Reviews

Sep 19, 2017
“I love you” is perhaps one of the most complex combination of words in the human language. It holds a special meaning for people of any age and for teenagers, that’s no overstatement. Tsurezure Children takes the idea of romance and brings it out like skits of human stories. It’s a definitely a series that I found charming and doesn’t even to be full length to show that.

As a fan of the manga, I originally had mixed expectations for this adaptation. The manga has over 140 chapters and ongoing. Each chapter is only a few pages long and it would feel like the show may have some difficultly to transform this into anime form. However, the first few episodes easily convinced me that this anime has what it takes to set the bar for a rom-com. At its core, Tsurezure Children is about relationships of young people. There is quite a diverse range of characters and some of the couples really stand out compared to others. What really made me appreciate the show is how smooth the story flowed with the characters. Despite just being half length, it doesn’t waste time to showcase character pairings. It mixes character drama, humor, realism, and romance altogether.

The show has a very colorful cast with all sort of characters. It has childhood friends, a tsundere, a delinquent, dominant guys, class representatives, stoic girl, drama club leaders, club members, etc. It’s like bringing together all the gimmicks you remember from high school days and stick them together. Of course, this invites all sorts of personalities into the show as well. What I find highly entertaining about the couple pairings is that all of them can be relatable. Think of your days when you were in school and the times when you had a crush on someone. If you look at the show from the characters’ perspective, it can feel like you’re there with them. And to be honest, I think that’s what makes this series really fun to watch. Romance is a very complex theme that has no real answer. Love is a very powerful emotion and this show explores that in many ways. Expect to hear confessions often and this show is not afraid to pull the trigger often between pairings.

Despite all the drama, the show is actually very lighthearted and comedy plays a big role to entertain the viewers. It’s very gimmicky with characters showing attraction towards each other in their pairings. Rather than forcing humor down viewers’ throats, it comes out very naturally. Individually, the characters themselves also stand out. For example, “love master” Shinchi Katori plays the role of an advisor and often gives advice related to love. Masafumi Akagi has a dominant personality and gets involved with Ryouko Kaji for his own personal reasons. Ayaka Kamine is the typical shy girl that can easily be found in most rom-coms. Her relationship with Gouda is one of the most normal ones you’ll probably notice. Kana has the role of a tsundere as she often does things that can be easily misunderstood. Chizuru Takano is the stoic girl that’s hard to notice. Saki Kanda, a member of the soft tennis club, is a normal girl with a relationship that began from a misunderstanding. The list goes on but the point is that all these characters has personalities that you’d expect to encounter at school. In one way or another, the show will easily get viewers to care about them because of their personalities.

Now I will admit, this show does lack a bit when it comes to storytelling. A lot of the same things happen in many episodes that can feel all over the place. Furthermore, the show feels very open when it comes to the character pairings and sometimes, it takes steps back with relationship development. Of course, this show isn’t for anyone. It has emotional drama but most of it is lighthearted comedy rather than melodrama that you may see in shoujo anime. Despite that, it’s engaging enough to keep the audience interested about the characters. It’s charming, clever, and seeks the make memories that will give viewers something to talk about.

While it doesn’t have the most impressive visuals for an anime adaptation, the show is still able to capture the essence of its themes. It’s simplistic enough to bring out character expressions and often times, it’s contagiously entertaining to watch with characters’ body language. It took me a little while to accept the art style of the show as at first, it felt lackluster. However, the more I watched, the more I realized how fitting the visuals are. It’s faithful to the manga and make the most of what it is.

Tsurezure Children’s soundtrack also plays an important role despite being overlooked. As a show with light comedy, it often is able to match the momentum of those special moments. On occasion, those moments feels like time itself stops and the OST brings out the feel of it. Theme songs is well choreographed with j-pop themes and catchy to hear. Character voices really carries the show together as it amplifies the personalities to make them credible.

This anime succeeds as an adaptation and is a terrific picture. It’s appealing and filled with personality that can easily get viewers into the mood. It’s hysterically humorous not by just its comedy aspects but by how every character pairing brings the most out from each other. While the storytelling occasionally holds the show back, it doesn’t cause its destruction because plot isn’t what this is anime is about. Rather, it takes these character relationships and makes it as whimsical as it can be. Looking for something to take mind off of and enjoy comfortably? Tsurezure Children is your answer and it doesn’t even need to be a full length show to prove it.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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