The only downside is probably that it takes a while (like 6 episodes) to get from only light hearted comedy to full-on drama.
In short, this is what I think made this anime really special:
- There is a lot of story packed into the 12 episodes of the anime. This keeps it from getting boring.
- There is something in the anime for everyone: comedy/slice of life/romance/fantasy(ish)/guy relationships/girl relationships/drama.
- ALL the characters are very deep, and completely loveable. I think the thing that made this series so emotional but light-hearted at the same time was the innocent and sensitive characters.
- The anime is quite unpredictable since it is so unique, and by the end when a certain character falls in love with a certain character, it leaves you shocked and overly happy at the same time. And you get to watch those character's friends give advice to those characters on how to progress in their relationship.
- The beautiful art that suits the genre of the anime really well
- All the characters get a lot of screening time, so you do learn a lot about them and not just the 2 main characters.
- The backstories behind each character is only slowly revealed throughout the whole anime, and you only know their full backstories by the very end of the last episode.
- A lot of character development happens. Some of the characters undergo a complete transformation from the beginning to the end of the anime (which will shock you and make you laugh), and some of them learn to accept things that they could not in the past. Hence the 10/10 for my character rating.
- Overall, the anime is totally unpredictable and original which I think is the source of all its other good qualities. The romantic relationship that forms is overly adorable (not annoying like some slow developing relationships, or unromantic because the characters aren't very deep) and its concept of eight grader syndrome - "Chuunibyou" is interesting and hilarious, and possibly for some people, quite relatable to.
