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May 29, 2025
There’s something disarming about a show that arrives with no fanfare, no grand ambitions, and somehow still manages to be thoroughly enjoyable. Aharen Is Indecipherable is, at first glance, yet another romantic comedy centered around an eccentric girl and the quiet boy who learns to understand her. You’ve seen this structure before in fact, you’ve probably seen it a dozen times in the last year alone. But what sets Aharen apart is its unexpectedly sincere delivery and a refreshing sense of restraint in a genre that too often mistakes drama for depth.
The show’s premise is almost aggressively plain: Reina Aharen, a soft-spoken girl with a
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tenuous grasp on personal space, slowly forms a bond with her classmate Raidou, a boy so stoic he makes cardboard look expressive. What unfolds is a series of episodic sketches, each one gently nudging their relationship forward. It’s not particularly complex, nor does it pretend to be. The show knows exactly what it is and chooses to commit to its tone with surprising confidence.
Much of the charm hinges on the chemistry between the leads, and for once, the word "chemistry" doesn’t feel like an overstatement. Their relationship develops with a kind of quiet clarity that’s rare in anime rom-coms, especially those so fond of plot-stalling misunderstandings and perpetual will-they-won’t-they nonsense. The dynamic between Aharen and Raidou is built on subtle emotional beats and understated humor. Rather than manufacturing drama, the show lets small gestures speak for themselves. There's no love triangle, no last-minute confession cliffhanger, and no episode spent on one character sulking in a rainstorm because someone said something vaguely ambiguous. It’s not just refreshing—it’s borderline revolutionary in this context.
Raidou, in particular, is a standout in how he's used. Normally, the bland, quiet male lead is a narrative crutch, a silent observer onto whom the audience is supposed to project. But here, his dry, deadpan reactions are used to excellent comic effect. His serious inner monologues in the face of Aharen’s eccentric behavior provide the show with a steady rhythm of punchlines, not through exaggerated gags, but through well-timed understatement. It’s a rare case where making the protagonist “boring” is actually the joke, and it works.
If there’s a weak point, it’s in the supporting cast. They’re serviceable, but forgettable. None of them drag the show down, but they don’t contribute much either. Their appearances feel more like brief distractions than meaningful additions, and you’re unlikely to remember any of their names by the time the credits roll. The show knows where its strengths lie and wisely keeps the focus on its central duo—but the result is a series that noticeably dips in energy whenever they’re offscreen.
Visually, the show is competent without being particularly eye-catching. The art style leans minimalist, which suits the tone but does little to distinguish it from its peers. Likewise, the music is… fine. The opening and ending themes are pleasant enough in the moment, but utterly forgettable once the episode ends. If you’re the type to add anime OPs to your playlist, this one won’t be making the cut.
Still, Aharen Is Indecipherable manages to sidestep most of the usual traps these shows fall into. It doesn’t waste your time, doesn’t insult your intelligence, and doesn’t stretch its premise past the breaking point. It’s funny, occasionally heartwarming, and, most impressively, it knows how to wrap up a romantic arc without stalling for another season’s worth of plot padding. The fact that a second season is on the way is more reassuring than concerning.
In a genre defined by loud characters, dragged-out misunderstandings, and emotional constipation disguised as tension, Aharen feels like a quiet success. Not flashy, not flawless—but focused, consistent, and genuinely likable. A rare thing indeed.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Jul 24, 2022
Akashic Records is a fantasy light novel adaptation that is about, shockingly, an overpowered protagonist that has both a harem and is at a magical academy. I know shocking material for fantasy anime; however, I will say that remarkable the show is not an isekai series with the protagonist instead just being an overpowered mage for some reason. However, despite not being an isekai series Akashic Records still falls into the same story pitfalls as most generic isekai series and just comes off as another bland overpowered fantasy series with the only shocking aspect being the magic academy’s uniform choice.
Set predominately in an academic setting
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the series focuses on the protagonist Glenn, personal journey of evolving from a perverted lazy shut-in, to a perverted lazy instructor. Don’t get me wrong as the series progresses Glenn is shown to not only be a competent instructor as he breaks down the rules of the world’s magic system to both the audience and students in an easy-to-comprehend manner, but also seems to generally care for his students. However, before that growth occurs the viewer is unfortunately forced to watch Glenn flounder around the first few episodes as he not only struggles to act his age but also stays off an FBI watchlist. I know this initial impression is meant to give the viewer a point to see Glenn grow; however, due to his poor introduction I struggled to ever truly take him seriously, and even by the series end he never latched onto me as a character.
Okay so the mc might be terrible but surely the side cast can save the plot or at the very least try to carry the series? Unfortunately, while Glenn might have been annoying and childish he at least saw some character growth something that completely missing from the side cast. First, you have the prim and proper student Sistine who serves as the series mandatory tsundere, as well as candidate A for developing an odd romantic relationship with Glenn. As a by the books tsundere, she is fine; however, outside of her romantic on and off feelings for Glenn her character doesn’t have much happening in the show. She is the best friend of Rumia, who actually does have some purpose and she has a fixation on wanting to unlock the mysteries of ancient floating civilization, but despite bringing it up a couple of times in the earlier episodes it is never brought up again so who cares. Besides Sistine is her best friend Rumia whose single defy trait for the series is that she is a magical MacGuffin that serves as the show’s damsel in distress. Seriously in a twelve-episode series, all but one of the show's arcs is about her being kidnapped and Glenn having to rescue her. In fact, every single plot point of the series can be summed up as a new school event occurring, Rumia gets abducted during a school event, Glenn fights a generic magic secret society, villain fights Glenn only for him to unveil a new magical ability and save the day. Repeat about four times and just swap out Rumia for Sistine during the final arc and you have the entire series. Outside of the core trio you also have the magic police due of stoic Albert who has little to no character info, and the Re=L whose personality is that she has the mind of a doll and a really dumb name.
If you haven’t guessed already I wasn’t particularly thrilled about Akashic Records; however, if there was one oddly strong standout about the series it has to be the show’s magic system. The first few episodes take great strides to break down the rules of the world’s magic system going so far as to divulge the inner workings of incantations and how to morph and bend spells by altering their pronunciation and incantations. It was an aspect that truly felt unique for the series and was constantly being added to throughout the show with each hostage citation needing new SWAT tactical magic, heck the show even briefly has a magic tournament arc.
Sadly, while the magic system goes a long way to establish the world of Akashic Records as a unique setting for a fantasy anime, its visuals and soundtrack leave much to be desired. The art style and music of the world are so painfully generic that it is barely worth mentioning with only the character designs partially standing out and even then not for a particularly positive reason. The school uniforms for the female students are bizarre, and probably the first thing you notice about the series, with their uniforms being divided into two halves attached by belts with fully exposed bellies. It is very strange and is never mentioned or explained throughout the series. Outside of that Sistine has cat ears for some reason that unique right, and Glenn has a glove fixation. Yeah, the character design isn’t particularly great, but sadly for the villains, it's even worse. The main villain of the series and leader of the secret magical society is an evil maid who is never named and is always dressed up in a maid uniform for no particular reason, and the final villain of the show is the all-powerful evil carriage driver. The only bright spot design-wise is the fight scenes have some visual flair and degree of strategy mostly due to the magic system.
I can not say with a straight face that Akashic Records is a good show or even worth viewing. It is a painfully generic series with a world and characters that never try to break free from their stereotypical fantasy molds. The story is stuck on an endless loop of hostage rescue, the characters lack both good design and dialogue, and there are little to no character developments. If you need an academic fantasy anime respect your time and watch anything else.
Reviewer’s Rating: 3
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Jul 9, 2022
All right I’ll cut right to the chase, if you’re like me and read the synopsis about a hero joining up with a demon army, and then expected the show to be a battle fantasy series with a war plot from the villain's point of view, then prepare to be disappointed and go back to watching Overlord. So if the show isn’t an action war fantasy series then what exactly is I’m Quitting Heroing? Frankly, after slogging through the series, over a dull weekend, I’m not exactly sure myself.
Don’t get me wrong the first episode builds up the core concept that the series is
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about a shunned hero, Leon, driven into the camp of former foes after being rejected by the ones he once protected. However, after that, the plot stalls out as the show shifts to an episodic format will each episode following Leon getting closer and aiding the Heavenly Kings, the generals of the demon army. You got the up-tight magic-using elf that struggles to trust others with work, the loli wolf whose weakness is being an annoying child, Melnes a teenage angst assassin, Edwald the generic muscle head, and most shocking of all the demon queen Echidna as a generic tsundere love interest for the mc. For about 8 episodes the show tries desperately hard for you to get to know and care for the cast; however, each one of these characters is written and presented like a common fantasy stereotype that you have most likely seen numerous times before.
So if the side cast is generic then what about the main character, Leo? At the start, he actually doesn't give the greatest impression with him being another all-powerful hero with a generic Kirito look and personality to match, with his sole gimmick being that he was banished by humanity due to him being too powerful. However, the show does actually make Leo an interesting character, sure it takes about half the show but he eventually gets there. With the show actually unveils a rather interesting twist about what Leo's true intentions are, how he actually got his powers, as well as unveiling the true nature of the seemingly generic fantasy world and its history. A twist that not only adds to the complexity of Leo’s character by giving him a fairly unique backstory for the genre but also adds genuine intrigue to the show’s world. It's really a shame that the show doesn’t really do anything intriguing with Leo’s true origin of the world opportunity it creates. Instead of the episode after the unveiling of Leo’s past, we go back to slice-of-life fantasy scenarios with the generic supporting cast. It truly is a shame because I really think given a different plot a good story could be made with Leo and the show’s world, throughout the show we get numerous flashbacks of Leo in the past fighting off hordes of demons during the apocalypse, and looks and sounds amazing only for the scene the end and the show returns to following the slice of life antics of Leo dealing with a bunch of goofballs.
I’m Quitting Heroing feels like a show that struggled to understand what it wants to be. It tries to be an action series but fails to establish any stakes. It tries to be a slice-of-life series but fails to make its supporting cast unique. It tries to be an underdog story but never even establishes an antagonist. In the end, all it achieves is being forgettable.
Reviewer’s Rating: 3
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Jun 24, 2022
I’m sure everyone has had one friend from their past that always seemed to come off as overbearing, always being a bit too loud and seemingly always trying to get somebody, or at the very least your, attention Now imagine if that friend somehow replicated and became every single person in your life. That scenario is what our protagonist of Aho Girl has seemingly found himself in, where in a world of screwballs he is forever cursed to serve as the lone source of sanity.
While most people tend to focus on Yoshiko, the titular Aho Girl who is stuck on an idiotic neverending quest to
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consume all bananas, I was instead mostly fascinated by the show’s other protagonist, Akuru whose neverending quest is to make sure Yoshiko doesn’t consume his banana. Because in this show’s world of idiots, perverts, and mature perverts he is forced to serve as the sole straight man to the insanity around him. Time and time again we see him pushed to his limits and weirdly out of the cast he was the sole reason that I stuck around and finished this admittedly irritating series.
At its core, Aho Girl is a rapid-fire sketch comedy anime that quickly bounces from setup to setup trying its best to cram as many jokes and references into its 12-minute episode structure. With only 12-minutes the creators of Aho Girl decided to focus on the jokes and elected to leave out excessive aspects like character development, world-building, relationships, and frankly any semblance of an actual plot. However, despite lacking any actual plot besides Yoshiko being dumb and wanting bananas, often at the expense of the serious and grounded Akurur, Aho Girl actually kept my attention, especially during the first few episodes.
At the start of the series, the setups and gags just focused on the dynamic between Yoshiko and Akuru, and while Yoshiko is undeniably annoying it always felt weirdly compelling to see time and time again Akuru having to endure and eventually give in to his own rage. With further episodes adding to Akuru’s misery as more and more side characters began to inhabit the show with each one posing some weird trait or obsession to clash with his serious demeanor and further provide horrifying evidence that Yoshiko isn’t the annoying outlier of his world, but rather he is the sane outlier of a world of aggravating madness. From the lewd tsundere class president, Yoshiko’s mom whose desperate to marry off her daughter, to his own younger sister who has seemingly contracted the same strain of stupidity that has afflicted Yoshiko. No matter where he goes this world is Akuru’s own personal hell and if find it oddly amusing to watch his comedic suffering.
Unfortunately, while that concept certainly grabbed my attention and kept me laughing for the first few episodes the show eventually reached a point where the series’ premise and humor started to lose me. Instead of branching out and experimenting with its gags and setups Aho Girl quickly began to recycle its own material falling into a series of extremely formulaic gags, made even worse by the series' gradual refocusing from Akuru’s suffering to the daily life of Yoshiko, which I didn’t find nearly as interesting.
Aho Girl is definitely worth a view, especially if you’re like me and were looking for a comedic itch to briefly fill the hole of Gintama. Though it definitely lacks the staying power of a truly good comedy series and is probably best viewed by watching highlight clips of its best scenes on Youtube.
Reviewer’s Rating: 5
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Jun 24, 2022
I am not going to lie, I came into watching Uzaki-chan with little to no expectations. In fact, if anything I was hoping it would fill the occasional craving I get for viewing a “bad” anime, where the show’s poor story, bad characters, and laughable animation create a surreal cocktail of unintentional humor, and with Uzaki-chan’s main selling point seemingly being that its a troll comedy series with the main gimmick being Uzaki’s outlandish proportions you can’t really blame me for having such low expectations. However, in the end, Uzaki-chan surprised me by exciding my expectations and instead of being a much more mediocre experience
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residing in the cesspool of countless other anime rom-coms that caused me to neither regret my viewing experience, nor compel me to every rewatch or even linger in my mind.
While my assessment might sound harsh it does not mean I did not find any charm with Uzaki-chan, after all its characters and humor did compel me to finish the series. The main pair of Sakurai and Uzaki proves to be a decently well-written pair, with the show taking great strides to establish the pair as actual friends with hobbies and interests before sprinkling in ideas of romantic feeling. Coupled with some occasionally humorous jokes centered on wordplay and the fever dream that is episode 10, which serves as a 30-minute-long tourist ad for Tottori, I can definitely see how this show managed to gather a decently sized fanbase and enough support for a second season. Hell Uzaki-chan even dares to be one of the few animes to boldly go where few anime have gone before and actually have its setting be a university, a groundbreaking stride in the rom-com genre where life seemingly ends after high school.
However, the show’s setting perhaps best highlights my issue with the show feeling generic. Sure the series takes place in university; however, it never really does anything with its setting except use it to justify a hangover arc. The series plot follows the same romantic progression as most other anime rom-coms, and by that, I mean no progression, and while other shows could rely on its side cast, humor, or style to give it a unique edge, Uzaki-chan has none of that. The art style is generic, with weirdly choppy animation at times, its joke and comedic setups are on pair for the genre, and, outside of Master Asia being a barista, the side cast of Ami and Sakaki lack any interesting personalities or development outside of just being the friends of the central pair.
In the end, Uzaki-chan unsuccessfully hit my craving for a bad anime and proved itself to be a competently made show that provided a nice evening distraction; however, outside of a few decent jokes and one bizarre episode, Uzaki-chan fails to stand out in the saturated genre of rom-com anime.
Reviewer’s Rating: 5
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