Yofukashi no Uta

Kou Yamori is an average middle school student who struggles with grasping the complex concept of love. Because he sees little sense in surrendering to the norm, he soon stops going to school. Plagued with insomnia due to his idleness, Kou begins roaming the lonesome streets at night.

One night, Kou encounters a bizarre girl named Nazuna Nanakusa who believes that people stay awake during the night because they are dissatisfied with how they spent their day and cannot rest until they release their inhibitions. Nazuna offers to help Kou with his sleep issues and invites him over to her place, where she convinces him to share a futon with her. Feeling uncomfortable, Kou only pretends to doze off—which is when Nazuna suddenly bites his neck, revealing herself to be a vampire!

While Kou thinks the bite will turn him into a vampire, the specifics of transforming are not that simple. In order to change, he must be bitten by someone he truly loves. Ready to let go of his dreary mortal life, Kou decides on a new goal: he will fall in love with Nazuna and become a vampire himself.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Nanakusa, Nazuna Main

Amamiya, Sora Japanese

Yamori, Kou Main

Satou, Gen Japanese

Uguisu, Anko Supporting

Sawashiro, Miyuki Japanese

Asai, Akira Supporting

Hanamori, Yumiri Japanese

Kikyou, Seri Supporting

Tomatsu, Haruka Japanese

Kohakobe, Midori Supporting

Oozora, Naomi Japanese

Suzushiro, Hatsuka Supporting

Waki, Azumi Japanese

Honda, Kabura Supporting

Itou, Shizuka Japanese

Hirata, Niko Supporting

Kitamura, Eri Japanese

Shirakawa, Kiyosumi Supporting

Hikasa, Youko Japanese

Inagaki, Takafumi Producer

Sugawara, Hana Producer

Itamura, Tomoyuki Director, Episode Director, Storyboard, Key Animation

Miyanishi, Tetsuya Director, Episode Director, Storyboard

Reviews

May 10, 2025

Followkata

Recommended

CALL OF THE NIGHT: I’M IN LOVE, I’M UNWELL, AND THIS SHOW IS A MASTERPIECE (I THINK)

I need to warn you.

This isn’t just a review.
This is a confession.
A meltdown.
A prayer.

I didn’t think an anime would do this to me.
... I didn’t think she would do this to me.

But here I am.
A fatter, older, obsolete version of Kou Yamori.
Watching this show like it’s my biography in a timeline where I got replaced by a skinnier, younger model.

And I’m not okay.

THE CRITICAL ANALYSIS (I SWEAR IT’S HERE)

Let’s talk about why this show works—while I scream into a pillow about Kou living the life I’ve been practicing for decades.

Atmosphere: The Night as a Dream

Every frame is a painting in neon and shadow.
Purples, magentas, blues—the exact palette of insomnia.

The night here isn’t scary. It’s a sanctuary. A secret garden. A liminal space where anything feels possible because the rest of the world’s asleep.

Nazuna isn’t just a vampire.
She’s the night itself—wild, chaotic, inviting, dangerous.

The show makes you crave that night.
And I do.

Hell, I’ve been craving it for years.
I’ve been wandering empty streets long before Kou ever took his first anime step.

I was already Kou.
But fatter.
Older.
A version the universe discarded in favor of a fresh-faced teen with better hair.

And now I’m forced to watch this kid stumble into my dream and fumble every step like a drunk toddler.

Adolescence, Desire, and the Bite

Here’s what’s brilliant:
Kou doesn’t just want love.
He wants freedom. Escape. Transformation.

The bite isn’t just erotic—it’s initiation.
A ritual. A way to slip away from expectations.

And Nazuna offers it to him—teasing, dangerous, intimate.

But Kou?
He’s standing there like a deer in headlights going:

“Hmm… I don’t think I love you yet.”

NOT IN LOVE YET???

I’ve been ready for the bite since 2003, Kou.
I’ve been exposing my neck to the night for two decades.

I’ve been cultivating insomnia like a vintage wine.

And you’re telling me this kid gets dragged onto a futon by the vampire goddess herself, has her bite his neck, call him tasty, literally straddle him—and he’s just like:

“I dunno… I gotta figure out love first.”

BRO.

If Nazuna looked at me sideways I’d be proposing.
If she dragged me into her apartment, I’d be picking out coffin sets on Etsy.
I’ve been waiting under streetlamps for a decade and all I get are raccoons and a bum screaming for spare change.

Kou walks under one streetlight and wins the lottery.

I’m not just jealous.
I’m furious.

Nazuna: Queen of Chaos
Nazuna is perfection.

She’s not elegant.
She’s not classy.
She’s a feral trash-goblin queen in a hoodie, flirty and messy and smug and absurdly hot.

She bites Kou like he’s a snack.
She wrestles him.
She calls him tasty.
She teases him like a cat batting at a mouse.

And I’m sitting here watching like:

“I would’ve fallen in love five times per neck bite.
I would’ve thanked her for every insult.
I would’ve changed my last name to Nanakusa on episode 2.”

But Kou?

“I’m not sure what love is.”

KOU, YOU EMPTY HUSK.
SHE JUST BENT YOU IN HALF AND BIT YOU AND YOU’RE CONFUSED??

I’ve been ready to be devoured since puberty.

I’m an obsolete prototype.
I’ve been wandering neon streets, hoodie up, neck bared, for ten years.
I’ve been practicing for Nazuna’s arrival every night.

And yet I get raccoons.
And a screaming bum with his pants down yelling:

“She ain’t coming, hoodie man!”

He’s right.
But I stay.

Because maybe tonight’s the night.

THE EPISODIC BREAKDOWN: WHERE MY SANITY CRACKS
Every episode was another hammer to my fragile mental state.

Episode 1:

“Wow. She’s cute.”

Episode 2:

“Oh no. She’s exactly my type.”

Episode 3:

“I’d let her steal my kidneys.”

Episode 4:

“I’d let her evict me from my own apartment.”

Episode 5:

“I want her to step on my dignity and then giggle about it.”

Episode 6:

“Why won’t she crawl through the screen and bite me already.”

Episode 7:

“I am the older, fatter, obsolete Kou.
But I’ve been waiting longer. I’ve earned this more. WHY DOES HE GET HER??”

Episode 8:

“Kou is a mannequin in a hoodie and the universe chose him over me.
I’m outside under the streetlamp again.
The raccoons are here.
The bum is screaming.
No Nazuna.”

Episode 9:

“I have built an altar.
I kneel before it every night.
The shrine grows.
My hope shrinks.”

Episode 10:

“I no longer want love. I want annihilation by vampire bite.
I want to dissolve into her hoodie and live as a sentient neck vein.”

Final Episode:

“Kou still doesn’t know if he loves her.
I’ve been in love since frame one.
I haven’t slept in three days.
The bum calls me ‘hoodie man’ now like we’re friends.
There’s no Nazuna.
Only pain.”

THE SHRINE: A MONUMENT TO A DREAM
My apartment is a shrine.

Nazuna merch on every wall.
Posters. Figures. Screenshots. A life-size cutout.

The futon in front of the TV is my altar.
Every episode, I kneel there, hoodie zipped, hands clasped, whispering:

“Please, Nazuna. Take me instead.”

And every time Kou stares blankly while she climbs into his lap, I scream.
I punch the pillow.
I cry.

I’ve been waiting.
Waiting under the lamp every night.

And every night… no Nazuna.
Only raccoons.
Only the bum.
Only me.

FINAL VERDICT: A MASTERPIECE. A PUNISHMENT. A MIRROR.

Call of the Night is brilliant.
A gorgeous, funny, intimate meditation on longing, loneliness, and rebellion.

But it’s also a punishment.
A mirror.
A cruel reminder that I’m not Kou.

I’m Kou aged up, fleshed out, expanded, rejected by the universe.
The fat, older, perverted version still walking the streets, still waiting under the flickering streetlamp while Kou fumbles his way into everything I’ve ever wanted.

I’ve been living his life for years.
But he got the bite.

Tonight I’ll be there again.
Under the light.
Hoodie on.
Neck bare.
Eyes wide.

Nazuna…

Please.
PLEASE BITE ME.

Reviewer’s Rating: 9

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Apr 24, 2025

Supersonic_Pain

Mixed Feelings

I think 2 major things brought this show down for me

I'm not normally one to get all up in arms about the protagonist being high school aged but literally why is he 14

A show all about embracing the night life, idk, would've been cool if he was in college, that seems more like the age to embrace nightlife. Hell, I say "high school aged" but he's not even, he's literally in middle school.

Nazuna has been alive for "decades" (I thought she was like 25 but apparently she's closer to 40) and other than Akira, the other women are either vampires who are also presumably much ... older or Anko who is also an older woman

I just randomly got spikes of "oh yeah... he's 14" when watching the funny girlfailure vampire flirt with him and it hurt the romance for me.

Speaking of which, they introduce a group of middle-aged vampires and introduce some sort of time limit on the MC to fall in love with Nazuna and it made her less appealing because yeah, you WERE able to take your time and let the MC fall in love with you naturally but you have ONE year, please stop grinding on Street Fighter Alpha 3 for a second

I think in general, I didn't care much for the cast.

His school friends weren't really around often enough for me to care, Akira especially is just kind of The Supportive Friend who wants MC to go to school again.

The only vampire in the group of vampires that is particularly noteworthy is Seri and that's more for her (1 episode, really, more like half an episode) plotline with a separate offspring. I liked that plotline but otherwise, eh

Niko is just a big glob of nothing. She seems kind of violent but then goes "heh heh, we'll just leave you two lovebirds alone and root for you instead of hurting you"

Kabura gets like 0 development, especially after she brings MC to the group of vampires

Midori's Big Episode is in a maid cafe and the plotline isn't really about her. Her big trait is the MC said she wasn't his type (because he "doesn't know what it's like to fall in love" or whatever, not because she specifically is offputting) and she's salty over that.

Hatsuka's big trait is she's actually a femboy.

For the 13 episodes we spend with the cast, the MC and Nazuna are really the only ones I feel get any significant development.

The last notable character's actually my favorite, Anko Uguisu. She doesn't really get all that much screentime either but she's the present antagonistic force after she debuts (...in episode 11 of a 13-episode season) and idk, she's cute. It seems she's got a deranged side to her but objectively speaking, she's not really any more developed than the vampires I was just talking about, I just like her design and aura more.

Outside of the age gap and time limit, Nazuna's fine, I guess.

She's just kind of a girlfailure who likes making lewd jokes but can't handle romantic talk. I'm sure there's an audience for this but she didn't really do anything for me and considering she's one of two characters who actually matters, that's not a good sign.

It's just kind of a whatever show that I'll forget in a month.

Did I like anything about it?

Other than Anko, yeah

I think it looks pretty good. Lots of good lighting and even some cooler shots when it does a little bit of action. The karaoke part with Seri I thought had cool coloring.

The OST is great. Not just the OP and ED but even just the normal OST, it's good enough for me to actually go out of my way to shout out which I don't normally do.

Speaking of which, I thought the Mashle OP was kind of overrated even if it was fine. I thought the Dandadan OP actively SUCKED, especially after the decent "weird rap" part or whatever you want to call the beginning part.

However, Creepy Nuts kinda cooked here. They contribute multiple songs, including both the OP and ED, and the OP in particular was pretty good.

This show's just a 14 year old boy getting groomed by a bunch of middle aged women and regardless of if that sounds good or bad to you, other than Nazuna, it really depends on if you cling on to any of the sketches of characters this show throws out there.

Other than Anko, none of them really clicked for me, so the show was kind of forgettable.

Watch it if you want but it's a below-average harem show with some more action-y elements mixed in (it's not even really all that action-packed but you're not going to see dangerous vampires or, like, actual mortal danger in the likes of Hokkaido Gals or Quintessential Quintuplets so I guess for a harem show, it is) and given above-average production.

Reviewer’s Rating: 6

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Jul 25, 2023

MonadProxyy

Not Recommended

Call of the Night is one of those shows that the more you experience, the more you realize, how freaking horrendous it is. I am a manga reader, and I am an anime watcher. Albeit a year late, I am still here to tell you why this is such a monstrosity that I think it is. All aspects of this shows aside from the style are something I just can not appreciate. In my opinion, this garbage is one of the worst if not the worst coming-of-age stories ever.

The Call of the Night's plot is terribly predictable. Nothing in the anime surprises or holds ... the viewer's attention. The anime's themes are likewise not fully developed. The plot meanders aimlessly, failing to establish meaningful stakes or character motivation. Although the anime addresses some intriguing concepts related to vampires and the night, these concepts are never completely developed. And yes, they never do get developed in the way they could have been even in the manga. It feels directionless and so much wasted opportunity. The plot has massive pacing issues, quickly breezing over important details like Kou's emerging vampirism while belaboring pointless fanservice and moe scenes.

Kou is the stereotypical bland male protagonist, and his personal struggle is anything but compelling. The rest of the cast is equally one-dimensional and static throughout. Conversations between Kou and Nazuna completely lack authentic chemistry. Akira as Kou's childhood friend remains an undeveloped cliche.

Major plot turns likewise fall flat. Nazuna's vampire clan are tired archetypes when introduced, with no captivating dynamics between them, Nazuna, and Kou. The revelation of Kou's inner bloodlust feels jarringly out-of-character rather than an intriguing twist.

The handling of Nazuna and Kou's relationship continues to be appalling. Their relationship lacks any real depth, and is instead characterized by corny romantic comedy antics such embarrassing wardrobe mishaps.

Compelling themes like the humanity of vampires are introduced but never properly explored. Missed opportunities for philosophical discussions and moral dilemmas. The conflicts faced by the characters lack meaningful stakes or tension. Kou is vaguely warned about vampire hunters but they barely appear. Nazuna's backstory tragedy is glossed over.

The character motivations make little sense. Why does Nazuna take interest in Kou? Why does Kou go along with her whims so easily? Their bond defies logic. For a vampire-focused anime, surprisingly little time is actually spent on vampire activities. Much of it focuses on dull high school slice-of-life.

With poorly developed characters, a meandering plot, wasted potential, and a prioritization of filler content over vampire lore, Call of the Night fails to deliver in any way as a coming-of-age vampire anime. It earns its reputation as an utter disappointment for someone who was so excited after the anime announcement, that I read the entire goddamn manga.

(Note: Maybe what fueled my disappointment was me expecting it to be like or nearly as good as bakemonogatari. The average anime fan seems to enjoy it but these were my thoughts.)

Reviewer’s Rating: 1

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