Hybrid Child

The skilled craftsman Kuroda created artificial humans called Hybrid Child—creatures who are neither machines nor dolls, but rather a reflection of the love shown to them. While they can feel human emotions and have their own consciousness, they are not real humans and require love to grow.

Kotarou Izumi is the young heir to the noble Izumi family, so it is frowned upon when he brings an abandoned Hybrid Child he found in the garbage into their household. His family even attempts to throw away Hazuki—Kotarou's name for the Hybrid Child—multiple times when he is not paying attention. But through overcoming these obstacles, their love and the bond connecting them grow stronger. However, ten years pass before a horrifying realization dawns on them: a Hybrid Child might not have an endless life span.

Hybrid Child is a collection of three short love stories, depicting the relationship between the artificial humans and their owners.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Tsukishima Main

Matsuoka, Yoshitsugu Japanese

Kuroda Main

Ono, Yuuki Japanese

Izumi, Kotarou Main

Okamoto, Nobuhiko Japanese

Hazuki Main

Hirakawa, Daisuke Japanese

Yuzu Main

Yonaga, Tsubasa Japanese

Seya, Ichi Main

Kimura, Ryouhei Japanese

Man Supporting

Maeda, Takeshi Japanese

Izumi-ya no Baaya Supporting

Miyazaki, Chieko Japanese

Maid Supporting

Fujikawa, Akane Japanese

Doctor Supporting

Ochiai, Kouji Japanese

Kawamoto, Sachi Producer

Urasaki, Nobumitsu Producer

Oonuki, Kazuo Producer

Sakurai, Yuuka Producer

Reviews

Feb 9, 2015

shadowwing94

Recommended

It really hasn't been long since I've been into the whole "Yaoi/shounen ai" fandom, but so far I've became a dedicated fan, having gone as far as reading/watching almost every manga/anime/ova the fandom has to offer, and among them, "Hybrid Child" holds a special place in my heart.

Story: (9)
The story is somehow different, I'm used to yaoi being placed in a much lighter atmosphere so hybrid child presented a pleasantly different feel than the other shows.
The show focuses on three different stories that are not connected to each other, each one of them tell us more about the relationships between men and their ... hybrid childs. The first one was a good start to the show, I found it very sweet and it brought tears to my eyes. the second story wasn't as good, but as it progressed a bit I sympathized more with the characters. The best story has to be the third that tell the story of the maker of the hybrid child, I spent the last two episodes in tears really.

All in all, the stories were nice and though they were short we learned enough about the characters and their back-stories.

Art: (8)
If you've watched Sekaiichi Hatsukoi and Junjou Romantica then you will be familiar with the art style. A Major flaw is that all characters have the same face XD But It's not a major problem for me because I'm pretty much used to it. As for the quality of the art, it's actually better than SIH and JR.

Sound (8)
The OVAs have no opening, only an ending which goes well with the overall mood of the show. The ost was appropriate as well and the seiyuus were all amazing.

Characters (9)
Although the characters were, in certain aspects, very similar to Nakamura-sensei's other works, they still have their own backgrounds and stories to tell. The characters are a very strong point of this show. There wasn't any annoying characters or ones you would hate or dislike. They are easy to relate to characters and I believe you'd come to like them all.

Enjoyment and overall (10)
Having just finished the OVAs for the third time already, you can pretty much tell I enjoyed it, though I'm not really sure if enjoy is the right term, as the story is a true "tear jerkier" Nevertheless, among all the other shounen ai/Yaoi series out there, Hybrid Child, is indeed a special one and you couldn't go wrong watching it, whether you were a Yaoi fan or not, because you will be swept away by the beauty of the story and relationships this show offers.

Reviewer’s Rating: 10

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Feb 13, 2019

ktulu007

Mixed Feelings

Hybrid Child was a one-shot romance manga from 2005. It was written by Nakamura Shungiku. That's right, the same writer as Junjou Romantica, the worst shounen ai romance I've ever reviewed. About five years ago, Studio Deen released an OVA based off of it. You might wonder why I'm even giving it a chance, given Nakamura's other work but let me remind you that even Ikuhara Kunihiko has written bad stories before. And it is Valentine's week, so let's keep an open mind and check out some romance. Maybe this one is not rubbish. 

Story:

The basic premise behind Hybrid Child is that the world has sapient ... android/ human hybrids that grow based on receiving love from their owners. There are three different stories about it within the four episodes of the OVA. The first deal with a young aristocratic boy who finds a discarded hybrid child, takes it home and then they grow up together and fall for one another. The second deals with a man with a difficult past who finds some comfort in the arms of a hybrid child who looks like an eight year old. Gross. The third explores why the hybrid children were created with the tragic tale of some childhood friends and what happened to them as young adults. 

My biggest issues with the series are all with the second story line. The idea of having a jaded, damaged person get revitalised by finding a connection with someone more innocent and naive isn't a ad one in theory. It's not particularly new, but it's not a bad basis for a romance plot. However, the execution comes across as downright paedophilic. It's not even just that Yuzu looks like a child but he acts like one as well. Which just makes the attraction really creepy. One general issue is that the world building isn't very good. We know why Kuroda created the hybrid children but we don't know anything about how they've change society. They seem to be basically used as maids or butlers but no one really addresses anything about them. At least it's better than addressing the questions in an egregiously stupid way, like Detroit: Become Human did but it's still just nothing. 

To its credit, the first romance is pretty decent. It's not anything special but it's passable for a short story. The third is a bit meh. It's one of those "these people are combative because they love each other" romances with a tragic twist. And you pretty much know where it's going after five minutes, but it's the only one that gets multiple episodes. Like Studio Deen & Nakamura just thought it needed so much effort for the very predictable plot line. 

Characters:

Again, my big issue is with the characters in the second story and the way one looks and acts like a child while the other looks at him and thinks "yeah, that's fuckable." The first story has the strongest characters and dynamic, which isn't saying much considering the last is mediocre in those regards but is something. I actually kind of like the dynamic in the first one. Kotarou & Hazuki act more like old and dear friends than master and servant. They also show a willingness to sacrifice for one another, which is a nice touch. 

Art:

The artwork is decent enough. A bit standard, but capably done. The thing that bothers me is still Yuzu being designed to look like a small child while having a romantic interest who looks very much like a grown man. 

Sound:

They got some capable actors like Hirakawa Daisuke, Okamoto Nobuhiko, Ono Yuuki & others. The acting is perfectly solid. It may never be counted as among the best, but it certainly works well enough. Anze Hijiri's soundtrack is pretty good. 

Ho-yay:

If you want to see some of that shounen ai action, there are some kissing scenes that are heavily implied to lead to sex and the whole thing is about that romance. So, lots of ho-yay to be had. 

Areas of Improvement:

With four episodes to work with, just pick a story. While romance can work episodically, there's only one story line in this with good potential any way. So, I'd just develop that more. 
Address the obvious questions. If you're going to have a romance bloom between a man and a man android he literally owns, you kind of need to address that ownership. Maybe have him struggle because he doesn't want to force anything and knows he's in a position of extreme power. There's also the question of just how sapient the androids are and how they've impacted things.
Better Build up. To use the good part of the OVA as an example, Hazuki kind of collapses out of nowhere and Kotarou takes him to a mechanic. A slower build where we as the audience see hints of trouble for a while before the collapse would strengthen the sense of investment quite a bit. 

Final Thoughts:

Ultimately, Hybrid Child is, unlike Junjou Romantica, not garbage. The first story is pretty good. The second is just bad. The third is mundane. Combined, I'd say that averages out to a mediocre experience. A mediocre experience that could have been something more if it had stuck to the one good story line. I'll give it a 5/10. 

Reviewer’s Rating: 5

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Jul 5, 2019

ezrabo

Not Recommended

Preliminary (2/4 eps)

Hm. Okay. Be warned.
This is actually my first review, but I thought this warranted it. It was an okay watch for the first episode. It isnt great, but it's not horrible. Overall just kind of a mediocre and shallow depiction of a romance between two teens/young adults. That is- until halfway through episode 2. I entered this expecting a parent-child relationship. I mean, that is a type of love. But no. Adult initiates sexual contact with a child. Yes, I realize that the hybrid children or whatever are supposed to be objects and aren't human or whatever, but no plot conceits make this excusable.

Reviewer’s Rating: 2

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