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Dec 19, 2017
TL;DR: If the ending of a show is more important to you than its other aspects, then watch Juuni Taisen. Otherwise, skip it.
Juuni Taisen (JT) is a battle royale anime in which 12 participants, each representing one of the 12 animals in the Chinese zodiac calendar, battle it out for the sake of having one wish granted. JT tries to do away some of the ‘fluff’ that other battle royale anime (such as Fate Zero, for example) have and the entirety of JT, except for flashbacks, takes place over the course of one night. That being said, while JT does provide some novelty, parts of
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it are mired in bad writing, abysmally inconsistent visual quality, and pacing that is all over the place. Some of these aspects are somewhat tempered by a redeeming final episode. I’m not going to compare it with anime like Fate Zero because JT is an entirely different beast.
Let's focus first on the few things this anime does well: This anime is good at initially subverting expectations. In other words, it initially goes against the viewers' expectations about what will happen, which makes for a few entertaining "did they really just do that" moments. It also captures the battle royale aspect better than other related anime, there is no clear protagonist until the end. Almost no character has plot armor, and the times plot armor is used, it is justified in the story. The final episode is also a surprisingly good conclusion to this story and adds many of the elements that were missing up to that point. The final episode is decent enough for me to increase JT’s rating from a 4 to a 5.
Now moving on to what it does badly: Everything else. Lets start from the worst. The anime sucks at foreshadowing. It makes everything too obvious. The moderately savvy anime viewer can figure out the big ‘plot twist’ from the very start. Most anime viewers can very easily figure out the order of the deaths very early on, and also figure out who has the plot armor. Sure, this was intended, but that doesn’t make it any better.
While the anime is good at initially subverting viewer expectations, this gimmick becomes old quite fast. Not only can you expect JT to try to surprise you, after the first few episodes you can also guess with reasonable accuracy as to how it will try to surprise you.
Regarding the pacing, JT gives almost each character a backstory in the form of flashbacks. The flashbacks are not enough to flesh out a lot of the characters, which I don’t actually mind, since considering the 12 episode length, it is unreasonable to expect JT to fully develop each of the 12 characters. The flashbacks are a problem because they really mess with the pacing of the show. Some flashbacks are very short. Some take up whole episodes. Like many anime with a cast of characters this large, some characters receive decent characterization and some receive very little. Most of the characters in JT fall in the latter category, and even when some characters do receive characterization, it isn’t always very good.
The pacing and narrative suffer from issues that are independent of the flashbacks as well. A built up final confrontation is ended through a contrivance, leading to a very anti-climatic end to the tournament. It also has several plot holes regarding that confrontation, and inconsistencies regarding a very crucial character's powers.
JT also has issues with world building, it isn’t able to decide on how it wants to incorporate supernatural elements in its narrative and in its characters. In this tournament you have characters with shitty powers like not needing to reload a gun, characters with no powers, characters with useful powers like being able to fly, and characters with stupidly overpowered abilities. This destroys any semblance of the battle royale feel that JT is going for, because some characters have almost no chance of winning.
And then you have the production quality. The anime starts off fine, but the production quality really, really dips after the middle. Clearly the issues of pacing showed in the budget as well. The visual quality is all over the place after the initial half.
However, despite all these issues, JT does have one of the more interesting finales I have seen so far. I don’t feel like I wasted my time watching JT, although it is far from the best, and if I could go back in time, I wouldn't watch it. If you like the destination rather than the journey, watch JT, otherwise skip it, ‘cause the journey ain’t that pretty. Hell, one of the reasons I like the finale is because what came before it was bad. It's like being glad that you've reached some horrible war-torn place because your plane ride was so bad.
Reviewer’s Rating: 5
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May 29, 2017
What initially attracted me to Kakegurui (gambling addict) was the art. The eyes and facial expressions hinted at characters with over the top personalities with undertones of insanity. I decided to give it a go after reading the basic plot description and Kakegurui proved to be such an addictive read that I read 41 chapters in two days, which is a big deal if you consider that I'm not really into manga. This is the first manga I've ever properly gotten into. I've tried reading others but dropped them too quickly to bother adding them to my manga list.
Kakegurui's setup is very simple. It is
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basically a tournament-style manga with our protagonist gambling through increasingly elaborate games against increasingly skilled opponents with increasingly higher stakes, all set within a school with a hierarchical structure corresponding to the gambling ability of its student body. Despite the simplistic setup Kakegurui is extremely entertaining and a very easy read, and there are hints of a more elaborate story.
I like how, regarding its characters' personalities, Kakegurui walks the thin line of having them be over the top enough to be entertaining, but not too bombastic to be a detriment to the story. Too many stories do not treat their characters seriously enough (I'm looking at you, Danganronpa). Perhaps no better example for this is our protagonist, Yumeko Jyabami, the titular gambling addict, who is definitely one of the highlights of the manga.
The other main characters are also somewhat well written. The side-characters are one off stereotypes, and while I don't like that, that is pretty much par for the course. Some characters are set up to provide schadenfreude to the reader when they inevitably get taken down.
The art is pretty good. It really complements the story, and the characters' frame of mind.
Kakegurui isn't perfect though. It has quite a bit of injected homo-eroticism (between the female characters, obviously) for the purposes of emphasizing the deviancy of a certain character and for providing a subtler form of fanservice. There are other minor issues regarding the characterization of side characters as well; most of them come off as caricatures with very little semblance, if any, of depth.
But despite that, Kakegurui is incredibly entertaining. Would recommend it for fans of mysteries, thrillers and unconventional protagonists.
Regarding the upcoming anime adaptation in summer, for people looking to get into the manga, I would recommend waiting for the anime first, watching it, and then picking up where the anime leaves off. Kakegurui's story and setup would lend itself extremely well to animation (unless the anime just plain sucks), and your enjoyment of the anime will be reduced if you already know what is going to happen next.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Feb 1, 2017
KonoSuba 2 had potential to be much better than what we've gotten so far , but it gets bogged down by bad art and animation, characters who are mere caricatures, and an inability to decide what it wants to be.
The story is a direct continuation of the previous season. The first episode follows Kazuma as he gets arrested and tries to clear his name. This whole season will essentially follow Kauma and his adventuring band as they face (many) hiccups along their ultimate goal: defeating the demon king. A pretty standard goal for a fantasy setting, but we all know that KonoSuba differs when it
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comes to its execution.
The characters are what made the original season of KonoSuba so unexpectedly entertaining. KonoSuba is a parody of anime set in a fantasy world (see: Sword Art Online), and most of the entertainment comes from how the character tropes from that setting are either subverted or exaggerated. Part of the reason why the first season seemed so entertaining was because of the novelty; what KonoSuba was doing felt like a breath of fresh air in a stale room filled with innumerable "set in a fantasy/game world" anime . However, by now, the novelty has worn off. KonoSuba is doing the same thing with its characters as it did in the first season, but it is no longer as entertaining as it was.
The characters have a few quirks that provide for most of the comedy in season 2, but by now you should've noticed how the characters' personalities are defined almost only by their quirks and nothing else, which starts to become stale. In fact, most if not all of the characters can be summed up in one sentence. Buxom masochistic knight. Chuunibyou explosion loving loli wizard. And so on. So far, there is little character development to speak of. I know that that is par for the course for comedies. Character development isn't very funny, so it is sacrificed for comedic antics, but KonoSuba is not a plot-less show. As the plot develops without the characters significantly developing, the discord between the character and plot development becomes more and more apparent. And mixing comedy and character development is not impossible, it has been done before.
Moving on to the art and animation, this might actually be the worst part of the anime. The art was a significant step down from season 1, even for my untrained eyes. The episodes aren't consistent either in terms of art quality. Talking specifically about the character designs, they aren't detailed enough. From certain angles, the characters have a shadow of a nose (which is just a speck) instead of having an actual nose. And the boob sizes were unnerving and unnecessary. I was left wondering how all those women weren't wearing back braces to deal with the back pain caused by the weight of those boobs. You may think i'm exaggerating, but some of the characters had boobs that were bigger than their heads and had the movements of sturdy water balloons. It was comical, and not in a good way. The anime isn't following the source material in this regard, so that isn't the reason. The art otherwise is more or less the same it was in season 1. Bright colors with each main character having a particular color scheme, and pretty backgrounds.
The music was decent. The OP is upbeat, the ED is lullabylike, and both fit the show well. The other situational tracks aren't memorable, but they serve their purpose well.
One more point of contention before I wrap up this preview is how KonoSuba is slowly (but surely) going from a parody of the fantasy anime genre to becoming one of the anime it parodies. Assuming you consider parodies to be separate, it is possible to be both the thing you parody and a parody of it (Seto no Hanayome did it, and it did it well), but my first impression from season 1 of KonoSuba was that it was a clear cut parody. Let me clarify: KonoSuba slowly starts incorporating those fantasy anime tropes that it previously lambasted, and rather than a parody it starts becoming a comedic anime set in the fantasy world.
To conclude, I know I may have criticized it quite a bit, but KonoSuba 2 is so far still a decent show which will definitely be a source of entertainment for people who enjoyed the first season. I know I will finish watching it (eventually) when it finishes. I just think it could've been much, much better than what we have so far.
Edit: I ended up dropping KonoSuba 2
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Jan 26, 2017
I was looking forward to this show. Not because of the content, the content seemed to be your standard toolkit for escapism and wish fulfillment for a certain subset of the viewer base (the opening makes that very clear), but because of the fact that this is the only original anime that I know of to adopt the omnibus format. The omnibus format is essentially where the anime diverges from one point in time to show multiple 'what-if' scenarios. In Seiren's case, the format shows us multiple arcs, each independent from each other, where the MC becomes involved with a certain girl in each arc.
Seiren
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is more or less an indirect sequel to Amagami SS (which I dropped), an anime that adopted the same format. I have to admit, Seiren is better than I expected. The story was compelling enough to make me want to watch it; watching it didn't feel like a chore. The tone is quite lighthearted and considering the tone of Amagami, we can safely assume this will continue to be the case. I also liked the direction the fourth episode took (the concluding episode of the first arc).
The characters actually had some semblance of depth to them. Sure, a lot of the moments had me rolling my eyes, but hell, I feel like rolling my eyes when I think of my teenage years, so it's only natural i'd feel the same when watching an anime set in high school. If anything, i'd say that is a sign of good writing.
The fan service wasn't as off putting as I thought it would be. It actually didn't feel that tacked on, which was surprising considering they seemed to have (if memory serves) ramped up the fan service from Amagami
The character designs have the same problem as Amagami. Some girls, particularly the minor characters, are drawn so similar sometimes that it is hard to tell them apart (especially since you don't see certain characters often). The art is good otherwise.
The music hardly had a presence. It might be this series' weakest point. The OP and ED are nothing to write home about either.
To conclude, I think that Seiren might turn out to be better than Amagami. I don't think it'll be anything that special, but I hope it leads us to getting more original anime that use the omnibus format.
***Update: I ended up dropping Seiren. It was just mediocore.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Sep 3, 2016
KonoSuba is a perfect case of the writer trying to have her cake and eat it too.
The initial volumes seem to be a parody of the many fantasy settings and harems found in other LNs. And it was done pretty well. The protagonist and his companions each had a distinct personality, and the hijinks they got up to could be pretty funny, even though I think their full effect is felt much better through animation.
However, in the later volumes, the novel falls prey to the tropes and cliches it was initially parodying. That too in a pretty blatant way, though the serial nature of the
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novel might be to blame for that.
For example, at the end of one of the volumes, one of the female characters comes up to the main character Kazuma, and tells him she wants to have his kids. Now, this is pretty clearly a 'tease', a hook to get the reader to buy the next volume.
It reads like the author knows exactly what she is doing, and is making use of it to get more male readers. There are three types of stories: stories the author thinks would be good and able to stand on their own (see: Les Miserables), stories the author writes as a form of wish fulfillment for themselves (see: Mikael Blomkovist in the Millennium trilogy), and stories the author writes as a form of wish fulfillment for the readers (see: 50 shades of Grey). Most stories are a combination of these three (as are the aforementioned books). KonoSuba is clearly leaning towards the third one, and I think that is a shame. It cannot really effectively parody what it itself has become.
Still, it has its moments I suppose. Don't let this review dissuade you from reading it, just know what you're getting into, and don't set your expectations too high. Nothing wrong with waiting for the upcoming anime, having read the LN and having watched the season already out, I have to say the anime is better, or rather, Konosuba's premise, characters and jokes transfer over to anime much better.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Jan 19, 2016
A disclaimer before the review: This show is a personal experience, and I really recommend that you watch it without reading any reviews about it, without any information, really. The only reason you might have to not like this show is that it deals with some serious issues, so if you don't like that sort of anime, it might not be for you. Of course, it goes without saying that this review reflects my opinions.
On to the spoiler free, actual review. Welcome to the NKH, or NHK for short, is without doubt one of the best anime series I have ever watched. Watching this
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anime made me realize why so many protagonists in other anime are bland slates for the viewer to project on to: because it is a safe decision. Watching the protagonist of the NHK makes the viewer feel uncomfortable, which some shows probably want to avoid. The protagonist of the NHK is anything but blank, he is very pathetic, but very relate-ably pathetic. He is a hikikomori (basically an agarophobe, he has a phobia of going out of his apartment). Throughout the anime, we get to listen to his inner monologue, which feels a lot like something that an actual person would think (which makes sense, since the author of the novel the anime is based is also a hikikomori).
Most people, at some point in their life, have had thoughts like the protagonist of NHK (though, of course, not to that extent). A lot of viewers will see a bit of themselves in the protagonist. Out of all the slice of life anime, this has to be the best and most realistic one. No one's problems are solved out of the blue. NHK is one of the few anime where I didn't hate any of the main characters. Most of them were relatable and their interactions and motivations were nicely fleshed out. At the core of NHK lies the message that life isn't perfect, but that doesn't mean it isn't worth continuing.
The music and the art have been used very well for the purposes of storytelling. The lyrics of the songs match the situations they are presented very well.
What really stood out about this shows was that it never really tried to appease the viewer at the risk of compromising its quality. That is something you do not see often in shows, and this show is definitely better for it. I was quite impressed by this. Watching this show might make it harder to return to watching your standard assembly line anime.
I personally think that NHK is a work of art. I know that term is thrown around a lot, but I really think it holds true for the NHK. I'm sure that it even has provided some impetus for some people to bring about some sort of positive change in their lives due to how realistically it deals with certain issues. I personally knew about this anime for a long time, but I delayed watching it because it seemed like such a chore to watch a 24 episode slice of life anime. It wasn't, and I'm glad I watched this anime.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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Dec 31, 2015
Soap Opera: The Anime.
Recommended if you really liked Anohana, Nago no Asukara, or if you are new to anime. Don't read this review in that case, you might end up hating the anime before you watch it. If you don't meet that criteria or don't care, then carry on.
I hated this anime. Initially, I liked it, but with certain developments in the anime, I became increasingly frustrated. I had trouble choosing between a 2 and a 3 for the rating. I chose 3 to be a bit generous. Take all the unadulterated cliches and tropes from television dramas (soap operas), convert them to
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anime form, and you get this anime. Most of the top reviews have given this anime a 9 or 8, and while that is completely fine, I wrote this review to present an opinion from the other side of the spectrum. I found this anime to be horrible. This review will contain some minor spoilers.
Well, lets get the good stuff out of the way. This anime had some very nice art and animation, fair music, and one or two decent characters. That is pretty much it.
Now for the meaty part of the review. While this anime is considered a romance, it also meets the criteria for being a harem. The main issues were with the progression, pacing and the characters. For example, one character's motivations are never properly explained, her behavior just glossed over, and her character does a complete 180 without it being really explained. The main character himself is very bland and obtuse as is expected from harem protagonists, with little real interaction with most of the heroines (well, except one), and is kind of an asshole. The other characters and their motivations aren't fleshed out well either. The anime lost all tension by episode 9. which was not a good sign for a drama. Some people say that the way the anime ended was unpredictable... but it was literally hinted at in the start of the anime. I haven't seen soap operas, but I have read about them, and all the signs were clear about which heroine the MC was going to choose if the anime chose to be your standard predictable drama. I thought it would do something different, and it did; this show managed to be worse than all of those anime with pointless and forced drama that I've watched so far. Over the course of watching this show, I felt it was somehow 'different'. Little did I know that that difference was not positive. Also, the ending sucked. The writers practically tied up everything with a neat little bow and tried to assuage all the viewers. It felt incredibly forced. The anime tried to be 'intellectual' and philosophical using the metaphor of a chicken who tried to fly. Didn't really work that well, in my opinion. It seemed like an attempt to give the impression of depth without there actually being any.
Over the course of watching this show, I would often mute the volume and try to see if the things that were happening made sense without the music (the anime plays some nice music at the really stupid parts to try to fool the viewer into not noticing the stupidity of those parts). They did not. Now, of course, some of us (including me) often watch fictional dramas to be 'fooled'.... but this anime, ugh. It failed in even doing that properly.
While the art was mostly nice, the use of CGI for extras was really unnerving. Also, I couldn't help thinking that such nice art was wasted on such a horrible story and characters.
I'm not one to make use of hyperbole, but I hope I never have to watch an anime like this again. I'm going to avoid the drama and romance genre for a while because of this anime. You've been warned. Happy New Year.
Reviewer’s Rating: 3
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Dec 18, 2015
OK, I'm going to keep this review short. Three things to note about this anime: it is a romantic slice of life anime, it has a proper ending (no loose endings), and it isn't your standard romance anime. I assume you've read the anime synopsis on MAL.
I was honestly surprised at how good Plastic Memories was. I didn't go in with a lot of expectations and romance anime are a hit or miss with me. This anime respects the viewer. It is a romantic slice of life anime with some themes concerning death and loss (that aren't heavy handed) with which you could draw real
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world parallels, actual romantic development, doesn't make use of any cheap gimmicks, and main characters you don't end up hating. For example, quite a lot of romance anime make use of twists or emotional music to create more tension or emotion than there actually is. Plastic Memories doesn't do that. It depends on its characters for emotion and tension, and succeeds. A lot of reviews criticize this anime for being linear and predictable, but here's the thing, it never tried to be unpredictable. Being "predictable" is a bad thing if an anime actually tried to be unpredictable; however, the direction of Plastic Memories was very clear from the start, and honestly, that was quite refreshing. It didn't try to fool the viewer with cheap drama, and I really liked that.
Plastic memories has one of the more realistic romances I've seen in anime (which is kinda funny, considering the fictional setting). Its characters, while some of them were a little cliched, were quite good too, especially considering the amount of episodes this anime had to develop them. The character development was gradual, instead of being unrealistically sudden. Given the vast world this anime took place in, it could have easily lost its focus, but it maintained its focus on being a romance anime.
The sound and art were decent too. I really liked how the ending part of the opening changed almost every episode.
I highly recommend this anime, especially if you like romances. Even if you don't like Plastic Memories, at least you'll see that not all romances have to make use of the same tropes and cliches concerning plot. It didn't blow me away, but it is a very solid romance anime.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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May 30, 2015
Before reading this, bear in mind that a review by its very definition is supposed to include the writer’s opinion. While it is impossible to be completely objective in writing this review, I’ll back up my opinions of this show with appropriate reasoning.
Story 7/10
The premise of Nagi no Asakura is that humans originally began as sea dwellers, having a thin membrane called Ena around them that enabled them to breath underwater. However, some humans started settling on the surface where they discarded their Ena. Thus, two different communities were created. Our story beings in the underwater sea village Shioshishio. The local middle school
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is being closed for some reason, which results in four middle schoolers having to go to school on the surface. They face issues adjusting to the surface, and the interaction shown between them and the surface dwellers seems to be a very clear reflection of the differences between people of different cultures. They even have the equivalents of racial epithets; 'pig' for the land dwellers and 'fish' for the sea dwellers. With the basic synopsis out of the way, lets try to evaluate the story. The premise is quite unique, and the relations between the sea and surface dwellers, and their differences, provide an interesting dynamic in the start.
However, it seems as if the major plot developments only took place to make the already contrived love triangle(s?) even more contrived. Its more of a love hexagon than a triangle. Never have I seen or heard of such a messy and silly love triangle in any form of media. At a first glance, it seems that the anime wanted to drive home the message that change should be accepted, and that some things are beyond our control, but in the end the message devolved into shounen style antics which basically say that screaming and willpower can change anything and everything. The ending was conclusive as far as dramas and romances go.
Characters 5/10
While the anime has multiple main characters, Hikari is very obviously the protagonist. He gets the most screen time, and the viewer gets to hear his inner thoughts. The main reason I’m giving this anime such a low rating in the characters department is Hikari. Hikari was the typical stubborn, loudmouthed, determined protagonist that has been done to death in anime, and frankly, I find myself quite tired of them. The other characters weren’t bad, but they didn’t particularly stand out either, with almost every other main character having the annoying tendency to be a martyr for the sake of others, only to create more misunderstandings. Though Tsumugu did serve as a very good foil for Hikari. One thing very annoying in this anime about the main characters was that when a character would hear anything that they didn’t want to hear, they would … run away. It happened too many times to even count, and it ended up being extremely annoying . While I am aware of the fact that this is a fantasy anime, a drama relies on the characters and the interactions between them being realistic and natural. In this case, they were unrealistic, and felt quite unnatural . Who runs away at hearing something a little uncomfortable?! Yes, they pull it once or twice in drama heavy animes, but it was done wayyyy too many times here. One good thing about the main characters was that they weren't forgetful. Despite having so many main characters, it was surprisingly easy to keep track of them all. Furthermore, the side characters were great. They performed their role of aiding the character development of the main characters quite well.
Sound 8/10
The sound really made this anime seem better than it really was. While I found the rest of the soundtrack to be well done but forgetful, the first ending is one of the best endings that I have ever heard to an anime. During the first half, as the episode would near the end, you could hear the beginnings of this song and given the situation, it just went perfectly with the anime. The voice acting was pretty good though, although I personally found the voice for Manaka to be a bit too childlike and high pitched at times.
Art 8/10
The art was very colorful, and quite beautifully animated. I really liked the underwater sections. However, it was also a bit too cutesy, with the characters having very huge eyes, and the females having an inexplicable, constant blush on their cheeks.
Enjoyment 5/10
By the end, it became a chore to watch this anime. I had to finish it, because I was invested in the story, but I grew increasingly frustrated by the characters by each passing episode, especially by Hikari, which sucked since he was the main character. Oftentimes, it felt that the characters liked Hikari only because the plot required them to like him. I tried to like this anime, but I really couldn’t. While I wouldn’t go as far as to say that I regret watching this anime, watching it felt somewhat of a waste.
Overall 6/10
Nagi no Asukara is primarily a drama romance, with fantasy only existing to serve both these story elements. It had an interesting story , but the whole love hexagon felt pretty convoluted. There were many cliches in this anime that are unfortunately found way too often in dramas. It has some pretty art and interesting music which serves to make this anime look better than it actually is, but I found some parts of the story and a few character to be lacking in depth. It also suffered from poor pacing in the start. However, viewers who aren't annoyed by your typical protagonist, and generally like drama heavy romances will probably like this anime. I personally think that that the 8.43 avg rating this anime has on MAL is way too generous.
PS: Feel free to pm me if you think I missed something in the anime, or if there was something really wrong with the way I wrote this review
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Mar 25, 2015
I disliked Shuffle! so much that it has prompted me to write my first review. That does not mean that you will dislike it, but if you've seen one harem anime, you might end up being bored by Shuffle! The review will contain some minor spoilers, but nothing major or explicit.
Story: 3
Let’s start off with the premise. In a world where Devils, Gods, and Humans coexist, a mediocre guy has 5 girls fall in love with him for pretty stupid reasons. Sounds like your standard harem tromp with a supernatural element thrown in. This premise had so much potential; the interactions between the three worlds
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and their inhabitants could have been developed and fleshed out instead of providing fillers and needless drama (24 episodes were more than enough for that). They could have answered the question about how the gates between the three worlds opened (God knows they had the time to do that). However, we never even get a glimpse of the world of Gods, and just some episodes where we get to see very little of the world of the Devils. The differences between the three races are never specified, except for the fact that Gods and Devils can use magic. I know it's a harem, but adding these elements would not detract from the original story. Some of the developments in the story seemed to happen just for the purpose of drama and they were so easily resolved (read: cliché) that it made you wonder why they occurred in the first place. After around 11 episodes, the anime starts feeling a bit too much like a visual novel, with the MC doing each girl's route (with annoying numbers of pantie shots thrown in each). I know it is a VN adaptation, but it felt TOO much like a VN compared to other adaptations. I will admit, some developments the final episodes were surprising (the good kind) and they made sense within the framework of the story.
Art:
The anime is a bit dated, so I cannot really comment on the art. If you're used to new anime, you might get a dated feel from the art, but it isn't bad to look at, though the character designs take some time to get used to. Could have been better if they spent the budget on something other than pantie shots.
Sound: 7
I really liked Shuffle!'s OP, and the ED wasn't bad either. Other than that, the sound wasn't anything special.
Characters: 2
The characters are what make or break an anime for you, and in my case, they made me dislike Shuffle!. I've seen enough harem anime to not expect originality from them, but still, let’s get out our stereotype checklist. The pervy friend with the glasses: check. The cheerful, happy go lucky one: check. The subservient one who will do anything for the MC: check. The shy one with the manners: check. The loli: check. The emotionless one who eventually shows emotions: check. The one who likes getting physical: check. The intrusive parent(s): check. Other spoilery clichés: check. Clichés and stereotypes aren't necessarily bad if done well. They aren't done well in Shuffle!. Two of the girls have essentially the same back story. Every girl calls the MC kind.... but the MC is actually kind of a dick. He is indecisive and the annoying thing is, because of his MC status, he essentially resolves everyone's problems by himself. He is pretty selfish in some respects; he leads on the girls for most of the story because he wants things to remain the way they are. They couldn't have made the girls more passive and one-dimensional in terms of problem resolution, and the loli feels more like a side character. At a certain point in the story, I thought he had chosen a girl, but no, by the magic of a badly written story, all that had happened between them was essentially forgotten. A pretty horrible MC, even by the standards set by the harem genre.
Enjoyment: 3
The reason I finished Shuffle! was because I actually sorta enjoyed the first 10 episodes. After that, it slowly degraded, and then I was in too deep to stop watching, since I wanted to finish the story. I'm the type of person who will end up marathoning a whole anime on the weekend if i don't control myself, but I ended up finishing Shuffle! in 10 days, and I only finished the last 5 episodes in one go so I could be done with it. The ecchi is overly abundant, badly done and detracts from the story. Hope you like striped panties if you've decided on watching this anime.
Overall: 3
To conclude, Shuffle! is an anime with a lackluster story with potential which pulls you in the start, and some of the most boring and pathetic characters you might see in an anime. Its sound and art might be its redeeming features, though I wouldn't watch an anime solely for those two things. I haven't watched a lot of anime, but even I found Shuffle! annoyingly clichéd. I didn't hate it, hate is a strong word, but I came pretty close. To conclude, except for the fact that it actually ends conclusively, Shuffle! might just be everything wrong/boring/annoying about the Harem genre, especially if you've already seen a few anime already.
Reviewer’s Rating: 3
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