A Decent Comedy

This is the fifth instalment of the “Anime X-Change Project” reviews. If you don’t know what that is, be sure to check out all the info here from an earlier post. A heads up, I’m putting a pause on these for a bit, possibly indefinitely, after this entry. The reason being my new computer is here and my content creation priorities have shifted. Today’s review is brought to you by @MechAnimeReview, or Scott. I held off on Nozaki-kun for awhile because comedy anime are pretty hit-or-miss for me. That begs the question, was this anime a “hit” or was it a “miss”?

When Nokai-kun originally came out I gave the show a pass, and for years, didn’t even give it a second thought. Reviews from sources I trust when it comes to my taste didn’t seem to really love the show, and for me, that was that. Then, one of those reviewers revised their statements when the English dub rolled around. I had some interest but I still didn’t get around to the anime for a long time.

That’s when the Anime X-Change Project gave me the perfect excuse to watch this anime! After having done so, I can say that the show was better than I expected, but it never went beyond being “decent”. Sure, I laughed and it was a pleasant viewing experience, but what Nozaki-kun ultimately offers isn’t a lot. I don’t think it needed to be, so we are clear, but over the course of 12 episodes I didn’t feel like a lot of meaningful progress existed.

If you’ve seen one show like this, you’ve kind of seen them all in that regard. However, what does stick out for this anime in a good way was the characters. I liked nearly all of them, even though some are obnoxious. Their vocal performances from the dubbed actors are the main reason this was so enjoyable.

When it comes to comedy anime, I tend to prefer subs. The reason for this being the cadence and timing lands better for me as opposed to when it is translated over for English. The typical result is something that feels like it’s forcing in that “anime” energy, like a lot of yelling for example. When it’s not that, the rhythm or word choice somehow falls a bit flat. Occasionally though, a dub does manage to find a decent groove and it works, and that’s what Nozaki-kun managed to do.

So would I recommend this one? Yes. In spite of the relatively average nature of the actual show, the characters and voice talent are enough to carry what exists through. I would have preferred a bit more meat, either focusing more on the manga industry like the show’s start does, or meaningfully progressing relationships, but what’s here is satisfactory for your typical TV anime adaptation.

If you want to check out the previous Anime X-Change review, you can read my review of Sound of the Sky here. Let me know your thoughts on Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun in the comments below. If you enjoyed this review and want to support projects like these then please consider a donation via the buttons below. Thanks for reading and see you again soon!