Kotoura-san has the makings of an exceptional show. It has the ambition to be both an emotional drama and an uplifting comedy, to be an experience full of highs and lows to keep you engrossed to the end. It even has an intriguing premise providing a solid foundation for its narrative. Regrettably, it is clear from the very first episode that not only is Kotoura-san plagued by atrocious writing, it furthermore has the entirely wrong attitude when it comes to the use of drama in general.
Kotoura-san tells the story of Kotoura Haruka, a girl with the power to read people's minds. Whilst one would expect
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such a power to be a gift, this unfortunately couldn't be further from the truth for Kotoura, who goes through tragedy and strife. As more and more people reject her, she sinks into the depth of loneliness. Abandoned by her parents and afraid to get hurt, she moves from school to school, keeping people at distance. But upon transferring into yet another school, she meets Manabe, a perverted yet honest individual who accepts Kotoura for who she is, and tries with the help of others to get Kotoura to accept herself.
With such a promising premise, how did it all go wrong?
Kotoura-san, bless its poor, forsaken heart, knows nothing of subtlety. When it comes to the drama, the show's writers want you to know for certain what's happening on screen is tragic, and they are not leaving it up to chance. Kotoura-san makes sure you know by shoving it in your face, being incredibly melodramatic, and blaring histrionic orchestral music at your ears. You can practically hear the director shouting "ARE YOU SAD YET? BE SAD NOW!". The writing is so heavy-handed in its approach that the scenes often don't even make sense, as elements designed to make the scenes even more full of anguish are carelessly introduced without proper thought. At worst, things get completely out of hand as you are bombarded with one melodramatic scene after another.
The very first episode is a perfect example. Kotoura's tragic backstory is told, where each depressing event in her life is immediately followed up by another one, aiming to be even sadder than the last. Eventually it escalates into a ridiculous scene in which Kotoura-san, previously finding her only solace in a stray kitten, breaks down because she is informed that the cat has been taken away, leaving her alone. This would be acceptable, however the woman who informs Kotoura proceeds to shout at her, telling her to "Leave and never come back!" for no apparent reason. This is one of the many contrivances used to easily make the scene more emotional, which are the defining hallmarks of Kotoura-san.
The complete lack of subtlety in Kotoura-san's drama is replicated in the fanservice as well. The fanservice consists of eponymous Kotoura being cute, a rather innocent and likable form. However, when the show wants you to notice how cute she is, it again makes sure this is impossible to ignore; once again you are assaulted with one cute scene of Kotoura after another. Kotoura would be more endearing if not for how persistently the show confronts us with it. That said, the fanservice is still a relative highlight of the series, even if poorly executed like the other aspects.
Unfortunately, the comedic aspect of Kotoura-san is also lacking. The essential joke of the series is that the male lead Manabe has a perverted fantasy of Kotoura; who will then get embarrassed and annoyed at him. This joke is then repeated throughout the entire series. Funny as it was the first few times, by the fiftieth iteration of the joke it was getting incredibly tedious. It is fortunate that the show invested in other jokes, however these are also repeated frequently and whilst some of the jokes were funny enough to withstand constant repetition, the majority were not. The repetition of this poor comedy becomes a dull monotony for the viewer. Additionally the humour comes at often inopportune times, causing a large emotional whiplash when placed right in the middle of a dramatic scene, a problem that pervades the entire show. If you are the sort that likes "perverted humour" then the comedy will most likely be more amusing, and will sustain its freshness for much longer.
For the writers, all that seems to matter is the result. They appear not to care if the story makes little sense or is filled with plot holes; so long as the dramatic scenes are saturated with sadness and woe, they consider it a job well done. This attitude is ultimately what's responsible for the terrible writing. It is indeed unsurprising that the writer who was unable to come up with enough jokes to last the series, was also unable to write more than one pattern of character development. Kotoura-san is rescued from her depression by her friends (notably Manabe) at least three times. This wouldn't be so bad if not for the fact that it's the same issue every time, simply disguised by a different context. Ultimately what happens every time is that Kotoura becomes self-loathing and depressed because she blames herself for bad events, only to be "saved" by Manabe and the rest of her friends. Call me a cynic, but although it is clear that Kotoura suffered a tramautic past, the drama feels insincere when Kotoura is saved by Manabe through the same process multiple times.
The comedy, romance, and drama that make up the plot of Kotoura-san were in shambles. The quality of writing is dismal, it desired the story to end up a cohesive mix of these disparate narrative elements, but either they couldn't be bothered to actually put in the time and effort to make it work within a story, or they were simply unable to. Whatever the reason, the sheer quantity of inconsistent tone and plot holes is almost insulting- it's a depressing thought that this standard was deemed acceptable.
The art and character designs were of low quality, they both look messy and have very little detail. For the comedy segments this is not so much a problem, as the 4koma style character designs suit it well. However, when it comes to the dramatic scenes the character designs are in stark contrast to the melodrama, and appear incredibly awkward when the art gets in your face. The music is generic and lacks subtlety, dramatic scores being employed ruthlessly in every single scene bar one notable exception that verges upon melancholy. The opening is cute and likable, if not ultimately forgettable; the ending is simply nondescript.
On a more positive note, the characters are all pretty likable. They evoke sympathy from the audience even if they are well defined by a limited number of distinctive traits, and are at times enjoyable to watch; you certainly shouldn't have a problem with any of them. Well, perhaps apart from Moritani. She starts the series as an antagonistic figure, only to have her personality overhauled, leading to an abrupt and irrational character change that is poorly explained. Again, the attitude of the writing shines through once again. However, there is one facet of Kotoura-san that was done right, and that was the romance. The relationship that develops between Manabe and Kotoura was surprisingly well done over the course of the series, despite it's repitious nature. Their interaction isn't complex or deep, but in a show where characters can just change personality at the drop of a hat, it was a real highlight.
To conclude, the incredibly forceful attempts to evoke emotion in Kotoura-san is stifling, demonstrating an extreme example of the "tell not show" attitude to drama. If you can ignore poor writing, and relish heavy-handed drama and comedy, then this show will probably be of great enjoyment to you. If, on the other hand, you loathe over the top melodrama and care at all about plot progression, then Kotoura-san is nothing more than a trainwreck.
Alternative Titles
Synonyms: Kotoura-san
Japanese: 琴浦さん
More titlesInformation
Type:
TV
Episodes:
12
Status:
Finished Airing
Aired:
Jan 11, 2013 to Mar 29, 2013
Premiered:
Winter 2013
Broadcast:
Unknown
Licensors:
NIS America, Inc.
Studios:
AIC Classic
Source:
4-koma manga
Theme:
School
Duration:
23 min. per ep.
Rating:
PG-13 - Teens 13 or older
Statistics
Ranked:
#35562
2
based on the top anime page. Please note that 'Not yet aired' and 'R18+' titles are excluded.
Popularity:
#693
Members:
338,766
Favorites:
1,072
Available AtResourcesStreaming Platforms | Reviews
Filtered Results: 86 / 90
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Your Feelings Categories Mar 29, 2013
Kotoura-san has the makings of an exceptional show. It has the ambition to be both an emotional drama and an uplifting comedy, to be an experience full of highs and lows to keep you engrossed to the end. It even has an intriguing premise providing a solid foundation for its narrative. Regrettably, it is clear from the very first episode that not only is Kotoura-san plagued by atrocious writing, it furthermore has the entirely wrong attitude when it comes to the use of drama in general.
Kotoura-san tells the story of Kotoura Haruka, a girl with the power to read people's minds. Whilst one would expect ... Feb 2, 2013
Our childhood is often filled with many blanks and not much memories. The few you might remember are some friends you made or games you played.
But, what if the memories you remember most vividly were the ones filled with bullying,ignorance, and broken hearts? Kotoura-san starts off as a seemingly sad and powerful drama. Maybe a bit generic. What throws people off is that after the first half of the show, it just hits you with all this comedy that you weren't expecting. This is probably what caused the downfall of the show. I can't say I exactly disliked the comedy, but it would've been better ... Feb 11, 2014
Wow... Just wow. This show easily makes it onto my highest favorites. There is nothing I can truly nit pick about the show that would detract me from my rating. It took me for a ride I won't soon forget.
Story: This is among the most emotional stories I have ever had the grace and the priveledge of experiencing. I'm not lying when I say this: It deserves to be seated in the high heavens for the drama genre. Why? Haruka's backstory alone had me under emotional torture. The show itself proved how serious it can get when it wants to, and boy they wasted no ... Mar 28, 2013
Have you ever tried rubbing lemon on your eyes? Because that pretty much describes what this show tries too hard to do. Forced drama, everywhere.
So the first five or so minutes of the first episode is the part where all the people ate up for some reason and it apparently managed to leave such an impact that people thought that this show was going to be good just from those five minutes alone. So this girl can read other people's minds, but her feelings get hurt because she doesn't realize she has such powers, and she's a bit insensitive because she was young. Alright, ... Feb 9, 2013 We have freaking EXTREMELY awesome shows like Cuticle Tantei Inaba and this. Tamako Market, Maou Yuusha and The Unlimited are really good too. Now why I gave this a 8. I'll keep this short. The characters are amazing. Their are constantly very funny scenes that will definitely make you laugh. It can be really emotional too. I enjoyed all 5 eps so far. Will definitely watch more of this amazing anime. It can be a little too cheesy at some parts but the reaction of the characters totally blow it away (almost). Anyways I highly recommend this to anybody. My little brother even watched it and loves it (he's ... May 18, 2014
Prepare yourselves for a good brief enjoyment.
At the beginning, we got a great dose of drama. To be honest I almost cried. I was worried about if they could do a good job mixing the comedy and the drama, without making any drastic change, but after ten minutes I was laughing and during all the anime both were mixed very well. Besides, although the drama is a little bit exaggerated, it will reach you and you will establish an emotional bond with the main character quickly. In addition, the story transmits a good message about the injustice of the way the society thinks, unfortunately it ... Apr 1, 2013
Well then.
First off ill give a short reason why i decided to pick this up. I absolutely love watching RomCom's so i decided to watch this. Simple as that. But what intrigued me was that the main heroine had psychic mind reading powers, i somehow thought that having that kind of thing in the anime would have delicious drama involved. And i was right. Story: 7 The way they started this anime, on episode one, i somehow thought it was going to be an amazing anime. The first 11 minutes was just crazy, incredibly tragic and sad. And somehow in the same episode it turned from crazy ... Feb 5, 2013
Probably the blast of the Winter Season 2013 . Who would've thought that this anime , who looks ordinary from any point of view , would hide such greatness .
Story - 9 A girl gifted with an incredible power , the power of reading thoughts , yet this power turns against her , making her childhood a living hell . After a lot of downs in her life , she transfers to a new school , where a guy called Yoshihisa Manabe , the typical type of high school boy , carefree and perverted , gets interested in her . Seems that bit by bit Kotoura's ... Jun 22, 2015
I had some mixed feelings with the anime. While the anime did a good job with the main cast, but I had some problems with it.
When the anime started out, it was pretty dark, but became light hearted comedy. It's like Madoka Magica, but in reverse. It's about a girl name Kotoura that has a horrible past because of her ESP. She have a hard time making friends and her parents had a divorce because of her. She can't tell when people are thinking in their mind or if they are actually talking. She blurts out personal things and people were disgusted by her. People ... Apr 1, 2013
Kotura-san is a ham sandwich…….. (Nurse, he's out of bed again!)
Let me elaborate, what i mean is that the aforementioned sandwich which consists of bread and ham shares similar qualities with Kotura-san, and its not that their both assembled by underpaid employees who spend most of their days wishing the earth would explode..(although thats also true..) Its that both are quite good if you simply want a cheap quick snack, or if your just not really hungry for something more substantial. Ones a food, ones a anime (their both cops!) but no-one said they were gonna be filling… But enough of ... May 22, 2013
Kotoura-san is a series that exceeded my initial expectations. Please read on to find out why:
Story: 8 I started getting Sankarea vibes after a couple of episodes, since Kotoura-san began with somewhat heavy drama before turning into more of a romantic comedy (with some occasional drama), but I did enjoy the show very much, just like I did Sankarea. Other than that, I guess these two series are rather different so don't read too much into my comparison. We have a fairly unique premise (I don't personally remember many other anime about psychics, especially portrayed as they are here), and I think that the story ... Mar 12, 2013
Story: 5/10
Its nothing original. The story follows a little girl who was abandoned by her parents because she could read people's minds. The girl grows up alone and starts a new school where she meets a guy that likes her and a psychic club that wants her. Average anime with average episodes. It can be pretty silly which is enjoyable, but its whatever. Art: 4/10 The epitome of generic anime. The art looks like the stuff those emo scene kids in class draw on their math hw. Its not beautiful, but its fine. Sound: 5/10 ... Feb 27, 2014
As the winter season of 2013 comes to an end, and the new spring season fast approaching, I thought I would take the time to review a little romcom show at the beginning of the 2013 anime season by the name of Kotoura-san; a show, which I feel is slightly above average than what most romcom's would have.
Story (7.48/10): The story of Kotoura-san is interesting nonetheless. As a big fan of great exposition, I find the one to this show, to be some of the fastest, and most informative exposition in all of anime history. In just about ten minutes into the show, ... Feb 4, 2013
Well this anime to begin with the first episode, was absolutely incredible. Some people may call it trolling, but I call it a masterpiece. It's just amazing how a creator could make it so that you could have a feel all over your heart just in one episode. Basically what he did is make the first episode feel like the ENTIRE series. That's not a bad thing no is it sarcasm. It appears at first to be a happy joy thing, which I tend to not like, and I nearly dropped the anime, but then it got this sudden drop down, very heart sickening part
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Apr 6, 2015
Kotoura-san is a comedy and romance/drama. I typically like fantasy/supernatural, action, and drama genres, so I didn't expect much from this show, but it was surprisingly attractive in its own way. Kotoura's life has been nothing but a road of sad memories ever since her childhood, but now she's taken a different road, starting with the encounter of fellow student shining with positivity. Of course, past mistakes and problems can't be resolved that easily, and it'll take time for Kotoura and her newfound friends to restore the happiness that she had lost.
Story: 7/10 The story might seem a bit tragic at first, and many would expect ... Feb 7, 2013
first of all i just have to say that i LOVE watching this anime its very fun to watch. It hasn't disappointed me yet.
Genres: comedy, romance, school life Story:10 mainly its about a high school girl who was blessed with the power to read minds. What most of was would think that would be awesome to have other don't think so. Her life was really going down hill because of her gift... and she just wished that she can be a normal person. Then she meets Manabe, Yoshihisa who makes friends with her and helps her to make more friends and to have a normal life. Art:9 ... Mar 29, 2013 Kotoura-San was somewhat of a disappointment and had so much lost potential is just saddening. The first three episodes gave us the impression that Kotoura-San will be more of a romantic dramatic with some comedy to ease the tension. Even though I thought highly of Kotoura-San in the beginning, this show began to deteriorate into a poorly done slap-stick comedy that couldn't even deliver good jokes in no time flat. The romance is barely there and what is there only includes that stereotypical romance with a bunch of blushing and no one acting on their feelings so don't expect a romance as beautiful as Toradora ... May 28, 2014
This is my first review in a while, so please bear with me!
Kotoura-san is basically about a girl, named Haruka Kotoura, who has ESP. Unfortunately, due to her ESP, her life has been completely ruined. That is, until she meets Yoshihisa Manabe, who, despite his perverted nature, accepts her as a friend. It's basically about Haruka finding love and acceptance, despite the disasters in her past. This was one of the anime I had planned to watch during the Winter 2013 season, but I forgot about it until earlier this year. I thought that Kotoura-san would be a comedy, and for the most part, I was ... Jun 27, 2015
I am a fan of the romantic comedy genre, despite the many flaws that plague it, and hence I started watching Kotoura-san absolutely ready to like it without setting expectations too high. The first episode started out promising, and it seemed like Kotoura-san could be a really heartwarming story at the beginning.....
......Yeah, you've probably guessed it. Barely 3 episodes into the series (probably even before that), Kotoura-san starts rolling downhill. Fast. And it never really recovers. Don't get me wrong. Kotoura-san had a lot of potential and there are moments when it really delivers as a rom-com. Unfortunately, these blink-and-you-miss moments make up a very small ... Mar 28, 2013
Kotoura-san: She Already Knows What I'm Going To Say
Going into this series, I thought we had another generic, cheaply animated AIC comedy on our hands. However, this series really throws you for a loop as soon as you watch the first 15 minutes. It has the start of a tragedy series with some rather heart-wrenching moments as you watch a little girl's family collapse all around her. The story of this series revolves around a girl named Haruka Kotoura who has ESP, the ability to read minds. She discovers this gift at an early age, although her family, friends, and peers have difficulty adjusting to it. ... |