Anime 52214 Genjitsu No Yohane Sunshine In The Mirror Reviews Filter Check 1

Very rarely does a meme turn into something as good as the Yohane spin-off. Originally created as an April Fool’s Day joke, Sunrise saw the reception and decided to make it a real anime. I’m glad they did. Yohane has been my favourite Aquors member and 2nd favourite Love Live girl for a long time and the story in this one really did her justice.Allowing her to shine in a way she just couldn’t get in the main anime due to sharing the spotlight with the other girls. The show manages to keep the feeling of the original Sunshine series, while mixing in a modern ... fantasy element. The fantasy aspect is a little underwhelming. It does feel like the story is very self-contained to the small town in which it takes place, however, as with all Love Live titles, the show really shines with the character interactions.

Yohane and her faithful companion Lailaps have a very nice, almost sibling relationship. Over the course of the show we see the two of them bond and come to understand each other. Despite being an original creation for this anime, I quickly got attached and fell in love with Lailaps. The struggles that she and Yohane go through over the course of the show, how she comforts Yohane in her times of need.. Just really resonated with me. It’s a simple yet poignant relationship. While the other girls do feature in the show heavily, it’s very much a Lailaps and Yohane story at its core. Yohane growing into her own person is a very sweet story and I loved every moment of it.

As I said, the rest of the Aquors cast are in the show as side characters. Some more than others. They basically act as a plot device for Yohane to become more independent and leave her childhood behind. There’s some cute moments with the cast as they try to help Yohane through some emotional trauma she’s had, but this is very much her story. So don’t expect too much in terms of substance and development from the other girls.

The fantasy elements like I said are kind of weak. The whole overarching plot of the calamity ended up being somewhat underwhelming, but the characters are the main selling point in this one. I think if you are at all interested in Yohane from the Sunshine anime this is a must watch as it really shows who she is at her core. A lot of times she was used as comic relief during the main anime, and while she is definitely funny, there is a lot more to her than memes. So this was a welcome development.

Of course, you can’t talk about Love Live without the musical performances. As expected based on the series’ recent form, the songs in GNY are all great. There’s a couple group performances and some solos and they’re all bangers. I swear the songwriters are just getting better and better with these. They’re going from more anime-y songs to legit bops.The CGI continues to improve to a point where it’s almost indistinguishable from 2D animation in these performances. The future is certainly bright for idol shows.

I thoroughly enjoyed Genjitsu no Yohane and thought it was one of the most underrated shows of the season. It went from an April Fool’s meme to a genuinely heartwarming and moving experience for one of my favourite characters that had me in tears for a couple episodes. If you’re a Love Live fan it goes without saying this is a much watch, but it’s also an enjoyable slice of life fantasy watch for casual fans. It’s cute, simple, but effective.
Genjitsu no Yohane gets 9, out of 10.

After finishing this show, I only have one thing to say... I need a second season bro.

Genjitsu no Yohane started out as an April's Joke from the sunrise staff surprisingly became an actual anime with deep messages and gripping character development. They could've made this anime as a joke, but they didn't. The staff went above and beyond with this anime, and I praise them for that. This is a spin-off with a lot of heart put into it.

The story - I'm gonna keep this review spoiler-free so do not worry. The story of this anime is more of a character-driven story focused on Yohane, ... rather than LL Sunshine where the focus is on everybody. Every episode focuses entirely on Yohane, tackling each and every one of her flaws., and by the end of this season, she grew so much to the point that I could honestly say that she's a better written and developed character compared to her LL Sunshine counterpart.

The characters - as you can expect from a spin-off, the characters here are the same characters that we know and love from LL Sunshine. Not entirely the same because it's a spin-off, and they need to at least alter one or two traits of the characters in order to fit in to a new setting. They are all well-written and competent characters that amplifies the enjoyment I watch from the show. Yohane, of course, is the best written character here as expected of the main character, but the other characters also gets better and get development. I won't say who they are to keep this spoiler-free. I'd say though, my favorite character in this show is Chika, because she heightens up Yohane's character, she felt like a mentor-figure, like once a main character before, so she teaches the knowledge that she has to Yohane, which in turn makes Yohane develop.

The animation - even as a spin-off, the main selling point of Love Live is still the songs and the dance that comes with them. And let me tell you, the dance animation here is on another level. Sunrise really is the Best in the industry when it comes to human CGI. I've praised them a lot before, but I really feel like they reached another Peak here. The action scenes are also amazing as well. It's not ufotable level of course, but it's not lacking for an anime made in 2023.
The art of course is beautiful. The art of Love Live has always been top-notch since Sunshine, and I'm happy to say that they've continued to be Peak here as well.

The music - It's originally a music anime. So do you really expect me to give this category any less than 10?

Overall, I'm really happy with my conclusion with this review. It's unbiased and really tells you the actual quality of the show.

Imma be honest I feel like the hate this shows getting is just because people expected it to be some “action fantasy isekai adventure” and are hating it for what it isn’t rather then what it is. Granted the advertising may have played a part in it but still I feel like some people just set such high expectations (it is love live after all) that they just ignore the good things about the anime. I can understand people wanting more of the Calamity but the whole plot isn’t about it. it’s about Yohane and her arc of growing up and finding a place in ... the world like that’s literally been her goal since the beginning people saying it never moves the plot along isn’t accurate it is moving the plot just not the plot people want, and in terms of that arc I think it succeeds in it. I also don't mind the more slice of life it goes for, as it gives plenty of opportunities for character focused episodes and more interesting character dynamics something that imo the original Sunshine really struggled with. It's actually nice seeing characters like You, Kanan and Maru get an actual episode instead of being kinda neglected through out the show, and its great seeing characters actually interact with characters outside of just general year groups hell id say they feel more like a group of friends then they do in Sunshine. I do have some issues with it however, I think they couldve done more with the magic as most of the fantasy elements (calamity, yohanes staff, ruby's whole fairy thing) just kinda have no explanations for how they work and it feels kinda jarring. I also think in terms of songs compared to other Love Live shows is pretty weak which is a shame because I think if the show didnt have to insert singing and the usual love live tropes they couldve done more with the fantasy setting and done more with the magic elements. However, despite that I still really enjoyed it, if you judge the show on it's own and not just what you want it to be I think its a really good anime it is not better then sip or niji, but Yohane's character arc, the cast, and the honestly great animation has really kept me enjoying this show the whole way through looking forward to see how it ends.

This anime is a long awaited spin off of Aqours. Aqours is my favorite group out of all the Love Live franchise, and its a real pleasure to see them got animated again after all this time. This anime is what I expected it to be if Love Live become a fantasy magical girl anime. Focusing on the same genre as the main series. Such as friendship, trust, relationship, hardwork. And how can we forget the most important one, songs. They slip the idol genre a little in here. Not as heavy as the main series but I'm glad they keep it.

Story is very great, ... neatly packed. If the story is some kind of painting, it would be very beautiful to look at. Heartwarming feeling every episode makes the viewer comfy watching it. Don't expect a lot of fighting animation. They do have some action scene, but its not really the focus. The story is slow paced so they give us the time to immerse inside the world they build. It feels like you are there yourself inside the small village of Numazu. I always like countryside without all the busyness of a city. People help each other, people know each other, and that's what this anime portray perfectly. Small fantasy village with a wholesome vibe around it.

Every villager personality is very nice. There are no villain, or maybe there is. The villain in this anime isn't clear. They can't see what the villain is, but they can feel it existence. For me tho, I just call it a problem. Because in the end they manage to solve the problem in a very Love Live way. A lot of Love Live reference is here of course. But that doesn't mean this anime is only for Love Live fans. You can enjoy watching as long as you like this kind of thing. I said that because I personally feel this anime is not for everyone. Magical girl thingy, fight with love, not fist.

Animation is unbelievably great. Definitely looks disctinctly different from the original Love Live series. Everyone get a slightly different color pallete design and I love it. I always welcome subtle changes like this. Isn't really obvious but I can feel something is different. The bright lighting also a match with the themes this show bring. Sadly there are no serafuku which I dearly love from LLS. There's barely any action scene. When there is one, they did not let it flop, eyes just glued to the screen because how awesome it is. I swear the studio is just flexing their Gundam animation skills.

All the main characters VA is a top tier of course. Sometimes I even think about how they all can consistently make their anime counterpart voice after all this time. I have already listen to Aqours music and they can't stop to produce catchy songs. I love the OP, the ED, and insert song inside this anime, never skip them. BGM also enhance the mood of the scenes. Not much on I can comment about because I'm speechless its all perfect.

So should you watch this? Well like I said above its not for everyone. Its too girly, yeah I can safely say that. But again, anime like this always reach outside of their target audience. Especially since it have such a big name plus fantasy genre. Little fun fact this anime is originally an April Fools back in 2021. Love Live always give it their all on every April Fools. And this anime is one of them. Everyone wishing it was real and here we are. There's also 2 games plan to be released in the same universe as this anime. Again, these 2 games is a very different genre compared to the usual rhythm games. I think its a good thing that Love Live franchise will grow out of the box with experiment like this. Thank you for reading my review.