KimiKiss Pure Rouge

Wow. Just wow. After watching the last episode of Kimikiss, I can say that this was one of the best romance animes I've seen in a long while.

Story
The story is so simple ... it's about true love. We all chase it, but not all catch it. And that's what our two main guys are doing as well. Revolving around the typical high-school environment, two events of the first episode put a whole romance story in motion, a romance story you probably won't forget that easy. It seems so simple and human that you easy forget about this world and live the feelings of the ... characters involved in this story. As in all romance animes, the drama can't miss out, and you'll find many moments when you'll actually feel like crying if you put yourself in a certain character's situation (like I do, usually). One thing I didn't like was the ending, since I hoped I could see a bit of a "1 year later" story but it ended kind of abruptly. Well, nevertheless, the story is probably the greatest thing about Kimikiss.

Art
I've heard some people don't like the artwork from Kimikiss and I certainly don't know why, because I consider it pretty good. The characters are drawn good (even though it has a different style than other animes), the background scenery is pretty good as well so I see no reason why I shouldn't give it an 8. Plus, in episode 20, when they changed the art for the Kazuki-Eriko scene, it was very interesting to see that depth in the eyes, that facial expression that few animations can give, even for one episode.

Sound
Not much to say about this part. The OST is very good and the background music fits the anime like a glove. Not to mention the great OP/ED songs that can really make you sing along with 'em. "Aozora Loop" is one of my top 5 songs since the anime started airing due to the exciting feeling it gives you if you're actually in love. It's one of those songs that make being in love a happy, cheerful and awesome thing, like you forget all the bad parts.

Character
Character was one of the things that caught me from the first episode. The variety of girls fits a harem anime, yet one of the main elements here are the guys. It's the first romance shows I've seen that actually has 2 main guys, so two main stories at the same time. You can see them throughout the anime how they become from the inexperienced, lonely bums to guys that know how to face the facts and have the guts to get past the obstacles in their way. They fall in love, and that's what makes them stronger. I really think the characters made this show more worthwhile.

Enjoyment
I loved it. From the first episode that aired in the autumn of 2007 to the last episode in spring 2008, I loved this anime. Back then, when I saw the first episode, it captured me and didn't let me go. I still love it even now and I'll keep it because I'll surely watch it again someday, probably when love strikes me. Here's one anime that deserves a hats off. Good job, Lantis, Bandai, J.C. ... good job.


Final Overall Grade: 8.6, rounded up to 9

A satisfying Rom/Com that focuses not only on a main boy & girl but on all the stars of the show. This series has a very casual feel to it, with a typical level of teenage angst.

KimiKiss ~ Pure Rouge is a Slice of Life, Romance anime about the daily lives of high school students. Unlike most of the “visual novels” – to – “anime adaptations”, this one does not carry an overall theme or concept but it’s just about normal daily lives of the characters. The story itself is very casual so some may get bored of it but as a person who’s seen ... numerous romance anime, I enjoyed the lack of comedy and intense drama. Seeing how there’s not too many relationship dilemmas that make it feel overbearing, all that is left to do is relax and enjoy the flow of the steadily paced story.

With no real emphasis put on the story, it's the characters that bring it all to life. Instead of being focused on the protagonist and heroine(s), like most shows tend to do, we get a bunch of teenage boys and girls that get a fair bit of time and development each. Of course there will be certain characters you’ll favor over others; it just feels good to have a choice.

The animation both had its good and bad points. The environments and backgrounds had a painted watercolor look, which made the superbly drawn characters stand out. Yet due to the lack of detail in the backgrounds, the bits of CG used really stood out but these are only minimal issues. The music was alright, I guess, but it felt uninspiring and the OP or ED themes aren’t something you’d really want to listen to either, until we get to the 2nd ED.

Overall KimiKiss ~ Pure Rouge is a surprisingly enjoyable Rom/Com to watch with its best merit being that it develops each of the different characters well and also their different relationships are also quite refreshing to watch. Being a Rom/Com there are bound to be some typical clichés but it still manages to do a good job in focusing on the various romances without getting too dramatic. So in the end this series has enough for romance lovers enjoy or feel content with but it isn’t good enough to convert non-romance anime fans.

^_^

Yosha! My newest addiction: Writing reviews! =D Let's start with this one, people!

Story
Well, the ones with brains already saw that this is a romantic gerne. If you don't like romance at all then I think that this anime is nothing for you. I'm really the romance type so of course I like the story from Kimi-Kiss ~Pure Rouge~. So for the ones that also are into romance, you should really watch this. I give the story a 9! <3

Art
Mmm.. what can I say about the art. Well, you can see that this anime is kinda new but it isn't the best art that I've seen ... so far for a 2007 anime. Let's be honest, there are better ones. But the colors and stuff are good and it's about the story, isn't it? Don't get me wrong now, I don't say that the art is bad, I say that it isn't the best that I've seen.

Sound
With animes from 2006/2007 you mostly just don't have something to complain. I give it a 9 as always.

Character
Yes, we coming to the good part! I JUST LOVE THE CHARACTERS! My favorite is Mao, but I like everyone from Kimi-Kiss ~Pure Rouge~. We have her (Mao) to start with, she moved to France and suddenly came back. She's like a big sister for the rest who seem to have a crush on Kai. She's telling everyone what to do, lol! Yuumi, the innocent who loves books and has a crush on Kouichi (he also has a crush on her!). Eriko, the genius who does very weird expiriments. Watch it yourself if you wanna find out. Let's see, Asuka the soccer-girl. Nana, the little childish sister from Kazuki and her friend Narumi. And last Kazuki and Kouichi, the male leads. I'm sure you gonna love all of them because they really have their own personality.

Enjoyment
You could really enjoy this! At least, I do! There are some very very funny moments and it's just the romance where I was looking for. Like I said already, if you don't like romance I won't think that you would really enjoy this so I won't try to watch it in the first place. But romance-lovers you're really gonna enjoy this!

Overall
Well, I have only one 7 so I'm just gonna give this anime a 9! =D All the romance-lovers, I wish you a great time watching this series!

Thanks for reading my review!

Seven girls. Two guys. One school. A lot of romance. I won’t blame anyone for flinching at what those words imply, since the high school romance genre is done to death. But I’m not jaded enough to start bashing unoriginal stories just because they’re unoriginal; any story can be good with enough care. But instead of talking about entertainment philosophies, let’s look at Kimikiss ~Pure Rouge~.

The story opens with a quick scene of a lass arriving in town, followed by a scene where main lead Kouichi wakes up from a dream he can’t remember. But as he wakes, the doorbell rings with that lass standing ... at the front door, who promptly settles down in his house as if she knew him. But Kouichi doesn’t know who she is, until his friend Kazuki shows up at his house as he and the lass quickly recognize each other. The lass is their childhood friend Mao, back from overseas and staying at Kouichi’s house for the time being.

But this event is bound to cause waves, as Kouichi has been trying to build a relationship with his classmate Yuumi, while trying to make a film with Kazuki and their other friend Akira. But Kazuki is worse off, working on that film, being forced into soccer practice with Asuka, and kissing experiments with Eriko! Meanwhile, in the senior class, Mao sparks an odd friendship with Eiji. And in the first year class, Kazuki’s younger sister Nana and her friend Harumi go on...udon cooking adventures.

Well. That complicated quickly. Before going any further, it’s worth noting the udon subplot is pointless but takes a good 15% of the show’s screentime anyway. It serves as comic relief with no impact on the story, which is a shame since the leftover 85% is indispensible, tightly written, and believably blends together like Very Berry Ramen.

Okay, maybe only Eriko would like that flavor. There’s a running joke throughout the show about her lack of taste, but otherwise there’s a lack of humor about her that keeps most people at bay. Kazuki and Eriko share a mutual growth throughout the show that moves Kazuki from indecision to finality, while the ice wrapping Eriko slowly defrosts without changing her aloof attitude. Her laugh at the ramen stand is barely visible but undeniably there, she starts to join Nana and Harumi for lunch, and that stoic face can’t hide her agitation when Asuka confronts her.

The spunky Asuka herself is the one who pushes Kazuki to do his best. He doesn’t know whether to seriously pursue Eriko at first, but thanks in part to the way Asuka pushes him on the soccer field and off it, he decides to go for it. And not just with Eriko, but everything he does in life. His newfound vigor drives him on the soccer field but as it does, he accidentally hurts Asuka’s leg and she’s sidelined from playing for a while. It’s a fitting scene, since it’s more than Asuka’s leg that’s hurt as she soon learns.

The downside to Asuka’s progress is how different she acts before and after her injury. Going from a drill sergeant to a blushing pile of goo after one scene is jarring enough as it is, but here it’s only made worse because of everyone else’s subtle progress. Unfortunately, that subtlety is also taken too far with part of Eriko’s progress, since the reason she’s doing these experiments comes too little, too late. Everything else about Eriko’s progress is otherwise solid and connects well with the rest of the story in the few times they connect.

This connect shows in a recurring scene where Eriko and Mao relax and talk in the school nurse’s office. At first, Mao crashes the nurse’s office just because she’s not a morning person, but later goes there after her personal reasons develop. On the other hand, the genius Eriko goes there just to skip class, but later on even she doesn’t know how to face her feelings. Eriko and Mao’s mutual growth parallel each other like the beds they rest on, with the former experiencing love and the latter being afraid to lose it.

Mao herself is the big sister figure to Kouichi and Kazuki, and always seems on top of everything. Like being the matchmaker for Kouichi and Yuumi, or pushing Kazuki to go after Eriko. But she’s also rounded out, often barging into Kouichi’s room for a round of video games, or her attempts to befriend her classmate Eiji. But as the show goes on, her face denies her actions, and her actions deny her feelings. It could be easy to dislike her for being dishonest, but it can also be something to appreciate. In other words, she’s a believably flawed character.

Then, there’s the somewhat flawless but still compelling Eiji. His aloofness is the most noticeable thing about him until the aesthetics take care of the rest. He’s a late-night jazz saxophonist working at a bar with muted lighting. There’s no word of his family throughout the show, and his teacher criticizes him for focusing too much on music and not enough on his studies. He lives a strange life, but this doesn’t faze him much nor does he develop from it. But that’s not a bad thing, as he’s mature beyond his years as he plays the voice of reason for Mao AND Kouichi.

Kouichi, the main lead, breaks away from the milquetoast quality that’s too easy to fall into. Though he needs a push from Mao to really go after Yuumi, he shows qualities that make it believable why Yuumi would like him. His strong work ethic, like working on the film, is where he and Yuumi spend a lot of time together. And his dreams of being a novelist come from a certain plot point, that lies with a certain someone, who’s with him less and less as the show goes on. Kouichi can’t help but be concerned for this certain someone, and Yuumi can’t help but notice his concern.

Yuumi herself is meek, but she doesn’t shy away from conflict. She takes bad news pretty well, and from to librarian to film maker has a work ethic of her own. Unfortunately, she’s static compared to the rest of the characters. There’s a lack of reaction on her part despite being in love—her incessant blushing doesn’t count—and her role in the story is underwhelming despite being so important. Still, she does nicely build the story in the show’s film subplot.

Because past the romantic drama is a film being made by the honestly devious Akira. But what starts as a waste of time slowly shows itself to parallel the story in many ways. There are script lines that recite themselves in real life, and casting decisions between Yuumi and Mao that are hard to pay mind to, until the story fully plays out. At the end, Akira screens the film, and congratulates himself on making it a tear jerker. Sound melodramatic? Well, the in-show audience’s reaction to the film is tearful but muted. It’s a frighteningly believable response, and shows how strong understated storytelling can be.

This is because the show’s storytelling is restrained. It hardly tries to tell the viewer how to feel, letting dialog and character progress rule each scene instead of a loud soundtrack. This restraint lets the story be serious without being heavy, and lets the lighter scenes exist since they don’t become full-on comedy. These restrained aesthetics show the story’s confidence in its storytelling and its viewers to know the characters, with often superb results.

Let me describe some of those results. When Kouichi and Yuumi are talking after an exam, the viewer can see Mao watching them like the matchmaker she is, but the slight slant to her eyes is a sign of things to come. During an experiment between Kazuki and Eriko in the middle part of the show, a blush and a tremble cross Eriko’s face, while Kazuki is noticeably calmer. And when someone tries to return something to someone else, the viewer WILL know what it means at that point. It’s scenes like this that are powerful, mostly quiet storytelling moments where Kimikiss ~Pure Rouge~ is purely divine.

Unfortunately, when the show heavily relies on music, half the time it makes a muted scene try too hard. When someone shares bad news with another, just having the news foreshadowed and the viewer’s connection to their relationship is enough. Or in the couple of scenes where someone is trying to confide in another, half the time those scenes work and half the time they don’t. The show is 3/4 quiet and 1/4 loud. There’s nothing wrong with a loud scene to show emotion, but it’s a gamble the show loses half the time.

But when the show wins that gamble, it wins big time. When a scene where someone is confiding in another works, the music is perfectly timed. When the second major kiss in the show happens, the first ending number, ‘Negai Boshi,’ perfectly caps the moment. The music itself is often understated and doesn’t stand on its own, but it always sets the mood, rarely failing to be subtle but effective. This is part of the storytelling’s restraint, which also shows its hand in the visuals.

Quite oddly (or quite thankfully!), for a show with several heroines, there’s no overt fanservice. Save for one shower scene and one beach scene, the show uses intimacy to show off its bevy of beauties. Often times after a kiss, there’s a heavy emphasis on the heroine’s lips. Not body. Not mouth. Lips. The lips are shown as is, without any attempt to dress them up, since these girls are quite lovely already. This show knows its heroines are the cover attraction, but plays up their appearance sparingly, gracefully, and with dignity.

The art design itself is lively, brightly colored despite the limited color palette, but nothing great. Its real strength is WHAT happens with the art itself. A second-long flashback followed by a dark, empty apartment implies everything important about a certain character. Or another scene where a bedroom door is framed between two characters, to show the disconnect between what they think the other one thinks. Or really, any time a character’s face tells the story, from Eriko’s denial to Eiji’s intuition.

Of course, strong filmic direction doesn’t mean anything without good pacing. And even counting the pointless udon subplot, the show’s pacing is very solid. There’s always a sense of time for what plot thread is happening when, and they’re not mashed together but connected by mutual characters. The story is multi-layered but still easy to follow. Maybe too easy to follow for its own good.

This is because Kimikiss ~Pure Rouge~ is a romance story through and through. It doesn’t really do anything new for its genre, but it doesn’t need to. It just needs to tell its story well, and it far surpasses that mark despite its flaws. Despite some characters being better written than others, most of them are sincere to the story. Despite being heavy-handed at times, it’s otherwise powerfully quiet. It doesn’t pass with flying colors, but a kiss needs only the color of ~Pure Rouge~.

1st impression:
Hmm? another harem anime nuuuuu! but wait!

Selling point(s):
pure romance of high schoolers, light and warm hearted scenes, various lovable characters, music with the right mood

Reason(s) of liking the anime:

Most of the time i would skip this sort of anime, but then i found out it wasnt another harem anime. It is so pure and lovely . What's rare is that, the anime doesnt have one of those used-and-used-all over again ecchiness, not to mention it has 0 playboys - it's just so plain and simple , but yet the romance scenes will not stop from making you heart throbbing! ( even i , ... as a male ^^). Nice and soothing music copped well with every pace of the anime. With that, i decided to have a go for this anime and yes it was definitely a worthy one.


What I Dislike:
Story might be weak for it's slice of life.

Advice(s)
1) For all ages of viewers, for those who still love pure romance w/o exaggerated ecchi scenes or playboy-type mainchars.

Kimikiss Pure Rouge was one of the first anime I ever watched. Knowing it was from the same director as Honey and Clover and Nodame Cantabile – two brilliant anime in their own right – I had to watch it. But after I finished, I refrained from doing a review for it, simply because I didn’t want readers to think I just gave perfect scores to everything. Needless to say, Kasai is simply a mastermind that makes the cogs spin to perfect time, but I didn’t know what I had stumbled upon at the time.

However, recently I have been watching an anime strikingly similar to ... Kimikiss’s style called Hatsukoi Limited and when I realized how utterly pale it was in comparison to Kimikiss Pure Rouge, I had to try to realize why. Hatsukoi is a 13 episode disaster waiting to happen and I’ll be surprised if it doesn’t end in a burning crash. There’s almost two dozen characters, nearly all of whom have a crush on someone who likes someone else. It’s littered with pointless dialogue and fanservice. Now, don’t get me wrong – I enjoy my share of fanservice, but it doesn’t belong in an anime with a complex story crippled by a 13 episode timeframe.

And so Hatsukoi shows just what it was that Kimikiss did to get it right. Essentially the story surrounds the love stories of two friends, Kouichi and Kazuki. Kazuki is an outgoing boy who happens to fall for the perfectionist, seemingly emotionless deredere queen (you know… a total hottie with a broken heart underneathe her tough 180 IQ exterior.) and Kouichi is a shy boy with an old childhood friend who happens to come stay with him after being “overseas” for the last few years. It’s A-standard stuff, but Kimikiss takes these typical plot-lines with a potential for disaster and turns it into megawatt, emotional stuff simply by sticking to what Hatsukoi and many other anime refuse to do: make sense. For example in “Anime A” when a boy trips over something… usually air… what happens? He does a face plant into his love interest’s chest right? Well, let’s just say that in Kimikiss Pure Rouge, if a character trips… he just takes an extra half-step and continues on as if nothing happened. So in the same breath, when a typical plot device we all know comes along in Kimikiss, the most common thing that should happen actually happens, and it’s amazing, because it’s a totally new experience! Everything makes sense and it allows the watcher to both sympathize with the characters while predicting what’s eventually going to happen. And it makes it that much better when it takes a turn and surprises you, because you can’t help but want more.

It’s surprising how much you’ll end up rooting for all of these characters. The creators of this anime get romance right in so many ways (including the ending – by far the best I’ve ever experienced in any romance anime.) that every episode is an experience that ramps you up and calms you down at the same time. And it doesn’t hurt that Futami Eriko is one of the greatest characters ever conceived. (Once you watch episode 20, you’ll sneer at other characters in different anime that are similar to her simply because they can’t compete.)

Watch this anime if you like romance in any form. I won’t say it’s the absolute best there is (for me that’s Nodame) but it definitely gets things right. And when you’re looking for something new to watch, isn’t that the first true requisite?

The reason why I started to watch Kimikiss was because I heard that Kehichi Kasai and the rest of the team that did Nodame and Honey and Clover were working on this. That and some very well known voice actresses were playing key roles. Oh, and I’m a romance junkie…ahem anyway.

Almost immediately Kimikiss reminded me of Boys Be, another ensemble style HS romance with a slice of life feel. This can be attributed to Kasai splitting the main character from the game into 2. Because of this he was able to follow multiple stories lines and cause controversy with game fans. ... However, I applaud his gutsy move as it solves the problems with the narrative structure associated with typical visual novel conversions (ie episode 1 girl 1, episode 2 girl 2, etc). The story follows a more realistic slice of life path where we see the life of these high schooler’s and their romances. In addition, the story is very much character driven and fairly typical of the romance genre. So if you don’t like romance stories then you won’t like this and why the hell are you reading this anyway?

As I said, Kimikiss is purely character driven; here is where the meat of this anime lays. I found all the characters very likable and charming. Most of the fun of Kimikiss comes from watching these characters interact and watch their lives unfold. Also, due to the story structure all the characters get plenty of screen time and development. I’ll have to admit most the characters aren’t exactly the deepest or most complex. In addition, many of the characters feel a bit too idealized. However, Kimikiss is a light romance/drama so I can forgive this aspect, as I don’t think Kimikiss was ever meant to be very complex. Kimikiss also lacks the extremes in terms of drama and comedy. It stays at a very comfortable level between those 2 things, neither extremely dramatic nor extremely comedic. Ok it does get a bit dramatic in the end but that’s to be expected.

Kimikiss features a soft, water color like animation/art, similar to Kasai previous works and the original game art. For the most part the animation/art was fairly consistent however, there were a few episodes where there were noticeable differences in characters faces. Its not on the same level as their previous works in terms of animation quality nevertheless above average.

In terms of sound there isn’t anything to really note. The OP gave me a bad impression the first time I heard it however, it did grow on me. I particularly liked how they changed the ED theme in the 2nd half to represent the more dramatic tone. Once again nothing really note worthy.

For a show that took several risks the ending felt too conventional. I was in a bit of shock as I watched one of the most clique endings I seen in anime. In addition, the ending felt a bit off in terms of overall consistency. They seem to be going in one direction and ignore that go in another at the very end. No, this isn’t necessary a related to who the main character picks. However, I’m only talking about one of the love triangles, the other was very consistent and focused.

Kimikiss is a charming and enjoyable character driven romance anime. It is strongly character driven and takes a slice of life approach. Hell most of what they do is walk to school, come back from school, and various other ‘normal’ things. However, for a series that took chances and very slice of life, I was let down by the extremely conventional romantic ending. Also, I was annoyed by the slight inconsistency in one of the love triangles.

This is the first time I have ever written a review, and I thought I wouldn't need to. But after watching Kimi-kiss, it just stuck to my head so I had to write what I feel about the series.

First thoughts on the series even before watching it: typical harem, ecchi type of anime. So I started watching it only after I really ran out of options for anime to watch. Man, I was blown away.

The story of Kimi-kiss is very simple and short. Spreading the short story over 24-episodes, it would make the series feel that it is moving at a rather slow pace, which ... could put some viewers off. I personally enjoyed the slow pacing of the story, it helped to build the tension up slowly, slowly drawing the viewer into the drama. But probably because the story was build up over that many episodes, the end felt sudden and made me desperately want to know how the relationship with the characters went, with their friends or their 'other half'.

The art in Kimi-kiss is also very nice. I loved the way the characters looked and move, seeing little bits of detail they put into the movement that you would not often see in anime of this genre. The frogs, Iwao and Juliet, were very detailed as well. Being frogs, and stuffed, I was surprised that they put that much detail into them, instead of making them into a ball and calling them frogs. Overall the art was very consistent, except for once or twice, when they inject a bit of humour into the story and chibi appears. This happens very rarely in the series, so it is still OK.

The sound is one of the strong points of Kimi-kiss. The music and sound used in the series did not distract the viewer from the anime. They fit into the anime very well and they all sounded great. I did not like the Opening song as much compared to the two Ending songs. The two Ending songs were basically part of the BGM for when each episode ends. I loved the way it when something happens and the music plays 'kowaresou de...' , then the episode ends into somewhat like a fade away. It further builds the drama and emotions in the anime if you understand the lyrics when it plays. It made me feel a little 'teary eyed' when it plays like that then listening to the meaningful lyrics of both Ending songs, it's almost perfect.

Character development is the main thing they want to highlight in the series. As the simple story of the series is spread out over 24-episodes, it was made possible for very detailed and beautiful character development. How the characters changed and grows or how their feelings change, it is as though you could connect personally with the characters throughout the series.

Overall, I enjoyed the series a lot. The story used in Kimi-kiss was one of the more fequently used scenarios but the people who worked on the series managed to make it different and a level that many of the other romance anime failed to achieve.

I really want to put this out there first: This is my first review that i have ever done so im really sorry for any inconvenience i may have caused with this.
Kimikiss is a very well scripted high school romance i believe. In this the romance is between not the main character's mao and kouichi but there's still romance between them, anyways Futami and Aihara really did the job for me. The love between the two makes you angry and sad and happy and in love at the same time. It was really frustrating to watch them, but its all worth it. This high school ... romance shows really strong passion between the pairs a bit like romeo and juliet if you have seen it. The art in kimikiss really helps bring out the emotion from the characters. This is one of the very few high school romance that i've seen that has made me believe in love. This is quite heavily packed there a really great episode, this doesn't mean that the other ones are crap because each episode leaves you hanging. i've seen this a lot of time and i mean a lot and each time it gets me.

Everyone has a different love story to tell. Perhaps you fell in love through sheer persistence. Maybe it took you multiple tries (and many heartbreaks) to find the person just right for you. Maybe your love was unrequited. Or even better, you were just a bystander to the war of love.

Kimikiss Pure Rouge is an anime that tells the tale of three different love stories with each different in the way the couple approach their relationship (hint: the storylines are similar to my opening paragraph). Although I say "different," I mean that the romance is different but all the characters are friends with each ... other. The story of the anime begins with a very pretty girl, named Mao, coming home to Japan after spending a few years in France (though we don't get to hear her speak French at any point in the anime). Because her parents are still overseas, she returns home and lives with one of our main male leads, Kouichi, who is her childhood friend. Without sacrificing too many episodes, the anime plants each character into their own love ship: Kouichi and his high school crush Hoshino the librarian, Mao and the rather quiet jazz student Kai, and Kazuki (a friend of Kouichi) and the quiet and seemingly emotionless Futami. The ships sail in relatively calm waters but given that Kouichi and Mao were childhood friends…well I'll leave it there. On the other side of the sea, Kazuki and Futami's ship is hindered by the strikingly athletic soccer player Sakino and it is up to Captain Kazuki to choose either to throw Futami into the shark infested waters and welcome Sakino aboard or leave her aimlessly drifting in the sea clinging on nothing but her small lifeboat.

There are no overarching themes or explicit obstacles to overcome in the story. Kimikiss is purely a romance story. It focuses on how the characters change over the course of the story, highlighting their realizations as to what they seek in a relationship. There is a small comical side story of Narumi and Nana, two first year (?) high school students, who are on their quest to make the ultimate bowl of udon. Their quest is not particularly enticing except for the Grandpa who helps them in the process (try counting how many lines he says in 24 episodes). As long as you do not invest yourself too much in a particular ship, the ending of the anime is quite satisfying. You may find yourself choking up on the last two episodes.

A significant portion of the drama in the anime revolves around the group film project that most of our characters help develop (except for Futami and Sakino). The film they make is about two childhood lovers who come to realize their feelings for each other. Without spoiling the main actors in the student film, the writers were pretty smart in having the characters tell their true feelings for each other while as fictional characters.

I might add that the director of Kimikiss Pure Rouge, Kasai Kenichi, also did other notable anime such as, Hachimitsu to Clover, Nodame Cantabile, all three Bakuman, and a few episodes of Toradora!. That's a pretty impressive resume but the story of Kimikiss Pure Rouge doesn't live up to the good stories of those other anime (possibly he ran out of gas after doing Nodame Cantabile as this anime was aired soon after Nodame).

The characters of Kimikiss Pure Rouge fall into the standard romance archetypes: the childhood friends (Mao and Kouichi), the quiet librarian (Hoshino), the vibrant athlete (Sakino), the "sidekick" who in this case is extremely dense (Kazuki), and the also quiet but emotionless genius (Futami). Kai is the guy who doesn't fall into a category in my book at least. The anime does challenge these standards but not so dramatically that the characters feel entirely fresh. My only concern with these characters lie in Kazuki, who seems to have contracted a severe case of "dense MC." While he was at a clinic with Sakino in one episode, the doctor forgot to issue him a prescription to deal with this deadly syndrome.

On the technical side, the art was alright. If you have seen Amagami SS, then you will find the artwork to be very familiar (perhaps you'll recognize a few characters). The art was done by the same studio who brought us Amagami SS and Amagami SS+ but the art in Kimikiss lacks the charm and colour of Amagami SS. Most of the character designs are solid but Kouichi's face often seems disproportionate. What I mean by that is the distance between his eyes feel awkward, giving him a very stupid-looking face (I don't believe it had significant literary meaning to it…).

The sound is pretty decent. The OP is pretty upbeat and light compared to the emotionally heavy second ending. That second ending is really good and was well-suited to the drama that was happening in those episodes. The OST is not memorable except Futami's theme, which they happen to play it very loudly during her scenes. The voice actors were decent but not memorable. Doing a search of their resumes, I found out the voice actor for Hoshino, Koshimizu Ami, lent her voice to Holo of Spice & Wolf. Unfortunately, she was not as charismatic in this anime as she was in Spice & Wolf.

Kimikiss Pure Rouge doesn't do much to the romance genre but it's not a story that should be thrown in the trash. If you like watching pure romance anime, then I believe you would enjoy it. If you like your romance to have some sort of greater themes enveloping the story, then Kimikiss may fall off your radar.

Let me know what you think of Kimikiss Pure Rouge! Who did you ship? Did you think everyone ended up with whom they should end up? I would love to hear from you!!

When I first started watching this anime, i didn't know exactly what to expect from it, but as soon as i started i knew exactly what i got myself into.

KimiKiss Pure Rouge was originally a dating simulation game for the PS2. Released by Enterbrain in 2006. It quickly gained popularity and become a media franchise which turned it into a light novel as well as a manga series. Then in 2007-2008 this anime adaptation was relased.

If your into the stereotypical romance, drama, school life genres, then KimiKiss Pure Rouge is a must watch. Its an anime full of love triangles, a hint of drama, ... & beautiful girls, all within a school setting. This series was great anime, comparable to the Amagami SS series which was later relased in 2009.

Story: I decided to give the story a 7/10 because of its commonness. Its basically your typical love story, not much true story to it, just mostly romance between many main male characters and female characters. The story generally confuses you and provides a lot of love triangles and confusion. It typically keeps you guessing on who will end up with who. By the end it just kinda get a little repetitive, but overall it was okay.

Art: The art in this anime was fairly well done. Cute characters, a variety of locations to see, nice scenery's, etc. Pretty good overall, nothing else to add i gave the art a 8/10

Sound: Well in this anime the Opening is the same for the whole 24 episodes, it changes a little bit about halfway through i'd say around ep 13, I found it fairly appealing no complaints, it fits the story well. As for the ending themes, they were split into two separate themes which divided the anime in half, 12 eps each theme. The first ending IMO was much better done than the 2nd one and fit the ending scenes much better. The soundtrack was alright. nothing extravagant so i decided to give the soundtrack a 7/10

Character: Well.... most of the characters were very much enjoyable throughout the series, only a few of them really ticked me off by the end.
Most were very stereotypical however: you got the assertive and playful older female Childhood friend, the two other average male childhood friends that she hung around with, a rich girl, a shy girl, a quiet guy, the tomboyl female lead, and two really annoying brats. You'll see them if you ever watch this.
As for the character development, i found it pretty good. One second you'd think that one character had an edge over another for getting with a guy, but another second everything would change, the character pairing always keeps you guessing throughout the show. so i gave characters a 8/10

Enjoyment: I enjoyed the series very much overall, spend most of my free time watching it over the span of 2 weeks and i'd even consider re-watching it, maybe in a few years. A very entertaining series that had the perfect romance story that i was looking for. For Enjoyment i gave it a 9/10

Overall: All and all, I really liked this anime and i'm sure its future viewers would enjoy it as well, If your looking for a romance plot, look no further! just watch KimiKiss Pure Rouge ! :D Overall since i can't give decimal ratings i'll just type it out. I'd give KimiKiss Pure Rouge a 8.5/10

Hope my review was helpful.

To sum it up: A nice romance. Very relaxing to watch. Not too cheesy or mushy-gushy, nor overdramtic!

Story - 7
While the story is fine, I found that it kind of lacked a defined direction. It really was 100% about relationships and love. I shouldn't really criticize it for this, because that's the point of this anime. However, I think I would have enjoyed it more if there had been something else than just the romance storylines. I really appreciated that the ending of the story wasn't at all rushed, it takes a few episodes to conclude. All of the loose ends are tied up and ... I think this part of the story was done especially well.

Art - 8, Sound - 7
The art is well done, although it's nothing special. The characters are cute and their appearances suit their personalities. The facial expressions are all well-done and all background art looks very nice! As for the sound, I didn't especially notice it, it didn't wow me or anything. However, it must have worked very well with the anime, since I hardly noticed it all!

Character - 7
The characters are very well defined. While the majority of the characters are very likeable, others are frustratingly shy and boring. Overall, I think they're well done though. It's the characters that really make this anime, since it's all based on their relationships!

Enjoyment & Overall - 7
Overall, I enjoyed this anime, it was very pleasent and relaxing. I think I may have chuckled a couple of times, but it is by no means a comedy. I think they could have picked up the pace in some parts, but that's okay because none of the important stuff got rushed that way!

I 100% recommend this anime to romance-lovers!

"Kimikiss ~Pure Rouge~" turned out to be a fairly good romance series.

I say fairly good since while it started off strong with excellent episodes I do feel the series had a significant dip in the middle, luckily the final episodes picked up the pace again in a positive direction.
What I enjoyed most was although the series had comedic elements and is based on an eroge, it's not a real harem series as most harem series go, since the "Kimikiss ~Pure Rouge~" anime series focused on multiple males, females and their different pairings (not all the female characters are pursuing the same male character).

The most ... interesting characters in the series were undoubtably the supporting characters. While the main characters Kouichi, Mao and Yuumi were nice and likeable, especially Kouichi and Mao got stuck in stereotype character writing and didn't see much significant development.
I can fathom it's possible -perhaps likely- for people to be in a more retracted, nearly depressed state for quite some time while in a relationship, it didn't help the overall plot arc that both Mao and Kouichi were in this state for nearly 10 episodes, just so they could resolve their story arc in the final episode. It felt as if it dragged on too long.

By far the most interesting characters and pairing for me in "Kimikiss ~Pure Rouge~" were Kazuki and Futami, their characterizations seemed more realistic and their development, both individually and as a couple was more involving. I quickly developed a personal preference for their plot arc and pairing and was glad to see it come to fruition.
I thoroughly enjoyed many scenes involving Kazuki and Futami, especially the one where Kazuki showed up at Futami's door, her reactions were so endearing. Not only was it a good scene but several such scenes between them showed how they both changed throughout the series, how they grew as individuals and also grew towards each other.
Futami may certainly be a genius with a very high IQ, even though she's highly intelligent, she hardly knows herself and her own emotions, seeing her discovering them, acknowledging them and finally accept them was nice. Kazuki often said he's just dumb but he was mostly half-hearted, not really motivated or focused, realizing his feelings and what Futami meant for him caused him to change in a positive way.

The other girl vying for Kazuki's affection, Asuka, didn't get to be with him but at least her character did see some development as she was able to move on and grow from the experience, the same goes for Yuumi, who seems to be the only one who really evolved from the plot arc with Kouichi and Mao.

Megumi and Hiiragi's final episode pairing did seem a bit thrown in and sudden, with the 24 episode run of "Kimikiss ~Pure Rouge~" I'm sure there was time to introduce that plot arc earlier and flesh it out a bit more.

A few characters ended up not involved in any romantic or other significant plot arc so one could wonder why they were introduced and given so much screen time, since for some their impact on the main plot arcs was insignificant. This goes especially for Narumi and Nana, who seemed to only provide the cast with another location through the udon restaurant run by Narumi's uncle and as comedic relief with their mascot frogs (which should really have been scratched as they got annoying quite fast).

Throughout the series the animation by JC Staff was good (it suffered here and there but this happens with most series), all the characters were well rendered, recognizable and realistically drawn, especially the hairstyles and -colours were well done (realistic shades of brown, black, red ).
Striking for "Kimikiss ~Pure Rouge~" was how feminine all the girls looked, whether the more attractive, cute or sensual type, they always looked very feminine without the designers resorting to impossibly proportioned character artistry.

I'm glad I picked up this series, it quickly grew on me and was a welcome change from the more generic harem comedies we see each season (which can still be enjoyable as well).

To people looking for a more serious romantic series that isn't too stereotypical nor overly dramatic, I will certainly recommend they watch "Kimikiss ~Pure Rouge~".

So far this story is quite interesting. It may not have the full experience of a normal high school but it's very good in its own way. Kimikiss Pure Rouge can give you a good laugh from time to time and then in the next scene it might make you cry. The drama and suspence builds up in each and every episode. I enjoyed taking the long journey with all of these characters; learning theirstoried and making their memories.The only thing that I didn't like is a personal style of anime taht i like, but i would make the guys a bit more cuter maybe. ... But i loved how they kept it simple with the characters and didn't go overboard with the animation style or the storyline. It was quite cute but the overral score i give Kimikiss Pure Rouge is a 9. I hope that all of you enjoy this anime and find it's delight as high as i did.

A straight 9 in all points, I put Kimikiss into those animes that whereas they may not be classics, they are wonderfully done and thoroughly enjoyable.

Characters are well defined and placed and the situations put into the story are near life, common day ones in most plots (not so with Futami and Aihara - my favorite characters as well, but just at the start, then their story is sweet and plausible, and by far the cutest in this anime to the very end)

Plot may be simple, but so well done that every episode is a joy to watch, and the end was not predictable ... even near the last one, and the end for each couple is sweet, and cute.

There are echoes from Ichigo 100% regarding Yumi story, and those watching it will understand why...although I agree with Kimikiss end, and disliked Ichigo 100%

A sure tittle to have on your collection, especially if you love romance with the right amount of comedy and angst, without grue and idiocy to it.

Sweet Sweet Sweet!

My only complain, if I can say so, is about Sakino Asuka. She is my second favorite character in this anime (Futami Eriko being the first) and deserved more screen time!

"Pure Rouge" is a perfect title for this universal show.
What a great and emotional anime to justify your "first love".
This show grabs you immediately with questions and every episode ends with either a surprise or warm feeling.

Most people won't enjoy anime's that have a one way setting with no change. We're so use to changes in the story plot like going from average school life to battling demons or shop keeper to ghost specialist.

However, Kimikiss has proven to the world that an anime can be build and performed solely on nothing but romance, and what a great job J.C. Staff has done this.
In ... my book, this anime should be the gateway to romance animes everywhere.
What a better example for a great love story than the expression of young kids first falling in love. Given, this story of "first love" can be played out by earlier characters than high school student, I feel that the animators did a great job going around that and expressing more the innocence of the kids themselves rather than their age. The art and everything else, pulls you away from it being a serious anime and makes you more interested in "who" the character is.
I was in constant interest through the whole show. I won't say much about how things resolve, but I will say that this anime will give you a reason to remember it. It was so compelling, because this show gets you right in the feels of your heart and makes you remember how much of a sensitive thing it is to love someone. Four girls, three guys, you do the math. There's many happy and sad moments as well as a great story development. Novelas everywhere, take notes! By far, this anime always has something new to teach us about the innocence of love, that is why I give it a high 8 in my book.

Right, it's been a while since I did a review and I felt this one evoked a bit of a response from me by the end of the story.

BEFORE YOU READ ANY FURTHER, KNOW THERE ARE MAJOR PLOT SPOILERS ON HERE SO DON'T READ UNLESS YOU EITHER HAVE SEEN THIS OR DON'T MIND BEING SPOILED!

==============================================

I watched this series over the last couple of days and my initial thought was "this is Amagami SS without the arcs," and even by the end I still thought the same. I scored Amagami higher than this as it allowed everyone to be happy as this anime seems to be ... notorious for disappointing people with how the pairings worked out by the end.

Story: 6

This is the biggest flaw in the whole anime if you ask me. The plot starts out quite nicely as many anime of this genre do. You have three main characters all starting out in relationships with various degrees of success. However over the course of the series, instead of things being all sunshine and rainbows which I can accept wouldnt be realistic. Things take a turn for the worse where it feels like no one is happy with their partner. Characters evolve throughout the series and I accept that. However the final pairing with Mao and Kouichi is predictable but for most people who watched this, you will be facepalming when it happens. The story pretty much shows Kouichi happy with his girlfriend Yuumi for most of the series...even in the second last episode, he is still smiling and laughing with her even though things are happening round him. The other main relationship in this is unusual, but not worthy of some of the praise it seems to receive. For most of the series we see Kazuki running about chasing after what seems to be an unrequited love and spending most of his time moping about it. It's not entertaining to watch and the fact he hurts a clearly nicer and better matched girl in Sakino really made me wonder what the writers were thinking when they wrote it. Could they make a plot more ignorant to what real highschoolers would be thinking?

Art: 8

As I have stated in the story section, this is like Amagami minus the arcs. Even the art style is very reminiscent of it. The fact that there are two characters in this which later appeared in Amagami SS alone tells that story. The backgrounds were nothing special but then this is more of a character driven anime so more basis was put on expressions and emotions depicted by them rather than on the town and school they were in.

Sound: 8

The sound was ok, the opening theme had a catchy beat to it which though not an uplifting track, was nice enough to listen to. The Ending themes were not memorable at all and I found myself simply skipping to the next episode as soon as the episode ended rather than listen to it. Character themes, specifically for Futami were appropriate but then considering this anime came from a Visual Novel, I would expect nothing less.

Character: 7

The characters are the main point of this anime and I would like to say they were great. However for the most part, they were notably average. The male leads (Kouichi and Kazuki) were as clueless as could be, but then I expect that from an anime of this type. However both are terrible people generally. I'll start with Kouichi who I think is one of the worst characters of the genre since Makoto of School Days infamy. Minus the sexual encounters Makoto has, Kouichi is exactly the same in my eyes. I cannot stand an indecisive male lead, especially one who KNOWS he is being indecisive and seems oblivious to the people he is hurting throughout the course of the series. Kazuki is guilty of this as well but in his defence at least he doesnt lead anyone on and doesnt harbor thoughts of cheating on his love.
Coming onto the women (Ooo..er) we start with Mao who has to be one of the most selfish characters ever devised. She starts out by seeing a classmate named Kai and spends alot of her time with him. This is all fine and good until she sees Kouichi with Yuumi...all of a sudden she changes from a caring big sister figure to a jealous love rival with no real lead up. It made no sense for her suddenly to stop caring for her boyfriend just because her childhood friend suddenly got a girlfriend. It seemed eventually that she was going out of her way to break them up by continually trying to "support" their relationship as it drove the wedge between them further. It confuses me how she somehow won Kouichi over in the end as there was no personality match or real chemistry between them at all.
Yuumi was a character I quite liked and I dont normally like that type of character, (She reminded me of Kotonoha Katsura quite alot) but she was quite nice throughout the course of the series. My one grievance I had with her character is instead of speaking her problems, she would simply hide away and say nothing was wrong which probably caused the ending indirectly.
Futami is a character that seems to have a fair bit of love on these forums, however from what I saw, all I saw was a character that was simply toying with people's emotions to see what would happen. I felt for the first 20 or so episodes, she was an absolutely despicable character. Admittedly I kind of warmed up to her after that but it took so long that I still dont really like her as a character.
Finally we have Sakino, who is "clearly" in love with Kazuki (See Clueless Male Leads) and was always helping him with advice and how to improve his Soccer game. As characters went, I felt she was the most real and certainly the strongest of all the heroines throughout.

Enjoyment: 7

This anime was nice and laid back to me, at least for the first 10 or so episodes. The drama was then laid on a bit thick and I found it quite hard not to facepalm as the ending became more and more predictable. This is a rare anime where I don't like the canon pairing (Ok well that isnt true) and ALOT of others share the same thought as me. Because of the last few episodes, I simply didn't enjoy it as much as I should have. It felt like a very weak ending as well which didnt help.

Overall: 7

A 7 is as generous as I can be with this, with only a couple of characters worth the time of day, average art and sound (For it's type) and a mediocre poorly written story, I simply cant rate it higher. I went into this hopeful to watch something to maybe the standard of Amagami or maybe even Toradora(Fat Chance) but I was left disappointed.

Essentially if you want something where you dont have to think whilst watching then this would be fine for you else I would suggest you dont bother. There are far better Rom/Com/Harems out there than this.

When watching this anime, my first initial thought was: why did no one recommend this to me sooner >< seriously, I had to find this anime all on my own, after everything I asked for in an anime, this anime had. It baffled me.

That being said, let's get onto the review, shall we?

"it seemed like it would break, & it was so precious i couldn't touch it.
but i won't ever forget the wish i made upon that star." < I got drawn in.

Overall: Overall I would recommend this anime to anyone who is into the whole, Rom/com genre. It actually made me tear up ... a few times and smile other times, so I really got into it! If you're not into love stories, I guess keep looking because that's mainly what this anime is. That being said, I would watch it again. And I would rec. it to my rl friends & my sissy.

xD now go ahead and click the 'This review was: NOT USEFUL' button :P..
kidddddddin ;)

This anime only fulfills 50% of what I wanted, I won't tell you then ending I'll just say that gosh dang I saw it coming form miles away.

When it comes to anime I love romantic comedy's and I know what I like to see and I feel that the rest of the community has the same like and dislikes as me (at least when I view the comment sections people write what I'm thinking)

while watching this show I was very pleased with character progression and the overall story because it have the right mix of "oh no" and "OH YEAH" but I almost fell like ... the ending ruined the 24 episode journey I took, but you can't just stop at episode 23 and wash your hands ready for a new anime because after around episode 18 you have to conform the ending, the reason I say I only like 50% of the ending is because yeah one couple I wanted was Good to go while the over crumbled like sand.

I would suggest watching this because the anime is good and quite fun to watch but beware the "Why did he choose her, Gosh dang it" because it hits obvious and hard.

I feel like every review I write always has the same things in it and maybe it's because I'm to much of a romance type guy that everything I see is based on what I want to see from it.. Oh well!! SPOILERS AHEAD

Story 7/10: So.. The story is completely based on romance, there's nothing else that comes into it.. No action, no sci-fi, no thriller, no horror.. Nothing at all and I can see why.. I'm guessing the anime was made for teen girls who love romance and to be honest.. I absolutely enjoyed the hell out of it! I'm a guy who loves ... romance, I'll pretty much only watch an anime if it had romance in it and you'll be able to see that from my completed anime reviews. I don't normally come across anime that are just completely about romance and to see a 24 episode long anime do so well and pack so much stuff into it made it so much more enjoyable. Obviously there are thing that I disliked and these are a few.. Ok so the ending is completely rushed, it's like BOOM he suddenly drops the girl and gets with another, I completely hated this from a realistic point of view! It would of been nice to see them go on a date and gradually build the way up but at last we did not get that sort of it. It would of been to see a OVA or a few special episodes from this but oh well.. The story is boring to be honest though, it drags out at some points and has no heart pounding scenes where you go "Damn that was amazing! That really my adrenaline rush!" It's a sweet and innocent romance story that will leave all the teen girls crying for something like this..

Art 7/10: I enjoyed this type of animation, it's pretty good and sort of have a more realistic type of style to it rather than ones like Clannad that have massive eyes and stuff... Overall really nice colors along with moments where it's happy and sad it really made it feel so much better and made it reel me in so much more!

Sound 6/10: I don't really care much for sound in anime but I tried to listen alot more in this one, I never really realized how much anime's are a-like when I did this. I realized every happy/sad moment is covered with a piano or violin music track and so on and it was overall.. Kind of boring?..

Characters 6/10: I didn't hate nor love the characters, they were kind of boring and nothing really stood out so much to me where I really enjoyed a specific character. It would of been nice to get to know the characters alot better for a 24 episode series that could go alot more into background and add some dark stuff to their pasts! Supporting characters are along the same and never really stood out.

Overall: It was a good watch and would recommend to those types of people who really enjoy romance anime and are looking for a sweet, innocent and happy ending series that will melt teen's hearts!