Spring is usually my favorite season every year. It usually consists of heavy hitters of popular franchises as well as new adaptations that generates a great deal of hype. This year though, we have an unusual amount of short series that runs half the length. Unfortunately, most of these shorts fell flat and limited themselves with low expectations. However, there are two shows this season that managed to break that limit. One of them is this curious little thing called Senryuu Shoujo.
I love the manga. It recently reached its 100th chapter milestone and being a short length show actually helps make the story flow better. ... The story premise itself is simple that stars Yukishiro Nanako as the main female protagonist. An easy trait to notice about Nanako is that she doesn’t communicate verbally with others. Instead, she expresses her language in the form of haikyu, a form of poem.
What it comes down to it, Senryuu Shoujo manages to captivate me with its charming cast of characters. Nanako’s personality is that of a friendly girl who is very open minded and willing to accept anyone as a friend, including ex-delinquent Eiji. Throughout the series, Eiji is portrayed as a misunderstood person by others because of his intimidating appearance. As members of the Literature Club, we get an inside look at their relationship. There’s many running gags between the two but at the end of the day, it’s shown that they greatly care about each other. Or perhaps it’s more than what it seems. Someone as dense as Eiji doesn’t realize Nanako’s feelings for him. As a slice a life comedy, this anime is filled humorous moments. It never ceases opportunities to poke fun of their relationship. At its very best, we can see their true personalities behind their outer shell.
Meanwhile, we do have other characters such as Literature Club president Amane Katagari. A running gag in the show is how she tries to get Eiji and Nanako together for alone time. Similarly, Eiji’s childhood Koto Ootsuki loves to tease the duo whenever she gets the chance. It makes time to always sell humor so the audience remains entertained. This also extends to fortune teller Tao Hankai who is well known for her bizarre personality. I think by the time we are introduced to the majority of the cast, there’s always someone to keep an eye on. The only character I felt underwhelmed would be Kino, another girl who communicates non-verbally. Unlike Nanako, she is too timid and lacks presence. Even when an episode focuses more on her than others, it feels like she’s invisible. I personally think Kino is a poor’s man version of Nanako for being unable to develop character chemistry with the other cast. It’s a shame.
At its core, Senryuu Shoujo is an easy going slice of life anime that relies a lot on its character chemistry than storytelling. It doesn’t and shouldn’t take anyone to think about what this anime means with each episode. Come to think of it, the comedy itself often feels very direct with even more characters getting their own moments of fame. This includes Nanako’s father with his own misunderstood fantasies or Eiji’s denseness. There will definitely be an audience who will find this type of humor to be childish and poorly executed. But hey, that’s the ball in your court.
This is actually Connect’s first TV short if you don’t count their previous net anime projects. The overall colorful visuals delivers a great look to the series’ themes. I was cautiously optimistic at first after seeing the preview videos but as more episodes aired, the show proved itself to be visual fest. Studio Connect managed to capture the school life setting with a feeling of serenity. In the meantime, character designs are carefully made with care to match the look of the manga. The most noticeable characters are Nanako and Eiji for their very contrasting designs but anyone who lay eyes on them the first time should easily see how well they match their personalities. Character expressions is also an important feature that manages to communicate characters’ feelings. And for any fans who wants to be serviced, there’s moments of that too including the unavoidable swimsuit episode. There’s something here for anyone who is a fan of slice of life.
I admit that shorts aren’t really my favorite type of anime. Most often, they suffer from story development based on the amount of content. However, Senryu Shoujo never relies on storytelling to be special. Instead, it has these creative circle of characters that’s here to steal the spotlight. I recommend giving the manga a chance for first time viewers as the anime doesn’t adapt chronically with its flow. But once you start to get into the flow, you’ll want more and more.
Alternative Titles Synonyms: Senryuu Girl Japanese: 川柳少女 Information Type: TV Episodes: 12 Status: Finished Airing Aired: Apr 6, 2019 to Jun 22, 2019 Premiered: Spring 2019 Broadcast: Saturdays at 01:55 (JST) Licensors: Sentai Filmworks Studios: Connect Source: 4-koma manga Genre: Comedy Demographic: Shounen Duration: 12 min. per ep. Rating: PG-13 - Teens 13 or older Statistics Score: 7.371 (scored by 80,163 users) 1 indicates a . Ranked: #25222 2 based on the top anime page. Please note that 'Not yet aired' and 'R18+' titles are excluded. Popularity: #1280 Members: 186,728 Favorites: 469 Available AtResources |
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