Kodomo no Omocha (TV)

This may be the first and last review I ever write.

Kodocha was the very first anime series I watched from start to finish. Yes, this show was definitely worth finishing. Overall, this anime is a 10, even though outward appearances don't suggest so. Never judge a show solely on its art.

My friend referred me to Kodocha, saying I'll definitely like it, but at the time I wasn't interested in anime, so I wasn't sure.

I was curious enough to watch it. Admittedly, I was really not impressed with the beginning of the show (Beginning as in, the first five minutes. I guess I saw the ... pastel colors, so I was a little put off). Quite frankly, I don't know why I didn't drop the show within those five minutes, but I'm glad I didn't.

After the first episode, I was hooked. I don't know about other watchers, but I was up until the darkest hours of the night watching one episode after another. Each episode ends with a little cliffhanger (sometimes you're blindsided by a shocking event at the end of an episode), and it's enough to make you want more.

The story was interesting enough to create an addict out of me. There are a lot of interesting plot points. I suppose there is no singular plot, but there are little "plotlets" that somehow connect in a weird way. In other words, when one problem is resolved, another one forms. It may seem like another cutesy shojo anime, but there are a lot of serious moments as well.

The Art...fair, at best. My standards are high when it comes to artwork (think Satoshi Kon or Makoto Shinkai). The pastel was off-putting for me because the characters and backgrounds seemed washed out. Yes, I am well-aware that this anime was made in 1996, so the art is definitely impressive for its time.

I liked the sound. I really did. Especially the english dub, because Sana's voice was spot-on. Many people say that Akito's voice sounded too old in the dub, but I thought it suited the character just fine. His was my favorite voice in the dub. I also enjoyed the zany music (especially the "Kodocha Mambo" and all of Sana's raps) and the appropriate (not cheesy) music was played during the sad and/or touching moments.

The characters are cute and lovable or wacky, yet endearing. Each character is very different, and I think you can find something to love or hate (good character development means that nobody's perfect) about each of them. Sana is amazing. She runs by the high of life (and the occasional energy drink) and she has the bubbly personality that everyone likes. But Akito is by far my favorite character. He's he strong, silent type that seems rough on the outside, but you can tell he has a good heart. If he were real, I would definitely pursue him.

I enjoyed the entire show from start to finish. The funny moments made me laugh out loud, some of the sad moments made me cry (and I don't cry easily), and the overall crack-craziness of the show was enough to make my entire week.

This was the show that led me into the world of otaku. Good or bad, I'm not sure. I've watched a lot more anime since then, but no other series or movie can quite compare with Kodocha. Some have come very close, but they barely missed the mark that Kodocha set. This show will always be number one in my book.

this review is based on:
44 episodes of the anime seen
Episodes 1-35 of the English dub
& Episodes 36-44 of Japanese w/ English Subtitles
This review contains mild spoilers to refer back to, so be careful!
Please keep in mind this review is meant for people who have seen the anime.

My notes & Opinion on this anime
[This portion is meant for people who don't want to read the whole review.]

... Oh man! I've been wanting to write a review for Kodocha for a while now ~ I was planning to wait until I finished the series, BUT FOR THE LOVE OF HARUHI, I MUST WRITE A REVIEW

So ya XD I think Kodocha is spectacular. It's amazing and just blows me away. It's one of those animes that make me go crazy that I'm smashing my computer with a big smile on my face because it's SUCH a good anime I can't handle it and go insane. What else can I say? I first stumbled onto this anime while flipping channels but just thought it was annoying, kiddy, and pointless. But I decided to take the time to stap myself to the couch and watch the anime from the top, and I am SO glad that I did. One of the best choices of my life XD

The thing that makes Kodocha SO good is, mainly, how perfectly the characters and their personalities are done. Unless you haven't seen the anime, you might know what I mean. With these perfect personalities, the author can easily put the characters together into a masterpiece, despite how simple the storyline is.

This anime has the PERFECT amount of drama. It's not too serious and deep, BUT it's not dumb and cliche what-so-ever. In fact, the romance in this anime is thought out so amazingly well.


Story

Um o_o Ok where to start... More like... how do I put this o_O;;? Kodocha, to me, doesn't have a REAL storyline or plot. To be blunt, it's just a Shoujo anime that revolves around the daily life of Sana Kurata... you know what I mean o_o? The anime starts doesn't totally shout out there and say "THIS IS A ROMANCE ANIME" like most do. That's why you don't really expect much at first. It seems like an episodic anime of Sana's daily life, which it kinda pretty much is. Sana is a 6th grader TV star so you don't expect any serious love drama.
... and THAT'S where this anime catches you off guard.
The romance in this anime is done so perfectly, I am having an EXTREMELY hard time finding the best way to express it xD You NEED to watch it to see what I mean ~


Art

You look at the art and immediately know this anime was made before 2000. I can't say much about the art. Normally I'd go on and on about how perfectly characters are drawn in perspective to their personalities, but in this case, it's kinda just "mmk". I wasn't blown away by the art, nor was I irritated by it. The style is actually kinda pretty, I probably would have thought it was gorgeous and beautiful if I watched it back in 1995 when it was made @_@ So yeah... the art isn't much to talk about.
BUT animation is VERY well done. I must say, the reactions and jokes are old-style, but because of that, it's hilarious for the fact that I've never seen them before. Recent jokes are so re-used and that's why it doesn't impress me much in recent anime, but since this is old and I so RARELY watch old anime, the jokes seem fresh and new to me XD They say such silly jokes that are SO old style, BUT FOR SOME REASON IT'S FUNNY.
"that squirrel on your head. does it poop all over it? cuz i'm starting to think you're head's full of crap."

..ya XD
the babbit is great. spitting soda out of the nose is also great. the smacking is hilarious, and so is the hammer smacking. I can't say anything more than that XD


Sound

Sound is actually really good for something 1995 o_o i'm surprised the opening theme song isn't so old style lke yu yu hakusho's xD The cool part of this anime is that they re-use background music so much, that when you hear it somewhere else, you IMMEDIATELY know it's kodocha. Someone could hum the melody and I'll breakout and ask "IS THAT SUM KODOCHA?"
I love it when that happens XD


Characters

Like I mentioned earlier... the characters are perfectly done o___o
First off, I can't help but mention that I'm blown away by how the age set is perfect. They're not so young that it annoys me, like in Naruto how it's WAY too serious a storyline with 12 year old characters @_@ BUT they're still old enough to learn more, and slowly crawl out of their fantasies. If this was set in high school, the whole story would be thrown off. You'd think of the character's SO differently o_O;;;

Sana Kurata is a perfect example. She is, in fact, pretty annoying because of how dense she is, but in a way, you can actually accept that o_o; And the main reason for the acceptance of Sana is cuz she's just freakin hilarious. She just is. But her age set is perfect because when it comes to stuff like, the way she believes in loving someone with almost a 10 year age difference, you can see all the flaws but still understand why Sana believes she's in love. If she was in high school, you'd think that it's plain dumb for a teen to be in love with some 30 year old. Sana can get away with a lot of stuff due to her age. Hopefully I'm making sense here o__o;;

The character I am MOST impressed by is Akito Hayama. He's so well done and developed so perfectly, it almost scares me how the author can come up with such a character o_o
See... Akito is one of those quiet, reserved characters and so damn mature for his age. I like how he's laid back but it doesn't annoy me. Because I usually think those kind of characters are cliche and annoying because they're EVERYWHERE, but there's something about Akito that doesn't make him so cliche. He's a wreckless trouble maker, but from most trouble makers, you'd expect them to be loud and obnoxious, but Akito isn't. I think that's the thing that makes him unique, really cool and ACTUALLY likeable o__o; With his personality, you can do a hell lot with him which makes him one of the best, flexiable characters you can think of in a story. I especially love his development throughout the anime. It's amazing how much an impact Sana put into his life. AND THAT WAS ALSO SO PERFECTLY DONE. The way the author shows Akito's family life, how you can tell he's going to fall for Sana but when it happens you're ACTUALLY surprised by it XD It's just perfect.

I also love Sana's mom. She is the most awesome mom I have ever seen in any anime. BUT THAT'S WHAT'S SO WEIRD. In most anime, the mom doesn't play much of a role at all unless it's like a "ZOMG YOU'RE MY MOM???" situation. But Sana's mom cracks me up. It's just funny how she is a genius at relationships and plays such a good role. I dunno XD Unless you haven't seen the anime, you should know what I mean XD

Naozumi is great too. His trumpet. Oh lawd XD

There are other characters I know but I don't really feel like going into depth about, such as Rei and Tsuyoshi. Some of the characters are exist just for the heck of it. And the thing that kinda sucks is that you can find some characters to be useless and annoying. But as long as you focus on the main characters, you'll think they're very well done, VERY well developed and freakin hilarious XD.


Dub vs Original

The dub is better.
Mainly because Sana's voice actor is AMAZING AMAZING AMAZING. I've never seen such a good voice actor in my life o_O Akito's voice actor is a lot better in English than Japanese. I didn't like the Japanese version so much when I decided to switch languages... it sucks how the dub only goes up to 35 :/ You'll still like it either way XD



Ending Statements

I obviously enjoy this anime. Don't need to make a big paragraph on that XD I HIGHLY recommend this to girls. Guys, I'm not so sure o_o; But I guarantee you, you'll like this anime. This anime has the PERFECT amount of drama. It's not too serious and deep, BUT it's not dumb and cliche what-so-ever. In fact, it's extremely very well thought out. This kind of amount is perfect for me. So... watch Kodocha XD

...thank you for taking the time to read this o_o;

After my re-watch of Toradora which anime that I strongly recommend I decided to look for some more romance anime on the net. while I was browsing the net looking for romance anime to watch my friend recommend me another great romance comedy called Kodocha and he told how great it was. Then I decided to go to Amazon.co.uk and decided to blind buy the series but I couldn't because it was out of print in the US and the whole series would cost me £100+ pounds. One month later something hilarious happened. Despite this show being out of print for a long time, some ... seller on Amazon was selling the first 6 single DVD volumes of the series for £20 pounds while an eBay seller was bidding season 2 (Episodes 25-51) for £6 pounds.

I am sure that the sellers didn't know how rare and valuable the series was but I took the advantage anyway and decide to buy the Kodocha DVDs for the total of £26.00 making the second cheapest out of print anime I have ever brought only losing to Bezz My-Hime Anime Legends complete collection set which I brought for £15 on my local CEX store. A week later I got myself the set and I immediately binge-watch it and after watching both season 1 (Episode 1-51) DVD and season 2 (Episode 52-102) online am going to be truly honest with you. This show is not only the best romance anime I have ever seen but it's also one of the best animes I have ever seen period.

Like with Eureka Seven, My Hero Academia, Full Moon Wo Sagashite and Gundam Build Fighters I never really expected this show to be good but man did this show proves me wrong in every way possible. This was the anime that made not judge an anime based on its cover because while this show has a funky childish cover but man this show completely fooled me because outside the goofy cover this show is pretty dark.

So what made this show so great you may ask? You will soon find out.

Story.
The story of Kodocha follows Sana Kurata who is a star of a popular TV show called child’s toy while being in 5th grade. One originally day at school as she goes into class the boys in her class are raising hell. The ringleader of the group Akito has counted the teacher into silence in some sort of blackmail. So, the boys are free too, reach havoc as they please. Very determined too, lead a normal school life Sana targets the ringleader Akito with all of her energy and the relationship and daily lives of Sana and Akito begin.

Now, what do I think of the story of Kodocha? The story of Kodocha is executed perfectly. The story starts off a very simple as boy’s vs girl’s rivalry but as the series progresses it story become surprisingly complex and it becomes a great coming of age story.

The one that I really liked about Kodocha is how it was able to synergize its comedy and romance elements meaning it's was able to have a nice blend of comedy and romance.

The one problem that I have with a lot of romcom anime in recent memory is how they don't have a balance of romance and comedy elements meaning they have one genre element taking over the other which is not a good thing for a romcom anime

Kodocha doesn’t suffer from any of those problems because the show knows how to an element in an appropriate manner. The comedy in Kodocha is just amazing because not only they are funny and original but the execution and the timing for the jokes are flawless.

The pacing in Kodocha is great. It knows hows to pace itself for certain arcs and scenes and too, be honest you will never get bored when watching this show.

Surprisingly the show really explores really hard-hitting themes and social topics such as child abuse, divorced parents, teenage pregnancy, homelessness, and adoption and these themes are explored in a very mature way too, the point where the viewer can sympathize with the characters.

Also, when those themes are explored the show goes into a different tone that is suitable for those themes and this show knows how to to use its tone correctly as well blend them.
The one thing I loved about Kodocha is the use of foreshadowing. As early as episode 8 the show does a brilliant job at foreshadowing later events that will happen.
On top, of the shows great directing and clever dialogue Kodocha is very unpredictable with its writing which the writing itself it was great, to begin with.
Kodocha is an anime that will make you laugh, cry, happy and it will keep your edge too, your seats from to finish with great plot twists great and interesting arcs and good pacing.

Overall the story of Kodocha was amazing from start to finish and it's easily favourite coming of age story in all anime.
10/10

Chararters.
When it comes to the characters in Kodocha I thought they were all pretty awesome.

Sana Kurata is an 11-year-old cute redheaded TV film star girl with an uncontrollably hyper and active personality.

Sana is just an amazing character. She starts off a simply uncontrollably hyper character with a lot of passion but as the series progresses she becomes an amazing multi-dimensional character with lots of emotion and depth. Sana is a perfect example of flawed charterer in anime. She is a chararter who barely reacts to emotions and love and every time when facing the reality of life, she will just sing a song so she can keep her positive outlook on life. This obviously, later on, backfires on her because as series progresses others chararters like Akito, Fuka, Tsuyoushi, and Misako start to make Sana face reality where they are grown out of Sana antics completely where they tell her to take life more seriously. Her chararter development in the series is fantastic as this hyperactive girl slowly transforming into a mature young girl who is able to understand love and people feelings.

Overall Sana Kurata is an amazing character and she became one of my favourite female characters of all time.

Next up we have Akito. I personally really like this character Like Sana he is a multi-dimensional character who is realistically flawed in his own right. Not to mention I really adored his character development from start to finish.

Also despite being a troublesome stoic individual he actually cares for Sana deeply. Not to mention he's chararter reactions towards the other chararters including Sana was great.

His character chemistry with Sana was just awesome as they start off as enemies but as the series goes on they eventually stop being enemies and they start helping with other peoples problems and eventually in the second half of the show they start having feelings for each other.
Overall Akito is an awesome character and he’s easily one of the best Shoujo main leads I have seen in anime.

Misako is easily one of the best moms in anime. She is a great mother figure to Sana she is very likeable and very entertaining to watch and she has a great and well-told backstory. This is how you do a mom-type character.

Rei is another great character that I really liked and he is a great surrogate father figure for Sana. Like with Misako Rei has a really tragic and well-told backstory that the audience can relate.

Tsuyoushi is Akito best friend and the main voice of reason for Akito. Like with the other characters I just mention he is also another fascinating and well-written character that I really enjoyed from start to finish.

Naozumi is another fascinating character I really liked.

Like with Sana he is an orphan where he was abandoned as a baby and both Sana and Naozumi used to spend time a lot with each.

He also has a great story/character arc that was well executed. He's an also a great love interest for Sana and I really liked the love rivalry with Akito as they fight who is worthy of being Sana's girlfriend

Fuka gets a special mention to me because she gets a lot of hate from fans of the show for being a backstabber and overall annoying but I actually don't Fuka as a character, in fact, I liked her quite a bit. Sure I will admit she can be a bit of a pain of the ass to deal with in the beginning but the end of the series she does redeem herself as a charter.

The rest of the characters are all pretty great that have a lot of charm into them.

Overall the characters in Kodocha are perfect. This is easily one of my favourite charter cast in anime.

10/10

Visuals.
Visually Kodocha has surprisingly has aged well for the most part least. Studio Gallop really did a great job on the charterers designs, character moment, and the backgrounds scenery while dated was still pretty solid for what it is. It totally has aged well and for a 102 episode series that’s really impressive. If I had any nitpicks with the shows visuals than it would be some use of recycled animation in some of the episodes.

Other than that the visuals were pretty good for the most part.
8/10

Sound.
The soundtrack is honestly great and well executed.
There wasn’t a dull track whatsoever and all of the tracks fit the tone of the series perfectly. My favourite track from Kodocha is hands down Always Be With You. This song is amazingly well made as it perfectly captures the tone with the more emotional moments of the series. Other favourite tracks include Sana Tomorrow, Don't Cry For Me, Vitamin Love, Goodbye Love, Harmony of Sana and Hayama, Sepia Wind and Kennema De Fuka.
Both openings of Kodocha were really good, catchy and they really fit the mood and the tone of the show. I personally prefer opening 2 over opening 1.

As for the ending themes they were all great.
The first ending theme Panic by Still Small Voice is a great catchy ending theme that I adore. Easily one of my favourite anime ending themes.
While I wasn't a fan of the second ending theme DAIJO-BU by Tomoko Hikita at first however as time went by the second ending theme grew on me to a point where I liked it as much as the first ending theme.
The Third Ending theme Pinch (Love Me Deeper)" by Rina Chinen is one of my favourite anime ending themes period as it was very catchy and it song itself fits well with the second season of Kodocha as a whole.
Now for sub vs dub.
Both are honestly fantastic for what they  All of the actors in both dub and sub really did a great performance in the roles.
Funimation did an amazing job with the dub overall and it added more life to this wonderful series.
Laura Bailey did a fantastic job at voicing the hyperactive Sana Kurata. She is filled with range and her portrayal of Sana was amazing. Easily the best performance in the dub.
The rest of the voice actors did a great job in the roles.
If I had to pick which one is I prefer I would pick the dub even though the dub cuts off after episode 51. Sad times.
Overall the soundtrack is great, the openings were amazing the ending themes were good and both sub and dub are really good.

9.5/10

Final Thoughts.
I absolutely adored Kodocha.
It has everything that I love about romcom. The story is amazing, has great pacing, wonderful theme exploration and its handled in a very mature way. Great and well-developed characters that are relatable to, the viewer. Visuals that have aged well for the most part and the soundtrack is amazing.
Kodocha is a romcom anime done right and it’s not the best romcom anime I was seen but it’s now one of the best animes I have ever seen.
If you're looking for a great romcom series that deals with heavy themes as well as having great and interesting characters then I strongly recommend Kodocha.
Sadly, Kodocha hasn’t been licensed in the UK by any UK DVD studio but it was once available by Funimation in the USA before going out of print.
I hope Kodocha gets re-licensed someday as well getting a Blu Ray with a new English Dub that has episodes 52-102 dubbed.

Final Score 10/10

I must say I will always stick and love to this anime because it was the first romance anime i have ever watched. 1 month before i watched this anime i didn't even know what anime was until my friends told me and then i found kodocha no omocha. This anime may look like a kiddy show but it really isn't. There is A LOT of drama later on in the series and i cried at some points watching this series. The plot is the best part about this story, it mainly revolves around drama and romance where a famous child actor called Sana Kurata ... hosts a famous show for children called kodomo no Omocha. Although everything is fine she encounters a bully at her school who is called Akito. Akito has lived a harsh life because he was blamed for something he didnt fo in his family so then Sana helps Akito become a better and more kinder person. From that point on a lot of events happen and a lot of drama and romance. I just want to say one thing before or if your going to watch this series... after you watch the anime YOU HAVE TO READ THE MANGA

Im serious i was sooo lost at the end of the anime it didn't make any sense. Although the manga is wayyyy more serious than the anime it makes a lot more sense at the end than the anime and it has a better anime.

P.S. this series may be hard to find i dont know why but every single time the series gets deleted then re-added on youtube. You might wanna try www.veoh.com it has better results for anime than youtube n_n

Everyone has heard that you "can't judge a book by its cover", but some anime really surprise you by COMPLETELY changing partway through in terms of tone and style. Kodomo no Omocha is definitely one of the more misleading anime I've ever seen in that regard.

This anime starts by introducing us to a vapid, moronic child TV star named Sana that zooms around the screen on a permanent sugar high, much like an anime version of The Great Cornholio from Beavis and Butthead. I'm going to come right out and say it, Sana starts out as one of the most annoying characters in the history ... of anime! However, if you have a LOT of patience and are willing to wait about 40-50 episodes, she actually does develop as a character and must face real world examples of pain, loss, and the struggles of growing up. The other main character is Sana's romantic interest, a juvenile delinquent "tsundere" named Akito. This romance is highly praised by the many fans of this series, but it takes a LONG time to start getting interesting.

Kodomo no Omocha basically starts out as a hyperactive chibi comedy and very slowly evolves into a hard hitting emotional drama over a whopping 102 episodes! When my friend recommended this show to me and said how beautiful the drama was, I watched the first 10 episodes and honestly thought he had just trolled me! There are slow anime that take a while to get good, then there are REALLY slow anime, and finally there is Kodocha. Some people say that one of the most beloved anime on MAL, Legend of the Galactic Heroes, is kind of slow at first and takes a while to get good. That example isn't even comparable to Kodocha. LOTGH is never THAT slow and it certainly is never annoying or borderline unwatchable, unlike the first 30 or so episodes of Kodocha.

Bottom line: There is a reason why this comedy/drama series has fans. Eventually it does evolve into an emotionally touching series with some well done romance and bitter tragedy. However, I refuse to rate this series higher than 5 because it takes SO long to even become bearable to watch, let alone get to the good stuff. This easily has the worst pacing of any anime I have ever seen! If an anime viewer wants to watch an emotional drama/romance, why would you make them sit through 30+ episodes or over 15 hours of a much less funny, much more annoying version of Beavis and Butthead?!! Human beings don't have an infinite amount of time on this planet Kodocha!!! No one should have to waste that amount of time on a show in order for it to get good!

My Kodocha Review

Kodocha started as a Manga in 1995. Then an anime in 1996 and the dub version in 2005. I really love Kodocha. I Love watching It. This show makes me very happy and it's so crazy, wild, and funny with cool songs and I really love it. This is my review.

Story 10-10
Kodocha Is about Sana who is ten years old And she has her own TV show called Child's Toy. She is very hyperactive, crazy, funny, wild and is so very fun to watch. And she is in school and the other kids in her school are very bad in class. The classroom ... is very Crazy and Akito is mean to everyone. Sana try's to stop him from being mean. There is lots of funny thing's happening and it's quite episodic with a different story to a lot of episodes but it does also have one big story throughout the series so the first time you watch it, it's best to watch it in order. Also the last 51 episodes are also much sadder and deeper than the first 51 episodes and only the first 51 episodes are dubbed, I really love every episode to this series. This show is so very funny and there are songs as well. Kodocha is one of my favourite anime's ever. It is number 8 on my favourite list. I just love the songs and characters and this show always makes me very happy.

Characters 10-10
Sana is just so amazing and she is one of the greatest anime girls I have ever seen. She is very hyperactive and she gets over Excited sometimes. Sana also talks extremely fast. She talks a bit to fast at times, so you might have to rewind it at times to hear what she is saying. And also she is crazy and I love her.

Akito is just so mean. But he does turn to be a nice person. He is really cool and he does have a good side. And I really like him and would like to be his friend.

There are lots of other characters that I like. And they are all very fun to see. I really love them all.

Animation 7-10
I really love the character designs and the colours. It makes me really Happy. But the animation is not as good as it could be. It's really colourful but does not always have the best detail. But it is very fluid. I love it.

Sound 10-10
Sound affects are beyond perfect. The music is really cool and it always Makes Me Happy and the voices are perfect as well. Sana's voice is really good. It's crazy how good it is. I like the English version more than the Japanese version. But both are excellent.

Songs 10-10
I really Love the songs from Kodocha. The songs are really cool and I love listening to them. I always dance and jump and get very excited when I listen to them. They are really cool. And also I can sing some of them. Also most of the songs are very short So I sometimes rewind it and keep listening and dancing to them. It's so much fun,

Romance 9-10
Romance is so very good in Kodocha. But there could be more. But what's there is really cool. I love the romance between Akito and Sana. I love it.

Enjoyment 10-10
The only two bad things are Sana talks to fast at times. But that's also good and only 51 out of 102 episodes are dubbed. I have also watched the first 51 episodes about 6 times. I so love this series. It's really cool. Also this show always makes me happy.

Final Score 10-10

*THIS IS MY FIRST REVIEW!!!*

I have a mouthful of things to say about Kodocha and, I don`t even know where to start. How about i start with how i discovered Kodocha.

Well, It all started when I was mourning over Full Moon Wo Sagashite. I had just finished it and, i needed something to distract me from my loss. So, i was clicking around on my computer, when i actually found an answer on yahoo. All it said was: "If you liked Full Moon, you`ll like Kodocha." Next thing i knew, i was typing Kodocha into my search engine, and thats how it all began.

Lets ... just say, after the first episode i was hooked. Kodocha isnt just another over dramatic shojo anime, it goes much deeper than the boy troubles or the whole school troubles thing. I have to admit, the first couple of minutes where a little weird, but for some reason, i was compelled to keep watching and kept my eyes glued to the screen.

PLOT: 10
Like i said, Kodocha is a mouthful to explain because there`s so much to the story. There are parts that made me laugh my head off, and parts that made me bawl out my eyes and its pretty hard to make me laugh and even more challenging to make me cry but, Kodocha did it effortlessly. Each episode ends with a cliff hanger. I think thats what`s so good about Kodocha. The story evolves from one thing to another, and makes you want more.

ART: 10
The art is pretty outstanding for its time. And that`s why i gave it a 10. Nowadays, it`s nothing special, but back then it was. I`m used to the art because i started off watching older animes.

SOUND:10
The english dub sound is AMAZING! I think Laura Bailey did such a great job with Sonna`s voice. Sonna is a challenging role to play specificly because she`s the genki girl in the anime. Even Laura Bailey herself said it was a challenging role to play. But she did a excellent job. Akito`s voice is another one i liked very much. Most people think his voice was too old sounding for his age, but i beg to disagree. Akito`s character is unique from the others, he`s quiet but tough at the same time. So i think the voice suits him just fine. The rest of the voices are very good too. This is one of the best dubbed animes i have ever watched.

CHARACTERS:10
Of course i just had to give Kodocha another 10. The characters are perfect. Each and every one is specail and has there own background. There is only one scentence to describe the characters of kodocha. Whithout the characters not being so unique and special, Kodocha would not be the heart warming, touching amazing anime it is today.

ENJOYMENT:10
I enjoyed it so much, and miss it dearly. I cried till days end when i finished it but, quickly read the rest of the manga. It`s a funny anime that just has those moments, where you cant breathe and you feel like your in that world seeing what they see. That`s how Amazing Kodocha is to me. This is one of those animes that make me see the world from a different perspective.

OVERALL:10
Overall, i hope with all my heart, you watch Kodocha. I garauntee you will fall in love with this anime, and be hooked on it right after you watch the first episode. If i could give Kodocha a 100 i would.

*Notes*
First season: Dubbed-Subbed
Second Season:Subbed
Kodocha was never finished, so IF YOU READ THE MANGA PLEASE, START FROM THE BEGINING!

If you're like me with too much time on your hands and is looking for a good story, you've come to the right place.

I don't think it's possible to compare this show to anything that exists, either in anime or other mediums. I see that Gakuen Alice is recommended most, but it's a very surface-level recommendation, can't say I would say the same. Although the characters are elementary school kids, it doesn't make their struggles any less relatable than other age. And despite its quirky and fun first appearance, there lies deeper themes that become dark and twisted should they be handled incorrectly. Not ... all youth shines bright, not all wishes are granted, and not everything works out as intended.

Story (9/10):
As a whole, it's good. However, and I'll gripe about this continuously, it differs greatly from the manga. I'm not one to make comparisons to the source often, but they changed it right from episode 1. Perhaps to appeal more to kids due to its childish art, they brought the age requirement down and added various anime-original elements. That being said, everything still fit together well and wasn't extremely out of place. Story arcs were coherent and character arcs were plain as day to see. Props to the team for making so many changes and yet not lose meaning.

Art (7/10):
Eh, I'm just not a huge fan of this style. It's hard to concisely explain why though. Could just be a time thing. No matter what vid I find, it's like 360p and even if it was HD, I don't think it'd make a huge difference. It's not like it's different than other anime though, just more pastel and wider color-palette.

Sound (9/10):
Whenever certain episodes were finished, I would almost immediately go to look for its corresponding soundtrack or insert song. Needless to say, I found the music selection to be varied and plentiful: from fast, upbeat choices to slow, melancholic ones. I feel like I say this a lot in my reviews, but sound direction is also fine. Like, it's pretty difficult to find bad sound direction. Anyways, it's nothing incredible though, just playing the right tracks for the right scenes and utilizing silence when necessary.

Character (10/10):
All characters have their own motivations, dreams, backgrounds, and reasoning. It makes for a story where you want to watch how they develop over time. Episode 52 begins a new cour in middle school and looking back from there, it is clear to see that no character is the same from the beginning. Of course, keep in mind that although they're anime characters, they are young children in elementary/middle school. Who knows, maybe an argument for an unreliable narrator can be made.

Enjoyment (10/10):
I personally like stories with a deeper undertone. Sorta like "The World God Only Knows," there's the initial premise that drives the plot, but each event changes the character a bit which foreshadows just how much that change will affect them. Kodocha takes that and turns it up some more by having straight-up drama in it.

Interestingly enough, one plot point more prominent in episode 52+ may have some people call out "ntr." Sure, I guess, why not. Whether positive or negative to you, there are love-triangle situations that crop up and last for quite some time.

Overall (9/10):
Although it differs from its source, I found this enjoyable to watch and it held my attention well. If I'm being totally honest though, the fact that the anime differed enough from the manga to create its own canon is disappointing because there was no way they could end it in a satisfying manner. No matter how I slice it, the ending of the show is just not conclusive enough. Although, it's not enough to overshadow the enjoyment of the other 100 episodes, so 9/10.

Overall 10:

Well, Funny Story....
When my anime obsession first started, I was very picky about what I watched. You know how they say, "Don't judge a book by its cover?" Well it should be "Don't judge an anime by its opening."

When I first saw the opening theme, I was like "what the heck?" I literally hit the exit button and decided right then and there to never watch that show because of its "weird opening."

I am so glad I went back and tried it again. After I skipped the theme song, I realized that this anime was single handedly the BEST anime ever. Every character ... is unique in its own way and they all tell a story that can be described only in one word....Beautiful. Though the characters were younger than I was used too, the relationships they built, the friends they made and the memories they made caused me to think about the characters all day and all night.

I am warning you, do not judge it by what you see the first five minutes of the show. It will seem quite stupid and you will want to run the other direction, but you have to trust me on this. If you really take the time, you will realize that this anime is so much more. Its deep, heartwarming and just the sweetest. The relationship between Sana and Akito will bring a smile on to your face and you will not be able to stop watching them.

It's obviously an older anime, so you can't expect a lot of quality in the art, but I easily managed to overlook that, thanks to the amazing story line and magnificent characters.

It's embarrassing to admit, but I cried when it ended. They really need another season...or ten more seasons.

From the minor characters like Gomi, to the gigantic characters like Akito, they really have marked my heart and as mushy as this review is, it will always be my favorite anime. The author managed to do something that I havent seen many people in the romance comedy genre do. She gave eberyone a personality, no matter how minor they were. Every single character has a story, a life, a reason. They're not just...there. They're there for a reason. And Sana makes it pretty clear. they're there to LIVE.

Next, the theme and mood. The themes throughout the story are all very heartwarming and deep. Many episodes are soo deep, they had tears welling up in my eyes. Naozumi, Sana, Akito, Rei, Gomi, Fuuka, Naoko and a lot of other people have stories that make you really sad or you find yourself telling them to keep their heads up. And you can't abandon them, cause they will mean that much to you...

Oh, also, the theme song really grew on me...

I recommend this anime to anyone and everyone and I think everyone would like it. It has made a great impression on me and I haven't been able to find anything like it , no matter where I looked.

Before I start, I'll just say this anime/manga has been my favourite thing since I was 11 years old. A good 8 years now.

Story: It follows Sana Kurata, an energtic girl with a pure heart and fierce soul. Her rival/best friend, Akito Hayama and all of her family and friends through her own challenges and events of growing up. You get a feel of character growing and helping one-another. While she doesn't have a typical life you'll still enjoy this. 10/10

Art- I love old styled anime in general, but the art here is my *all* time favourite. Simple, but beautiful. Sana happens to share my ... hair and eye colour which is rare thus it adds bonus for me.


Sound - I've lit. all 102 episodes. Always do. ALL music is wonderful. From scenes to endings. Anything. Some of you may need an ep to three to get used to Sana's voice though.

Character - There might be some minor characters you can overlook, but overall each has it's own appeal. The main characters grow a lot and stay true to themselves. The development is beautiful. Again, I relate to her hyper and crazy which makes me love this even more.

Enjoyment is 10/10 and overall 10/10. Again: If you are not a creep into shiny pixels of today, but a loving soul of all things good then this is for you. Whoever loves a good story will NEVER regret Kodocha. A lovely story of child's play.

Its 10/10 in every aspect !!!

I am so glad that I found this anime. The Best Comedy anime I have seen till now.

Story [10/10]:
Excellent plot. Full of potential to show many interesting things to the viewer. And it lives upto its expectations completely. I haven't read the manga but have read in other reviews that there are many filler episodes in this anime. That may be the case, but none of the episodes look irrelevant in the anime. The correct emotions are excellently grasped by the episodic storytelling. Comedy of the show is the best part and there's loads of it. Especially in ... the first 40 episodes. Very well executed.

Art [10/10]:
Art is kinda of an older anime style. But that doesnt matter. Good looking guys are good looking alright. And crazy characters are crazy looking. So full marks here as well. Landscaping of outdoor locations is good.

Sound[10/10]:
I would give Sana's English Voice actor a special 10. She's awesome. All her voice modulations according to the situations in the show perfectly done. Sana's character is shown to be extremely hyper and a bit kooky in the head. Plus she is a comedian first. So that has to come in her voice too. The English Voice actor has done wonders for that. I also liked Akito's voice in English- a typical dont come near me aura character with tonnes of attitude. The other characters Tsuyoshi, Aya, Mica, everyone- the dub case was awesome. And yes not to forget the amazing Babbit :)

After watching the 51 dubbed episodes I was a bit uncertain to watch the anime in Japanese audio. Rest assured, they are just as good.

Loved the OP Ultra Relax (aptly matching the comic theme of the show), and all the three ED songs Panic, Daijobu and Love me deeper (romantic alright). Background music in episodes is again of older style but no complaints whatsoever.

Character[10/10]:
The reason why Kodocha is so enjoyable. I just cant even imagine how the series would have turned out if Sana was not shown the way she is. God, she is CRAZY!!! during her shoots and also at home or with friends. She never lets any of the adversities she is facing career-wise get her down. She's always cheerful and helps out people. Akito hugely changes in personality due to her. She's perfect in giving shots for any commercial, series episode, movie, drama anything. But inspite of being so good she's not someone who doesn't respect others cause she's so good. Always ready to work hard and cheer others too. You just have to love her.
All the characters are very well developed and are as important as Sana. Character development especially in case of Sana as she faces some emotional trauma is beautifully shown. Change in her behaviour as she gets a bit older age wise and also from all the experiences she has had is every bit believable. Akito's personality change is also very welcoming. Every bit of the characters is absolutely believable.

Enjoyment and Overall[10/10]:
What can I say. though there are already reviews written I just could'nt resist to put my thoughts down again. Loved the show from start to finish. Comedy, Romance, Drama, a bit of Slice of Life it has everything. There was never a boring moment for me. Happiness, Sadness, Anxiety, Anger, all emotions can be felt. Excellent story and awesome characters. Complete enjoyment.. Just go and watch please.

Note: It was a bit difficult to find good quality HQ episodes to download. But if you want to see the anime online then there are quiet a bit of websites showing the 51 dubbed and the remaining subbed episodes.

I have watched Kodocha to the VERY end, all in Japanese subtitles and I've got to say THIS WAS AWESOME! Kodocha is one of my FAVORITE animes and I would recommend it to anyone who just wants a good laugh with romance! Kodocha was very comedic, as it could be very dramatic at times. Please, don't miss out on this anime and if you want to watch it, please watch it until the very end because it keeps getting better and better and better!

Art:
I really actually enjoyed the art, it was very old-fashioned, but that's what I like about it, it feels home-y. It wasn't ... SPECTACULAR, but I really enjoyed looking at the characters and I really liked how it was old-styled.

Sound:
Eh, what can I really say about sound? Well, I really LOVED the sound and the music was VERY good! When ever I'm writing my romance stories on my computer (yes, I love writing, lol!), I always go onto youtube and type in "Kodocha Ost" or "Kodocha Song" because I just LOVE the music! Both the first and second opening are AWESOME and I love ALL the ending music and you will find yourself one day after watching this anime that you will download or buy EVERY one of Kodocha's songs because it's so good!

Character:
BEST. EVER! I don't think I've seen characters better than this, not even some of my TOP, TOP, TOP animes or mangas (even though Kodocha is one of them :P!). I loved how all the characters just lived freely and did whatever they wanted, it's like you wanted to live in their little world and become best friends with them! Trust me, when you watch Kodocha, Sana will become like your best friend! I love how all the characters are hyper and have all their own personalities! You know, I'm serious when I say this, Sana is my role model, I'm not kidding! Even though she's just a character, I look up to her and I try to be like her everyday and everyday, all my friends are saying how I'm super hyper and that they like that about me! Sana's changed me for the better, lol! Also, I really loved Babbit and how funny he was and how he used to do those number songs you will see later on, Babbit was so funny and he made the whole anime even BETTER! And Zenjiro (who is only in the anime) really made me laugh sometimes too, he was a good character! At first I just thought he was a guy with bad teeth, but trust me, he's a lot more than that! Hayama was also very well made, considering he is the other main character. He had a mysterious aura about him that didn't have any feelings at first, but each and every episode, he would get better because of Sana, and yes, you've all heard about the same plot before but gee golly, Kodocha is just another anime. But most of all, I loved the parents! Sana's mom was just legit crazy but she cared for Sana a whole lot and Hayama's dad made me crack up every time I've seen him! Another character that you'll meet is Naozumi and he's quite a funny character but he was one of the more serious ones and I liked that about him. All of these characters feel like all of my best friends and they're the best characters you will EVER meet!

Enjoyment: I enjoyed this anime VERY much and I always found myself laughing and laughing as this anime cheered me up whenever I had a bad day. I would look forward to coming home to watch this anime, as everything was just HILARIOUS as it also kept you at the edge of your seat, wondering what romantic and dramatic things will happen next. Watching this anime, you just want EVERYTHING to be your own reality, as I try to make it everyday.

Overall: This anime is one of my FAVORITES, as it literally has EVERY genre you could possibly imagine! There's comedy, there's romance and there's a little bit of drama, but it's not overboard. Overall, great job Miho Obana, you've created a story that I fell in love with and I've loved the characters to the very end and as I said before, I look up to these characters today and when I'm writing my own stories, I always see how sometimes my characters tend to act like them. Thank you Miho Obana, for making a story that EVERYONE would enjoy!

I watched Kodocha as a kid and I was really hooked into it back then. I remember having this huge crush on Akito back in the days lol. After so many years, I decided to watch it again and read the manga (which I don't know how many times I've read because of how good it is)

Story: 7/10
After re-watching the anime, I realized that it's not really as great as I thought it was. The first 15 episodes was really good because of the plot and I like the whole drama between Sana and Akito's love story. What I didn't like about this ... anime..is how they made it look like a kid show and how they put so many fillers that doesn't even make sense or doesn't have anything to do with the story.

Art: 7/10
The anime look so old and dark during the first half of the series but it improved a lot during the second half.

Sound: 9/10
The opening song looked like an opening song for a kiddie show. But I love the osts that they used in this anime...the background music suit really well for the scenes that they were in.

Chraracters: 7/10
Sana: I really hate how they made her sing in almost every episodes of the anime, it's super annoying. I hate how stupid she is sometimes and how she just played around when there were problems to be solve (although most of it only happened in the filler episodes) But even though she can be annoying and stupid at times, she can also be reliable sometimes.

Akito: I had a huge crush on him back when I was kid, after re-watching the anime...I started to have a crush on him again. He's one of those characters that will remind you of what it feels to have a crush for the first time. lol

Overall: 8/10
Even though it's no longer as great as I thought it was...I still think that it's one of the best shoujo anime that I've seen. I just really wish that they didn't made Sana sing and looked so hyper in every episodes.

I first judged this anime by its appearance...but i wanted similar anime to gakuen alice..and I got kodomo na omocha

At first I did not want to see it cuz of its quality but then with a heavy heart I started the anime.

And when I started it I could not STOPPP!!!

It is such an amazing anime!!! I laughed soo hard and at times I cried! I felt soooo happy!

It is literally the first anime I did not skip episodes, as in most long anime I skip episodes cuz there are many filler episodes , but I did not skip any episodes in this anime!! That ... awesome it was!!!

At first it is a bit boring but as you see more you will start loving this anime..
To see the ending I even read the manga [ which i never do, I only see anime] The manga as usual was AMAZING!!!

What I mean to say that this anime is a amazing anime!!

I added Rei as a character! yay!!! I just cant believe he wasnt even on the thingy!? He in is in EVERY episode! hmmm oh well hes there now X]

Well this anime is very fun and lively so if you have a short attension span this anime is for you. The humor is somewhat mild (not crude) but i guess it has to be bc the story is about elementary/middle schoolers. There not much more i could say without spoiling it but I got hooked right from the first episode and I am sure you will too if you give it a try!

Thank you for ... reading, hope it helped!

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Based on 1-23 Episodes-

So far, I can tell you this is one of the most unique,beautiful and random anime's ever made. It has everything Drama, Tragical and real life problems to out-right random moments that really make you laugh, this anime keeps me laughing,crying,jumping and above all emotional.

Story- 9, I gave it a nine because, There is a little something wrong with a elven year old's P.O.V, it just seemed weird that she had so much love life and so much drama and "she's only a child" which is said through out the whole series.

Art- 9, the anime is older than ... me by a year and it still seems realistic to the anime drawn now, it was drawn better than sailor moon which was made around the same time/year.

Sound: 7, I really,really did not like the openings, I don't feel like they represent, the whole reason of the anime. Yes, the funny is in the Opening but, not the drama.Liked the English and Japanese voices.

Character: 10, I absolutely loved the characters, Sana mostly, at first I was like "wow, she's so stupid and random" but after watching this far, I believe there's more to her than just "Stupid and random" She was very emotionally attached to her past. Akito was also one of my favorite's his life change made me cry and he has had a wonderful change of heart moment.

Enjoyment:10, This anime is really for everyone, it so funny and different that I am sure anyone would like.

Overall: 10, this anime is pure masterpiece, I had never expected this much from a 1996 anime, or the fact that it's so different from the Shoujo-romance genre today and to tell you the truth this anime will always stay in my heart.

Highly recommended for all
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This anime is adorable. It's cute but, for those of you who hate long animes, I still would recommend you watch this! It's calm and collected. I've been trying to watch romance animes instead of my usual action stuff and I actually liked this one. The characters may be kids, but it's really good stuff. The love is a progress kind of thing, it takes some time. And there was only about 6 fillers out of 102 episodes, so that's a good thing in my book!

Kodocha was my childhood anime.

I grew up watching Kodocha and sailor moon. I still don't understand to this day why WHY does Sana call Rei her pimp.

Kodocha is great despite its appearance, The art may be lacking but do keep in mind that this was what was popular during that time.

The story is great; It was funny and very enjoyable. It had that arrogant boy and dumb girl factor.

Thumbs up to whoever voiced Akito because I am very pleased! His voice fit perfectly with his character and it brought a smile on my face when I saw him flustered or jealous.

Overall this is a ... great anime and I recommend you watch

Kodocha was the first anime ive watched, I watched it because it was in the public library. I was so sad it ended on a cliffhanger, but when i found the manga, i was more than happy. The anime catches the funny moments really well, maybe even better than in the Manga. I think near the end, the anime drifted from the original plot, so maybe thats why it ended. The art style isn't amAzing, but its neat since it was made in the 90s. Im really glad i watched and finished, this anime first. ANYWAYS, its incredible, made me cry, highly reccommend.

Kodomo no Omocha was a story about a young girl named Sana a part time child actor and elementary school student. the season follows her story to when she was 11 to 26 years old with her friends Hayama, Fuka, Tsuyoshi, Aya Sugita and
Naozumi Kamura. I thought this story line was great Sana Chan is very humorous and you can get easily connected to her. I loved the battle between Sana Chan and Hayama and the deep moments they shared as well it is a tear jerking story . as they enter into middle school the ride gets bumpy when Hayama was about to ... confess his feelings for Sana Chan before she left to shoot a movie in the mountains for about 2 months but decided against it because of the people listening. so as Sana Chan left the love triangle formed which in my personal opinion did not need to last as long as it did. there is only a certain amount of time to make a love triangle last. that's the only problem i have with this anime other than that the music was fun cheerful and heck I downloaded a couple songs. the characters were fun and interesting in there own way. The animation looks old but you get used to it. and the story line was perfecto. that was my first review so all over the place it might have been oh well.