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A beautiful piece of work; that's how A Reflection of One's Mind should be described. The art style, fluidity of the animation, and background music succeeded in creating a wonderful atmosphere, one that is relaxing, yet full of emotion.

A tale that doesn't need any words to be understood, told in a silent narrative driven by the calming, clear music of Debussy; the characters are shaped with the help of facial expressions, body language, and actions, and it works! Though, don't expect a deep dive into the characters' psyche or anything like that, since this is a 5-minute short.

The story itself is pretty generic, but ... its execution is what brings forward the magic of this (short) movie. The art style is very beautiful, and the animation is well-done as well, engrossing the watcher with its smoothness.

The verdict: captivating. Don't hesitate to give it a try; worst case scenario, even if you don't like it, at the end of the day they are just 5 minutes.

Disclaimer: I don't hate Shikimori's Not Just a Cutie. I just don't think it's a good anime overall.

What's up with their eyes?

No, but seriously, this is one of the weirdest eye designs I have ever seen in anime. It actually looks good from some angles, but most of the time it's rather creepy. The blonde girl literally has dead fish eyes. And it looks horrible.

Since I see people that seem to be saying that the ratings of this show are low from a lot of watchers because "the expectations were too high", " everyone thought this will be Dress-Up Darling 2", and "yall just watch ... mainstream media & shounen": sorry to break it to you, but that isn't the case! (at least for me). I went into this with no expectations, and Dress-Up Darling wasn't the best show in existence anyway; yet, Shikimori's Not Just a Cutie was just not that good. Just like Tonikaku Kawaii. And my most watched/read genre is romance, so this low rating is not because I get bored without an interesting plot, cool fights, a lot of action, or anything that is not usually associated with romantic comedies. Basically, you don't need to find excuses as to why not everyone enjoys it.


CHARACTERS

Contrary to whom most seem to consider to be the worst character in the series (Izumi), I'd say that it's actually Shikimori herself. She is obsessive, very jealous, and possessive. She doesn't have any hobbies and sticks to Izumi like glue, and doesn't seem very pleased with the fact that he has friends. Even worse than that, her whole identity is basically just trying to be seen as a cute girl while also "protecting" Izumi. That's all she cares about, aside from winning in every game/competition. Well, honestly, it's not like Izumi is much better. I get it, he's unlucky, but for being a main character, he sure doesn't have a lot of focus put on him. Rather, it's like he is there just for Shikimori (and 2 other girls haha, didn't know this was a harem) to have someone to be cute & a mommy for. He doesn't have any presence, like, at all; I almost forgot he was the other main character while writing this. He just exists to be the kind, cute prince that captures the hearts of lonely girls just by being kind to them. But, I mean, he's trying to overcome his unluckiness and do sweet things for his girlfriend and friends. At least he's trying. And his culinary dishes are said to be delicious.

(On a side note, Izumi's unluckiness is not even that bad. His worst unlucky moments were him jumping in the bushes to avoid being run over by a bicycle and drowning, though the last one is pretty bad. The rest were just random, almost harmless inconveniences, with him losing his wallet or tripping; so, no, he didn't deal with it well or anything, since there wasn't really much to deal in the first place. The only thing I remember was him trying to be prepared for anything that could go wrong on a date, which I mean was cute, but not that smart? Since he knows he often loses his stuff no matter what he does, why doesn't he let someone else keep them when he's going out? Like, giving his wallet to Shikimori would have resolved the problem.)

As for the side characters, they surprisingly have more character development than the leads (who have, like, almost 0 growth). Two of them, to be more specific; they have a whole episode dedicated to each of them, and it was quite nice to see. Though, the extra characters that were used in one of the episodes were just pure mockery. But all in all, the side characters are better than the main ones, that's how bad this show is.


STORY/ CHARACTERS' RELATIONSHIPS

Just in case you were wondering… I haven't mentioned anything about the story because there is literally no story. It is a slice of life romcom with school setting; and instead of going for a boring, generic plot, the mangaka (since I suppose the "story" is the same in the manga) chose to not have one at all. Which is not a problem at all, don't get me wrong; however, it means that in order to make the anime/manga enjoyable, it is a must for the characters to have amazing chemistry (among other things). And sadly, this is not the case at all. The main focus of the show, Shikimori and Izumi's romantic relationship, is very awkward and unrealistic. They are supposed to have been together for one year already, yet act like they have only known each other for 4 months at best. It's like they don't even really know each other's personalities that well. It's just... very weird, you know. They don't seem to be comfortable with each other at all, and it bothers me. It feels like they are both looking at an idolized version of their partner, only seeing what's at the surface: a soft unlucky guy that needs to be protected and a cool, beautiful, perfect girlfriend. Well, the point is that their chemistry it's rather weak, and nowhere near good enough to make me want to watch more of it. Though, a 12-14 years old person may find it cute and enjoyable, I guess, its demographic is shoujo after all.

The friendship of the rest of the characters feels off sometimes as well, but overall it's passable. The trio of girls (Shikimori, Nekozaki and the other one) seem rather awkward with each other for being friends for more than a year. Again, it's like they have only known each other for like 4 months.


ART STYLE/ANIMATION

When it comes to art style and animation, well... The animation is as good as it can get, and the style itself is pretty nice, though generic. Very charming color palette, well suited for the genre, atmosphere, and demographic. But like I said, weird eyes. Oh, and while I did say the animation was good, it had some slip ups here and there.

~~CONCLUSION/ENJOYMENT~~


Well, having said all that, here's the catch: it's not a horrible anime. As far as entertainment goes, it is actually passable. In short, I didn't hate watching Shikimori trying to look cute for a date, Izumi having to spend his time at a school event in the library, Nekozaki laughing or smiling most of the time, and Inu's laid back attitude. I mean, if I did, I wouldn't have completed the anime. What I'm getting at is that it is not that bad of a show, either. At least when it comes to the enjoyment.

The best thing about KS? Its OP! Hands down one of the best this year. The ED was pretty enjoyable as well.

Genjuu no Seiza is good. Great, even. At least when it comes to the story; the characters, on the other hand… could use some more work.

As a backstory, the most notable aspect is probably its author, namely the same person that wrote & illustrated Petshop of Horrors. Just like in its predecessor, the art remains rich and consistent, yet not necessarily distinctive. Genjuu no Seiza even features the main character from Petshop of Horrors in some chapters (though as an episodic character), evoking a vague feeling of nostalgia.

Now for the story… Matsuri Akino did a great job on this one. The premise itself is intriguing, ... and, since this time the story is linear, it was the perfect occasion to showcase her story-telling skills. Which are quite amazing, you know? Though it feels like the last chapters I have read are mostly fillers. As for the tale itself, I feel like the synopsis doesn't make it justice. Don't get me wrong, it's accurate, but in actuality, it is much more complicated than that. And, let's be clear, it is NOT sure who the 'true' High Priest really is. In the synopsis it is said to be Fuuto - however, that's not exactly the case, as in chapter 41 it is still not certain who the 'fake' is between him and the current High Priest.

In any case, the mangaka's ideas are certainly interesting, the cultural & religious undertones helping with their originality. It was my first encounter with the Hindu religion, with their gods (celestial beasts, as they were called in the manga), and their beliefs, so it was not only an exciting read, but also an educational one.

And now we got to the 'bad' part of this work, namely the characters. There are a lot of people, celestial beasts, and even spirits, and it is pretty impressive how well the author handles each of them. Well, with an exception. Which wouldn't be that big of a problem, compared to the big number of successful characters, if it wasn't for the importance of this exact failure: the freaking main character. Yes, you heard that right: the annoyingly stupid-ass fictional character that makes you slap yourself is the one present in every chapter, in most of the panels of said chapter, and in pretty much everything that happens. What a shame, right? What a shame indeed. He is the reason I dropped this manga as well. The way he keeps getting everyone in BIG trouble by changing history and acting without thinking gets too much to bear with at some point, really. I understand there are reasons for his irresponsible actions, like his kindness and the feeling of obligation to need to help those in need, but aside from those, it is just about his personality. Which is that of a troublemaker kid, honestly. He shouts a lot, doesn't think much, and doesn't listen to those who know what's going on. I can somehow understand it, since he is 15 years old and has lived a normal life until this story took place; he doesn't even know the beliefs of this new religion, let alone how the High Priest of Darashaal should behave. However, the biggest problem is that there is ZERO character development. And that is after 41 chapters, with them being pretty long as well. It is pretty infuriating.

I could go on and on about my disappointment with this character, but I don't think I need to say more. It is a shame that this manga was ruined by one character, even though it has such a grand tale to tell and so many good parts. But well, I can't say it wasn't enjoyable until now. If you think you can handle the main character, I really suggest picking this up; even if you don't, you should try it out, since you may not find him as annoying as I did. Either way, I recommend this!

Ratings:
- story: 8
- art: 7
- character: 6
- enjoyment: 7
- overall: 7

Ah… it happened again. Yet another good anime ruined by its last episodes. What can I even say? It is a shame indeed.

Heroine Tarumono! is about a boyish, straightforward girl that goes to the city to pursue her dream, track and field. It just so happens that two of her classmates are actually a very popular idol group, LIPXLIP. She doesn't even know them, as she isn't interested in idols; but she needs money, so when she sees some agency's hiring announcement, she immediately applies for the post. Turns out, it was a recruitment for the manager-in-training for LIPXLIP! And, surprisingly, she was hired, due ... to her ability to supervise them as their classmate. That marks the beginning of a tiresome, frustrating, but fun journey, during which new friendships blossom and new experiences are gained.

Heroine Tarumono! showed potential in the beginning. It doesn't have the best characters nor the greatest story, but it has its own charm that makes everything else work. It feels innocent, relaxing, and warm. Well, that goes away quickly, starting from episode 10, when utterly unnecessary drama unfolds, and it is a pretty damn shitty one as well. It got slightly better in the last episode, but… it wasn't enough, at all. The conclusion to the events that took place in episodes 10 & 11 felt very rushed and shallow, just like the rest of episode 12, honestly.

:spoilers start:
Of course, we really needed some obsessed fangirl being a psychopath, harassing people just "for her bias", right? Because it seems like the writers wanted drama and an entertaining plot, but they couldn't think of another way. Well, spoiler incoming, they ridiculously failed. Ah, and the characters all act like some broken toys without a brain in those episodes as well. One of them gives some real shitty advice, like?? "Oh, well you have to think about the harasser's feelings, it doesn't matter what fucked up things they did they surely have a reason, you have to understand them". Oh my god… and the protagonist actually listened to that stupid advice, are you for real…

Yeah, it is just that awful.

:spoilers end:

Well, aside from those atrocious episodes, I do have another bone to pick with this series: its misogyny. Specifically, the way it portrays women. They just had to draw the heroine's brows in a really weird manner just to show how "ugly" she is, didn't they? The idol main characters are also fine with her being their manager-in-training because they "can't see her as a girl" (because she is "ugly", energetic, and doesn't really care about her appearance). Like… oh my god it's 2022 do we really have to go through this? They don't seem to regard her as a girl for the whole anime (except for one episode). Aizou is openly misogynistic as well (and doesn't really have any character development when it comes to that).. The show does try to make him a backstory for it, basically to gain the sympathy of viewers and make them overlook this fact, but it just falls flat anyway.

The characters work pretty well together. We have the competitive, hard-working, and sassy duo, paired up with the equally hard-working, righteous, and straightforward girl manager. Aizou looks like a playboy, yet hates girls; Yuujirou has the appearance of a gentle, timid teenager, yet has a very sharp tongue and doesn't really care about anyone. And the most important thing, they don't even like each other. This makes them always compete with each other, and scowl when they accidentally see each other in their free time. The saving grace in this situation is the heroine, Hiyori, who makes them closer thanks to her becoming their friend (though they are too stubborn to admit it). The girl's perseverance, energetic self, and kind nature manage to make them warm up to her, and that's pretty heart-warming to see.

Though, the best character is Hiyori herself.

Very average art. Not bad, though. As for the voice acting, I personally loved Hiyori's voice. The songs were pretty nice as well.

For the most part, this anime is quite enjoyable. If we ignore the last 3 episodes, at least. If we don't, well... enjoyable until that point, and a big "why?" after. I recommend the first 9 episodes, especially if you are into idol anime (obviously).

(Ratings: story: 6; art: 5.5; sound: 7; character: 6; enjoyment: 6.5; overall: 5.7)

Look, the manga is good. The adaptation, though… could have been better. And not only because of the obvious, ugly CGI from the latest episodes.

"The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs" is centered around Leon, the ultimate asshole that was reincarnated in his sister's dating sim game. Luckily for him, he's just a mob character, so he doesn't have to deal with the male harem of the game, which he hates; after all, they are just a bunch of useless and utterly annoying pretty boys. So he thought; yet, he is forced to go to the nobles' academy from the game, so he ... can avoid literally dying.

Oh, and… in this world, women seem to hold the power.

The anime follows the basic "reincarnated as a mob in an otome game" formula: the MC wants to live their lives comfortably, yet they become involved in the story; they use their knowledge from the game; they become close with the original main character of the game; they become powerful, etc etc. Like most works in this genre, it also has a twist: here, it is the main character, Leo. The shittiest egoistical asshole you could find in that whole fantasy world, a vulgar power abuser that doesn't give a fuck about anything other than himself, and… that hates getting promoted. Yet he gets promoted, and he hates it, and everyone else hates it as well because they hate him. He is just that much of an asshole.

Leon is, basically, the saving grace of this anime. Or, rather… of the manga. Because the adaptation doesn't do him justice. Of course, he is there for comedic reasons, like literally everyone else; however, he is also the main character and carries the entire entertainment on his shoulders (as the other characters are just hollow figures on a screen). We love seeing this asshole being the most annoying asshole on Earth (well, not really) and fucking up the frustrated students with his power. Well, that's if he actually has a character, aside from being a little shit with a big mouth. And it's pretty hard to see that in the anime. Wait, that's not entirely true; it is also obvious that he is actually a pretty smart bastard! And… that's about it. Thanks for tuning in, Leon will get more character development next time!

Maybe I'm a bit harsh. But then again, the other characters are just random stereotypes (aside from Angelica, she is pretty nice). We gotta have one good character at least, right? He is the main reason for the enjoyment that comes from this, after all. I mean, the story… is not that great or impressive, the pacing was pretty bad, and the animation has some flaws as well. It was pretty mediocre, really.

And the last episode was TRASH. The battle was a very important one in the manga, yet here… it was over in like 5 minutes? What the heck man… And the whole episode was also very rushed, it was awful.

In the end, "The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs" was disappointing. It wasn't essentially bad, as it was still somehow enjoyable; however, it did not reach the manga's potential at all. Not to say that the manga itself was oh-so-amazing, because it wasn't; yet it was way better. Truth to be told, I expected more.

This is the first time in my life I have watched something so dreadful, so energy-draining, so fucking-with-my-mind in the worst way possible. Actually… never mind, Nami exists. Even so, worse than Sayuri, Jesus Christ. This is the first time I have felt the need to rate an "anime" with a negative number, though. -1(00) would be great. The repetitive track was fucking with my mind. The ending was the cherry on top, shit. I wanna die. Or go back in time and kms before watching this.

And MAL won't let me post this review cus it's too short, huh. I don't wanna think anymore ... about this though, lol.

Disclaimer: sexual assault, a bit of bullying.

I foolishly started reading Sorairo Girlfriend hoping it wasn't gonna be as bad and boring as Ibara no Namida (another yuri manga by Rikachi, with one of the side characters of SG as the main character). Sadly, it was the same pattern, only with slightly different characters and sweeter story.

The biggest problems were probably the pacing of the story and the predictibility of it. The drama doesn't fit in that well either, mostly because of the already mentioned flaws. It just feels cheap and rushed, and the bullying segments don't make any sense (one day Juli's desk is covered ... in insults, and then they suddenly disappear and everything is back to normal, no aftermath or anything).

The characters don't really add to the story, the manga has 9 short chapters so it's obvious why they aren't really explored that much, just on surface level. I would have liked to see more of their backstories at least, especially Juli's. Her character seems to be the more undeveloped one, less mature and more annoying, and I wanted to see the reason for it (why does she hate boys, for example).

Speaking of which, the usual problems in LGBTQ+ works are present here as well: sexual assault (kissing an unwilling person, touching them) is romanticized, and the portrayal of lesbians (in this case) could be better as well (if you're romantically attracted to girls it doesn't mean you hate boys and think they are "bad taste"). And it would have been fun to see at least a male character, but oh well...

The art is blander than in other Rikachi works, but it's true to her style, you can recognize it. Nothing to write home about, though.

Overall, I didn't enjoy it, if you're searching for some yuri/shoujo-ai manga you can find better ones. But it's not one of the worst either, it's quite sweet I suppose, so whatever.

note: spoiler-free review

“Nina the Starry Bride” is a hidden gem that I stumbled upon almost by mistake; and what a fortunate mistake it was! It is one of the best josei/shoujo fantasy manga I have ever come across. It does seem criminally underrated, though; so here I am with a review, to make it justice!


STORY - 10

Nina is a girl that lives with her family, like any other girl her age. Well, except for the fact that her “family” consists only of two poor children, which she calls her “brothers”. Their sole chance to survive is to steal— be it jewelry ... or other valuables from rich people. Even so, their lives are quite enjoyable, and they are actually having fun, all because they are together. And when you are together with the people you love, you are happy, right?

Well, yes, that's true. However, one day, the little brother gets sick. Life may have been hard until this point, but now it was hard and painful. After all, they could do nothing to help the boy. At least, until the older brother found a solution to get the money he needed for the medicine: to sell Nina to the slave traders. Luckily for her, though, instead of being sold into slavery, she becomes the replacement of the recently-deceased princess of the kingdom, as to cover the mistake of those who failed to save her.

It is a great story, always managing to somehow keep you on your toes. As much as I want to tell you even more about it, this is supposed to be a spoiler-free review; so I'll hold back. What I can say, though, is that it won't disappoint; and be ready for some pure, strong, real romance.


ART - 9

The art is amazing, it is such a good fit for the style and atmosphere of the story. It is rather lovely and adds a lot to the charm of the manga. The covers, especially, looked very nice, they had starry, fantasy-like ornaments, and the beginning of the chapters had those as well.


CHARACTERS - 9


Great characters, they are surprisingly complex and feel real. I could probably meet some people with a number of their traits in real life. Also, the chemistry between the main characters is off the charts, really. I don't even know them personally (and it is not like I could ever do that), but I can see how strong their bond is, even if all I know is from some chapters of a book.

The protagonist, Nina, has a very strong, unpolished personality; at the beginning, she is a stubborn brat and remains that way. Make no mistake, though, it is quite the positive trait in her case; for she is unafraid and ready to do anything for the people she loves. Nina grows a lot as a person and as a princess, and we love to see it! She is honestly such a nice character, a very caring and strong girl; and I admire her devotion.

Also, she reminds me of Yona from Yona of the Dawn.


ENJOYMENT/OVERALL


Nina the Starry Bride was definitely one of my most fun, thrilling reads in the past few months. I was actually really surprised myself by how much fun I had while reading it. I strongly recommend it. 20/10 for enjoyment

I've seen that people giving this show higher ratings tend to think its low overall ratings come from it appealing to a specific audience only, an while I do agree it's not for the big masses, that's definitely not the actual reason (the current rating is 6.46). Bungou to Alchemist has some big, too hard to ignore flaws.

The story has potential, and I would have loved to see how the biggest classics in Japanase literature fight for its existence, but the execution was just horrific. I don't think the writers knew from the start where the whole plot is going at all. Aside that, they ... didn't even know what kind of anime did they want it to be; at first, you'd think it's the episodic type (I mean, there was a farming episode with no action just because), but then they quickly throw all the ideas in at the same time in the second half. It's very messy and it just kinda dulles the enjoyment for the most part.

The art was fine, the action scenes are animated properly. Good work on it.

The sound was alright as well, the voice actors did their job properly. The OP and ED were actually pretty good.

The characters are the other major flaw of the show. The fact that there are a lot for just 13 episodes aside, they are just too shallow, especially for such praised intellectuals. Their chemistry isn't really that great either, and the relationship of the two that are the highlights of the show, Osamu Dazai and Ryuunosuke Akutagawa, isn't any better. The characters themselves are all, or most of them, undeveloped, and the ones that get the chance of being something by having more screen time end up as failures. They feel more like some cheap copies that the writers tried helplessly to make more interesting by giving them personalities that don't really seem to suit them. The number of characters and the lenght of the anime aren't a good match at all, so it's kind of understandable; however, that doesn't make it better.

Overall, Bungou to Alchemist is another failed show with potential. I didn't even get to enjoy it since it was just bad, so I don't have any reason to recommend it.

The art and characters are so bad that it's funny, not gonna lie. It makes me cringe so much. And the story seems to resume at sex. Yet for a hentai wannabe, it's pretty damn bad.

Story:
Nothing to say, fantasy hentai wanabe.

Characters:
"Sex! Sex! Sex! Please teacher Lila, I can't hold it in anymore!"
"It doesn't matter that I'm not a good soldier teacher Lila, I'm good at sex, give me sex!"

Art:
... SO damn bad. The mangaka doesn't know how to draw human faces from more than one angle. And human body positions either. Ugh.

Enjoyment:
1, lol. Not even good as a joke because the art is atrocious.

Nah don't bother with this man.