Murai no Koi

A breath of fresh air, in approaching a modern day slice of life romance anime!

Murai-no-koi is a standard ace-student falls in love with his seemingly cold teacher story.
BUUUUUUUUT.
With a very fresh approach!

The anime has a very static and rough animation style (the most animation you will see is probably 5 frames per second and that too probably 5 shots of a background or mouth moving in a loop XD ) and for most of the viewers it might be an instant deal breaker; understandable.
HOWEVER
If you are able to see past that, you will find that not only the animation is a non problem, but also ... it suits the show very well.
The show leverages this rough animation style and leans into it completely, allowing it to bring the most out of its gags and pop culture references.

Which brings me to the second selling point of this show, the writing! The dialogue is catchy, the jokes are well done and have a good grasp on the modern pop culture setting of it’s story (tho sometimes tad non-relatable but hey that’s just me :] ), and most of all it makes coherent sense! There are no cliches or fictional-exaggeration and the conversation and story progresses very close to real life interactions! (ignoring the tad absurd setting).

The supporting cast is well done, tho the hero and heroine are a little less fleshed out in my opinion.
But given it has only been 3-4 episodes at the time of this review, that can easily be fixed!

I am giving it a 7 right now but that can easily improve more, if the show lives up to its potential.

Excited for this hidden gem.

Here's why it is soo good yet soo bad
i started watching it purely because of the romance plot..still watching it because of it
the animation on the other hand is not that bad or good either i enjoy the style a lot but at the same time i wish they had a more deep art style to this like the girl i like forgot her glasses
the main thing is the art is good for what it is
the plot is good
the comedy is good
the romance is good
and forbidden romance always gets me
feeling all thingly so watch it it's freaking good

I know why you are here. You probably heard some imbecile call this anime atrocious, or maybe the art style gave you the impression that this is a “so bad it’s good” hidden gem. A good candidate for that drunken watch on a Friday night, right? It couldn’t be further from the truth.

The plot is nothing unusual for a romcom: high school boy falls in love with his teacher but she has a dark secret (is addicted to the 2D world), so he tries to emulate her favourite character. As with any comedy, the quality relies on whether the author is able to deliver fresh ... scenarios and jokes before the audience is able to predict the outcome in advance. As this is the case here, highlighted by a bright cast, this paragraph could end right here with a succinct positive recommendation.

But this is not the slightly above average romcom of the season. This is one of the best litmus tests for appreciation of artistry in the anime medium. Bear with me.

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In any artistic medium, it’s easy to correlate a display of technical competence with overall quality. Bernini is rightfully known as a genius for transforming blocks of marble into seraphic representations of myths and legends. If you take “Apollo and Daphne” and compare it to that amorphous clay piece your nephew gave you after school, it’s easy to conclude the former is a superior form of art in technical terms (even though you may cherish your nephew’s present more than a free pass to the Galleria Borghese).

Nonetheless, such correlation is not perfect. Art has a strong subjective component. If that was not the case, one of those thousands of “perfectly drawn portraits” we see on social media would be more valued than Picasso’s whole career, since they are a 1:1 copy of a real-life image, while Guernica looks like the aftermath of an ugly accident between Lego trains. Still, one can easily spend dozens of minutes staring at Guernica, appreciating every small detail in awe. The carnage represented by that one painting is arguably more effective in representing the horror of war than a carbon copy painting of a scene from a gore film. While browsing Instagram, you may find m@ndy009’s charcoal drawing of a horse impressive, but it lacks expressiveness if it's only a display of technical prowess. It’s nothing a good photograph couldn’t capture as well. Why is Guernica’s deformed horse more noteworthy? If you take a look at Picasso’s early works, you can see he had the capacity to paint however he wanted. So why choose simple geometric forms? There is a special component that separates good art from sublime art: artistry, or the creative vision to express oneself.

My former examples were restricted to sculpture and painting, but we can make parallels to any other medium. Nowadays videogames can look as “realistic” as live action films, yet it’s hard to find any new decent game to play. The film industry is capable of using top notch special effects to make magic seem real; the only problem is how boring they make those magical worlds. The best music is not necessarily the most difficult to reproduce. The best book does not necessarily contain the widest vocabulary. In animation, a crisp art style with fluid movements may be good to look at, but I’d rather rewatch Texhnolyze than to follow the new seasons of a “sakuga porn”.

Any piece of art is a collection of components assembled together to reach the finished product. Animation, script writing and soundtrack all can individually stand out or singlehandedly ruin an anime. You don’t need each and every one of them to be state-of-the-art displays of technical prowess to make an anime good. In fact, working within constrains or even choosing an alternative “subpar” style to better express their vision will arrive at a more meaningful result. Each part must serve the overall work. They can be compared to organs in a body. While your pancreas is not aesthetically pleasing to look at, it still serves a pivotal function. When you admire the beauty of Monica Bellucci, keep in mind her ugly pancreas is working just fine.

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Now, let’s make sense of all my rambling.

Murai no Koi, to put it gently, has a minimalistic animation and art style. My middle school stop motion flicks had more frames than some scenes from this anime. However, this is not a problem at all. The direction was able to use those sudden movements and “camera angles” to maximize the comic delivery. Absurd inner monologues were perfectly matched by even more absurd facial and body expressions. Because actions sequences were in jest, not having that fluid movement was no detriment at all. The plot follows an appropriately erratic pace, which is only achievable if the production team is competent and not burdened by three sleepless nights in a row. You can see they were having as much fun as the spectator.

Overall, it’s a breath of fresh air. Here you have an anime that escapes from the vicious convergence in art style and animation standards most series conform to (or fail trying to). The director understood the heart of the (already good) original manga. He then worked within his budget to deliver its full potential. Jokes and references land; all characters have their time to shine; the plot is paced properly. Everything works as a highly functioning organism.

Honestly at first i disappointed with the animation, but after watched 6 eps, i didn't care again because that animation make the plot funnier 😂. I've watch many shoujo romance and i think this anime has a little bit vibes like romantic killer, with strong, otaku, barbarian female lead. If the animation build better, i sure this anime will get more attention too, because the plot good enough (or at the standard) for classical shoujo romance, and the comedy is so funny. The problem in plot finished just in ± 2 eps and don't make us furious for long. Not contain too many drama. There're ... no annoying characters. I love it.

This anime is a really great hidden gem. I think it's definitely worth a watch for its unique characters, humor, and surprisingly deep moments.

Pros:
1) The biggest and best thing about this anime are the supporting characters. They break the stereotypical archetype of the Japanese beta male and have characters that aren't the biggest losers you've ever seen who have never even spoken to a female and get bullied by everyone including the mailman. These characters are... normal. They aren't the class losers, they've dated girls, aren't afraid to be tough or even physical, and talk like normal kids their age (they don't struggle to ... form the most basic sentence like most male characters in anime that are basically the lowest form of beta males who need a 30 minute internal monolog before they can even reply to the simplest question from a female). They flirt with and actively pursue girl their age and seem like they're just well adjusted. My favorite trait is how fiercely loyal they are to the MC and stand up for him every chance they get. The dynamic between this trio, their dialog, the way that they are all different but still all manage to be on the save wavelength, and just how cool they all are is what really makes this show for me.

2) The humor doesn't always hit. Sometimes things get lost in translation or Japanese humor just doesn't work with the western palate. But the majority of the time most of the jokes are very solid. I had a few laugh out loud moments. The humor tends to very typical Japanese humor (obviously) with things and facial expressions being dramatically exaggerated but it's different enough to stand out.

3) The surprising depth that is later revealed about the MC and his relationship with the love interest. While most of the time the anime isn't super serious or dramatic, the backstory of the MC meeting the love interest, and the backstory of the love interest's family dynamic was very touching.

4) The overall vibe and feel. This anime stands out because how just how different everything is; specifically the character and their attitudes. They're a friend group i would actually want to be a part of. They want all the characters eventually cross paths and interact with each other is always well don't. A bonus is there are no little girls being sexualized or no one that looks like a 7 year old (that's actually a 3000 year old demon who looks, sounds, and acts like a 7 year old) actively trying to be in a relationship with the MC. In a culture with lolis, where being a loser and a beta male, not having any experience with girls is the norm, its refreshing to see an anime like this with characters like this.

Cons:
1) The animation and art style won't be what most people expect. Now, I've never been someone that cares about the animation quality. i don't value style over substance. I won't think an anime is the Bee's knees just because it was animate but some acclaimed studio while having the plot of a toaster. But even I can say the animation leaves a lot to be desired. I don't know how to describe it other that saying a lot of stuff just isn't... animated. They find other ways to show that events happened like still images or caricatures instead of the normal animations. I take it this was don't for budget reasons? I wish I could say it doesn't distract or take away from the anime but there are times where it does. It isn't a complete deal breaker though, as this isn't a battle anime or anything like that were it needs an A++ in animation quality.

2) The sudden introduction of a rival competing for the MC's love interest around episode 8 really threw me off. This character wasn't even mentioned before and they went on to be such a major part of the show. The MC plays a back seat role and isn't even seen as this new character steals the screen for a good 3-4 episodes. It felt so out of place. This wasn't the MC's anime any more, it was this new characters. Also the way the love interest was so smitten with the new character really felt out of place for the way her character was written. It made the MC look like a cuck at some parts or that he was competing for a woman that was already in love with someone else. It made you wonder if the love interest was even worth having if she could so easily be captivated by someone else even after knowing the MC loved her.

3) Poor pacing and introduction of random one-off characters are also a minor annoyance with this anime. There are big events that are built up that either get cancelled, never occurred, quickly glossed over, or turn out to be a minor event. I think this is a pacing issue more than anything. Also, in episode 7 (I think) so many random new characters are introduced (they are presented to be important but we never hear from them again) and these character have similar design to other characters in the main cast that it really made it hard to even tell who's who. It didn't help that for this episode many of the main cast were wearing disguised or dressed up (even dressed as the opposite sex). It didn't help things that certain characters are non-binary or androgenous. I was so lost that entire episode.

Mixed:
The ending was a good ending but it felt a bit lack luster. Things you normally expect to see at the end of a romance anime were not shown. While things did wrap up nicely, we were TOLD what happened instead of actually see it play out which as really unsatisfying.

Overall I think its a great anime that was much different from anything this season and worth the watch for the characters alone.

Hilarious from the first episode!!! The animation is very limited but it really does add to the humor. I honestly don't think a fully-animated Murai No Koi would be better than what we have because it would take away from some of the gags. The simplicity has its own charm too!

The characters are all likeable, funny, and the jokes don't get stale. Good comedy anime that actually make me laugh are hard to come by, but this one is successful every episode!! Every single week I eagerly await the next one to release.

The plot is an enjoyable romance and you'll probably find yourself rooting ... for the two main characters once you watch it. Their dynamic is interesting and a breath of fresh air as well! I like that this show takes cliches and tropes and then turns it around. You know the classic misunderstanding trope? Yeah don't worry, Murai No Koi doesn't spend 3 episodes fixing miscommunication. It's fixed very quickly and the plot advances.

Definitely worth the watch. I think this is a diamond in the rough, you just have to give it a chance with its animation.

I'm not sure if there's an English dub, but the sub sounds great. Tanaka's voice actor is so expressive and funny!

I can't wait to see where the rest of this story goes. I am honestly so glad I didn't judge it based on the animation style. It has been well-worth my time and the watch.

OP and ED are great.

No. 1 of 9 of J.C.Staff's shows for Summer/Fall 2024: Murai in Love — The manga-turned-anime PowerPoint animation strikes again...it's just pure laziness, I'm telling ya...or this is just a modern animation technique that is perfected depending on the source material?

In the modern age of the AniManga industry, where the age-old argument of "quantity vs. quality" is just as important as the years pass by, you can't doubt me in the face that while the industry is facing more shortages in manpower than ever, studios are "trying" to get creative in utilizing just about every and all animation techniques, not just to cut corners with ... the ever-decreasing budget but also to deliver within the insanity of deadlines for all anime projects. This has been the case for the once-renowned studio of J.C.Staff, helming the extreme insanity that is almost unheard of: nearing the total double-digit count of shows (including Summer's leftover that is 2.5-jigen no Ririsa a.k.a 2.5 Dimensional Seduction). That is just tipping the scales of Japan's notorious infamous Black Company-esque workplace, but I digress, because all of the studio's shows have their own flare that you could still watch them for what they are.

This then, segways to mangaka Junta Shima's lone work of Murai no Koi a.k.a Murai in Love, a bare-bones rom-com between an adult and a student, and the similarity that helms that relationship is a fictional character from a game. On hindsight, this completed manga series enclosing 71 chapters within 7 volumes that once had an 8-episode live-action TV drama in Spring 2022 before the anime came around, I'm guessing the peeps in Japan having the chance to see the drama is a novelty in and of itself to experience the manga in live-action format (as opposed to something like anime). And 2.5 years later, the anime finally comes around...to be given J.C.Staff's once-heavily panned and now "solidified" motion-comic treatment that Gokushufudou a.k.a The Way of the Househusband got back in Spring 2021. Is this for the worse, or better, this time around? You be the judge.

If you'd ask me what I think about age-gap romances, there is a "yes and no" depending on the circumstances in which the setting was set up to begin with. And in Murai no Koi's case, that would be the series's male MC named Murai: the cool-looking blonde-haired student who excels within his grade in school, who has the usual clique of high school friends (like you would any growing young adult), and the romantic love interest...of a teacher? As it turns out, his homeroom teacher of Ayano Tanaka is quite the teacher that more than the usual colleagues of the fellows around her, she is seemingly unmarried for her "young" and youthful-looking age. The problem with her (or as the students refer to her as "Tetsuko" because of her "steel heart") is twofold: she is only interested in the pseudonym character that comes from the Otome game that she plays: Hitotose, and the realization that like 2.5D Seduction, the difference between the titular fictional character and Murai himself is battling thealmost exact appearances in different 2D or 3D plains, that Tetsuko refuses to acknowledge that Murai is the splitting image of her favourite mobage character enough to consider him as a candidate for love, that confoundedly has been established since their childhood days (no spoilers on that).

If the main couple just can't establish their connection, there's always the friends around them that would help make that E.T. establishment effort work. Murai's friends of Kiriyama and Hirai, as the chitter-chattering birds they are, are true "bros before hoes" guys who just want to see their good friend be acknowledged by Tanaka, while measuring up against the others who could jeopardize their relationship. The fellow classmates, ranging from the bros to the Nishifuji sisters of Yuka and Hitomi, who are related to both Tanaka and Murai are real craftswomen in the drawing department; they're like fans in the form of annoying flies around both of them in trying to strike a chord together. The real contenders are Murai's childhood friend of Yayoi Fukunaga and Tanaka's coworker of the "teacher from hell," that is Yamakado-sensei; they're the real trouble that the close friends must gander and bond together to avoid any and all confrontation of the worst possible scenario of both the Prince Charming and his Cinderella getting separated for good. This is where the comedy aspect does its best, and it definitely gives the anime a stretch of what there's to offer about Junta Shima's writing, which is not just fast but exacerbating to a degree that is quick-witted and holds nothing back in a surprisingly non-cliche manner. In a way, it leverages into the otaku culture and the constant gag humour that is a part of its bizarre shtick just to get the romance vibes going, and I can't say that I hate it, but it did get some chuckles out of me at certain moments.

Of course, I need not say the Paper Mario-esque motion-comic that Hi Score Girl and Shinigami Bocchan to Kuro Maid a.k.a The Duke of Death and His Maid's director Yoshinobu Yamakawa took in his approach learning from fellow Gokushufudou director Chiaki Kon about literally "cutting corners" in animation by making the manga come alive only by colour and expression (I'm looking at you, Blue Lock vs. U-20 Japan). As mentioned, Gokushufudou got the bad apple of J.C.Staff going for the motion-comic style (and it's even ironic that its earlier Fall 2020 TV drama is leaps better than the anime), but for this show. it...kinda works? Sure, it's all over the place, but as I've mentioned, it depends on what the source material is like, and in this case, the motion-comic nomenclature perfectly suits the aethestic of Murai no Koi to a T. With Yoshinobu Yamakawa being able to add his own flavour into the anime, no matter how "bad" it looks, the other aspects help support the sole deal breaker so much that at the end of the day, animation takes a backseat for the main content to shine through.

The OST is fairly lacking in spots, though it is just there for show and not really noticeable. Riinu's OP is especially catchy (that is if you speed the song up), and Yabai T-Shirts Ya-san's ED is a glorified mess of a mashup that has to do with the show's themes and genres, just plain forgettable. A mixed bag.

If you want to try out Murai no Koi a.k.a Murai in Love, I'm sorry to say that you'll have to take J.C.Staff's motion-comic animation for what it is. I'll give it points for trying to stand out by taking a downgrade in one of the most critical aspects of anime, and in my case, it was a constant but consistent hit-or-miss experience.

Maybe (or definitely) you'll have a better experience than I do, and at the end of the day, that's what counts as an opinion of not just one, but of the many.

The anime features a blend of humor and heart, capturing the awkwardness and excitement of love. The characters are charming, with distinct personalities that add depth to their interactions. The animation is vibrant and complements the lighthearted tone of the series.

However, the storyline can feel predictable at times, relying on typical romantic comedy tropes. Some viewers might find the age gap a bit uncomfortable, but the show treats the theme with a light touch.

Overall, *Murai's Love* is an enjoyable watch for fans of romantic comedies, offering a mix of laughs and sweet moments, though it may not break new ground in the genre.

This is the first time ever I make a review. I hope it's useful for someone out there looking for a short - somewhere in the middle of subjectivity and objectivity - review:

I think it's the most absurd anime I've ever seen, and I loved it. It's very funny, it leaves you with an extremely simple story, without complicating life too much, and you really think “I don't need more than this”. All the characters involved have their simple raison d'être, no deux ex machina, no complicated plot and pulled out of the cloth. In 10 episodes it tells you what it is and what ... it isn't, and that's it. They take a random cliché and make it comedy with a photographic animation.

Of course, its biggest disadvantage I dare say is both the animation itself (which understandably is intentional) and the writing of Tanaka's character which lacks of drive I think it collides with Murai. Th character of Murai lacks background and I sincerly hope that for the next season they give it to us so we can understand better his intentions and motivations.

Overall, an anime to watch when you have nothing to do and need some real quick dopamine discharge.

7.8/10

This anime is Blue Lock's ultimate competitor on who can make the worse slide show animation possible, and I think Murai No Koi takes the cake with this. I would barely call this an anime.

To be frank the art is nice and the style of it is cute but I rather just watch the live action drama than watch a slide show. The animation is legit so bad and you can tell the budget is abysmal. I am sure the plot is good but I don't understand why this anime was created to be honest and I am shocked honestly that is rated so ... high for a slide show, I am not kidding.