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Honestly, I was blown away by this show. After reading reviews describing it as derivative and generic, I had very low expectations and almost didn't watch it at all, but when I decided to give it a try I found it actually managed to achieve being pretty enjoyable in spite of its excessive and oblivious use of sad tired tropes.

First things first, in many ways at its heart this show is nothing more than a very very poor imitation of Rakudai Kishi no Cavalry, although I'm unclear on which actually came first. Everything from the setting and drive, to a large portion of the cast, ... right down to the opening scene are virtually indistinguishable (although in this there's somewhat less colour both literally and metaphorically). Where they deviate drastically, however, is in the fact that Rakudai Kishi no Cavalry is self-aware of its own positioning within the genre and uses that to both poignant and comedic effect, while Gakusen Toshi Asterisk takes itself seriously even in its most pitifully uninspired moments. This is not a good thing.

That being said, despite this show's depressing lack of self-awareness, judged on its own merits it manages to rise up and deliver an experience that is actually not half bad. The story is uninspired but well executed, and the pacing is spot on, but both are really just padding for the action scenes which absolutely do not disappointment.

While it is a harem, it quickly dodges those shackles by establishing a primary romance that is solid and secure and enjoyable to watch, relegating the other women surrounding the main male to the status of thankfully uninvolved side characters: the main male doesn't explicitly make a choice, sadly, but over the short duration of the story that's pretty forgivable.

The characters, artwork, music, and voice acting are all at the lower end of utterly average. However, despite their lack of distinguishing features, several of the characters are still pretty enjoyable to watch, and it is easy to be drawn in to their struggles and achievements. Though it is established early and often that the main characters are utterly overpowered, the threats they face still manage to be exciting, and that is quite an achievement.

One of the easiest shows ever to give a 10/10 - the emotional impact is completely overwhelming, and the story is beyond solid, but above all this show is a unified work of art that brings literally every aspect of itself together to create its message.

This show presents a peaceful life, strong morals, and pure idealism, then shatters it all with absolutely horrific sadness, and then it goes back and does it all again... and again. Each time it heals the wounds slowly through time, and brings not only the character but also the viewer back to a happy state, literally embodying its core philosophy ... in the emotions of the viewer - that time heals. This is one of the few shows I've ever seen that succeeded in making me actually cry, but it also has some really incredibly happy moments that made my heart soar, and the way it builds between the two is nothing short of masterful.

The soundtrack is pretty limited, especially over fifty episodes, but the songs themselves are good enough that it is ok. Likewise, the art is nothing spectacular, but it conveys what it needs to in a way that works, and at multiple points it even modifies the art style to reflect the emotion of the scene: not just between peaceful shots and action shots, but also for dreams and nightmares, for happy moments, and moments of tension.

The characters vary in quality. The main character around whom the show revolves is flawlessly realised: her struggles are authentic, believable, and relatable, and the growth that comes from them is at once genuine and finite. She grows, slowly, over the course of the entire show, and the person seen at the end is at once an entirely different character, and true to the soul of who she was at the beginning. She makes mistakes, she betrays her own ideals, she gets confused and at points doesn't know what she wants, and she struggles to resolve these issues in a way that feels real. She never finishes growing. I don't think I've ever encountered a character as truly complete three dimensional as this one.

However, the other characters are hit and miss. True to the show's core philosophy, none of the other characters stay constant throughout, meaning that all of the characters besides the main character herself are seen only as flat images passing by, though a couple of the more developed characters do experience some growth as a result of their interactions with the main character. At least two of the characters only exist at all for their (limited) comic relief.

In sum, this is an absolute masterpiece not only in its truly exceptional writing, but also in the way that each of its pieces come together to reinforce what it is trying to achieve. It's also really, really freaking sad.