Bokura wa Minna Kawaisou |Worth Watching?
Hullo everyone, welcome back! Today I would like to talk to you about an Anime called Bokura wa Minna Kawaisou. This Anime was one of the many Anime that aired during the 2014 season. Particularly, this Anime aired during the Spring Season. Currently, this Anime is known to just over 188K people on MyAnimeList and has a current rating of 7.87 – which isn’t too bad. It’s safe to say that this Anime was one of the better-known ones, but for those who don’t know what this Anime is.
Today we’ll be asking the age old question, is this Anime worth watching?
Episode Count: 12
MyAnimeList
“Kazunari Usa is a high school freshman who will start living alone due to his parents now working in a different area. Excited for his new independent life, he hopes to go about his teenage days without the worry of dealing with any strange people, but as he soon discovers, his new boarding house Kawai Complex is far from ordinary.
The various tenants at Kawai Complex are all quite eccentric characters. Shirosaki, Kazunari’s roommate, is a pervert and masochist; Mayumi Nishikino, a borderline alcoholic office lady, hates couples because of her unfortunate luck with men; and Sayaka Watanabe, a seemingly innocent college student, enjoys leading men on. Shocked with the lack of decent individuals at his new residence, Kazunari is about to leave when he runs into shy senior student Ritsu Kawai and finds himself slowly falling in love with her.”
My Analysis
‘Bokura wa Minna Kawaisou’ (aka: ‘The Kawai Complex Guide to Manors and Hostel Behavior’) is a rather unoriginal anime… in presence at least. Unoriginality though, does not automatically equal ‘plain’, ‘unappealing’, or ‘bland’. It could very easily, but this show manages to take many things that you’re probably familiar with (or maybe even tired of) in the anime-world and present them in a fun, simple way.
Story – 8/10
As MAL’s synopsis covers the show’s general plot-line well, I won’t reiterate it here. You’ve seen this kind of setup all over the anime-community. The boy strikes out to ‘live alone’ and encounters some kind of problem, usually comedic or romantic (or both). But, who doesn’t like to see something you’re used to doing again, so long as a fresh spin is taken and originality (as much as is possible within the limited setting such as this) shines through.
The story is primarily a slice-of-life, comedy, and romance. The romance is light and sweet, and the comedy is flamboyant – as it should be in a show such as this. You will definitely laugh and, if romance is something you enjoy, probably swoon. The story is never dull, and also not too flashy or dramatic. As such, the story is very enjoyable and flows well. Though, when the story ends, it just… ends, with no real conclusion (typical of this genre), so watch out for that.
Art – 9/10
This part will be subjective from person-to-person. But to me, the art was very solid. The somewhat realistic look of the anime was a nice touch. Of course, typical anime flourishes are here: ‘Oh crap’ looks, variations on chibi-like character models for funny moments, words beside the character, giving hilarious looks into the characters mind and feelings of that instant. It meshes well together, the ‘funny animation’ and ‘normal animation’.
On the technical side, everything was nice. No jarringly bad moments – consistency was kept across the whole series – and colors are bright and vivid.
Sound – 8/10
The seiyu all did a great job, though nothing that stands out from any other anime with great voice-work. The music is light and works with the scenes portrayed and the mood that has been set at the time. No standout tracks though, aside from the opening and ending themes which, depending on your tastes, could be catchy and fun. They were to me at least.
Character – 8/10
If you read the synopsis, then you have a pretty good idea of what you’re dealing with here. For those that didn’t, allow me to expand and explain on them (those who did, just skip this part if you want)…
You have (all tenants of the ‘Kawai Complex’):
Shirosaki; the masochistic and perverted tenant. The unique thing though, is that there’s also a lot more to him: wisdom and compassion. He is actually a deep character, though not that deep, the perverts in anime (almost) never are…
Sayaka; The tease, the flirt, especially with males her age (or, heck, any age). Also, the ‘frenemy’ of Mayumi (who I will get to next). This woman is insane, in a fun-to-watch way.
Mayumi; The drunkard, well-endowed office lady with horrible luck concerning men. She loves to meddle and tease, though is nowhere near as sadistic as Sayaka, who she often fights with. When she and Sayaka go at it, hilarity ensues.
Sumiko; Ritsu’s great aunt and the manager of ‘Kawai Complex’. Usually kind and soft-spoken – but, don’t disobey the complex’s rules or shame the name of the residency with your actions… or else the other side of her will appear. A side far scarier than Sayaka at her worst. Even Sayaka retreats when Sumiko gets ticked off.
Lastly, we have the main two: ‘Usa’ and ‘Ritsu’.
Usa; Our main character. Your typical nice guy that’s infatuated with a girl. He has a few quirks, but he’s not terribly unique. The girl he’s infatuated with though – Ritsu – is an interesting character, even if she’s a bit cliche…
Ritsu; An EXTREME bookworm, to the point of obsession – though it’s played off comically. She is shy and reserved, preferring to read rather than socialize for the most part. But once you get to know her, it becomes evident that there’s a wealth of personality under that shell of hers. She is a blast to watch when she starts breaking that shell. That is when she shines as a character.
All of these characters are cliche in many ways, but also unique. At the very least, you’ll enjoy some of them. Their interactions with each other are the threads that hold this show together.
So is this Anime worth watching? Like the many Anime that I believe should be watched by everyone and anyone. I Definitely do think that this Anime should be watched, if you’re a fan of the infamous Slice of Life genre, then you won’t be disappointed with this Anime. That I can garuantee.
Stamp of Approval Earned,
– OOCentral
Twitter: @OOCentral