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tl;dr
A refreshing take on the villainess genre. It mixes the typical "reincarnated into an otome game" trope with the outside perspective of a middle-aged dad and otaku, which brings a new kind of charm and comedy. While the animation, art, and OST are only slightly above average, the show stays consistently good from start to finish. Don't expect anything amazing, but it's definitely fun and worth checking out if you’re into the genre. If you are curious but not into the genre, watch up to episode 4. If you are not enjoying it by then, drop it. The rest of the show stays the same.

---The ... review---
The moment I saw the announcement for this anime, I was genuinely hyped. Finally something different from the flood of Isekais and the repetitive "Reincarnated as a Villainess" setups that always fall on the same tropes, but this one actually tries something new.

It's still part of the villainess genre, but here, the twist is that the main character is an old man, a dad, and an otaku. And we are not following the story inside the game world from a young girl's perspective, but from his perspective as he gets pulled into the otome game his daughter played. His interactions with this modern game world are genuinely refreshing, and his "dad mode" whenever he talks to characters who are around his daughter's age is both funny and heartwarming. I enjoyed every episode, no annoying antagonist was doing bad stuff "just because," and that alone already puts it above many others. However, this is also a weak point, because there was no clear 'enemy of the hero,' and there were no real stakes. I think that is one of the reasons this anime never improved, but just kept the same good level from start to finish.

So why only a 7? I rate shows based on a formula I came up with myself, not just enjoyment. Even something I really liked can get a lower score if the other elements aren't strong enough.

The animation is slightly above average. It's not bad, definitely not trash-tier, but it's also not anything special. The art is in the same boat, better than your average seasonal anime, but not something that will stand out years later.

I'll be honest, I barely noticed the OST. It exists, which means it did its job by supporting the scenes quietly, but I couldn't recall a single track if you asked me. That's not necessarily bad, especially since this is more of a slice-of-life type show, but still, if you don't remember the music at all, it's not great either.

The story is where this anime really shines. An old man stuck in an otome game, as the villainess, is something I haven't seen in this genre before. It's funny, it's cute, and even though the emotional impact isn't huge, it's more than enough to keep things interesting. The setting isn't anything unique, it's still the typical "reincarnated into an otome game" scenario, but at least they explained the world and magic system a bit better than average.

The enjoyability is high. Some episodes felt a little weak, but never to the point of dragging the show down. It starts good and stays on that level the entire way through. That consistency is nice, but also kind of the problem. It never dips, but it never really improves either. No big development, no surprising peaks. Just good. And while that's not bad, it's not enough to push it beyond a 7 unless everything else is amazing (which it isn't).

The characters are nice, but underdeveloped. That's probably the biggest weakness. Some of them show up again and again, but we barely know anything about them. I can only remember like three names: Grace, Bell, and Luka, and the only reason I even remember Luka is because he looks like a girl. I wish they had gone deeper into the characters around Grace, it definitely could make a bigger difference.

Overall, I had a lot of fun watching this. It's interesting, different, and something I would easily recommend if you are a fan of the villainess or isekai genres and want to see something more refreshing. If you are not into those genres but feel curious, give it a try up to episode 4. If you are not into it by then, feel free to drop it, what you see in the beginning up to episode 4 is what you'll get through the entire show.

tl;dr
This show started strong with a solid first episode, but everything quickly fell apart from episode 2 onward. The animation and art dropped in quality, the story became a mess, and the emotional impact got worse with each episode. The main character feels like she came straight out of a fanfic, and the sudden tone shift ruins what little potential it had. Only worth watching if you want to see how not to write a story.

***The review***
This was one of the most disappointing anime I have watched in recent years. Episode 1 actually started off really strong, it was enjoyable, interesting, and had a solid ... setup. But then episode 2 hit, and it all went downhill fast. The animation and art quality dropped hard and it’s very noticeable. The OST is barely even there, and the story turns into a complete mess. Whatever emotional impact it tried to have just got worse with each episode instead of improving.

The only thing I can give it credit for is how realistic the setting is regarding how royalty and nobility behave. That part is grounded. In history, royals and nobility did force women into marriages like that, and the anime at least reflects that reality well. But that’s about it.

The main character is just dumb. She acts like a typical protagonist from one of those 18+ female fanfics, and honestly, the whole show feels like a fanfic more than an actual story. It's a real shame because I liked the first episode and had hopes for it. But the tone completely shifts after that. In episode 1, she never broke the fourth wall or talked to the viewers. Then suddenly from episode 2 onward, she starts doing that, and it just feels weird and out of place. It wasn't part of the original setup, so it comes off like episode 1 was just bait to pull people in, and for what? The quality and story both drop off a cliff right after.

I can only recommend watching this if you're trying to learn how not to write a story. It’s such a letdown after a promising start. They completely fumbled it after episode 1. What a waste.

tl;dr
One of the worst anime I have seen in a while. It's painfully slow, predictable, and incredibly boring. The story is a mess, the characters are weak and inconsistent, and the setting is generic. The main character constantly gains overpowered abilities with no real build up, and the show somehow gets worse with each episode. Unless you're trying to study how not to write a story, there's no real reason to watch this.

---The review---
This is one of the worst anime I've seen in a long time, maybe even the worst of the season. The pacing is so slow I had to watch episodes at 3x ... speed just to avoid feeling miserable by watching this anime. Watching it normally makes a 20-minute episode feel like it drags on for an hour, it could be nice if the show was good, but it's just that boring.

The animation is average. The same goes for the art. The OST exists, I guess, but it's nothing special. The story is a complete mess, and the characters constantly contradict themselves from one episode to the next. The setting is as generic and lifeless as it gets. There’s zero enjoyment to be found. The characters are below average, and somehow each episode manages to be worse than the one before it.

The main character just keeps unlocking overpowered abilities non-stop. He starts with one or two, and by episode 3 he suddenly gains three to five more all at once. It's way too much. The whole thing is so predictable that I could tell what was going to happen before it even happened. The Ursula character and her excuse for not helping the MC out at first is dumb. Just read what I wrote below in the spoiler section if you want to know more.

Almost every girl wants him. They want to marry him and have his kids, and by episode 3 even the male characters are talking about marrying him. It’s beyond ridiculous.

Should you watch it? Probably not. Unless you're curious how to fail at writing a story or building a world, there’s no reason to bother with this show.

***Possible minor spoilers below***

The character Ursula is one of the dumbest parts of the show. In one episode, she says she won’t guide the main character out of the dungeon. Then by episode 3, she’s casually walking with him to the city. What was the point of all that training and giving him a bunch of overpowered abilities if she was going to go with him anyway? The excuse was that she couldn't leave Yuri alone, since Yuri is the spirit of the tree and can't leave it. But then, in episode 3, Ursula just puts a piece of Yuri into the main character's eye, so now Yuri can be with him wherever he goes. So why not do that from the beginning? It makes zero sense and ends up feeling like a complete waste of time.

tl;dr
Mid, watch only if you have read the original or love the genre and have watched almost every anime about "vileness something."

---A brief review from me---

The first episode felt underwhelming, with weak art, mid-tier animation, and a mediocre OST. However, from episode 2 onward, the series starts gaining momentum, becoming increasingly interesting until around episode 7, when it completely loses its pacing, similar to Dahlia in Bloom. After that, it drags on with repetitive, pointless content. At least Dahlia offered something engaging past episode 6, but here it's just boring. The final episodes weren’t too bad, but the disappointment from earlier ones left a bitter ... aftertaste.

Would I recommend it? Not really. Should you watch it? Perhaps if you’ve read the original or are a fan of the genre. It’s disappointing, considering it was one of my most anticipated anime from the previous season.

tl;dr
This show is overhyped and mostly aimed at low-attention-span teenagers, with a bit of "mature" content thrown in. It’s basically an anime for kids trying way too hard to look like it’s for adults by adding content that doesn’t really fit. Overall, it’s disappointing, because of the lost potential it could achieve.

------ The review ------
Potential minor spoilers up to episode 7 here and there:

Let’s start with the good stuff. The animation is top-notch, it looks amazing. The art is beautiful, and the backgrounds are really well done. The OST is unique, though it feels a bit odd at times. For example, they use music that ... people in the West usually associate with comedy, but here it’s used in a fight scene. It felt strange and a bit cringe, but it’s not a dealbreaker. As for emotional impact? It’s mostly average or just not there. However, episode 7 stands out and does a great job on the emotional side.

That’s about all the good parts. Now let’s talk about the bad.

The story is a complete mess. Episode 1 starts with aliens and ghosts, which sounds interesting, but then the alien plotline is dropped entirely. In episode 2, there’s something they call an "alien," but it’s basically just another ghost. Normally, in good stories, you slowly learn more about the main characters, and by the halfway point, you should know at least one of them pretty well. But in Dandadan, they barely touch on Momo’s background, and we learn almost nothing about Ken.

And then there’s Momo’s grandmother, who randomly shows up looking like a 20-year-old even though she’s supposed to be 50 at best. There’s no explanation for this it just feels random and weird.

The strangest part? The best character in the whole show isn’t even one of the leads it’s a ghost called "Acrobatic Silky." She gets more development in one episode than the main characters get in the entire series. Even Aira, a side character, has a deeper story than Momo or Ken.

The setting is another big problem. They don’t explain anything properly, and what little they do explain is so poorly done that it doesn’t make sense. For example, in episode 3, I think, Momo's grandmother says you can’t see human auras. But then in episode 7, Momo suddenly can. So which is it? It’s just one inconsistency after another.

Also, how the hell did Ken not notice his missing balls? If you’re a guy, you know exactly what I mean. You’re always aware of them they’re super sensitive to everything because they’re the most important organ for reproduction. This part was so ridiculous that it completely broke any sense of logic.

The show starts strong but gets worse with every episode up until episode 7, which is both the best and worst episode. It’s the best because it delivers some emotional depth, but it’s also the worst because it makes it clear how badly written the main characters are. When a ghost has a deeper and better story than the lead characters, you know something is wrong.

Don’t get me wrong the main characters aren’t bad themselves. They’re well-designed and have potential, but their stories are so poorly written that it’s hard to think of them as main characters. They feel more like side characters, while the actual support characters get just as much focus. It doesn’t work and makes the writing feel off.

If you’re an adult, you probably won’t enjoy this show much and might even find it cringe. If you’re under 20, you might think it’s fun, and if you’re under 18, you’ll probably love it.

Final Note:
The anime itself isn’t bad, but it’s definitely overhyped and overrated. I wanted to give it a 6 so badly, but the critic in me just couldn’t. I'll complete the anime later, just wanted to write the review when my memory is still sharp about the events because I binged it up to episode 7.

tl;dr only:
It’s not that bad. The animation in episode 1 is a 10/10, episode 2 is a 3/10, and episodes 3 and 4 are around 7–8/10. The story is nice, and the art is unique, making it a visually memorable experience. The OST is good, especially in the first episode, where it truly enhances the atmosphere. The characters feel a bit weaker but are still slightly above average compared to most anime. Episodes 3 and 4 are decent—better than your average anime quality. Episode 2 is the weak link, but don’t drop it after that, and you’ll be good to go. Overall, it’s worth watching ... if you enjoy horror and unique art styles.

tl;dr
"Dahlia in Bloom" is a low-budget anime with average art and animation, though the character's eyes and emotional expressions stand out. The isekai aspect feels unnecessary, as it doesn't impact the plot at all. The world-building and the magic system, particularly the creation of magical tools, are well-executed. The characters are nice but underdeveloped, especially the side characters. The story starts strong but loses momentum after episode six. If you enjoy shows like "Ascendance of a Bookworm," you might like this one.

The review:
This anime has a low budget, and despite that, they managed to create something enjoyable.

The art is a low-mid tier, the eyes of ... the characters are the only part of the art that is really good and noticeable especially how the emotions are shown through their eyes; and also maybe some foods and the background, it's not bad and not good either, it's just in the middle and sometimes lower. The overall animation feels average at best, and I didn't like that they reused some scenes over and over again, like the leaf on the window, but it's not a big deal so I don't really care. The OST is sometimes noticeable, but not so often, so I can't say good things about it.

The setting especially the isekai part feels unnecessary and useless, I don't understand why they make it as Isekai when it doesn't have any influence on the show at all. Dahlia's past life in Japan is mentioned so briefly that it barely influences the story. The world-building, however, is done well. The magic system is shown in interesting ways, especially the creation of magical tools, which is a strong point of the series.

The characters are slightly above average. While they aren’t fully developed, their personalities are distinct enough to understand and feel them a little. However, I felt that they didn't do just to the side characters as some of them play a really big role in Dahlia's life. The show barely touches on their life and personalities while the characters themselves impact Dahlia a lot.

The story begins strong, steadily building intrigue in the first half of the show. Unfortunately, by episode six, the pacing slows down, and the plot feels like it loses momentum. While the show remains interesting, it lacks the same drive that made the earlier episodes entertaining.

Overall, I enjoyed the show, it's interesting and I didn't feel bored by it. However, some people might get bored by what I find enjoyable. The show focuses mostly on the creation of magical tools and is similar to "Bookworm" by the vibes it gives, which is something some people find boring. If you watched "Bookworm" and didn't like it, there is a high chance you will not like this show either.

tl;dr
The anime starts with a decent premise, art, and opening music, but by episode two, it loses its appeal with rushed character development and cringe moments. The original setup of a gay and straight man living together gets destroyed when the straight character suddenly becomes overly "gay," undermining the potential of a balanced story. The fast-paced relationship development feels unnatural, and the emotional impact is more cringe than genuine. Overall, the first episode is promising, but the series quickly worsens, which makes it hard to recommend beyond that.

------ The review ------
The animation is not bad, standard animation, so there is nothing to add here. The ... art is nice, but there is nothing new here either. OST, I didn't feel it that much, but I managed to watch it only up to episode three, what I did like was the opening music it was really good. The story was original for a BL at the beginning and hyped me pretty much, but it got all destroyed by episode two and from my understanding, it completely shatters down later on. The emotional impact is weird, I didn't feel anything besides cringe, together with my sister with whom I watched this show. The characters are pretty basic, I can say the only character that is true to himself is Hisashi and his character development from the three episodes is nice. The relationship of the MC is going way too fast which feels unnatural, cringe and weird.

Overall, I enjoyed the first episode, but can't suggest you watch it above that tbh. I'll write my thoughts about the anime below, with possible minor spoilers, so read it if you want to know more.

------ Possible minor spoilers ------
This anime was disappointing. I watch BL only with my sister, so when we both saw that the anime has a lot of great voice actors we were pretty interested and thought this anime would be great.

The first episode was good, however, closer to the end it became weird. I liked the idea of just two dudes, one gay and one straight living together. This anime could show that gay and straight can live shoulder to shoulder without any issues, but instead, it went for the ultra-weird BL and destroyed everything it was building in episode one.
Overnight the straight dude becomes gay even gayer than Hisashi, by doing that they destroy the whole idea of both worlds living together side by side and instead plant an idea that if a straight person lives with a gay they will become gay themselves (like the joke of catching a gay virus from Carl in Mr.Beast team) -_-

The second episode was too cringe, I and my sister cringed so hard. She said it was one of the cringiest BLs she had ever watched in her life, it was horrible. We hoped that what happened in episode two was just a dream, but nope it was not a dream. This anime had so much potential, but all this too-fast development just collapsed it. My sister said they usually do it in Yaoi, but not in Shounen Ai, so from her words, it felt like a weird Yaoi instead of a Shounen Ai.

I don't even bother myself to write a full review, but just a tl:dr version.

This anime is pure cancer and pointless. The comedy is super pushed and sometimes cringe and boring. Some people compared it to "Nichijou" - you serious? Lmao.

The first episode is nice, but after that, it quickly falls apart. In the beginning, it was super hyped, however by the release of episode five people almost forgot this anime existed.

I watched it up to the third episode and couldn't force myself to continue, it was bad. What is the point of episode two again? To introduce a new character? They did it badly ... and wasted 24 minutes of my life for nothing. They didn't even introduce the new character as needed, and I felt I wasted my time.

The ost is nice, the animation is average, the art is generic and the comedy is pushed too hard on us it's not even funny. Tbh Skibidi Toilet has a better plot than this anime. Watch this anime at your own risk, you have been warned.

TL;DR
"Girls Band Cry" is a CGI-driven music anime that may "scare" viewers with its animation style, but it's worth giving a few episodes a try. The CGI quality is impressive, with smooth animation and expressive characters that rival 2D classic anime style if not better. While the soundtrack is decent, it lacks variety, and the setting isn't unique. The emotional impact is solid, and while the characters are generally well-developed, Nina becomes an increasingly annoying character which may make the show hard to watch. Overall the show improves over time, making it enjoyable for people who like music anime, with good and mature characters if ... we not counting Nina in, also Hina did nothing wrong.

------------------***Thre review***------------------

Well, it took me a while to finish this series, because I kept it aside. This anime is totally CGI with some minor 2D stuff in it, so many people may drop it after the first few seconds or don't watch it at all. I can suggest you before dropping, please consider watching a couple of episodes. I'll explain later why the CGI here is not an issue at all.

Let's start with the elephant in the room, animation, or the CGI. The animation of the CGI in this anime is on a high level it's better than most 2D animes on the market, I enjoyed it more than a 2D anime. All the emotions and reactions and the smoothness of the characters are shown well. The people behind the CGI did splendid work! What difference is it from other CGI? First of all the animation, it's smooth, while in other works it's robotic and cheap. Second the quality of the models, they are really good! And lastly, they went the non-physic root! What do I mean by that? Usually in anime when they use CGI, they apply to it real-world physics so it looks awful compared to the 2D version, but here they kept the same semi-unrealistic anime physics in the CGI which makes you sometimes forget it's 3D and not 2D!

The OST of the anime is pretty decent, I can't say it's good, because it seems like they reuse the same three melodies, but they do it nicely. Personally, I didn't feel the OST too much, maybe except for the Nina emotions parts. it's a shame to be honest, because it is a music anime and the only OST you remember is the MUSIC itself and Nina's emotions.

The setting of this anime is not so unique, there is literally another anime in the same season this anime came out that has almost the same setting and story as this one. They did a well-done job, at least what they could do with a setting like this. Nothing we didn't see before, nothing new or revolutionary or rare.

The emotional impact this anime leaves behind is decent. You can feel in most scenes what the characters are feeling and in some serious scenes, it feels more serious, or in comedic scenes, you sometimes can get a secondhand embarrassment. I would say it's not super good, but it's decent.

The characters are well-developed, each receiving some degree of backstory. They are not on a 10 level, but like on a 7-8 level. Each character gets at least somewhat of her story shown to us, some characters who are more "main" get more story and some get less. The less important the character in the main cast, the less we know about her story. This is the main issue I have with the characters here. For example, the whole show follows Nina, but I don't find her story unique or interesting. Could be better if they tuned down her story a little and increased the story of the other characters. The anime did a bad job for Rupa and Tomo characters. I feel like because they have joined late to the group they left behind. We get to see some parts of their story in "memories" for a couple of seconds or from their own words here and there and that's it.

The show improved a lot, it went from "I'm not sure I gonna watch it, to, it's so so good! I can't stop watching!"
Overall I enjoyed the show very much, and can suggest it to anybody who somewhat likes music anime. You may have some issues with it later on if you don't like main characters who act super stupid or contradict themselves, but I'll write some of it with a spoiler warning if you are interested keep reading.

***SOME POSSIBLE MINOR SPOILERS SO READ ON YOUR OWN RISK FROM HERE ON!!!***

I wanted to say a couple of things, to let steam out. It is not a major spoiler, and for some may not be a spoiler at all, so I preferred to write a regular review with a warning, to let people know.
Nina Iseri, I hate this character. Yes, she is the main character of the show and she became increasingly unlikable as the series progressed!

The more the show goes on, the more we learn about her and the more she starts to act like her true self, which is to some degree a narcissistic, and a stupid selfish loser. She always puts herself first above everyone else, when somebody tells her that she is wrong or that what she wants can harm another person or herself, she doesn't care and does it anyway. Literally, the WHOLE STORY OF THE ANIME happens because she acts like that. You will find out close to the end of the story what really happened, and if you like me or Tomo, your blood will boil like crazy inside of you. I was so angry I went for a rent of like 30 minutes before I continued the show.

A lot of the time she gets angry for a character doing something, she did a couple of episodes ago. Like really? You blame her for that when you literally did the same if not worse? Gosh, I wanted to punch her so hard in the face. I watched it with my sister and we both hated her, my sister's hate was even bigger than mine and she couldn't stand her voice or face. We kept watching it thanks to the overall interesting anime and Subaru, Rupa, Tomo, and Momoka characters.

My favorite character is Subaru, she is so cute and mature! Right after her is Tomo, who is also mature and she is the only one who says what I thought about Nina to her face close to the end: That Nina did the wrong thing in school and she can only blame herself as she got the warning and still did it and blamed her friend Hina after that.