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Mar 29, 2025
Weird, isn't it? To achieve an adaptation of this caliber could still receive backlash despite being able to break the internet and servers for having episodes that continue to get better with every release. Do you want to know how I see it? People hate Solo Leveling for the same reason they hate Demon Slayer. Both are carried by the animation and soundtrack when that's the entire point of the ADAPTATION anyway. Why else would people hype up these anime anyway? They will certainly gawk at it because an adaptation like this is not easy to get when you have multiple known blunders that have
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been memed till it's dry like the Seven Deadly Frames and PowerPoint Lock. Solo Leveling is certainly a standard for a good adaptation since it respects the core elements of the manhwa and keeps it as it is for fans alike. So it's bad for an adaptation to be handled in the worst way possible, but it's also bad for an adaptation to be this good? But of course, since this is a review, I should address the anime's worst flaws just so newcomers know what they're getting into.
Much of Solo Leveling's writing can be easily comprised of two things: Exposition dumps and fast-paced action sequences. The difference is as clear as black and white. Like its manhwa's counterpart, the anime reenacts that perfectly from head to toe. It's not going to be the best for newcomers or anyone who's expecting a well-written action anime. It lacks intensity since the opposition is made to be a stepping stone (like the name suggests SOLO L-E-V-E-L-I-N-G) or have its human characters act as exposition dumps since they have no other way of interacting in the world other than setting up for the next big event, which allows Sung Jin-Woo, A.K.A the biggest self-insert character for power fantasy fans to shine in and have all the smoke. However, since the name is truly Solo Leveling, it's an incredible experience for fans of the manhwa, such as me, and people who just love these kinds of fan service. It's very quick and straight to the point, which leads us right into both of the series' strongest attributes, the soundtrack, done by Hiroyuki Sawano, and the intense, slick, and beautiful resemblance of the manhwa's renowned artwork coming to life. The story and characters are decent enough so you don't cringe at them unless you're feeling a bit too critical and expecting masterclass writing. It is a wonderland for fans waiting for an adaptation like this. Despite what people might say, it is such a pleasure to find Solo Leveling basking in all its glory with the great animation and soundtrack.
If there is one strength that makes Solo Leveling so addicting and satisfying to watch, it is the feeling of growth the anime consistently keeps up from start to finish. There's a gravitating and euphoric feeling watching that LVL 1 character you watch struggle from the beginning to have him stomp these monstrous forces of nature whilst constantly gaining new strength and powers. It understands how to make power fantasies work, despite being treated as a pejorative term. Solo Leveling took that term and embodied it till the end. This is why anime like this is bound to face backlash. It's not a universally loved subject for everyone, but hey, it definitely works for people out there, especially me.
As I said earlier, obviously there's not going to be a lot of people liking Solo Leveling since so many flaws can be found in the anime, even content creators know it, like the MC is constantly aura farming and waiting until the last second just so he can have all the clout. Solo Leveling is an anime that sacrifices many integral parts of what makes a great anime for only a couple of redeeming attributes; art and animation. And it really paid off, because the source material isn't really known for having the best writing or characters. What fans really wanted to see was the artwork the manhwa is purely known for, and I can say without a doubt that they definitely cooked in this one. I'm not going to try to tell you that Solo Leveling is a great anime or you're wrong for not liking Solo Leveling since I lack the prowess to do that. But let's just say that Solo Leveling is like a dream come true for power fantasy fans. Am I biased for this? Yes. It is purely that in its rawest form, and I'm grateful for what the staff have managed to polish and create with the time they have. Season 2 is an upgrade from its already good prequel and managed to elevate it to the grounds of pure entertainment.
Thank you for reading.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Mar 27, 2025
The villainess subgenre has been an interesting approach to an isekai story. It still retains some familiarity as to what standard isekais tend to do, an established magic system, having characters with colourful hair, and usually has an overarching antagonist to keep the story going. The Villainess subgenre sees all this and decides to turn the main character into the supposed antagonist and have her achieve MAX Friendship with everyone, all the while getting a kiss from a guy who used to hate the villainess. It's a formula that worked spectacularly back in 2020, when we least expected it. Fast forward 5 years, and we've
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seen several adaptations of villainess stories ever since then.
Let me just give you the general sum of what most Villainess isekais are about. First, the merits:
The best thing to say about every Villainess anime, including this one, is that the main character becomes obviously really likeable. There's a sense of fulfilment when you see someone making a conscious decision to help others, even for the sake of avoiding their own demise. Akuyaku's approach is to make the villainess a caring maternal figure instead of having her look like a goofball, differing from the other villainess anime to that extent. A lot of those times, the anime succeeds at making the main Villainess someone to root for. Compared to other Villainess anime that tries to treat the heroine like a threat or detriment to their side, Akuyaku figured to make the heroine the first person to be friends with the villainess. It's a refreshing take that helps keep the subgenre alive, and this is what made the anime interesting enough to watch for the first half of the anime. Coupled with good production and direction, Akuyaku at its best is refreshing and creative with its approach that manages to include a lot of good otaku references without feeling off-putting or becoming detrimental to its own. Akuyaku feels like that one story where the author was inspired by a story he's a fan of and thought to himself, "You know what? I could do that one better." And proceeds to have it at that. However, there's a catch.
Now, the flaws:
Since the villainess gets a lot of screen time compared to others, it also works as a double-edged sword. All of the supporting characters lack detail compared to the main antagonist (in this case), since most of the author's creative prowess only extends to writing on the main character without considering chemistry and impact on their supporting cast. The anime becomes stale rather quickly once you figure out every supporting character exists as fodder downtime with predictable jokes without any consideration for growth. A lot of these Villainess anime can replace the same supporting cast with another set of characters, and the anime would still work just as fine. Sure, you could justify it with the idea that they're simply in an otome game, so their characters are meant to fit like those visual novel characters, each with their own set of tropes and stereotypes, but as a story, it's literally a disgrace (no pun intended). There's a lack of variation and detail in the supporting characters when you realize the main focus of all these villainess stories is to ensure the villainess befriends everyone in their own weird way, may it be intentional or not. Akuyaku still struggles to keep all these characters in check and as a result, becomes underutilized without any adjustment to make them at least a bit more interesting than being played as a plot device or rather only existing on their own.
It's refreshing enough, yes, but it grows stale quickly.
Thank you for reading.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Mar 15, 2025
I have a few words to speak about Sakamoto Days, but I'm hoping if you could spare the time to read till the end.
Sakamoto Days is as plain as it looks on paper. Despite this, there's nothing wrong with that, it means the show is easy to get into. Most shows usually have familiar premises, just with a different whiff done by the creator. Like in this anime, it goes through a very familiar premise we've been spoonfed for several times, a powerful hitman going AWOL, the opps searching for this man brick by brick, yadadada, and all that. For a comedy anime, it's pretty
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predictable and bland, as you would have guessed already. Casual sidekick doing the most talking in the cast, there's another sidekick that is mainly there to spark things up so it doesn't get boring, you have the world's most forgettable opps on screen, no cap. All of these elements seem to head towards the idea that it's supposed to be an episodic comedy before the later episodes of Part 1 decided to ditch that idea and go for a more action shounen story with the bigger antagonist who might possibly be the most attractive character the author has ever made in his career (not so much in this adaptaion however).
Speaking of action, fortunately, the action isn't that bad, despite what others think. True, it's not the best either since TMS doesn't have the best portfolio and staff for this kind of work, but the pacing, storyboard, and key scenes are fine in general. I get that people were expecting crazy talented animators for like every latest popular manga getting an adaptation but saying that the animation is terrible in Sakamoto Days would be a disservice to what the staff did for the anime. The anime is able to offer a somewhat equal frame of the creative action compared to its manga section. Of course, this kind of quality would be sustained for the next part of Sakamoto Days, but at least it's watchable and not butchered like last season's anime.
I'll try and make it simple as Sakamoto Days has consistently did in every episode.
Pros:
- Decent production and animation.
- Quick to get into with little downtime.
- Soundtrack is fine.
- Simple and easy to watch.
Cons:
- Meh characters, with only a couple to say that are decent.
- Comedy is mostly unfunny due to predictable jokes.
Overall, think of it as a nice break.
Thank you for reading and see you in Part 2.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Dec 19, 2024
It never fails to put a smile on my face to see a faithful adaptation of a manga everyone has recently hyped for the past year. In an era littered with botched adaptations, it's so nice to find an anime that can add more to the source material while staying true to the plot and characters.
Spare the introduction, it's purely fast-paced and filled with craziness that would appeal to pretty much anyone willing to try and watch it. You got aliens, yokais, bayonetta granny, gyarus, and a nerd being an absolute chad, all the while managing to not be overwhelming during its entire run.
This may
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sound a bit nitpicking, but hopefully, I'm not the only person who feels this way. Honestly, I thought the character designs were off when each episode premiered. The manga's character design has always looked smooth, detailed, and very expressive. However, in the anime version, it does retain the same expressive mood but doesn't look as detailed as it should in the manga, typically I'm referring to the human characters. It could be because of the different character designs in mind, but I think it would do more justice to make them look a bit more identical than what the final product looked like in the end.
Otherwise, I can confidently say it's one of the best anime we've gotten in this barren fall and probably even one of the best to come out this year. So much justice is done to the voice acting and animation of the anime, perhaps the two most important aspects of Dandadan in general. It took a while to get used to Momo's voice but she was able to match the tone of our first shown character in this wacky anime. Okarun's VA being Natsuki Hanae was just an instant win, the tone, the mannerisms, the delivery, everything that makes Okarun as a character is just replicated with such precision, you'd love to learn more about Okarun right after every episode. A lot of the performances helped make Okarun and Momo stand out a lot more and their scenes just flourish the more you watch it.
Coming from Science SARU, a name I haven't heard in a while just delivered a home run with their incredible production value. Excluding the long animation pauses they do sometimes during long walking scenes, much of the spotlight factored from the animation, creative action sequences, and good use of transitions coupled with great music together, you get absolute cinema from Dandadan itself. Until it all assembled to create a perfect episode while delivering a sob-worthy story to remember Dandadan by.
Even when I say that the voice acting and animation are huge pillars of the anime, so much of its catalog is dedicated to its humor, chemistry, and emotional story-telling, you could even say that the anime is pretty much a quirky romance disguised as a weird action shounen anime. When I say the humor works, it really does. A lot of Dandadan's jokes and setups are well-done thanks to the direction making use of transitions and timings very well, it helps make sense of the setting and context, so you should be expecting a lot of laughs without any weak execution or substandard delivery. Even when the action is going through downtime, it's as if there was no downtime at all, as you're immediately going through a pretty cute romance progression between Momo and Okarun for every scene they have together, the depressing yet seductive voice from Okarun just uttering oscar-worthy rizz while Momo being such a mood have to be one of Dandadan's best highlights if you omit the action Dandadan boasts on. The supporting characters also complement each other even though it does walk into very familiar territory many experienced anime watchers may find to be excessive. The obstacles (regarding the antagonists) were also done well and never felt like a chore to watch since they were able to fit some romance into such a chaotic scenario.
Time to switch the topic and address the elephant in the room:
"This anime sexualizes minors!" - A random article writer.
95% of anime that are popular have teenagers as main characters in their respective stories, and fanservice regarding these characters were already done before Dandadan even existed. Anyone who thinks the anime shouldn't get away with these dirty jokes, might as well should make every other anime remove fanservice, which also happened to be hundreds of others that have already existed before. I could name a couple of reasons why this sentence was used against Dandadan, particularly that the year 2024, happened to be a time of many sexual allegations towards minors were true, and the fact that Dandadan happened to have a plot catalyst surrounding a man who just lost his pee-pee, making everyone go to hell and back, facing supernatural beings just to get it back, and as such, you may find some people willing to oppose and come up with this in mind. Sure, the fanservice was a bit on the nose when in its first few episodes, but even then, it wasn't anything out of the ordinary for most fanservice scenes.
Complaining about something that happens a dozen wouldn't do much in the end, besides having a crush on animated characters is perfectly justifiable and normal when you love a show. If anything, we've seen an abundance of proof that it does more good than harm to make everyone start glazing or swooning at fictional characters, it's just a sign of a good character and helps the show reach a broader audience if people share about some of the incredible characters in Dandadan.
I hope this addressed some of your worries regarding Dandadan, even though it's more of me glazing the anime, I genuinely believe this is a work of art. It's a rare case of an anime going through multiple themes and being able to balance everything through the entire cour of Season 1. Now that the fun is up, we'll have to wait for a while to watch Season 2 of Dandadan. Here's hoping to another amazing season of Dandadan once it comes back.
Thank you for reading.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Sep 28, 2024
I'll keep it short. This is an anime where perverts are the focal point of every conflict, hear me out.
Coming from the same author who made Assassination Classroom, you'd be surprised to see how much gore this anime lets out, it's such a drastic change in tone and stakes, yet it does it in such a playful way, the only way to describe The Elusive Samurai is psychotic perverts fighting each other for their own 'fetishes'.
The story starts off like an average coming-of-age plot about a young samurai, but like the title implies, the guy sucks at fighting and he also happens to be a
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shota. If you're familiar with the name 'Nagisa Shiota', this is the author doing the same thing with his protagonist again. From there on, you're introduced to the series' first perverts, Yorishige Suwa, who exhibits every behavior of a stranger trying to groom children, but that's okay since he also has a child and has divine energy emitting behind him, so he has to be a good guy right? This is where you realize that every character introduced here will be a bunch of weirdos from there on. Later on, you get the MC, voiced by an actress, enacting lines of a flushed child who just discovered his fetish of confronting death and 'elusively' runs from it (pun intended). It's an anime about relishing on the desire to live out your twisted fantasies in the sight of the battlefield.
Animation-wise, the anime for the most time looks good since it has CloverWorks name in it but you can tell it has some moments where it feels off. By the time they shifted to 3D animation, it becomes a battle of tolerance. But if you can keep up, it's not that bad. The anime also includes the time to paint antagonists the party has to encounter in the most psychopathic, dubious, and unholy of all expressions to ever exist. You have multiple characters that are recognised by their cartoonish-like characteristics, for instance, enlarged ears that makes a man look like a monkey. A character that looks like your savior-incarnate only to be a vile killer. A man whose eyes are about to pop out anytime and a thief who can literally shape-shifting his face into anyone they want to and make their same behavior.
Speaking of characters, you just entered the lottery, ladies and gentlemen. In this environment of redundant perverts, there are in fact normal characters in this anime and it shows on the face of people who reside with the main character or central antagonist of the anime. Unless for a few exceptions, the story doesn't completely forget how a normal person acts. You're just shoved into the perspective of an abandoned noble meeting an endless amount of perverts that you might worry if the abyss stares back at you. You're never going to find a cast this twisted other than degenerate hentais with dubious roles or fanservice propaganda.
I'm not going to say that the anime is flawless by any means. The pacing for something that is meant to be chaotic and bamboozling ends up feeling slow and predictable. For something that wants to make a mature but playful tone, it ends up getting stale quickly once you know exactly what the characters' antics do. There's rarely any development, since most of that sweet 24 minutes per episode is focused on introducing bigger bad guys in a contest of becoming the incarnate of the Seven Deadly Sins, but only in Japan. And whenever there is one moment of character development, it's only given to Tokiyuki for very little development. The characters might have good design and a reason to exist, but without any reasonable development to grow alongside Tokiyuki, it makes them look like your cast of Naruto's chunin students who were set up to be rivals with different set of skills. Their supporting characters are made to be introduced, act like friends and rarely got feedback for their own growth as well.
It's sufficient in multiple aspects, like a jack of all trades, but likewise it also means the anime doesn't excel in any of them. You'll leave thinking of a decent experience, but you'll find yourself too bamboozled to make words out of the fetishes you were exposed to in this anime.
Thank you for reading.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Sep 23, 2024
Mayonaka Punch seems like a weak attempt at trying to portray content creators with their own spin on it. I don't mind a series that wants to be quirky or have eccentric characters take up the spotlight, but sometimes, it can be taken a bit too far when you don't attempt to keep your characters and script up in check, especially when the show is original work. I'm no stranger to P.A Works' blunders, but they have made some good original works in the past which I had fun watching. Unfortunately, this show feels so lackluster compared to the director's previous work on Paripi Koumei,
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proof you can make a show about getting fame in the entertainment industry ENTERTAINING to watch.
The show tries to sell you a story about making content in the nightlife with its vibrancy of colors, the animation and art are consistent and don't take any shortcuts, you get a solid cast with distinguishable characters that have different designs and easy to recognize. It has all of these in check and is usually a good mark to mark a good original show. But how reality often disappoints.
I think the show's problem probably starts from the characters, look at Masaki. A canceled member of a popular NewTube channel because she got caught in 4K punching her friend. How do you make someone who's prone to rude remarks or violence likable to watch? Just put her in a room filled with nutjobs who also happened to be vampires and have her manage that team to become the next sensation of the platform that once canceled her. It's a bold attempt at making someone who actually did something wrong the focus of the show, but making her being in an environment where nobody can really connect to Masaki without resorting to contrived storytelling or deus ex machinas is just a recipe for a bad show. It's difficult to find meaningful moments because of the disharmony between characters exist.
Continuing to the character's problem, I genuinely felt more disappointed because it had a couple of decent characters that I would love to see more, but held back by the series' subpar script and story. Let me focus on Yuki for a minute, she otherwise would appear as a strict vampire who tried to uphold the secrecy of their own existence, but her voice being Kayano Ai and the voice lines she had were pretty good! I would love to have more of her taking up screen time and being more focused other than the script's decision to haphazardly use her as a comic relief for the vampire nutjobs such as Live and her gang. I made an exception for Fuu because her role was just acceptable and didn't have any issues watching her. Live was a giant issue, it hurts for me to watch, because I love the voice actress, but her lines and character role just didn't sit well with me as I had to tolerate her antics in most of the episode. Tokage was genuinely difficult to watch because she's pretty much a gambling addict on paper and barely got development other than her reacting to the weird things the show propelled her in. Ichiko initially was annoying to bear with but got more tolerable as time went on.
Let's talk about the story, it's pretty bland, as if it couldn't be more obvious. Other than a few episodes where the endings change with the VAs singing (which stuff actually does happen on those rare occasions), it's mostly trying to show Masaki's new group producing content to garner views and subs to work on the 1 million milestone, but here I am, trying to ask you this, do NewTubers act like what was shown on Mayonaka Punch? I get other creators act differently than the usual creators we are exposed to like commentators, reaction channels, vlogs, challenges, or music covers, but anything that this show tries to copy, it feels mild at best and mediocre. The execution leaves so much to be desired and I can't help but groan when the only thing the show did right to portray was the comments you sometimes find on your videos or such.
I was hoping for a better portrayal of media creators. But I guess this is where their staff could only do at the end. There's really not much to say other than it being bland and forgettable. Your new run-of-the-mill product by P.A Works unfortunately ends here.
Thank you for reading.
Reviewer’s Rating: 3
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Sep 18, 2024
OH MY DEER, this anime is just terrible. I can't stress enough how badly this anime does comedy and over relies on a single punchline repeated for 12 episodes straight. Where else would you find an anime that is called Brainrot other than Shikanoko? It is unfathomable how this anime managed to keep a fanbase after 3 episodes worth. I can't belie-
"And now, while my logical side is rambling, welcome to the intermission break, where we discuss the sheer deer of the deer anime."
Deer Mode: The deer opening is very endeering and by far the most deerlicious part of this anime. The cast brought out
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their A-game to elevate this opening up to an 11. It's also the single reason why my deer booty is watching the deer girl in the first place. Just as voice actress Megumi Han once said, "Don't think, just feel." To top it off, you're given front-row seats to some "Award-winning" ahh performances from Rui Tanabe and Megumi Han, particularly the former. She does the Yandere act so immaculately perfect, that you will be brought back to heaven from a single utter of her voice.
Deer Mode: I must stress further about the clever easter eggs the deer cast has managed to deliver, the deer eyecatchers, the 4th wall breaks, and pop culture as deeeee perfect reference for more laughs and giggles in the anime. In this catering of deer biscuits, we got your favorite memes appearing again in a deer anime, characters behaving normally in a chaotic situation, cults, Koshi Torako being the only sensible person in her group of crackheads. The deer card acts wildly. Maybe the true treasure were the deers along the way.
"Oops, looks like my logical side is getting louder. We'll be back shortly."
Logic Mode: The only good part about this anime is the easter eggs and pop references, anything else this anime has to offer is just complete garbage. The joke itself is so predictable that even a Scientologist can predict the next joke by a mile away, the delivery of the joke is so flat that any laugh you'll let out is just a blood-curdling one that makes you rethink about living life. It is just suffering to watch this anime and expect a single giggle from this anime. When you see Shikanoko open her head and you see the inside is empty, that's how much brain is given into these godforsaken jokes.
Logic Mode: I think the worst part about Shikanoko is that these characters are very inconsistent whenever you go into a new scenario. You can tell the jokes pretty much only focus on Shikanoko being an autistic deer for the entire anime and you have Koshitan watching her impulses going wild like a deer trampede. Any characters involved all act like nothing odd is happening and when you get to the extreme characters like Anko, she is just so tropey that it's exhausting. Nekoyamada and Bashame were acceptable at best because they were pretty adorable to watch. This is not a debate, you'll get some short giggles sure, but it is unlikely that you'll find yourself having a good time watching it from start to finish.
Deer Mode: But... the opening is fun!
Logic Mode: Well that's why you don't believe in the rumor "In every good anime lies a good opening.". I rest my case.
Reviewer’s Rating: 3
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Sep 18, 2024
I'm not going to sugarcoat this, I really liked Roshidere. An anime that has vibrant production and character designs doesn't come often, paired up with actual witty dialogue and some good characters. With these strengths, Roshidere could have easily been a recommendation for everyone to take as a fan-favorite rom-com. However, as every episode came later, it couldn't stand to the height of what new romcoms have already achieved. I hoped for it to live up to the qualities of post-modern rom-coms, but sadly it has come to an end.
When you hear a studio like Doga Kobo especially if the anime has a cast filled
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with female characters, Doga Kobo will surely deliver that level of expectation in creating the cutest waifu material you could find in this Summer arsenal. It's bright, but nowhere to the level of being nauseatic, and the animation is consistent and high-quality for the entire run, Such to say in simpler terms, it's a buffet for the eyes. Although most female characters look oddly the same if you disregard their hair color, styles, and apparel, it's pretty much a waifu fest for anyone intending to find a favorite waifu.
Speaking of Waifus, who would have thought the imouto ended up being the best character in this anime? Yuki Suou is easily the best character and has the most personality out of all the waifus the anime shows on a redundant scale. Despite showing up as a talented, high-class lady who's polite and charming, her scenes with the male MC are just the absolute best to watch, the VA did a magnificent job to make her stand out and has so much taste in comparison to other waifus in this anime. To describe her in a single word, she's just BASED. How can you make a character who's so blatantly 'shameless' not cringe and ACTUALLY charming to watch? That's a big plus for anything I've seen trying to portray Otakus. Her dialogues combined with an incredible voice just make her almost impeccable and a top-tier performance to be beholden.
Likewise, the anime's strongest part is the performance of the voice actresses, and that includes the main voice actress herself. Imagine a voice actress who is so dedicated to Russian culture, that she can speak fluent Russian while doing vocal performances for the opening and different endings. You got yourself a reason to like Sumire Uesaka even more if you didn't watch her previous performance in other anime before. It was like the role was specifically tailored for her.
I think it's enough for the performance praise and actually focus on the anime, as such. I find it discouraging to realize there were more flaws than there were strengths in this anime. The list being:
1. Weak supporting cast
- They are mostly decent on first impression and aren't unlikable, but when you have characters like Yuki or Alya being genuinely likable to watch, the cast pretty much looks stale compared to these powerhouses. Masachika is not by all means a bad character, but by making your male character witty, smart, talented, and hang around multiple girls at the same time like how most male characters are written nowadays, you could change him with another similar male character, and the anime would still proceed without any hindrance. The only reason he's viable to be in the cast was simply because of Yuki's sheer existence (the brother to the most BASED character in this anime).
- I'm not trying to say you should avoid tropes, but I think the anime got a bit too comfy with introducing tropes just for the sake of it. Ayano Kimishima and Masha are the characters I'm speaking of, with the latter being the one I'm genuinely more disappointed in. How are they still churning out maid characters? I don't understand what is so endearing about showing stone-faced ladies looking at you, doing your every bid by any means. You would mostly see her together with Masachika or Suou, only to add a little spice of dialogue to the duo, but even then, I don't see much reason to add her other than to be another fanservice for the audience. Turning to Masha however, I was disappointed with her lack of character development despite being the ONLY character to recognize Masachika from his childhood's past. Her development is nowhere to be seen as later episodes go on, despite signaling her attachment to Masachika. She, unfortunately, falls flat from other characters that have received more depth and attention as the anime goes on.
2. Lack of romance development
- Speaking of development, the romance progression is honestly the reason why the anime can't be recommended as a satisfying rom-com by today's standards. If you would compare it to 2010's romcoms, the anime does it by the book, a perfect anime to define one, but it comes in stale compared to new rom-coms that have better or more accurate 'FASTER' romance progressions than what Roshidere has come to offer. It starts as your regular rom-com would normally start;
- You get introduced to an eccentric yet charming girl, she shows her personality, the male character feels a bit off but accepts it nonetheless, somehow finds the chance to rizz her, the girl somewhat reciprocates or blushes, male character blushes too from his actions or vice versa, repeat. It's a standard procedure but very effective when you add more features to the romance, leading to drama or conflicts, it could have been a good romance anime.
- The trouble starts when the anime decides to divide the attention between different love interests that might hit it off or pretty much have different appeals for different audiences. The quality screen time that could have been given to Alya is unfortunately divided by other contending waifus who are defined by their tropes alone. It gives the anime a lot of downtime and is pretty frustrating for anyone who's looking for meaningful screen time between the main couple. Even worse, it decided to show the student council election arc, eliminating the majority of romance for even more characters introduced and causing more downtime for romance later to come. Along with adding Masachika's backstory to the picture, you get lesser romance appeal as the later episode goes on. The only thing that stays consistent in the anime is the comedy and fanservice the anime proudly showcases to you in a silver picture.
It is a shame, that I held it in the regard of contesting favorable rom-coms, but the anime couldn't reach the level of what is considered great in romance terms. If you're looking for some fun personalities in anime portrayal, this one would cater to your needs most deservedly, otherwise, you might not be able to find this romance anywhere diabetic.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Jul 27, 2024
Why Makeine might be good for you:
1. Good production quality
- A-1 Pictures just performs exquisitely when making romance or waifu bait anime. Here, the character designs stand out and the background art visually looks great overall.
2. Subversion of ideas
- If you're a guy who likes ideas being subverted for a fresh take, this anime might be your choice. Makeine focuses on the tragic yet comedic fates of these heroines who fail to make a move on their love interests, leading them to the friend zone route.
3. Character interaction
- I'd say it's a plus for this anime thanks to Nukumizu's role as an audience's
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surrogate. He's witnessing the girls at their worst, so you get to find out the funny side of things instead of your usual melodrama crying from utter rejection and such. Because of that, the comedy works pretty well, even though the majority of cast existing are pretty much nutjobs.
Possible issues for Makeine:
1. Tropes are in sight
- The story is eager to explore the fates of the losing heroines, so you're also subjected to their personalities that led them to not being able to get a boyfriend in their school days. As such, they employ tropes you have found in your earlier anime-watching days. Development will come for sure, but you may have to go through a bit of uninteresting quips to find any worthy growth.
2. It's susceptible to disappointment
- When you try to pursue unique ideas, it relies on proper execution and unique storytelling. Other than making a plot for the actual romance plot to happen, this anime is diving into solely subverting the friend-zoned girls arc without any focus on other plots for a safe backseat. This means if the anime sucks at delivering it or has no more ideas left to pursue, it utterly fails on its mark.
I'm at the point of wondering if it might be a good watch or not. So far, it's looking good, you get to see heroines making more expressions than just being a losing heroine. But I'm also worried about the anime just randomly failing by the time it runs out of ideas. Let's hope for the best.
Thank you for reading.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Jul 21, 2024
If you're looking for a sleeper hit, look no further than Wistoria, the new addition of this Summer. You might find this anime quite surprising, as it serves as a mark that having good staff can often make a difference in making a good adaptation.
Why you might enjoy Wistoria:
1. Good animation
- If you're familiar with the director of this anime, you'd also know he served as the director of Black Clover. This show had many instances of great animation (unless you're looking for constant quality). In Wistoria however, you are seeing the director's prowess to his fullest, the staff he managed to garner to work
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on this anime is astonishing, so you're blessed with good visuals and characters making multiple expressions.
2. Main character just throwing hands
- An odd character who gains an unlikely power that betrays the foundation of the anime's setting and proceeds to use it to fight against every obstacle he finds? You had me on the word 'odd' because it is precisely that anime. In exchange for superhuman strength, his restriction is to never be able to use magic and have to rely on tools that can pierce through magic itself (reference intended). If you're a huge fan of Black Clover or even JJK, you're going to enjoy this MC throwing hands on his foes anytime.
Flaws found in Wistoria:
1. A formulaic process
- I'm not exactly the person to say that cliche = bad anime, but if you want to resort to familiar premises, you need to spice things up a bit or make the story a bit different for a shot of identity. To me, Wistoria feels like a fan-fiction that was done to commemorate the other great things that have been created before its own, so it means you're going to see plenty of common cliches without twists in them.
2. Tropes confirmed
- Classmate girl who just supports the main character? Check. Headmaster somehow allowing the main character to enroll in a supreme magic school? Check. The main character has a big dream to achieve? Check. So clearly, it further cements the point you're not going to watch something out of the ordinary in plot and originality, it's just an anime that has good animation going for it. Typically like Jujutsu Kaisen in general.
In the end, you should give it a shot if you're a big fan of spicy animation and choreography, which the anime does exactly. I think the story and characters have way more to go than just having animation in its book of merits, but it is the ideal example of what an adaptation should be done. It scores a perfect 10/10 in adaptation in my book.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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