Ranked #2723

Kono Minikuku mo Utsukushii Sekai

This anime is definitely a gem, but like any gem in the rough, it's not without its flaws. A lot of them, unfortunately.

Story

The story is quite interesting, and fairly original. The quality of its presentation varies throughout the series, however - foreshadowing, for example, is plentiful and very well intertwined into the story, so that little details that you might notice but not think much of turn out to be intricate plot points later on. On the other hand, there're the cheesy "OMG! The sky is falling!" bits usually associated with fantasy series surfacing all around the second half of the series which definitely hurts the suspense of disbelief. Another flaw is the climax being stretched into the last 3 episodes which could've easily fit in a single one.

Art

Not bad, but nothing to write home about. It's detailed and fairly pretty, but the sudden switches from ultra-contrasting (butterfly clouds, Hikari's hair and dreams) to ultra-pale colours (most secondary characters, slice of life sections) that happen every few minutes are annoying. The deformed butterfly logo is a definite plus though - very memorable.

Sound

The opening/ending songs are quite generic, but the last episode's ED is nice if only for the fact that it's meaningful in the context, which is a rare occurrence in anime. Background audio is hardly noticeable, but it completes the atmosphere well enough so that's good.

Characters

I'm a bit torn on this point. On one hand, the four main characters are very likeable and by the end I definitely cared about their fate. On the other, however, apart from Akari, all of the characters bring on a sense of deja vu; a reckless protagonist with a funky hairstyle, a troubled past and superpowers - check; a jealous childhood friend - check; a calm and popular big brother - check; a busty foreign drunkard who is actually wise and "cool" - check as well, and those 4 is just the icing.

Enjoyment / Overall

I've enjoyed the series, personally, but it felt like I had to go through all the silly action segments, plain stupid fan service, boring showcases of jealousy and unfunny jokes to get to the few excellent romantic scenes here and there. On the whole it was worth it, but it could've been much better if they didn't try to put in a little of every genre and concentrated on getting just one or two right. read more

This anime sounded promising, the concept of an ugly yet beautiful world where life is cleansed and reborn every so often fascinated me. After a promising start however with a great opening battle with great action, the anime seems to have shifted gears and quickly became a ecchi / school-life, slice of life comedy. Then it sprinkled some "sad, but true" stories of the past.

Let's start off with the good. The art is fairly decent. For the most part, colors are nice, and natural features such as the trees and character outlines are quite nice. Hikari's outfit in particular is great. Sound isn't really noticeable for me until near the climax, in most cases it was absent at all, which sometimes is a nice change of things. The humor and ecchi was entertaining, I found myself cracking up from time to time. The side characters do a surprisingly good job blending in, almost better than the main roles!

My biggest irk with this series was the fact that it starts to become interesting right from the start. Then suddenly, it sidetracks into something different. Only near the end are we reminded of the first episode, and "Oh, by the way, the world is in trouble!" The idea behind evolution and fate is an interesting one, but it's a bit difficult to comprehend and follow. You are left with a lot more questions than answers. The producers kind of through you into it and expect you to eat it all up and nod your head. Some characters are decently developed, while others are flat and stale. Sure it was only 13 episodes, but I've seen animes do better with fewer episodes. I personally am not fond of the guy loves girl concept occurring after only the first episode.

There are two sides to the story. Akari's side and Hikari's side. I found Akari's more interesting than Hikari, maybe because Ryo's personality was interesting and mysterious. Takeru on the other hand is a piece of work...

The story was rushed and it feels as though we're sidetracked for six entire episodes before things start to get interesting. By then, it's too late to save the show and the ending is predictable.

It will please some certainly and like other have said, you could watch the first two episodes and then skip to near the end and not lose site of anything. If you can look past the story and just take it rather lightly and enjoy the humor and cute girls, then you might be alright, but even that gets stale eventually. If I wanted to watch several episodes of filler, I'd watch something else. This anime tries to be too much - an action, school life, ecchi, and romance/drama. My advice is to give it a shot, and if you find yourself not being drawn in, then walk away. It wasn't a complete waste of time, but it fell far short of what I had been expecting it to be. read more