First Impression: Tonari no Kaibutsu-kun

You know, I actually fucken read the original manga series of most of the adaptations I review (except for maybe stuff like Hagure Yuusha, in which case it doesn't really matter since I'm not going to give it a good grade anyways). That's right, I'm not like those motherfuckers out there who just grade this junk based on whatever plot they see in the anime. I go hardcore on this review shit.

...This also meant that I had to blast through 132 chapters of Magi...

shudders

No story is complete without chicken.

If there's one ridiculously huge benefit to writing in the shoujo genre/style, it's that they don't have to be 'creative' with the backgrounds like shounen/seinen/josei have to be. They don't have to come up with crazy backgrounds and worlds - as long as they show relatively unique characters (as in, not a complete Mary Sue) and throw them together, the series will be fine.

Throwing them together realistically and in a way that creates drama is the difficult part. Shounen/Seinen can lul around all day without really creating drama (hello there Derpa Kyoushi) but that's not the same for shoujo, mainly because of the very factor that I mentioned above. Without unique drama, it ends up the same as all the other shoujo series out there, which essentially equates to a death sentence in that market.

Hit so hard his imprint was left on the side he didn't fly off to. Impressive.

Before I get into the plot, I'll just do a quick offhand review of the production values. In the audio department, I think the OP (Q&A Recital! by Tomatsu Haruka) is pretty decent, but doesn't fit the series for some reason. Yes, it does have its silly moments, but for the most part Tonari is simply a quiet shoujo with a steady pace. I'll probably download the soundtrack because it seems good, but I haven't seen anything that really pops out to me. As for graphics, the medium-sized lines and relatively pale coloration that Brain's Base is used to really, really fits these more serious series. It worked for Durarara!!, Spice & Wolf II, and Kure-nai, and it'll work for Tonari no Kaibutsu-kun. In fact, I want to see Brain's Base trying out more shoujo series in the future, given how decently the two matched up.

And now for the plot...

No, I believe you're mistaking this series for Koi to Senkyo to Chocolate.

Tonari no Kaibutsu-kun is actually quite a decent series (I mean, it's a relatively popular series, but mainstreamers have a tendency to stubbornly bandwagon, so...) Although the flow of time and the evolution of characters are evident, the series simply won't let the character interactions drag, setting it apart from many others of its ilk. Although this is less of a natural progression from one climax to another and more of a "plot tasering" whenever the story looks like it's about to get dull (whether with a kiss or with a new relationship development), it works well enough to keep one reading. Sometimes it does feel like new characters are being thrown into the cast just to mess around with the main couple or to invite in fresh conversation, but that's more or less part for the course in shoujo series anyways, so I'll overlook that. Overall, the manga in itself is a relatively satisfactory shoujo series (much more so than, say, a draggin Kaichou wa Maid-sama) and I'd recommend it as a break from the usual shounen stuff.

Best pickup line ever

As an anime adaptation, it's working out pretty well (again, the production values help a lot) with the exception of two things. The first is the choice of voice actors. I don't think the voice of Tomatsu Haruka is very adept at dealing with the main character (Mizutani Shizuku) at hand. The character is only quiet because she's a loner. However, when confronted, Mizutani is definitely a bold and perhaps even aggressive character, albeit still cold. I don't think the more whispery voice that Tomatsu tries out is working overly well, but right now I can't think of a proper voice that might fit the character better. Maybe a stricter-sounding Koshimizu Ami? Not sure... 

Anyways, the second point I wanted to make is that since even the manga isn't finished yet (with about 30-40 long chapters finished), there's not going to be a satisfactory ending to the series. there just isn't - not nearly enough time. Sorry to the anime-only watchers, but they're just going to have a stupid ending like "oh we all changed for the better over time" and just cut it off. A pity, but that's what the 12-episode season does to you.

However, Tonari no Kaibutsu-kun is a series that's definitely worth watching, if only as a "detox" series from the usual ecchi seinen crap that's invading modern anime series. Check it out for a relaxing, yet fun time.

Recommendation: Watch it, it's pretty darn good.

When in doubt, copy Snake.