Nazo no Kanojo X

This is my first review so stay with me on this please.

Before I start I would like to say I will admit that it is an anime that is probably not for everyone and is a little weird at times but if you can get past the first 2 or 3 episodes then I can say that you will probably enjoy it.

Mysterious Girlfriend X holds a special place in my heart. Why you may ask, because of the story it tells and how much I think people who have been in a relationship for the first time can relate to it and find it ... relatable.

Story- 10 : The story follows Akira Tsubaki a normal high school boy who finds himself in a relationship with the strange and peculiar Mikoto Urabe who has just transferred into his class and is a loner for the most part. One day he has a weird dream that prompts him to taste Mikoto's drool and making him fall in love with her and need her drool to keep going. After tasting her drool and forming a strange pact with Mikoto, Tsubaki decides that his feelings for Mikoto are real and asks her to go out with him making her his girlfriend and the story then follows the struggles and un-knownigness of a first time relationship and how bonds no matter how strange they may be keep people together and show how important some special people are to us.

Art - 8 : The art style is unusual for me but I still enjoyed it. It was easy for the eyes and even though there wasn't that much need for major animation or artistic need it did a good job and creating a easy and relaxable feeling while watching which I enjoyed a lot

Sound - 10 : The sound and Op and Ed songs were really well done. I found myself watching and listening to the Op and Ed songs on each episode which for me is a rarity. The sound and voice acting throughout the series I found to be perfect for it and made me enjoy it so much more than I was already enjoying it.

Characters - 10 : Now this is where the story thrives at the main characters Akira Tsubaki and Mikoto Urabe both share a strange bond and throughout the series you learn no matter how strange the two may have seemed at the beginning they both have real world problems they deal with and the problems that arise and anxiety of being in a relationship for the first time.

Akira Tsubaki is more over a normal high school boy who doesn't have that many friends other than Ueno, Kouhei. He isn't all that popular and just seems average which I find relatable and the plites that he has in past and present crushes and relationships that he has had.

Mikoto Urabe for the most part throughout the series is as the title says a mysterious girlfriend. Not much is revealed about her unless I talk about spoilers which I refuse to do. Anyways for the most part she is a very loner type of girl who doesn't seem to have any friends at all and doesn't make any attempt to make any either. And even goes as far to say to Tsubaki that he is the only person she needs. Even though she seems like a inscrutable person and hard to approach she is still a girl and has normal feelings as one even if she doesn't act all the time like a regular girl.

Enjoyment - 10 : The enjoyment I got out of watching this series is unfathomable; even though I had class early the next morning when I started this series I stayed awake just to finish it because of how much I enjoyed watching it and how I just didn't want it to end and even took up reading the manga even though I don't really read manga all that much.

Overall - 10 : Overall if you are looking for a good romance story and one with the unknowngness that comes with being in a relationship for the first time I highly recommend this anime. If you are a romance and or drama lover then this is also a very good anime to watch. All I have to say even though it has a weird synopsis about tasting drool all I can say is if you can get past the first 2 or 3 episodes then you should be able to get through this anime and I can almost guarantee that you will enjoy this anime as much as I have. I highly recommend that you give this a watch if you are even thinking about watching it.

The whole concept of exchanging saliva is gross. I’ll say it. But to be fair, the story and the interactions of the other characters are good enough that most can bypass this. After a while, I noticed that I cringed less and less every time I had to see the two love birds put their drool in each other’s mouths.

At times the show dragged. There were a couple episodes that really seemed to do a whole lot of nothing. Overall, I’m glad that it only ran for 13 episodes. The ... pacing over the course of the whole series was alright though.

As for the comedic value, it really depends on your personal tastes. As with most comedies, especially in the anime industry, it’s very subjective. It either syncs up with you or it doesn’t. With this particular series, you’ll need to give it at least three episodes to determine whether or not it falls within your personal taste.

But even if the humor isn’t your thing, the story is still relatively interesting. I found myself really wanting to find out how the relationship between Mikoto and Akira would turn out. There’s quite a few surprises along the way, and although they didn’t end it the way the manga progressed, it was still acceptable whether you read the manga or not. If you’ve read the manga, give it a shot. They aren’t far off from it. If not, it’s still a decent pick if you want a romantic comedy with a weird concept. Just don’t think about it too much. If you do, it’ll just end up bothering you the whole way through and at that point it’s not worth your time.

Overall i give this show 6/10, it took me a while to get into it, and at times I found myself getting an episode or two behind, prioritizing several other shows. It’s not horrible for what it is. It just didn’t have the “wow” effect on me.

If you don’t like the animation style, and cannot get past the saliva concept, go ahead and pass on this one. Also, as always, if romantic comedy isn’t what you are looking for, this is not the right pick.

Well I remember either on my podcast or on a blog I’ve said I have seen countless numbers of anime school rom-coms and really most of them don’t do anything particularly different……so to that end let me review this new 2012 anime rom-com that has a different / interesting? concept.


Synopsis

The series follows two central characters Akira Tsubaki and Mikoto Urabe. Urabe is a transfer student who recently moves into Tsubaki's class.

Urabe’s behaviour is particularly strange and soon gets a reputation for being the class weirdo. Later, Tsubaki finds Urabe asleep in the classroom. After Urabe leaves to go home Tsubaki notices Urabe’s drool left ... from sleeping and wonders if it’s like a bee tasting honey from a flower….so he gives it a taste…..and finds it tastes sweet…..(whoa lol)

Tsubaki later falls ill thinking he has a cold but is soon confronted by Urabe who claims he has actually contracted love sickness from her drool and after Tsubaki takes another dose of her sweet drool and recovers instantly, so he then comes to accept Urabe’s claim as the truth

What follows is a growing relationship between the two characters that stems from their mutual connection to drool / saliva.

Wow that’s Shakespeare writing in the making right there lol

Animation

The animation style has an older look to it imo. The character designs feel a bit more rounded then other slimline character designs I usually see in other typical school rom-coms. Fanservice is not so in your face but it is present in moderation. I did actually like the shows colour scheme especially the sunset scenes which are present in many episodes when the main characters are walking home together

There are also some cool dream sequences with the characters which I thought where done quite well. So overall I liked the animation style….which btw is very similar to the manga’s….also a good thing.

Sound

Nothing really stood out to me as spectacular here….i didn’t like the opening theme song…closing theme was alright. The character voices seemed spot on and I did actually like Urabe’s Japanese voice actress as she does sound husky but had a little touch of emotion when needed which was good.

Characters

This was the saving grace for the show to be honest…particularly with our main characters Urabe and Tsubaki. Urabe to begin with does have a particularly detached personality but not so much where it bugs you out…there are plenty of times she holds a conversation and you can even see she is not a total shut in and does things like swim, go shopping etc….it seems her main problem is expressing her emotions..which she uses her drool to do….which to be honest gets very annoying at times as this does not only apply to Tsubaki but even with other girls….but at the same time I guess it’s consistent.

Tsubaki on the other hand seems like your typical puberty stricken…nice boy. He is very friendly and a bit too kind for my liking but to his defence he does often say exactly what’s on his mind and has a couple of believably uncontrollable moments with Urabe.

The other supporting characters are also pretty good with believable personalities and do sometimes add to the shows progression

Storyline

Okay so with the synopsis this show will pretty much sound like a Hentai to most but its not. The premise is quite ridiculous but at the same time it is actually an interesting concept that yes is somewhat titillation but is done in a surprisingly passive and matter-of-fact manner that comes off more emotional then sexual.

To me the drool exchanging and making the emotional connection is the central focus of this show and that is interesting however, I feel apart from that single element this show is ultimately nothing special. I mean in terms of comedy…it’s pretty tepid and most of what’s funny is Tsuabaki and Urabes sexual tension / misunderstandings and to be honest I found myself wondering if that was all that the show would be about and yeah that seems to be the case.

Every episode soon feels like a will they or won’t they and it seems they take two steps forward and one step back in every episode and with rom-coms I like to see either the romance blossom at a decent pace or the comedy to keep me hooked until the story develops more…..well in this case it feels like a ranma-ish show without the emphasis on comedy.

As a guy watching this I thought to myself if my girlfriend kept on telling me to taste her drool so I can fantasize about her when I got to bed I would loose my fuken mind…I mean it’s cool to be patient until your girl is ready n all but this concept was really hard for me to accept in terms of a real guy putting up with the: look but don’t touch, touch but don’t taste – taste but don’t swallow element….so in a nutshell the sexual tension starts to build and feels like a big dose of cock-teasing going on here lol……..but hey maybe it’s just me that feels that way………..lol I doubt it


Enjoyment

For 13 episodes it was moderately enjoyable but honestly I was getting impatient with the story progression after a while…..even though its pretty short

Value

Well it’s an okay show….not sure if it would be anything to talk about if there was no drool connection element but yeah I like the rikey-ness of the story and the characters are very likeable but even after looking at the manga which has been going on for a couple years this show seems to be one of those never-ending rom-coms that intends to re-use it’s formula until everybody gets fed up with it and that’s actually a shame as I think if this was written as a 26 episode show with possibly a more dramatic element it would hit harder but as far as rom-coms go this show really has only two things going for it except comedy…drool and somewhat interesting characters.

Ima have to give this one a double rating

Planet Tyro Rating: Watchable / Acquired taste

Visual Version: http://bit.ly/1bTm1DC

Planettyro.com

my first impression when i started watching this anime was that it was disgusting because of the drool licking.. anyways once i started to watch this anime more and more i fell in love with it... This anime should have been name The Drool Bonding.... LIKE IF U AGREE :D

ok now the story is about a dude name Akira Tsubaki he's kind of hopeless plus hes a virgin lol. one day he encounter a new girl at school name mikioto urabe she is extremely weird and very anti social. she gave a weird impression to her class mates when she laugh out loud in class ... one day for no reason from that day people saw her has just another invisible girl.

one evening Tsubaki went up to his home room for something and saw urabe drool and for some reason since he's a perv he lick it. from that moment on his whole life changed. he became sick and couldn't attend school. urabe went to his home after school and ask him if he licked her drool he told her he did and she said that the reason why he was sick his because he needs her drool and they share a bond with each ( she also said the reason she laugh out in class was because she had a dream that he would take her virginity :) ). from that day on they started dating and since he needs her drool they walk home together from school everday. :D

I really love this anime and i recommend all of you to watch it :D :D...

The description for this show is absolutely terrible. I passed it up several times because I thought it sounded gross and fetishy, but its not. The whole "addicted to drool" part has nothing to do with the story, and is poor phrasing for what really turns out to be a super interesting and cool plot device. The show has a great sound track, superb depth of character for the main cast, and is awesomely weird. The psychological motivation of each character is based on their unique personalities and fields of experience, and they behave very realistically within the framework the author has created for ... them. The lead girl Urabe, for example, often does bizarre or outlandish things, but when you get a feel for her personality and how her head works, her decision making feels natural and fluid. Especially her, but all the main cast have an amount of depth to their character that is uncommon in anime (as it is a hallmark of excellent writing). Not to mention the supernatural part is beautifully dusted in and doesn't come across as stupid or forced. And the japanese voice acting is great. Watch this show. Watch until the end of the second episode at least if your skeptical. Really you can start on the second one, you won't miss any important content and the second episode is awesome. Watch this show.

Since the ancient hellinistic dramas, through Romeo & Juliet, lots of romantic novels, movies, and finally in almost every anime. It's really unthinkable that there could still be any fresh and original idea for a romance. But suddenly it turns out that there's one series with completely new concept, so simple, that no one else would come up with the same idea. Nazo Kanojo X.



Story - 8/10

Continuing the thought, if you watch a romance there are usually just a few possibilities: there are two lovers, for some reason not able to be together; there are boy and girl that need n episodes to confess love ... to each other, proceeding with kiss ending the series; there's "date me" proceeded with "have sex with me"; there's some love triangle, rectangle or any other awkward polygon, where everything is about settling, who is the 'right' partner to whom.

The action usually takes place in high school. How many of situations presented above happened to you or someone you know during that period? If at least one, you're already a rare case. Whereas thinking of romantic love or sex is common among teenagers, usually there only are pairs, that are going out together and enjoy themselves. It's just natural. So, you ask why these don't happen in any form of novels, movies, anime? Because authors know that common stories won't sell. Something unusual is just way more appealing to everyone.

Nazo Kanojo X is an anime about a boy who falls in love with a girl. The 'love' is declared already in 1st episode and the rest of the series focus on them going together, showing every situation seemingly unimportant to the observer yet vital for them. Situations that seem completely usual, but hardly seen in any kind of media at all. Why? Because, as I already said, media tend to focus on three thing in romances: Confession, Kiss and Sex. The rest in between, which doesn't lead straight to one of these 'checkpoints' is supposed to be unimportant and either missed or treated as 'additional bonus'.

The series is episodic but not to the degree where you can skip an episode by mistake and not notice that. I would still mention a negative thing here, though: Because of this, the ending is an open one, which is annoying for most of people ("Will there be a sequel, or it'll just stay like this?")

Going back to the story itself, it mainly focuses on drool. "What?" you probably just thought if you neither saw the series nor read the description. Yes, here we are proceeding into the 'weird' part. Instead of kissing, for which the main couple is "unready yet" they are exchanging saliva. It bears a role of bond between characters, and they're able to transfer their feelings through it. Well, it's said that "You don't need words to understand a person you love." Here it's interpreted a bit literally, or to be more precise, literally in strange way.

This is where originality begins and where disgusted viewers give up on watching.

The whole drool thing as well as main female character, Urabe Mikoto, are in complete contrast to the rest of the world, what makes the whole thing even better in book. Although it may be annoying as well - Depends on the person.



Characters - 9/10

As I already said, Urabe is, well, unusual. Not to mention that her drool is linking the whole story together, which is odd enough, she has remarkable scissor skills and sleeps all time during breaks in school. Despite she rather enjoy drool exchange, she thinks that she and her boyfriend aren't ready for kiss. She doesn't like hugs either. Her eyes are hidden under long fringe, she doesn't seem to have any friends either. Have you noticed that this part (since not being ready for kiss) isn't THAT unusual. So in the end she is just some lonely girl, who happened to find a boyfriend, who she can exchange drool (yay!) with. And so she begins to be likeable and we start to understand Tsubaki, who chose her over 'standard' girls.

Speaking of Tsubaki he is 'dear-japanese-virgin-watching-this-anime-you-can-personalise-yourself-with-me' type of character. And he does this job surprisingly well. Used to standard romances, he have problems with understanding unusual (or maybe not?) way of Urabe's thinking. Well, men is trying to understand women (and vice versa) since prehistory to no avail.

As of rest of the cast: Oka, Urabe's friend (and Tsubaki's friend's girlfriend), often 'test' Urabe's ideas with her boyfriend out of curiosity. Save for her and one another girl, other characters neither know about main couple's relationship nor tend to act weird.



Art & Sound - 9/10

Moving on to the art. The backgrounds are well made, everything is full of details. Animation is ok, still it's not something crucial for such genre.

However, if I were to rate the character designs, they, well, aren't really pretty. Just take a look at the picture. Is it problem? Nope, it'd rather say it's even a positive aspect. Nowadays, anime creators rely hard on characters' 'moe-level'. They (obviously?) want them to appeal to audience as well as they can, not only with their character but the look. Nazo Kanojo X doesn't show us world made pretty girls and handsome boys. Why? Because real world doesn't look like this. So it makes this anime even more realistic in it's oddity. Also, it's like throwing down the gauntlet to other creators saying "We don't need pretty girls to attract people to our show, and you?". Nevertheless, it's also another way to repel potential viewers, not accepting series with non-moe characters. This may however be appreciated by fan of style from '80s and '90s.

As of music, it's hardly noticeable during the show. Opening is very optimistic, motivating to watch the series, whereas ending is more calm and nostalgic.



Enjoyment and other aspects - 8/10

I can easily tell that the series is enjoyable as long as you don't mind seeing saliva every now and then, don't mind the fact the characters don't look like taken from K-On or IM@S and aren't too sceptic about romances overall.

If I could speak of other flaws, it would be a little bit of fanservice. However it's not provided in a form of just another ecchi comedy, but more to emphasize the sexuality appearing in every love affair, even these without any kisses.



Final thoughts:

To me, this anime is really realistic in its complete absurdity. It shows love as it is in completely unusual way. This "way" may be both good or bad. In my opinion, it's great one, but even so it'll be best for you to just watch it and decide about it yourself.



Final grade: 9 of 10

In a plethora of environments you tend to see people who keep to themselves. People like this are assumed to be mysterious and generally avoided. Most others assume these loners have pent up rage or have some horrible past. On rare occasions others will recruit them for their close circles or these people will form extremely close bonds with a few individuals that they have almost nothing in common with.

Mysterious Girlfriend X was a title I was skeptical about simply because it involves bodily fluids. After finishing this I feel it is the most undervalued title of the spring 2012 season. A story of a ... mysterious slow moving romance revolving around drool, now thats original.

In the current anime industry originality is rare to come across, a good title will appear once in a blue moon.

Drool romance being what I'd like the call the theme probably set off an equal amount of disgust and enjoyment from all parties. The ratings certainly show this is the case. I like how Urabe and Akira meet through this strange idea of drool tasting and how its the basis of their relationship. A lot of romances now a days are based of visual novels that are generally harems, and they tend to become dull after too many are adapted. I particularly enjoyed this shows originality and everything it offered.

The environment of the story had a dark, gothic feel to it which again would put many viewers off. The carnival dreams that these two hard were probably what interested me the most. The sounds for most of the settings was similar to this dream space and it was almost eerie. A lot of romances feature songs with vocals and light instrumentals but this brought a new sound the table, while dull it was interesting none the less.

The animation style and old school theme songs is probably where this series was hurt the most. The majority of the new anime audience is attached to the post 2,000 genres of big eyes, large faces and colorful representations. While its a plus in the originality department a lot of fans are looking for new, not old. Another problem this show suffered from was the slow pace and dull VA acting. The pace was grueling and the romance aspect lacked in a traditional sense of what you have come to expect from rom-com's or straight romance. The progress of these two was limited by a bond of drool, and they barely made it out of first base minus naked middle school sweet heart.

None the less I enjoyed this every step of the way, rarely do we see something new and unusual. The anime industry should focus more on the new and unusual. More titles could gain excellence if they stepped out of boundaries more often that are not set by the best sellers.

If you enjoy a dark and unusual romance, you might just enjoy Mysterious Girlfriend X.

ok, i normally dont write reviews because id end up spending too much of my life writing them. but i have made an exeption for this anime because i just want to say to all those thinking about watching this "TURN BACK AND RUN AWAY AND DONT WASTE YOUR TIME WITH THIS APPALLING ANIME!!!!!"

i normally like animes like this, girl (or boy) tranfers school and within the first episode you know the boy and girl like each other. however, this anime is just tooooo rubbish. the art work is terrible. it looks like something from the mid 90's.

the characters ... were just rubbish too. the voices and the actual characters. the main male seems pathetic and why he tasted the drool in the first place i dont know. the girl is weird, but then she is supposed to be.

really the only positive is the originality of this anime. Not the boy meets girl aspect since thats been done since the dawn of time. but its the whole getting addicted to saliva and having withdrawal symptoms. this is quite unique, terrible story line, but at least its unique.

any way thats all i have to say about this.

i forced my way through the first episode so you dont have to, unless you like putting yourself through 20 minutes of brain numbing boredom and pain.

Mysterious Girlfriend X is a sweet and innocent romance. A slow pacing, a classical soundtrack and retro character designs combine to create a realistic slice of life.

The series separates itself from other romantic comedies through its characters. Spineless main leads and hair-trigger tsunderes are nowhere to be seen. Tsubaki and Urabe are every bit as unsure of their relationship as first lovers should be and they approach each other with a refreshing nervousness and intensity.

You may be turned off by the premise. This is okay; different people like different things. Just know that some people have very high opinions of this work. It ... has artistic value.

This was one of the biggest surprises in my experience on how good this anime was to what I thought it would be. From having no one recommend it to me nor having ever really heard about it I was not expecting much. But what you get is a Different Experience then I have ever had.

The art style did not jump out at me nor was I blown away but I felt it was standard while the sound was simply one of the best I had ever heard well done characters voices and the soundtrack to the anime I found myself loving due ... to its creepyness and originality one of the biggest thing I did not expect while I was not blown away by the op. I did enjoy the ending.

the story has a......unique take to it and you will either 1. love it 2. find it gross and quit. and 3. find it kind of gross but yet feel like you have to keep watching (how I felt) and then towards the end you think to yourself. Holy crap this seems total normal. While the Characters themselves are a joy to see as well with the two main characters I felt had a realistic relationship I feel that a lot of times I am turned off by shows on how over dramatized it is or if I cannot relate to them at all and I feel this show hits it right on the head for me in doing well in both of those areas And Urabe has become one of the most memorable characters i have seen in awhile

overall has become one of my top 15 i have ever watched (and this has been my first review so please don't by shy on letting me know how i did i wish to grow in my ability to do this)

The more I think about this series, the more I realize just how much I liked it. On the surface, Mysterious Girlfriend X is pretty much your standard high-school romantic comedy, insomuch as many of the characters and situations are almost universal within the genre, yet right out of the gate, it's obvious that there's something unusual going on here.
Tsubaki Akira is in every way, your typical high-school boy. He's inexperienced, and awkward as hell, but he's also a nice average guy, with nice, average friends, and living a nice, average high-schooler's life.
Until that is, the day a new transfer student arrives in his class ... and turns his existence upside-down.
Urabe Mikoto is that transfer student, and her unorthodox appearance, and curt demeanor immediately set her apart from the rest of the class, a distance which only widens when she displays some of her quirky behaviors, such as sleeping at her desk through lunch, and laughing uproariously, seemingly at nothing during class.
And yet Tsubaki can't help but find her fascinating...

It's not too long after Urabe's arrival that the weird amps up and we're introduced to the concept on which the series is based, and the one that makes this series a little squirmy for a lot of people.

Yes, it's drool.

One day after class, Tsubaki realizes he's left something in class and, upon returning to pick it up, he finds Urabe still sleeping at her desk long after everyone else has gone home for the day.
Tsubaki can't help but notice the puddle of drool Urabe is lying in, and waking her up, sends her on her way, but then finds himself transfixed by the glistening pool of saliva she's left behind and...
tastes it.

This is probably the point where a lot of people make their decision on Mysterious Girlfriend X and choose either to move on to another show, or stick tight to see where this could possibly be heading. Those who choose the former are really doing themselves a disservice, because if you can get over the whole "ick" factor, what takes place from that point on is actually something pretty unique and special in the realm of anime rom-com.

Two weeks pass after the "drool episode" and life settles back into the familiar routine of teenage life. Tsubaki finds himself even more fascinated by the mysterious Urabe, but being your typical awkward high-schooler, nothing comes of it until one day he's mysteriously stricken with a fever and passes out during gym class. Several days pass and Tsubaki's condition continues to worsen, forcing him to miss classes and remain in bed suffering from all the symptoms of a terrible cold and fever.
But Urabe knows differently, and showing up at his home one afternoon, explains that what he's suffering from isn't a cold at all, but in fact is withdrawal. She's correctly deduced that on the day Tsubaki found her sleeping in class in a puddle of drool, he must have tasted it after she left, and, after two weeks without tasting it again, has developed a serious case of "love sickness".
Tsubaki tries to deny of course, but ultimately admits to his actions at which point Urabe calmly announces that his illness can be cured, and all he needs is another taste of her drool. Tsubaki freaks of course, but eventually relents, allowing Urabe to insert her drool covered finger into his mouth.
And sure enough, he's immediately cured.

This begins their ongoing relationship, and henceforth they meet on a daily basis after school and perform the daily ritual of Urabe providing Tsubaki with a drool covered finger to suck on in order to maintain his equilibrium.

Time passes and we see more of Urabe's eccentricities, such as her "panty-scissors" and uncanny skill with them. We're also introduced to some of the supporting cast that make the series so much fun, in the form of Tsubaki's best friend, Ueno Kouhei and his adorable, yet quirky girlfriend, Oka Ayuko.

Mysterious Girlfriend X is unusual in many ways. The character design is a bit of a throwback to decades past, being nowhere near as pretty as many current series such as Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai or Chuunibyou, but the characters and scenery are definitely attractive.
There's the whole "drool" factor of course, and the implied theme of dependence that comes with Tsubaki's withdrawal pains in the first episode.
But what I found the most unusual and seemingly contradictory was the comparatively high level of fanservice. Mysterious Girlfriend X is in so many ways a sweet and innocent story of first love, and the fanservice seemed almost diametrically opposed to that sweetness.
Yet somehow it worked.
There's no denying there's a lot of panty-shots (how could you have "Panty-scissors" be a recurring and important story element without them?), boob shots ( still can't figure out how anime high-school girls can look like skinny 14 year olds in their uniforms, and Playboy center-folds in a bathing suit! lol!), and more sexual allusion and innuendo than you can shake a stick at, yet it never felt gratuitous like it did in Haganai.
With very few exceptions, the fanservice was integral to the story-line and made sense being there, and let's face it, what 17 year old highschool boy isn't obsessed with sex?
For all the fanservice and innuendo, Girlfriend was never leering or lecherous.
Yeah, there's plenty there for those who appreciate fanservice, but really, this anime was incredibly sweet and endearing, and to be honest, gave a pretty accurate portrayal of just how awkward and inept most of us were at that age.

So all in all, I'd highly recommend this series to anyone who loves a sweet and innocent love story. Honestly, people might think I'm nuts comparing it to Clannad, but despite it's brevity (a mere 13 episodes) and admittedly racier aspects, this is still a wonderfully funny and innocent tale of two awkward teenagers falling in love and working through the issues that come with discovering and dealing with some pretty overwhelming new emotions, so man-up and deal with the drool.
You'll be glad you did! :)

Nazo No Kanojo is the definition of romance, That's is what i thought when i finished the series. Assuming the people reading this review already read the synopsis on this page, I'll go ahead and say this, The synopsis is a little misguiding, but true to a certain extent, It isn't just drool but a psychic link that passes on Emotional and Physical changes. That being said.

Do not be fooled or disturbed when this mysterious girl "Urabe Mikoto" shares her saliva with "Akira Tsubaki", Or do not be fully drawn to the plot either, Due to the beauty of this anime lies on the action ... of the characters and the true face of romance. This anime carries a very important hidden message, You need to look past the plot, It isn't what seems to be.

I'm trying not to spoil anything, But i'll say this "Mysterious Girlfriend X or Nazo no Kanojo X" It's a masterpiece romance message, It shoots straight at our current belief of romance, Or what we believe it's structure is and shatters it right on our faces and reveals an inconvenient truth about our perception and marketing of romance. As Romance nowadays is branded with steps and marketed with stereotype conduct to the people.

At the end of this anime you'll no the difference between "True Romance" and "Methodical Romance" You'll hopefully know by episode 3, If you don't you can message me and i'll tell you.

Overall i gave this anime a 10, It's a true masterpiece. It's a well deep thought anime whose beauty lies on perception. I recommend this to anime viewers who always seek to perceive more than the plot or story, or are dazzled or annoyed by visuals. Also if you want to know a thing or two about romance this anime is the one you want.

I give this anime a 10 all the way through. This by far the best anime I have seen in a long time especially romance. I normally do not watch these types of anime but this has really changed my perspective on the genre itself. The story itself I find very original and before I go into it anymore if you give this anime a try there one thing you will have to get past and I know some folks can not and that is the swapping of drool between the two main characters once see past that you can move on. The art work ... and sound I give it a 10 because the voice acting for the Japanese version was outstanding I enjoyed Yoshitani, Ayako as Urabe it was sexy and sweet and Irino, Miyu as Tsubaki was the best compliment of all. I really felt a connection with the characters as the story developed over the course of the show. I overly enjoyed myself watching this anime than reading the manga which came to an end in September of 2014 I was really sad to see it end but that also shows how great an anime and manga this was. Give this one a chance I am 29 years old and this anime brought me into this genre which I never really was interested in the first place. Give this one a chance and lets be real the swapping of drool is no different from kissing with tongue so just look past that concept because that what makes this story so unique!

Do not do this to yourself.
It's bad, it's just really bad, what can I say.
The main plot is icky to say the least , I mean if it's your thing then go for it I guess, but don't go in blind like I did, and definitely, do not expect anything out of this show.

It was boring through and through, I had some hope towards episode 10 but I was well..... mistaken. It didn't do anything and was a total disappointment.

The main character was pathetic, disgusting, abhorrent, and that's putting it mildly. He was incredibly annoying, just begging you to stop ... watching with every painful second of screentime he regrettably had. The main girl however, and this may surprise you, was as disgusting as her "boyfriend", and just made this excuse of a show even more unenjoyable to watch. Ive never been more incapable of watching a show in my life

Although the story is interesting, the fact that the main characters are deliberately ugly makes the already disturbing story hard to enjoy. Fetishes only look worse when they're portrayed in an unattractive manner. Even putting Urabe in a swimsuit is disturbing simply because she is, simply put, ugly. In conclusion, if you don't mind really ugly characters in romance and a drool fetish, this anime should be fine. However, if these things don't sound very attractive, I would stay away from this show.

Looks like everyone already explained from various side of this anime and all good review. But here I want to add my opinion that every romantic comedy anime, you must seen every type of girls (tsundere, kuudere, yandere). But this anime's heroine is unique one, not your typical everydays tsundere girl. Urabe is most sincere and genuine ever if you talking about her feeling to his boyfriend. If you break her heart in spesific ways, she never complain but you can't guess her being okay while the reality its make her hurt. Maybe you think she's weak girl? You make a big mistake. If you ... make wrong moves, touch her or wnat to hugs her suddenly, her panty scissor will traumatized you. Martial arts
+ scissor = ??

Regards

I tried the manga few years ago and I dropped it after the 1st chapter. Bad choice. But somehow I came across the anime recently and I'm glad that I gave it another try.

Let's keep this short & sweet~

First of all I have to say that this is not something suitable for the light hearted and narrow minded. The story is very unique and original. It is not your usual high school romance comedy. This is more like mature slice of life. The protagonists are somewhat odd yet interesting. And the situations they go through are sweet and mostly weird.

Drool plays a big ... part in here. So if you are easily rattled by such things you may not like Nazo no Kanojo X. But drool is just a symbolism used throughout the anime to suggest the bond, our main couple shares. It's more like a passionate kiss. The characters's growth is well depicted and the pinch of humor soothes your mind to the fullest.

However one thing that I didn't like in Nazo no Kanojo X was the graphics and visuals. They looked a bit old and outdated. I guess that's a given though. It's not too bad but I have been too accustomed to modern graphics-that's the case.

The music in Nazo no Kanojo X is really memorizing. I'm still listening to the OSTs. However I think that it would have been better if they have used a different voice actress to play the female protagonist.

In short Nazo no Kanojo X was a great watch. I encourage the daring anime lovers to watch this and travel to a weird new world full of enjoyment.

They talk about kissing and sex the very first episode, but all they do throughout the entire show is putting fingers in mouths of each other. And other people's mouths. Because apparently when you taste someone's spit, it makes you feel what they feel at the moment or something like that, I don't know why, but I'm like 30% sure there's a completely logical scientific explanation behind all that.

I liked the way romance works here, licking your fingers and putting them in someone's mouth is the symbol of intimacy instead of kissing, which is pretty much a french kiss, only instead of putting your ... tongue in someone's mouth, you put your finger in there, no matter how many times you wiped your a** with them that day, how many times you picked your nose or touched the handles in bus acquiring some healthy dose of hepatitis. Just make them lick it off and let them feel your feelings and later on, diarrhea. But yeah, sharing bacteria with others is kinda intimate I guess.

That being said, after a pretty entertaining start due to an original idea of romance, it gets stale real fast and becomes your everyday regular slice of life slash romance slash comedy slash ecchi anime. Tsundere heroine? Check. Stupid, easily controllable MC? Check. Very slow romantic progress? Check.
Summarized and counted altogether, we got a solid 6/10 captain.

It started out as a very original new and refreshing anime but then it turn out to be one of those ecchi school boy meet girl and random shit happens anime. I really start to like this anime but after episode four i see that this started to get repetitive with the sexual innuendos. some of the perverseness i can handle but most of the time it is a tat bit boring.

The art is very cool it mixes old school art with new school animation which i find interesting. Characters are far from original like this anime. overall its a 3 at best

Having first read the manga back in late 2007, like most people who looked at this, I was put off by the whole 'drool' thing but unlike most people I still gave it a chance because there's the element of curiosity. How can they turn this into a story? Where can this thing possibly go? I had a read I found myself unable to stop. This is a true gem. And the anime adaptation was a special treat to see the characters move and talk.
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Story:
The story revolves around the main characters, Akira Tsubaki and Mikoto Urabe who have relationship where they share a special 'bond' ... through the exchange of saliva. This allows them read each others feelings, thoughts, and dreams. In the world of this anime, the 'bond' is determined by the taste of the drool and how one party reacts to it.

They go through different issues and that can occur in real life relationships, and because they're young, it gives the feel of 'discovery'.

The pacing isn't fast and it's not slow, it always gets to the point so you likely wont sit there being bored to death or missing anything.
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Art:
Unique, looks quite different from most anime series. It's a simplistic look but the characters, particularly Urabe have the element of elegance. The artists clearly try to get the most out of this design without making it look cheap.
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Sound:
The music isn't something I'd want to download and listen to but at the same time it does a great job in setting the mood for each scene.

The VA's do a great job. I cannot think of a better cast to play these characters. Especially Urabe, played by newcomer Ayako Yoshitani. She can sound quiet and reserved but when displaying a variety of emotion, she can do it without sounding forced.
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Character:
The characters seen in this anime may come off as familiar, used in butt-loads of anime. Urabe is the quiet depressing girl, Tsubaki is the underconfident male lead. BUT these cliches worked for the story. It took the dull and familiar and made it interesting again and made great use of it.
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Enjoyment:
What may sound sickening to people actually comes off as 'cute' in this anime. It's possible to get used to the drool thing and actually enjoy it. It's great when a show takes such risks, gives it a feel of uniqueness. This series reminded me why I like Japanese comics and animation, they can be weird, they can be odd, they can be cool, they can be ANYTHING. And that's really good every once in a while.
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Overall:
The anime is a great watch, the manga is a great read. Unlike shonen action series that tend to drag on and on and on like Naruto and Bleach, (or seinen in the case of Gantz). My only problem is that the anime is ONLY 13 episodes while the manga is still going and certain events from the manga are left out, probably so as not to leave anything unresolved. But it is loyal to the original work for the most part so you can watch the anime and continue the manga from where it left off.

Solid 4/5