Yahari Ore no Seishun Love Come wa Machigatteiru (*breathe*) is far from generic. In fact, it's one of the most original and charming romance comedies I've had the pleasure of watching in a while.
The story revolves around Hikigaya Hachiman, a high school student made loner after entering high school months after everyone else because of a traffic accident. His antisocial nature is noticed by his guidance counselor, who forces him to join the similarly antisocial beauty Yukinoshita Yukino in the Volunteers' Club, which accepts requests for help from the student body and fulfills them. Sounds pretty standard, right? Well, it is. The actual plot of the story is fairly basic when it comes to the events the characters find themselves in, with the exception of a few episodes (such as the summer camp episodes). But where this anime really excels is the characters, the lot of which I'll get to very soon.
The animation is average; there's nothing really striking to be seen. The art and character designs, though, are excellent, as they help to lend insight into each character: Yukino's harsh blue eyes and formal looking black hair give an impression of solitude and defense; Hikigaya's fish like eyes help to illustrate his loner-y personality; and Yui's bright orange hair and casual style of dress help to portray her as what she is, friendly and easily approachable. The side characters are also designed well.
The sound is nothing to sneeze at, but it won't amaze you. The voice acting is done well, especially Hachiman and Yui, who are portrayed in a way that, once again, reflects their personalities. I've never listened to the ED, sadly, so I can't make a judgement on that, but the OP "Yuki Toki" sung by Yanagi Nagi is fantastic and mirrors the theme of the story in ways that aren't always immediately visible.
Now here comes this anime's largest strength by far: the characters. Going into this anime, I had very low expectations for the characters; they were most likely going to be cardboard cut-outs with one or two personality traits and (in the case of the female leads) an incredulous affection for the main character. Never have I been so pleasantly surprised. Hikigaya Hachiman, the main character, is one of the most relatable characters I have ever seen; his experiences with other people have hardened him into an extreme pessimist, but he's not completely ignorant of the inner ramifications of social interaction. In fact, he's quite the opposite, displaying extremely in depth knowledge of the ways in which people interact with one another, as well as their true intentions. This is used frequently for both comedy and drama, and it works well in both. Yukinoshita Yukino is standoffish and frequently prickly, and these characteristics allow an excellent dynamic to grow between her and Hachiman; leading to a trading of insults between the two that is always entertaining to watch and reminds me of two skilled fencers attacking each other, searching for their opponent's weak point or blind spot. Yui is also a very well-developed character, with a large portion of the early episodes dedicated to helping her work through her problems with giving in to other people.
If Evangelion was a deconstruction of the mech genre, then Y.O.S.L.C.M is a deconstruction of the romance comedy genre; taking all the cliché cardboard cutouts other romance comedies call characters, and replacing them with actual characters that make the viewer empathize and sympathize with them. It either does away with common tropes or uses them in extremely funny new ways. Sure, it's not a masterpiece: there are other romance comedies that were just a bit higher in overall quality (for example, Toradora), but for me, Yahari stands as a testament to what the romance comedy genre can do, and what it can still bring to viewers.
And yes, I did compare it to Evangelion. Deal with it.
