Ramen Daisuki Koizumi-san

Why should you watch Ramen Daisuki Koizumi San?

The story is Fair (6). There's nothing fancy about the story. It's about a girl obsessed with ramen being stalked by her classmate who is obsessed with her. And a ton of useful? facts about ramen, its history, and how to enjoy them best.

Art is Very Good (8). I say very well but not in the character department but in how they animate ramen in the story. Each ramen dish is distinct from one another from the color and texture of the soup and noodles to the side dishes that go along with them.

Sound is Very Good ... (8). It is due to how it induces the feeling that you are in whatever restaurant Koizumi and here classmates dine for a bowl or two of ramen. Additionally, the sound they make while and after finishing a bowl of ramen is hunger-inducing. Moreover, the parts wherein things get a bit emotional, have a very nice melody in them that I love to listen to.

Characters are Good (7). I like the cold and nonchalant character of Koizumi, she was made to really stand out in the story as she is the main character who devours those bowls after bowls of ramen. The other characters are just fairly there to decorate and make Koizumi stand out in the show. They are very straightforward.

I enjoyed watching all 12 episodes of Ramen Daisuki Koizumi san, and I always look for anything ramen like to eat while or after watching each episode. So please take this as a warning if you decide to binge-watch this anime.

In connection to the statement above, I believe that it has done its purpose well which is to make us crave, learn and love one of the dishes Japan is popular for; Ramen!

7 bowls of shoyo ramen out 10.

Once upon a time, there was a girl named Koizumi-san. She loves ramen so much that it became a necessity in her life. The beautiful yet mysterious girl is a master of ramen and has a keen eye to always look for them. Whether it’s from near her home or miles away from civilization, Koizumi is the ramen master of her show.

Do you enjoy comedy gags with little plot but focuses on the elements of its genre? Want to watch a show that features over the top humor related to ramen? You’ve come to the right place! Ramen Daisuki Koizumi-san is as straightforward as it ... gets. The show is about a girl named Koizumi-san who is in love with ramen. She’s a ramen hunter and never ceases to explore the world to develop her interests. I have to admit, watching this show feels almost like a journey of discovery.

The first few episodes establishes the principle cast. Koizumi san is the main superstar and has a reserved personality. However, that all changes when she eats ramen and indulges on the thrill of its taste. There’s all types of ramen in this show and her reaction always sells its value thanks to its larger than life humor. It shouldn’t take long at all for the audience to realize that Koizumi is an expert at ramen. Not only does she enjoy ramen but she also knows a wealth of knowledge about them. After being discovered by her classmate Yuu at a ramen shop, we learn more about her and the length she goes to obtain ramen. Watching her climb mountains and sail the high seas to get ramen in her stomach is popcorn entertainment at its finest. Furthermore, Koizumi-san is a brave girl and never shows fear when going into a ramen shop, something that other girls may feel intimidated at first glance. As a student, Koizumi-san is known for her beauty and politeness. She rarely speaks and hardly interacts with others. However, when it’s about ramen, Koizumi-san can talk day and night about it.

Of course, there are also other characters that Koizumi-san happens to bump into throughout her journey. The three prominent ones are Yuu, Jun, and Misa. The character chemistry between them ranges quite differently from each other. For instance, Yuu can be seen as borderline obsessed with Koizumi-san whenever they are together. On the other hand, Jun often questions whether Koizumi-san is normal because of her behavior. Throughout the show, Koizumi-san’s influence changes her in ways that she probably didn’t even realize herself. Finally, there’s Misa, a girl that strives to be popular at school. In her eyes, Koizumi-san is a rival and she seems to have a one-sided rivalry with her. While I can’t say none of these relationships are generic, they are entertaining enough to always turn an eye towards Koizumi-san when she gets involved with them.

I’m not an expert on ramen but the show almost feels like it’s selling itself as a product. Every episode features different ramen with different flavors whether it’s chicken, beef, shrimp, spicy, sour, and among others. There are even some ramen you’ve never heard of like the blue ramen from one of the later episodes. The majority of the show also features info dump with explanations from the ramen master, Koizumi-san herself. That being said, the story itself is lazily written and seems to never been the intention. Every episode will feel the same and there’s no complicated plot about the show from start to finish. Unfortunately, Koizumi-san is more of a one dimensional character that never seems to develop more than what she is on paper. There’s also hardly any background story about her. Instead, the show fully dedicates on getting her over with the audience through her ramen expertise. The other cast members are no better either as they lack depth or mostly exists to bring out the best from Koizumi-san. Finally, the comedy at times can be questionable. It can get old pretty fast after you’ve seen it a few times and it really never tries anything different. It’s hard to stay focused on this show if you fancy for something more than ramen.

Adapted by Studio Gokumi, the show doesn’t lie when it comes to expressing the tastes of ramen. Every time Koizumi-san puts ramen in her stomach, she reacts in a state of ecstasy. To put it simply, it’s foodgasm. The show sells her reactions to make the ramen themselves look good. Character designs for the main cast are very feminine especially the case with Koizumi-san. It’s hard to ignore her with that dazzling blonde hair and gentle face. Surprisingly, the ramen in the show is animated with great detail. From the texture of the toppings to the shape of the ramen, everything about it feels right.

This version of foodgasm needed a diverse voice cast and thankfully, the VA in the show pulls it off. The main voice to pay attention to is Koizumi-san especially when she narrates the info details about ramen. Then, there’s the way other characters react to her that amplifies their personalities in particular Yuu and Misa. The theme songs for the show is colorful and focuses a lot on the ramen theme more than you should expect.

Honestly, I don’t even like ramen that much. They’re not good for health and serves more as a guilty pleasure meal than anything else. However, this show opened my eyes ramen in a way that I didn’t realize before. It’s not the plot that impressed me nor is it the popcorn comedy. Rather, the show was able to sell what it had intended to and I’m a satisfied customer.

I love CGDCT. It's one of my favorite genres and provides a fun, happy viewing experience. Whether it be one that does a lot to make the characters stand out and relate their personal struggles while also keeping it fun, or whether it be one that diverts away from more developmental aspects just to have fun I find the genre to be rewarding to watch. There are even some CGDCT that do very little outside of the bare minimum that are still fun to watch due to the joy that I get from watching cute friends being friendly with each other.

I state this for a ... reason. Sometimes in reviews you get people who don't like the genre coming in and trashing a show that was never made to appeal to their interests. That isn't the case here. I really enjoy CGDCT, and even a bad one can have moments worth watching.

Or so I thought. Because Ramen Daisuki is completely lacking in anything that makes it worth watching.

It's terrible from top to bottom. To the point that now whenever I watch a lackluster CGDCT I think to myself: "Well at least it's not as bad as Ramen Daisuki."

In my eyes the life blood of a CGDCT show is the characters and their interactions. And here we run into the first major problem of Ramen Daisuki. The chararacters are all extremely one-note. The main girl likes ramen, and that's all there is to her character. Yuu loves the main girl who likes ramen, and that's all there is to her character. Then there's the tsundere, and the bookworm, and.. that's it. There's nothing more to any of these characters. They never act outside of their formula. They never get development. They never even get notable moments with each other.

Ramen Daisuki isn't the only CGDCT to have one-note characters. And while I Don't like those one-note characters usually most CGDCT are able to recover with the execution of the character interactions. Sure the genki girl and reserved quiet girl pair may be cliche at this point but it works. It's always nice to see someone will a friend out of their shell with pure love and support. Usually there's an element of fun and folly that are present in their interactions, which makes them fun to watch even if there isn't anything that breaks the mold, or develops the characters.

But Ramen Daisuki can't even manage to do that right. The characters go together like ramen and chocolate: they don't. While most CGDCT focus on fun or heartwarming interactions Ramen Daisuki doesn't do either of those. Rather it decides to let ramen be the fore focus. The only thing that they talk about is ramen. And sure I get the show is about ramen but that doens't mean it should be the only thing that the characters talk about, or experience. Life is not made up of just ramen no matter how much one of the characters may like it. Even their ramen based interactions are lackluster. The stalker girl basically tries to case after the main character over and over again and is constantly rebuked only to be "let in" when the main character has to correct her about some stupid thing she said about ramen. While it's not the only show that has a push and pull between its main characters, usually there are large signs that the more reserved character is either a tsundere, or shy. They want that love, whether they know it or not and slowly warm up to the other party. This isn't true in Ramen Daisuki. The only time Ramen lover shows any sort of like towards the stalker is when she makes her ramen. The only characters also have just as lackluster and uninteresting interactions. It's hard to imagine any of them being friends due to the deficent of friendship bonding that appears in the show.

While character interactions are a huge thing in CGDCT, there is the other option which is winning via worldbuilding and atmosphere. Of which there is none. The only world that exists here is the next ramen shop that they need to get to.

Even on a foodie level this show fails. Sure the ramen looks good but when you spend 12 episodes doing nothing but showing uninteresting flat characters eating ramen it's bound to fall flat. There's no variation, it's only ramen. Most food shows are able to cover an array of food and really bring out the food porn fo the yummy food they're eating, but ramen daisuki is only focusing on ramen ever. And while they try to spice it up with all sorts of different types when these different types necessitate long spheals explaining what they are, it quickly devolves into uninteresting territory. I'm not sure who thought lectures would be funner to watch than characters interacting with each other but whoever did needs to be questioned.

The OST is also awful. They repeat the same songs over and over again when they already weren't that good to begin with. On their own they're already lackluster ut when they appear for the thousandth time it's noticeably annoying, which is obviously not what a show should be going for. The songs are very simple and are lacking in flavor. So it makes it worse to hear it every single time.

There's nothing to this show. The characters are flat and uninteresting. It's as if ramen is the only thing that exists in this world, and on top of that the interactions are straight up bad. With bad characters, interactions, and world this show has nothing to offer unless you really want to see ramen. And then you have to put up with the rest just to get that. I'd say save it and go to a nearby store and by some ramen. It'll be much tastier and you won't have to deal with this failure of a show.