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Kaichuu, what to say about it. It's short, it's cliched, it's nearly without any actual sort of plot, but hell I enjoyed it anyway. For the few minutes it took to watch this I was pretty entertained.

Story:
As far as the story goes there really isn't much to say. The length allows no room for any sort of actually engaging story. It is basically just there to fascilitate the jokes and as an excuse to have a cute guy in a skirt. They try and set up the story with an opening bit of narration talking about some archery prodigy who disappeared from the archery world. ... The story has no room to form, but they don't try to shove a story in our faces, which is in the end a good thing considering what this is. 6/10

Art:
As I happened upon the page for this I wasn't expecting much after seeing the length. I was expecting flash art, long still shots and disproportionate characters, but I was pleasently surprised. The characters actually look good, Sasaki is appropriately adorable and the animation is decently fluid. For what it is the art is pretty good. 8/10

Sound:
Once again, as I was with the art, I was caught off guard by the seiyuu. They brought a proper sort of proffesionalism to their respective roles, playing them rather well. Not once did I cringe at a badly delivered line or laugh at a horribly over the top exclamation, because they weren't there. The music was highly forgettable, but it served its' purpose well enough. My biggest issue with the sound was Sasaki's seiyuu. I understand he's a trap, that he wishes to be a girl, that he's as cute as a button, but none of that means that you will sound more like a girl than most girls do. Just a little tinge of masculinity would have helped establish the character as truly male rather than a girl who is just said to be a boy. 7/10

Character:
Seeing as there are really only three characters, there really isn't much to go on. Due to the short length the characters have no room to grow, there is really not much depth to them so they just kind of embody certain stereotypes so the jokes can be made. The high point of the charcters would have to be the main character, Tachikawa. He isn't a very good archer, but he has a passion for it and hopes to one day teach archery because of a promise he made to his grandfather. Simple backstory, but it actually provides a slight depth to his character that makes him at least likeable and relatable. Sasaki, the trap of the story is just a walking punchline. He provides the setup for tranny jokes and misunderstandings. Even with the realization at the end he still seems shallow although being quite cute. He serves the story well enough though which seems to be how most aspects of this ONA are like the villain of the story as well. There is nothing to say about him as he is even more shallow of a character than Sasaki. He is the jerk that gets his dues in the end. 5/10

Now despite the lack of depth for two out of three characters, the miscasting of one of the seiyuu, the complete void of any truly compelling story this ONA is actually pretty good. It took me a total of seven minutes to watch and and to be honest I was entertained for seven minutes. It's short, it's amusing and it has a cute boy in a skirt so what more could you ask for.When the manga it is based on reaches a substantial length, I hope that they release a true anime for it. Sasaki is a trap I'd be willing to fall into again. So if you have a few minutes to waste you wouldn't lose anything watching this. It's purely light fun that will keep you entertained. Really, what have you got to lose? 7/10

Kachou no Koi... it's unashamed, inappropriate, crass, disgusting and full of stereotypes. But it also happens to be absolutely hilarious. From the get go you realize that this is nothing more than a shallow and (forgive the poor choice of words) ballsy, little OVA.

Story:
The story is not a factor in this anime. The story is there mostly to facilitate punchlines and set up hilarious situations. It goes through the motions for your average BL, but with the over the top, sexually explicit and unrelenting humor, the lack of any real originality story-wise becomes perfectly acceptable. 7/10

Art:
For it's obvious low budget the art surprised me. Refusing ... to let their limitations show, the animation was done in a very clever way. Going for a comic book feel with special fx written as text on the screen as well really added a unique and creative feel to it. The characters expressions were pretty well drawn and sometimes hilarious. 8/10

Sound:
Let's cut to the chase. The sound... was amazing on every front. The seiyuu were phenomenal. Their timing really did the humor justice, as they struck my funny bone at the perfect time to maximize the comedic power of each and every joke. The music was perfectly gaudy that ranged from sensual to ridiculous, but never in the wrong way. Come on "Hallelujah"? That track has never been better used than in this. The sound, despite the obvious budgetary limitations, was fantastic. 9/10

Characters:
Despite all being obvious caricatures of people in the gay community, the writers didn't let that be all they were. They were hilarious without being offensive with the intent to negatively portray gay people. The characters were mostly shallow, but purposefully so. The brilliance behind doing this is that, due to the short runtime, you don't run the risk of trying to rush character development or try shoving too much info into the OVA. Forgoing this problem by creating likable, easily identifiable characters based on stereotypes is just brilliant work and I applaud the creators. 8/10

Overall:
Going in I wasn't expecting much. I figured that this would be a smutty, self-indulgent, trashy BL OVA, but what I got was a, yes smutty, but hilariously well done OVA that wasn't afraid to "go there" and push a few buttons. This OVA is a real treat to watch and I definitely suggest you take the time. 8/10

After watching the amazing 5 Centimeters Per Second, I figure I owed it to myself to watch Shinkai Makoto's first work Voices of a Distant Star. Reviews praised it and I assumed that it must be good. Well you know what they say about assuming.

Story:
Right off the bat I was unsure about the story. I liked the concept of love separated by distance as it worked quite well in 5cm Per Second, but the idea of lagging text messages is just ludicrous. You'd think that in the year 2046 we'd have invented a more effective form of communication, but I guess Shinkai Makoto didn't think ... so. Also look at the phones! No effort was made to even design phones that even had a hint of futuristic technology. Oh yeah, they could invent gigantic, space traveling, mechas, but more advanced forms of mobile communication devices are out of the equation! Moving on, the story gets no better from beginning to end and nothing is resolved. Practically no attempt is made to even strengthen the audience's true understanding of the connection that Nagamine and Noboru share. They just sort of tell you that they like each other and expect that to mean something. The years fly by without any coherent sense of meaning and the progression of time ends up not feeling quite right. Things don't change drastically enough for Noboru or Nagamine for me to even care. The story is just a mess. A pretentious, self-indulgent, mess. 5/10

Art:
First impression was a mixture of confusion and disgust. The characters are HORRIBLY designed. From scene to scene, depending on the angle, they look so different that I sometimes couldn't realize if they were one of the leads or a new character. Proportions were also SO off at angles that I had to really try to resist the urge to punch the screen out of anger. Emotions don't quite come across as clearly as I would expect which just compounds with all the other flaws making this OVA nearly unwatchable. The space battle scenes actually stand out as the best art in the OVA, but the doesn't mean anything. The mecha designs and animation is average and uninspired. Yawn. 3/10

Sound:
The sound in this also blows my mind at just how horrible it is. You know how bad the music is? So bad I can't even remember what it sounded like. I can't even remember what if there WAS music in this! And the seiyuu are as lacking in emotion as the Twilight movie actors. The sound effects in the space battle scenes are average, just what you'd expect for that kind of thing, so they leave no impression whatsoever. 3/10

Characters:
There were characters? Really? I just thought there were talking slabs of painted wood. Not that they had much to say. The characters are just so lacking in any relatable emotion since the OVA didn't spend enough time establishing the nature of Nagamine and Noboru's relationship to make the audience give a car that they are separate. I'd like to see what exactly they love about each other. Noboru is a distant, blank, emotionless guy and Nagamine is a clingy, whiny, child. Neither are developed and both are just without any sort of distinguishing personality. And the whole lack of ANY other characters just blows my mind. Really. 2/10

Overall:
5 Centimeters Per Second is, to this day, one of my favorite anime movie/OVAs of all time and I think, since it came after this abysmal pile of filth, that Shinkai Makoto is a very talented man. He knows how to establish atmosphere and characters, situations and emotions that you can relate to. He brought none of his skills in these areas to this OVA. Flat characters, a ridiculous premise, emotionless seiyuu and horrible art all make this one of the WORST anime ANYTHINGS I've ever seen. I will never understand how so many people could enjoy this trash, but they can if they want. I do not suggest watching this. Save your time for Shinkai Makoto's other works as they are worth the investment. 4/10

This was a very interesting read. It was a story full of heart and heartbreak and realizing who you are.

The story is, in a nutshell, about time travel. I wasn't very attracted to the idea at first, but I'm glad that I chose to read this. The story is carried out in a very literaturical (I don't even think this is a word, but whatever) fashion with Hiroshi narrating through the whole thing. After reading the first few chapters you start seeing the beauty of the story.

The art was very different than what I am used to seeing, but very good. The character's emotions really ... came through in the art and was able to perfectly set the scene in every panel. The character designs were very well done and varied, giving each character a specific look which gave it a higher sense of immersion.

The characters are another part of this story that makes it so incredible. The main character is a very sad, depressing character throughout, but he doesn't annoy the reader with self pity. He manages to feel real by being selfish and selfless at the same time. And at the end Hiroshi realizes what he had and learns to love what he has. The mangaka did an incredible job of fleshing out all the important characters and forming their relationships with Hiroshi. You can REALLY identify with them and they don't feel like manga characters, but real people. The mangaka did a very good job in creating "real" characters.

This is really a hidden gem. It's too bad that it isn't more well known because it is really an incredible read. It teaches a very powerful lesson of learning to deal with pain and acceptence and learning love what you have. This manga is a MUST READ and I strongly urge you to not pass it by.

This is my first review and, honestly, I feel this is a manga worth reviewing. What I really liked about this manga was that even though it is a very typical shoujo story-wise it is a little different. While most other shoujo become very dramatic and angst ridden in the end, this one wasn't. I'm not gonna give any spoilers, but it is very consistent in feeling all the way through.

Now the art, I don't know what it was about it, but I just really liked it. It was definitely shoujo, but not TOO much. The eyes were fine in proportion to the faces, clothes ... were fine etc. And I loved the faces Sara would make. I guess it was her expressions that made the art enjoyable. ;P

Now, the characters are what made this manga standout amongst the myriad of other shoujos. Instead of being a carpet Sara is strongwilled and stands up for herself and her friends. She is a genuinely good person with a good heart. Hayase is also a nice guy who isn't afraid to say what's on his mind and, unlike most other shoujo guys, is actually NICE to Sara from the get-go. Sara and Hayase's friends Ryuusei and Makoto are good characters, but with the length of only two volumes they didn't get a chance to develop.

Overall, while the story isn't particularly original, the way it's carried is more unique than the bulk of other comedic/romantic/showbiz type manga. It's really a lot of fluff, but it doesn't make you gag. The comedy is really good and even when the very occasional cliche pops up you are easily able to forgive the mangaka. This is a very quick, light read and while not perfect, I highly suggest you to read.

8.5/10