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I don't usually write reviews, but for Demon Prince of Momochi House, I had to put in my thoughts because this anime desperately needs positive reviews and I need to discuss why this anime really doesn't deserve all the hate and negativity.

I read the manga after I heard about the anime announcement back in 2023, I read all 14 volumes and overall I loved it, so my thoughts on this show are based on my perspective as a manga reader. However, for manga readers there is an important distinction to the anime and what I think is its weakest aspect- the anime is not ... 1:1 with the manga in terms of adaptation. Momochi House really needed a 24 episode or 2-cour run, because it was just impossible to cram 14 volumes into 12 episodes, so this unfortunately is not a complete adaptation. While the anime hits most of the main major plot beats, it also excludes several chapters from the manga, which is a shame but simply inevitable with such a limited run of episodes. This is where most of the pacing issues the show suffers from originate from.

Shoujo anime in particular seem to suffer from this problem a lot because of one simple reason- shoujo don't get second seasons. Because the demographic is not as popular in the community and often mistreated by studios, a shoujo manga adaptation has a very low chance of getting a second season or a 24 episode run, so writers have to stuff as much story as they can into a mere 12 episodes, because there's no promise that they'll get another chance. So if you are a manga reader, do be aware that the anime does cover most of the big plot events (no spoilers) but I would recommend watching Momochi House alongside reading the manga or as a supplement to it.

Also one other note- this is a character-driven story rather than a plot-driven story. The anime centers around the characters and their histories, experiences, and trauma, and how that influences the story. If you're expecting a mind-bending plot full of massive twists and turns, this isn't for you. However, if you're looking for a story centered around character development and how they learn about each other (and themselves), this is something you might love.

I don't really see why there are so many complaints about the animation, it's accurate to the manga artstyle while also being distinct in its own way, it's bright and colorful, the action scenes are fluid, and I love the character designs. The supernatural Japanese mythology aesthetic is quite atmospheric as well.

Characters are great, very accurate to their manga counterparts, Himari is a strong heroine that can stand up for herself and get things done on her own when she needs to, Aoi/Nue is NOT a Tomoe clone however much people will spew that, Tomoe is sarcastic/snarky while Aoi is gentle and sweet, and the side characters get their own time to shine as well which is nice to see. The only character I didn't care for was Kasha, even with my experience from the manga, I found him to be a weak villain with flimsy motivations who serves as more of a casual trickster god type villain than a proper antagonist.

Music is good, the background BGM is pretty standard, a lot of traditional Japanese instrumentals, the ED is nice but the OP is a total banger, I love it so much and I have it on my personal playlist for regular listening because of how much it slaps.

Overall, if you're a fan of the manga, or enjoyed anime like Kamisama Kiss, Fruits Basket, Kakuriyo no Yadomeshi, Natsume Yujinchou, or Spirited Away, I highly recommend giving Demon Prince of Momochi House a watch~

I usually don't write prelim reviews, or reviews at all for that matter, but I absolutely love Sugar Apple Fairy Tale, and I highly recommend it to anyone who has been feeling starved for shoujo fantasy, which frankly is something we have been rarely getting lately. I have been hyped for this show ever since I heard about it last year, and it did not disappoint, it's easily my highlight of every week and I get so excited to see the newest episode every Friday. So why do I think this show is so awesome? Well, a few reasons~

Art/Animation: An absolute 10/10 for me. I ... was a bit worried at first when I heard that JC Staff was animating this since they're kind of a shit studio but they really knocked it out of the park here, the colors are bright and vibrant, and the character designs are all great, plenty of pretty guys and girls to look at, and the backgrounds look very painting-like, it reminds me of something from a storybook or fairytale, which is very fitting with the theme of the show.

Story: I am familiar with this story somewhat because I have read the manga, and so far it hits all the beats perfectly and brings the story to life very well. It's a simple plot, nothing exactly mind-blowing, but it keeps me interested and every new episode has me excited for the next. The idea of candy making might sound boring to most, but the adventure and fantastical elements helps keep it enjoyable to watch. I love the mix of cute and sparkly with a darker and deeper layer of more complex themes beneath, because I enjoy shoujo with a little bit of bite.

Characters: Anne is a cinnamon roll, Shall is a badass, Jonas is an incel that deserves to burn in hell. Going beyond that, all of the characters are good and serve their roles well. The dynamic between Anne and Shall is great, and I'm very much looking forward to seeing how their current relationship will evolve into a closer friendship, and eventually romance~

Also I want to address one of the stupid criticisms I see a lot, that being that this anime glorifies slavery. How on earth did that conclusion happen? Did we even watch the same show? It's incredibly obvious that glorifying slavery is far from what the anime is trying to do with the way it is portrayed. Anne treats Shall as an equal despite everyone else's pushes to the contrary, and while she is a bit idealist, it's obvious that she doesn't view the fairies as slaves, and wants them to be considered equals with humans. So yeah, anyone claiming how this anime "glorifies slavery" is just plain ass stupid imo. Besides, no one seemed to have an issue with the slavery themes in Shield Hero which was handled a lot worse, so I don't see why this all of all things is suddenly a problem. Shoujo anime are allowed to tell darker stories and show darker themes, not every female-targeted anime has to be uwu fluffy high school romance.

In conclusion, I fell in love with this show from the start and I strongly recommend it to fellow shoujo lovers, fantasy and romance enjoyers, or those who are looking for something different from the usual seasonal bloat of battle shounen, isekai, and school rom-coms.

I was really looking forward to watching Assault Lily back when I first heard about it last year because the character designs looked great and I thought the concept had potential, even if it wasn't the most original idea in the world. However, I was also slightly concerned it would end up being a glorified toy commercial to sell merch, among other things, and unfortunately it turned into pretty much all the things I was worried it would become.

First I'll start with the things I enjoyed about it, and then I'll move onto the more negative aspects that I had problems with.

Art and Sound: ... The animation is easily the best part about Assault Lily, the animation, character designs, and fight scenes are beautiful, and since the art was what attracted me to this show in the first place, they did pull that off quite well and I have no complaints there. The music is also very good, I loved the OP and EDs, and most of the BGMs are enjoyable, though it's not Yuki Kajura or Hiroyuki Sawano levels of quality.

Worldbuilding/Lore: The worldbuilding and lore in Assault Lily was mostly what kept me going, there are a lot of fascinating aspects to it with the connections between Lilies and Huge for instance, and I really wanted to learn more about it, but unfortunately much of the worldbuilding potential was squandered in favor of cutesy moe yuribaiting, which I'll get to in a moment.

Characters: This is where a lot of my issues arise with this show. It has a bloated cast of one-note characters who get little to no development and end up being one-dimensional magical girl tropes. It's hard to keep track of and even remember all the characters, which is probably why their names show up on screen every time they appear. The only characters that get any development are Riri and Yuyu, and while I like their relationship, even after 11 episodes I still feel like they haven't developed their bond very much, they don't share much of their intimate feelings or desires, and they rarely open up to one another. The only semblance of bonding between these two is when Yuyu goes into PMS berserk mode and Riri has to calm her down, but even this feels forced and contrived.

Story: The plot is nonexistent, if you asked me what this story was about, I honestly couldn't tell you. It feels like it doesn't know what it wants to be, and the writers were just putting down whatever popped into their heads, which is mostly boring slice of life stuff that drags on forever. Whenever any interesting tidbits of lore come up, they're just vaguely mentioned and then they move right on without really expanding on it at all, which is disappointing because the worldbuilding has so much potential. The pacing is incredibly slow and directionless, like the creators had no idea what story they even wanted to tell, until the last 4 episodes when they pretty much went "well I guess we gotta come up with some kind of ending." It puts so much focus on the yuribaiting and slice of life aspects for 80% of the show, then occasionally decides to toss out a few crumbs of "story" that take forever to get anywhere. It doesn't have to go full on grimdark like Madoka Magica, but I think the balance between the more lighthearted and serious moments could have been handled much better.

Fanservice: This aspect is the worst part for me, and it really soured a lot of my enjoyment of the show. Now I love yuri, but what I can't stand is yuribait, and this is exactly the latter. We've got all these girls flirting and being cute with each other, but it never goes anywhere because all the characters are bland tropes with no development, and most of the times it comes off as super cheesy and dumb more than anything. Like, they literally put "yuri" in the name of the academy, the names of our two main characters (Yuyu and Riri), and even an entire character named Yuri who is portrayed as a "daughter" of sorts to Riri and Yuyu. It's eye-rolling levels of yuribaiting and it's severely offputting to me. I actually do ship Riri and Yuyu because I like their dynamic, but the show does barely anything to develop their relationship and to get them to know each other better. Aside from that we've got tons of bath scenes as well as thighs, and it's just...whatever, I guess. It's not ecchi levels, but I have a big aversion to fanservice and it's honestly disappointing to me that this seems to be the only thing people care about in this show, rather than the story or characters.


Overall Thoughts: I've seen a lot of anime over the years (180 to be exact) and I've seen my share of amazing shows, very good shows, decent shows, and plain bad shows. Assault Lily falls into the category of decent shows for me. It's not the worst thing I've ever seen, but it's far from the best. The animation, character designs, fight scenes, music, and worldbuilding/lore are all great and have potential, but it suffers from a directionless plot, an overstuffed cast of bland characters, and pointless, annoying yuribaiting and fanservice. If they come out with a second season for Assault Lily I probably won't watch it, because even with its few good points, that's not enough to outweigh its massive narrative problems for me, and once the final episode airs next week and I finish up this show I'll be moving on to other things.