The Clannad anime, based on Key’s acclaimed visual novel of the same name, is now available to stream on AnimeLab in Australia and New Zealand.
Clannad tells the story of Tomoya Okazaki, a third-year high school student with a reputation for being a delinquent, stemming from his troubled life at home. His world starts to turn around when he meets the charming but shy and lonely Nagisa Furukawa and resolves to help her restart the school’s drama club.
What follows is an emotionally-charged story about the importance of family, as Tomoya and Nagisa learn more about one another’s struggles and find their lives growing more intertwined. The Clannad visual novel is one of the most acclaimed examples of “nukige”—literally, “crying game”—and is known for its ability to draw tears from even the most stoic of players.
The Clannad anime was produced by Kyoto Animation, and originally aired across two seasons from 2007 to 2009. The first season follows Tomoya and Nagisa through their last year of high school, while the second, Clannad After Story, looks at their life after graduation. There are 49 episodes in total across the two seasons, including a couple of “Extra” episodes and OVAs.
Clannad is only available on AnimeLab’s premium plan, which costs AUD $6.95 / NZD $7.95 a month. That’s worth it for something as good as Clannad, though, not to mention everything else that AnimeLab has to offer (like Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon, which starts next month). They also have a 30-day free trial—if you really wanted to, you could get through both seasons in that time. AnimeLab itself is only available in Australia and New Zealand.
The Clannad visual novel originally came out in 2004 for PC, though it didn’t get an official English release until 2015, courtesy of publisher Sekai Project. It’s available on Steam, PlayStation 4, and Nintendo Switch.