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| Jun'ichi, public enemy. |
Time marches on and it's time to do another series review! Next one up is the entertaining adaption from a PS2 game, Amagami SS. The series features the Omnibus formats where the story resets after each ending with each of the heroine. I'm not here to debate the pros and cons about this format so let's ignore that topic for the rest of the review. Let's get started:
Overall rating (out of 10 Hearts): 8.5
Recommended for: Comedy, Slice-of-Life, Romance (Shonen)
Do not read past this point if you intend to watch this series, as there will be spoilers, you have been warned.
An amazing anime as a whole, the quality was relatively good throughout the series with only a few notable drop in production quality through the 25-episode series. Both opening themes were really 'sweet' and fitting to the anime while the ending theme was unique as it changes from arc to arc featuring each heroine. I was not a big fan of any of the ending theme except Ai's, as all of them were relatively bad at singing. However, I'm sure the character CDs sold pretty well though as the fans will probably bite their respect heroine.
Before I get into reviewing each arc, I want to mention that the original character design for the entire anime was superb. Each heroine was so moe in their own right, even the side characters were incredible, both guys and girls. It makes me kinda sad that some of them are not 'captureable'.
Okay, let's move on to the meat of this romance series:
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| As Haruka likes to say: Wow~ |
Let me begin by saying I had no intention of watching this anime seriously when I started. Having written this off as another school romance anime I simply wanted to pass time watching this, but I was genuinely surprised as Morishima-sempai's cuteness took over. Shizuka Ito did an amazing job as Haruka, showcasing her feminine and cute speech but made sure not to go completely overboard. The original story itself was pretty well-written as well with the whole 'insecure sempai' thing and the slightly perverted love between the two. I thoroughly enjoyed this arc and it left such a strong impression that I followed the rest of the anime.
Second Arc: Tanamachi Kaoru
Here we have the cheery 'close' friend played by the infamous Rina Sato.The story itself was not up-to-par compared to Haruka's as it was just the typical family problems-> romance. But Rina did just as well as a job in portraying Kaoru's emotion as Shizuka as Haruka. The ambiguous feeling she was struggling with all the way till the end was sweet and her realization and return to her usual self was beautifully done. I could do without the whole bellybutton event, but I guess it was important enough to be included from the game. However, I think that just solidified Jun'Ichi's perverseness more than anything.
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| Busty and shy, yet bold, damn you writers! |
To be honest, I've never really liked this kind of heroine. One because in a harem with an ending they always get shoved aside and two, their passive behaviours always drives me completely nuts. Here's where the brilliance of Amagami's original writers really shined. The Seiyuu for Sae really didn't stand out, Hiromi was alright but nothing outstanding, but Sae herself as a character really stood out in this arc. The shy heroine embarked on a quest to become more and more social, and her determination was vividly drawn out by her bold actions. Instead of being the old-fashion quiet, passive girl she turned into someone who was shy, but willing to take the next step forward like asking Jun'Ichi to continuing 'training' her and even a date. I can't say I am a fan now, but I was definitely rooting her ever since second episode. For people who actually like this archtype I'm sure they would be more excited than I was.
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Ai was an interesting heroine, she had really moe short hair with a quiet but assertive voice. I couldn't really pin her as any particular archtype even though her story was genetic to the core. Another perfectly cute heroine who carried the story with character development alone, and I was pleased with Yukana's performance as Ai.
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| She's out for blood, the scriptwriter's blood |
This...this arc is...I don't even know how to describe this abomination. I wrote a 'special' after watching this arc in anger, see Tenchou's review special. I cannot believe that the scriptwriter would do such a thing and sacrifice a heroine to boost the next arc's appeal, especially for an omnibus format anime, arg just thinking about this makes me mad! If you want to read my review of the arc just read the special, I'm done talking about Rihoko.
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| Tsundere type B? Brace for Impact! |
So finally, we reached the end of the line with Tsukasa the tsundere. She's not the normal tsundere but the rare type where they are 'meaner' when they are alone with the main character, aka Tsundere type B. Her story was a bit messy but Tsukasa as a character managed to carry the story through. Her sudden change in the middle of the story was a great cliffhanger for many including myself, and her lovely smile was second only to Haruka. Also, her three-hit combo at the end of the anime was by far the most entertaining moment in all of Amagami, brought me back in the old days of Naru and Keitaro. The ten year later thing with Tsukasa and Jun'Ichi's daughter was a cute end to her arc.
Secret Arc: Kamizaki Risa
Secret one episode arc featuring the game's 'final boss' after you've captured all other heroines. Nothing really serious in this arc except that she was responsible for Jun'ichi's heartbreak two years ago! Her stalkerish love for Jun'ichi was more funny than creepy, and the way she drove each heroine away was pretty also hilarious. Other than that, just a pretty comedic end to an otherwise great series.
After the the heroines, I just want to mention another few supporting cast that did very well in their roles, and also their character as a whole:
Tachibana Miya- Nii nii~ Shishishishi. As a good friend to Sae and Ai she was frequently seen in all arcs as a comedic relief. Kana Asumi did a great job at portraying the meddling little sister.
Umehara Masayoshi- Jun'ichi's best friend and partner in...'crime'? Takuma Terashima captured this character perfectly as the down-on-love best friend.
Tsukahara Hibiki- One of the supporting cast that I wished was 'captureable'. Her quiet and sister-like demeanor along with her occasional shy moments really makes me all moe-moe.
Finally, I'll leave these with you after I thank Enterbrain for writing such an awesome story and game, and of course the beautiful characters!
All images were NOT made by me, I found them from various sources that I don't remember anymore. Sorry!
1 comment:
I guess I'm not the only who feels the same about Tsukahara Hibiki. I agree that this is a good anime. But did you know that there was an announcement about it recently? And here's the source for it.
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