Shikimori's Not Just a Cutie is a Romcom anime that does its job well, but falls short of being great. Many of the episodes are episodic and while there is SOME development for the couple of the show, largely things stay the same throughout the anime's 12 episodes. The anime had 2 delays with it's episodes due to the staff getting sick with Covid, so this also meant a recap episode (not reviewing here) was made titled episode 6.5 and a special program for the 2nd delay where the JP VA for Shikimori-san and Izumi-san talked about the anime (I only saw the first few minutes so cannot say what all it entails but atm this likely isn't even anime as its not got a page on MAL so think of it more as a BD special feature you rarely see and get these days where those who worked on the anime talk about it in interviews or features) Despite the staff getting sick, the anime never lost any of its style or charm for any part of it (Music, art, VA etc. etc.).
The anime doesn't just focus on the featured couple, but on their friends and class mates too. Each episode is something new, I'd however also argue with MAL that this isn't JUST a Romcom anime, as it's also very much a Slice of Life anime too which at the time of this review, the anime lacks this genre on its page. For what Shikimori's Not Just a Cutie has and does it does it very well, and sure the anime's art style (the eyes as you've likely heard and seen does take getting used too, it's by no means bad, it actually makes the anime feel more alive and beautiful and this anime has some very pretty scenes throughout it. Looking back however, the anime does have its share of problems but most of these are not really the anime's fault or anyone's fault as its just doing it's job. The MAIN issue the anime has is, not much happens in the show that is note worthy, most of it is just fluff and that's ok, like i said it does its job VERY well. You might be surprised how much you might come to like some or all of the anime's characters. If however you don't like character interactions, seeing slice of life stuff, Romcom and want more in a story than all that i've said this anime has to offer then, you'll likely find this anime boring or hate it as it's not suited to your tastes which is fine, like i said, this anime tells its story and it does so very well but its not for everyone.
The music is largely for me, forgettable, while i liked parts of the OP (Mostly the last part of the song), I found myself skipping the OP song every time. I can't really recall the music that well in the anime itself but that might be a me thing) but it's the ED song that is TRULY note worthy. Its catchy as heck and I want that to be an actual mini game in a game! Seriously if nothing else, you should give the ED song a watch and listen, it's GREAT! Speaking of GREAT, some moments in the anime I adored and were GREAT imo. Also, shout out to Izumi's Mom whom, only got hotter as she aged. :) The one character in this anime that you LIKELY have seen already though is... Blue/Gary from Pokemon! No he's not ACTUALLY here, but the resemblance is basically they're the same character, appearance wise anyway cept Inuzuka here has a fang sticking out of his mouth. This took me time to get used to seeing him as I at first was just seeing Blue/Gary lol however their personality is not the same and he's a really great guy and friend.
I never found anyone in the name to be annoying or awful or even bad. I don't dislike anyone in the anime, every character is someone whom I like even if just a little for some. I also like the roles and personality that each character played and has, including and especially Shikimori-san and Izumi-san, the two really do compliment each other and it was great watching them. If you've heard anything negative about the anime or it's characters then it's likely been blown out of proportion and is untrue, and likely filled with bias to boot as for some reason people who watched this anime were comparing it to My Dress up Darling? Like, WHY!? The two are not even the same AT ALL! My Dress Up Darling doesn't even HAVE much romance and the MC aren't in a relationship either and it's about Hinatsu Dolls, Cosplay and slice of life stuff and it's a great anime and should be watched for sure (And ironically, it TOO got shitted on for NO reason and got bias... HMMM, am wondering if this is where those fans went too...) When you watch an anime you should not let another SINGLE anime (or a handful of anime) affect how you feel about another anime. Doing so leads to disappointment and bias (Like what happened here). The ONLY TIME you should EVER let other anime influence your feelings is by the amount of type of an anime genre/theme you've seen as that is what helps you to better make proper, fair, unbiased judgements and is a fair way to let your enjoyment also reach it's max as this way you'll only be comparing other genres and themes to what you saw already, case in point I've seen a TON of ecchi anime, seen the same old tiring tropes and jokes and it's great when i find one that isn't the same ol same old.
But enough about that, I apologize but it needed to be said seeing as the community is hating on the anime Shikimori-san for no real reason. I promise you it's not THAT bad, it's just average to slightly above average at best. I also find it note worthy that the anime is rated at the time of this review a 6.96 with 91,382 users having rated it yet the manga which started 3 years before the anime is rated a 7.76 with 15,750 users having rated it. I mention this to further point out the bias I spoke of moments ago. (Full disclosure, i have not read the manga so dunno what else is to come and that might be why its higher but I honestly don't believe so)
Ultimately Shikimori's Not Just a Cutie is a average to slightly above average anime, it might be worth your time if you like seeing the stuff I mentioned in the anime, but might not if you don't. I rate the anime a 7.5 out of 10 and give it a Love score of 7.0. The reason for the slightly lower love score there is due to episode 12 and full disclosure, this is where you need to stop reading if you wish to remain unspoiled, the anime since I like it and mostly enjoyed it, should not be spoiled so last chance to back out.
Sadly episode 12 had the NEAR PERFECT set up, it was GREAT! The romance was off the charts, it was great seeing the couple hanging out on their date, everything was leading up to the BIGGEST MOMENT in the entire series where SIGNIFICANT progress for the couple would be achieved, a step forward (Which they'd had 1 step forward prior to this point so yes there WAS some romance development but it wasn't that much and imo, not that great and kinda just borin for the step they did take...) and at the end, Izumi-san... kisses Shikimori-san...
ON THE FREAKING CHEEK! ... Like, that was THE biggest let down AND the BIGGEST mistake the anime has period, end of story. It was made worse by the fact the boat rocked and Shikimori-san fell down into Izumi-san's lap, typically this is when either two things would happen, one, they accidentally kiss or two, they stare into each other's eyes and kiss. NONE OF THAT happened here and instead we get the third route being a "let me stay like this" moment. The date ends there and we fast forward to the next day where Shikimori-san's friends are questioning her at school, doing a police interrogation skit because they know some new development (BWAHAHA... ;-;) happened between her and Izumi-san as it was clearly written on her face something had and her lies were obvious. Finally Shikimori-san tells the two they kissed and the girls freak out, then she reveals it was on the cheek and their reaction MIRRORED my own. Their interest drained, their investment gone, their mood gone and their eyes soulless. This whole skit, while ironic and trying to be humorous and despite mirroring how invested I was and showing how DISAPPOINTED I WAS that it was JUST on the freaking CHEEK, does NOT justify the betrayal and TROLL MOVE the anime did at the end here and this is WHY I rated it lower than the anime's score, because some of my enjoyment got lost there and that's not cool what they did, it's also the CLASSIC cop out move you see TIME AND AGAIN in 99% of any anime with romance. Just as that waiter who RUDELY interrupted their date in the restaurant is another classic cop out. Its wrong, its annoying and this trend NEEDS to DIE, NOW! "Izumi-san chickened out." -Nekozaki
If Shikimori-san ever gets another season i sincerely hope it has ACTUAL romantic development, because while the slice of life stuff and fluff was great as was the romantic moments we saw, none of it makes the anime stand out and it sucks when there isn't any romantic progress, especially significant (Which stings even more given this is a COUPLE) so i hope we get it and it does away with the romance tropes S1 pulled. I'd love a S2, but this anime for me if I had to pick other anime to get a S2 or another season of, would not be anywhere near my first pick. That doesn't mean its bad, far from it but there's other anime I've been waiting for future seasons that are better. Still, hopefully Shikimori-san gets another season and hopefully it improves on what S1 got wrong.
