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Introduction: Hello. My name is Neill or "MiNi." This will be my in depth review of the anime adaptation of Akasaka, Aka's comedic manga, Kaguya-sama: Love is War Season 2. With all my reviews I will score the anime discussed based upon 5 categories that include: Story, Characters, Art, Music, and Personal Enjoyment. Each category will be given a score between 0 and 10. The ending score will be what I determine the show deserves overall. Keep in mind I will be talking about spoilers that occurred during the anime along with possible spoilers of the manga. Now, without further ado, let's get into this.

STORY ... (9/10):

What I loved so much about season one was its ability to take a simple concept (i.e. two students who want each other to confess) and amplify it in the most dramatic way possible. This is evermore true within season two of Kaguya-Sama. You have your reoccurring psychological battles between our favorite student council members packed full with strange situations and gut busting twists. It delivered on everything season one began with and ran with cranking the dial up to 11.

Along with the normal escapades between Kaguya and co, we also have a more cohesive overarching story line, something that I thought season one was lacking. Sure there was character development, but there were per say real classic anime arcs. This all changes within season two. The two most prominent story lines tow point out are the Student Council Election, and the Sports Festival.

During the Student Council Election we are met with a slew of new and unique characters including Miko and Kobachi. Both are introduced as a sort of main antagonist in the series but are quickly adopted into the the main cast and bring forth welcoming personalities. Miko especially was a fine addition as she brought forth a sort of sturdiness the student council was lacking.

Ishigami is the shining start during the sports festival. Although we didn't see too much of him during season one, his screen time is more than double here. A lot of details are shown that bring forth his somber and mellow personality which only added to the greatness of the story line. Although this part was probably my least favorite of the season, I still enjoyed learning about our blue haired gamer.

Season two eases off the gas a little bit on the quarrels between Shirgane and Kaguya which allowed it to further develop its supporting cast along with a more structured story and did a phenomenal job doing so.

Characters (9/10):

Miyuki Shirogane: The class president's development comes in forms of learning rather than discovery. Chika teaching him how to sing and dance improves his self confidence. He becomes a lot more comfortable talking with Kaguya as seen with them star gazing. Still, there are the classic overthinking moments that are sprinkled throughout the season where he tries to crack whatever mischievous plans Kaguya has. All in all, it was a good season for out favorite prez.

Kaguya Shinomiya: Kaguya goes through quite a bit of development during this season. There's always her battles of confession with the president, but there are also battles going on inside her as well. Whether it be losing the memories and photos from her old phone, or thinking she isn't good enough for the president. We learn about the mentality of Kaguya throughout this season which made her than much more enjoyable. Although this anime is heavily dramatized, I'd say Kaguya is probably the most "human" out of all of them.

Yuu Ishigami: The development of Ishigami was a job to watching during season two. During the beginning parts there were references as to why he was as quite as he is. We finally get our answers throughout episodes 8 and 9. That and along with the bromance with Shirogane were extremely satisfying to see. In season one they had barely anything resembling a friendship, here in season two its easy to see that they're friends who have each others back. They talk about and do guy things frequently which added a breath of fresh air in. I can't wait to see how he progresses further in future seasons.

Miko Iino: The first year pig-tailed hall monitor was someone who at first I thought would be annoying and drag the story. I was pleasantly surprised to see how much I ended up liking her by the end of the series. We learn a lot about her in a short period of time and she lets herself be exposed to unfamiliar territory and allows herself to change. This is something I loved watching. You see a completely different character on screen from the episode shes introduced to episode 12.

Chika Fujiwara: Chika doesn't receive all that much in terms of development. Which in her case, is fine, she's suppose to be the goofy and fun one that people will always laugh at while on screen. Her antics and response to situations are the times where I probably laughed the most. Chika is probably the easiest character in the show to understand, but also the funniest.

Hayasaka, Ai: I've been a major Hayasaka fan all the way back during season one where she didn't recieve NEARLY as much screen time as she does here. She's easily my favorite character in the show and it isn't only because we share the same birthday, she personality and wittiness is always amusing. How she deals with Kaguya and her responding quips are always a joy to watch. Still has and will always be the best girl.

ART (9/10)

The art and animation department delivers once again. A-1 pictures did an amazing job yet again with this series. It ain't reinventing the wheel here, but it is utilizing it to its fullest potential. The still images they have are as funny as ever. I really should applaud Akasaka, Aka for his amazing drawings that are animated into this season. The mental pictures and animations they have are great too. Whether it be
a street fighter scene, or something ripped straight out of Indian Jones, Everything is great. No complaints here

MUSIC (7/10)

The music is the only area where I was just satisfied with. It did its job, but nothing stuck out matronly to me. I wasn't a huge fan of the OP "Daddy Do" but it did grow on me a bit. I still don't think it's as good as "Love Dramatic" however. The ED is nice. I've said it before, music is a difficult area for anime's to strive in, rarely will you find one that blows your mind. As long as the music isn't so bad that it takes you out of the anime, it'll meet my expectations.

PERSONAL ENJOYMENT (9/10)

The sophmore iteration of Kaguya-sama: Love is War did an incredible job. I loved just about every minute of it and anticipated each new episode. For the first seven episodes I was so impressed with how much better the comedy got. I thought there was no way it could get better but it just kept on improving. Overall, very satisfied with where the season ended, and am excited to see more!

Final Thoughts and Score:
Thank you all for reading, make sure to follow my page for more anime reviews!

Favorite Episodes

Ep 1.
Ep 2.
Ep 3.
Ep 4.
Ep 5.
Ep 6.
Ep 7.
Ep 10.
Ep 11.
Ep 12.

__Official Scores__
Story: (9/10)
Characters: (9/10)
Art: (9/10)
Music: (7/10)
Personal Enjoyment: (9/10)

FINAL SCORE: (9/10)

@MiNiSoTaN

Did you really read the review, or are you just looking at the score?

MiNiSoTaN's Death Note Review

Introduction:
Hello. My name is Neill or "MiNi." This will be my in depth review of Death Note, the 2007 adaption of Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata's critically acclaimed manga. With all my reviews I will score the anime discussed based upon 5 categories that include: Story, Characters, Art, Music, and Personal Enjoyment. Each category will be given a score between 0 and 10. The ending score will be what I determine the show deserves overall. Keep in mind I will be talking about spoilers that occurred during the anime along with spoilers of the light novels that proceed after. Now, without further ... ado, let's get into this.

Story (9/10):

Tsugumi Ohba's magnum opus will be Death Note. He crafts a story so masterfully that to say it is brilliant would be an understatement. Death Note's story is so unique and so twisted that it truly is one of the most original stories of the modern age.
We begin inside the mind of Light Yagami, just an ordinary high school student following the motions of his boring day to day life. Ohba portrays Light in such a cunning way that the audience both is both rooting for and against him by the end of the series. The way Light evades the police and L through his carefully constructed plans is incredible to watch. The back and forth nature of who can outsmart who has you on the edge of your seat throughout the entire story. I cannot stress enough how intrigued I was watching the plot unfold. Even today, I go back and forth between supporting Light and L. I never decided who I wanted to win. This is due to how well the and complex the story is. There is no real clear answer to who is the "better" one. Both Light and L have valid reasons as to why they think they're superior.

Each twist and turn in the plot is a train ride as well. From beginning to end you believe one character has the other outclassed, but there is always another card to be played on the table. This game of cat and mouse never never gets old even as the series grows in length. Even during the later half of the season I was still enthralled by how this tale would end, and honestly I still don't quite know how I feel about it. On one hand I was rooting for Light and his conquest to be the king of the new world. On the other, I did want to see him fail and see how he would react. The ending to this show left me with a hole in my heart I don't know if any other series can fill. The only gripes that I had with it were some of the dragged out arcs during the mid season that I felt could be been cut down a little bit. Other than that however, the story exceeded my expectations upon the first watch and I am excited to experience it again.

Overall, the story of Death Note is unparalleled. There will never be another anime to do something that Death Note did. For how long it stays its welcome it almost never feels boring or unnecessary. Death Note bring fourth to the screen a masterclass story that will forever be unrivaled.

Characters (10/10):

Light Yagami: Each and every character are written incredible well within the world of Death Note. But two stand out above everyone. One of those characters is Light Yagami. The way he can switch back and forth between his two personalities that of Kira and Light is amazing to watch. Not only his tone of voice, but facial expressions, actions, his entire personality. Light is extremely cunning to everyone around him. It is easy to see how he evaded the police for so long, there would be no reason to suspect him. His plan to be the god of the new world although seemingly far fetched would have easily been obtainable if it were not for one person.
L: You remember how I said there were two characters that stood out in terms of how brilliant they were? Well, the second one is L. We are introduced to him very early on in the series, but even then it takes quite a bit of time before we even see his face. L is the main antagonist for the series. The Ying to Light's Yang. L and Light compliment each other so well. The mannerisms that L displays were a shock at first but eventually you begin to understand as to why he does them. Being the greatest detective in the world, watching L deduce to probabilities of who Kira is is fantastic to watch. Obata clearly put a lot of time into fully fledgling out the characters of Death Note in order for a character so absurd as L to fit in so well. It is easy to see why many regard him as one of if not their favorite character in all of anime.

Ryuk: The world of Death Note doesn't actually begin in its actual world. Rather, we are introduced to the world of the Shinigami. Ryuk ends up getting bored of gambling bones and decides to drop a Death Note into the human world and see what will happen. Ryuk is one of the many highlights of the series. Although his appearance is scary, he often adds moments of humor to lighten up the show. His addition of dialogue allows the viewers toidelve deeper into the lore of the Shinigami and the rules of Death Note as well, which is something I personally enjoy quite a bit.

Misa: A character introduced later into the series, Misa is someone who at first I didn't really understand. I couldn't quite put my finger on it, but there was something off with her where I felt she didn't fully below. As the show progressed I became to empathize with her and liked her much more as she was fledged out. Although not a super important character in the series she does play a role that I as a viewer greatly appreciated.

Near: Near is the one character I believe will have the most divide amount Death Note fans. Seemingly a copy of L, Near makes his entrance immediately after the death of L in order to finish the job L began and put Kira to justice. This is the point in the series where I felt like dragged a little bit. I still felt it was executed well, but to many, seemed unnecessary, included with that notion is the addition of Near. Near again to any viewer literally is a clone of L. He has the similar quirks and sleuthing skills. It seemed a little odd to kill off L only to add basically the same persona. Regardless, he is written and portrayed well just like every character within the series.

Art (8/10):

Death Note is one of the few anime you can watch that has a distinct art style. No other anime combines the jagged and sharp look of characters hair and mixes it with softer more playful looking eyes. Unlike other more traditional styles of anime where the personality and character is told in someone's eyes, Death Note places the emphasis on every other part of the person's body. Most of the eyes are soft with little detail. The absence of detail is not an insult, rather it is something unique noticed throughout the art style.
Beside the design of character the general art of the world is very grim and gray scaled. It fits perfectly with the theme of the show. Very rarely will you see happier looking colors. More often than not the scene will be set in a room of drab browns, blacks, and grays to wash out any onset of happiness. This is something that was deliberately shown to keep the watcher fixated on the sad and dull outlook of the world. I believe it was done exceptionally well. Although not going out of their way to create something never seen before, Death Note delivers on the art style to be exactly what you would expect.

Music (10/10):

The music of Death Note is something anyone will enjoy. Every single song makes you feel something. The uncomfortable and eerie chord changes throughout each of Light's Theme leaves your skin crawling with goosebumps. The quite twinkling of piano combined with subtle but sharp guitar picking is something I will never get tired of. Every scene has music that perfectly accompanies the atmosphere. You never feel as if something is off in terms of sound. Death Note strikes a perfect chord in my book on how to make sound good within an anime.

Personal Enjoyment (10/10):

It's easy to say that Death Note is one of my favorite anime of all time. There should be no question as to why many regard this as one of the first classics of the modern age. It's combination of incredible story telling, perfectly written characters and an amazing score to accompany it, solidifies Death Note as a unique work of fiction that comes once in a lifetime. I was left on the edge of my seat after each episode wanting more and wanting the series to go further with more risks and it always delivered. I could go on and one about how much I love this series, but I will leave it at this. Death Note is amazing, and truly one of the only unique stories in all of anime.

Final Thoughts and Score:
Thank you all for reading. Make sure to follow my page for updates for future anime reviews!

Favorite Episodes:
Ep 1. Rebirth
Ep 2. Confrontation
Ep 4. Tactics
Ep 5. Unraveling
Ep 6. Overcast
Ep 9. Encounter
Ep 14. Friend
Ep 15. Wager
Ep 25. Silence
Ep 26. Renewal
Ep 35. Malice
Ep 36. 1.28
Ep 37. New World

Official Scores
Story: (9/10)
Characters: (10/10)
Art: (8/10)
Music: (10/10)
Personal Enjoyment: (10/10)

FINAL SCORE: (9/10)
@MiNiSoTaN

MiNiSoTaN's The Rising of the Shield Hero Review

Introduction:
Hello. My name is Neill or "MiNi." This will be my in depth review of The Rising of the Shield Hero, the 2019 anime adaption of Aneko Yusagi's web novel series. With all my reviews I will score the anime discussed based upon 5 categories that include: Story, Characters, Art, Music, and Personal Enjoyment. Each category will be given a score between 0 and 10. The ending score will be what I determine the show deserves overall. Keep in mind I will be talking about spoilers that occurred during the anime . Now, without further ado, let's get ... into this.
Story (6/10)

Where Shield Hero fails to drive forward most is with its story. The show did begin on the right foot however. The first few episodes did a good job at setting up the plot along with more lore and world building. It was once we reached the conclusion of the first wave that things began to deteriorate. After the introduction of Melty, the show began a downward spiral that it never really recovered from. The story became boring and uninteresting. We never saw an actual set goal in mind for Naofumi and his party. For half of the season they are just wandering around Melromarc with no clear objective in mind. Every event they come across happens by mere chance and it was more divine intervention that they ended up there rather than them actually setting out for the location in the first place.

One of my biggest grievances with this show comes with the faithfulness of the adaptation, or rather the lack there of. After watching the Shield Hero I read through the Manga, Light Novel and Web Novel. I was encouraged to by people on the r/ShieldBro subreddit to do so, so I figured why not. I was astounded to read how well the story is actually written and was wondering if I watched the correct show. Each physical version of Shield Hero is much more gritty with adult themes. The dialogue they use doesn't sound like it is coming from, the school playground. People actually die. Gruesomely. I am by no means advocating that the anime has to be a direct 1:1 adaptation of the Web Novel, or Manga. That isn't a realistic expectation. But what I am trying to get at, is that if they want to truly adapt a good story they have to make the correct decision as to stays faithful and what doesn't. The anime does a very poor job at keeping the monumental moments faithful to the source material. Whether this is because they thought they could do better, or because they believed toning down the brutality of the story would concede a bigger audience, we'll never know. I guess my main take away from the story is that it is unorganized with no clear direction, and it doesn't keep its core tenets faithful to its source material.

One of the most disgusting and unfaithful parts of the show comes from the adaptation of the scene where Raphtalia fights Idol. This is about halfway through the show at this point, and Melty gets captured by Idol who turns out to be Raphtalia's previous slave owner who tortured her and killed her friends. In the manga we get this beautiful scene of poetic justice where the slave becomes the master. Raphtalia has grown and is stronger than Idol now. He begs for mercy, but Raphtalia has none to give. She ends up killing Idol by stabbing him and pushing him out a window. One of if the not the largest character development moments for Raphtalia throughout the entire series. It shows her finally overcoming her fears and putting her past behind her. Once a lost scared little girl is now a brave and courageous soldier.

Now guess what happens in the anime.

NOT FUCKING THIS.

In the anime Raphtalia literally is too scared to kill Idol. She cries to Naofumi how she can't do it. What I loved about Naofumi in the manga is that he doesn't intervene. He let's Raphtalia do what she wants, because he know's she'll make the right choice. He knows she isn't a little girl anymore. He looks at her with approval and satisfaction that she was finally able to do something so brave on her own.

In the anime Naofumi does the whole bullshit speech of "Will killing him give you closure?" She ends up sparing Idol's life because of the whole cliche "If I kill you, I'm not better that you." What a fucking dumb cop out. Actually made me angry when I read the manga and saw what we missed out on. Anyways Idol still falls out the window but it was an accident because he tripped. But PSYCH! He doesn't actually die. He revives a dinosaur that ends up stepping on him.

Keep in mind this is one one of the many difference scenes Shield Hero took their own liberties in terms of changing the story. It doesn't pay off. The only reason I'm giving the story the score it has now is because I know it can be better and I hope that changes with the coming of Seasons 2 and 3.

If you do want to know a little more about some of the other aspects of the story I was unsatisfied with because they portrayed the source material in a poor manner, check out my YouTube Video where I go a bit more in depth.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0n7gTrWeA_g&

Characters (8/10)

Naofumi For all the story does wrong, it does do right with most of its characters. Naofumi is exceptionally well written. From day 1 he is given absolutely nothing and treated like shit by everyone in the entire country. After the false rape accusation by Malty, he has no one to turn to and no one to trust. I absolutely LOVE this. Far too many times now we get MC's that get beaten up or struggle, but they can turn to their friends for help. Not this time. Naofumi has to build his friends up before he can turn to them. His relationships with Raphtalia, Filo, and Melty flow so smooth together. He goes throughout the entire season always checking his back and being cautious and kind of an ass with everyone he meets. He doesn't want to take any chances with the risk being what happened before. Naofumi is an a great protagonist and I hope to see him further develop through the rest of the rest of the series.

Raphtalia She is arguable the character that changes the most throughout the season. I already explained a lot of it in the 'Story' section of this review so I won't go too much more in depth. I like her as a character. She compliments Naofumi well. She almost acts as his foil where they balance each other well. Naofumi is the bruiting tough act that just wants to get the job done. Raphtalia is the one with compassion and wants to help people because she remembers that is what Naofumi did for her. Although I wish the anime did a better job at adapting some of her more important scenes from the source material, she still remains as a highlight of the show.

Melty Introduced about a quarter into the series, Melty makes her way into Naofumi's party after having the soldiers falsely accuse him of kidnapping her. She is a nice addition to the Shield party. She is much more cautious and headstrong when it comes to decision making, but ultimately trusts Naofumi which is something I admire and respect.

Filo This Sesame Street ripoff of a bootleg big bird was pretty neat throughout the show. We learn that she is the heir to being the queen of her bird race which is pretty cool. Really not too much to add besides that. She's a nice edition.

Characters (cont.) Every other character in the show is pretty minor, and the new major ones are introduced so late into the series they not even worth mentioning in the show because they play so little of a role. What I wish the anime did better was focus a little more on the other heroes. Yes I know the title is "Rising of the Shield Hero" it suppose to focus on the Shield Hero. I'm not saying we need dedicated 24 minute episodes to the spear, bow, and sword heroes. What I wish we got to see what a little more interaction between all four of them. We did get to see them all talking together a few times but it always ended with Naofumi saving everyone or him just leaving because he got annoyed. I'm hoping season 2 delivers more with the side characters.

Art (8/10)

The art and animation the show was actually pretty good. One of the few aspects I was impressed by. For a show being about fighting waves of hundreds of enemies, it does a great job at showing the action scenes. There is a lot of screen time dedicated to fight scenes and they are all (for the most part) very well done, I didn't have too many complaints about the art department as well. Nothing super special, Shield Hero isn't reinventing the wheel here. It goes by the book and does a good job of it. I would be very surprised to find someone who thinks that the art and animation within this show is lacking much less bad. I only give out close to or near perfect scores to areas where I believe the category is done exceptionally well or innovates with something never seen. Shield Hero doesn't do this, but it's not a bash against the show. It follows the formula and it comes out clean. No complaints.

Music (6/10)

It is very difficult for me to actually be moved by a piece of music. The main ending, "Kimi No Namae" moves me. It's a beautiful song that I loved listening to whenever an episode ended. It starts off with a quite but defining chord progression introduced in part by some soft vocals only to explode into a frenzy of instruments backing up the main chorus. The Main ending gets a standing ovation from me.

Music in my opinion is the hardest area for an anime to do well in. Shield Hero unfortunately falls in the same pit of "I don't really care" music. No music during any of the battle scenes or dialogue was particularly memorable to me. Again, I'm not saying the music was bad, it just wasn't memorable, there's a difference. Listening to one piece and enjoying it in them moment is way different than listening to a piece remembering it, and wanting to listen to it again. I didn't want to listen to any of the Shield Hero music again, besides the ending. And I'm sorry but what is up with the Japanese rapping in the OP. Dear god I thought I was listening to a leaked track off an old Evanescence album form 2009. For everything the Ending OP did right, the main OP did wrong.

Personal Enjoyment (6/10)

For the most part I didn't particularly enjoy the show. The times where I did enjoy it however, were very good. All the was really memorable were the battle scenes and introduction to the show. That's about all the fond memories I have of watching this show. If you were disappointed, or wished there was more, READ THE SOURCE MATERIAL. It is 100% better. I'm surprised how poorly you can mess up animating the story when it's given right to you. I hope season 2 and 3 do better.

Final Thoughts and Score
Although Shield Hero didn't particularly impress me, I am hopeful for its future. There's already been a season 2 and 3 announced, so I hope that they can learn from some of the community feed back as to what needs to be changed for the future. Thank all for reading. I hope you enjoyed yourself. I will spitting out some more reviews in the near future. Make sure to follow my page for updates.

Favorite Episdoes
Ep. 1 The Shield Hero
Ep. 2 The Slave Girl
Ep. 20 Battle of Good and Evil
Ep. 22 The Four Heroes Council

Official Scores
Story: (6/10)
Characters: (8/10)
Art: (8/10)
Music: (6/10)
Personal Enjoyment: (6/10)

FINAL SCORE: (6/10)
@MiNiSoTaN

MiNiSoTaN's Re:Zero Review

Introduction:
Hello. My name is Neill or "MiNi." This will be my in depth review of Re:Zero, the 2016 adaption of Tappei Nagatsuki's brilliant light novel series. With all my reviews I will score the anime discussed based upon 5 categories that include: Story, Characters, Art, Music, and Personal Enjoyment. Each category will be given a score between 0 and 10. The ending score will be what I determine the show deserves overall. Keep in mind I will be talking about spoilers that occurred during the anime along with spoilers of the light novels that proceed after. Now, without further ado, let's get into ... this.

STORY (9/10):

Immediately upon entering the world of Natsuki Subaru we are greeted to him leaving a corner store with some recently purchased snacks sporting his now signature black, white, and orange tracksuit. Not more than 2 minutes from there we are quite literally transported to a fantasy world fill with half human half animal being set in a medieval like type kingdom. What Re:Zero does so different compared to other anime in the isekai genre is that it give no explanation as to why Subaru is there in that world, we merely have to accept it. This is something that many people may have trouble with overcoming as they would like answers. What is remarkable is that Nagatsuki's world building and storytelling does such a great job at pulling the viewer in, that they forget they were even transported in here in the first place. There is no need for explanation because the story tells itself so well.
The story of Re:Zero takes place across the first 3 arcs in the story's timeline. Most (including myself) will agree that these first few arcs are some of the weaker ones of the series. This is not to say they are bad by any means, but for how event-less they are, to an average viewer it may be a bit difficult for them to comprehend what is going on all at once. We are introduced to characters such as Emilia (best girl) and Puck almost as soon as Subaru enters into the world. He is tasked with helping them retrieve a medallion Emilia had stolen from her. This is where the story beings to pick up speed and we fully grasp what we are dealing with here. Both Subaru enters into what looks like to be an abandoned shack in hopes of finding this medallion. He immediately killed upon entering... or is he?

This is the whole story of Re:Zero. Subaru has this mysterious power to return to a "save point." Using this power he can alter the course of history by trying different options with his speech, decisions, affiliation etc. This is something extremely unique Re:Zero holds above just about any other anime. As the story progresses we get this beautiful arc of Subaru doing anything he can to try and appease Emilia only to embarrass himself and her in the process. He then goes on this epic story of redemption, self reflection, responsibility, and romance. The story told throughout these 3 arcs is quite literally poetic in sometimes of how things unfold. Whether it is in episodes like The Outside Of Madness where Rem saves Subaru only for him to bring her back to the mansion to find everyone dead and him dying in the process. Or the beautiful monolgue delivered by Rem in From Zero. To say Re:Zero has an incredible story would be an understatement. It has everything from epic battles to discussion of politics and land dragons. It will have you on the edge of your seat for each episode.

Characters (10/10):

Natsuki Subaru: He might be the greatest written protagonist since Light Yagami. I am 100% serious. Throughout we see the transformation of a naive little boy chasing around his crush to someone reformed and determine to be a leader for those who deemed him a fool. The direction taken and elements used to show his progression into a man are amazing. From his talk with Emilia after he raided the council meeting, to him leading the troops in Battle Against the White Whale. Subaru is a complexly written character presented in a perfect manner to the audiences.

Emilia: The quite half elf is one of the first people too meet Subaru upon his transportation to the land of Lugunica. Although she looks older her level of maturity is still a little bit under developed. This can be seen through some of the dialogue she and other characters share throughout the season. The series quite frankly revolves more around her than any other character. Without Emilia Subaru would have never met anyone else. It was through her kindness that he was able to recover from his wounds and help her find the medallion. From there, everything else is history. I absolutely love the way Emilia is portrayed in the anime and am very excited to see her grow in the coming season.

Rem: The biggest 180 in all of anime award goes to none of than Rem. Everyone hated her after she seemed so sweet and innocent only to end up killing Subaru. The single-horned half demon takes the spotlight throughout a majority of the season winning the hearts of hundreds thousands. She is a very complex character having gone through lots of turmoil in her early childhood, she and her older sister Ram are both some of the best written characters in the series. Their chemistry and quirks are always a nice subtle chuckle to relief some of the tension built up during the prior minutes of the episode. Rem is someone we unfortunately wont being seeing any more of for a VERY long time.

Ram: As stated previously, Ram with her twin sister are one of the main highlights of the series. She has a much more cold, unforgiving type of personality which can be absolutely hilarious in certain cases. Although not as loved as Rem, she definitely has her moments where she outshines everyone else on screen.

Puck: Everyone shit their pants when they saw Puck at the end of At the End of Disgrace. Seeing such a cute and cuddly cat transform into a gigantic beast set to demolish Subaru after he killed Emilia was terrifying. He's one of the more mysterious characters that we don't learn too much about throughout the series but is still one of the most adorned ones. Every 14 year old's anime Instagram meme page probably has him as their profile picture.

Beatrice: She's an alright character I suppose. Sorry, I had to do it at least once. Again, this is another character we truly know VERY LITTLE about unless you are a faithful light novel reader such as myself. She is shown as the Puck loving, loli librarian protector of Roswaal's mansion. She always has a little quip to through into each conversation which gives her such a sassy attitude.

Roswaal: Yet another character we really don't know much about (notice a pattern?). Roswaal is one of if not the greatest magic users of the entire country of Luginica. He houses Subaru in exchange for his butlery services but his intentions are really not that sincere. Behind that pale white face is a man with a plan to take over the world.

Characters (cont.): I know there's a lot of characters I didn't talk about but I wanted to make sure I got the main ones out of the way. There are so many minor characters it's hard to keep track of them all. Others that I didn't mention but do want to shout out include: Reinhard, Petelgeuse, Felix, Windhelm, and Crusch. Each of these characters did something very significant within the show that helped move the story along. If you want to take one thing away from this section just know this: the characters in Re:Zero are extremely well written, some with lots of mystery behind them that we never get answers to (until season 2). Each voice actor did an incredible job portraying these characters and it felt very fulfilling to watch.

Art (7/10):

Some of the shots seen throughout the anime are really beautiful. Some of the landscape shots are drawn really well and look stunning. Although it is nothing to write home about, the animation does it's job to move the show along. Some part such as the battle of the white whale do a better job as providing more of the creativity in the action scenes. As stated, the animation isn't bad, but something that I believe would deserve a perfect score would be a show that went above and beyond the expectations and innovated in that certain category. There really isn't too much more to write about here. Re:Zero isn't really known for it's art style. Again, this isn't a blow against the show, it is just seen as average compared to other anime in the genre.

Music (6/10):

The one part I was afraid of writing about. People have some very strong opinions when it comes to the OST's of anime. I understand that. My personal favorite soundtrack comes from Darling in the FranXX. To me personally, that the one that hit me most in terms of impact and creativity. I can't say that same about Re:Zero unfortunately. Sure you have your Styx Helix and your Stay Alive, they're fine, I get that. But there's not really another song I can think of from the show besides those two where it truly remind me of Re:Zero. Everyone knows the OP "Redo" but even I wasn't a huge fan of that. Even with it's electrifying and catchy guitar chorus, it just didn't stick with me. It is a shame too, because I want to like the music from this anime, but I can't force myself to and fake it for everyone. This is the one aspect I hope is improved with season 2.

Music (cont.): I will say however, the sound design the show is absolutely phenomenal. The use of the eerie singing to represent the redo ability is brilliant and I am a huge fan of that direction. Although this may seem like a small detail to some, to me I noticed the extra attention the studio put toward this effect and I greatly appreciate it.

Personal Enjoyment (10/10):

It goes without saying that I absolutely loved this show. Although some stand against this is just another run of the mill isekai with nothing unique or interesting, I believe everything about it is unique and interesting. It switches up the isekai in more ways that one and does an excellent job in its execution. I enjoyed this show more than I can express into words. Since finishing it, I have gone ahead and read through the updated English version of the web novel, so yes I do know what is going to happen in season 2, but it doesn't hinder my excitement any less. In fact I think I'm even more excited for season 2 now knowing what will happen because I can wait to see how they portray the scenes.

Re:Zero isn't a perfect anime. No one will claim that, and if they do, they are wrong. This is coming from one of the biggest fans of the show. But to me at least, it's imperfections do not take away from my enjoyment. I can talk about how much I love it while also point out things I wish were changed or I hope are improved upon. Re:Zero gave me everything I wanted in an anime and that's why it is my favorite anime series of all time. Also Emilia > Rem.

Final Thoughts and Score:
Thank you all for reading, I hope you enjoyed my take on one of the most beloved anime series ever.
Favorite Episodes
Ep 1. The End of the Beginning and the Beginning of the End
Ep 6. The Sound of Chains
Ep 8. I Cried, Cried My Lungs Out, and Stopped Crying
Ep 15. The Outside of Madness
Ep 18. From Zero
Ep 19. Battle Against the White Whale
Ep. 23 Nefarious Sloth
Ep 25. That's All This Story Is About

Official Scores
Story: (9/10)
Characters: (10/10)
Art: (7/10)
Music: (6/10)
Personal Enjoyment: (10/10)

FINAL SCORE: (9/10)
@MiNiSoTaN