Story: 6.
There's really not much interesting about this story. It's enough to keep the viewer interested, but it's nothing spectacular. I didn't appreciate the filler episodes seeing as this is a measly 26 episode series. the story was definitely missing the umph factor, but as I said before, it's enough to keep the viewer interested.
Art: 8
The art is enjoyable and easy on the eyes. Chibi animation isn't usually my thing, but I didn't mind it whenever it popped up in this anime. The character design was nice as well. The thing that I didn't appreciate about the art was that sometimes it was just so damn cheesy. The 'embrace' scenes usually made me laugh and cringe with the amount of cheese. It could have done without the overly flowery backgrounds, wind ruffling the characters' hair when they were inside, and slow motion. Another thing that made my eyes roll was the slow pan on Usui every time he was introduced in the episode. Okay. We get it -- he's attractive. Stop reminding us.
Sound: 6
I think that this is one of the first anime where I haven't listened to more than 5 seconds of the ED. There was nothing there for me. And maybe it's because I watched the episodes on repeat, but the OP wasn't doing it for me either. It was annoying after the third time of hearing it, and since I couldn't fast forward it without my screen buffering I muted my computer until it was over. I usually like the OP and ED. As a matter of fact, there was no way that I -- even once -- got tired of the Lovely Complex and Death Note first OP & ED's. They had a good sound, and great corresponding images. But with Maid-Sama, it was pretty much Usui trying to look hot. AGAIN. *RAGEFACE FUUUUU*. I didn't mind the score in the anime, though. A lot of the time it went unnoticed, which I saw as a good thing.
Characters: 7
I'm constantly confused with my feelings with these characters. One minute, I love them and the next minute they annoy me. I was definitely up and down with Misaki. I appreciated her dedication and her hard work, but sometimes she was just un-rightfully a bitch. On top of that, she acted clueless when it came to Usui a lot of the time, which annoyed me. I did like her relationships between her girlfriends, though. Because no matter what, she'd do anything for them, and I thought that was nice. Usui I spent most of the anime impartial about. I liked his witty sexual humour, but there was no character development with him. The writer tried way too hard to make him a mysterious character. It was plain annoying. A thing that truly annoyed me about Usui was that he was constantly at Misaki's beck and call. I'm sorry, I don't need realism in an anime, but his 'being there right in the nick of time' was wholly ridiculous. He was such a stalker, and he didn't let Misaki do anything without his guidance. I can't count the amount of times that he has been just waiting for her, saving her, or eavesdropping on her. For someone who was supposedly the most popular guy ever, he REALLY needed a life. Some arcs in the story would have been way more interesting if he wasn't there to stop the progression. The only thing that Usui's got going for him besides his looks, is that he's got a playful personality. I enjoyed a lot of the secondary characters in this anime because they were, a lot of the time, more interesting. My favorite secondary character was Hanata. He actually had a real personality and feelings. He was funny, but dedicated. Out of Usui and Hanata, Hanata is certainly the more desirable one in my opinion, but opinions differ.
Enjoyment: 7
I think the fact that I finished this anime in a day says something. It's entertaining enough to watch from beginning to end. The humour is sometimes fresh, and the story was fun for the most part. There were a few episodes that I forced myself through, and a few episodes where I couldn't stop watching. I like these types of anime, so it was easy to get through, but it's certainly not anything spectacular. A lot of the arcs could have been better done, but they were enjoyable none the less. My biggest annoyance with this anime was certainly the amount of cheesiness in certain episodes. Certainly eye-rolling worthy.
Overall: 7
If you want a nice rom/ com anime to watch, I recommend this anime. It's certainly not the best in the genre, but it's certainly not the worst either. I enjoyed it, it just wasn't my favorite. If you want a truly great rom/ com high school anime Lovely Complex is one that does it right, and Maid-sama is one that does it well. Pick your poison. Hope I helped!
