place further from the universe, and here I am, awoken from the slumber that is chasing after goals that define "milestones" in life, instead of goals that fulfill me. Instead of trying to save for a masters (to waaay frugal end), and other "milestones" like owning a house, I want to live in the now, to finally do things that speak to me. I am hoping to be able to backpack to Japan for 2 weeks. my goal in 2 years time. Not because I'm enamored with japanese culture based on anime, but because it's the nearest foreign country to me that I have the slightest interest in, and the weather being cooler than where I'm from. For a solo backpack trip, I figured i'd rather visit places to the north, a little colder and a little safer for women. Perhaps by then, I will have another wake-up call? I will be in my 30s then.

The series was great indeed, every character had certain traits different people could connect to and their own reason to need that cut in their lives, buuuut Yuru Camp is still my anime of the season... it is just too perfect.

I really like the music used in this. 👍🎶

Thank you.

This might be a weird thing to point out, but those oh so fresh caption/quote transitions though ^^

i need to watch this

Thank you

Chills

What a fucking awesome video

Finally finished it. We really have the SAME GODDAMN TASTES !

Put your hands in the air if you just feel the crushing weight of your parents using your success as a means to re-do their lives through your accomplishments and you feel an immense obligation to do as they say out of a twisted mix of respect, authority and love which you find hard to call out as harmful because you parents actually support and work hard for you, just not what YOU want to do in life! ... *Raises hands slowly*

holy shit. that was enlightening @>@

Sorayori its just amazing

thanks

wow, oof. great video fam, keep up the good work and good luck with finishing college

yes!

Pefection

This video just hit differently uwu

I have to go out... I know, amezing right...I will come back to this vid later