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What is a romcom? Sounds like a simple question, but it’s a question Love is War has challenged this question for me, especially in the current climate of romantic comedy manga.

As one can briefly infer from my profile, Love is War is my favourite anime / manga series of all time, and I could rant for hours and hours about every intricate detail of this series and how this series has left a life changing impact on me, but for your sake (the reader), I’ll disregard it.

Love is War presents itself almost as a mockery of the climate of romcoms, having the whole ... point of the series resolve around what many other series use as ways to extend serialisation of volumes as the focal point on how it’s run. Within minutes of reading the first chapter, the synergy between the primary duo is self-obvious, which allows the manga to get away with placing them in the most absurd situations (as long as it fits the high school theme of the manga) without making it feel cringey or bland. Sure, there are the “cliché” chapters such as the umbrella chapter, the summer festival chapter, and many others, but what makes this series unique is how Akasaka shows all the cliches in a complete separate light from other series, which gives the series a fresh feel compared to other series alike itself.

Adding onto the sentence of the absurdity, another strength of the series is how it makes the super exaggerated characters have a feeling of relatability and down-to-earthiness about them. I, myself can personally relate to Kaguya, Shirogane, Yuu and Iino, even though their base characters are far from normalised, because Akasaka, while for sometimes comedic affect, allows the characters to show personal struggle and overcoming that struggle, which for a romantic comedy of this nature is a rarity.

On the topic of comedy, I don’t think I’ve ever read a series that has made me burst out laughter as much as this series has. The characters being as exaggerated as they are with the addition of the create facial expressions shown in Akasaka’s art style, as well as the absurd situation, makes this manga very hard to put down. Even the most mundane high school ideas such as school tests or parent teacher interviews change from their mundaneness to a complete gag fest. This series also utilises a wide variety of other series to provoke laughter, which it seamlessly achieves.

To help compliment the absurd comedy, the story within the series is phenomenal for a romance, and at points makes me stunned in the effortless contracts throughout itself. While starting out as an episodic series, eventually a more arc styled part fleshes through, which helps give the non-main couple cast a time to advance as characters, while keeping the “who will confess first” narrative in every arc. And during the episodic chapters, it’s not like the story feels flat with the constant high-stacks narrative each chapter attends to.

And for personal enjoyment well, I’ve read the series 18 times, and as a broke high school student I still have managed to save up enough money to spend 240 dollars on the series. I don’t think I need to go into anything else to show my undying affection for this work by Akasaka.

So, to sum it up, an incredible manga by a very talented Mangaka which breaks the common cliches of a traditional romcom and has placed a very special place in many hearts.

Among Us is a 2018 game made by Innersloth which revolves around a group of like up to 15? at this point go go around to find the imposters. In 2020, the series blew up with streamers all hitting the game, causing the game to be culturally popular across the last 2 years.

This series has finally hit a new peak, with the addition of a children's manga based upon it. This only 16 page manga shows everything an among us game has showed, and has some great moments an a super good plot twist.

To start off with, the art style is actually good. Like, ... not even joking, all the characters fit the bill, they look cute when they need to, and they show serious emotions effortlessly. It's crazy to see actual effort put into this.

For a children's manga, the characters are also all goofy yet sometimes aren't. We follow main character Egg with his journey throughout the show, and I like the character development present during this single one shot. Additionally, the other characters (Glasses, King, Cap and Delinquent) add life to this game and make it seem more believable to a normal among us game. Time is also shown to flesh out these characters, which is quite shocking for it only being 16 pages, and when it's finished you get a great idea of what has happened in the game.

As for enjoyment, MAN it's enjoyable. THE STORY HAD ME ON THE EDGE AND I HAD SO MUCH FUN READING THIS. I don't think I have read as good of a manga since I last read love is war for the millionth time.


but yeah you better read it or you are sus

Ib: instant bullet, created by the masterful mangaka Aka Akasaka, is a book that deserves more praise then it gets. Through it's incredible story telling, well fleshed out and diverse characters for it's short 25 chapter run span and it's wide theming on issues , this manga is one of the greatest.

The story writing shown in Ib: instant bullet is creative yet is a delight to seasonal manga followers. This manga creates such a thrilling and dark view on the world, while also producing some really great breakaway from the main plot lines. Just from the very first chapter you learn of a person ... who has lived through the distraught of having his whole family be burnt away from a house fire, and lives with the regret by having the souls of his neighbours living with him, making him fully believe they are still alive. But at the same time, you see a girl who will "fix" distraught, who lends a helping hand out to him, like the main character has wins a ticket to a show. The story only evolves from there, tackling more and more into the way on how their powers affect them and at what cost they will do to destroy humanity. Also can I say that the goofy and upbeat moments just, work? Sometimes it's just very nice to see the characters talk and mess around and it gives the characters more fleshed out personalities.

Akasaka's main strength is his ability to create such powerful and deep characters. Every one of the characters has such rich and deep back stories which is very carefully used throughout the series to follow their actions. I already explained the main character's back story, but most characters have a similar level of deepness to them. Another example I can explain is Kokage Fujinami, a girl who has had to life in the middle of a drug incident and lived with the fact that many died because of her hands, and has resented humanity thanks to the cruelty of the matter. When the characters talk to each other, in either a serious or non-serious matter, they work. If it's serious, the tension and feeling are very brought out and are quite powerful for what they do in the meantime. The characters have realistic reactions to what is presented infront of them for this story being as not realistic as the story entails.

Finally, the theming in this manga. For it being a 25 chapter manga, this work has a huge amount of themes that it tackles excellently. Like I referred to early, just in the first chapter, the themes of depression, loss and many more I didn't describe is shown very effortlessly without needing to force it on the viewer. The themes in the manga also make this quite the immersive and emotional read since you can see the characters suffering and when it needs to, it just come in full force in your face and hits hard.

I highly recommend this manga to anyone who likes drama stories or stories relating to death game type stories.

"Ame Ame Ame" Kanna Kamui.

Kobayashi's Dragon Maid returns Kyoto Animation back to scene of seasonals ever since Tsurune aired in October 2018, and what they have presented exceed my expectations from the first season, which was an incredible showing already. This show gets backlash from the fact that the new addition Ilulu has quite large body proportions, but instead this show presents how it can turn an idea of that proportion into something instead meant to help out the comedy of the show in a effortless way.

If there is one thing that Kyoto Animation is known for, it's their ability to make everything look ... visually stunning. Comparing to the animation quality of the original season of Kobayashi, everything looks much more cleaner and vibrant to help make the characters fit in perfectly to the backgrounds. It gets helped when the action scenes can have such good levels of quality to them that they feel like a top action studio is creating the works as it effortlessly makes the action stunning.

There isn't too much of a story in this anime, for it being an Slice of Life Comedy about dragon's living in Japan, but what it lays in is a story that interlocks the characters backstories and thoughts from the past in the dragon world to Japan and how they would react logically to the changes. It wouldn't work as much without the level of comedy that occurs between the characters, even though most of them are continuing running jokes from season one, which still have the same effect as how they did in past.

If there is one thing that carries the show compared to everything, it would be the vast characters in the show interacting with each other with ease and realism to it while making most moments having some comedy factor to them. The characters from season 1 have continued to be there while having small character developments throughout the season, especially seen through the likes of Elma and Tohru. Ilulu was the perfect way to spice up the story of Kobayashi, and seeing the character development from Ilulu throughout the story surprised me in how effortless it occured.

If there is one thing that Kobayashi strives on that not many people care to notice about, it is the amazing OST and sound effects that the show has. The opening and ending theme are amazing, especially the opening being sung by Fhana again elevating the already great OP from the visuals to the next level with the mix of rap and pop style singing. The voicework fits the characters both in Japanese and English and the sound effects that occur from them, though absurd, helping make the show feel more alive and exaggerated, which helps with the mood of the crazy nature of the show.

This show is funny, and I have a liking to nearly every single character in the show. It brings the Kyoto Animation charm which I have loved throughout my time watching anime to the next level flawlessly, which all it does is make me slime throughout watching it, and even cry when I saw the opening for the first time. This is a solid 10 in my markings.

Is this anime trash? Yes, it is
Does it deserve the score? Yes
But does it mean it’s an unenjoyable anime? Not at all

Following in the footsteps of the new trash kanojo / girlfriend series (Domestic Girlfriend and Rent a Girlfriend), Girlfriend Girlfriend is here to refill the box of trash shows that are stupidly funny and enjoyable. At first, it sounds dumb; “Why would I watch a show where a dude gets 2 girls and actively two times them?” but once you turn on this, you won’t be disappointed (unless you are expecting a good anime).

Plot is simple. Saki Saki a childhood friend of Naoya ... because his girlfriend after 10 years. They are the most lovey dovey couple ever, expressing their love in the public. Though, a classmate called Nagisa Minase has skipped school for months to perfect herself to confess to Naoya. One afternoon she calls Naoya up until the rooftop, and confess her love, and Naoya cannot refuse it. So he goes full insane strats and accepts the confession on the terms that she’ll have Saki Saki still be Naoya’s Girlfriend. She accepts, and the wacky romcom starts. There are some genuine funny and stupid moments in this show, it’s amazing. 9/10

I especially like the art style in this show, it’s quite basic but it does everything what it provides without any issues, exactly what a Slice of Life show should be like that isn’t made by KyoAni should be. The characters look cute, and it does a pretty good job of expressing the emotions felt by the characters, because without it the show wouldn’t feel right. 8/10

This show would be not the same without the chaotic nature of the characters. You have Saki Saki (which reminds me of Tsukasa from Tonikawa) with a cheerful yet tsundere-tropey character, which makes the sillier scenes much more chaotic, which only adds to the fun. Then you have Minase Nagisa, a quiet yet bubbly character who will help out Naoya or even Saki at no matter what cost. Then Naoya is a straightforward person who will just speak whatever he has on his head, which creates most of the problems of the plot, which is both silly yet enjoyable. The balance of characters in this show help it be the stupid funny show this is. 9/10

The OST fits, but like with many seasonals, it falls under the forgettable side. I personally do like the OP and especially the ED with pinky hook (one of my most played anime songs), as they both fit the chaotic and the energetic nature of the anime. 8/10

There is so much enjoyment to this show, even outside of the anime itself. The amount of times I have to looks at my surroundings just incase someone is disgustedly watching this from the shadows is more times then I would admit, but honestly it just adds to the fun. But back to the anime, this is just a pleasure to watch something so outlandish and creative yet silly. This is by far the best out of the trilogy of Kanojo (Rent a GF was great tho was far from the stupidity of this, and Domestic GF was just so spicy for me at times), so if you like any of the other two, I highly recommend it. 9/10.

Words That Bubble Up Like Soda is a relaxing music love based story which does what it achieves very well. Though some of the plot points in the show can be a tad bit predictable, it doesn't mind much due to it's great character and incredible animation. It also has emotional value when it needs to, it nearly made me cry twice during the period of the film.

The story was consistently good throughout the anime, though following a traditional structure to where the high or low points of the story was. It's nothing too out of the ordinary for a SoL show which makes ... the moments where something special happens become even more special. It does have some predictable moments like how both of the main characters meet and what they do but overall with those predictable moments, they didn't really deviate from the overall story's quality and didn't really affect the overall enjoyment of the film.

The art style is done spectacularly, it flows really well between the more actiony scenes and the calmer scenes, with it matches the aesthetic of the show beautiful. The characters are animated very stylishly and their facial reactions are very diverse and helps paint a picture of what the personalities of the characters are, even though they might be a tad overdramatic. There is always a moving part on the screen and even things like a book falling over on the ground is shown in a bright matter. The scenery at the points it need to happen were done well though at times it felt like it was panning a bit slow.

The sound is the best part of the show. The show's background themes brighten up the anime in a bright, colorful way which I expected for it being made by Kensuke Ushio, who also did A Silent Voice and Liz to Aoi Tori. It is also a major part of the show as the whole show resolves around the theme of music.

This characters of this are well done. Cherry, a Japanese haiku poet with a lack of wanting to share his haiku's vocally and hides behind his headphones to make people not want to talk to him and Smile, who is a successful online personality with a personal crisis with her bucked teeth which she wears a mask to protect herself from potential embarrassment. Both characters are very simple but both feel like real characters living with their basic problems, and seeing their interactions with each other and the rest of the cast. The supporting cast can be a bit forgettable apart from Fujiama, the grandfather of one of Cherry's friends. He helps create this diversity from the main characters being this loud, forgetful and annoying character, which makes this story feel more alive and all together more realist.

I found this show to be a simple yet an enjoyable one at that, I would suggest this to people who like music, slice of life and people who love a little romance in the show. I was glad to see the global same time release of this film on Netflix as I think it's the right step for Netflix to have these sort of releases for their original anime films.

This is my first review of an anime! This show 100% deserves my first review though
This does have spoilers for certain scenes up to episode 4
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Story (9/10)
Yoshida is your average adult who just got on a date with his crush, though she got rejected by her at the end of the date. Walking home drunk, he spots a high school runaway sitting beneath a lightpole. He decides to let the girl (Sayu) stay at his place, and the story is the adventures of having a high school girl at a home of an office worker. Though basic, this story does extremely well at ... doing what is shown and what they can do with this story, from the simple things like buying a phone and some of the more serious things like Yoshida explaining his reasoning for why he let this teenager sat at his place.

Characters (10/10)
For the setting that this is being set, the characters are done extremely well. Sayu has a diverse personality for a teenager and her reasons for why she ran away, though weird, makes sense . Yoshida on the other hand is your regular officeworker, and he is a good morals, and kind. The side characters also have their own good parts about them, making this story feel more real then most other animes i've watched.

Art Style (7/10)
The art style is pretty good, and pretty normal for this year. Barely any scenes of bad animation, so it's consistantly good.

OST / VA Work (8/10)
Opening and Ending are extremely good, and the OST is good enough that it makes sense for the show, but nothing too much is worthy to listen to outside of the show. The VA work in this anime is pretty well rounded and are all pretty good voices, none of them are particularly annoying but non of them are too remember-able.

Personal Enjoyment Factor (9.75/10)
I love SoL's (I'm not sure why this isn't one), but he dynamic between the characters just fills my heart up, and it's very cute to see these two people living together. Only slight problem for me is the ecchi scenes, I don't personal like them, but the other content in the show fills up that negative.

This show isn't for everyone, but I would at least give the first 2 episodes a chance before you drop this show, it's a great show so far.

Overall (9.5/10) (which pushes it up to a 10/10).