Last week, I took a look at one of my favourite anime of the last few years, 2011’s Future Diary. Late last month, a single-episode OVA sequel called The Future Diary: Redial (Mirai Nikki: Redial) was released in Japan. It fixed the one major problem I had with The Future Diary: the ending.
This review contains major spoilers for the The Future Diary anime series and mild spoilers about the general plot of The Future Diary: Redial.
As I stated in my review of the series, the ending of The Future Diary was rather abrupt. Seconds after the climax, the credits begin to roll, interspersed with brief scenes of the 12 diary holders in the Third World serving as the epilogue. Then after the credits, we see Yuki, god of the Second World alone and still in mourning 10,000 years after the end of the death game. We zoom in on the last entry of his future diary and watch it change to say “Yuno came to meet me” before fading to black. It is a horrible, emotional cock tease of a final scene that leaves Yuki’s story without resolution and raises a plethora of questions — which is probably why Redial exists.
Redial covers the events in the Third World leading up to — and then slightly past — the final scene of the series. It follows the Yuno of the Third World. Thanks to the actions of Yuki in the series, Yuno is a far more stable and happy person than her First World counterpart. For all intents and purposes, she is a normal 14-year-old. Despite this, she is haunted by images, feelings, and moments of déjà vu that make her feel like something very important is missing in her life.
The first half of the OVA is used to show what has become of the diary holders in the Third World where the future diary death game never took place. These are generally short, comedic scenes that take place as Yuno and her classmates — the non-diary holder supporting cast of the series — take a school trip to the beach. These scenes do little to add to or take away from the series and are just there for laughs. However, occasionally we get to see something involving Yuno, hinting at the inner turmoil that is taking hold of her — like that she keeps a phone diary that is nothing but time stamps at 10-minute intervals.
The second half focuses almost exclusively on Yuno — as midnight of July 28th approaches and she begins to converse with a voice inside her head about the upcoming end of the world and the person she can’t remember.
Yuno’s ever-nearing breakdown is the most interesting facet of this OVA episode. Despite her much happier Third World upbringing, the knowledge that the most important person in her life is out there, yet she is unable to meet him, pushes her ever closer to the Yandere personality of her First World counterpart. It is both thrilling and heartbreaking to watch.
And for those who need a bit more action, there is also a fun Dragon Ball Z-style fight between the still god-powered Minene from the Second World and giant mecha Murmur.
Redial comes to a close with a short extra scene that reverts back to the ending of the anime. And while this final scene may only continue a few dozen seconds beyond the end of the series proper, these closing moments give the series the feeling of completion it has been missing since it first aired over a year ago.
In the end, The Future Diary: Redial is part fan service (aka, seeing the fates of all your favourite characters) and part character development for the new Yuno — with a conclusion that gives a much more satisfying ending than that of the series. So while it’s mostly an entertaining afterthought, if you enjoyed the series, you owe it to yourself to watch The Future Diary: Redial.
The Future Diary: Redial was released on DVD on July 30, 2013, in Japan. There is currently no word on an international release.
Comments
9 responses to “The Future Diary: Redial Is The Ending The Series Was Missing”
honestly, i thought the original ending was more fitting, i mean… yuno straight up murders his friends, he deserved to be unhappy for eternity…
this ending was much nicer than the other one, but this one feels like the author was trying to appease fans who didn’t like the first ending…
part of me wishes i hadn’t watched the OVA.
Am I the only one here who thought Mirai Nikki was bad? Constant melodrama, cliche main characters, and an overall lack of direction.
i thought it wasn’t all that too. but then i just watched steins;gate before it, and not many animes can really match up to that.. so unfair competition.
edit: in conclusion: i don’t understand why people think it’s good.
I enjoyed it, but I watched Steins;Gate right AFTER and then was blown away and realised that it wasn’t that great, but because of the timing that I watched it in, it still has a happy place in my memories…
i just watched Baccano! and it’s great! kotaku should do a review on it.
Haha, what is this? I’m watching it as we speak, I’ve stoped to try and get my bro to watch it with me, haha its as good as Durarara!!! (obviously)
ooh! i haven’t seen Durarara! i must watch it after i finish Baccano! I was planning to rewatch Monster after it, another suspense/thriller classic that’s brilliantly written!
Durarara! Is amazing, i actully prefer it alitle over Bacano! Purly cos, yes, its slow to start off, but its alot less incoherent… Idk, I guess… I liked the darker more comic book feel maby?
I was happy enough with the original ending tbh and I only finished watching it yesterday. With this ‘alternate ending’ style it didn’t add much and most of it just seemed like filler material