Despite indulging in what some people might call a "controversial" topic the story of the anime was really quite the standard i mean if you actually remove the whole cross-dressing thing from the plot you will get exactly same plot as many other Drama anime out there.
One positive thing about the show is how it handled past event where hints or conversations gives and idea of what took place before instead of actually showing you what happened. This method was actually really well executed. Story telling and flashback are still there though
The romance followed the formula of a love trian.... well i am not really sure you can call it a triangle. Let's just say that there is alot of relationships were the MC is at the center off. Still the romance was not really a focus of the show in anyway, telling the "controversial" was the main thing with the romance there to do it's role. Let's just say that there was no intensity about the relationships
Characters (9/10):
Characters growth was by far the best part about this anime as you can see how by every episode the characters understood more about them selves and about each other. by the end when you see how the two main characters gradually see the real reason behind their actions (which they themselves didn't quite understand) you will get a really satisfying feeling
Art and Animations (8/10):
The art style had this tuned down warm colored feel to it. It helped set the mood and the general setting pretty well
As for animations it was well made. really high attention to details such as hair and facial expressions was shown and it was really good
Music (7/10):
Maybe i was not paying attention but the music didn't stand out much for me. The Op and ED were really suiting the feel of the show
Effectiveness (7/10):
The show was more lighthearted than one would expect from an anime discussing such topics. there was no edge to it. It was clearly shown by the amount of character who were really supporting and helpful to the two MCs i mean it was not realistic at all not even 10% hell even the people who didn't approve were more like "oh creepy" but that is it. it really took away from the impact.
Overall (7.5):
At it's heart Hourou Musuko is really a simple Drama/slice of life anime with a "controversial" topic put in it to give it an edge but that edge was dulled by being too peaceful and if removed you will get just another Drama (although a really good one)
A more realistic approach to the subject matter would have given it a lot more impact IMO and would have made the anime as a whole at least twice as good
