So I got really behind in this anime so I decided to do a summary post and my thoughts. Most important I’ll put a little comparison between Shojo-tachi and Saekano.
So let’s start.
Episode 7
So this episode is basically how Bunta’s got a bit of writer’s block in terms of the romantic relationship between the protagonist and the female lead. So the girls help him out.
It’s pretty funny but Ando’s is kinda weird though.
At the end, the date that helps Bunta the most and the one that looks the most interesting is Yuuka’s.
Pretty nice date. Too bad childhood friends rarely win in these types of anime. Sayuri will win this fight.
Episode 8
This episode is about Bunta’s lockdown. He’s got to finish the visual novel’s script in three days and the best way to do this is a complete and utter lockdown.
Not a single ounce of chill here.
But there are some cute parts…
So cute and then it gets bad…really bad…
My eyes! You could have worn a butler uniform or something!
But despite that sight, which would have blinded me and made me kill myself, Bunta finished the script!
Good work Bunta
Episode 9
This is a little boring of an episode.
It’s mostly about Yuuka’s part of her doing the voice acting for the main female lead. It’s kinda of funny that Yuuka(voiced by Kana Hanazawa, one of the most highly paid seiyuu in Japan) messing up over lines and questioning if her performance was good or not.
That’s pretty much to that episode.
Episode 10
Now this is a really bad episode here.
It’s all about another larger visual novel company named Typhoon and they challenge our group to a battle of the first day sales after Bunta throws some water on their leader after she keeps trying to poach some of the group.
That part I have no problem with. However the end is the part that really sucks. At the end it’s revealed that Sayuki lied about the game and her brother comes by and thanks them for making a game to clear his debts.
Episode 11
Another bad episode.
The group pretty much all leave Sayuki because she lied but they come back around the halfway mark, saying they want to finish what they started. Even then she lied! Come everyone.
And Ando this is the third time you walked out! Granted this is justified but it’s getting annoying now.
That makes me feel a bit better.
So the group manages to finish the game at the last minute because some of computer issues and have to hand deliver the game.
Episode 12
And the finale.
I had to say that it was okay.
It basically was celebrating the completion of the game, beating Typhoon in the contest and them saying they want to make another game.
My Thoughts on the Anime
The anime on a whole by itself was a 7. However it wasn’t my favorite thing. The ending was really bland and the drama about Sayuki lying was pointless drama at the end.
Shojo-tachi wa Kouya wo Mesazu vs. Saenai Herione no Sodatekata
The act of comparing the two is definitely difficult.
The first part that that the two stories have different drives.
Drive in stories are either one of two things:
- Character Driven meaning that the characters and their interactions are the focus.
- Plot Driven meaning that the plot and how the characters deal with it and progress towards it.
Saekano is character driven while Shojo-tachi are plot-driven.
And that is the strength of Saekano does.
Saekano makes you love the characters and the characters are someone that people can rally around and call someone best girl.
The girls from Shojo-tachi are cute and interesting but they aren’t someone that people can call a best girl or someone super interesting.
Utaha, Megumi, Eriri, and Michiru are characters that people can love.
Sayuri, Ando, Yuuka, and Yuuki are interesting but don’t have the draw that the Saekano girls do.
And that’s what makes this anime flop in terms of quality. Granted it would have been around 7 if it came out before Saekano and it would haven’t received this much criticism but it did and it is getting compared to Saekano which drives its ratings down.
In short, I’m going to give Shojo-tachi wa Kouya wo Mesazu a 6 out of 10. The characters weren’t very developed and the ending gave me a sour taste.
So with that I’m done for the Winter Season. I can’t wait to see what the Spring Season is going to bring us.
So until the spring Season,
Later Days
Extra Pic
Sayuki Kuroda is doing a naturally sexy pose. Those stockings are high tier!
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devenluca
josefcd904
April 5, 2016 at 10:44 am
‘it would have been around 7 if it came out before Saekano’
This seems incredibly unfair. Why are you thinking about one show while watching and reviewing another?
Didn’t find the drama about lying pointless at all – not as well done as it could have been, but it was integral to one of the key themes of the plot: teamwork, and the obstacles to achieving it.
I’m sure you would have been more drawn to the characters if you hadn’t judged the show based on how you’d enjoyed Saekano. Summarizing Yuuka’s episode the way you did speaks of that in volumes. So does requiring this show to have girls who can be ‘best girl’ or rallied around.
What about relating to them like normal people?
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April 5, 2016 at 12:39 pm
I admit that my review is a bit colored by watching Saekano first but I still find that the characters of Shoujo-tachi were a bit weaker in terms of development as opposed the characters of Saekano.
Each of the girls and Tomoya, we got a lot about them both in their past and their reason for the things they do. I also admit that since I read the Utaha Manga and Eriri manga I understand those characters better. They develop over the course of the anime. With Shoujo-tachi, the characters don’t really change much if at all. The only major change is Sayuki who becomes a bit more sociable.
With Shoujo-tachi, it is first and foremost, a Visual Novel while Saekano is a light novel. When Visual Novels are adapted, it’s difficult because they usually have more than one route so each character/love interest can be fleshed out more. When Visual Novels are adapted they adapt one route at a time, and if the studio’s good they aren’t going to mix routes. So we’re going to get a lot of characterization for one character and leave us wanting more for another. With Light Novels, it’s just follow the novel and the characterization and backstory will come without having to dive into side materials to get more of the characters.
I probably should have phrased that differently though. I liked Shoujo-tachi but what it lacked was character development. It was a true expression of a plot driven story. However they focused too much on the plot and not on the characters. Most of the problems with the development of the game in the story were dealt with within one episode so there wasn’t any sense of tension or things were truly changing.
In terms of Sayuki lying, I didn’t like that she lied and then everyone returned so easily. I saw that the group was clearly getting close and became friends and lying to those friends should make a rift that is very difficult to repair. I feel that rift was closed too quickly.
I related to the characters a lot more so Yuuki and Yuuka since I’ve worked myself to the point of passing out before because I wanted to help or make someone happy. As for Yuuka, I know the feeling of having feelings for someone only to realize that they like someone else. I definitely related to them. I think the main flaw of the anime was the pacing. If they had more time to characterize the characters I’d loved it more.
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April 5, 2016 at 12:54 pm
I think the changes and characterization in Shoujo-tachi were just subtle, and you missed them by keeping other character archtypes in mind.
The source material does not limit the adaptation so tightly as you suggest. This whole dichotomy of ‘plot-driven’ and ‘character-driven’ is likewise not so exact. I’m sure it’s making it easier for you to criticize things, but applying a construct made for guiding creative writers through their work to a finished product as a reviewer is critically unproductive.
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April 5, 2016 at 12:56 pm
True. I still have all the episodes though. I’ll take another look at the anime and do a full season review on it.
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