Two years ago, Junichi Tachibana had a date on Christmas Eve but was stood up instead. Since then, he has had a hard time showing others his true feelings in fear of being rejected again. However, as luck would have it, Junichi may have a second chance at love when he meets several girls whom he becomes romantically interested in: Haruka Morishima, the energetic and popular upperclassman with a love for cute things; Kaoru Tanamachi, his childhood friend who harbors secret feelings for him; Sae Nakata, the timid transfer student who is shy around men; Ai Nanasaki, a girl on the swim team who has a bad first impression of Junichi; Rihoko Sakurai, a childhood friend with a love for sweets; and Tsukasa Ayatsuji, a seemingly perfect class representative who has a hidden dark side. As Christmas Eve approaches, Junichi can only hope that this will be the year he will finally spend the holidays with the one he truly loves.
If you don't know where you're from, then you don't know where you are, and you don't know where you're going. It's a fairly trite adage, but like most old sayings there's an element of truth to it. When it comes to visual media though, such sentiments seem to go out of the window, across the fields, and off into the wild blue yonder, especially where adaptations are concerned.
So where does that leave Amagami SS?
A number of people may already be familiar with the fact that the series is yet another adaptation of a dating sim, and given that this is the spiritual successor to...Kimikiss, it's only natural that Enterbrain would attempt to emulate the relative success of the latter game and its anime adaptation. Unlike its predecessor though, Amagami SS decides to take a different approach with the storyline, and breaks things up into bite-sized relationship pieces that supposedly makes them easier to swallow, which works ... kind of.
The series is split up into six short stories (and one "special" episode), that recount Tachibana Junichi's quest for high school love, and how he finds it with six different girls (and before you ask, no, this isn't School Days all over again). Along the way various relationship shenanigans ensue which cause the usual misunderstandings, reconciliations, attractions, repulsions, etc, etc.
Now on the surface Amagami SS looks like the common or garden harem romantic comedy (but with the harem aspect applied in a different way). The plot follows the game's methodology by offering up multiple heroines for the protagonist to pursue, and while some may find this a refreshing approach, it's not really original as the series attempts to mask its shortcomings by adopting different narrative styles from one tale to the next.
The biggest problem with short stories is that there needs to be enough content and context within the plot to justify the actions, thoughts and emotions of the characters, and it's surprising that Amagami manages to offer some semblance of a storyline over the course of each tale. Then again, the majority of development points where both the plot and the characters are concerned have really been done to death in anime and manga, so it's no surprise that there's at least a half decent story in there.
After all, if you give enough monkeys enough time they can apparently produce Shakespeare (although it does make one wonder where they keep him).
Each individual tale is pretty decent in its own right, but when one considers them as part of the whole a different picture begins to appear. What emerges are a series of contradictory actions and behaviours that don't really seem to make sense. Now these could be explained away by assuming that people act one way with one person, and another way with someone else, and so on, and one could easily view Amagami in this light. The problem is that this assumption ignores the portrayals of the characters in the previous stories, effectively making them little more than blank canvasses. To further compound this, certain characters seem to be clueless about the circumstances around people they've known for years.
Still, if one simply treats them as a series of short stories then they can be entertaining, but the plot for each is nothing special, and the formulaic approach to each tale is, at times, a bit too familiar, and offers very little in the way of innovation, and rather a lot in the way of predictability.
It's pretty obvious from the artwork that there is a large degree of genericism inherent in this anime, and Amagami does nothing to break away from the stereotypes. The high school setting, town and surrounding environs are nicely designed and detailed, but when it comes to rom-com anime, once you've seen one high school, you've pretty much seen them all. Granted there are a few exceptions to the rule, but in general there's not much difference between the various depictions on offer.
The design principle is a little bit strange in one respect (which I'll come back to in a bit), as the characters are nicely envisioned, but are also as generic as they come (much like a lot of things in this anime). That doesn't mean they're poorly realised though, as they're clearly based on Enterbrain's designs from the games, and coupled with some decent animation and backgrounds, they do give the show a familiarity that can sometimes be mistaken for quality. The acid test occurs when one compares the series to its spiritual predecessor, and although Kimikiss was produced by a different animation studio, there are a number of similarities that stand out, not the least of which is the look of the heroines.
But simply looking like another show doesn't mean that the design and animation is substandard, and in all honesty Amagami does manage to hold it's own in the visuals department. It simply could have been better than it is, and it's puzzling why this isn't the case, especially for such a popular gaming franchise.
One of the better aspects of the series is the music, specifically the manner in which it's used rather than the actual tracks played throughout the anime (which are fairly routine affairs, but that's pretty much expected by this point). There are far too many shows out there that play music for no specific reason, so it's nice to watch a series that treats silence as golden for a change, and this is something that works in Amagami's favour as it allows the viewer to focus on the characters without having to suffer through tunes that sound a lot like the music played in just about every other high school rom-com/drama ever made.
That said, the music in itself isn't bad per se. It's simply ... generic (there's that word again), and even with two opening themes and six ending themes (sung by the lead actress from each character arc), there's little on offer that really stands out. Granted there are some decent enough songs (the law of averages and all that), but in all honesty this is probably nothing more than "when you're given lemons, make lemonade", or in this case, when you're given a romantic comedy drama, make a cheesy love song.
Which leaves only the acting, and in this respect Amagami is a bit of a mixed bag. Maeno Tomoaki plays the role of Junichi rather well (even though it's a bit like playing the role of a wet paper bag at times), and the strength of his portrayal gives much needed support to the lead actress roles.
See, here's the problem. No matter how good the seiyuu are, there's a limited amount that can be achieved in four episodes. Granted the actors and actresses have cameos throughout the series, but it's nowhere near enough time for them to truly come to grips with their characters. In this respect Kimikiss is actually superior, as by the end of that anime the seiyuu had grown accustomed to their roles and were able to play their parts with a confidence that, with the obvious exception of Maeno (who plays the only continuous lead character), none of the seiyuu in Amagami can match.
All of which leads to the characters themselves, and in a nutshell they're as generic (I seem to be using that word a lot these days), as they come, but once again that doesn't automatically mean that they're bad. Junichi could very well be a poster boy for harem lead males, and fits just about every stereotype going, especially the ones about nice guys and being a little slow on the uptake. That said, he's a pleasant enough character, and as the only lead in focus throughout the series there is some development to be had, but the nature of the story dictates that this tends to be repetitive.
Unfortunately the female leads aren't as clearly defined, and the reason for this is the relatively small amount of screen time they get. While they also grow as characters, this is tempered with a necessary urgency that precludes any substantial development. The supporting characters also suffer from the "resetting" of their personalities as this leads to repetitive behaviours and actions that simply don't go anywhere, and add nothing more than inane by-plays to the main narrative.
Amagami SS isn't a bad show though, and it does have its plus points. The relationship mechanics are handled in a reasonable manner, and the characters, especially the male lead, aren't as wishy-washy as some I could name. The problem is that instead of trying something original, director Hiraike Yoshimasa and AIC have opted to follow a "tried and tested" method that will yield results when it comes to DVD sales and merchandising, but only in the short term, and this makes one wonder why a hugely popular game franchise like Amagami has an adaptation that is only passing good.
The series is enjoyable to a degree, but it's still nothing more than one amongst many romantic comedies in anime, especially where schools are concerned.
Given the popularity and fervour surrounding the games one would expect AIC to expend more effort on making the anime adaptation better than it is, especially where things like plot and design are concerned. Granted there's only so much one can do in that respect, but the overuse of stereotypes means that the whole series plays out like nothing more than a glorified advert for the game(s). Like so many other game adaptations, the producers, director, animation studio, and just about everybody else in the making of this series have failed to realise the what fans really want. Instead of offering something that is an evolution of the franchise, we're treated to nothing more than a vapid retelling of the same old story. Even though the Amagami tries to be a little different with it's approach, one cannot laud the attempts to hide this anime's failings, especially the overtly generic design and plot, characters that don't really get the kind of attention needed to raise the level of the series, and an almost blind obedience to formula.
In a very odd way, Amagami SS is a clear case of too many girls, not enough time, and the decision to make it in the first place seems to have had little to do with wanting to tell a story, and more to do with letting everyone know how good the games are.
I suppose I can chalk this up as another "victory" for the marketing department.
A countless number of visual novel to anime adaptations have seen the light of day and it takes no genius to figure out the trend in story-telling. Divide the show into a series of character arcs, whilst following an over-arching story/plot; or just follow a single character arc and be done with it. This has proven to be quite an effective method for telling these kinds of stories but it's not ideal for pleasing all the character's fans. Now in comes Amagami SS, a series that takes a step in a new direction by telling each of the character's stories, as a 4 episode standalone...arc.
Amagami SS basically has every arc begin the same, by introducing our protagonist Junichi Tachibana, who's suffering from some form of PTSD, after being stood up on Christmas eve sometime ago (I know, it's pretty pathetic... just roll with it). Stuff happens and then it wraps it up, in pretty much the same way for every single arc. So yeah, there's really not much to say about the story, well stories, since they all follow a distinct pattern that's easy to pick up on. Boy meets girl, boy & girl bond through some arbitrary activity, mutual romantic feelings develop and well you catch my drift. Sure each character arc provides a fairly different story from the last, yet it's difficult shake off the feeling that you've just seen this story but with some differences. So by the end I really couldn't find pleasure when Boy A finally got together with Girl B, when he also hooked up with Girl A,C,D,E & F.
Speaking of the girls, they are just about the best thing about the series and the director & writers did a good job in combating the obvious favouritism we are used to in harems by developing each of the girls equally. My only gripe with this method is that even the characters I didn't care about we're also developed. As for the male protagonist, he's just what you expect from your average high school boy who sneaks off with his friend to enjoy the odd dirty magazine. Although the creator tried adding some subtle quirks for each individual character arc. Some of these quirks work but others don't. Like hiding in the closet (that's just waiting for a joke).
I've heard a lot of praise regarding the art and animation of Amagami SS and sure I must admit that the character designs are great. With character's looking like people you expect to meet in real life, doing away with the annoying multi-coloured hairstyles that plagues this genre. But apart from that the animation is just above average. All one has to do is pay attention to the background. As for the sound design, there's really nothing remarkable about it; the same seiyuus we anime veterans are all used, working well with the roles they are given and completed with some typical light-hearted melodies. Like I said... nothing remarkable.
All in all, Amagami SS is a collection of 6 run-of-the-mill highschool romance stories and with 6 stories/girls to choose from you're bound to like at least 1 of the stories/girls. So I'll give the show credit for allowing me to enjoy multiple romantic short stories. Did I enjoy them all? No, but I enjoyed enough... sort of. The good thing is that the obvious fanservice tropes, like pantyshots & breast jiggles are kept to moderate levels throughout but that's because the very nature of this anime is fanservice. That in itself made the show watchable for me however it doesn't excuse the unfunny humour the show is filled with and fact that it became a repeatable conquest, like with every visual novel on the market. Some may take pleasure in what Amagami SS has to offer, I cannot refute that, but I didn't. So you can accept what I've written about Amagami SS, or take it with a grain of salt, but either way I'm sure you did not click on this review assuming that I wholeheartedly liked the show now did you?
Next on my line of harems to spite comes Amagami SS (Jesus, I’m still on letter A). This anime is somewhat weird to talk about as it is constantly deletes the progress in the story. Before I get to nerdraeg about the show, first I must clear my thoughts on one of the most dreaded recent additions to one of the stalest and lamest anime categories ever.
There is this scenario format where the story resets every few episodes, just so the lead character can choose a different action in some point in his life that will change the later events of the story. It is...an element introduced by date sims, where there you chose a girl and move towards winning her. Replaying the game by choosing a different girl, meaning following a different path. This in anime terms, means that time resets and you get to see the same things again, only this time the character will go for a different girl. This is the chance to win all the girls, one at a time … and it sucks.
I am vertically negative towards such a trope in anime form, thus I am writing a biased review from the start (as if hating harems wasn’t enough already). Some may like the option of having the guy winning all the girls and making time reset so to see how things will turn out if you make a different choice somewhere in your life. Although this concept was quite interesting in movies such as Groundhog Day or The Butterfly Effect for showing you how fragile the outcome of the future can be, here it is nothing but a lame excuse to render all character development and the gravity of one’s choice completely useless.
Another thing I want to mention is that unlike in the above movies where the lead remembers each reset, here he does not. Every time is like we watch a different alternative reality, making even the notion of maturing and learning from your past (or possible future) mistakes equally useless.
And finally, I want to make clear that Amagami IS A HAREM despite some refusing to accept it as one because the lead goes for one girl at a time and there are no cat fights. Well excuse me but one guy surrounded by pretty chicks, and he needs to pick one, counts as a harem, even when the choice is clear from the start. The oldest and most famous harems are Love Hina and Ah My Goddess and there the chosen girl was also clear from the start. Thus Amagami IS A HAREM like it or not.
So starting from the worst part, the story, I say it is bollocks. Using the reset button after the lead wins a girl means we practically watch 7 short romantic comedies of roughly 4 episodes each. The same characters are present in all of them but their interactions are different each time, so you might as well consider this a collection of similar short romantic school life stories, with the same actors in each one (sometimes called an Omnibus). Thus we practically have a typical slice of life school romance that begins and ends in 4 episodes maximum before throwing to the bin all that happened and going back to square 1, where we see the same formula, but with a different girl being the main target. Some may like this gimmick for making them feel like they are watching a date sim in anime form … but I find it stupid as heck. Here I am watching a story unfold and then is deleted like it doesn’t mean anything.
It’s not like I reject the notion of the reset. It is ok in date sims and it was great when they implemented it in Tatami Galaxy. Using it here, in a typical story about typical people, feels disappoint. What is the point? Some will say it is a great way to please all shippers, which are guys who prefer one specific girl to end up with the lead and even argue with others who prefer a different girl. All these dudes can just choose the arc where the lead wins their favorite girl and reject all others, so everybody is happy.
Again, I am against that. Making an important choice in your life means to reject all other possible options. Winning something means at the same time losing everything else. The little pebble you chose out of a huge rubble of other pebbles will be more important to you that all the rest you sacrificed just to get this one. So what is this crap; doing anything I want and forgetting everything just to do something different? It sounds like cowardice in the least. Where is the importance of choosing? What is the point in having free will without the notion that you can’t undo what you chose to do?
Enough with that babble; it’s practically off-topic and random rant visualized by a biased mindset that loves to space out and overanalyze shitz. Let’s talk about the cast a bit; shall we? What we basically have here is seven girls and a main lead, teasing each other in a game of who gets to win whom. The lead is not the usual spineless dork of harems, as he is quite open with his feelings. Well, it’s not like he had the time not to be; he is roughly given enough time to waste in indecisiveness in a show of short arcs. He practically fools around a bit and confesses his love rather fast, the girl also agrees rather fast, the arc ends in a weird or funny moment and abracadabra we are transported in a different alternative reality where he now pulls the same with a different girl. Takes away all sense of progress or meaningfulness. … Woops, again with that off topic fuss.
The girls themselves are practically seven basic archetypes, found in many date sims, each accompanied by some clothing fetish to act as a vague character trait, just so we can set them apart easier. Yeah, we get to remember them as an archetype and a fetish; how romantic and noble for the female genre. But it is true that although they are stereotypical caricatures, they get colorized very well throughout the series. The nice visuals, the good voice acting, the romantic foreplay, all that work fine at bringing out all that it’s available on each archetypical trait.
So they may all be omelets but you will not get to confuse one omelet with another, thanks to the cooks’ ability to bring out a special and unique flavor on each one of them. After that, it all has to do with your own personal perverted fetish … errr, I mean taste. If girl A is better than girl B will be up to you and not because some are not as well done … errr, well presented as others.
Other than that, they are not special or memorable for any given reason.
Animation and sound do their work in a fine way, helping you to get in the light and fuzzy feeling of the show. The backgrounds and the character figures are nicely drawn and colored, there is attention given to various lightings effects and camera angles. Voice acting is good, if you don’t find the rather high pitched voices that weird. Music themes are good and fitting for such a type of show.
But again, after all is done I found nothing memorable in all this fuss. It was just an average school setting with average people doing average things. Average is a hard thing to remember you know; it is so much easier to remember very happy or very bad moments. But this comes to no surprise for a show made by studio AIC, which is infamous for its anime soups. The director is also some nobody who never managed to produce a good anime. It has a very good pacing and atmosphere for its kind, while visuals and sound are quite nice. Other than that, there is nothing overall WOW in it; just a typical omelet that was cooked nicely. Plus that reset thing GOD I HATE IT.
If we had a story about a guy gradually mating and separating with girls until he finds the proper one in the end, as corny as it would be it would still be more solid and memorable than THIS mess.
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