Grisaia no Rakuen

Grisaia no Rakuen begins right at the end of the previous installment, Grisaia no Meikyuu. Kazami Yuuji is arrested under suspicion for terrorism. A video showing apparently concrete proof that Yuuji committed these acts, and he is held in custody by Ichigaya.

Ichigaya knows full well that Yuuji didn't commit the crimes he has been accused of. But he did fail to assassinate Heath Oslo, who is the leader of the terrorist organization with an extremely devastating weapon in their possession. In fact, Ichigaya have their own plans for Yuuji...

But all may not be lost for Yuuji. The girls of the Mihama Academy are not about to let Yuuji be used for political gain, and neither may the mysterious new figure which appears before them.

Kazami, Yuuji Main

Sakurai, Takahiro Japanese

Matsushima, Michiru Main

Mizuhashi, Kaori Japanese

Sakaki, Yumiko Main

Tanaka, Ryouko Japanese

Suou, Amane Main

Taguchi, Hiroko Japanese

Komine, Sachi Main

Shimizu, Ai Japanese

Irisu, Makina Main

Tamiyasu, Tomoe Japanese

Kazami, Kazuki Supporting

Tomonaga, Akane Japanese

Kusakabe, Asako Supporting

Mizusawa, Kei Japanese

Harudera, Yuria Supporting

Narumi, Erika Japanese

Tachibana, Chizuru Supporting

Yanase, Natsumi Japanese

Ogura, Mitsutoshi Producer

Yamazaki, Asuka Producer

Kanemitsu, Kazuhiro Producer

Ueki, Tatsuya Producer

Reviews

Aug 5, 2022

takutomaruki

Recommended

Let me explain something to you guys, before I get on with this actual review.

Is Grisaia no Rakuen (also known as The Eden of Grisaia) an anime that is necessarily an "amazing" one, at least to the eyes of most critical anime fans? And what I mean by that is this; does Grisaia no Rakuen have everything needed for a series to be amazing in the eyes of most anime fans, and use those things well? Things like; serious/deep/though provoking themes, elements of suspense used correctly without deus ex machina, a fluid and linear story, psychological/dark plot lines, well-characterized and developed characters, all bundled together ... with stellar animation and an ass-kicking soundtrack?

In some aspects, yes, Grisaia no Rakuen has those things. In others... well...

One thing I feel I should mention before going on with my review of this absolute treat is that, you shouldn't go into Grisaia no Rakuen expecting those things. Does that mean I'm directly implying that this series is nothing more than mindless fun, and can't be enjoyed as something deeper than that? No, not at all. But I think that Grisaia no Rakuen has a meaning to it that's different from the typical "norm" of what makes an anime so amazing. The absolute greatness behind Grisaia no Rakuen is, in a very small way, similar to that of Masaaki Yuasa's masterpiece The Tatami Galaxy. It, in no way, follows the norm of what people consider to make anime as great as it is, yet is still something many people consider to be one of the best anime of all time, if not the very best. Grisaia no Rakuen is similar to it in that regard.

So what I'm saying is, Grisaia no Rakuen should be thought of as mindless fun, because in a way, that's all it really is... yet, it's enjoyable at a level FAR above your typical mindless fun series. Hell, I'd say it's far above ANY mindless fun series, no matter how good it is/how good people consider it to be.

So today, I'm reviewing the recently-finished 2015 visual novel adaptation by Studio 8bit, sequel of the highly acclaimed visual novel Grisaia no Kajitsu, is the anime adaptation for Grisaia no Rakuen. Let's begin.


Small thing to note before we continue:
Do understand that Grisaia no Rakuen is the final installment to the Grisaia anime series. The first 2 are Grisaia no Kajitsu, the main series, and Grisaia no Meikyuu, an hour-long prequel special. If you are here looking for a new series to start, please visit the page for the anime [Grisaia no Kajitsu] which is where this series is meant to be started.

If you're still here, then you probably understand that this is meant to be a review of Grisaia no Rakuen, the sequel to Grisaia no Kajitsu/Meikyuu. With that being said, in my head, there's only 2 reasons why anyone would want to read a review for a sequel series like this one:
1. You've seen the first season, and want to know if it's worth it to watch the next, or...
2. You've seen the whole thing, and want to see what someone else thought about it, purely out of curiosity or because you want to compare your opinions to someone else, or something along those lines.

Whichever you fall under, it proves you've seen the first season... and given that, there WILL be some spoilers (though minor, spoilers nonetheless) to both Grisaia no Kajitsu and Grisaia no Meikyuu within this review. So, I'd advise you do not read any further if you haven't seen the first season/hour long special and don't want to be spoiled.

With that aside, let's begin the actual review.



Initial Thoughts (prior to watching):

Going into Grisaia no Rakuen, I was actually quite hyped, and not for the reasons you'd expect.

After finishing Grisaia no Kajitsu, which I happened to finish about a week after it finished airing, I was left with an EXTREMELY bitter tasted in my mouth... though, I still had hope for the future, but I'll talk about that later.

The reason for my bitter taste was simply because of how terrible an adaptation Kajitsu was. While I firmly believe that comparing an anime too much to its source material is stupid (because if you want the source material, go read the source material, don't give the anime slack for not being an exact copy of it), I usually only say that as an attempt to justify a series that goes the route of being an anime-original adaptation and not specifically an adaptation of any source material. My logic behind liking those things is because it gives is a new take on a story, and basically gives us two different versions of it... since, well, more is always better.

However, my original claim of "comparing an anime too much to its source material is stupid" is completely null and void when the reason for making those comparisons is due to the series being extremely rushed. Basically, when a series tries to be an animated copy of its source material, but fails to do so because way too much was left out.

As a visual novel reader of the entire Grisaia series, I'm able to say that that's EXACTLY how it was with Grisaia no Kajitsu. A visual novel that took me about 85 hours to complete, crammed into a 13-episode anime adaptation barely even 5 hours long. And my god, when people tell you that a lot was cut out, don't think they're just complaining and not believe them because that's EXACTLY how it was; so much was cut out, and it was almost impossible to enjoy.

Though, I can understand why people do, and I tried to take into consideration how people who haven't read its visual novel felt about the series when scoring it. Thus, I gave it a 4/10; enough to mainly think negatively about it, and enough to be vocal about my problems with it, but not bad enough to curse at it or truly call it bad.

Then came Grisaia no Meikyuu which, honestly, can be said to be pretty dang rushed as well. While not NEARLY as rushed as Grisaia no Kajitsu, a 15-20 hour visual novel being crammed into an hour long special (about 48 minutes in total) can be considered quite rushed as well, as typical GOOD visual novel adaptations tend to be about 1/4 as long as the original source material. However, I still think Meikyuu was given an amazing adaptation for the plain and simple fact of what it "truly" was as a visual novel: something MANY people considered to be, primarily, a fan disc. Meaning, fanservice was the prominent thing here, and the story was only a small part of it. Almost every important aspect of the Grisaia no Meikyuu visual novel was included within these 48 minutes, and to be quite honest, I don't think I'd ever ask for better, even if I was given the chance.

Though, it's a given that I didn't think Meikyuu was the most amazing thing ever, but I won't deny that it was done in, most likely, the most amazing WAY ever. Which is why I gave it an 8/10.

Remember how I said earlier that I still had hope for the future of this series? The main reason I felt this way was due to the confirming of sequels at the end of episode 13 of Grisaia no Kajitsu. While I didn't know what was in store for the future, I assumed another TV series would be on the way, and that's why I thought good things for the future. I though, "unless they plan to make a 3 episode anime adaptation, there's no way they can screw this up."

Well, here's the thing. Despite it being EXTREMELY rushed and barely enough to understand even part of what's really happening, the things that WERE animated in Grisaia no Kajitsu were actually done quite well. So, the way I thought about it was that IF it were given a good adaptation, and wasn't rushed very badly, it would be an amazing anime. So, all we needed was an episode count that made it hard to be rushed, and Grisaia no Rakuen could almost be confirmed to end up being a really good anime.

Once the episode count was announced, the things I said were pretty much confirmed in my head, as I thought there was no way Grisaia no Rakuen could be screwed up... and I was predicting it to be one of my favorite anime series' by the end had that been true. And look who was right.


And now, let's begin the actual review!



Story:

Grisaia no Rakuen starts off as a continuation of Grisaia no Meikyuu. We continue on with Yuuji's backstory, visiting his life after his childhood, after being taken in by Asako. With Yuuji's life being as terrible as it has been up until this time, Asako was prepared with the challenge of healing Yuuji's wounds and helping him to live an enjoyable life (flashback to the beginning of Kajitsu, where Yuuji claims he wants to join Mihama Academy so he can live a "normal life.")

This piece of the Grisaia story is one of extreme importance, maybe even the most important in the entire series. While it can easily be noted that Yuuji acts much different within custody of Asako than he does within the story of Kajitsu, you are easily able to tell how each thing that happens to him plays a part in the way he acts as a character within Kajitsu, as it takes place after the events of Meikyuu. And let me just tell you this, Yuuji is an extremely well-written character... though, I'll save that for when it needs to be talked about.

Yuuji within Kajitsu seemed a lot like a mystery. We wondered what exactly happened to him to cause him to act the ways he does; and we were given answers. Many answers. Many of the answers brought up questions we didn't even have, which were promptly answered not long after. Yes, everything was made clear, and what we were given from the story of the first 4 episodes of Grisaia no Rakuen was absolute perfection in what we needed to know. And, really, that's all there is to say about it. It was simply amazing.

And then, we get to the sequel... episodes 5-10.

Given what I said prior about Grisaia no Rakuen and the entire aspect of "mindless fun," it's a bit of a given that the story aspect of the series won't necessarily be the most prevalent throughout it. And, for the most part, that's true.

What is most prevalent, however, is something that can be considered even BETTER than just a simple story.

While elements of storytelling remain throughout everything that happens, and not a SINGLE thing happens without playing a part to the main story line (no matter how big or small), what we take from most of what happens is everything but a super developed story. And honestly, that's perfectly fine. No complaints here.

We're given information of a certain enemy appearing at a certain place at a certain time, and that he needs to be taken out. Simple enough, right? Sounds pretty common for a series like this. So what we're given to do just that, is a 15 year old loli girl being given a pink sniper rifle that's just as tall as her.

Did you just drop gas bombs onto the streets of an urban city? Are alive enemies that need to be taken down lurking through the gas? Just give a pink-haired maid a gas mask and two knives. I mean c'mon, it's first grade, isn't it?!

Just in-case it hasn't been made obvious, Grisaia no Rakuen is extremely larger-than-life, absurd, and just plain nonsensical (at least the sequel portion of episodes 5-10). Like really, almost nothing makes real sense... but at the same time, it does.

Now, what do I mean by that? Think about it this way: bad things happen, and things need to be done ASAP to fix them/prevent them from being worse. Those things are the solutions. What's absurd isn't necessarily the situations, or the things happening, or any other thing that plays towards the aspect of battle. What's absurd is the solutions.

These solutions are things like detecting an enemy riding up the side of a mountain. Instead of just trying to block him off on the mountain, why not just fly a chopper with machine-gun-turret equipped over the mountain and shoot straight at the mountain with it? Do you see what I mean by absurd and nonsensical?

And yet, they just seem to work so well. While I'm not going to say this style of writing is the most perfect thing ever, it's kind of the optimal way to do things with a series like this. After all the crazy, borderline-supernatural things that have happened, something like this seems to just be called-for... none of it really feels out of place.

Now, does "it works for the series and doesn't feel out of place" make a good reason for giving the story aspect of this series a 9/10? No, not at all. That only has to do with a small part of what makes a story good. The rest has to do with the extreme awesomeness that exists within this series.

The brilliantly well-thought-out psychological scenes, the erection-throbbing action, and the absolutely emotional scenes of attachment are what make Grisaia no Rakuen as amazing as it is. These things aren't really meant to be described here in the story portion of this review, but I'll go over them briefly.

1. Amazing antagonist introduced.
2. Incredible plot twists (this could be explained, but impossible to do so without spoiling).
3. Well-written characters EVERYWHERE.
4. Everything just feels so amazing. Hard to get a feeling like this from anywhere else.
5. All looks and sounds amazing.



Character:

Now, let's start to explain the things that make Grisaia no Rakuen as amazing as it is.

If you were like me, you didn't specifically like the characters of any girl that was part of Yuuji's harem in Grisaia no Kajitsu... you only really liked their stories or what we learned from them.

This was, almost completely, fixed in Grisaia no Rakuen.

What were originally really annoying and slightly one-dimensional "SUPAH CUTE!!" harem girls in Kajitsu, turned a total 180 and turned into pretty dang good characters in Rakuen. While I won't say that any of their personalities changed, it was more the lack of extreme attention put onto them and the WAYS their personalities were used that made them as amazing as they were.

You see, I didn't necessarily think any girl was THAT bad in Kajitsu. What I thought made them as annoying as they were was the plain and simple fact that they were given too much attention, and used in ways that made people think that they were meant to be seen as the most important people ever. When it's proven that that isn't the way they're meant to be seen in Rakuen, they almost instantly become great characters that are extremely hard not to like in some way.

What if I were to tell you, these characters are a lot different than you most likely thought they were after watching Kajitsu? If that got your attention at all, you'll definitely enjoy watching Grisaia no Rakuen.

Though, that isn't to say why I gave the characters of Grisia no Rakuen the score I did. It wasn't quite that simple, nor that effective.

Grisaia no Meikyuu introduced Asako, and she became such a great character within Rakuen once we learned who she really was. She was one addition that I truly thought was perfect, and the emotional value we, as viewers, placed on her after the short time we saw here was just great, and I have to hand it to the writers for being able to do something like that. Honestly, Asako may have been my favorite side character from the entire series if it weren't for one other character in specific.

There was only really one other "introduction" of a new character in this series, and not really one I'd really call much of a true introduction (hence the quotes). Despite that character being, without a doubt, my favorite character in the entire series (and even my 2nd favorite character of ALL TIME), they're a character that I can't talk about at all without giving spoilers. So, please remember the name "Thanatos," and enjoy watching the series.

Despite liking that certain character I mentioned above more than him, Yuuji Kazami was without a doubt the most developed character in this series. It can be said, without difficulty, that he's the most well-written harem protagonist of all time.

Speaking of harem, the entire Grisaia series is a very interesting take on the aspect of harems. While it can be said, without a single doubt, that he Grisaia series fulfills everything that's required to be a harem, it has a very interesting take on it. The girls are constantly in battle over who will win over Yuuji, but it's not the focal point of the series, and many other things are paid more attention to than that. Just wanted to mention that, to anyone who might be turned off by the fact that it's tagged as a harem.

Well, really, nothing else can be said about the characters. Development is off the charts for Yuuji, and a specific side character is heart-stoppingly amazing, with the rest of the harem being great as well. I give this a 10 for being perfect in every regard that I could ever ask for.



Animation and Sound:

This won't take a while, since there isn't really a lot to say.

While it was still animated really well, Grisaia no Kajitsu didn't have a lot to animate due to the fact that nothing really required an extremely high budget. For the most part, Kajitsu was a pretty still series that just looked well-done for what it was.

That wasn't necessarily the truth for Rakuen, however. Rakuen was flooded with different action scenes, and a lot of "gotta go fast!" scenes that required detailed animation (commonly referred to as "sakuga"). And yet, the animation received NO sudden decline in quality... it remained amazing for the entire duration of the series, and man, did it look good.

The action scenes were absolutely flawless. The sakuga was a little overused at times, but still looked amazing each time. The battles were so intense, and the incredible artwork just made it so much more engaging. And, like with Kajitsu, the still scenes also looked amazing. There was absolutely no decline in quality at any moment within the series, which was incredibly surprising. Completely deserving of a 10.

The soundtrack was also quite great as well. Usually, I don't place much of a high value in an anime's soundtrack, since it's not something that I really think about beyond watching the series. And usually, soundtracks are done well enough to get by anyways, so there's not a whole lot that's needed to be thought about deeply.

In short, the soundtrack of Grisaia no Rakuen does its job without being completely outstanding. It's deserving of a 9 just because of that, since a bad soundtrack doesn't really exist in modern anime and thus soundtracks kinda "should" be overrated.



Overview and Final Thoughts:

Grisaia no Rakuen is a treat. That's all I really need to say.

What can come off as a huge load of absurd crap ends up being one of the most fulfilling experiences ever, and it's just SO amazing. What you'll get out of Grisaia no Rakuen is a nearly unmatched experience of absolute blood-pumping action alongside emotional sub plots and incredible character writing. It's just simply an amazing series.

While I don't find it to be the most perfect thing ever, it actually is in some regards. Some things about this series are just simply unmatched, and the most perfect example of that thing that's ever been seen in anime thus far.

While there are times where the quality of the writing seems to dip, and ends up being a little too dumb, the overall product of this amazing series is exactly as I just said, amazing.

Story: Given that I try to combine the aspects of the above-average story with the amazing absurd fun, I give the story a 9.
Character: Pure amazing development, writing, and the changes some characters were given was just perfect. Definitely a 10.
Art: Perfect. Nothing more needs to be said. Easy 10.
Sound: I overrate soundtracks because not a lot comes from them. Grisaia no Rakuen's does its job and thus deserves a 9.
Overall score for Grisaia no Rakuen: 9.5/10, rounded up to a 10 for this review.

Who would I recommend this series to: Anyone who's seen Grisaia no Kajitsu. If that was your intent of coming to this review, the answer is yes, Grisaia no Rakuen IS DEFINITELY WORTH WATCHING!
Otherwise, given that Grisaia no Kajitsu wasn't very good, it's really hard to recommend the entire series to someone. But, if you understand, even for a second, my burning passion for Rakuen, then that should be enough to persuade you to watch the entire series, starting from Kajitsu.

Rakuen is a treat, and should be experienced by most people, if not everyone, just because of that.

Reviewer’s Rating: 10

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Jan 6, 2018

xre

Mixed Feelings

You are in a running race. As you approach the finish line you are in first, far ahead of your competitors. But right before you get to the finish line you trip. Your victory and your new record is a goner.

This is basically the feeling Eden of Grisaia left me with. A would-be masterpiece that just ruins it at the very end just like Charlotte. Just when I first thought I found a masterpiece in a genre called "Harem", a genre often filled with mediocre stories, the ending just had to ruin it all. And it did it not only once, but twice: at the ... last episode of first season and the last arc (though the latter was a bigger turnaround).

Grisaia series is another series that has left me excited while watching. Heck, I finished the entire series within 48 hours of a weekday just because of how enthralling this was. It was a surprise that this series with such compelling story originally was an eroge (whaa). I have not read the VN before watching this series, and really didn't find major flaws until the very end (like pacing), unlike the fans of VN.

Story: 5/10
"Will I ever be able to live a normal life? I have too much blood on my hands. But I am not allowed to die until I save five people"

The story was a masterpiece... until the writer decided to say "F*** it, and threw physics and logic just out of the gate.

Let me start of by saying how this would have been a masterpiece if it wasn't for the last arc.
The Grisaia series is really a mix of everything: romance, action, psychological, harem, romance, and quite a lot of genres. And despite the chaos the combination the flow of the story (until the last arc) and the tension were perfectly smooth - it felt like I was watching a psychological piece like Psycho-Pass while watching The World God only Knows with tension of Death Note and action like Attack on Titan. And what Grisaia does is gets rid of the flaws of those series and only puts the best elements in the story. I can safely say it's one of the best.

I initially thought that this series would be like Nisekoi or another conventional dull and average MC, but he's pretty bad-ass and just "like a boss", I'd say. And the Harem series does not really act as a detractor from the main series; they all add up adding to the mysterious component of the series. I understand why the VN has received so much praise. Well, this series WAS superb..

Then there was the last arc. (and I thought the last episode of Fruit of Grisaia was full of BS too)
Where nobody gets injured when a car crashes falls from midair off quite some altitude (quite an irony to the Microbus incident), or the villains who are just ridiculously terrible shots, or a bomb that just doesn't detonate, and the girls magically earning money like piece of cake. Well, this series was full of action that kept me tense the entire time, but it just went too overboard here. And the ending was troll just like the last arc itself.

If I were to rate the story, I'd give the first season 8.5/10 (-1 due to last episode), S2+Yuuji's past arc 9.7/10 (Simply just brilliant), and the last arc meager 3.5/10.

And this series probably one of the best sexual innuendos. Well Miles above others. And it doesn't interrupt the action aspect of the story at all. But it has some "quirky and unique" characters....
(Kazuki???)

TL DR; Just a Masterpiece... Until the last arc.

Art: 9/10
The angle of shots and just the general tone of the cinematography is perfect for setting up the tension in the series. But it kinda gets distracted by some moe-ish characters (like the principal or the secretary). And it has some waifus for those into 2-D girls (I hope you are not).

Sound: 8/10
Didn't find anything getting me off the anime. I like this season's opening too - pretty ominous song unlike other anime labeled "harem" (that's really because Harem is not the main genre of the story)

Character: 9/10
I'm basing this off all three series.
The background story behind each characters are deep and just thrilling. Yuuji, the guy who just looks like a generic average guy from a harem anime, is actually one of the most complex characters; he is haunted by the past, and his story reflects upon nihilism, existentialism, moral values, and countless other themes and motives.
And it doesn't cross the boundary with the LOLI character! (thank you... they are more like father-daughter relationship...)

Except two characters ruin the atmosphere - the principal and the secretary from JB's office. They are too "moe-ish" and just doesn't really feel like they belong there. Would have gave a 10/10 if not for this (it just felt way too out of place).

Enjoyment: 8/10
10/10 without the last arc.
Way too thrilling. Action packed. I didn't want to skip any of it (which is pretty rare) until the last arc. Was better than most movies.

Overall: 6/10
I kinda wrote a review on the Grisaia series as a whole. I gave 9 to S1 and S2. But as for this series, we have the first part which is a 10/10 for me (Yuuji's past) followed by mediocre "f**k physics and logic" arc. I just couldn't give this a high rating (mostly because the last art is 6 out of 10 episodes). But great series overall. I'd still recommend anyone watching this series to even watch until the ending to get a sense of resolve.

TL DR; Absolutely AMAZING series as a whole, containing the best of elements of top anime such as Death Note, Psycho-Pass, Attack on Titan, and other romance/harem-ish anime. Terrible last arc, but I'd still recommend to get the feel of being resolved. Low score due to it half of it being about the last arc.

Reviewer’s Rating: 6

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Dec 23, 2020

JuneNephthys

Not Recommended

"The Eden of Grisaia" and the prequel OVA, "The Labyrinth of Grisaia," both struggle from pacing issues from opposite sides of the spectrum — while the prelude to the second series was way too laconic and filled to the brim with edgy, lurid scenes; it was too much to handle all at once, the second series is, well, the opposite of that. It's sluggish and full of textbooks worth of exposition. At the height of my excitement for the continuation, I was underwhelmed by the sheer volume of talking and explanations.

—Technical

Motoki Tanaka (director):

Commentary: From what I have seen of Mr. Tanaka's works, the adaptation of ... the Grisaia franchise is easily his best work, though the Azur Lane adaptation wasn't bad either! It's difficult to believe that the same man that totally destroyed any hope of the "Rewrite" anime ever being good, was actually able to make a cohesive and emotionally impactful visual novel adaptation. It may have been more Front Wing's involvement with the project or the addition of the veteran, series composition producer, ※Hideyuki Kurata!

Good Seiyū Work

Really Enjoyed the Seiyū's Performance

One of Luna's Favorite Performances OF ALL TIME

Takahiro Sakurai as Yūji Kazami:

Commentary: Mr. Sakurai is an incredible voice actor, he usually plays the more often than not, "cold-hearted" pretty boy characters. Though, he's really amazing at comedy roles, too! His talents really fit the role of Yūji Kazami, like a glove! Wonderful work!

Hiroko Taguchi as Amane Suō:

Commentary: I have only seen Ms. Taguchi in "Yosuga no Sora" — yet, I was captivated by her performance as Amane Suō. Especially when her backstory comes to light, her character's tenderness and wisdom is really gently conveyed throughout the dialogue! Amazing job!

Ryōko Tanaka as Yumiko Sakaki:

Commentary: I enjoyed Ms. Sakaki's performance in "Little Busters" a lot, but, with that said, I kind of wish I hadn't looked at her discography! She a couple of characters, in both the "Kara no Shōjo" and "Cartagra" visual novels that I really didn't like! Despite that, her characterization of Yumiko Sakaki was really good!

Kaori Mizuhashi as Michiru Matsushima:

Commentary: Ms. Mizuhashi is a really, really, incredibly talented seiyū — I tend to prefer her more mature-sounding roles, but her work on Michiru is still really top-notch! Excellent job!

Ai Shimizu as Sachi Komine:

Commentary: Ms. Shimizu's voice is so frickin' adorable! I initially thought that Sachi would be my favorite based on her downright endearing nature and maid aesthetic! I really loved her as Minawa Andō in "Mahoromatic," too! Incredible!

Tomoe Tamiyasu as Makina Irisu:

Commentary: I only know Ms. Tamiyasu, other than in the Grisaia series, in "Little Busters"! But, her voice is very charming and sweet! Amazing job!

Akane Tomonaga as Kazuki Kazami:

Commentary: I recently watched ChäoS;HEAd, a few months ago, and although I mostly watched it with the English dub, I did sample a little bit of the Japanese audio, too; Ms. Tomonaga has a very sexy-sounding voice! Great job with calculated, yet sensual character of Kazuki Kazami!

Overall, "Grisaia no Meikyū" and "Grisaia no Rakuen" are affected by some of the same pitfalls the other visual novels are faced with, a) too much of a story leads to overwrought exposition, b) too much of a hurried backstory seems like a recipe for gut-churning, tragic pornography, rather a palatable character path, and c) "too many routes leads to none," the conclusion isn't satisfying, because it incorporates too many elements. I thought that the build-up to the "Kazuki is still alive" reveal was too delayed, too, waiting through scene to humdrum scene of nonstop talking, made her inevitable entrance anti-climatic — at most, a good toss-back to the first season! I give both "Grisaia no Meikyū" and "Grisaia no Rakuen" a 3/10!

Ratings:

The Labyrinth of Grisaia ("Grisaia no Meikyū") ★★☆☆☆

The Eden of Grisaia ("Grisaia no Rakuen") ★★☆☆☆

Other Rankings:

The Fruit of Grisaia ("Grisaia no Kajitsu") ★★★★☆

Grisaia: Phantom Trigger ★★★☆☆

Reviewer’s Rating: 3

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by Archean-Return

26 Entries · 24 Restacks

Anime adaption of Visual Novels with English release (EXTRA)

by MagicFlier

40 Entries · 9 Restacks

North American Anime & Manga Releases for July

Here are the North American anime, manga, and light novel releases for July Week 1: July 6 - 12 Anime Releases All Out!! Complete Collection Blu-ray [Essentials] Gle...read more

Jul 6, 2021 7:49 AM by Aiimee | Discuss (4 comments)

North American Anime & Manga Releases for September

Here are the North American anime & manga releases for September Week 1: September 6 - 12 Anime Releases Hanaukyou Maid-tai: La Verite Complete Collection Harmon...read more

Sep 5, 2016 3:44 PM by Sakana-san | Discuss (12 comments)

	Poll: Grisaia no Rakuen Episode 10 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) aconite - Jun 21, 2015	251 replies	by Weely21 »» Aug 26, 7:34 PM
	Poll: Grisaia no Rakuen Episode 8 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 ) Stark700 - Jun 7, 2015	161 replies	by youngtrae96 »» Dec 15, 2023 12:17 AM
	Poll: Grisaia no Rakuen Episode 9 Discussion ( 1 2 3 ) Stark700 - Jun 14, 2015	110 replies	by JeremiahOrange »» Sep 17, 2023 7:21 AM
	Poll: Grisaia no Rakuen Episode 7 Discussion ( 1 2 ) Stark700 - May 31, 2015	75 replies	by JeremiahOrange »» Sep 17, 2023 1:27 AM
	Poll: Grisaia no Rakuen Episode 6 Discussion ( 1 2 3 ) Stark700 - May 24, 2015	103 replies	by JeremiahOrange »» Sep 17, 2023 1:00 AM