Reviews

Jun 24, 2023
Spoiler
Please note while care has been taken to minimize story related spoilers there may still be spoilers within character analysis. You have been warned.

Based on a popular manga series of the same name Yamada Kun to lv999 no Koi o Suru or to its fans Loving Yamada at lv999 is a romantic comedy genre anime that gives us the unique opportunity to see what will happen if one day a heartbroken college girl who had given all she had to support her now ex-BF including getting into the wholly unknown world of gaming were to one day after logging into the world where it started were to encounter someone that despite being the polar opposite in personalities was someone that our heroine found to be at ease around despite the pain that she had just suffered. One that while infuriating to deal with at first gradually become a person that she was increasingly drawn to first as a mentor that taught him valuable social skills but later as one that she grew increasingly fond of as their bonds deepened online and offline.

And so, begins a tale where a heartbroken college girl wanting to find solace in the one place where she had treasured memories with her ex was to instead discover not just the surprisingly warm and deep bonds that can exist between guild mates within the game but also how this bond can extend offline as well and how this can serve to change their very lives as well.

When it comes to a romantic comedy the most important aspect that it must nail is the setting to which the narrative and its cast exist in and how believable and relatable it is to the target audience. While school-based settings are the norm given this criteria recent examples such as the Ice guy and his cool female colleague had shown that everyday office settings that feature adults and a carefully crafted fantasy element that connects them to the narrative were also ones that can work excellently as well. However, in my eyes what was tailored made for a rom-com was the MMO genre of games due to not only how strong bonds forged between players of such games can become as a result of their shared experiences but also because such bonds can be forged between people from all walks of life and social levels that can lead to the most surprising of bonds being forged between them. Bonds that are not only not restricted to the online world but also ones that can serve to change people offline and in the real world as well.

And this is what in my eyes served to make this series an excellent one because not only did it allow two people who under normal circumstances would never have met but also allowed them to change themselves by exploring new realities, grow as individuals and overcome the mutual runt in their respective lives by trying something new. And if in the process they were able to find and forge their next significant bond then all the better.

Akane Kinoshita

Akane Kinoshita is one of the main characters of the series and is the protagonist of the series' main narrative. A college student in her freshman year Akane from her initial appearances was shown to be a confident, intelligent, and fast-thinking person who while having a habit of meeting strange people was someone that was shown to be resilient enough to get through her days thanks to her kind, caring and diligent nature.

On the surface while Akane was for all intents and purposes an earnest freshman that was trying her hardest to both learn and make sure that while doing so that she was able to meet and befriend her peers, when possible, unlike them she was also someone that was different to her peers in that she was also a gamer as well. Though not on the same level as either Akito or her guildmates within the chocolate rabbit guild Akane was also shown to be an avid gamer of sorts which while surprising to her peers who would prefer going on mixers served to provide her with an oasis of sorts for it allowed her to not only relax in a space where no one knows her true self but also meet people from walks of life that she normally wouldn’t have been able to meet let alone befriend with the members of her guild being the notable examples. Connections that unknown to her would eventually allow her to not only forge strong new bonds but also serve to change her view not just on the online world but also of how these very bonds can change her life as well.

As the series progresses and Akane’s character is expanded upon it can be seen that Akane was someone that was of two extremes. On the one side while she was a calm, composed and logical person which allowed her to easily rationalize and deal with situations that she encounters whether in-game or offline and had a level of kindness and consideration for others that made her both an ideal girlfriend and confidant she was also someone that was naïve, notoriously stubborn and someone that often preferred to keep her own thoughts close to her heart as well. These two extremes I felt served to make Akane a very finely balanced character with her mature nature, calmness and kindness allowing her to bond easily with not just her co-workers but also her friends within the Chocolate Rabbits guild as well notably being able to forge bonds with the notoriously quiet Yamada and insular Runa as well. At the same time, her notably clueless nature about games and her desire to learn more about it to allow her to forge closer bonds with her friends was one that not only resonated well with her curious nature but also of her desire to change herself as a result of meeting people that she normally wouldn’t have been able to. And in the process discover her innate talent for helping others.

Akito Yamada

Akito Yamada is one of the main characters of the series and is the main male lead of the series narrative. A senior that attends the local Tosei academy Akito from his initial appearances was shown to be a bit of an enigma when it comes to high school students. In that he, while having the looks that most of his peers would happily pay for and enough confessions a week to make even Romeo jealous was someone that instead would had preferred for his days to be peaceful and without any complicated human interactions being thrown at him. For Akito was someone that was the opposite of what his looks suggest, being someone that was quiet, calm, and composed and someone that preferred to not draw attention to himself by always staying away from troublesome situations whether in class or in school. This aspect of his while admirable due to the trouble his looks give him however meant that he not only lacked many of the base social qualities that kids his age typically would have but was also not good at reading other people’s feelings as well a fact that Akane once notably reminded him of. This aspect when combined with his bluntness towards others and his habit of always focusing on the main goals served to make him the ultimate enigma within not just his class but the school as well with his social circle restricted to only his closest friends in class and his guildmates within Chocolate Rabbit guild on Forest of Savior.

However, as the narrative progresses and Akito’s character is expanded upon it can be seen that while he was someone that was quiet and socially awkward he nonetheless was someone that cared deeply about his friends and was someone that was perceptive, understanding and kind by nature and was not only loyal to his friends but always willing to protect them when needed with this being shown best when he exuded an unusual fierceness when he thought Akane was in danger. While Akito’s indifferent nature towards both normal people and girls served to protect him from feelings of jealousy and envy that often-plagued guys his age this sense of insulation also had the effect of showing just how lacking his knowledge of human society was especially with regards to basic social graces and the effect that his base nature can have on those around him. For to quote to interact with others IRL requires too much work while ingame such social skills were not needed. This sense of staying within a bubble where he would only be with the friends that he trusts and where everything else that is unrelated to him is filtered out was one that would remain unsplit until one day when he encountered a female player named Akane and that was when everything changed for Akito as she was able to show him not just how bright and interesting the world around him was but also how powerful the power of having bonds with friends in the real world can be.

Overall Akito I felt was an excellent character that was both well-designed and developed with his development from someone that was a quiet and socially awkward young man who found himself being pursued by an unceasing barrage of confessions to someone that finally realized not only how powerful bonds with those that he cares for and trusts can be in the real world but also how bright the world around him can be when he actively helps those around him with their problems being especially well done. More than ever seeing Akito slowly break out of his shell and forge bonds with someone that was not only completely unknown to him but also his polar opposite in personality and take the small halting steps towards the door of change was something that was especially relatable to me and made the bond that he forged with Akane and with those around him that much more heartwarming to see. Notable moments within the narrative that best highlighted this was Akito’s fixing of her laptop and him deciding to check on Akane after she become ill with the latter one also serving as an effective escalation moment within the narrative as well.

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Animation-wise, the overall animation for the series I felt was pretty well done and featured not just excellent animation detail but also great usage of bright colours that served to complement each other perfectly. In terms of the character models that were used within the series, I felt that while the designs as well as the cast chosen wardrobe were simple ones it allowed them to be much more grounded and make the characters much more relatable to the audience who would have been in their shoes sometime in their lives. The designs for the avatars that the cast make use of within the MMO Forest of Savior I felt were an interesting choice as the series instead of using avatar models that featured high detail such as the ones featured in SAO and Bofuri instead opted for simple ones that wouldn’t be out of place in classic WOW. However, while this was an unusual choice it did relate well to the series' main focus on what was simple and relatable, and it certainly was nostalgic in seeing such avatars in an MMO again. Location wise while the series only featured a handful of locations that the cast either resided in or visited, I felt that these locations were ones that while simple ones also served to reflect not just their social status as students and young adults but also of the fact that no matter how much distance is between people that enjoy a similar interest when a strong enough bond is formed this can serve to affect their lives in more worlds than one. Arguably one of the main highlights of the animation for the series was the facial expressions that were used by the cast to convey emotions and feelings with Akane’s being done especially well that really served to showcase the increasing feelings that she was developing for Akito and the kind of inner struggles that she was going through as she wrestled with them. While it’s certainly impolite for me to say this but I felt that ep10’s facial expressions that Akane showed as a result of the pain she was experiencing thanks to her cramp and the subsequent resolvent method were one of the best ones within the series.

Music wise the series made use of one opening and ending theme which was Gradation and Trick Art which was performed by Kana Boon featuring Yuho Kitazawa and Ryujin Kiyoshi respectively. The series opening theme gradation I felt while certainly, a very catchy tune was also one that conveyed very well that while Akane and Akito were total opposites in both social circles and roles that their chance meeting and eventual bond allowed them to mutually mature as individuals thanks to the bond that they develop with both each other and their fellow guildmates. In a sense, the name gradation I felt was a very appropriate name for the song as their meeting and eventual bonding did allow them to gradually break out from the respective shells that they had mutually been trapped in and allow them to further their understanding of both the world and those around them. The series ending theme Trick Art I felt was a bit different in terms of vibes when compared to the opening theme in that while it was still catchy the themes that it conveyed were more along the lines of the kind of differences that lay between Akane and Akito and how by slowly edging forward and trying to understand Akito as a person would Akane be able to find the key that would allow her to open the enigma that was his heart a song that I felt really did well to convey just how much she had fallen for him.

Voice acting wise I felt that overall, the series' main voice cast all did an excellent job portraying their assigned characters. In particular, I felt that the main lead seiyuu’s of Inori Minase and Koki Uchiyama did a fantastic job portraying their assigned characters of Akane and Akito with the tag team of Inori’s cheerful and ever-friendly voice resonating well with Koki’s quiet and almost expressionless voice and ensuring that any emotional change between them as their bond improves is conveyed clearly to the audience. Of the supporting cast, I really liked the trio of guildmates that Akane ending up meeting in the form of Eita, Runa and Takezo who added a lot to the comedy aspect of the narrative when they were featured with Eita and Runa’s sibling interactions further adding to this as shown during Runa’s culture festival arc.

The character of Yukari Tsubaki who within the narrative was one of Akito’s classmates that counted as one of his few friends within the class was one that I felt was designed really well as she while essentially a mirror image of Yamada’s base self also represented one of the few girls that had the ability to see Yamada for who he was and find a kind of solace within the shared world in which they inhabited as fellow gamers. Seeing this world of hers gradually change as a result of the ripple effect that came from Yamada changing and becoming more aware of those around him while shocking her into developing a need to change herself also served as an excellent visual indicator of Yamada’s development as a person as a result of meeting Akane.

Overall conclusion

In overall Yamada Kun to lv999 I felt was an excellent anime that had among its strong points its unique premise that managed to add a new twist to the classic rom-com formula, excellent story, characters, and voice acting. One of the central pillars that all rom coms must adhere to in order to be successful in both gaining fans and at the same time be able to adapt its source material accurately is being able to correctly portray the chemistry between the main leads and be able to show tangible and relatable changes within their characters as their bonds improve and they become more than friends. Within the overall narrative for this series, I felt that was handled excellently thanks to its usage of not only the classic slow-burn relationship between the two but also its integration of mutual self-development between the leads and the twist of an older girl helping someone junior to her change while simultaneously developing feelings for him. This in my opinion really served to make the relationship between Akane and Akito within the narrative that much cuter and each interaction and event within the narrative much more heartwarming to see.

For Akito long used to being indifferent to those around him unless they were fellow gamers and yet being unable to find the means to change himself and for Akane devastated after losing the most cherished bond that she enjoyed with her other half and wanting to find a new path in life their chance meeting in a realm unique to them was like a miracle as for the first time in their lives they were able to meet the one person that both needed in order to change themselves. Watching this miracle unfold within the narrative in the form of their ever-increasing bonds as they began to change for the better really proved to be one of the absolute joys of this season.

As a final score, I would say that Yamada kun lv999 is one that easily deserves an overall score of 9/10 due to not only of its well-designed and crafted story but also its excellent characters, voice acting and a central bond that was not only heartwarming and cute but one that also showed that while human society has come a long way whether socially or technologically that beneath that sometimes the greatest barrier that hinders that change is our own heart and our reluctance to change ourselves for fear of further trauma.

Seeing a tale that focused on mutual self-recovery and development as individuals while growing ever closer to each other through their shared experiences I felt was a unique way of showing that even if you have the most dispassionate and quiet of personalities that it’s not too late to change that especially when you have someone that’s willing to help you achieve that as part of their own goals as well. In this age of a high-speed and high-pressure society where an inability to adapt can create people that’s afraid to change themselves, this story I feel would be one that’s relatable to many and one that many can learn from as well.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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