Reviews

From the 5 episodes of this show that I was able to watch, I have to sadly give this show a 3/10 overall. It's not that I was expecting anything original plot-wise; from the synopsis alone, I was suspecting something like Irregular at Magic High School but a little less intense. Indeed, the similarities between the two shows became hard to ignore as I continued to watch - an MC estranged by his family due to his 'weakness', discrimination from his classmates for said weakness, a unique analytical ability that makes him adept in combat but cannot be captured by the school's ranking system, and an incestuous sister. The problem is, with these similarities, it becomes hard to NOT compare this show with Irregular, and frankly, there's nothing Irregular doesn't do better - the incest is stronger, the magic system is better-crafted, the MC is more overpowered, the hate he faces is more tangible, etc.

Even barring all that, however, the real tragedy with this show is its god-awful pacing. Somehow, in the 2nd (or 3rd?) episode, the MC's sister's roommate (who the MC met maybe a few days ago) somehow comes up with a deep - and accurate - assessment of the MC's emotional stunting and inner shortcomings. I think this show was intended to focus more on the romantic element of this kind of fantasy setting, and while I give the show credit for actually allowing the MC to settle into an official relationship by episode 4, the pacing problems become even more painful. While most animes painfully drag out the getting-into-a-relationship process, this anime does the opposite, to the point where it's difficult to feel any kind of sentimentality towards the couple. If there was a compelling story to distract from this awkward relationship, I may have been able to overlook this - however, the story pretty much revolves around this. I'm all for slice of life and romance anime, but frankly, this isn't it.