At Suimei High, the Sakura-sou dormitory is infamous for housing the school's most notorious delinquents. Thus, when the relatively tame Sorata Kanda is transferred to the dorm, escaping this insane asylum becomes his foremost goal. Trapped there for the time being, he must learn how to deal with his fellow residents, including bubbly animator Misaki Kamiigusa, charming playboy writer Jin Mitaka, and the ever-reclusive Ryuunosuke Akasaka. Surrounded by weirdness, Sorata frequently finds respite in his interactions with his one "normal" friend, aspiring voice actress Nanami Aoyama.
When Mashiro Shiina—a new foreign exchange student—joins the dormitory, Sorata is instantly enraptured by her beauty. Underneath her otherworldly appearance, Mashiro is an autistic savant, capable of world-renowned brilliance in her art, yet unable to perform simple daily tasks. After Sorata ends up in charge of taking care of Mashiro, the two inevitably grow closer, with Sorata's initial desire to escape the dormitory becoming a forgotten goal.
Despite their eccentricities, every resident is incredible in their own field, leaving Sorata to contend with his own lack of any particular skill. With brilliance all around him, he thus strives to become an equal to their talent. Revolving around the hardships and joys of its colorful cast, Sakura-sou no Pet na Kanojo is a heartwarming coming-of-age tale of friendship, love, ambition, and heartbreak—through the lens of an ordinary person surrounded by the extraordinary.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
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Kyuutoryuu
**This review has a section (highlighted by tags) that contains spoilers. Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo is a rom-com slice of life anime, so it’s a good watch by default, right? Well, not quite. This genre has a shtick for being oversaturated, particularly with many poor productions. Why should you watch Sakurasou in particular, over the many other rom-com slice of life's? Well, read on to find out. Sakurasou does one thing especially well that makes it stand out among its competitors, and that is its character dynamics. That is an aspect of it that is simply fantastic. As such, this review contains a fairly lengthy discussionof the plot, which I will highlight with spoiler tags.
The main characters of Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo are Kanda Sorata, Kamiigusa Misaki, Shiina Mashiro, Aoyama Nanami and Mitaka Jin. Already, Sakurasou can be seen as a highly unique anime. With 5 characters that are all equally important to the story, the audience gets five times the character development than most rom-coms. However, the story technically follows the adventures of Kanda Sorata, who has been banished to Sakurasou (“Sakura Hall”) due to the regular school dorms not allowing the keeping of cats. As he cares deeply for his cats, Kanda ends up biting the bullet and chooses to live at Sakurasou. There at Sakurasou, he lives with other would-be delinquents. And so, the relationships between the five characters at Sakurasou would serve as the backbone of this anime’s story.
Presumably, this should already be heaven for any rom-com slice of life lover; after all, there are five main characters and 24 episodes. The real thing that does it for Sakurasou, however, is the romance aspect of the anime. And by “doing it”, I mean doing a disservice. The romance in this anime is quite horrid, honestly. This is especially hard for me to say as I thoroughly enjoyed literally every single aspect of Sakurasou, except for its romance.
I’m going to be discussing the story in mild detail, so if you don’t want to be spoiled at all, skip to the [endspoiler] tag.
**[startspoiler]
My first problem is Misaki’s relationship with Jin. Due to the nature of the anime and the nature of Misaki’s personality itself, her quest for love was simply a joke; I never really took it seriously. Whenever she cried after her numerous failures, I did not feel sympathy for her, nor did I feel emotional as a viewer. Misaki’s love struggles never really had any weight to them, and they even got resolved fairly quickly (as if to further undermine them).
The other problem: Aoyama and Kanda’s relationship. Oh boy. This relationship single-handedly “ruined” Sakurasou for me (not really ruined, but it basically kicked my pairing hopes in the nutsack). I personally rooted for Aoyama and Kanda to get together throughout the series, but man was THAT wishful thinking. Before watching this series, I read many posts touting Sakurasou as being “the bad kind of predictable”. And I certainly see why now. Right from the first episode, you could already see Shiina x Kanda being established. Them getting all touchy-feely so early on, the sexual innuendos, the peeping moments… it was all meant to be from the very beginning. So why then, did the writers decide to create a second relationship branch in Aoyama x Kanda? It makes zero sense to me, and Sakurasou’s execution of the pairing itself made just about the same amount of sense. The entire time, Kanda is as blunt as a block while Aoyama is as pitiful as a bug. It was just painful for me to watch Aoyama each time she tried to confess to Kanda. Her constant failures were just really disgusting, and especially so since I’m one of the viewers who prefer Aoyama over Shiina. Not by much, because I do love Shiina as a character, but some preference nonetheless. Aoyama’s unrealized love was truly cringe-worthy; two especially disgusting moments were when she confesses her love, only to play it off as “good acting”, and when she gave a half-ass confession to Kanda after her audition. Seriously, it’s like the producers were purposely getting my hopes up simply to laugh at me afterwards. Two times, we were supposed to get Aoyama to finally confess to Kanda, and for Kanda to (more than likely) go out with her or reject her. But, we get the worse-case scenario; Aoyama’s love is never realized! As I have said before, the chemistry between Aoyama and Kanda really pissed me off not only due to how poorly it was coordinated but also by how unnecessary it was. The producers did NOT need to include a second girl for Kanda; this isn’t a harem anime. Shiina would have been good enough, and the story could have simply focused on Kanda x Shiina being realized. However, just as this anime put the final nail in the coffin when it came to pissing me off with Aoyama x Kanda, episode 23 came about: the graduation episode. And boy, let me tell you. This was one of the greatest episodes in anime history; I’m just going to say it now. The emotion displayed in this episode by all the characters (students, school staff members, Sakurasou residents included) was simply unreal. This scene does not necessarily make you want to cry. However, you can sense the genuineness within each characters’ sadness, their speeches, and their feelings for each other. Instead of being a giant cheesefest, the producers of Sakurasou actually managed to make the graduation episode an honest-to-goodness emotional episode. And I felt it. However, I found myself asking: "Why wasn't this the final episode?"
The last episode (24) made it seem as if there was still plenty more for Sakurasou to cover. It introduced two new characters, and it was the start of a new year; everything was fresh. We were going to see Kanda and Shiina being isolated from the other main characters for the first time, and maybe even having their relationship furthered. We even got a glimpse of the two new members of Sakurasou, and they are not bad characters in the slightest. All in all, the producers had quite a lot of quality material to work with if they wanted to create another season. So why didn’t they? After I finished watching all 24 episodes of Sakurasou, I was left wanting more. The series didn’t really “end” at all; why start a new chapter if you're just going to cut it off right away? The ending makes no sense to me. You could say that this is a sign that the producers are thinking of a second season, but there hasn’t really been any news yet. It’s just wishful thinking as of now.
**[endspoiler]
In every other department, however, Sakurasou excels.
Story [9/10]: Probably the most important aspect of an anime, Sakurasou has an exceptional story. While its romance is admittedly weak, as previously discussed, it doesn’t take much away from the story. There were quite a lot of aspects of Sakurasou that I had a critique for, and yet I found myself excitedly watching every episode regardless. I constantly wanted to find out what would happen next, and I was definitely held in suspense during many moments throughout the anime. The moments of drama, in particular, gave Sakurasou such great depth.
Art [10/10]: One of the absolute KILLER aspects of Sakurasou! The art implements a fairly unique style, using mainly warm and bright colors. Most animes have art that uses colors and shades from a generic palette, which causes them to look to look very similar to each other; Sakurasou strays away from this. All of the characters are drawn nicely, along with all of the minute details in the animations being perfectly executed. However, if there was one thing to really set Sakurasou apart, it’s the art used to portray Shiina Mashiro’s artistic virtuosity. As the viewer, I was able to completely comprehend the extent of Shiina’s skill due to Sakurasou’s magnificent art. Not to mention, whoever drew Shiina’s drawings was quite talented themselves.
Sound [10/10]: The only proof I need to verify the greatness of Sakurasou’s soundtrack is the fact that its OPs/EDs are among my top-played songs on my iPod. Initially, I wasn’t really feeling the first opening; it sounded somewhat generic. However, after listening to it multiple times by virtue of watching the anime, I fell in love with it. The openings completely portray the mood of the entire anime (and the openings very cleverly display the fantastic art style, too). The second ending in particular went very nicely with the characters dynamics at that point in the story.
Character [10/10]: Sakurasou’s characters truly give it that extra dimension. For a rom-com, all five main characters are surprisingly deep. Throughout the story, we get to learn of all of their backgrounds. What makes them so amazing is the fact that despite vastly contrasting upbringings, all of the Sakurasou residents are accepting of each other. There is never any sense of dislike or resentment among them, and they are all genuine friends. That chemistry between them is what makes them so special to watch.
I thought long and hard about my final rating. Admittedly, there are quite a few problems with Sakurasou, such as its romance. However, for an anime that has left such a huge impact on me, Sakurasou deserves nothing less than a perfect score. Along with other viewers, I have been left wanting more. Few other animes have managed to make me feel this way. And while I was watching it, Sakurasou provided countless laughs and a fair share of quality drama. Never was I bored at any moment while watching the series. The greatest thing about Sakurasou, however, is the fact that it manages to meet and then exceed the standard expectations of a romantic comedy slice-of-life anime; it truly is a fantastic production. Rarely can anyone recommend an anime of this genre as a must-watch for anime enthusiasts of all kinds, but that is exactly what I’m doing with Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo.
Radeon
"Everyday was the same. Deep down, I felt bored. I wanted to blame someone for my being bored." - Kanda Sorata The very first line in the anime coming from the protagonist himself. Frankly, I felt exactly the same after watching the first dozen episodes of Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo. J.C. Staff, a studio which animated numerous titles such as Toradora, Zero no Tsukaima, Toaru Majutsu no Index, now it's Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo or in English, 'The Pet Girl of Sakurasou'. Story? Kanda Sorata was told to move to a place called Sakurasou, a dorm where the problem students dwell in. One day, ShiinaMashiro, a genius, moves to the Dorm. And so, Sorata's dorm mates given him the task to take care of Mashiro. So there ya go. You can probably predict the outcome of the show before you even watched it.
Sakurasou is a somewhat-more-than-generic romance/comedy anime. So, what are the common features of rom coms? Generic protagonist lives alone, story set in high school, extraordinary female protagonists, transfer students, probability of the transfer student living next door, childhood friends, imoutos having brother complex, beach episodes, protagonist is a chick magnet and lots of other distinctive features. It's those shows where you watch simply because you're too bored. Sakurasou is no exception.
However, Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo is slightly more different than the usual. While it does have most of the features mentioned, but this time the protagonist lives in a dorm, filled with problem students and Sakurasou have a slightly better plot...and I guess that's pretty much it.
Since it's a romance/comedy anime then you're expecting some humor. Regrettably, the "comedy" part is appalling. Sakurasou provides the viewer with lots of humor throughout the series, but none of them were hilarious. All in all, Sakurasou fails to be entertaining in terms of humor.
In most cases, ecchi scenes and fanservice in these kind of anime are tolerable, as long as there are few but if too many, it affects the quality of the show. Indeed, I knew there were going to be ecchi in the series, but Sakurasou has more than expected.
Finally, it's the story. Sakurasou starts off as boring, tiresome, especially the beginning and it may also be the biggest flaw of the anime. Brace yourselves, because boredom strikes very early. The starting episodes may give a bad first impression to the viewer and some may even stop watching the series solely because of that. Sakurasou is one of the few anime I've watched that left a terrible first impression.
However, once you've covered the dull early episodes, at one point Sakurasou eventually starts becoming more intriguing later on(if it ever does for you). Personal point of view: I might have enjoyed Sakurasou more if it only had 12 or 13 episodes, not with 24 episodes. Why? for me, it starts becoming more interesting roughly at episode twelve. Some of the characters' past were interesting to watch such as Shiina Mashiro's however the enjoyment only lasted for couple of minutes. Sakurasou did have some memorable moments; both happy and sorrowful, but most of them were in the middle or near the end of the series. Luckily, the ending was pretty decent. Not the best ending I've seen, but still it's ok.
Character? I'll show you in a list.
These are the characters who dwell in Sakurasou Dorm.
Scores are out of 5. Lowest(1) being Hated. Highest(5) being Loved.
Kanda Sorata:(1/5) Boring male protagonist; essential in most rom coms. Now, only more irritating.
Shiina Mashiro*:(3/5) Female protagonist. Neutral.
Aoyama Nanami:(3/5) The common tsundere type. I feel sorry for her at the end of the series.
Mitaki Jin:(3/5) Looks like he lost his virginity years ago.
Kamiigusa Misaki:(2/5) Energetic, noisy type.
Akasaka Ryuunosuke:(3/5) A Hikikomori.
Chihiro Sengoku:(3/5) Dorm teacher of Sakurasou.
A couple of supporting characters.
Kanda Yuuko:(1/5) She has brother complex. I'm not surprised. Most of the imoutos nowadays have brother complex anyway.
Rita Ainsworth:(3/5) Kawashima Ami...is that you?
From the list above, any scores below 3 means they're disliked. None of the characters were interesting. Of course, all of the scores above are just my opinion. Though, it's nice to see character development going on.
*In some of the scenes, Shiina Mashiro really reminded me of Akemi Homura, a character which I really love in Madoka Magica. Perhaps the last two episodes of Madoka Magica are simply too memorable...
Art/Visuals? Overall, it's great. Colors are bright and artstyle is gorgeous. Backgrounds are nice and Shiina Mashiro's artwork are incredible.
Sound? Voice acting is pretty good(Sorata yelling almost every time is rather aggravating). OP and ED are all J-Pop themed songs and I've only bothered to listen to them once. I do like J-pop songs, but only selected ones. There's some very beautiful background music being played during the sad scenes.
Conclusion? Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo isn't the worst rom com I've watched and its far from being the best. To sum up, it's pretty average, despite the number of flaws it has. Unfortunately, Sakurasou just didn't live up to my expectations. Not even close.
Aubzstein
"Over the last three years here at Sui High, I've made many dear friends. And what allowed me to meet them... was a student dorm called Sakurasou." - Misaki The Pet Girl of Sakurasou. When I first read the little summary of it on MAL I got the horrible feeling in my stomach it would be very sexually forward with a lot of fan service and very little plot/char. development. I thank God today that I'm terrible at guessing plots to anime, and I will take this second to simply say "I apologize" to the writer for having low expectations. Because I could not have possiblybeen more wrong.
This story is about a group of what I can only describe as misfit geniuses. These are the rejects of the school, and at the same time some of the most artistically gifted students at Sui High. For various reasons, be it financial or social, they each have ended up in the cheapest and fairly rundown Co-Ed dorm at the school, Sakurasou. Kouhai (The main male protagonist) was forced to move into the dorm after he tried to take care of a stray cat he found, however dorm regulations forbid him to keep it unless he moved. So of course, he decided to move until he could "find another owner for it". However, by the time the show opens up on the present at the start of out story, rather than him making any progress, he has actually taken in like... 10 more cats. As I said, so at the open of the show Chihiro sensei (runs the dorm) asks Kouhai to go pick up a transfer student who will be moving into Sakurasou. That transfer student is none other than the beautiful, quiet, legendary artist Mashiro. He comes to find out she is essentially incapable of taking care of herself on her own, so in the same nature as his cats, he takes on the responsibility of being on "Mashiro duty".
The misfits have many little adventures and antics and overcome many trials during their time at Sakurasou. As time passes friendships form and grow, bonds grow stronger, fights, love, tears, all come into play among the six friends of Sakurasou.
Now Ill do that thing where you separate it into sections
Art
Actually, even though I'm not big on being able to tell huge differences and intricate details between different anime, this show's art really stood out. It felt smooth, clean, and beautiful. I daresay it was made to look so as to reflect the fact that they are all artistic students in their various fields, to match the level of beauty they themselves can create. The only other anime I know of with animation better than this would be Nagi no Asakura. So that's pretty darn good. I appreciated the high quality.
Music, Sound
Not a pro on music, I can basically tell you whether I
1. Liked the OP and ED. (I really did)
and
2. thought the music distracted me from the show or helped to amplify it. (It blended well and I liked it just fine. Nothing to report back negative on.
Story Quality/ Why I Enjoyed It
This has to be one of the best stories of friendship and love I've ever seen. Now when I say love I mean it in a universal way. Not JUST romantic love, although there is plenty of that. I mean also the love between friends. Best friends. Think of a friend of yours who is the absolute most important friend you don't want to have to be without. Now take six of y'all and go live in a dorm together. That's in essence what you have here. The plot was paced very well, nothing happened too quick or too slow. The pain and struggles each character went through had me feeling like I was right there struggling with them. Is that not a powerful thing? When a story can draw you in so much that when something big happens, whatever it may be, it has the power to make you FEEL emotion. And no I'm not talking about "man I'm so pissed the plot went in this direction". No... I'm talking about when you see a character get their heart broken, you feel for them, you cry with them. It's really not easy for an anime to do that. But for me, this did.
I'm telling you, Misaki's graduation speech TORE ME UP (that means it made me cry).
Closing Thoughts
I highly recommend this show to anyone who loves a good story about the bond between friends. And young love. This show is as funny as it is sad, as it is heartwarming as it is beautiful.
Hats off to Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo.
KawaiiSwag
Once in a while, it's nice to be pleasantly surprised. Going into something with a synopsis like Sakurasou, I honestly wasn't expecting much, but the end result was nice way to finish such a great series like this. Keep in mind this is my first review. I'm not going to dive into why I picked numbers for each category because I find it pretty repetitive, but more strictly my enjoyment and impressions I have towards this anime. So by all means, I'm no expert in anime, I just watch what seems enjoyable for me. One of Sakuraou’s most redeeming factors is the atmosphere from the characters/ setting.Sakurasou is not a typical setting like your group of friends or a school club. Our setting is that of Sakurasou, a rather different dorm that is home to individuals that are quite “unique” yet extremely talented. However, it’s in this sense that Sakurasou offers a large and diverse, and while rather cliché, cast that provides a lot of depth and humor.
Most noteworthy is our oblivious and rather emotionless female lead Mashiro, who brings the concept of a girl who has for all her life painted pictures and has no clue how to take care of herself. Her character overall works well with the over exaggerated actions of the male lead in charge of her, Sorata, and provides a humorous dynamic that many slice of lifes lack. The many other residents also play a vital role in this series, ranging from the tsundere friend who also likes Sorata, Nanami, to the random, jubilant, and talented animator Misaki. All of these characters complement the duo rather well, and are accompanied with their own meaningful back stories.
So by reading this far, it seems all this anime would have a rather shallow plot with the normal cliché characters. That’s where I was largely surprised by this anime. I was fearful of this anime just in the sense that it had 24 episodes, which always suffers from pointless fillers that deters viewers from watching it. However, this anime is unique in the sense that it juggles many different ideas and maintains it well.
Although the first three episodes were quite slow and lacked much plot movement, episode four was one of these first indicators that showed that even a show like this can have depth, and displayed drama and development that some series take 12 episodes/finales to reach. The introduction of Sorata’s ambitions at the start to be a game maker contrasts beautifully with Mashiro’s brilliance. While Sorata faces the hardships and realities of being a newbie game maker, Mashiro eases her way to the top as new manga artist. And Sorata experiences those feelings of when somebody is better than you.
Jealously. Hatred. Frustration.
I found it to be quite relatable and understandable. Does one give up if they can’t be successful at something? Or is there something beyond failure? Many of the characters of this series meet this question and ask themselves the same thing.
Sakurasou’s pacing is pretty solid, allowing it to nail its melodrama while also maintaining its comedic feeling. While I’m not a huge fan for melodrama because it’s always overdone and cheesy, I felt a lot of drama in Sakurasou was on-level and believable. The balance of comedy and drama, switching from serious moments to ones full of sexual innuendos and jokes, really helped the pacing out. The comedy is revolved around the character’s personalities, so if you have a liking towards all the characters, you’ll enjoy the sexual and awkward moments of Sorata and Mashiro or the embarrassing outburst of Nanami.
As you would expect, you’re going to have your moments of fan service and perhaps overdramatic moments to the point where it’s silly, but I don’t think it really deters the series as a whole. Yes, sometimes the fan service is a bit silly and unneeded, but as long as we’re not getting panty shots every 5 minutes, it doesn't affect the series as a whole. As the series progresses into a more serious mood, the quite attractive scenes of Mashiro fade out (sorry if you enjoy them). And yes, Mashiro is a love and hate character. If you hate her, you probably won’t like this series.
End result? Something that catches you off guard. A romance comedy with a unique feel that truly hits home. Great atmosphere of characters and cast, and solid pacing that intertwines comedy and drama. If you’re a romance comedy fan, by all means watch this if you want something with a change of pace.
Sakurasou no pet na Kanojo was quite the ride and I’ll sincerely miss this series. Even though it won’t happen, I’d love a season 2.
Thanks for reading my block of text, and if you survived this far, please leave any comments or criticism on my profile so I can improve my future reviews.
Bolt1984
"This area feels weird, it's been throbbing hard since that time." -Mashiro Shiina, Episode 12 My god, everyone seems to have a total hard-on for this show. Why? Nearly every previous review for this shit has been a 10. Is there something I missed while watching this? Seriously, what's so amazing about it? So characters: you got your generic numbnuts male protagonist who's usually too fuckin' scared to say what he really means, a schizophrenic or something, a generic tsundere, the generic sex-crazed pervert character, and some other annoying chick. Sounds great already! The setting: 1700's France? No, fuck you, it's a school. What did you expect? Ok, to befair, it's more of like a special arts school or something, but it's still, nonetheless, a school.
So what is this show about? I dunno, friendship? The wonders of growing up? Fuck, if I know. All I know is that this did NOT need to be made into 24 episodes. What was the point of it all? The main plot can be easily summarized quickly:
>guy lives with crazy people
>girl comes to live with crazy people and becomes the guy's friend
>fanservice
>another girl notices and gets upset
>she comes and lives with them
>occasional bullshit argument
>cousin or whoever comes to take first girl away
>doesn't
>happy ending?
Did that really need to go on for 24 episodes? Does everyone who enjoy this actually think this is a good plot? Am I really missing something? (No, fuck your useless bullshit subplots)
Maybe I wouldn't be so pissed about this if it wasn't so long and everyone would shut up about it. So many times, people have this on their top 10 romance anime lists and I just don't believe it. What's to like about this?
Two more notable things that pissed me off:
1. At times, this shit really felt like a harem and I personally despise harems.
2. The main protagonists announce their love at the very end. It's misery. You watched the show for an accumulated 12 hours, and all you get in return is some sappy bullshit. It's not worth it. It's never worth it.
They say the journey is better than the destination, but not if the journey is equally bullshit. This was a waste of time, a forgettable experience, and I have absolutely nothing to show for it. I'm upset to have seen this..
Newmn84
So, just to get this out of the way, Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo is a high school, romantic comedy drama based off the light novels of the same name whose main draw comes from the characters and how they interact with each other. To be completely honest, when I first heard about Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo before it even aired, I fully expected it to be a “weird-girl harem comedy”, and the first couple episodes really did nothing to change that opinion. However, as the show progressed, I found that I never could have been more wrong. The story revolves around Kanda Sorata, asecond-year in high school who gets sent to Sakurasou because he took in and cared for a cat in the normal dorms (which is not allowed, obviously). Sakurasou is an old boarding house where the “loonies” of the school reside and there is a myth among the student body that once you get sent to Sakurasou, you can never return to the normal dorms. Sorata just sees this as a temporary phase and vows to get out of Sakurasou as soon as possible by getting someone to adopt the cat he found but, he soon finds that the eccentric residents of Sakurasou begin to grow on him. The comedy within the series focuses mostly on the Japanese style of comedy called “manzai” (look it up if you're curious) and at times the comedy can be pretty funny but it can get stale after a while. The story is, in my eyes, really just a stage to set up the interactions between the characters but, that is not to say it is bad- it has some interesting twists to it. Indeed, I particularly enjoyed the story and the way things played out but, I will say something outright and that is: Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo is not all smiley-faces and rainbows. The anime has a theme of cruel, harsh realism and not everything goes peachily for the cast but, when things did go right, I felt the very same happiness, relief, and triumph the characters felt. To put it simply, the story is an enjoyable emotional roller coaster ride where I somehow felt connected to the characters as though I was with them for the ride.
The characters in Sakurasou are the main draw of the anime, and there are an equal number of “normal” characters to “weird” or “genius” characters. From the uncontrollable and wild Misaki to the recluse Ryuunosuke, each character is unique and feels as though they “belong” amongst the cast. That is to say, none of the main cast of characters are one-dimensional and each have their own back-story and motivations; they're not just characters thrown in randomly for effect and best of all, they feel like real (strange) people. By the end, I really got a feel for how the characters act and feel, and why they do so in the first place. As I mentioned above, I felt connected to the characters and cared for them; whatever happened to the characters in the anime- all of them- affected me, whether it was the bitterness of defeat or the joy of sweet victory.
The art and animation in Sakurasou is good but is generally nothing spectacular or over-the-top. The one exception, however, is Mashiro's art which is often pretty amazing, befitting her status as a world-renowned artist. While I didn't particularly like the back-ground music, openings, or endings too much, I didn't think that they were bad; they fit the anime well and the transitions into the ending themes were often smooth. The voice acting is pretty good overall and accurately displays how the characters are feeling moment to moment, which is pretty amazing in Mashiro's case since she is usually dull and monotone. I particularly enjoyed Nanami's quirk of lapsing into Osaka dialect at times and, with my limited knowledge of what the Japanese language sounds like, it never sounded fake or too forced. One last thing to mention is the anime often makes references other things, in particular to Toradora! with the Palm-top Tiger design showing up consistently. Like Sakurasou, Toradora! was also produced by J.C. Staff.
So, to sum it up, Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo is an enjoyable emotional roller coaster with interesting characters and is an anime that I would recommend to just about anyone who enjoys romantic comedies or dramas. To be completely honest, I often waited on watching episodes rather than watch them right when they came out because, at times, I was afraid the drama would be overbearing but, in the end, I didn't really find anything I really disliked about this anime and I felt the package as a whole was delivered excellently.
9 out of 10
Orsonius
From all the Slice of Life, Romantic Comedy last year I've seen, Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo was by far the best. But that in of it self doesn't say much about the Quality of the show, does it? Let me first sum up my overall impression/emotions with the show. I laughed. I cringed. I was touched. I felt connected. And I recommended it despite it being just another JC Staff School Anime.Why?
That's what I'm going to explain to you now.
Story:
The plot revolves around a young male named Sorata Kanda who is attending an art school. He has the habit of picking up cats and caring for them. His dorm though doesn't allow pets, that's why he moves to Sakurasou the dorm for trouble students.
Early on he is tasked to keep an eye out for a talented girl (Mashiro) who has trouble of dealing with everyday tasks and socializing with people, but otherwise is a genius artist.
The premise sound generic at first. A ordinary highschool boy meets mysterious girl. But it goes far beyond that. The story revolves around the problematic of overcoming your own jealousy.
How to continue doing what you do, even though you find yourself in a world where there is always someone better than you.
I personally felt really attached to this concept since it is something that drags me down often as well. I gave up on many things because more talented people stepped into my life. It's hard to struggle with the hatred that occurs inside you when you deal with these people.
About the event that happen otherwise isn't much to say. We have a lot of fanservice, comedic situations, a lot of drama and also some romance.
The pacing is rather slow since it turns more serious later in the show, which is sad since a lot of people might have given up by then with the overall generic-ness of the show.
But we get a lot more later on.
Romance, Drama and a rather satisfying and mature ending.
Overall the Story isn't particular deep or anything but well founded and relateable.
6/10
Animation:
What can I say about Sakurasou... well it does look average. There is no crazy choreography or battle scenes. No amazing fluidity. But it has an overall nice artstyle.
Light colors, very warm, many oranges and reds were used. The backgrounds looked good but not outstanding.
The character designs, though generic "moe" were well made and distinct.
I personally liked them.
The quality was overall good and kept its standards.
And that's it.
Sakurasou is not an animation-heavy show. It doesn't rely too much on fancy visuals but also looks pretty and modern.
7/10
Sound:
As voiceactors we get... *drumroll*
Yoshitsugu Matsuoka; aka Kirito from Sword Art Online.
This is a hit or miss, if he bothers you because you didn't like him in SAO well.. but bad.
I personally like Matsuoka, he is a fresh new voice talented and gives the Beta Male MC of this area a different voice than Kaji Yuki...
Besides that I didn't find anyone particular outstanding but mention able would be Mariko Nakatsu, for voicing a voice actress. Must be weird hah!
The rest did a good job. The voiceacting is modern and natural overall.
The soundtrack is fitting but not rememberable. It just works with this type of show, has a good variety but isn't the kind of music I'd listen to outside the show.
The same is true for the Opening and Ending. Though the second ending had a nice beginning which was sometimes used effectively.
Sound isn't really the strongest Point of Sakurasou but also not bad in any way.
5,5/10 ~ 5/10
Characters:
Oh boy, I could say a lot about the characters, but I try to keep it short.
Lets start with the good.
Sorata Kanda starts off as a submissive beta male as we all know them from various school anime. But later becomes more depths. He by far was the most interesting character of the show because he dealt with the crushing feeling of failing and dealing with someone who doesn't fail. His overall nice personality is questioned many times by a dark and cruel side of him he internally fights.
He often snaps and shows real human emotions, and behavior.
While the rest also starts of as your typical school rom-com cast:
- The childhood friend who is in love with the MC and also is a tsundere
- the emotionless girl that also has some weird crush on the MC
- the genki oppai girl always up (but here sometimes down)
- the gigolo/perverted friend. though more on the mature end
- and all the other side characters you can think of
But everyone of them shows in the progression of the show real problems, and crisis.
Of course you have to deal with stereotypes for the most part, but they are overall a good relatable cast, which have their flaws and never feel too one sided.
It's also funny how characters become more likable the further the show progresses. It is evidence of character progression.
Someone who has seen many Rom-Coms in his life might probably not open up to them, but for people who are fairly new to the genre they are a great cast!
8/10
Value:
Though there might be a second season I doubt it will. A rewatch is also unlikely, but not impossible.
I do recommend this show though, and I already did!
I will keep this anime for a while in the back of my mind but it wasn't anything life changing. Though for 2012 it was one of the better shows.
It's also nice to see that JC Staff does something that isn't just meh and Light Novels are not all shit (SAO).
But personally I like LN and their adaptations for the most part.
But to be honest. With all these School anime they have one flaw.
The likelihood this will have any effect on the industry or might be something regarded a gem in anime later is very low.
That's why it can only get a ...
2/10 (but this does not include my enjoyment!)
Enjoyment:
I fairly enjoyed the show. It looked nice, but not outstanding, the soundtrack was fitting and the Voiceactors did a good job.
The premise and plot was interesting, and the character drama meaningful enough to be taken seriously.
Well but with all of these shows it never exceeds to be really serious, which is okay!
I had fun, was looking forward to next episodes even if I sometimes was raging over some things like once...
"I modified your post [sakurasou forum link to my post], because it was offensive and contained too much profanity."
That was me raging hard. Something that meant I took the show serious enough.
7/10
Overall I give this show a 6/10 because it manages to be above average and was entertaining as well as gave me some insight on my own personal feelings. Nothing deep or life changing but a nice take on something we probably all once felt.
MelKaven
Well, I don't normally go out of my way to write reviews. But wow... This show deserves it. Within the first four minutes or so I thought this anime was going to be typical Harem or some annoying romance that attempts to sway you by overly cliche one-liners and pompous ass shots, but oh how was I wrong. **NO SPOILERS** --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Story:The story is unique in this anime because it does something that I really don't see very often in literature these days.
Its actually a generally sad story, but the reason its sad isn't because of stream that which guides the plot; i.e., war, death, dystopia, anarchy, evil tyrant, etc., but more so the realism that reflects in how the characters develop around one another.
This anime really sheds light on the unspoken feelings that revolve consistently in any given relationship; Jealousy, Envy, Heartbreak, etc, but the best of it is that its not delivered to us the way a typical Shoujo would; using extras, realization characters, stereotypical events (The beach, Vacationing) to push the relationship forth. In fact, the relationship is merely a catalyst for the primary conflict WITHIN the main character that is that he must breach the revelation that is his true aspirations and goals in his life.
Another great thing about this anime is that the story isn't ENTIRELY about the relationship. Its about friendship, and the coalition of people gathering together and forming bonds that help bring unite them. For lack of a better phrase, you essentially watch a family be created right before your very eyes.
And let me tell you, its truly heartwarming scene indeed.
Rating: 10.
tl;dr:
Friendship oriented. Romance is not the 100% primary story element. Realistic scenarios. Realistic characters. Self-Realization. Failure.
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Art:
It guess it goes without saying that the art in this show is phenomenal. Then again, it seems almost ridiculous to even have to mention this statistic nowadays. Being that this is a modern anime, the technology used to develop this piece of work couldn't be anything less than perfect.
From a cinematographic standpoint, it was perhaps twenty-five frames a second.
The scenes are well choreographed to invoke particular emotions or thoughts at a particular scene. The lighting was realistic and pleasant to watch, details fell down to a simple swaying tree to present that the wind was breezing by. Sakura petals streamed in the luminosity of their stellar backdrops. Clouds, buildings, shadows, toning, glitter, facial expressions - everything seemed to present itself beautifully.
Chibi moments are gloriously prepared and orchestrated in comic situations and were not overused.
Rating: 10.
tl;dr:
Its a modern anime. If you don't like the art, you need to see an optometrist.
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Sound:
When rating sound I always find it necessary to comment on the voice actors work. Of the array of characters, I was definitely satisfied with all of the voices portrayed. Even accents and slang was correctly articulated by the actors. No one seemed too annoying or too bitter. The characters were well delivered to the audience.
Secondly, the OST is an excellent mix of both tragically sad and joyously happy music, the orchestration reflecting the scenes and attitudes of the given characters. It was honestly well made, and I have little argument against them.
The various ending themes and opening themes were easily rememberable and had a gleaming feeling to it.
Rating: 10.
tl;dr:
Acoustic. Piano. Depressing yet Joyful. Excellent voice acting.
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Characters:
This anime has a bit of everything. The diversity of the characters gives a bit of something to love in everyone. You have your stereotypical nerd, the glossy white haired innocent, the childhood friend clinging to romance with the male lead, the overly eccentric genius girl and her loyal companion side kick. Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo certainly has a little bit of everything.
But what stunned me enough to give this a such a high rating was that the characters were surprisingly dynamic and realistic in how they acted, given their roles.
Perseverance through strength and friendship became the overwhelming theme of the story, and the characters somehow all coordinated around one another and aided each other in their quest to realize themselves and their futures.
The romance aspect is somewhat of a skewed triangle. While it is blatantly obvious that Shiina and Sorata are destined for one another, Aoyama still attempts at the boy, so as to give off the perspective of insecurity that she holds within herself. This helps her when she transitions to maturity, and once again reflects the overwhelming principle that friendship prevails.
Rating: 10
tl;dr:
Not too dramatized. Simple yet complex. Realistic. Love affairs. Friendship.
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Enjoyment:
Comments regarding enjoyment lie in the principle that this anime is not directed towards those that are eagerly looking for some Shoujo Romance, or some outstanding moral conclusion about life.
This anime is carefree, yet it breathes through the seemingly minor conflicts that arising during adolescence that truly impact the entity of our lives. It brushes upon realistic issues about growing up and realizing that the world is larger than yourself.
I honestly couldn't stop tuning in every Monday to watch this show. It had a pleasant mixture of comedy and seriousness that left me satisfied to the core.
Rating: 10
tl;dr:
It was a fun experience, and a proper message.
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Overall:
I would find it insulting to the author if I rating this anything less than a masterpiece. While there were things that seemed overly done and a bit exaggerated, a grand majority of this anime was flawless.
Its a shame that there are so little of these "oh so perfect" diamonds out there.
If you don't like this anime, I would honestly like you to PM me with your reasoning because you need to be enlightened.
Rating 10.
tl;dr:
Stellar anime
Great message. Great Art. Great soundtrack. Excellent Characters. Lasting appeal.
jiwoo1024
Sakurasou.... where to start. I am a huge sucker for romantic school kind of animes but MANY times I was unable to find the right kind of anime. There were many many animes which just got dull and boring straight from the start. But Sakurasou had me captivated and eager which made me wait every week for the new episode to come out. I even wanted to learn Japanese just so I could watch this anime raw!!!! (Which means i get too watch it faster :D) This anime, like many kinds of anime had its up and downs. And it was these ups and downsmaking me eager to see how they would solve such relationship problems.
Great Romantic school genres like I have mentioned before was something that was very hard for me to find. When I read this animes summary I can't deny that I wasn't very tempted to begin watching this anime. But i persevered and I am very glad I did. I felt like god had shined the internet light of faith on me when i stumbled upon this anime. I practically screamed HALLEJUAH!
Story: For me this was the biggest thing that dragged me into this anime. The title ''Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo'' translated to english just means the pet girl of Sakurasou. The ''pet girl'' is none other than Mashiro Shinna the genius painter who is BEAUTIFFFULLLL. But she totally can't look after herself. That's where the main character comes on. Sorata Kanda just your average high schooler who has the job of looking after Shiina. You can tell that these two characters themselves just scream DRAMA at your face. And what good drama it was. It had me crying with the characters and sometimes had me screaming at them like WHY U SO DUMB. The relationship between Mashiro and Sorata was also quite a sight. Still all in all this had me hooked like a fish and I am very glad I saw this anime to the end. I GIVE THE STORY A 10!!!!
Art: This anime had very beautiful visuals. It could portray the characters emotion perfectly and this helped the story so much. The characters were well drawn and the art was light. But dark as well when it needed to be. The art all around was good- wait GREAT. I felt that at some points the art did lack a bit but all in all I couldn't have wished for anything better. I HEREBY GIVE THE ART A 9!!!!
Sound: This was also an excellent part of the anime. The intro song was very catchy and although I skip many animes intro songs I wouldn't even think of doing that for this one. The music throughout the anime was also great. It helped with all the moods, light and dark. I felt that the music helped give the viewers a more emotion in the story. The voice acting of all the characters were SPECTACULAR. Mashiro's bored and emotionless voice could not have been better portrayed. All the characters had great voices and I applaud all the voice actors for that. The end song of this anime was also very catchy. Not much I can say about that hahaha. AND THUS I GIVE THE SOUND/MUSIC/VOICE A 10!!!!
Character: The characters were also one of the parts that made Sakuraso stand out to me. In some people's eyes the character's may seem to be one of those well used cliche type of characters. A talented but social-lacking girl, an absolute normal high schooler, a loud, funny sempai, wise old playboy, shut in technical genius and the seemingly uninteresting but is actually interesting teacher. All these kinds of characters may have been used in many kinds of animes but I felt that Sakurasou was one of the only ones who actually used them to their fullest potential. I don't see any other animes out there with this much potential. If you can find some them I'd be glad to have a watch. CHARACTER. SCORE. A. 10!!!!
Enjoyment: I will just go out and say it but I give this animes enjoyment level a 10. Why? Because this is one of those animes that I find hard to put off. It had me hanging off my chair waiting for each new episode too come out. And having finished this anime I fear that another romantic anime of this potential may not come for another 5000 years...
So anyways overall I enjoyed this anime immensely and I hope you readers of this boring review can find a few seconds... Or a minute... Or a hour... Or a day... Actually a couple of days if u watch it little by little, in your important schedule to watch this delightful anime. OVERALL I GIVE THIS ANIMES OVERALL SCORE A.......... 10!!!!
Stark700
Every journey begins with the first step. Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo (also known as The Pet Girl of Sakurasou) is an anime series based off the light novel with a manga adaptation also written in the works by Hajime Kamoshida. The story tells of a group of young people and details the lives of them, especially Sorata Kanda the main protagonist who recently got kicked out of his school dorm after picking up a stray cat. Thus, he moves to the Sakurasou dormitory where he meets Mashiro Shiina, a strange girl with a very talented skill. Thus, let his new life begin! The story of the seriesis quite lighthearted to say the least, even judging by the title. We have two main protagonists - Mashiro Shiina and Sorata Kanda who shares a very strange relationship. Although beautiful, Mashiro is known to be a very peculiar girl with a talented skill in her skills of crafting artwork. However, she also has absolutely no knowledge about common sense or the factors of daily life. Now, raise your hand! Do you want to live with a beautiful girl like that? Perhaps some might be but in Kanda's case, it's literally hell for him. Waking up every day and seeing a beautiful girl like Mashiro may sound like a dream come true for any guy but it's a lot harder for Mashiro than he'll ever imagine. It usually spells out for misunderstandings, drama, and situations that puts Sorata at frustration.
The way they meet is quite expected based on the common gags and tropes we see in the anime industry today. They meet in a park of joy and prosperity. The duo lives in the same dorm, eats the same food, but are totally opposites in terms of their personalities and ways of life. For one thing, it's up to Sorata to wake up every day and take care of her. It's like a master and pet relationship in the sense that Sorata Kanda plays the role of the caretaker. On the other hand, Mashiro is the “pet girl” of Sakurasou, as the title says. It's pretty generic but at the same time pleasant to watch because the two's relationship and the depth of how the duo interacts on several episodes. It is also surprisingly entertaining in the way of Mashiro's speech pattern in which her brutal honesty often is (and humorously most of the time) is misinterpreted by other characters.
Oh but that's just the tip of the iceberg. As some may expect, the Sakurasou dorm has more than just these two residents. Among some of the other members includes Sorata's classmate, Nanami Aoyama who portrays the typical tsundere and insecure girl. Often times, she treats Sorata harshly but deep down cares for him and the others. At the same time, it's quite easy to tell that she is insecure regarding her own future in the voice acting industry. Furthermore, it seems that the interactions between Sorata and Mashiro has put her mind under a bit of frustration of seeing them together. It's no surprise that she is the character who plays the rival in a potential love triangle of the story.
The other characters also portrays the typical gags in this anime. We have the all enthusiastic and sometimes crazy girl, Misaki who is hyperactive in the things she do. We have the smooth talking Jin Mitaka who is known for being a womanizer with his smooth talking skills but at the same time deeply cares for his friends. Then, there's the other characters such as the trap Ryunosuke who specializes in his techno gadgets. Also, let's not forget about Rita who used to be Mashiro's caretaker but at the same time feels a sort of resentment and jealousy towards her. All of these characters plays a sort of role in the development in the story especially in regarding Sorata and Mashiro. In fact, it's easy to see how much they come just half way into the series. At the same time though, it's clear that these two still need a bit of development to forge a more solid relationship especially with some rages issues from Sorata.
As mentioned before, Mashiro is a girl who lacks common sense. Yet upon closer examination, she can quite an appealing character. The series often portrays her as a typical dumb blonde in terms of common sense. However, she is very caring for her friends and tries her best to earn the respect and love of everyone. Mashiro is also quite hardworking with her works by slaving all day and night on her manga and strives to not give up especially when she knows that there are others who inspires her to become what she wants to be. In a generic show such as this, it is surprising that we can see how far some characters can become with hard work, determination, and friends.
The show isn't totally perfect though as some of the gags used between each episode becomes repetitive and sometimes, overused. The fan service is present that sometimes appears out of random and is nothing more than nonsense. Most of the time, this falls under Mashiro's case and in the morning time when Sorata gets a surprise wake up call. In other cases, the dialogues that Mashiro speaks becomes exaggerated and forced. It's almost if the directors are trying to mix in too many things at once and sometimes, it just doesn't work out right. For example, the seemingly filler episode involving Sorata's little sister Yuuko seems to play little to no role in the overall progression of the story. She just seems to be another common gag added to the entire series. So now, they wanted to add the little sister type with all the other casts. Seriously, what?...
Luckily though, there is hope for the series as some fans who originally thought this might be a harem is downplayed. In fact, the romance so far is quite lighthearted and non-explicit.The romance is almost humorous with the characters playing the roles in their shoes. With enthusiasm , shallowness, misunderstanding, or just being there, the romance of the series is surprisingly fun to look at.
In my mind, I found the artwork of the series to cute. The designs of the characters is lighthearted that has a soft touch to them with the way they are dressed. It's almost humorous sometimes especially with the way Mashiro dressing up the way she does in some of the earlier episodes. Sorata's over exaggeration in the series is also humorous to look at when he get caught up in a misunderstood situation. Overall, the movement of the artwork is done right to fit within this romantic comedy series. Now, if only Mashiro's manga will be more cuter as well...
The soundtrack and music of the series seems mediocre. Jin Aketagawa handles the choreography who strives to makes the series lighthearted during many of the scenes. In fact, it's no surprise that a lot of the series' comedic, dramatic, enthusiastic, or entertaining scenes are crafted to be lighthearted. Even the OP song, Kimi ga Yume wo Tsuretekita by Pet na Kanojo-tachi is known to be lighthearted and smooth which depicts a montage of the main characters and a tiny glimpse of their lives at the dorms. J.C. Staff is already known for some of their other works in the romantic comedy media such as Toradora, Hatsuoki Limited, and the recent Little Busters! What J.C. Staff presents here is what is their latest line of their evolution of works.
Overall, I found the series to be a charming gem. Despite the weak story and seemingly cliched humor, it is surprisingly entertaining. It's hard to present series like this as some fans may see it the wrong way originally. Yet, I found it to be quite charming. It's not exactly a masterpiece or something of a highlight of the year, but is crafted well with its cast of characters. It's funny how imagination sometimes can go so far to create a series like this but otherwise, I found Sakurasou Pet Kanojo to be quite an entertaining watch.
Caleb_Marvell
So. Finished The Pet Girl of Sakurasou, one of the most anticipated animes for the first quarter of 2013. My thoughts on the first episodes told me nothing but, "Just another echii/rom-com, you've seen this all before". Usually my brain is correct when it comes to watching animes for the first time. Usually. My brain was dead wrong when it came to this one. The thing I love about being me is that despite how cliché some romantic comedies are, I always finish them, no matter what. But this time I didn't need to power through it, and the season finale just made me want more. Theshow had hilarious comedy, an intriguing story, and the characters were all perfect.
To start off, let me explain something to rom-com lovers out there: It doesn't matter if a romantic comedy has multiple clichés, such as meeting a girl in a certain area that'll have a huge purpose later in the show. What matters is how the people who made the romantic comedy will play it out. You could have one show with a story and have it end up being awful. On the other hand, you could have another story with the same story and have it end up being incredible. Luckily, The Pet Girl of Sakurasou ended up being on the incredible side. The story was unique, each episode was full of comedy, romance, and the occasional feels. There are moments of awkwardness and bitterness, but they all level out into moments of happiness and laughter. I really liked how they played the show out, and I'm really hoping for a season 2 with a storyline just as good as season 1.
2013 has been looking up to be a great year in the art industry. The artwork gets more and more colorful and impressive every year anime continues to be made. Looking back in the 1990s, there was Evangelion, Cowboy Bebop, and many others with exceptional artwork for it's time. Now you look at the animes of today and you have Kotoura-san, Fairy Tail, Sword Art Online, etc, and you'll notice the difference that 20 years of experience can have on an animator. As for the Pet Girl of Sakurasou, this is a perfect example of the 20 year experience I was talking about. Colorful, detailed, beautiful... there are moments where I honestly wish that my life was more like an anime... alright, there isn't really 1 moment in my life where I wish it was more like an anime, who hasn't? Grade A artwork.
There isn't much to say about the audio in The Pet Girl of Sakurasou, except that the voice actors/actresses worked on their roles with real professionalism and realism. They fit the characters' personalities and I learned to like and respect them a lot.
This is the part I was looking forward to: character reviews. We have Sorata, the kind hearted/incredibly dense male protagonist of the show, who most animal-lovers will end up looking up towards due to the fact that he can't say no to helping out a homeless animal and giving it a home. Aww... Then we have Mashiro, the quiet, and sometimes questionable female protagonist, and I say questionable because I've started to wonder how she has been living like 15 years and still doesn't know how to put on clothing without instructions. These are the 2 main characters of the show, who end up playing big roles in each other's lives, and I say that because Sorata is the one giving the instructions to Mashiro. We also have Aoyama who is Sorata's classmate, Misaki, the hyperactive senior living in the same dormitory as Sorata who is constantly causing trouble in a hilarious way, and finally Jin, the playboy/braniac of the group. All of them are considered to be main characters due to the fact they have a whole lot of screen time in the show and play vital roles in the story. Put them all together, and it's one big happy family, and I mean that, if you took one of them out, it wouldn't be the same, and that's how I like it.
I started watching this by the time episode 18 was already released, and I watched all of the episodes already released in under 10 hours, and when I finally tried to hit the "next" button, "Please wait until next week for episode 19 to be released". That irritated the CRAP out of me. I just got into an amazing show and now I gotta wait a week to watch another episode, and then repeat that cycle until the season finale. Once it finally finished, it left me in tears and wanting more. I can safely say that this is probably one of my favorite animes released this year, no joke. I do agree that not everyone may enjoy it, especially those who hate waiting for characters to confess to each other, but trust me, it's worth the wait. Give it a few episodes. If you don't start enjoying it by episode 3... keep going. If you don't start enjoying it by episode 23... just watch the last episode, you're almost done with it, it's 24 minutes of your life. But I doubt it'll be a waste of time.
Reinhath
Sakurasou is an anime that is more than the sum of its parts. If I were to break down Sakurasou into its most basic ingredients, I wouldn't be able to claim that any of those ingredients are particularly brilliant. However, the wonderful hot pot created when all of those ingredients are boiled together is one that is unique and unforgettable. Story - 9/10 The premise of Sakurasou is generic enough, but the story grows beautifully from its humble beginnings. Containing multiple story arcs, each with enough plot and character to facilitate being an anime alone, Sakurasou almost resembles a battle shonen in structure. Various arcs centered aroundfocused goals allow the plot to progress and the characters to grow. The pacing, for a melodramatic slice-of-life, is fast, but not in a bad way. The speed of the series serves to keep the viewer engaged, very rarely moving so fast that you feel like you've missed something. In regards to a few plot points, the story sometimes either seems to move too quickly or too slowly, but the overall story is beautifully told at an interesting and unique pace.
Art - 7/10
Sakurasou has lovely character designs that burst with personality. I can't think of any points in the anime where the drawings were weak enough to distract from my immersion in the story. The animation itself was fine, although during more kinetic scenes, it lacked. Kinetic scenes were rarely required in the story, so that isn't a major complaint. The reason the art only scores a 7 is mainly due to the color used. The colors in Sakurasou were dull and pasty, which isn't my cup of tea. It did allow the more colorful scenes to stand out, but this opportunity was squandered.
Sound - 6/10
The sound effects, as per usual in anime, were fine. Never did they distract from the show. The reason sound scores only 6 out of 10 is because of the soundtrack. Although Sakurasou is chocked full of emotional scenes, the background music was almost never powerful enough to support the amazing performances by the voice actors and actresses. Furthermore, the soundtrack in general was rather forgettable, although I enjoyed the OPs and EDs. That isn't to say the soundtrack is bad, it just was weaker than the rest of the show.
Character - 10/10
This is where Sakurasou truly shines. All of the main characters in Sakurasou are unique and flawed. Some of them may seem to be tropes at first glance, but as you watch more episodes, you'll quickly realize that they're anything but. Over the course of the story arcs and their interactions with one another, all of the characters grow as human beings. In addition, the character flaws are some of the best I've seen written in anime. The flaws of the characters can often be annoying, but usually because you've been in their situation before and understand how they feel. You know that they're feeling something silly, but it's such a realistic portrayal of how a person would react. I would love to see the characters grow even more.
Overall - 9/10
As I said, Sakurasou is more than the sum of its parts. Although the art and sound sometimes drag down the engaging story and beautiful characters, it manages to come together in what I believe is an unforgettable anime. Sakurasou is an important watch for any anime fan.
Sorrow
The Pet Girl of Sakurasou is my favorite romance-comedy anime from the past couple years, for a couple of reasons. At first glance, the show seems like the usual perverted fan-service-shit everyone’s grown accustom to these days as the first two episodes are filled with a beautiful clueless girl walking about blindly and nakedly around a teenage guys house with lots of ecchi moments (original huh)... However, I decided to not drop the series and I'm glad I didn't, because upon watching more of the show, I found that the story goes on it's own path, away from the generic rom-coms story (pretty well-written fora rom-com). Whereas many romance shows will focus solely on a friendship/love bond within like a love triangle or square, that takes place in school-some workplace and has tons of ecchi to keep perverted audience members interested, Sakurasou does beyond that. Something about this show halfway that caught my attention was that it's bright and cheerful when it should be (even more-so than other romance stories), but at the same time it contrasts itself perfectly with dark sides of life-romance that most generic rom-coms don't do. Sakurasou's story is actually a story, not an episodic romance drama that's controlled by the characters, which is a nice change of pace from romance anime nowadays.
The story revolves around the main character Sorata Kanda, who is forced to shift from a normal dorm to an eccentric dorm called Sakurasou, filled with delinquents, in order to keep his pet cat. The very (insert weird/annoying words here) personalities of his dorm roommates make Sorata tempting to leave, but then suddenly a super hot girl named Mashiro Shiina moves into Sakurasou. And... Mashiro seems to lack any common sense or knowledge of anything really - except painting/drawing which is she a master "artist" at. Anyways, Sorata is sort of forced to take care of Mashiro and help her out with the everyday tasks of life. Gradually, the dorm begins to become more livable for Sorato when more friendly and not-too-weird residents move in. And so... our romance triangle/comedy/touching-story begins.
Personally more than anything, I found Sakurasou No Pet Na Kanojo to be one of the most genuinely fun and touching shows to watch. This was a beautiful romance show that ranks somewhere near the top of my top anime list and you don't see someone like me whose into deep, psychological, horror, historic say something like that. More than anything, Sakurasou No Pet Na Kanojo is a story about the bond made between friends and all the wild times and the real and unexpected emotions that come with them. A big theme or concept in this story is one of "dreams" during youth. Mashiro asks Sorata (and others), "What do you want to be?" Everybody has their (probably outrageous) dreams and they may very well vary from age to age. As a child we probably wanted to be a Pokemon master, or a superhero. As a teen maybe we wanted to be a world famous actor, or artist or basketball player. In college people change courses/majors quite often in order to find something that suites themselves. What a person's dreams are will come to define that person's identity as who he/she is. But many people end up giving up on their dreams because they believe that "it's too hard", or "I can't possibly do it". Hope is something that's hard to come by unless there's some kind of motivation or reason. The main protagonist Sorata is like that. But he finds his motor, and sense of hope in Shiina Mashiro and this "story" of this rom-com truly reached out and grasped my attention/heart. You know how people always say practice makes perfect and hard-work always pays off? Well is that honestly true? The show serves as a simple but great watch and has its own morals to share at the end. Reminds me of my high-school, college days. A great, tender feeling indeed~ If you want a purely enjoyable rom-com then Sakurasou is the one to watch. The ending leaves the show "unanswered". I hope there's a season two, but as of now it doesn't seem like there will be which is very depressing considering they left it a cliffhanger with no concrete pair-ups and an introduction of a new character at the very very end.
Out of all the slice of life anime series I've seen, Sakurasou definitely has one of the most memorable and adorable set of characters. Shiina Mashiro is probably my favorite female character from a romance series. At the beginning Mashiro seems like shes just there for fan service but as the story progresses she helps others find and reach out for their dreams. She maintains the happiness, purity and innocence that children should have during their youth. She seems all dumb (she's pretty clueless) but she honestly does have a deeper understanding of life/the world. She learns common sense and the meaning of friendship and love. She is the driving force of the other characters as well as the show itself. Sorata gets a lot of hate - blah blah blah for being dumb sometimes, but that's so oversold. Sorata is who he is, and he stays true to his character throughout. The other characters all played specific funny roles and added lots of enjoyment/comedy to the show. Although.. Yuuko Kanda was a pretty stupid and useless character... Anyways, a lot of shipping pairings will be shattered, but oh well that's what romance stories do. The developing friendship chemistry (and romance) between the characters was just beautiful to watch. As I'm writing this review I'm starting to realize just how much I really liked Sakurasou's set of characters. I wish real life could be this simple, innocent and fun.
The sound in the show were pretty good. I don't really like all "cute"- openings very much, but both of Sakurasou's openings were enjoyable to listen to - I liked them both. The endings were decent as well. The voicing crew did a marvelous job with each character's tone; fit their personality and looks perfectly. The dynamic voicing of each character certainly brought more "life" to the characters. It might sound cheesy, but I could feel the emotions that the characters wanted the audience to feel~ Heh... Anyways the animations were out of the roof, very colorful. J.C staff truly animates romance stories well. Bravo. Production quality was consistent throughout the entirety of the series - backgrounds were well portrayed. The weather as well - lightning which was beautiful - nature was beautiful - fireworks were beautiful - Animals were beautiful - Mashiro's art was beautiful, And... Shiina Mashiro was beautiful~
What more is there to say, someone like me who doesn't even like romance stories that much absolutely loved this. I'm sure those of you who love romance stories will love it even more than I did. I'd probably give the series a 10/10 if it wasn't for that unsatisfying ending, but don't let that stop you from giving this show a try, it's in my opinion the best slice of life story I've seen in a long time.
keiina
i don't like reading novel like reviews so i'll keep this one short, i'm not going to deal with the background of this anime but rather straight to my opinion about it. One word to describe Sakurasou is DISAPPOINTING, I remember getting exited while watching the first part of this anime but after sometime, Shiina Mashiro's cuteness just wear out, there is nothing else about to watch in this series besides her which made it more disappointing because her character didn't get any real development in the end. Another disappointing character is the male lead Sorata. It may be my personal preference buti like watching male leads I can admire, sadly, after bearing to watch all his failures throughout the anime, there is nothing to admire about him. as the series come in to a conclusion, nothing changed about him and he did not achieve anything. One may ask, what is the point of watching an anime about him?
While the two leads are failures, the story didn't get the series any redeeming factor. The conflict just came out of nowhere and really is not the original focus of the anime. after being magically resolved, the anime just ended, that's it.
I don't need to discuss every flaw in this anime both minor and major to get my message across; I regret watching this anime. It has a few laughs, good fan service every now and then but the story did not actually get anywhere
henderson1147
Sakurasou no Pet na kanojo is one hell of a ride. And it's definitely a hidden gem among all the generic slice-of-life animes out there and is lies among the best of them in my opinion. Its beginning may turn away many viewers due to its more than revealing shots of the characters, but please try to stick with this anime because you'll be rewarded with an alien-like yet relateable cast, amazing accompaniment of music, and a splash of colors swirling around the screen that's bound to give your eyes orgasms. Seriously, please stay with us at Sakurasou. * WARNING * There are spoilers below and Iwould highly recommend you watch the anime before reading this article.
The main thing that stuck with me throughout this anime was the characters, the story was simply meh. It kept the drama up and was useful to keep things interesting but otherwise it didn't do much except tell about a struggle.
What I really liked about this anime was that it really explored the themes of fighting and losing. I don't think I've ever watched any other animes where the main characters fail at their dreams and how they cope with it. Some people may say that Sorata complains a lot and is a dick at times, but I feel that it's something people are unfamiliar with viewing, which is that they are human. So many times are we presented characters where they rise beyond the normal setting because they were smart, strong, and lead others to victory or somehow manage to leap out of their comfort zone because of a strong mentor. We are used to seeing that because that's what we all aspire to be.
We all want to be strong, to be able to fight for our morals and goals, to overcome our weaknesses and be somebody people can rely on. But Sakurasou, no matter how crazy some of their scenes or maybe the entire season, these characters are still human. We are told that we have to hide our feelings and never talk about problems openly or else we would be ridiculed for being weak. And this is something that Kanda, Aoyami, Misaki, Jin, and Ryunnosuke all struggle with.
Ryunnosuke has trouble dealing with people because he's afraid of being hurt. He was abandoned for being himself and got to the point where he was used to being rejected and thought it was normal to shut himself in his room to escape his own fears.
Misaki is a genius compared to almost everybody else yet she is also the most emotionally delicate, perhaps even more so than Ayonami. Ayonami grew out of her shell and finally became more honest with herself. But who was the one that encouraged Ayonami to grow more confident, yet at the same time regressed back into her anime to hide what she felt for Jin?
We all deal with fear here, and this anime portrays this better than most. They fear losing, winning, moving forward. Yet they keep on moving on. That's the main lesson I learn from this anime. It's to fight for what you want with all of your strength. Even if you fall to your knees, cry out and curse the world because you didn't make the interview or lost your job, WE CANNOT GIVE UP. It is what Misaki says:
"Leap out into outer space!"
*END SPOILERS*
I usually write my reviews like this, with what I personally feel whenever I finish up an anime. It's a little odd but it's what I usually roll with, so please bear with me. Here's the "normal" part of the review down below!
I really thought the art was something exceptional and it truly stood out from most other animes that I had seen. Its attention to detail reminded me of the focus ufotable often has towards its animes as well. J.C. Studios really went all out and one scene is particularly memorable to me, which was the pool scene where all the water droplets were flung about and flow of the waves ebbed to the movement of the characters while they splashed around. It was just so smooth and unreal that kind of attention was paid towards the pictures J.C. Studios paints Sakurasou as. Whether it's the smile of Shina or the fallen sakura petal, they all are animated well.
The sound played a large part in ramping up the emotional impact of scenes. When I heard the soft tones of the piano tiptoeing beside the harsh tones of the characters, it blended together perfectly. The soundtrack does meld with the script of the anime. The only problem I had was that the 2nd ED was slightly inappropriate after certain scenes because of its loud and more joyful nature.
Seriously, if you are somebody that enjoys an anime that provides an experience that teaches you how to fight, how to lose, and how to move on, this is a perfect one for you. I did not particularly care for the first 5 episodes of this anime, but as it drove on, I found myself relating to these characters despite their extreme differences. I am proud to say that I enjoyed it, enjoyed it so much that this is actually my 3rd viewing of Sakurasou. Please, watch this anime. It is certainly worth your time, and the fanservice does die down after the first few episodes.
Thank you so much for reading my review, and I hope I didn't bore you. If you have any feedback, I'd greatly appreciate it! Feel free to message me if you want to discuss it!
KaiserCreamPie
To be brief, this anime was a lot better than I though it would be. The beginning sets it up as a cliche harem series having the main character surrounded by different over-used archetypes. I soon found out that my assumption was wrong and the show greatly develops. Although it deviates away from a crappy harem show, the story behind it is still mediocre at best, and I have seen many like it. It is a story about bonds and friendship and all that jazz. However, there are still a few elements to it that grabbed my emotions. Later in the show the theme ofhard work not always paying off really got to me. I believe that theme is easy for anyone to relate to and can provide a very emotional experience at some points.
The art and animation of this show is its greatest attribute. Although most of this show is talking and crying, when something actually happens it is animated in a beautiful manner. The character design itself is nothing too special, but it also isn't bad.
The music of this series was just typical j-pop and is easily forgettable. It is good enough not to make your ears bleed.
The characters of this show are indeed loveable but can also be annoying. The characters all fit some kind of anime archetype I have seen millions of times. At the beginning this drove me crazy because everyone was so predictable and annoying. However as the story starts to build up the characters start to build as well. The main character initially seems like the typical "AHH GIRLS" harem lead. This is quickly destroyed because he proves to actually have some backbone and i gained respect for him as the series went on.
Overall i enjoyed this series and found it easy to watch episode after episode. I could relate to it personally in so many ways. The idea of working hard not always providing the results you want really got to me and at one point I had to hold back the tears. However I feel this story can be easily replaced in my heart and there are just too many cliches to be able to call it special.
.
ktulu007
Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo is based off of a light novel and manga by Kamoshida Hajime. In late 2012, early 2013, JC Staff put out an anime based off of it. It's tough to judge anything in advance based off of that since JC Staff has worked on great anime like Flying Witch & Yami No Matsuei as well as mediocre anime like Toradora and rubbish anime like Puni Puni Poemii & Voogie's Angel. Only the future will tell where this one falls. Story: Sorata is a student who's found himself banished to Sakurasou, the dorm where they put all the problem students. He's there on accountof being a crazy cat boy with a living space full of fur & the scent of a half dozen litter boxes. The teacher who runs the dorm, Chihiro, sends him to fetch her cousin, knowing he won't try anything due to lack of balls. From there, shenanigans ensue.
Let's start by talking about one of the many major problems that plagues this series. To be specific, the comedy is really ceaselessly obnoxious. A lot of it is based on the characters being loud, over-reactionary and annoying. Some comedies work by giving you a cast that's enjoyable or with strong comedic quirks that play off of each other well. This one just wants you to suffer for your insolence in assuming that comedies should be funny.
Then we have the romance. Which is horrible. I haven't seen characters tossed together romantically with this little chemistry since Sword Art Online. The main romance is based around her being completely inept at taking care of herself and him being bland. Then we have the secondary romance based around them being childhood friends. They have less of a chemical reaction than neon with krypton but they're childhood friends and, therefore, natural romantic interests. Then there are the characters who barely interact before she takes an interest in him for no discernible reason. And he seems outright opposed to it for most of the series, so you know that'll be healthy and totally work in the long term.
Another big issue I have with the narrative is that the series tries to balance more light-hearted comedy with somewhat more serious romantic drama. I've already talked in broad strokes about how both those aspects genuinely fail, but a side issue has to do with consequence. Basically, if you're going to have some more serious elements you need the characters to have some consequences for their actions. Which never happens in this series. These characters pull some shit that they should not be getting by with in any series that ever tries to be serious. They sneak into the pool, lock their teachers on a roof and disrupt graduation all with everything working out great for them. Not even comedic comeuppance because that might actually be funny and this series is anti-comedy.
Characters:
I've gone on record multiple times as saying that comedic characters don't necessarily have to have depth, so long as they're funny. In this, the characters have all the shallowness of shitty harem characters and there's nothing funny about them. If anything, they may be even more annoying to watch than the cast of Grand Blue.
Probably the worst aspect is that informed characteristics are a big part of this series. We're told that Sakurasou's residents are talented but we never see evidence to support that. The greeting animation we see from Misaki is pretty shit. The "genius" Mashiro's manga is basically this anime. Which, first off, is just self-aggrandising and, secondly, this series is shit. So, if this is the best she can do she's trash. There's also the "genius" label for her. She's supposed to be a genius, but she can't do basic shit like dress herself.
This culminates with the entire house working together on an animation for the school. And the animation isn't just badly done, but it has a narrative that would never work for High Schoolers. Basically, it does the small children's media thing of asking the audience to do things in order to participate. You know, like the Care Bears asking them to say they care. And we, as the audience, are supposed to believe this entire High school is so full of idiocy that the student body would be super into this shit designed for an audience ten to eight years younger than them.
Speaking of the "lack of consequences" Playboy sleeps around, has every VD in existence, but the girl he actually likes is never once turned off by it. For that matter, we never see his health suffer from having every Venereal disease.
Art:
The artwork isn't bad, except when we see wild girl's garbage animations. It's just very generic. Complete with bog-standard designs and some failed attempts at visual gags.
Sound:
The performances aren't all that bad. They gravitate towards over-exaggeration and can be annoying at times, but they're one of the lesser evils in the series. The music is mostly pretty bland. If you watch slice of life works, I guarantee you've heard much better compositions.
Ho-yay:
There's barely any to be seen. The series goes to great trouble to give all the characters het love interests. Even if the romance is rubbish. Wild girl does grope the others once or twice. That's pretty much the extent of it.
Areas of Improvement:
Give the characters strong comedic quirks. Them being obnoxious does not make for a strong comedy. Them being funny would.
Skip the romance. Clearly, Kamoshida sucks at writing romance. So, just make it a straight up comedy without the horribly written romantic drama.
Don't tell us how brilliant the characters are if you can't back it up. This is a pet peeve of mine in general, media that likes to have certain characters tell you how brilliant another is but that never has them do anything to prove it. I can tell you, emotionally stilted girl does not come across as a genius in any capacity. Neither does Wild girl since the animations we see her do are terrible. Nor does the shut in. But we get to listen to the other characters talk about how superlicious talented they all are. So much so that it becomes an annoying element before the series is a third over.
Final Thoughts:
I hated this anime. I hated every mind-numbingly stupid, obnoxious moment of it. I've watched some pretty awful comedies lately, but this is the worst of them. I honestly had trouble getting through it due to how unpleasant it was to watch. And that's why my rating is going to be a 1/10. It's fucking horrible.
Satire
"Don't judge a book by its cover." Something we are all guilty of doing on a regular basis. Who can blame us? We're human. We are quick to judge, are influenced greatly by first impressions, and will easily discard great potential investments without a second thought. Despite this deficit of reasonable evaluation, humans are also great beings; we are able to look back and realize first impressions can be capable of grievous deception. Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo (The Pet Girl of Sakurasou) is not really a romantic series. It is also not really a comedy. Though it has bits of both of these elements,I would not consider either of these two the main focus. If I were to pick any one genre that describes this show best it would be a drama, and a fine one at that. It's very rare that you come across an anime that has such a strong dramatic effect without choking on dialogue, yet it's exceptionally done here. Behind the facade of childish yelling, panty shots, cleavage, and sexual innuendos lies a story. It's a story of following your aspirations and getting shot down, working harder than others but not getting the part, being so talented that others don't understand you, and being wanted by the one you love but denying them because you don't feel enough self-worth. A story of passion, frustration, and maturity.
The pacing of story flows with a certain finesse. It never feels too fast, and never too slow. It feels just right and occupies its 24 episode run in quite a snug manner. I would like to say the same about the animation because it stays easy on the eyes and retains its consistency. I enjoyed both OP's and ED's; they felt uplifting and were generally all around fun. Going into the sound criteria, I would like to mention how much I enjoyed the timing of the sound effects during dramatic moments. The voice actors did a great job showcasing emotion and talent through their respective characters.
The residents of Sakura Hall are an intriguing group of social outcasts that became more and more endearing as the series progressed. Each of them has their own quirks, talents, and dreams that set them all apart, yet also brought them all together. The reason I really liked this group of characters was oddly because of their negative traits. They act stupid, get depressed, get frustrated, and envious. They seem like realistic people and act accordingly in order to help each other through tough times. There were a number of memorable scenes such as the 'bro talks' between Sorata and Jin, Misaki's struggle with love, the making of Nyapollen, and the graduation speech that leave a lasting impression. These characters took me on a roller coaster of mixed feelings and at the end of it I was a little sad to see them depart for their next ride.
While I thought the series was great, it also had its own hindrances that obstruct a better score. First I would like to address the issue of fan service. Fan service is one of the biggest problems in the anime industry for me; often the panty shots, cleavage, and suggestive dialogue is fine in small doses. I understand why it's there, but when it's unnecessary and much too potent it tarnishes an anime leaving you wondering what could have been. For Sakurasou in particular, the fan service is more concentrated towards the early half of the series; this in itself is why the start of the series felt so generic and why I assume many people typically dropped the show to begin with. Secondly, romantic development. Every once in while it would be nice to come across a protagonist that isn't as dense as a plank of wood. Yes, I'm looking at you Sorata. While I don't consider Sakurasou to be a romantic series, romance elements do pop up numerous times throughout the series. Romantic interests felt unsatisfactory and left me feeling something to be desired with the exception of Jin and Misaki. Fortunately for us, at least Sakurasou isn't a cheap harem.
Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo began an empty canvas. It peered into the hearts of man and admirably grasped what it feels like to be full of envy and full of excitement, heartbroken and loved, alone and surrounded by people you can without a doubt call friends. All of this is gathered on a palette with a wide variety of colors; a palette to paint upon the canvas the joys and disappointments that life has to offer. Looking at the portrait, there is only one question left. ‘What color do you want to be?’
Jelly_
A normal harem anime, nothing special. Typical characters, not plot-heavy, and just fun to watch. The first 4 episodes showed great potential, and led me to believe that this might be the harem anime that breaks the norm. It was one of my favorite anime I had watched, until 'Aoyama Nanami' was introduced. This character, for me anyway, mixed with the plot sent the show into a fiery spiral towards the ground. She is outright annoying. If this character was not introduced, the show would be much better. I'm not joking. I give Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo a 5/10
