A friend of mine reccommended me Maid-Sama! and since I was planing on watching it anyway I decided to go along and get to it. I had a mix of expectations. On one hand I knew that this was going to be just another highschool rom-com with tear-jerking and melodrama. On the other hand the premise seemed more interesting than most and the overall charm of the anime hooked me. In any case, I was expecting an enjoyable watch.
I must gladly say that my expectations were not only fulfilled, but the anime managed to impress me.
PRODUCTION VALUE
The production is simple, but it works. The art is quite unique with the characters and scenarios, and the overall look of the series having their own charm. It's nothing out of the ordinary though but surely the colorful look of the show stands out in the crowd, even if it is a little "too colorful". The animation was more impressive than other anime of the same style. It was consistent and it never fell down hard due to budget (or at least it wasn't noticeable).
As for the sound, it was good but just like the art/animation it wasn't great. The voice acting was well done and overall the anime sounded clear and nice. The soundtrack is forgettable. Not much to say about it.
STORY
Although the premise is cliched, it was interesting enough for me to care about the anime and I was specially glad at the fact that the anime didn't use a tear-jerking approach nor teen-agnst. This is basically a rom-com and as one it is entertaining and it delivers good humour and a satisfactory relationship building...for the most part...It is nothing new though so you can't be wrong with it once you decide to watch it or not. The biggest flaw for the show is the horrible pacing. Sometimes it feels rushed and other times it is stuck with filler episodes for characters nobody cares for. This would have worked better as a 12 episodes show I believe.
CHARACTERS
I will focus on the two main characters Misaki and Usui. Misaki is your typical "perfect girl" with obvious tsundere atributes. She is hard-working, intelligent and athletic, and she IS NOT in love with Usui. Usui is more of a Mary Sue than Misaki. He is handsome, clever, athletic and has that mysterious aura that makes him the most perfect guy in the whole school. Despite those characters being clichéd and lacking any significant personality, they are somewhat charming and interesting. They lack any kind of serious development or backstory making them just plot devices. You could replace them with any other character from any other show and you would get the same result. I have nothing to say about the support cast since every single one of the side characters is a bland archetype that is there for (a) fanservice or (b) get on Misaki's nerves.
CONCLUSION
Did I enjoy Maid-Sama? Yes, in a way it has its own charm. The comedy is funny enough and the dynamic between the main characters works well. On the other hand, it doesn't stand out in any way when compared to other anime of the same genre and therefore it is not more than just another average clichéd romcom.
