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So slice of life, if it got any slice of life-er, it'd be the most slice of life-est thing in the history of slice of life.

An acoustic soundtrack, with op's courtesy of nano.RIPE. A charming, colorful cast of characters. Down to Earth setting and storytelling.

If that's your thing, give Hanasaku Iroha a shot. You'll fest it up one way or another.

If, not, well. Eat some raisins. They're good for you.

This show is a gem. Right off the bat, it hits the viewer with an interesting premise and runs with it, showing off a great case of characters and cool Sunrise style animation.

It seems specially geared for western tastes, with its caped crusader superheroes and golden age comic book style plots.

Though the larger arcs are somewhat lacking, this flaw is minor compared the excitement of the individual episodes. Definitely one of the best shows of the Spring and Summer 2011 season.

Finishing this series, I'm disappointed, but the fact that I cared in the first place is a point in its favor.

It's difficult to really judge these harem fanservice shows. They give what they should give, but they rarely give me what I want, and maybe I'm expecting too much.

It's a perfectly enjoyable rom com. Everything is as it should be. The general characters archetypes, the twist within the premise, likeable enough characters, and enough humor to get by.

Yet, the "romance" part seems... lacking. This is more an issue with the genre as a whole then Mayo Chiki. Genuine romantic resolution always seems out of grasp. The characters that need to get together never do get together, and when the series is over, you begin to wonder what the point of it all was. read more

You will not like this series. Yes, you, the reader of this review. Yes, I can tell.

You will watch the first couple episodes. You will be befuddled by the juxtaposition of a slice of life high school setting and utterly brutal, gory, monster battles. You will detect no overarching plot and abandon it.

You will have been a fan of Blood+, and will not like this anyway.

You will watch the whole series, be extremely upset with the ending and story execution, wonder what was the point of it all, and not like it.

You will be turned off by the gore and not like it.

I did none of these things. I enjoyed the fights, visceral and intense as they are. I didn't notice any awkward pacing or choppy execution. I was enamored by the mystery and the ending justified much of the series for me. But I am in a minority.

Perhaps I am unusual, perhaps I am just a cretin who didn't realize just how flawed the series was.

Maybe I'm wrong about this, but I liked it. You won't. No one else did, and that's okay. read more