Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo

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At the time of this review, I have read all 13 (technically 10 if excluding .5 volumes and the like) volumes of the Light Novel of Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo.

This review will contain spoilers, so read on if you dare. Also, this will be my first review, so go easy on me.

Sakurasou begins by introducing us to our main character, Kanda Sorata. He is temporarily staying at a place we are told is called the Sakurasou dormitory. We are also introduced to some of our other main characters, Jin and Misaki. A decent start, I had high expectations for this novel. Did it meet ... those standards? Continue reading my review and decide for yourself.

Story: 3/10

There isn't really too much of a story in Sakurasou, with the beginning volumes mainly being a slice-of-life. This should mean that the story rating shouldn't be so low, right? Well, the problem with Sakurasou in this department is that when it tries to delve into a story, for example Sorata's aim to produce a successful game idea, we are only shown the surface of the actual process, and are instead left with melodrama where he is turned down and just cries for ages. Now, I am not saying melodrama is a bad thing, but when it gets in the way of making a decent story, then I find it quite unnecessary. We never get much more depth into the work Sorata does, the author instead opts to focus on a poor romance. Sakurasou could have given so much more in this department, but instead it was glossed over for typical drama.

The Romance: This was arguably the worst part of Sakurasou.

Sorata x Mashiro x Nanami love triangle.

Instantly we see that there is going to be a love triangle between Mashiro, Sorata, and Nanami. Usually, love triangles can lead to great character development and some genuine human moments. Instead, what Sakurasou gives us is little reason to why these two girls like Sorata, which is already unrealistic enough, and then instead of building a good romance throughout the volumes, we are just given fanservice of Mashiro trying to smash Sorata and Nanami just being nervous. At the end of the anime, Mashiro seems to have won. In the LN, Nanami has a slight glimpse of hope, before we get to volumes 7-10 where this is completely shattered with little reason as to why. Why does Sorata like Mashiro so much more? The LN doesn't explain this to us that well at all. Why does Mashiro still like Sorata after he selfishly takes his anger out on her and verbally abuses her? This is also left out, it didn't affect the romance in any way which is completely unrealistic. Mashiro is chosen in volume 8 after basically having been non-existent in the first half of it, and then we suddenly get Sorata x Mashiro. What happens to Nanami after this? The author decided to say 'Fuck off!', and she rarely appears again, which was quite sudden considering how much of a focal point she was before this point. Mashiro and Sorata have sex to celebrate, which would have been great if we were given some decent reasons to care.

Jin x Misaki

The only half-decent romance throughout the entire novel, the drama wasn't excessive, Misaki builds up her love to Jin, and Jin has had reasons to deny her advances all this time. This pairing felt good to see whenever they appeared in the novel, the only complaint I would have is that there was one stupid misunderstanding where because Jin went out shopping with Mashiro, Misaki assumed he was out on a date with her. They end up happily married at the end, so good for them.

Rita x Ryuunosuke

I really thought this was going to be a good romance, building character between the two, especially Ryuunosuke becoming more social. Unfortunately, there is quite literally no significant developments after Volume 6 where the anime stopped, meaning Rita just chased after Ryuunosuke even after the 4 year timeskip. Really disappointing, as I thought Ryuunosuke would have learned how to interact with others and recover from his past betrayals through this romance.

Iori x Kanna

Well this pairing was mostly one-sided considering Kanna fell in love with Sorata (because he's the cool main character who gets ALL the chicks). Not really a romance, but considering it was hinted at in the novels I'll say it was just below average. We don't find out if they got together or not despite how many volumes there were.

Art: 8/10

Now this is one point where I can sing some praises about Sakurasou, the art is nothing to complain about. Well done to the illustrator, as this was one of the saving graces of the light novel.

Character: 3/10

A mixed bag. Some characters were good, others were downright terrible.

Sorata: 1/5 - Could not get more bland than Sorata, the only glimpses of personality he has are when he perseveres with his goals. Apart from that, he's just a generic MC with a harem of girls around him (though he only chooses one).

Mashiro: 2/5 - A kuudere, who has some sort of mental disease I believe. The problem here is, that she is reduced to fanservice at times which makes her seem like less of a character. Shines when she tries to do her manga despite being told she should paint, and apart from that she doesn't really stand out despite being the main heroine.

Nanami: 3/5 - Felt very bad for this character, she fails her voice acting, gets rejected by Sorata, and gets expelled from Sakurasou. She is hard-working, and it's painful but realistic when she keeps failing again, and again, and again. Probably the best female character in Sakurasou, and had the most potential.

Ryuunosuke: 2/5 - A trap, who doesn't really have much character at all. He's just very smart, and I thought he would get more development through his relationship with Rita, but nothing really happens. He is slightly entertaining at times, so he's still better than Sorata.

Misaki: 3/5 - A good female character, lightens up the mood even when the others are going through tough times. This leads to her putting up a front, she's bearing the pain of having to see Jin go out with numerous other girls and never her. She doesn't work especially hard for her anime, but she still tries. Ends up with Jin in the end so good for her.

Jin: 2.5/5 - I believe the way he avoided Misaki just to keep her 'pure' was quite silly, but it is also admirable at the same time in a way. It doesn't really take her feelings into account though, which is quite selfish of him. He is a good older figure to Sorata and gives him shit when he deserves it.

Iori and Kanna: 1.5/5 - They don't really get much development at all compared to the rest of the cast, but they are still more likeable than Sorata.

Rita: 2.5/5 - Tries to change Ryuunosuke's ways, which is quite good from her. She does come off as an asshole whenever she tries to force her jealousy onto Mashiro though by trying to make her come back to England.

Enjoyment: 2/10

I couldn't find myself many reasons to keep reading, but I still did. Did not like how some of the romances just came out of nowhere with no development, and how some were left open also with no development.

Comedy: 2/10

Sakurasou really tries to be funny at times, but it rarely ever works. Sometimes this is through the sexualisation of Mashiro, which is kind of disturbing and not really comedic at all. None of the characters have any quirks that make them funny in any way.

Overall: 3/10

Sakurasou could have been a touching rom-com slice of life, but due to some underdeveloped characters, piss-poor romance as well as weak comedy, it rather fails to do so. Enjoy it if you can move past all those criticisms.