| Spotlight Anime: Lovely Complex <img src="http://cdn.myanimelist.net/images/anime/1/2173.jpg" border="0" /> MAL Anime Information Page: Lovely Complex MAL Score – 8.44 (by 20157 users) Ranked - #101 Popularity - #84 For the next week I would like to have a discussion about the anime that focuses on the key elements that we here on MAL use to critically rate an anime: Animation, Sound, Characters, Story, and Enjoyment. I would like everyone to approach this thread as if you were going to write a review and structure your initial post like this: Animation - insert rating Sound - insert rating Characters - insert rating Story - insert rating Enjoyment - insert rating Animation - discuss any pros and cons of the animation styling used in the series, try to include some specifics. Sound - describe any of the things you liked or didn't care for in regards to the music and sound effects used in the series etc... If you are having trouble writing up a review or coming up with specific pros and cons, please don't worry. Just do the best you can with it and if you can only write two or three sentences about any of the 5 elements then that's OK. Not everyone here is currently at a level which will allow them to articulate their thoughts and opinions. After your initial post is made you can feel free to civilly discuss issues of contention. I am sure there will be many opinions expressed here that some of us will disagree upon and criticise and it is for that reason that this entire club exists. So I hope everyone has fun and I am really looking forward to watching this discussion unfold. RESULTS OF THE YOU DECIDE POLL Lovely Complex was NOT inducted into the club Anime list: 22 Yes - 41.5% 31 No - 58.4% 49 Don't know this anime - 47.5% of the total number polled 1 Abstained - 0.9% of the total number polled Resurrected You Decide results: Lovely Complex (Anime) (17/11/19) - Yes: 5 - No: 11 - Haven't Watched: 35 ~ Abstained: 3 - 31.25% |
HiroM_Jan 20, 2020 9:52 AM
| You do not beg the sun for mercy. |
| I only gave it a 6 or a 7 at the time, but as the time passes this is still the best romantic comedy I've ever watched. The situations were adorable, filled with good humour and - this one thing I value a lot - very realistic as well. The kind of anime that makes me want to go back to high-school and remake it. Absolute yes. |
 Waratte Oemashou Sore ha Chiisana Inori |
| I really like this Anime. It's my most re-watched series - ever. But, Even as a fan, It's a tough call for a club relation candidate. Animation - 6 First off, this is a romantic comedy and not an action series. So, there are no expensive, high frame rate action scenes. But they could have used less of the standard budget-cheater tricks - still-pans and such. Coloring is pastel and pleasant to an occasional garishness. For me, too much character distortion was used to express a mood. But I really enjoyed the accurate details of Sakai City. If you took a Love-Com fan to the shopping walk area of Nakawaramachi, They would recognize it immediately. Sound - 6 The OP's and ED'd were very fitting. The BG music really doesn't count for much as it mostly repeated throughout the series Characters - 8 You could know these people. They're very real, both in their good characteristics and their most annoying traits. Big plus for me is the entire cast was my kansai-ben lesson Story - 8 Even though you’re yelling in frustration and screen, it's all the writer’s plan. And it works. I never read the manga, but I'm sure the series did it justice. Enjoyment - 8 I know the calculated average of the above scores do not equal a "8", but somehow, in my average of laughs and tears, it does. |
datsunvicMar 12, 2010 5:47 PM
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| A good romance comedy but not a great anime in terms of production and directing at all. I enjoyed watching it but was not wowed by any aspects of it so it'd be a NO for me. |
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| It's one of the best romance anime i have ever seen. Animation - 10 Sound - 10 Characters - 10 Story - 10 Enjoyment - 10 I know i'm a little subjective because i really enjoyed watching this anime but the story was very good, the characters were real, it seems that you are watching a true story not a fantasy which sometimes is very good. So, it's certainly a YES. |
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| Repetitive "comedy", watered-out storyline (this series could've been shortened down to half its length without losing anything) and annoying characters. NO. |
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| Was a very long time since i saw this one, but i remember the lovestory as very believable and interesting (at least when it was in serious mode) and the comedy right up my alley. It does have very big flaws though. I think Kokuro hit the spot with "not a great anime in terms of production and directing at all". But i'm not sure how much those flaws matter, and i think it's a must for any fan of romcom anime. For the time being i'll abstain from voting. |
| I really, really, really loved LoveCom. Admittedly, it’s been a while now since I’ve watched the whole thing through, but memories of my utter, complete, total enjoyment of the show haven’t faded a bit. It made me laugh, it made me cry, it made my heart clutch and it made me hold my breath. The roots of the show are characters that you start caring about and a simple but heartwarming story about looking for love, finding it where you didn’t expect it and nurturing that into a relationship. For me, it was engaging and charming and lovely in the very best way. Is it for everyone? Probably not. Do I think it belongs as a club relation? I do. I admit it isn’t as obvious as a contender as a lot of the other club relations. It isn’t the sort of show that normally gets recognized -- romcoms are notoriously overlooked and kind of pooh-poohed when it comes to actual critical accolades, I think. But, for me, Lovely Complex is the best of it’s genre and I think that should count for something. Of course, it’s that’s a subjective and personal statement and one that usually depends on each viewer’s own ideas about love and romance. So here’s why it’s the best of it’s kind for me: The characters are over the top and hammy and ridiculous. It’s cheesy and fun. But under all that enthusiasm and yelling and silliness, you find two main characters who are basically realistic and normal. They’re not your cliché cardboard cutouts or strained extremists: they’re looking for love, but they’re not bizarrely deranged, incredibly stupid, pathetically weak or inexplicably angry; they find love, but they manage to never have amnesia, or some traumatic accident, or any other uber-melodramatic twist (which I find to be a huge relief compared to some other shows). They’re quirky, normal people with charms and flaws who are sometimes misguided and sometimes perfect. I found it especially refreshing to find a female lead who was neither a high-pitched, big-breasted, soft-headed/hearted ninny nor an angry, flat-chested, overbearing bully. She’s obstinate and petty and opinionated. She’s also generous and sweet and compassionate. She’s moody and sensitive and …she’s a girl instead of a caricature of a girl. Sometimes she’s willful, sometimes she’s generous, sometimes she says things just to hurt someone else because she’s hurting too. It’s nice to see a character who you can actually relate to once in a while. The best part about the story is actually being able to see how their feelings develop and change over time. You follow their relationship from the first meeting and see how they grow in importance to each other – as friends and as lovers. I really love the fact that it isn’t one of those stories where two people are just going along and bam!, music, soft lighting and all of a sudden they’re mysteriously in love. Here, you can see Koizumi’s regard for Otani develop and change as she gets to know him and you can see how her feelings affect his and how he comes to realize how much her feelings matter to him. There's a series of moments, of feelings, that build up between them and create a whole atmosphere. Oh, it's so romantic! It was so much fun to watch! It was my most highly-anticipated release of the week while the subs were being released. I was always dying to find out what would happen next… whether it would work out and how it would work out. Eeek. I spent too much time on this and I have to go to bed, but… the other quick points: (1) I liked that Otani didn’t just fall for her right away and settle into the perfect little lovey-dovey couple. I liked that it acknowledged that sometimes feelings aren’t always equal in the beginning and things can change over time or your awareness of a person can change over time. I liked how Otani respected her feelings even when he couldn’t reciprocate and I liked how much her feelings mattered to him and how he slowly came to see that she mattered to him. (2) I also liked that he was short. I often think that it can’t be easy on a guy if he’s really really short. And I liked seeing an actual physical shortcoming on a male lead character for once – instead of your more common sort of personality shortcoming. (3) I also liked that the male lead wasn’t a total jackass for once – why are so many male leads in romances total assholes? Whatever you say about Otani, he at least cared about Koizumi’s feelings and was considerate of her. (4) The voice acting was good – I thought they did a good job of conveying the silliness and the energy of the characters as well as making the range of emotions believable and sincere. (5) Good art. I don’t know how the animation holds up in this HD/widescreen world, but I remember the color palette and character design a lot. I also liked that the characters actually changed clothes/hairstyles (and dressed supercute!). (6) I actually really liked the opening and ending credits. The music was light and fluffy and suited the energetic atmosphere of the show really well, I thought. All in all, I'm definitely voting yes. It captures something that I think is often overlooked or ignored in anime: romance. |
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lowell said: I found it especially refreshing to find a female lead who was neither a high-pitched, big-breasted, soft-headed/hearted ninny nor an angry, flat-chested, overbearing bully. I also like the fact that she's not really that pretty, and how she feels inferior to Otanis ex in that department. Kinda gets more into what love is all about. lowell said: The best part about the story is actually being able to see how their feelings develop and change over time. Yes, absolutely. What do you call something that's well written but not well directed? I'm still not completely sure, but i think you may have swayed me towards a yes. Beneath all the flaws and the comedy (which, like i said, i remember as solid) there are very realistic characters and a very realistic love story. That should count for something. |
| Here's why I'm voting 'no' and why my opinion on this show seems to depreciate with time: The ending. Once the leads are together, the show didn't know what to do with itself, and instead of embracing the fact that the show was full of archetypes/tropes and end well, it decided to take a look at what happens after. That's when the curtain is raised, and we realize how shallow the characters are, and that they don't work outside of their rom/com (with melodramatic moments) stage. Seeing them worry about finals and what would happen after high school was ridiculously vapid, because it was clear that no one writing the show ever bothered to think what they should do. On top of that, they use the stress to inject some sort of conflict between relationships, and it feels even more transparent. Then we have Otani's neighbor, and that whole story was just plain wretched. |
noteDhero said: Here's why I'm voting 'no' and why my opinion on this show seems to depreciate with time: The ending. Once the leads are together, the show didn't know what to do with itself, and instead of embracing the fact that the show was full of archetypes/tropes and end well, it decided to take a look at what happens after. That's when the curtain is raised, and we realize how shallow the characters are, and that they don't work outside of their rom/com (with melodramatic moments) stage. Seeing them worry about finals and what would happen after high school was ridiculously vapid, because it was clear that no one writing the show ever bothered to think what they should do. On top of that, they use the stress to inject some sort of conflict between relationships, and it feels even more transparent. Then we have Otani's neighbor, and that whole story was just plain wretched. I can definitely agree with this and I totally see your point. But I do think that them studying for finals and worrying about the future was valid and was not as bad as you make it out to be. I think it's important to show that their are different aspects of their life that they have to worry about. And I believe they made Otani's goal very believable and handled it well, Risa on the other hand...yeah. And I totally agree, I found the arc with Otani's neighbor and the waiter boy to be very painful and was terribly written. But I agree with lowell, to me this is the best Rom Com and it does count for something. So I will be voting yes, it's not prefect, has flaws but it's still great. |
burntlettuce said: noteDhero said: Here's why I'm voting 'no' and why my opinion on this show seems to depreciate with time: The ending. Once the leads are together, the show didn't know what to do with itself, and instead of embracing the fact that the show was full of archetypes/tropes and end well, it decided to take a look at what happens after. That's when the curtain is raised, and we realize how shallow the characters are, and that they don't work outside of their rom/com (with melodramatic moments) stage. Seeing them worry about finals and what would happen after high school was ridiculously vapid, because it was clear that no one writing the show ever bothered to think what they should do. On top of that, they use the stress to inject some sort of conflict between relationships, and it feels even more transparent. Then we have Otani's neighbor, and that whole story was just plain wretched. I can definitely agree with this and I totally see your point. But I do think that them studying for finals and worrying about the future was valid and was not as bad as you make it out to be. I think it's important to show that their are different aspects of their life that they have to worry about. And I believe they made Otani's goal very believable and handled it well, Risa on the other hand...yeah. And I totally agree, I found the arc with Otani's neighbor and the waiter boy to be very painful and was terribly written. This is also how I feel, that section was terribly useless. However, I think that their "life decisions" were an important part of the final development of the series. Because people grow up, even if it's a comedy, and just stopping it there and living happy forever would not make LoveCom such a great thing. It's because they followed through the whole thing that it becomes good, if thye just left it when they got together it would just be vulgar. |
Waratte Oemashou Sore ha Chiisana Inori |
| I would have loved to have seen them worry about life as long as it was well done. It wasn't well done, so I'd rather have not seen it at all in order to cut the fat. I can't give them credit for doing something so poorly. If it were mediocre, then fine, but not laughably bad. Also, I don't think this is the best Romantic Comedy. Skip Beat is. And depending on how Kimi ni Todoke ends, that will be second. And honestly, I think Itazura na Kiss is also better. I might be able to come up with more if I think hard about what I've seen within the genre. |
| What i remember from the end is Risas "revelation" of what she want's to be, because that really got to me and i think it was a great scene. And i also agree with ladyxzeus that it was a really good move to continue the show for a while after they've gotten together. It doesn't romanticise love and tell us that getting a boy/girlfriend is the ultimate goal after which the credits roll, but shows what happens afterwards to a larger extent than any other romance show i've seen. noteDhero said: I don't wanna be that guy, but if KnT ever get's the spotlight here i'll have you eat those words :3And depending on how Kimi ni Todoke ends, that will be second. Haven't seen Skip Beat though, so i can't comment. Neither Kare Kano which i really should. |
| I haven't seen Kare Kano either since it looks so generic. But then, I thought KnT looked lame too, so I clearly don't know what to look for in this genre. And eat my words in what way? As it stands, I don't know that I would vote yes for KnT. The show is a quite redundant (to my dismay) despite having a strong cast and being funny. |
| Skip Beat and Lovely Complex are in different leagues, I don't consider Skip Beat a romantic comedy in a true sense. Because it's more than that. So yeah, I'll keep this one in my top. xD |
Waratte Oemashou Sore ha Chiisana Inori |
| I just have to throw in my $.02 on this even though it's not the point of the thread. ;) I really loved Skip Beat. It's one of very few mangas I actually follow and read. It's actually the only one I follow now. I adore those characters and the energy and everything. But the actual animated series had considerable problems -- especially in regards to pacing, development and editing... problems that I'm happy to overlook as a fan, but ones that I would have more difficulty ignoring as a critic. I think the root of this is that people like romcoms that are like the romances they themselves would like. And some people like a rowdier, most energetic sort of romance and some people would like sweeter, pinker romances. All that's fine and good and we should all vote accordingly. In regards to LoveCom, for me personally, I really liked the blend of energy and fun as well as the gentleness and consideration. I thought the broad spectrum of romance they covered by having such realistic characters is what made the show so appealing and touching. Sometimes romance is laughing and screaming together like baboons, like on the rickshaw ride during Koizumi and Otani's field trip, and sometimes there's a layer of anger and resentment over the caring because people aren't always as mature as they'd like to be, like when she throws his christmas gift in his face (which I've definitely felt like doing ;) ). Sometimes it's getting frustrated with someone's crummy attitude and believing in them more than they believe in themselves, like during the basketball tournament. And sometimes it's just sweet and soft and tender, like when he surprises her on the rooftop on her birthday with that necklace and the kiss -- which had me squealing like a little girl! ;) That's what's terrific about LoveCom; that it can cover all those varieties of romance and emotion in one relationship between two people and never make it feel fake or insincere or wrong, because the characters have the depth and complexity to pull it all off. It's great. =) |
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| Flat 8 for me between all aspects. Lovely Complex had the best blend of romance, comedy and feels. The story wasn't dragged out nor felt rushed at all. The characters was sublime I'll give this one 8+. I watched this anime not long after it finished airing in Japan, iirc the animation was good and certainly aren't feel rusted even by current anime standard. I don't really remember the music but the VAs performance was good, I liked the accent used, kinda a surprise back then. |
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