- Last OnlineYesterday, 6:01 PM
- GenderNon-Binary
- LocationGotham City
- JoinedNov 19, 2014
Fantasy Anime League Paradox Live 【OSHI NO KO】 Fantasy Anime League MALoween Mansion (Trapped Soul) Fantasy Anime League Fantasy Anime League RSS Feeds
|
![]()
Dec 14, 2022
I felt obligated to write this review to defend Lookism because none of the top reviews accurately and objectively depicted what this show is about (some are so factually wrong that it makes me wonder whether they actually watched this show or not). If you're here seeking a revenge story, or a power fantasy, then this show isn't for you. Lookism is a story of growth, maturity, and the multifaceted aspect of society. Some think it's too over-the-top with its depiction of bullying and how judgmental the society is when it comes to appearances, but they forgot to take into consideration the cultural differences. This
...
"anime" takes place in South Korea, where women are looked down upon for leaving their home without makeup, where having good looks is seen as the most important thing (hence the growth of the plastic surgery industry), and where bullying is a major issue in schools. So it's not a surprise that bullying and appearances are a major focus of this story (I mean it's literally called Lookism so what do you expect?).
I went in with little expectations since the last two webtoon adaptations (GoHS and ToG) were disappointing, and I have read some parts of the manga (stopped at where episode 7 took place) and it was good but not good enough to make me binge it. So I couldn't believe how good this adaptation is when the voice acting, animation, and OST of the first episode alone got me teary-eyed at certain scenes since even the webtoon didn't move me to tears. It only got better and better as the episodes went on. I went from "I have some spare time so I'll watch another episode" to "I'm binging this and finishing it tonight!" The last series that got me binging was ARCANE, not even Chainsaw Man or FMAB got me to binge them, which is saying something (not saying Lookism is as good as ARCANE I'm just saying it's definitely not as horrible as the top reviews made it out to be). (PS I binged the manga right after this and holy shit it gets insane!! The anime isn't even the tip of the iceberg!!)
I've never seen any "anime" with Korean voice acting but the VAs did such a great job in Lookism that it never felt weird to hear Korean instead of Japanese. In one particular scene, the mother was saying something and she choked up, and the emotions in her VA's voice were so palpable that I was instantly moved to tears. And the OST, man, as soon as I heard him open his mouth and sing that first line in like episode 5 or smth (I forgot, it was in the empty classroom), I got literal goosebumps and rushed to youtube the song.
Lookism is a story where everyone should be able to relate, whether you're a bully, victim, or bystander. Sure, the bullying you witnessed (or went through) may not be as terrible as the one depicted in Lookism, but we all know what it's like to judge someone and be judged based on our appearances. And this, judging and being judged, is a main theme in this series, so I'm certain you'll find some parts of the story to be relatable.
I don't want to spoil the whole story to you so I'll just leave you off with this. If you've been bullied, you've been judged based on your appearances, or you want to stop the tendency to judge others based on their looks, then you need to watch Lookism. It's the story of someone who experienced both sides of the spectrum and became a better person as a result. It has no romance, but instead has familial love and friendship. It teaches you what true friendship is, how true friends would act, and why family is the one thing you should never turn your back on. We’ve all met people who are superficial and judgmental. Sometimes all it takes to gain a real friend who would accept you for who you are is stepping out of your comfort zone and saying “Hi” to someone you’ve never talked to before.
Edit: I forgot to mention this one thing I love about this show. It not only showed people judging ugly people and looking down on them, but it also showed these ugly people judging good-looking people and thinking anyone who are nice to them are being superficial due to how rare it is for them to receive kindness from good-looking people. I like how the author showed that this judging aspect of society goes both ways, and that both sides can be victims to it.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
What did you think of this review?
Nice
 0
Love it
 0
Funny
 0
Confusing
 0
Well-written
 0
Creative
 0Show all
![]()
Nov 25, 2022
TLDR: MY DOG RECOMMENDS THIS MOVIE!!!
My dog has never shown interest in watching TV. We showed her a minions movie the other day and she only glanced at the TV about 3 times.
Today, I watched this movie with her.
Guess how many times she glanced at the TV?
.
.
.
ANSWER: She was staring at the TV the ENTIRE TIME. Watched the whole movie with me. Went from sitting up to laying down (a more relaxing position) halfway through the movie. And if you think she wasn't paying attention, she had reacted accurately with what's happening on screen. When a suspenseful scene happens, her ears would flop up. When
...
someone gets kidnapped or a bomb goes off, she'd sit up in alert. She also barked when the dogs barked in the movie.
So if my dog likes this when she normally has zero interest in watching TV, you betcha this is a good movie to watch.
Solid 8/10 if you ask my dog (yes I actually asked her she said it's very good)
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
![]()
Oct 14, 2022
Edit: Forgot to mention the most important part. This series has no superpowers. And the power-scaling imo is just right. Players aren't too OP nor are they too weak.
Blue Lock is the most unique and interesting sports series I've ever read/watched. I was recommended so many times to read this but I kept putting it off thinking "no matter how good it is, it can't be better than Haikyuu. So I'll stick with Haikyuu for now." And then the anime came out, I watched one episode, was intrigued, so I came to read the manga and ended up binging it in like two days. And
...
HOLY CRAP I've never been so wrong in my life!! Blue Lock is amazing however it's not for everyone. If you're a very close-minded individual who cannot accept different ideas and perspectives, or you prefer to stick to traditions, to rules, and think any tempering to them or trying something new is idiotic, then this series is not for you. I'll explain why.
Story: 9/10
Most people who gave Blue Lock low ratings are those who think the concept of Blue Lock is stupid and will never work in real life. In case you didn't know, Blue Lock is an experiment in which a man named Ego Jinpachi gathered 300 strikers aka forwards to compete against each other to find the best striker of them all. Japan's U-20 soccer (yes I'm calling it soccer because I'm American and that's also the term used in Japan) team has never won the world cup because they're all about team work and they lack an egotistical striker who has the confidence, skill, and, most importantly, ego to make the shot himself rather than passing it to his teammate. And this is what many people have an issue with. "Soccer is all about teamwork! What do you mean teamwork is not required? That's stupid! Blue Lock is ridiculous and will never work in real life!"
And this is what I mean by being close-minded and can't accept another perspective. Blue Lock never said teamwork is not required. It emphasized the importance of having an egotistical striker confident and skilled enough to make the shot, but how to get him to that position where no opponents are blocking his path so he can have a clear sight of the goal? Why of course you'll need teamwork. His teammates will need to shake off the opponents on their heels and pass the ball to him so he can make the shot. And the story of Blue Lock made this very clear because EVERY SINGLE MATCH shown made great use of teamwork. Yet so many people seemed to have either ignored this aspect of Blue Lock completely or they didn't read enough to see the displayed teamwork. Anyway, the point I'm making here is Blue Lock has an unique concept that's a brand new take on soccer, on the sports genre in general. And if you are willing to think outside the box and accept a different idea, then this is the story for you.
Onto the actual story. Blue Lock is basically a soccer battle royale. Many people compare it to Squid Game but I haven't seen that kdrama so I don't know if the comparison is accurate or not. There are a lot of things going on in Blue Lock (like ranking, elimination, typical battle royale stuff) but what made it unique is the fact that you can customize your team. Imagine player A, B, C, D, E, and F. In one match, they may all be on the same team. In another match, you might get ABC vs DEF. In another, it could be ABY vs CDZ. Or, AC vs BD. Or, even ADZ vs BCY. No teammate will stay teammate. No opponent will stay opponent.
So many sports series focus on a single team, like Haikyuu with Karasuno. You already know all the strategies of Karasuno. You know how the players interact with each other. You know how they'd play against other teams. But, imagine how much MORE entertaining if players from Karasuno fought against each others. If you separate Hinata and Kageyama and pair Hinata up with Oikawa and Kageyama up with Ushijima, how would their match play out? Without Kageyama's pinpoint tosses, how would Hinata work with Oikawa? And how would Kageyama utilize Ushijima's immensely powerful spikes? And since both Hinata and Kageyama know what the other's capable of and their flaws, how would they use this knowledge to defeat the other?
This happens with EVERY SINGLE MATCH in Blue Lock. Players are constantly being shuffled to other teams, with different people. One minute they're kicking another team's ass and laughing at their defeat, and the next second they're teaming up with those opponents they just defeated and having to come up with strategies to defeat their old teammates. It's this "customizable" team concept that kept Blue Lock interesting to read, unlike other sports series that became boring later on because it's always the same team, same players, same tactics. Oh, not to mention since the team is entirely made up of strikers who all want to shoot the ball themselves and be in the spotlight, and the point of Blue Lock is to develop their ego, you'll get instances where characters will get the ball stolen from them by their OWN TEAMMATE who wants to make their own goal. This is especially prevalent in characters like Barou and Shidou who are just chaos incarnate and brings chaos to whatever team and match they're in. And I find it hilarious and unique how they have to watch out for their own teammates as well XD.
Characters: 8/10
If I HAVE to point out a flaw from Blue Lock then it'd be the character aspect. Don't get me wrong. Blue Lock has some amazing characters like Bachira, Nagi, Chigiri... But it also has some characters who didn't get enough development and we only know them by their personality, character traits, and ability. This isn't necessarily a bad thing since not all characters need elaborate backstory and development, and some of my favorite Blue Lock characters happen to be those we don't know much about, like Shidou, Gagamaru, Ego, Kaiser, Loki, and Chris Prince. I feel like they're good enough as they are. I don't need to know Shidou's backstory and what motivates him. All I need to see is him flirting with Sae at every given opportunity and saying all these sus lines, like yelling "right in the womb!" as he makes a successful goal, and that's enough to keep me happy and satisfied and grinning from cheek to cheek like an idiot lol. That's why I gave a 8/10 for characters because it's not easy writing underdeveloped characters yet still make them interesting and keep the readers satisfied.
Also, some people hate the mc claiming he's useless, but you need to keep in mind that Blue Lock isn't a power fantasy. And unlike Haikyuu where Hinata and Kageyama are the main attack force in Karasuno, in Blue Lock EVERYONE is a striker which means EVERYONE has the skills AND ego/confidence/ambition to shoot their own goals. Imagine a Karasuno entirely made up of Kageyamas and Hinatas. How often would the original Kageyama and Hinata land their own attacks when surrounded by people just as talented, if not more so, as them? Not so often, right?
Plus, the protagonist of Blue Lock is like Izuku. He's an analyzer, the brain. He takes both his teammates and opponents' strength and weakness into consideration, and since the teams are constantly shuffling, characters will work differently with different people, so he'll need to renew his bank of knowledge every match, and this takes time. He'll needs to observe, analyze, formulate a plan, and this is even harder the further the story goes because he eventually faces against people way out of his league. So if you came here expecting the mc to easily beat his much stronger opponents and land a hat trick every match and be the MVP every time, then you're in the wrong series. Go watch Prince of Tennis or Solo Leveling if you want a power fantasy.
Art: 9/10
The art is gorgeous and action scenes flowed well and are easy to keep track of. I never had any difficulty keeping track of the ball or character positions. What the author did amazing was foreshadow through the use of brilliantly portrayed birdeye view of the field. For example, we'd be shown a birdeye view of the field, then the next scene we'd see the protagonist thinking of where the ball may land and what's the best angle to shoot it from. If we paid attention to the birdeye view, we're actually able to deduct it ourselves and predict accurately where the ball might land, who the characters might pass to, and which character is in the best position to shoot. I'm a complete soccer noob yet even I'm able to make these accurate predictions. (You might not get what I mean here until you actually read it and saw the scenes for yourself) So if you want a better experience reading this manga, then pay attention whenever a birdeye view comes up and try to make your own predictions, see if they match the protagonist's. It just shows how great the author is at drawing the field, how knowledgeable he is when it comes to soccer and positions etc, and how Blue Lock can be read and easily understood by anyone, even those who knows nothing about soccer, like me.
Overall: 9/10
I tried to describe Blue Lock as spoiler-free as possible. But if I were to add spoilers, just know that you'd be even more intrigued and want to read it. So give it a try. Blue Lock has already surpassed Haikyuu for me and if the anime adaptation follows the manga, then it will for sure make a name for itself among the anime community. The art in the manga is so good and I don't know if the anime is able to replicate it to a T or enhance it, so if you want to read the manga rather than wait for the anime to air, by all means go ahead. The manga is an amazing experience due to the art and how well the scenes flowed from one to another. But if you want to watch the anime first, then that's fine too. Imo the anime will adapt the best part of the manga so you're not exactly losing anything by choosing the anime over the manga, as long as they adapt it right.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
![]()
Sep 16, 2022
As the synopsis says, it's a collection of stories set in Genshin's world featuring various characters. The stories are all quite short, around 10 pages or so, but they're fun to read nonetheless. The regisvine one is my favorite. All it did was show Aether, Mona, Diluc, Xinyan, Klee, Keqing, and Albedo ganging up on it and unleashing their ultimate attacks so you'd expect it to be boring but it was hilarious af cause we got to see it from the regisvine's POV and it showed its inner thoughts and how it was on the verge of tears when they came back for a 2nd
...
round and then left saying "I ran out of resin for the day" and the regisvine was like "So I suffered for nothing!???" this poor thing XD. I also love how they gave nearly every character a chance to shine, like my girl Xinyan! And they're all in character too! It's interesting seeing interactions between characters you'd never expect to see, like Barbara teaching Fischl how to be idolly cute, Ganyu playing Xinyan's guitar, actual HuTao and Qiqi interactions...etc. Unfortunately only Mondstadt and Liyue characters were shown but I'm sure we'll get to see Inazuma and Sumeru characters in future anthologies. Anyway, if you're a Genshin fan you should definitely give this a read! It's a solid 7.5 but since it's MAL I'll round it up to 8.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
![]()
Jun 24, 2022
If I were to rate this as an adaptation, I'd give it a 3 for being extremely bad. But if i were to rate it as an anime-only, then it'd be a 7. And since this review is for anime-onlys, I'll go with my latter ratings.
Story: 7/10 Story is good. The adaptation is poor so all amazing and shocking moments in the manga became just mediocre in the anime. Plus, the arc where this series really started to soar for me wasn't adapted yet, so for now it's a 7/10.
Art: 7/10 Not terrible, not great either. So many of Yuuichi's evil faces in the manga
...
got absolutely destroyed and downgraded that it's honestly sad and disappointing to see.
Sound: 4/10 You can barely hear any ost in the episodes. So many conversations have no background music. It's boring af.
Character: 6/10 Side characters haven't been developed yet this early in the series. The only one well-developed and well-written and entertaining to watch is Yuuichi, the protagonist, so that's why I'm giving this a 6. If the later arcs are adapted, this score would rise after the two female characters get their respective development.
Enjoyment: 7/10 I'm a manga reader so I know even though the adaptation is bad the story is still good and Yuuichi is a fun character to watch and certain twists and enjoyable to see on screen. That's why I still enjoyed this anime.
Overall: 7/10 You have no idea how much I wanted to give this a 4/10 due to how disappointed I am and how insane the manga is and how it deserved way better than this absolutely dogshit of an adaptation. But if you have no interest in reading the manga and just want to watch this anime, I guess it's not THAT horrible of an experience. PS: Story doesn't pick up until episode 4-ish.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
![]()
Apr 12, 2022
This is the kind of story that's hard to tell you why it's so great without giving you major spoilers (so the best thing to do is read it and experience the greatness yourself). But I'll do the best I can to express why I love this.
Story: 9/10 I rate this highly mainly because of the writing. There's a lot of mystery in the plot and what I love the most is how the clues are everywhere if you know where to look and the reveals at the end of an arc are all foreshadowed and hinted throughout the arc if you're smart enough to
...
catch the hints. There are no asspulls or deus ex machina. For example (without spoiler), if fruits want to enter a box, then they must get rid of their colors. Apples will have to give up their red, bananas give up their yellow, and so on. But how do you get in the box without having to give up your color? Most would think it's impossible, and they wouldn't even try to think outside the box because they don't think this is important to the grand scheme of things. And then it's revealed that this, which most tend to overlook, is the key to the solution, and the only fruit that can enter the box without having to give up their color is a fruit with no color to begin with (using a metaphoric example to not spoil you).
This is the kind of plot twists they love to pull. The kind that makes you think "this isn't important. Let me focus on the more important, prominent issues" and then at the end you'll realize everything is a red herring and the real clues are staring at you in the face this whole time. Also, because of this, you can reread an arc multiple times and have a whole different experience each time. It's not only because after knowing the grand reveal, you'll be able to catch the clues that you missed the first time around, but there's also the "actors" whose "acts" can be taken in different ways if you look at them differently.
Art: 8/10 The art is great. Nothing spectacular but it fits this type of story.
Characters: 9/10 The characters is what makes this series truly shine. Every character has great character development, even the villains and side characters. No villains or opponents are thrown away after their arc is over. They can still play a major role later on, be it a friendly role, a supportive role, or another villainous role. No villain is always the villain, and I love this because it's true for real life too. Everyone plays a different role depending on the situation. Someone may be a villain for their job, but a hero for their personal life. Without spoiling much, just know that two of the best written characters were once "villains" in an arc. Heck, even the protagonist can be considered a "villain". Usually in a series with well-written side characters and villains, the protagonist tends to be kind of bland. A good example of this is Midoriya Izuku from My Hero Academia.
However, Tomodachi Game doesn't suffer from this issue. In fact, Yuuichi is just as well-written as the other characters, if not more. He is the kind of character who can't be trusted even if he's the protagonist. The author gives us just enough information for us to understand him but not enough that we would know what his motives are if he sinks into the background and lets other characters take the spotlight. Yuuichi is a sly, cunning two-faced guy who would do anything to win, even if he has to hurt his friends or play the villain. We know from his point of view that he loves his friends, but we don't know about him enough to fully trust him when he becomes a side character. When another character is the focus and we see the protagonist from an outsider's pov, it's hard to differentiate whether what he's saying and his facade is just an act or if that's really how he feels.
For example, once we went through an entire arc without seeing much of his inner thoughts. We see him lose, his plans fail, and him in distraught and have to cower to the villains. But because of his sly nature, we can't truly trust any of that. What he said could be lies, what he does can be an act. Without hearing his inner thoughts, we shouldn't take everything he does or says at face value. Even though Tomodachi Game is testing the friendship between the characters, it's also testing us readers. Which character should we trust? When should we trust them? Can even the protagonist be trusted? If he says she is a traitor, can we trust him? If he betrayed us, is he still trustworthy or not? Is the protagonist lying to us readers, or not? Did he really lose? Or is losing part of his plan? This can be applied to every single character. No one can be trusted because everyone has secrets.
This isn't the only thing that makes the characters so great, though. They all have depth and aren't just cardboard cutout like they may seem in the beginning. We have Tenji, the smart, straight-laced student. Shibe, the rich, popular, womanizer. Kokorigi, the shy, timid, cute girl. But there's much more to them that we will learn as the story progresses. No normal human being is serious all the time; they can be a serious straight-A student at school but an outgoing otaku in front of their friend. What personality they show depends on the situation and who they're around. This leads us to the character development. The process and how the author shows us these depths in these characters are extremely well-done. It's quite difficult to explain this without giving you major spoilers, but just keep in mind that nearly everyone important character gets their well-deserved development. And if you think one character is boring, just keep reading because they won't be boring for long.
Enjoyment: 10/10 I haven't read a battle royale/game kind of series that I enjoyed this much. The protagonist, Yuuichi, is one major reason why Tomodachi Game is so enjoyable. Like I mentioned before, his two-faced nature makes it hard to trust him even if he's the protagonist. This also makes it fun to watch him fail, lose, be in despair, because we know there's a chance he's just acting. This quickly becomes a game of trying to determine when he's acting and when he's not. Because there's no hint given to the readers when the protagonist is lying or acting, so we have to guess just like all the side characters participating in this game. Yuuichi is great at hiding truth in his acts, and hiding lies in his truth. Because we can't trust him, this makes the story even more engaging because we feel like we're participating in the game just like everyone else is. They have to choose which of their friend (and enemies) to trust, and we also have to choose which characters to trust. Even the protagonist isn't exempt as a suspect.
Overall: 9/10 If you like characters like Lelouch, Yagami Light, Ayanokouji Kiyotaka, and Ryuugamine Mikado, then you will definitely love Katagiri Yuuichi. If you like Death Note, Danganronpa, and Squid Game, then you'll love Tomodachi Game. This series doesn't take many chapters to get to the good part. By only chapter 7, I'm already deeply in love with it. Give it a try if you still don't quite understand why this series is so good (because it's hard to convince you without spoiling you the best parts of this mystery series), and you'll find yourself immersed in it in no time.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
![]()
Apr 12, 2022
Story: 6/10 Mediocre plot. Very predictable. Plot twists are little to none and most are poorly done. Very bland, unengaging, and unimaginative.
Art: 9/10 Honestly the only thing going for this is the art.
Character: 6/10 Not the worst but they work for a power fantasy like this. Don't take it in the wrong way though. Just like how you don't need well-written characters in hentais, you also don't need the side characters to have much depth in a power fantasy. As long as they do their job and act idiotic and make the protagonist look all-mighty powerful, then they're perfectly fine being 6/10.
Enjoyment: 7/10 This
...
is the kind of series where you just turn off your brain and enjoy watching the protagonist take down any obstacles and opponents with ease and seeing the side characters are all awed by his strength. It works for like 100 chapters or so but by the end of the series it has gotten so overused and the formula is the same never changing I eventually grew bored. Even the power fantasy is no longer enjoyable.
Overall: 7/10 If you like Demon Slayer, you'll love this. This has bad story bad characters, but great art and great enjoyment. So just turn off your brain and you'll enjoy the ride. However, if you want a better recommendation with better story, better characters, better enjoyment that doesn't diminish after dozens of chapters, and also have art that's on par with Solo Leveling, then I suggest you go check out Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
![]()
Oct 28, 2020
I admit. I totally underestimated this series. After watching 4 episodes of the anime, I was surprised at how much I'm enjoying it. I had expected it to be your average series that relied on that twist at the end of episode/chapter 1 and then went downhill after that without the element of surprise. I'd even admit I had thought the author was for sure riding on MHA's popularity by introducing a setting that's so similar to MHA and a "main male lead" who's basically Izuku born with a quirk. So when I decided to check out the manga, I was ready to just skim
...
through and drop it after having seen what it has to offer. To my surprise, it has everything it needs to make me enjoy it. The best way to summarize it is Death Note meets My Hero Academia meets Among Us: The Animation.
Story: 8/10
It relies on a simple concept: a talentless protagonist is sent undercover to a school full of talented kids to slaughter them from the inside. For the first few chapters, I thought it was going to be a monster (murder) of the day type of story. Nana finds a new target, gets close to them, finds out their talent, kills them, Kyoya suspects her but can’t find any evidence to support his claim. But then I was proven wrong when these first few murders actually have foreshadowings for later twists that I never saw coming (and they totally make sense when you think about them), and the causation of the events are all connected and make sense. Nothing just happens for no reasons. The methods used to kill the characters aren’t asspulls and can be logically foreseen with all the pieces presented to us. It’s like a mystery game of solving the murder except we’re the killer and we’re trying to use the information available to us to kill these OP characters.
The author isn’t afraid to push Nana into a corner that seems like there’s no way out, and then come up with a brilliant way to get her out of it. It’s like Death Note where Light and L’s cat and mouse games often ended up with Light in a pinch and it seemed like it’s game over, only for him to come up with a way out that’s so simple and effective yet we didn’t foresee that. I also like how the author isn’t afraid to change settings to further the worldbuilding and raise the stakes. There are still many things that haven’t been explained yet about this world and how it works, which is why I merely gave the story an 8/10.
Art: 8/10
It’s a simple art style that fits the type of story it’s telling. It can be cutesy and bubbly when Nana is blending in, and can also be horrifying and chilling when Nana’s being murderous and savage. It reminds me a lot of Kaguya-sama: Love is War, where the art is good and cute most of the time, but can also make the manga seem like a horror manga whenever Kaguya’s been all yandere-like.
Character: 8/10
The characters started out as your usual tropey characters. We have the cute pink-haired girl who’s secretly a psycho, a kind, naive girl who always puts others before herself no matter how much they bullied her, we have a playboy with long hair, a violent guy with a fire power, a boy with ‘no power’ who’s bullied by others… (now how many times have we seen these before?) I expected these characters to be like MHA’s Class-1A where they all have one or two personality traits unique to them and get no development afterwards (except a few key characters). This is not the case with Talentless Nana. Characters are affected by their situations, and their goals, motivations, and personalities also change accordingly.
Nana, surprisingly, got the most character development. What I thought was plot holes (how many of the estimated kill counts don’t make sense, yet Nana believed them) were brought up later on. She went from your typical pink-haired psycho killer to a girl who gradually began to suspect her orders and superiors after being touched by the kindness of others and drowned in guilt after seeing the sacrifices others are willing to make for her. The changes weren’t instant. Nana went through denial, hesitation, acceptance, and finally rebellion. Her development made her more realistic, and also more likeable. I found myself rooting for her more later on than I had in the beginning. She’s not just a mindless puppet. She’s her own person and has her own view of the world. And even if it contradicts what she was told, she was willing to put her bet on her own judgement and take control of her own life.
Aside from our protagonist, some of the side characters also received developments of their own. I can’t explain in detail without spoiling, but just know that a certain character actually defied their cliche personality traits after being affected by certain events (people change, what a surprise) which led to them taking a darker route and playing a completely different role than I had expected from them.
Also, there are nearly no fanservice so that’s a plus. And the tiiiiny bits of fanservice (literally just Nana and Kyoya taking off their shirt, and a few others) all make sense. They’re not your typical “ahh i tripped and face-planted in your boobs”. They all happen for a reason and are integral to the plot.
Enjoyment: 10/10
Let’s just say… I expected nothing and got everything.
Overall: 8.5/10 (but since it’s MAL I had to put 8/10)
This story has MHA’s setting and characters but with actual development, Death Note’s cat and mouse game between characters who are more relatable than the #1 detective in the world and a sociopathic straight-A student with a God complex, and Among Us’s “there’s an imposter among us!” concept. I caught up with it in a day after watching episode 4 of the anime. The last time I was this into a manga was when I read “My Home Hero”, which is honestly a masterpiece imo.
Don’t judge this manga by just the first few chapters, or by the cover and synopsis alone. You will find yourself enjoying more than you expected, and you will also grow to love the characters (Nana especially). The twists are unexpected but if you piece together what’s been shown to you, you can foresee the twists 90% of the time. They’re not asspulls, or too difficult to understand. They’re the perfect amount of difficulty for the readers. You’re not going to see intricate plans like most of Yagami Light’s plans, but that doesn’t make Nana’s plans here any less entertaining to watch. They’re more...suited for average people like you and me who don’t have an IQ of 150+.
Nana also isn’t a sociopath like Light. She’s just a normal girl brainwashed into seeing the talented kids as the enemy. Deep down, she still cares and can sympathize with others, though she would even fool herself into believing she doesn’t.
And lastly, I ship Kyoya x Nana to hell and back! Though there hasn’t been any romantic developments between them, you can’t stop me from liking their rivalry. So if nothing else, ‘enemies to friends to lovers’ shippers should check out this manga so you have one more ship to ship.
PS: those of you who contributed to this manga getting such a low score needs to reevaluate your decision because this manga deserves at the very least a 7/10.
PPS: If you come in expecting a MHA version of Death Note, then you're going to be disappointed because this isn't supposed to be like Death Note. This story isn't solely a battle of wits, so don't expect every single character to be smart. They're not, just like in real life there're some people who are so stupid it isn't even possible. Death Note casts are mainly the police, FBI, or geniuses, while in Talentless Nana the casts are all just high school kids. So don't think ill of this story solely because certain characters are stupid or not able to piece together clues.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
![]()
Mar 5, 2019
This is the most memorable idol animes I've seen. I watched this when I was young and even now I can remember everything about this anime. Like what happened in each episode, the voice of each characters, their hobbies, personality, pet, appearance, song, backstory... And it's been many years since I've watched this, so it really takes a lot for me to remember them so well. That's what makes this the best idol anime (imo) ever.
Story 7/10: The story is simple. A producer helping an idol group from a poor company rise to the top. There is no rival idol groups, or media scandals, or
...
many inner conflicts between members, but this story doesn't need all that. That's for more serious, seinen idol animes like Perfect Blue. Not every story needs to be depressing and remind you how the real world is a horrible place in order to be a "good" idol story. A simple story depicting 12 girls struggling with their own life and their idol career can also be amazing and enjoyable.
Art 8/10: Character designs are perfect for their personality and they're very memorable too. They're simple (especially the eyes) but somehow each member manages to stand out from the others. It's like Mob Psycho 100. The art isn't the best but it fits the story perfectly.
Sound 9/10: Voice actors are great. Songs are great. I still have the opening song in my phone right now lol
Character 8/10: Each characters have their own struggles. Even though all 12 members of the idol group were introduced in a single episode, I didn't feel overwhelmed and each of them have one or two quirks that make them very distinguishable and memorable. Their development and backstory were brought to light as the story goes on. And in just 12 episodes, the anime managed to get me attached to every single one of them (even the producer lol). There's no best girl. All of them are best girls! I also like how this anime isn't afraid to bring physical pain to the characters xD
Enjoyment 9/10: I've watched this anime who knows how many times, not just for the songs, but also for the characters. I love watching Yayoi's episode when I eat because watching her eat makes me hungry every time. I love Azusa's episode because of how ridiculous it is and that makes me laugh every single time. I love whenever Miki shows up because she just has that aura to her that makes her really likeable. I love Hibiki and her hamster and watching them communicate is one of the best part about this show. I love the twins, the tsundere Iori, Takane, Makoto...etc, hell, even the boy idol group and faceless president and the producer himself. All of them are amazing.
Overall 9/10: This is the first idol anime I've watched and the best. I don't know why Love Live is so popular. From what I've seen, it really isn't all that great compared to this. Their songs are good but their characters aren't as memorable as this. The best part about this show is its characters. You will fall in love with every one of them.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
Feb 11, 2019
I see so many people bashing this anime and I just can't understand. The art is nice, animation is decent. The girls look cute, and Fuuka has a unique design. Music is okay, but most importantly, it's ECCHI.
It's an ECCHI anime with BOOBS and PANTIE SHOTS. What more can you ask for? Such a magnificent anime with those glorious boobs and beautiful panty shots and you guys still aren't satisfied? This Studio took the time and effort to add in as many cringe-worthy cliché ecchi scenes as possible in so little episodes in order to please the audience's holy eyes and all of you dare
...
to blame them for those heavenly scenes?
Get off of your high pedestal and just enjoy the ecchi.
Reviewer’s Rating: 4
What did you think of this review?
Nice
0
Love it
0
Funny
0
Confusing
0
Well-written
0
Creative
0Show all
|
