Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-5513888-20130903031231/@comment-108.248.64.43-20160601015628

I would like to throw my two cents into this if I may:

Here is how I see this. I see Otonashi living his first life as the one where he dies in the subway tunnel. When he dies, he starts his next life. While he does this, a little girl gets his heart(this being Tachibana). As she lives the rest of her short life, this being shown by the fact that she never experienced graduation, she regrets not being able to say "thank you" to the donor, because Otonashi had already moved on(as any person who would have given up their heart, for that matter). This regret was what fueled the creation of the Afterlife. As the NPC in the second room stated: the world was changed by will. That's how things were made in that world like the guns and the upgrades and all of that. So, couldn't it be said that will could be a method used to create the Afterlife? Anyway, with that, Tachibana willed for there to be an opportunity to meet and to thank the donor, Otonashi. Well,(and this is where my theory starts) I have this feeling that when she did this, the Afterlife was created and she moved on to her next life, seeing as she couldn't go there when it was made. Then Otonashi dies, but, instead of moving onto the next life, he is brought to the Afterlife. There he starts to make the world. He programs it and sets it up so that he can help people because he still has a passion for helping people from his first life. Now, going back to what the NPC in the Second Computer Lab about not being able to know who the Programmer was even if Yuri was given the name, we can address his statement as true, saying that this was not Otonashi, but rather another incarnation of himself, which means a new name and a new appearance as well. Next, let us address the idea of the being an NPC. And, to do that, let us consider this: As it is known, Shiina is a lot older than Tachibana and Yuri. What if, one of the incarnations of Shiina went through the Afterlife and then fell in love with the other incarnation of Otonashi, and then left. That would seem to give a reason for him turning himself into an NPC. People reading this might ask themselves then "What about how he arrives at the Afterlife again, but in the form of his 'first life?'" With that, I would like to say that when he turns himself into the NPC, his soul leaves the Afterlife and moves on. Because, at this point, it has already been established that Otonashi is special. So, maybe, instead of having their soul eaten, their soul moves on into the next life, leaving the old vessel behind because it was a computer program doing it, not just them willingly going and being obliterated. But, to answer the question that could arise for Takamatsu coming back from being an NPC when the computers were destroyed to then be able to move on. I would say that his soul did move on, but was brought back because a program was used to move him on, and he wasn't obliterated. So, he ended up getting a preview of his next life. With this, we can say that when Otonashi turns himself into an NPC, his soul leaves and enters a new life. During this time, Tachibana, Yuri, and Hinata enter the afterlife, but because her previous life had regrets, Tachibana enters in the form of her first life because that was what needed to be fixed. And, she enters a little before Yuri and Hinata, this being seen when Tachibana explains that people who try to get along with her end up obliterated, leaving her alone. Then enters Yuri and Hinata, and then the rest of the gang before Otonashi arrives, including the one-up incarnation of Shiina. Now, under this theory, the question of how Otonashi enters the world needs to be answered. For this, the explanation that his soul enters as his first life because he needed to be there for Tachibana can be used. However, there was an event that was needed to trigger his arrival just like there was for Takamatsu. This event was his death. He lived his life and then was brought back because of the program he set. He enters the world as his first-world self because of the arrival of Tachibana. That's why he didn't show up until decades later. But then he returns and then the anime begins.

So, to sum this up and to make it easier to read, I will simplify it to a timeline.

First, Otonashi lives the life where he was learning to be a doctor and fills out his card before he dies, to where he begins his next life as second-life Otonashi.

Second, Tachibana receives his donated heart for whatever reason it was needed, then dies regretting not being able to thank the person before she graduates.

Third, first-life Tachibana begins her next life, but the Afterlife was created as a result of her strong will to thank the donor.

Fourth, the second-life version of Otonashi dies, and is moved to the Afterlife because of first-life Tachibana.

Fifth, the second-life Otonashi programs the Afterlife with the drive to help people and hear them say "thank you," which followed him into his second life from the first.

Sixth, a reincarnation of Shiina enters the Afterlife and he falls in love with her, but he helped her move on, so he lost her.

Seventh, not able to deal with it, the second-life Otonashi turns himself into an NPC to cope, which was clarified above to mean that the program forces the person to move on, which is why the body is still there. So, he enters life as third-life Otonashi.

Eighth, second-life Tachibana dies and enters into the Afterlife as first-life Tachibana because of her regret in the first life, where she is unable to keep friends and becomes lonely.

Ninth, Yuri enters the Afterlife soon followed by Hinata who both form the SSS against Tachibana.

Tenth, the rest of the SSS enter into the Afterlife(including the one-up reincarnation of Shiina) and fight against Tachibana alongside Yuri and Hinata.

Eleventh, third-life Otonashi dies and enters back into the Afterlife, according to the program that was set earlier, but he enters in as his first-life version because of the presence of Tachibana being a trigger, which means that not only does the second-life Otonashi body still exist, but he has a different name than the second-life one as well, and, because of the distance in lives, the first-life Otonashi has no memory of his first life.

Twelfth, the anime starts.