As a child, Riki Naoe shut himself from the world, thanks to a diagnosis of narcolepsy following the tragic deaths of his parents. However, Riki is saved when, one fateful day, a boy named Kyousuke recruits him into a team who call themselves the Little Busters. Accompanied by Masato, Kengo, and Rin, these misfits spend their childhood fighting evil and enjoying their youth.
Years pass, and even in high school, the well-knit teammates remain together. Kyousuke decides to re-ignite the Little Busters by forming a baseball team as it will be his last school year with them. They have a problem though: there aren't enough members! The tables have turned, for it is now Riki's turn to reach out and recruit new friends into the Little Busters, just like Kyousuke had once done for him.
Then, an omen surfaces—Rin finds a strange letter attached to her cat, assigning them the duty of uncovering the "secret of this world" by completing specific tasks. Just what is this secret, and why is it being hidden? It's up to the Little Busters to find out!
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
Nenhum episódio encontrado.
Comentários
Veronin
Over the past decade, visual novel studio 'Key' has seen much success for their work on titles such as Kanon, Clannad and Air. If you have watched or read any of these series, you will likely be familiar with Jun Maeda's distinctive form of dramatic storytelling. Do not expect another Clannad: After Story. You will not find it here. At first glance, there is one startling difference in Key's latest adaptation. It is not animated by Kyoto Animation, the studio responsible for handling the majority of Key adaptations. Instead, the esteemed and beloved (not really) J.C. Staff is at the helm. For many this isa name that will undoubtedly be a cause for concern. In Little Busters, it is.
The story follows the misadventures of Riki and his four childhood friends. Set during the leader Kyousuke's final year in high school, the group of friends decide to make something of their remaining youth- not by overtly rebelling, but by practicing and playing baseball together. They cannot form a team with only five members though, which is why Riki and Rin are set to recruit more people from their school. Preferably females, as Rin is the only young lady in the group.
Little Busters' cast of characters is its strongest trait. No— not because they are especially well-written or unique, but because they are endearing- because they are entertaining. It isn't easy to make a group of anime characters feel like genuine friends with one another, but Little Busters manages to achieve this feat with its wonderful group dynamic. Even the later members contribute to the show in a significant and believable way. The characters truly do make the lighthearted segments a joy to watch.
Being part comedy, it's a good thing that the jokes are often fresh and clever. Of particular note is Masato. If you remember Sunohara from Clannad, he is a bit like that. Masato and all his muscular glory (and utter lack of brain cells) are the cause for many jokes. Usually at his expense. And usually met with a kick to the face from Rin.
It's a shame, since any appeal the show has is frequently pushed aside in favour of cringeworthy melodrama. The individual character routes were not very good in the visual novel and they are most certainly not any good here either. It would be one thing if these arcs were merely mediocre, but with J.C. Staff's lack of directorial talent they are made absolutely dreadful. The omnibus format also does little to help the rushed pacing, resulting in a format that feels highly formulaic and superfluous. One of the girls has troubles, Riki helps them to overcome it, one or two episodes of comedy follow— repeat, repeat. Thankfully the lighthearted segments are so entertaining, as otherwise you would probably detest each character by the end of their route. It is that bad at times.
The two worst offenders are Mio's and Haruka's routes. In Mio's route, the viewer is treated with illogical and contradictory character actions further complimented by a hilariously contrived deception on the writer's part. Plotholes? Everywhere. And it does not even attempt to answer them with anything besides equivocation. The climax could maybe be explained if the characters were taking psychedelic drugs at the time, but looking at it from a realistic perspective it does not make any sense whatsoever. Watching Utena may be less confusing.
Haruka's route will also make you want to scream in frustration. Her tragic backstory is implausible (why the hell were the people taking care of her not convicted of abuse?) and the motivations of the antagonist, Kanata, are silly at best. The rest of the route is comprised of more cheap plot twists and embarrassingly cliche melodrama. Heck, there's even a scene where the weather changes from sunshine to storm as soon as Haruka starts crying. How much more cheesy can you get? Little Busters seems to experiment with the limits.
Things do improve, though. After a decent start and two terrible arcs, the last third of the story provides a satisfying dénouement showing how each of the characters have grown over the course of the series. The last episode in particular is quite nice, with the long-awaited baseball game being played in high spirits. Some might argue that this improvement is too little too late. They might be right.
One area where Little Busters does not disappoint is with its soundtrack. There may not be anything on the same level of "Dango Kazoku" to mess with your emotions, but the soundtrack as a whole is solid and surprisingly memorable. Then again, it's pretty hard to make mistakes when you are deriving almost all music from the source material.
Little Busters' endearing characters are complimented by a highly talented cast of seiyuu. Yui Horie provides a convincing role for a male character (though does little to make Riki any less bland) while Masato's seiyuu does a wonderful job at delivering the comedy. Rin and Kud on the other hand will probably kill your heart from how adorable they sound.
There isn't much to praise about the art, but it certainly isn't bad. Just average. Just middling. For a TV anime it is passable, but when comparing it to previous Key adaptations you will definitely notice a significant drop in quality. Off-model faces are frequent and many scenes are reduced to panning and 'talking heads': devoid of any animation besides the character's mouth flapping. For an adaptation of one of the most successful visual novels, you would normally expect the artwork to at least be above-average. Not here.
As an adaptation, it is worth mentioning how it compares to the source material. Is it a bad adaptation? It is. If you want to experience the story as it is intended, it would be in your best interests to give the visual novel a read instead. On its own merits and as a condensed version of the story, however, J.C. Staff's adaptation is merely passable. It doesn't completely butcher the story but with the rushed pacing, poor characterization (especially with regards to Riki), lackluster art and incomplete story— most of the charm that made the visual novel so beloved is nonexistent here. At least there's more cute Rin scenes, though! Maybe that is the one and only good thing.
Little Busters will not be winning any awards for its writing or production qualities, but when taken as an entertaining comedy with likable characters, it is at least worth a watch. Putting aside the expectations, you will certainly find some enjoyment in Key's latest animated venture.
Hopefully, too, J.C. Staff won't let us down too much in the sequel. I can think of few things that would be more disastrous.
Stark700
There are many things in this world that can break a person's heart. Whether it's a tragedy, a memory, a breakup, a betrayal, or just because, these things can affect an individual's well being beyond repair. It's not like a physical injury where the wound heals. It's emotional and affect's a person's heart. Once that's damaged, it can be very difficult or in many cases, become unhealable. Luckily though, there are ways to go through this process. For starters, friends are probably one of the best medicines. In fact, friends are one of the most valuable things that should be treasured in this world. It'snot purchased at your local grocery store. It can't be collected like baseball cards. It can't be earned like points from a video game. Rather, a friend is a someone who looks after your well being and someone that you hold mutual affection for. When you're having a bad day, they are there for you and someone who can understand the situation. Through friendship comes forth a connection as people learn more about each other and more about themselves. If you look back through those memories and your photo albums, you might remember some of those memories of childhood. These memories that are built with your friends are irreplaceable and as long as you treasure them, nothing can take that away. With these friends, you learn to climb the stairs to adolescence through experiences while learning about the world. You know what that's called?
It's called growing up.
At last it's here! Fan of the popular Little Busters visual novel have always dreamed the possibility of an anime adaptation. Now, that dream has become a reality. The long awaited LB visual novel has become an anime series. The series is handed by J.C. Staff (Toradora! Sakurasou Pet no Kanojo, Hatsukoi Limited) who are already known for their high school settings involving students in a lighthearted environment in a zone of drama, comedy, romance, and emotions. Now, this could cause some mixed feelings for people especially for die-heard fans coming from the visual novel. In fact, the visual novel released in 2007 became ranked second for national PC game pre-orders in Japan as well as holding the number one top seller spot that summer. The polls set up later that year also gave the franchise a strong impression in all categories with the exception of visuals in terms of its rankings. This may all sound impressive but can the anime series live up the hype? Can Little Busters gives the fans what they want and deserve? Or rather, how can it be appealing to the fans (both VN players and anime original fans)? Is it worth watching? These may all be questions some people may wonder about. Well, let us find out what Little Busters offers from its anime adaptation.
First of all, the series is based off of a Key's work. They are known to bring viewers to tears with their strong emotional dialogue, visuals, and the soundtrack to present them in a way that is heartwarming. In fact, their previous works such as Air, Kanon, and Clannad (with its sequel Clannad After Story) all accomplished this in some way or form that have left a strong impression of emotions to fans. In this adaptation though, there seems to be a bit of lacking in that department. In fact, this series seem to shift more into the department of comedy rather than emotional appeal. Well, let's get to the part later but this is my original impression on the series after its first episodes.
LB takes place at a high school in Japan. From there on, we have Riki Naoe, the main protagonist of the series. He is a ordinary boy with nothing much to stand out with his features; the girlish look, expressions, weak build that can sometimes can be mistaken as a trap when dressed in a specific way. Furthermore, he has a sad past that we can call a tragedy considering the death of his parents when he was young. He also suffers from a case of narcolepsy, where he suffers from a lack of sleep. Yet at the same time, we can see that Riki is a very kind boy who is gentle and has a tendency to help others in need. As fate calls for it, Riki is helping to recruit others with his group of friends known as the Little Busters.
The team has it all.
We have the muscle and hotheaded member of the group - Masato Inohara. He is a roommate of Riki and a devoted friend of his. Often known for his quick anger and strange ideas, Masato is seen as loyal and sometimes a little bit too enthusiastic with things related to his friends and himself. We have Kengo Miyazawa whose loyalty is unmatched by anyone in terms of devotion to the team. His skills in kendo is one to be feared coupled with his personality. Then, there's Kyousuke Natsume who is known as the leader of the team. He is seen as the senpai (because he is older) and often has a head of strange ideas that can be abnormal. Yet, it is clear that Kyousake has the guts and skills to be the leader for his ways of thinking and loyalty. Now, that's just the boys side. Let's get to the ….*ahem* better part: the ladies of the team.
The main female protagonist in the series is Kyousuke's little sister, Rin Natsume. She is seen as a timid girl with weak social skills and often or not, hangs out with cats which is she highly fond of. Despite this, she is skilled with pitching and values the friends as well as the experiences she shares with her friends. Then we have the more childish girl Komari who is often seen as a clumsy little kid but often makes a fun impression on the viewers with her expressions and gags. Behind that image though lies a dark past, one which has left a trail of pain and sorrow. In one episode, it even caused her to go into a state of shock just based on that painful memory.
On the more serious side, there is Mio Nishizono, a calm girl who maintains a mature and reserved personality. Being a book lover, she often likes to read rather than hanging out with friends. Her parsol hides more than just her appearance as like others, she also has an interesting past that is explored later on. Likewise, we also have the more mature girl (and one of my personal favorites) Yuiko Kurugaya. Although the same age as others, she is seen as the older sister type with a replica of the katana for showing off her extra features. Despite being mischievous and almost a trickster at times, she knows when someone needs help and offers it without a second thought.
By this point now, a viewer can see the many characters of the series and get a good idea of their various personalities. I mean, LB has it all in terms of characteristics – the hotheaded guy, the mature oniisama, the cute little mascot, the shy cat-loving girl, the normal boy who has a not-so normal health, and the leader who brings them all together. However, the problem lies in some of their characters being one-dimensional. The high school outfits most of the characters wear are also a bit generic in the sense that they don't stand out much. Except perhaps the school council president, most of the characters hardly cares about the way they are dressed at school. It is amusing at the same time though to watch what they do with the team especially out on the field together.
Despite some of the action presented in the form of duels at school, the series often leans more towards the comedy department. From the first episode, we can see that the duels themselves has little serious risk on the line besides the bragging rights and earning an embarrassing name (lol). At often times, these duels are portrayed as being over the top humorous with the objects involved. The duels themselves are also often cliched and has no typical strategy involved. I have not played the visual novel but from this anime adaptation, it seems to try way too hard and at times too random. It works out at times but at other cases just seems too purposeless and unreasonable.
Because the series also takes place at high school, expect the common themes such as joining a club, making friends, relieving past memories, being school disciplined, and drama. Speaking of which, the series does occasionally pull itself through with the drama presented. J.C. Staff is known for some of their series that progresses drama in sequences. In Little Busters, it follows a similar fashion but only in arcs. The series itself takes these arcs and pinpoints individual characters who gets their highlights. In other words, it doesn't follow the usual linear storyline. Rather, it focuses on a more progressive character direction that is driven by LB's themes.
Unfortunately, the series suffers a number of problems that may be hard to redeem itself. The series often tries way too hard with its drama. In fact, one could call it as almost being artificially crafted from the the characters' development themselves. To add on more to that injury, there hardly is any development because some of the arcs either does one of the following: moves too slow or rushes it way too fast. It doesn't balance it together well. In fact, even some of the emotions portrayed in the various arcs lacks real passion with a weak feeling of realism. As there are even some filler episodes, the series lacks a true progression to fit material to be adapted. Then, there's the problem with the romance aspect of the show. For some reason, I cannot get into the feeling of romance into this at all. In fact, I hardly notice it being present because the show seems to focus far too much on comedy. Not to mention that, the moe like features, expressions, and sometimes random gags seems to become a distraction.
Then, there is a problem with adaptation. I have not played the original visual novel game even though it has a huge fan base. From the various comments, feedback, and other sources, the series seems to suffer a case of this especially involved with “things that should be there but aren't”. It's hard to meet everyone's expectations especially with a caliber of a series such as Little Busters but from an objective standpoint, that's not an excuse. J.C. Staff has a history of adaptations – some which transformed into a revolution while others dropped the ball. From the viewpoint of an anime-only viewer, I will say that J.C. Staff pulled off an alright adaptation. However, based on some technical backgrounds, the series just pulls way too many comedy with not enough what the fans actually may want. It's a bit of a disappointment but I guess we always can't get everything we want. To me though, this looked like a buildup to a greater medium.
The artwork of Little Busters comes together like a picture frame on a wall. It fits right but probably not all the way through especially in some of the earlier episodes. It does have its appealing imagery though especially with expressions on some of the characters' faces during various reaction scenes. For more of the fun factors, there is the moe incidences of some of the younger characters. The series adapts these scenes to seemingly give a lighthearted outlook because the series has a more pleasant feeling of fun and high school comedy. At other incidences though, there are serious scenes and even emotions especially in one of the later arcs. The background artwork seems only mediocre though and nothing seems to stand out. Along with the school uniforms, the series keeps itself with its generic designs.
As for music/soundtrack, the series maintains its composure of that lighthearted melody. Jun Maeda orchestrates the rhythms for the series whom is already known for his other works such as Air, Clannad, and Kanon. In general, I found the overall tone of the soundtrack to be above mediocre but not too unique. Most of the OST is lighthearted with a soft paced tone. Although beautiful and melancholic at many variances, it seems to be a bit repetitive and ultimately becomes somewhat overbearing in various scenes. It's almost as if the music is on repeat. The OP song, Little Busters! by Rita depicts the team members from the series formed by friendship, connections, and unity. It also shows some expressions from various characters that can be seen as melancholic or out of this world. (especially for Riki's case) The ED song follows a similar suit.
Ultimately, Little Busters is a charming little gem but occasionally loses its shine. By the way it portrays itself, the series suffers flaws from pacing, direction, a seemingly weak adaptation coupled with some edgy artwork problems. The series also misdirects and fails to bring emotions from what fans expected from the characters themselves. It's not pleasing when you realize that something so emotional can zoom so fast right through. The series does make its way with good comedy though and its colorful cast of characters. Along with that, LB brings for a heartwarming feeling to viewers especially when you're looking for something lighthearted to watch. The characters themselves forms the team known as Little Busters (the title of the anime itself) and with that, they walk down a future of dreams and friendship; at least for now.
Historia-Li
Little Busters! If you're like me and you're thinking about watching this because the visual novel was made by Key, don't. Watch it with an independent mindset, free of Clannad, Kanon, etc. If you don't you're just gonna find disappointment. Story: 6/10 The story was definitely not as good as Key's previous works. Yes, it followed the general plot of a high school boy helping multiple girls cope and effectively saving their lives in one way or the other, but it simply was not as engaging. There were many story elements that could have been left out. For example, Riki's narcolepsy. So what? It did not influencethe progression of the story whatsoever. There was also no romantic interest, but the friendships gained throughout the series filled in the hole nicely for those who don't mind the absence of romance.
Art: 10/10
As expected, it was beautifully animated. No complaints.
Sound: 5/10
The music lacked variety. There was probably one tune that played in every emotional scene throughout the show. Variety is always good when the anime is only about friendship and nothing else is going on. Otherwise the show becomes drab very quickly. Also, the female voices were THE MOST annoying I have ever heard. I was relieved when Kurugaya would speak as she was the only normal sounding female voice in the series. This anime is not for people who detest whimpering, crybaby voice work that sounds like Asian porn.
Character: 7/10
The characters were good with each having his/her own unique personalities. Each fought their own battles, emerging as victorious, developed characters. They were funny when they were supposed to be, and emotional when it was expected. However, I could not get around how they acted like 5 year olds throughout the whole show. If the producers were aiming for a moe approach, they definitely failed. I saw nothing cute in these characters at all. Maybe it's because i'm not into that stuff. But panty shots of bears and ducks on teenage girls aren't really my thing. I found it awkward and completely unnecessary to the story.
Enjoyment/Overall 5/10
It was definitely not as enjoyable as I thought it would be. Towards the middle of the season, I was struggling to keep watching. I have a policy to watch an anime all the way through once I reach a certain point, so there was no going back. The story was boring and the characters were annoying. As usual, Key was aiming for an emotional tale that would grip our hearts and make us feel the pain the characters felt but this simply was not the case this time. It was just, meh. I would recommend this like I would recommend SAO: I wouldn't. Unless you like mediocre anime that relies solely on fan service to get viewers.
So if you just finished Clannad and want to watch another one of Key's visual novels animated, do yourself a favor and skip this one and watch Angel Beats or something instead.
There is a second season titled "Little Busters: Refrain" and i'm going to be watching it when it airs toward the end of 2013. Who knows? Maybe it will pull an "Afterstory" on us and crush our hearts to bits before an amazing ending. Hopefully it isn't as painful to watch as Season 1 was.
Aphyxia
At first I thought this show was about baseball and let it slip by fast. Then I found out it was not and decided to give it a try. I regret it. After having watched the first 6 episodes the anime was seriously below my expectations. Alas I read on the forums here that it gets better after about the 7th episode or so. So I pressed on. A waste of time, I tell you, I should've just dropped it right there and moved on to something that I could actually enjoy. The anime suffers from bad story setup and lots of filler moments. What I meanby the latter is moments that really had no reason to be in the anime except to prolong it. Little Busters could be told in 12 episodes in a way that it would be actually interesting to watch.
In it's current state, however, it was boring. It was so boring that I sometimes just left it playing in the background in small screen with "always on top turned" on and turned my attention elsewhere or even played music to make the experience at least a little bit bearable. I wanted to watch it all to give an accurate review.
Regarding the story, sure, there were some good moments or ideas but I've watched even worse anime that had those. Most of it was the usual stuff you could see coming from a mile away and when things actually got interesting for a moment, it was all ruined with a bad conclusion which either was very simple (but somehow still needed Riki's help) or it was solved with magic (as in - that's the way thing are, don't ask questions). Especially horrid was the 23rd episode. Just goes to show that no it doesn't get better after the 7th episode, it's just as bad till the end. However, it does make you think that it'll get better.
Soundwise, the BGM was forgettable, the OP and ED poor, or not my style, whichever you prefer.
Characters were interesting (generally) for a brief moment when it was their time to shine (their arc) but after that they became generic and dull characters yet again. The two huge guy friends were at times especially painful to watch.
The art being good is the only thing that saves this anime from an even worse score. That and cute voice acting. This anime might have the cutest "moe noises" ever. The most interesting part was actually the ending but with the disappointment that is Little Busters, I doubt I'm going to want to watch the second season.
Wafuu~ and skip this anime.
Lambda-kun
Oh god I hate this anime, the game was refreshing but the anime... You can't talk about it without being seriously enraged. I didn't really care about Key's works before, but this time I had to react. Let's start with the characters: they're all a bunch of stereotypes patchworks from the previous Key's works. I didn't find any girls interesting except for Mio and Rin. Mio's arc from the season 1 was the best one in my opinion, Kud's arc was the worst piece of shit ever. The music was inspired by Wii Sports it seems, it didn't really bring me any sadness or whatever, and thecomedy-performance was really poor. I swear, I've never seen worse except for Clannad. And the story in general was very poorly written, this is really a generic harem except for some artificial extensions like baseball which brings this to a sport anime.
Let's talk about the few arcs, the first one was about Komari. I really find the concept interesting, but in the end you get the loli's artificial crying and it made me fucking angry.
I remember the pink haired twins being probably the worst after Kud. And the pseudo-vice-president or whatever was playing tsundere so bad that it makes Haruhi Susumiya looks like a god. Mio's arc was really a piece of art, this character was credible because she reminded me of myself, the stuff about the self-preservation, the cultivation books and of course the yaoi was the best part.
Something really sucks about this show and would be the main-protagonist Riki: he's supposed to build a harem, but in your mind you'll think he's a girl (his voice is the most girly compared to the others girls); this is truly laughable. Of course the others guys are the essential factors for developing his "virility". Good luck in whatever they are doing!
Asfaria
Little Busters! is the newest Key visual novel to be turned into a romantic/drama anime (along with Air, Kanon, Clannad) it is the second anime to be produced (after Angel Beats which was not a visual novel before becoming an anime) to be produced by J.C. Staff instead of Kyoto Animation. One thing to note about this show is that like its predecessors, it is about a main male character helping out other characters (usually female) and solving their problems. Along the way, a lot of drama, awesome music to complement said drama, and occasionally (well really only one so far in this anime) supernaturalevents occur.
Plot – 5
The plot of Little Busters is nothing special. Before going any further though let me tell you that this is because the entire season is devoted to introducing the characters and sets up what is supposed to be the much better second season (Refrain) that was announced at the end of Episode 26. Unfortunately, this show still does not pull off its first season as well as Clannad did, so let’s hope the second season is just as good and even better than the After Story. The plot consists of the main character, Naoe Riki, collecting members (mostly girls) to join the baseball team that he and his four other childhood friends started at their high school. This all began because Kyousuke, the leader of this group of friends and the oldest, wanted to do something fun together with everyone before he graduated at the end of the year and had to leave them. The one problem I find with this idea of gathering characters is that for some characters (especially Komari the first to join) I kind of forgot what their backstory was by the end since I watched this over several months as it was released. For some characters, like Kud and Haruka who have later arcs after they have already joined, this isn’t as much of a problem. But if you’re watching this simply for the baseball, you won’t find much here. One last thing, unlike all of Key’s other shows, so far at least, Little Busters has almost no romance whatsoever. It’s never shown if anyone even has a crush on Riki or if Riki likes anyone as more than friend. The only romance at all is between Kengo and one other girl a little bit towards the end and between two minor characters, one of which has appearances in about 3 episodes and the other only gets one episode and nothing ever happens with that.
Art – 9
The art is pretty good. The character designs are interesting and unique, and some of the scenes really have amazing visuals like starry night skies and sunsets. The visuals fit the sadder scenes nicely and change well according to what is going on.
Sound – 9
Obviously being a Key anime it’s going to have a dramatic soundtrack (it better at least). This show doesn’t quite stand up to Angel Beats or Clannad’s soundtrack, but it does have some perfect songs for the mood (especially “In the town of continuing rain” which I loved hearing every time it was played). It may take time to adjust to Komari’s voice though as she has a “frail” sounding voice (and Riki sound really young).
Characters – 8
There are a lot of characters (much like in Angel Beats) but Little Busters does a fairly good job of getting you to know each character. One thing that they did do right was make unique characters. Naoe Riki is a good main character who helps everyone solve their problems and has narcolepsy. I kind of wish they had used his narcolepsy a bit more during this season (I think he has three attacks in 26 episodes?), but I’m guessing it comes more into the series in Refrain. Rin is Kyousuke’s younger sister and the only girl in their group of friends prior to starting the Little Busters! team. She is a very shy girl who does not like talking to new people. Masato is a boy obsessed with his muscles and relies on being Riki’s roommate in order to survive. Kengo is the only of the orginal five who does join the Little Busters right off the bat (sorry) because he is in kendo club. There are too many other characters to list them all separately but just know that all of the other girls who join later have some kind of tragic past (only Kurugaya does not get an arc in this, but I think I’ve heard she has something more in Refrain?)
Enjoyment – 7
I liked Little Busters! but I definitely don’t think it was the best Key anime so far. I’m really looking forward to Refrain, though, and I hope it will be as big of a success as the After Story was. I recommend waiting to watch this show until Refrain comes out since this anime lacks the romance that I was expecting it to have by now.
Cosmic06Star
(Please read the Review before saying its not helpful just by the score. because you never know what might happen, you might actually change your mind!! ... which is impossible .. eh at least read the review before bashing) and there might be some minor spoilers. but no biggy :DD Now that I finished this anime I can finally give it a proper review. Did I love Little Busters? OF COURSE I DID. I always had my doubts that somehow in the end the anime wont satisfy me, because it started slow and I thought that it wouldn't be true the the Original visual novel, andme thinking that the whole series will just be finished in 26 episodes wasn't helping at all... But I was wrong because there is a season 2, and that made me really happy.
Now before I start the review lets state some facts. Little Busters! is originally a Visual Novel Developed by Key, The company that makes awesomely amazing series that would probably make the manliest man on earth cry, and I was never disappointing in any of their work . And here I can easily say that Little Busters! is my favorite Key series ( and I played/watched all of Key's Titles!! O.O )
Story:
So the main story revolves around this kid named "Naoe Riki" who is in high school.. enjoying the school life and just hanging with his childhood friends (Rin, Masato and kengo)... you know high school stuff. But all this changes when his friend Kyouske comes back from Tokyo and suddenly decides to create a baseball team by the name of "Little busters!" (weeh shcokerz!). So from there on they give Riki the mission of finding other members to join the team, and that is how our main character meets the other 5 girls, they join the team and they all become this cutey big family. So the story progresses like most Key titles with Riki listening to the other girls problems and help them solve what ever is on their minds, sounds fair enough right? well here is where it gets tricky, aside of all that Riki and Rin keep reviving these mysterious messages stating that there is a secret of the world they live in, and they have to figure out what that secret is, Riki and Rin start receiving different tasks that moves them closer to the answer. Now I don't wanna spoil anything, but I can say that the secret of the world is reaaaaaaally jaw dropping and ... just shocking (in a good way), it changes the whole view of the series.
Ok so was season 1 good and true to the visual novel? for me the answer is yes, because now that I finished season 1 I can tell where the developers were going when they made it. The main point of this season is to show us the characters in the best way possible, to let us explore the world of Little Busters! to let us see the characters such as Riki and Rin develop. They didn't rush the anime, they didn't go into the serious part, and they saved all that for season 2 (Refrain) which is a pretty good move because now we have seen all the characters, we know exactly who they are, we some them develop, now in Refrain we can relate more to them and understand them much better.
Art:
I have to be honest here, as much as I loved the anime .. I have to say that the art wasn't that amazing, It was a bit weird ... I am not sure what exactly was wrong with it, but i didn't like it as much as the Visual Novel's.
Characters:
I think the character design is a major positive point in Little busters! because the characters were just amazing, at first you might see them a bit bland.. and a tad silly, but as you proceed in the series you will discover how awesome they are. Every character is unique and has his/her special design and his/her own awesome personality. All of them are lovable, I myself loved each and every character, and I think they are one of the most unique characters of any series i watched.
Sound:
When has Key ever made bad music. The music is just freaking hawt!! ahm excuse me I just loved the soundtrack... so anyway, you might not notice the background music that much in the anime because its an anime, and you don't really focus on the music in an anime as much as when you are reading a visual novel. But the anime did use the same OST and all of them were used perfectly and they all fit the moment.
The voice acting was good. Great at times and just Ok at other times.
So if I want to compare the anime with the original Visual Novel then I can just say that it was true to it. even though it skipped some small details here and there, but the anime was quite long, 26 episodes I think that's enough to explain the main story of the series and introduce the characters and the comedy was awwwesome :DD. All that aside the anime did have some changes that I quite loved and weren't in the VN. such as showing that some of the characters know what the secret of the world is, which builds up a really strong impact towards them. And I also loved the story Komari wrote about the The boy and girl helping the 8 dwarfs, I thought that was a really nice touch.
So yeah.. All I can say is that I loved Little Busters! even if I didn't read the visual novel I am pretty sure I would have loved it as well. A lot of people are bashing the anime even fans of the visual novel... I think these people should just chill and enjoy the wonderful world of Little Busters! :3
CamoBullo
Little Busters suffers from something I like to call “Key Syndrome”. Effects of it include a male lead, a bunch of attractive females who have their own characters arcs as a means of developing them, a story that really sticks with the viewer and inane fantasy nonsense that shouldn’t be there to begin with. Key Syndrome mainly works in the anime’s favour however, with Clannad being the most potent example of how the formula works. Little Busters attempts to do the same with the same attitude and demeanour as Clannad, dare I say, it’s practically the same thing. Does this make Little Busters bad? No,though it makes it very misguided as its own individual series to the point where it’s nearly the same than watching another anime altogether.
And, no: I haven’t played the Visual Novel. It’ll be evaluated as an anime only.
Little Busters stars token Key Syndrome male lead Riki, a boy who lost his parents and suffers from narcolepsy, which will put him to sleep whenever the plot wants to come to screeching halt. Compared to Tomoya from Clannad, he’s seemingly fortunate to not have parents and actually have people supporting him from the very beginning – such a lovely change of pace. Riki is a second year student at a high school along with the rest of his social group, including the most popular male in the whole school (who, interestingly, likes to fuel the Yaoi truck with Riki) and a shy girl who spends her time with cats until she is inevitably developed into including more friends into her life and comfort zone.
One of the things Little Busters seemingly did not contract from Key Syndrome is the plot – it’s surprisingly weak and instantly forgettable, which isn’t a good sign. Riki and his gang of misfits form a new school baseball team; because it’ll be the last thing they do together. The popular aforementioned male – whose name is Ryousuke – will be graduating after the school year is over, since he’s the oldest member of the group. The team is named Little Busters, due to it being their group name when they were kids. However, the plot transcends the baseball and becomes Clannad: Riki meets girls along the course of the story, they have tragic pasts and it’s up to him to basically resolve their anguish through friendship. Another plotline is that Riki and the shy girl must do eight challenges in order to find out the secret of the world.
There’s too much going on and this is the main problem of the entire anime.
At first the baseball plotline seems like the most prevalent one – it’s usually the main focus and something baseball related happens nearly every episode, so of course it’d make sense that it’d be the main focus and yet Clannad bursts into the room, holding baseball against its will. Little Busters tries to follow its older brother rather too closely, in the centre of its large shadow. Unlike Clannad, where those character arcs are mainly devoid of any fantasy, half of the character arcs in Little Busters have a fantasy element which is not explained whatsoever. This is particularly jarring in the last character arc, in which a deus ex machina saves the focused character in the most ridiculous way possible. The secret of the world plot seems to be, curiously, the main story yet it’s rarely touched upon and may as well been the entire series. Little Busters suffers from too much going on and the Key Syndrome didn’t give it the factor that it needed the most.
The unfocused plot becomes somewhat problematic when other characters are introduced, which is another problem with the series. Usually, a great plot is complemented with great characters, as both the story and characters stick with the viewer. With its messy plot, Little Busters’ characters can’t complement the story whatsoever, rather complement each other. Instead of introducing a character for the sole purpose of having a character arc about them, Little Busters did something that would’ve worked tremendously if the story wasn’t unfocused – introduce the characters long before they become a main focus. In their introductions, they’re usually the focus which allows the audience to get to know them better, allowing you to care for them later on. Not all of the characters get an arc to themselves, such as Kurugaya who acts as a voice of moral reason and always wants to be surrounded by the rest of the female cast (she pilots the Yuri plane). Little Busters’ characters are the most endearing part of the entire experience, brought down by its riddled story.
The art style and music is something that’s… not exactly worth mentioning. It’s the same studio as Angel Beats so the characters retain that style, which isn’t exactly bad but it doesn’t scream fantastic: it’s a very colourful art style that isn’t dull, yet also isn’t impressive at the same time. The music is something that could be called forgettable. The opening and ending themes are alright at best, nothing too inspiring but the music cues are usually overshadowed by Riki’s annoying narration every ten minutes or just casual discussion. This is one of the factors where it doesn’t try to be Clannad, though perhaps it should’ve been. Clannad’s music was so touching and memorable: it made it stand out. Little Busters is, unfortunately, weak in both of these areas. It’s taken its cues from areas that already needed some improvement.
Little Busters one-ups Clannad in one factor though: humour. Little Busters seems to be a lot funnier than its older sibling, which ultimately is brought by it’s interesting characters and their mannerisms. Kurugaya will always coin a lesbian joke here and there, yet it involves herself; that not only seems appropriate but also hilarious given the comedic situations that ensue later. One of the characters, Masato, will usually get into a fight with another character. This is played for laughs, as Ryousuke will ask the other students to throw any item that can manage to get their hands on, which usually ends badly for Masato, who is usually given a gag weapon, such as soap. This does happen often during the course of the series, though it’s funny every time to see him defeated in a different way every time. Upon defeat, the victor gives him a name which upon he will be called for the rest of the day or longer. It’s one of those occasions where, despite being in another language, the humour crosses over well with western audiences.
Little Busters isn’t a bad experience, dare I say that it was actually enjoyable. However, the fantasy feels very misplaced, as it shouldn’t really exist in the first place. The story was all over the place, it lacked a true central focus and the art and sound isn’t the best you’ll ever see. However, the characters are the best part of the entire series, some of the themes in the character arcs are actually endearing, which is a shame since it seems like they should be the main focus of the whole thing. The ending isn’t complete, though a second season is on its way which will basically be Littler Busters: After Story (though it’s called Refrain). In the end, Little Busters will have you remember its characters, it’s funny moments and its charm. With the preview at the end of the final episode, we can only hope that Little Busters: Refrain will be even better.
Naoe-Riki
To those who've never played the Visual novel: My review would be different for 2 kinds of audience: The People who've played Little Busters Visual Novel and those who haven't. I will explain later as to why. I'll start off to those who've haven't seen the visual novel. At first glance you would believe it to be a usual happy-go-lucky comedy anime with very few character developments, but just like many of Key's works, Little Busters is in no way a happy-go-lucky anime. It is filled with drama that would put you at the edge of your seat at every turn. For those searching for comedy, thenthis anime is just for you. If your one to look for romance, then this anime is very romantic, except, not in a "girl and boy like each other" romance. Its romantic in a way that its dramatic romance. The characters are unique and balanced. Each character balances out the other, and makes the show even more interesting. The anime focuses on the relationship of the Little Busters, and does not go beyond friendship
To be quick, if your one to find a new anime with comedy and romantic friendship and drama, this anime is perfect for you. I would recommend it. I admire the staff because they tried to change the some parts of the story and give some spice for original LB fans.
To those who've played the Visual novel:
I'll be frank. It was a big disappointment as an LB fan. I waited for a proper adaption since as usual, Visual Novels are vague to me, so I clear out the visual novel and then wait for an adaption. Well, to be frank, the Anime DID clear out the vague parts which are hard to understand with words only. The problem was that the staff did unnecessary and can be quite pissing changes. I won't point out the changes since these would show spoilers, basically, how I viewed the story and its value became VERY much less. Although important parts were well in place, they made changes on how these parts were shown. They forgot to add important details and disturbingly focused on friendship rather than the actual theme. They reduced romance to mere friendship drama and focused on comedy and friendships. They added unnecessary details and to be frank, in the visual novel, after each route I was at the edge of my seat about to cry(and yes, this happened even after repeating the story many times over), but the anime did not even bring me to the edge of my desk.
Well, to conclude, the anime is certainly worth watching, but the visual novel is certainly better. As an LB! fan, the anime would definitely give you a new perspective of the story, so if your curious, GO WATCH!. There were changes here and there from the original story (which from me was very important and really pissed me off because of the changes), but the important parts were properly done. The art was very good, the voice actors did a wonderful job, the BGM was good, and character development was, as usual from Key works, wonderfully done
Yume_to_Tsubasa
The first thing I'd like to say about Little Busters! is to "give it a chance". If you can get past the first three episodes, you will be probably be able to ease into it- and the story will start to make a lot more sense. One problem with Little Busters! seems to be that people expect another Clannad (possibly the most successful anime adaptation of a Key game thus far) animated by Kyoto Animation along with Air and Kanon 2006. What strikes me is that even before watching Little Busters!, many viewers who are familiar with other Key titles (animated by Kyoto Animation) already have acertain prejudice; that the show must somehow not be as great just because another company produced it. Or perhaps the opposite train of thought; Little Busters! should be great because Key created the game.
The fact is, however, that "who created what" aside, Little Busters! cannot be the same as its predecessors. It's a different game.
In case you haven't noticed, it is not called "Clannad II" or "Kanon the Sequel". Yes, Maeda Jun's distinctive style is evident in the plot and characters, but walking into something with colored glasses on can really ruin the experience.
So throw the comparisons aside and prepare to enjoy Little Busters! as it is. The story can be a little difficult to understand at times, but I feel that J.C. Staff did a great job, particularly considering they had about three episodes to spare for each character's route. In addition, the game itself is structured in a way where each route is somewhat incomplete when it stands alone. The pieces really don't fall together until Refrain- which in turn won't really make sense until the first season is viewed.
Conclusion: Good luck with the first few episodes as you ease into it, forget about Clannad, enjoy Little Busters! as Little Busters!, and finish with Refrain; it's a good watch if you are okay with something with a slightly heavier storyline.
SakurasouBusters
Little busters is my favorite anime of 2013, and may be my new favorite of all time, i know that alot don't like it, but i think it was a great adaption of the visual novel (Refrain still to come) Story: 10- Little busters has an absolutely amazing story, for those who havent played the visual novel some scenes will likely be fairly confusing but it all will make sense eventually :) the theme of friendship is presented here i think perfectly :) Art: 6- The only average part of this anime is the art. Its not lousy, ive seen plenty worse, but it could have beenmuch better.
Sound: 10- The voice acting here i think is very well done, all the characters except for mio have the same VA from the visual novel, but mio's replacement did a fine job. Also the Opening is amazing, the ending is as well, the soundtrack themes are one of the best soundtracks ive ever heard as well.
Characters: 10- All the main and supporting characters are unique in their own way, from the eccentric Haruka, the childish Komari, the mature Kurugaya, the mysterious mio, and all of the original members of the Little Busters are all likeable and unique characters.
Enjoyment: 10- While quite a few episodes were quite sad and emotional(In particular Haruka and Mio's arcs, as well as the last 3 episodes) their were plenty of bright and lighthearted moments as well, i couldn't have enjoyed it more.
Overall: 10- Little Busters is an anime that doesn't come around every day, it truly is special and in my honest opinion a real masterpiece
:)
Zelot
Please bear in mind that I have yet to finish the visual novel of Little Busters, still working on getting introduced to the characters, therefore I shall not be comparing the adaption to the visual novel. I will be comparing this anime with another of Key's work, Clannad [Not After Story (Actually, the first few small arcs of After Story)] Story - 9 The story starts off by introducing multiple characters, and then going into character arcs in where the main character helps out the character that needs the help. Very very similar to Clannad. The character arcs were great!... except a fewof them had random supernatural moments, something I wasn't expecting from this anime, as the anime never really showed anything supernatural until the part it happens at. Don't get me wrong, the arcs are still wonderful, enjoyable, addicting and emotional! I did feel that the character arcs were a bit choppy, going from one arc to another without much of transition.
Art - 8
The art was wonderful, colors were pretty good, I enjoyed the style of everything. Not much to talk about.
Sound - 9
Doing exactly what KyoAni did with Clannad, J.C pretty much used the soundtrack from the Visual Novel. I still absolutely love the soundtrack, as they are great at setting the moods. I also enjoyed the OP as well, a song that uplifts the spirit, something the entire anime is about!
Characters- 10
The thing about this anime that stands out the most are their characters!
I absolutely love the design of the characters (especially the female ones, they just look awesome!). Their personalities are the typical ones found in other animes, the optimistic ones, the shy ones, the cute ones, but we get to see what happens to their personality as they are presented with a conflict of some sort. (Some of the characters are so kawaii, I mean so very very kawaii.. Kud
rocky716
From the makers of Clannad and Clannad After Story comes the story of group of childhood friends who form a baseball team in a last ditch effort to create lasting memories before they all graduate and go their separate ways. The main character Riki is tasked to find more members (preferably girls) to join their team The Little Busters. However, beyond this simplicity lies much deeper subplots. These subplots concern the insecurities and hardships of the new female members of The Little Busters. Some are much more simple to comprehend immediately, while others are shrouded in mystery which isn't revealed untilthe last minute.
To me, the story was interesting and unexpectedly good. This wasn't an anime that you could predict where it was going. It had unique scenarios that were believable and emotional. Where the anime stood the best was in its subplots.
As far as main characters go Riki is one of the first likable main male characters to exist in a show like this. Usually, the main character has a mediocre personality and the viewer wonders why girls are so obsessed with him. However, Riki is kind, honest, calm, and caring to others. He puts other peoples' concerns in priority to his own concerns. Moving beyond the main lead character, I believe the other main characters were great to. It was good to see that the main lead didn't just have that "one guy best friend". He had three others with outrageous personalities. The main girls were great and had a lot to offer in the show. Although at times I thought the voices of a couple of them were a little unbearable, each girl was unique and special.
The only objections I have to this show is that it didn't close some extremely interesting plot holes. Who is sending the letters? Why is Riki's narcolepsy so significant? What is the secret of this world? If the anime closed some of those holes I would have gave it a better grade, but ultimately I still think this is a good anime. I would suggest it to those who are looking for slice of life, deep character development, and unique subplots. I would highly recommend it to people who liked Clannad and Clannad After Story.
EcchiPowa
Key, Key, Key . . . What do we have here? Little Busters! eh? If you're searching for stories like Clannad, Angel Beats, Kanon or any other Key work. This is something that you should watch. The Anime ver. is not as good as the Game ver. .. Because there are a lot of information withheld here. Though it feels like cheating since I know the story through the game, which actually made me cry more than Clannad. So for the objectives ... Story 8 / 10 Frankly speaking, the Anime version toned down the "Tear Meter" a lot, it could have made more impact if the last episodehad shown the person who knows the "Truth" of the world. But the anime did a great job on the Comedy scenes, no problem with that.
Art 10 / 10
Key's art is one of the best IMHO, Still improving and going strong.
Sound 10 / 10
No, really. Since there is no more score higher than 10, the music here has a lot of meaning, same with Clannad and Angel Beats, though if I was asked which music is rated higher, then there is a clear distinction of #1 for Clannad #2 for Angel Beats and #3 for Little Busters! ...
Character 10 / 10
One of the elements that keep the story going, being true to one's nature no matter the circumstances are, to improve throughout the series and make the watchers think about their own characteristics.
Enjoyment 10 / 10
It could have been better but it easily made 10 for me. Every episode gives you another meaning of "Watching" though it is as expected because it is from Key. Crying, Laughing aren't the only feelings you'll feel when watching this, especially in the Refrain! part.
Overall 10 / 10
Story may not have as much impact as the last two latest anime of Key but I swear that Refrain will make it up. Really, everything in the anime has a meaning (Well, maybe except for some comedy parts.). If you stopped watching this because you didn't like how it started. Heh~ I'm telling you... You really need to watch this in order to know what happens in the Refrain.
jc9622
Did people watch this show and expect there to be a romance? Haha! I didn't even realize that the show's tag had romance until I finished the show. Which means I wasn't shipping any characters and expect them to be all lovey-dovey towards each other. I also didn't read the VN version and never will. (There will be some SPOILERS in my review) [Story]: (5/10) (SPOILERS) The story is not that interesting or even mind-blowing. The show focuses on Rikki as he tries to recruit more people for the "Little Busters" which is the name of their group and their recently created baseball team. I won't gowith his past life, flashbacks, or his conditions. The show focuses on 2 main things. The 1st is him recruiting more people for the "Little Busters" and the 2nd one is Rikki and Rin trying to solve the mysterious letters that they have been getting from a cat named "Leon".
Let's focus on the first one. Yes, Rikki successfully recruits more people which is mostly girls because their boy-to-girl ratio was 4 to 1. What happens after he successfully recruits a girl? What you get is 4 character arcs with forced dramatic moments and melodramatic moments. I mean, the character arcs did make me cry...a little bit... but one of them is just plain horrible and what's worse is all the character arcs are rushed. The arcs lasted for only 3-4 episodes. One of the arcs had some laughable ending that didn't really make sense. For example, Mio's arc had some potential but they messed it up with some imaginary bullcrap and ending that just doesn't make sense.
At least, the 3 remaining character arcs are good and it gave me a few emotional tears. The remaining character arcs that I loved are Komari's arc, Haruka's arc, and Kud's arc. I won't go in-depth with these arcs but all I will say is they're great to watch and will make you cry. Even if you're a man. Probably.
Let's focus on the 2nd one which is the "mysterious letter". I honestly don't know what the hell this is. Is this a filler or something? I just hoped that they solve the mystery letter and find out who has been writing that letter in the 2nd season. The mysterious letter is not the only episodes that happens in-between the character's arc. There are also some "breather" episodes that are just for the laugh and giggles. The jokes are repeated but they're still somehow funny.
I'm not even going to mention the ending. It's terrible. Did the creators run out of ideas or something that they couldn't come up with a decent ending. The post-credit scene did peek my interest and I'll be watching the second season just to check it out.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Art/Animation]: (7/10)
If you have seen Angel Beats before then you'd notice that the animation is very similar. The animation for AB is obviously better and I am not being biased here. Yes, I watched the 1080p version for both shows but let's not get on that. The show's animation suffered from lack of details to crappy character motion, etc. It's not a bad animation but it's not great either.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Sound]: (6/10)
I can't believe they used the same opening for 25 episodes straight. This is one of the few animes where I was hoping that they change the OP as soon as possible but sadly, that didn't happen. I just skipped the OP after episode 8. The ED theme song is also horrible and I only listened to it for 1 episode only. The background themes are decent.
I watched the show in English Dub so I'll be reviewing the English voice acting. All of them did a terrific job and I loved most of the VA's except for one voice actor. The English VA of Rikki annoyed the living hell out of me. He sounded like an annoying teenager who hasn't dropped his balls yet for whatever reason. I know, he was voiced by a girl, that's why he sounds like that.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Characters]: (8/10)
I loved every single character in the show except for one. That's the main protagonist. Riki just isn't that interesting of a guy. He's just a nice main protagonist guy that I somehow don't like. Does he have redeeming qualities? Hell no. He just goes around, helping and fixing the girls' problem before they are recruited. Yes, every girl has a problem and Rikki "fixed" all of them. This is an example of a forced dramatic moments. Every single girl has a ridiculous past-tragedy and they must overcome it. With Rikki's help, of course. How the hell did they all end up in this school anyways.
These dramatic moments are forced as hell but that doesn't mean I hated them. After seeing Komari's arc, Haruka's arc, and Kud's arc. The show successfully made me love these characters. Except Mio's arc. That arc was just terrible.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Enjoyment]: (8/10)
Most slice of life today has a crappy story but I don't really care for the story. My enjoyment rating is 8 because the jokes are hilarious and the forced dramatic moments somehow worked.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[OVERALL]: (6.8/10) --- Rounding it to -- (7/10)
All in all, this is a good anime series to watch. The show has a lot of flaws but the show also has a lot of good moments like the dramatic and emotional moments and the comedy episodes in-between. If you're looking for a drama series then you might want to check this out. If you're looking for romance as the tag suggests then don't watch this show. The show has no romance and that tag was just misleading.
Pros:
+Good Animation
+Great Characters
+Funny moments
+Dramatic moments successfully executed
Cons:
-Mediocre Story
-Mediocre Soundtrack
-Unlikable Main Protagonist
-All female characters had a past tragedy
-Character's arc were rushed
-Terrible ending
DigestingAnime
Why do shows wait till the last few episodes to get to the good part!? [Abridged version of the storyline: A group of friends' decide to make a baseball team to play. One of the boy's become in charge of bringing new members to the group. Each new members that he persuades to join are not exactly the happiest of the bunch. Behind the smiles, the hardship is hidden] This show really disappointed me. Every week, as new episodes came out, I really thought the series would get better, but it didn't. Here are the reasons: 1) The main character, Riki, narrates way too much. When heexplains the situation to us, it really bores me to death. Usually, I like hearing the narrator tell us what is going on, but he basically pointed out useless information and I just wanted him to shut up. Riki honey, you need to stop talking! The narration, the voice acting, and the dialogues/ monologues swayed me away from this show.
2) There are way too many supporting characters. You can't really focus on each character individually because the group is too big.
3) All of the burdens are handed down to Riki. When any of the girls have a problem, it is Riki who comes to the rescue. This is a harem genre so it definitely makes sense, but many people says this show is about friendship- no! All the other characters just tag along and watch silently while everything happens. They're like little ducklings following their mama- in this case Rikki,
4) The art is fine. I was expecting it be nicer, but you get used to it.
5) The execution of the storyline was poorly done. This was the biggest problem for me. After the first arc with Komari (the blonde hair with the squeaky voice) was finished, there was a huge gap where nothing happened (if I remember correctly). Yes, you do get new members to the Little Busters but that's about it. I started losing interest really quickly. Furthermore, when the arc of each of the girls finished, the characters were really pointless afterwards. You won't get to see them as much. Seriously, the timing of the arcs were unbearable!
6) The blue hair girl. Her arc was interesting. However, I must be really dumb because it did not make sense to me. Her problem was really confusing and unrealistic. I understand how Key loves putting surreal elements to their shows, but the explanation still does not make sense. Also, not everything can be tied down on the last episode; it is just too much!
7) As for the character development, I did actually see Rin (the red hair girl) start to grow as the show went on. She had a little bit of personality change which is a good thing because she is the heroine of the show…although; I would have liked to see her as vocal and active as Riki.
8) The guy who was meant to provides comic relief for the show was more likely to be the guy who brought utter silence to ones house. He was not funny at all. I know he is different from comedians in other anime shows, but I swear he made me hate the show more. Eventually, I tried forgetting that he existed just so I could watch the show. The anime did have potential for good humor, because I actually did laugh at episode 20 with the silly, funny rap song one of the characters created.
9) None of the characters really appealed to me. In all honesty, the perverted female character was one of my favorite… and she had no real arc! That is saying a lot because I don't like perverted characters.
10) I don't regret watching it, but I do not think I will watch it again. One thing I did like was a simple speech about how sad people view other happy people. This was not an extremely significant part of the anime, but it resonated with me. It made me not completely hate it.
11) The voice acting: it took me a while to get use to some of the voices. I'm not usually picky about it, but I wonder if the dub can do better.
12) I continued watching this anime because I read the BIGGEST spoiler of all time, and I really thought it was going to happen in this anime. At first I was mad that I learned about it, but it was the only thing that made me want to watch it. But at last, the spoiler never came to form. They hint it through out the series, but the arcs really swing you away from the main storyline, and I do not think that the last episode could ever do that spoiler justice. If there is a second season (which will probably be awesome judging from the spoilers…look, I hated Clannad, but I loved After Story), I suggest you watch this for background information, but other than that, I don't know if you should watch it or not. It is up to you!
I would have scored this anime a 6 because I didn’t like it, but I gave it a 7 because the entire arc ended with a happy feeling and a (simple) message. This bothered me at first because I thought it was hackneyed, but I know if I had watched this a few years ago I might have enjoyed it…… (Keyword: might have).
[Update: April 7, 2013]
When I wrote the review, the only episode I did not watch was the last one. As of now, I have completed it. I still agree with everything I wrote. As I mentioned, it concluded with this feeling of warmth. It summarized what Rikki had done for everyone. However, it foreshadowed the tragedy to come. It ended nicely, and I do crave to watch the second season when it does come out...i probably will enjoy it more! Oh The Anticipation! Watch this series if you intend to watch the ever-so-hyped second season: Little Busters Refrain! Why? Because this season seems like the background information which tells us more about some of characters that will be relevant for the sequel.
Antex
Before I start, I’m just going to say that this is my first review and I probably won’t do that great of a job; and because I have not played/read the visual novel yet, I won’t be doing any comparison. When it was revealed that J.C. Staff would be the ones to do Little Busters, I had a discussion with a friend of mine. She said that Kyoto Animation would do a much better job than J.C. Staff and that Kyoto Animation should be the ones to do all of Key’s works. For the most part, I do agree with her. In anime your true friends willalways be there for you no matter what, whether it is through depressing times offering you advice and helping you get back up on your feet, to laughing and just acting like idiots.
Little Busters has these elements, from having hilarious fights between Masato and the entire female cast to the more dark tone of the show. However, the comedic essence of the show outweighs how sad each arc (route?) can be making it hard for each character to tug on your emotions like Clannad and Kanon (2006) did. This is in my opinion due to the pointless filler that most people complain about. However, I disagree with it being pointless. True, it is not part of the main story but it is there for a reason, and that reason is to soften the impact (with comedy) of how sad and dark the next route is. It gives you a good laugh before hitting you again. But it might not need it due to J.C. Staff’s terrible writing. Other than filler problems, I had problems with unanswered questions during Mio’s story such as exactly who is Midori and she came to be as a person, and how Kyousuke knew what was going to happen with their team at the end of season 1. Despite Rin being the main heroine she is not the focus of the story nor does it even show that she is.
Despite these problems I didn’t get bored watching the show, and each character was able to develop in each of their routes (which some people might disagree with; but hey it’s my review). The soundtrack from Key was still good and had no problems with it. This show tries its hardest to survive on symbolism much like Clannad did, but could have done a better job because some people I talked to found some of it confusing (like the rain in Haruka’s route or the parasol in Mio’s route). Overall it wasn’t terrible but it wasn’t amazing; and if you like works of Key you should watch this and try not to think too harshly of the show because, well, it’s from J.C. Staff.
Qwazii
Little Busters is a great anime by Key, the same people that made the best animes like Clannad, Angel Beats, Kanon, and Air. It follows the same principle of the other Key anime: what I like to call 'trust-and-then-devastate', where you first make relatable connections with each and every character in the anime and then that is followed by something devastating happening, causing you to actually feel empathetic, rather than just sympathetic. Each character has his/her own arc in the storyline and is built upon greatly. It feels like you've known that person for years. Every arc has a beautiful rising and falling action andleaves you satisfied. Throughout the show, many different feelings are thrown at you, to the point where you are yelling at your screen. The art in this anime is beautiful. Having seen the other older anime, like Air and Kanon 2006, you can see that Key has truly come a long way in their artistry. The backdrops are amazingly well defined, with a realistic but true-to-anime art style. You can see the shimmer in each and every character's eyes, and those very eyes speak to you. You not only see, but feel a difference that you won't be able to put a finger on until you realize that the youthful shimmer in the character's eyes was all that was missing. The music is some of the best I've heard. Thanks for that go to Jun Maeda, the god of anime soundtracks. The Key Studios record label, in cooperation with Jun Maeda, composed beautiful eye-welling pieces for Clannad, Angel Beats, and Little Busters. The suspense build-up in this anime is so great, it had me sitting in class at school the next day, just wondering what would happen next. I highly recommend that you watch this anime, especially if you loved the aforementioned Key anime or others like 'Toradora!' or 'Kokoro Connect'.
Apollofox
This anime is very well done. It's an adaptation of a VA (like Clannad), if you didn't know that, and having both seen the anime and played the va it did its job very well. Little Busters! on its own is very episodic and doesn't have much of a story to it. It has a few character arcs but I wouldn't necessarily classify that as story. (If you want to get into the real soul-destroying story, the second season, called Little Busters! Refrain delivers that) The soundtrack is nothing spectacular but it's a good quality. The voice acting is decent, definitely not untolerable. The art is a clean,standard modern anime.
As I mentioned, this is a character anime. There's not much in the way of story but the characters are so entirely fleshed out and all very enjoyable and that's where the real charm of this series comes in. You'll fall in love with each and every single child and, if you feel the same as me, you'll adopt them all as your children.
