Kuttsukiboshi

Kuttsukiboshi is a show ahead of its time. Outstanding in all fields, a true masterpiece. While watching, I only felt amazement and shame - my eyes are not worthy to view something so perfect, almost as if it was made for the Gods themselves.

What makes Kuttsukiboshi so great, is that, on top of the gorgeous art, unique and stylish character designs, and orgasmic soundtrack, it has the best writing one could ever possibly imagine. The characters are so well written I know I could die for them if I knew them in real life. The story keeps you on the edge of your seat with excitement, pulling you through countless ups and downs, while also managing to be something completely original, fresh. A new idea.

Anyways I really liked this show and it's a masterpiece, if you didn't like it your opinion is probably not as good as mine

10/10 best show of all time

thank you

(if you like girls having sex with each other you should probably watch this)

Helpful

read more

'Nothing worth mentioning. So you're gonna hate me just for that kind of thing?'


MAJOR SPOILERS PRESENT in order to give more analysis.

The No.2 criterion for a review to get high helpful% is to avoid going against 'popular opinion' among the targeted audience. Unfortunately, I am indeed going against the more popular opinion here.

The rating is given from a more OBJECTIVE standpoint though. The enjoyment value for a yuri fan is probably around 8.


Kuttsukiboshi is a yuri 'borderline hentai' OVA. At first glance, Kuttsukiboshi may look very similar to the Sono Hanabira OVA which you can turn off your brain to watch. However, although Kuttsukiboshi has a lot of lovey-dovey sex scenes, it has serious drama throughout the latter part.

So let's sit back and take a look into the plot.


--PLOT--

Being an OVA, the plot is rather short.
It starts off with a lovey-dovey pair of high school girls (the 2 main characters), named Kiiko and Aaya.
The two spend a lot of efforts going yuri-yuri route in the school and in other places.
The plot keeps going lovey-dovey until Aaya's brother appears and then comes incest and then the drama starts.

To analyse the drama part, I will dissect the drama and split it into 2 parts:


>>Part 1: Motives and actions

Let's list all the key events that happens in chronological order.

EVENT 1:
CAUSE: Aaya's brother has a terminal disease.
MOTIVE: Aaya's brother considers Aaya someone more than her sister, and has a dying wish of having sex with her. On the other hand, Aaya, for some reason, fails to reject this request.
ACTION: Aaya's brother manipulates Aaya into having sex with him.

Of course, almost everyone would consider Aaya's brother a jerk. But the main question lies with Aaya's motive: Does she even understand what it means by accepting her brother's request?
(Let me clarify something a bit here: I've said before in my other reviews that love should not be unilateral and possessive. But first of all, by 'love', I am not simply referring to love between lovers. Meanwhile, replace 'love' with 'sex' and this statement no longer stands.)
Now, in my opinion, sex in its pure form should be when both sides consider each other a lover. But does Aaya consider her brother her lover? Likely not, her lover is Kiiko actually.
'To fulfill her brother's dying wish' can not justify Aaya's actions. It only makes Aaya's actions more tolerable, but still, Aaya doesn't look before she leaps. We will see more of this trait later.
On the other hand, to allow other people to manipulate her own life this easily? Pitiful, but not lovable.

EVENT 2:
CAUSE: Event 1 is blown, and the relationship between the 2 MCs faces a huge crisis.
MOTIVE: Not properly explained, the most plausible explanation is that Aaya wants Kiiko to know that she loves her, and probably that Aaya could not stay with Kiiko for long.
ACTION: Aaya has sex with Kiiko, forcibly. (i.e. Rape.)

So what the hell is going on... Aaya wants Kiiko to know that she loves her, and she ties Kiiko up in a storage room and rapes her?
There are AT LEAST 2 things that Aaya has done wrong:
1, she should have at least tried to explain everything to Kiiko, and
2, she shouldn't have tied Kiiko up: This makes Kiiko suffer even if Kiiko may get enjoyment from sex. I would never ever think of doing this! (Well, some may enjoy playing as a masochist, but Kiiko doesn't seem to. I don't think I need to further explain this tie and gag thing.)
And there is one line that not only pisses Kiiko off, but also pisses me off (even after I finish the anime):

(Kiiko: 'Aaya, what were you doing with your brother back then?')
Aaya: 'Nothing worth mentioning. So you're gonna hate me just for that kind of thing?'

Bringing forward the question in event 1 again: Does Aaya even understand what it means by accepting her brother's request? Apparently, no.

EVENT 3:
CAUSE: The 2 MCs are separated, while Kiiko somehow knows the truth.
MOTIVE: Kiiko misses Aaya even more.
ACTION: Kiiko misses Aaya so much that her powers level up to Lv99. 「会いたい、会えない、思い募る程…」

Without any context, the description itself would seem pretty fine.
But this is actually where we should bring up the biggest problem in the anime... Which is the good old question:
'What is it that you mean love?'


>>Part 2: Portrayal of love and other things

Now, does Kuttsukiboshi depict true love in a proper way?
The reason why Kiiko and Aaya can fall in love with each other is implied, and that's acceptable, but such cause is not enough to form a strong bond.
And then comes incest and raping.
For the incest event, it's natural to consider this cheating on her girlfriend, whether or not Aaya herself has realized or thought about it. Truth is, she seem to have considered this to be no big deal (Quote: '...that kind of thing?')
Then the raping: The fact that Aaya does not even care about Kiiko's agony stands. Do you call this true love? Do you call pushing your own demands to this extent true love?
This sounds like the best way to prove your love is to have sex with your lover. Oh really?

Then let's talk about the case after the raping.
Some time ago I found a few comments on a yuri dedicated site named Yamibo, which gave me some good laughs. e.g.: 'Even after Aaya literally rapes Kiiko, Kiiko still loves Aaya. This proves how strong the bond between them is, and that is true love.'
Unfortunately this statement is flawed, as it is based on the premise 'the reason for Kiiko to still love Aaya is sound'. But does this premise hold? If you were Kiiko, would you ever think of staying with a girl who would activate Maniac Mode at any time?
It seems as if the anime wants to have Kiiko as one with some tsundere traits, but Kiiko is not a tsundere: She is genuinely pissed off when Aaya says incest is no big deal. But after that, she can not get over leaving Aaya.
But... why?
This is unexplained, and is precisely one of the biggest failures of the anime--it likely indicates that Kiiko can not get over leaving Aaya (and agrees to have sex with her later) only because her hormone triumphs over her rationality.

The only good thing about this part, is that Kiiko does tell Aaya that her brother's deed is too brazen and unreasonable to be accepted in the end.
But no character development follows, and the anime makes little further effort to address the heroines' own problems and instead concludes that it's all Aaya's brother's fault. Well yes, her brother is a jerk, but once again, have you forgotten something like, say, the golden moment of the quote 'that kind of thing' this quickly?
What makes it worse, when the plot makes little effort to address the heroines' own problems, it automatically delivers the idea that 'that kind of thing' is no big deal, nor is raping as long as the one being raped is your (ex-)lover.

Also about the ending:
The ending could be interpreted in two ways, both of which are flawed in their meanings.
One of them is that 'the MCs are going to live on that desolate planet for eternity'. Sounds satisfying? Well, I was actually horrified when I got to know the ending.
Why? Think about it: 2 people who like each other being together--good. But ONLY 2 people being together FOR ETERNITY--horrible. And they still feel good about it? Is it really worth it to give up everything and everyone else so that they can be together?!
Even if in extreme cases--if nobody else really cares about them or whatsoever, their decision may in some degrees be explained, but still, the show is encouraging an unreasonable way to deal with dilemmas about love.
The other interpretation is that 'they can come back'. If interpreted in this way, then the two have simply found some place where they can spend time together and that's it. So what's new? There is little difference between having sex on a desert island and having sex in an empty school. In this interpretation, the ending is rather meaningless, and anti-climatic as well.


SUMMARY OF THE PLOT:

The plot of Kuttsukiboshi actually reminds me of Gigguk's commentaries on the anime School Days, so I'll alter the wordings to fit this anime:
'Any chance for the show to be taken seriously is wasted by the constant use of sex scenes and all the unrealistic decisions made at the most crucial moments.'
What adds salt to injury is that the premise of the anime is potentially resourceful. To name a few things, there are superpowers, there is the symbol 'intertwined stars', and there's the manipulation thing as a drama device. And we end up seeing how they are either developed in a WTH way, underdeveloped or not developed at all.

Now, being an OVA, these flaws are partly understandable because of the total screen time, but still:
Plot: 3/10


--CHARACTERS--

Actually I've covered quite a lot in the previous parts.
Kawakami Kiiko: The more level-headed character, but both Kiiko and Aaya have some rather naive perceptions on love and other aspects. Kiiko is NOT a tsundere.
Saitou Aaya: One who may easily allow others to manipulate her life, and one who doesn't think much before taking actions. Her perception on love is even more naive.
Saitou Kouta: Jerk. Or at least too morbid after failing to suppress his accumulated desire.
And there is not much character development.

Characters: 3/10


Minor aspects:
Animation & Art: 5/10 (8/10 considering that it's entirely animated by a freelance animator) Not exactly good, but not bad either.
Sound: 6/10 Rather appropriate, but not exactly memorable.


--ENJOYMENT VALUE--

Personally it's only a value around 5. But if you're a yuri fan, I guess I could give a value at about 8 or so, because even when the plot is very flawed, it may still look sweet if you just turn off your brain to watch.
Still, I don't guarantee that this enjoyment score of 8 works for everyone, because you can still get pissed off by one or both of the main characters.

Enjoyment: 8/10


OVERALL: 3.5/10 (Not an average) If you're going to give credit for the fact that the story and animation is single-handedly done by an individual, I guess a score of 5 will do.

ADVICE ON WATCHING THIS SHOW: I suggest that you turn off your brain and treat it as some hentai OVA: It isn't a proper romance story even when it does have a huge chunk of drama. If you treat this story seriously, you won't find it good.

(Stats: Suspicious Ups=0, Downs=0 as of 10 May 2015. Calculated with statistical hypothesis)

Helpful

read more

Kuttsukiboshi can perhaps be attributed to a bench. You sit on it and wait for something to happen. While sitting, you are more open to the world around you, physically or emotionally. Usually, things transpire while sitting. And at times you ponder on what is happening. But it doesn't last for long, because usually you only stay on a bench for a small amount of time.

Story: 7/10
Considering that it's only composed of two episodes, Kuttsukiboshi's plot is pretty linear. It's understandable for something that lasts only a little above forty minutes. Instead of delivering plot twists however, Kuttsukiboshi brings shock, which isn't very common in shoujo-ai/yuri. The story is centered on the couple Saitou and Kawakami. Looking at them, you would somewhat expect that there would be a misunderstanding between them that pulls them apart. But the events that actually pull them apart were unexpectedly...appalling. The result of that: what seems to be cruel in reality, happens.

At some parts though, the drama between Kawakami and Saitou felt rushed, as was their succeeding resolution. At one point, you'd wonder "what just happened?", and realize you'll never get an answer. Simply because Kuttsukiboshi was made to be simple, but often at the wrong time.

Oh, and lots of love making. Not that that's a bad thing.

Art: 6/10
Produced by Primastea, infamous for the Isshou Training series, you wouldn't expect much. Yet what looks to be flawed turned out to be actually acceptable. Although every scenery, person, love scene, or bench, doesn't live up to 2010-2012 standards, the style used gives the ambiance of a world isolated to two girls. That's pretty vague...

Without looking at the deeper meaning of style, one can say that Kuttsukiboshi may have been done a little slower than a rush. Painted sceneries and objects look decent but look lazily done at close inspection. Character designs aren't the best; passable but unique.. One thing that may bother the viewer is the awkward smoothness of the camera at times, but can be overlooked. In short, it's not perfect, but at the very least decent.

Sound: 7/10
The soundtrack is appropriate, as was the use of the piano. Calming most of the time. Not much can be said here.

Character: 6/10
Unfortunately, not much back story was given for Kawakami and Saitou. The benefit of this is that what is told to you is relevant to the story, so you aren't lead off-track. The character development was done in a simple manner: conflict, resolution, change. Although the "change" was in a way unimpressive and out-of-the-blue, it could be called "sweet", considering that this is shoujo-ai. You are given little internal monologue and so you wouldn't know what led a character to such decision (although you can be assuming and just say, "it's love").

Enjoyment: 7/10
There are two reasons why I enjoyed Kuttsukiboshi. The first: love scenes that are short, sweet, and not explosive. The second: the "shocking moments" I mentioned earlier. It left my mouth gaping for at least half a minute. Depending on your tastes and expectations, enjoyment will vary.

And so you leave the bench, wondering how what happened affected you. Kuttsukiboshi is, bluntly, not what you'd expect (on a positive and negative note), but is definitely one of the better shoujo-ai anime there is.

Helpful

read more

Writing this review because I have absolutely no idea what the other reviewers are talking about. The artwork was a nice alternative and indie style, the soundtrack was fairly good, the voice acting was on point, but the characters and plot are absolute garbage. The people who made it seem to absolutely not understand human emotions, which resulted in two absolutely garbage characters.Throughout the story they just use each other for sexual fulfillment. They are only together so that they can fuck, and they are only fucking because they're both lonely and empty beings. The only thing that would dictate that either of them cares for the other is that they say they love each other a lot, and yet both viciously attack each other on physical and psychological levels throughout the series. If you were looking for a pleasant romance in which two girls fall in love in the purest way, look elsewhere. If you were looking for a realistic drama in which the relationship of two characters is tested through hardships and in the end the outcome is one you can believe, look elsewhere.

Only watch this anime if you are looking for an anime about two girls who have not realized their sadomasochistic nature and who cannot understand the idea of human emotions. There is no love in this story. Only manipulation.

That said, I rated it a 10 on my personal list in order to support the yuri genre ^w^

Helpful

read more