
Only Yesterday(1991)
In lyrical switches between the present and the past, Taeko contemplates the arc of her life, and wonders if she has been true to the dreams of her childhood self.


Kyoko Otonashi is a 22-year-old widow. Six months have passed since the sudden death of her husband, Soichiro. In her resolve to move on, she has recently taken over the management of a boarding house owned by her father-in-law. She now finds herself reminiscing about the few seasons that she and Soichiro had together, and about the first time that she saw him: when he became her geology teacher during her final year of high school. This prequel is the third and final OVA released after the conclusion of MAISON IKKOKU, an animated series based on the manga by Rumiko Takahashi. The past events are retold through flashback sequences using scenes from the television series, with narration by Sumi Shimamoto as Kyoko.

Issei Futamata
Godai Yusaku (voice)

Sumi Shimamoto
Kyoko Otonashi (voice)

Hideyuki Tanaka
Soichiro Otonashi (voice)

Ryuji Saikachi
Otonashi-rojin (voice)
Prelude Maison Ikkoku: When the Cherry Blossoms Return in the Spring is a animation, romance, drama, comedy film released in 1992 exploring themes of widow, married couple, flashback, boarding house, japanese woman, told in flashback. Directed by Shigeharu Shiba, it stars Issei Futamata, Sumi Shimamoto, Hideyuki Tanaka. Kyoko Otonashi is a 22-year-old widow. Six months have passed since the sudden death of her husband, Soichiro. In her resolve to move on, she has recently taken over the management of a boarding house owned by her father-in-law. She now finds herself reminiscing about the few seasons that she and Soichiro had together, and about the first time that she saw him: when he became her geology teacher during her final year of high school. This prequel is the third and final OVA released after the conclusion of MAISON IKKOKU, an animated series based on the manga by Rumiko Takahashi. The past events are retold through flashback sequences using scenes from the television series, with narration by Sumi Shimamoto as Kyoko.
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