Of course, that doesn't mean that this anime doesn't have its share of flaws.
Bunny Girl Senpai features a seemingly standard school setting. Sakuta is the protagonist of the story who's tasked with solving the problems of multiple girls. However, instead of these characters simply having typical teenage girl problems equipped with all of the drama that derives from these aforementioned issues, this anime adds a bit of a supernatural twist to the school drama genre. Dubbed "adolescence syndrome" by the anime, mysterious occurrences like the disappearance of one girl from the eyes and memories of the public or the spawning of a doppelganger of another girl coincide with the problems plaguing these characters. Each occurrence of adolescence syndrome almost perfectly embodies the type of obstacle being faced, and I personally believe that the inclusion of this supernatural element really increases the quality and intrigue of the anime.
Unfortunately, I've noticed that it does seem to have a downside.
While an interesting concept, adolescence syndrome itself is never fully fleshed out. Although each case of the syndrome is usually explained quite well through science or something to Sakuta by his intelligent friend Rio Futaba, the entire concept itself and why it exists in this universe is left vague. Of course, this would be completely inconsequential if this was a fantasy anime where magic and mystery were the norm. But the creators portray this show as something grounded in reality where the supernatural elements can be explained through logic and reason. And for me personally, that just doesn't quite work. Regardless, adolescence syndrome is still a fun addition to this anime that gives it a bit more flare.
To give you a better understanding about what this anime's all about, I'd say that it's a sort of love child between OreGairu and The Monogatari Series. Bunny Girl Senpai has quite a few similarities to both of these anime, but I'm not here to compare and contrast these series. I will say, however, that Bunny Girl Senpai does one thing marginally better then the other two. And that would be its portrayal and execution of the relationship between its two protagonists.
The first girl featured in this anime is none other than the titular bunny girl senpai herself, Mai. And as we seasoned anime veterans know, the first girl usually ends up as the main love interest for the protagonist. And in this case, I couldn't be happier. Mai is our first introduction to adolescence syndrome as we soon learn that more and more people are beginning to forget about her existence as time goes on. I won't spoil what exactly causes this phenomenon, but I will say that it stems from Mai's experiences in the modeling industry. Anyway, she starts to spend time with Sakuta, who also had a nasty experience with adolescence syndrome that gets properly explained near the end of the anime. And let me tell you, the highlight of Bunny Girl Senpai for me would definitely be the interactions that these two characters have. They have some great conversations that range from super cute to downright hilarious, and what Sakuta does for Mai at the end of episode three has to go down as one of the greatest moments of this anime season for me. Bunny Girl Senpai is a rare anime where the two protagonists actually end up as a couple early on in the show, and unlike the Monogatari Series, the main girl doesn't get completely shafted after she ends up with the hero. Mai plays an important and supportive role towards Sakuta throughout the entire anime, and for me is simply a very strong female lead.
After the conclusion of Mai's arc, the anime presents us with four more girls, each with their own character arc, suffering from adolescence syndrome that Sakuta goes out of his way to help out. And thankfully, each of these arcs feature great character interactions and are good in their own right. Like in Mai's segment, Sakuta has some memorable moments in Koga's arc, and Koga herself goes through some nice development throughout the few episodes that she's featured in. Futaba's arc was interesting, and although the imouto of Mai had the weakest arc in my opinion, it had some great moments featuring Mai herself. The final arc of the anime covers Kaede, the beloved panda suit wearing imouto of Sakuta. I actually felt the most emotion during her arc and thought it was a great way to conclude the anime. But like everything else with this show it seems, there was a problem with this. And that would be cramming five different arcs in a thirteen episode anime. Now none of the arcs felt rushed or lacking despite the minimal time they had to work with. It's just that the anime could have been a little more centered with either fewer arcs or more episodes.
Visually speaking, I felt that this anime left a little more to be desired. It's definitely not bad, but the artistic quality just feels a little lacking to me. The soundtrack is good, and the opening theme song is a nice tune that contains a nice dose of uwu. Voice actors do a nice job delivering lines, and I think that Kaede's seiyuu puts the most emotion into her role. My one complaint would be that while I liked Sakuta's voice actor, I feel like he could have put a bit more feeling into his part. I get that Sakuta is a nonchalant type of guy, but still. A bit more energy never hurt anyone, right?
Overall, while I wouldn't call this anime excellent by any sense of the word, it still ended up being quite the enjoyable show. The characters were fun, the scenarios were fun, and, well, it was simply a fun anime. Bunny Girl Senpai might not have introduced anything revolutionary to the anime medium, but it certainly won the hearts of many anime fans, and I'll admit that I too was swayed by its charm. I staunchly believe that this is an anime that will be remembered for seasons to come.
