The Kawai Complex Guide For Manors and Hostel Behaviour — Review

Alright, so this is an anime review and anime is insane, so it's only logical to expect THIS one to be too, right?
It kinda is, kinda isn't, really.

The main characters sans Sumiko-san, (still, notice Sayaka's lesbian antics here.)

It's kind of a romantic comedy, so there isn't really anything new here.
Except for one thing.
The main character looks like such a yaoi protagonist.
I am not kidding:

Usa, the protagonist eating.

Honestly, he has the big eyes. 
Like, really big.
Too big for a shounen protagonist, but, well, at least it's more of a seinen anime, so it feels justified a bit more.
Anyhow, his love interest is one of those silent types.
Hardcore silent, though.
She honestly would like nothing more than to just read forever with little to no company.

Kawai, the love interest. (Source for the GIF: x)

Anyhow, the story kicks off with Usa being in school and he mentions that he wants nothing more than to spend his high school days with a nice girl who is quiet and smart and whatever else.
He pretty much wants a pixie girl is all you need to know. 
THEN he finds his senpai, Kawai, in the library reading and lovingly stares and says that's his crush, narratively.
After this he mentions that he's moving someplace knew without his parents because what's an anime with anime parents?
Evangelion?
Kill La Kill?
Exactly.
And so he moves into the Kawai Complex and finds that, unbeknownst to him, he has a:
sadist roommate who likes any type of harm and abuse,
(he even voluntarily suffers from heatstroke at one point)

Shiro, the masochist, beside Sumiko-san, the housekeeper.

a drunk neighbor who is both easy and kinda dumb,
(seriously, she gives in to nearly any guy, she needs higher standards) 

Mayumi, the easy tenant.

and a mostly evil girl who is afraid of taking off her makeup
(she is always finding ways to get at people). 

Sayaka, in her full face of makeup.

With this information, he decides to leave at once and find another place to live except that as he walks out he finds Kawai walking in.
Apparently she's the fifth tenant.
And so he decides to stay because he wants to be close to her.
After that, there isn't really much to say.
Like, a lot of crazy things happen, but it's all very sitcom-y.
If you want to watch an anime sitcom with will-they won't-they antics that doesn't really gets solved, watch this.
I am serious about that, though, nothing really gets solved, and they don't, and you know why?
This is based off of a light novel and I am willing to bet that even there it's too early on to know whether they will or not, although, they do hint that they will.

"Plays 'Wonderwall'" (but, no, she really just plays and then cries randomly).

Pros:Giving the series a cozy, home-like feeling of the suburbs.
The art style, which tends to feel shiny and glossy.
Plenty of laugh-worthy moments.

Cons: 
It doesn't really bring anything new to the table.
The characters are not fully fleshed out and their relationships aren't either.
An anti-climactic final episode.

Grade:
Watch this only if you're really bored and cannot think of anything better to watch if you're craving comedy and a pretty good art style.

Watch it here.
Wikipedia.
Other Reviews. 
Exposition. 

Once Upon a Time — Season 1 Review

First of all, everything begins with a good pilot doesn't it? 
So let's first get into cause it introduces that larger story at hand.

The episode introduces Emma Swan, a woman who is completely alone and is apparently an orphan with no friends or family or anything to speak of. 
(She is also a bail bonds-person which seems to be like a bounty hunter, but super different??)

Emma in the pilot making her birthday wish before Henry's entry.

As she sets down her birthday (cup)cake and makes a wish and blows out the candle she gets someone ringing at the door. 

(The wish she makes is important, though, so keep an eye if you're interested in the series.)

Henry allegedly speaking to Emma, his birth mother.

The person at the door is none other than Henry Mills, a random 11 year old boy who barges in and tells her that he is her child and that he wants to take her back to where he lives because she must do something there, which is shown to be a curse. 

He wants her to break a curse that has caused his town, Storybrooke, to come into existence and trap fairy tale characters in it with no memory of who they are. 

Regina picking apples from the tree in her backyard.

After arriving in the town he realizes that his adoptive mother is the most important woman in all the town, the Mayor. 

Appropriately called Mayor Mills or Madame Mayor at times. 

Her name is Regina Mills. Henry accuses her of being the Evil Queen from the Snow White tale and his teacher, Mary Margaret Blanchard, of being Snow White.

Snow White in her Storybrooke dress as Mary Margaret Blanchard.

Anyhow, a lot of shit goes down and the mayor is shown to be a very aggressive person who will stop at nothing to get Emma out of the town which really irritates her and makes her want to stay in town just to see what's up with her and Henry and stuff.

She doesn't believe in the curse, of course.

Anyhow, that's the pilot's plot and it introduces the show's simple format for storytelling.

As in most shows, there is an A plot/B plot formula which here is established as being a Storybrooke in the present/Enchanted Forest in the past formula.

The Enchanted Forest is the name of the place where all of the fairy tale people originate.

Anyhow, as for the season's overarching plot:
Emma Swan, dubbed "The Saviour" by Henry Mills and Rumplestiltskin also known as Mr. Gold, is meant to break the Dark Curse cast The Evil Queen. 


In the beginning it is hard to tell exactly what the show is trying to do. 
A lot of its plots feel random and erratic.
But over time it establishes its point and goal, which is for Emma to believe in magic, and the curse itself.
Sure, she goes on Operation Cobra with Henry trying to find out how to break the curse and who to help and things like that, but she never truly believes.
At least not until the season finale, anyways.
Moreover, it takes them 18 episodes for them to even get into the reason why the Evil Queen is, oh, so hated by Snow White.
And getting to that episode was a breaking point, for me personally, anyhow.
It was then that I could relate the most to her.
It is then that her character is given so much depth and her character only grows as time passes.
But then again, so is Gold.
His character is given depth with the introduction of three characters, one of which does not appear until the second season.
The characters are his son, Baelfire, his wife, Milah, and his true love, Belle.

Mr. Gold in his shop.

Most other characters grow as well because of the plots, like Prince Charming also known as David Nolan.
His way of finding and loving Snow White is long and arduous and it even costs him and her big at times.

Prince Charming in his David Nolan attire.

Anyhow, is this worth watching?
Yes, I'd say so.
The CGI is awful, though, be warned.
And it can be corny sometimes, although it's literally fairy tale about fairy tale endings, so that's only to be expected.

Grade:
"Watch this if you are a fan of magic and fairy tales with a more serious touch to it. It is nowhere near as serious as The Wolf Among Us or the comic books it's based off of, Fables, but it's definitely like more grown-up Disney."