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| Overall | Art | Animation | Character Design | Music | Series Story | Episode Story | Reviewer | |
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| Buy | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 |
 KBanger1
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[series:1747#1694] | |
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With the numerous titles on the harem genre, To Love Ru stands out to be one of my top 5 harem series. Hands down, it represents what I love seeing in this genre. One person, a lot of love interests. This time it involves a high school student named Yuuki Rito. He has the hots for a fellow classmate named Haruna Sairenji but can never get his feelings across to her (sterotypical ain't it?). When he finally gets the chance to do so, along comes a spaceship (out of nowhere) crashing down in front of Yuuki. The rest could be summed up in the intro above. Certainly not your atypical type of love story where boy meets girl, boy falls in love, boy dates girl, etc.. It's more like boy meets girl, boy falls in love, boy runs into a million obstacles, boy gets greeted by naked alien girl in bathtub, boy gets into messed up situations from here on out, boy must now save world due to these 'situations'. Yeah, it's complicated but it doesn't mean that it is fun along the way. What this series does is take your ordinary love triangle and adds a few more people into the mix. What's great about this is that although it focuses on the main two characters Yuuki and the naked alien (Lala), there are some episodes that have a side story for the rest of the cast. Not all of them in this series but it leaves a lot of opportunities in the sequels following. Each character involved with Yuuki does have a history so it's not like they are there as filler. Between that and the hilarious 'misunderstandings' that occur with Yuuki, it brings together a unique cast along with a not so typical love story. Plus, the sequels that follow start to get a little more serious but still remain core to the main story. The character designs do stand out (especially the aliens) but tend to be a bit dated (the anime is over 12 years old after all). Even with that, it gives a sense of nostalgia for how the times were back then. It is exaggerated when it comes to the aliens but it's not too over the top where everything gets pointed out by everyone in the anime. The artwork is good but not really noteworthy. Animation falls into that category as well but a step above. Given the situation, it can vary from humdrum to eye-popping. Overall, To Love Ru stands out to be a great series to have in your collection. If you are a harem connoisseur like myself, you must consider this title as a top 10 in your collection. It stands out to be a great start in a long lineup of sequels that follow up the main story. It doesn't leave a major cliffhanger at the end but will leave you curious about the rest of the characters. I must make a note before I conclude. I have watched both the original subbed and the recently released english dubbed versions. Depending on how you feel about dubbing may alter your decision. I typically tend to favor english dubbing especially if it's introduced to a series that primarily was Japanese language only. With To Love Ru, I was first skeptical about the english dub when I first watched the trailer for it because the characters sounded completely off. It was a good thing I did buy the dub because in the end, the dubbing was certainly better than I initially thought. The english cast has some people I'm familiar with which is good but I'm kinda not feeling Yuuki's english dubbing. Not that the actor was bad but to me it didn't feel like a high school student talking but a 25-year old talking as a high schooler. Both the sub and dubs are worth getting but if you tend on being a person who likes their anime in their purest form, then stick with the subbed version. If you're new to anime and are starting to get into this genre, get the dubbed version. It's easier to relate with how the characters interact because of the slang that most Americans use in the present gets migrated into the script. It may not be it's best interpretation but it will at least make sense to a younger generation. Last updated Tuesday, November 24 2020. Created Tuesday, November 24 2020. | ||||||||
| Watch | 9 | 7 | 8 | 6 | 7 | 4 |
 Devil Doll
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[series:1747#752] |
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[watched some two-digit number of episodes before aborting it; temporary score: 70% = "Watch+"] I tried this series some time ago but aborted it halfway. Too much silly-funny fan-service, not enough romance or even drama. It just became too boring and repetitive to continue (which is rare as I usually finish a series in order to get a valid impression of it). The show is visually nice and has cute characters but just leads nowhere and the permanent fan-service is grating on my nerves (resulting in an exceptionally low Episode Story value). Last updated Saturday, October 23 2010. Created Saturday, October 23 2010. | ||||||||
| Buy | 8 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 9 |
 Dreamer
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[series:1747#2279] |
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I didn't know what to make of this one when I picked it up. But now I can honestly say that this was a really good, enjoyable series from beginning to end. Art, Animation & Character Designs Artwork was slightly above the norm. Rich colors and a fair amount of details. Animation on the other hand seemed a bit low but then, it worked for some scenes that required a "quick" frame rate... which added to the humor at certain points. The character designs were nicely done. Lala was just uber uber cute! I loved those eyelashes off to the side. Music The OP was interesting. It was a nice rock piece with female vocals. Not a bad piece. The animation along with it was good too. The ED was just as good, if not better than the OP. It was a cool alternative piece with female vocals. The rest of the soundtrack was enjoyable as well. Series and Episode Story I usually don't like the protagonist or main characters in a series. More times than not, I end up liking a supporting character or a lesser character elsewhere in a series. However, this series, I fell in love with Lala-chan!! Soooo uber cute! Her innocence and naivety was what really made her likeable. For some reason, she reminded me a lot of "Chii" from Chobits... and I think that's because of their similarities in naivety. As for the story, there's plenty of laughs..... especially episode 7... a real crack up. I loved it. Episode 8 was just too much! The magnet thing was hilarious! There's plenty of ecchi moments throughout this series, but it's done tastefully. It's not "in-your-face" and pointless. The end wasn't anything spectacular but it was ok nevertheless. Overall, the was a great series that I thoroughly enjoyed from beginning to end. It's both a feel-good anime, as well as a nice comedy piece and just plain entertaining. Last updated Saturday, December 19 2009. Created Saturday, December 19 2009. | ||||||||
| Buy | 8 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 |
 Xenoknight
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[series:1747#2967] |
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final review after I rewatch the anime... Check out my award list to see some of the best anime titles in the world! Never forget Xenosaga. Last updated Wednesday, December 03 2008. Created Sunday, September 07 2008. | ||||||||
| Rent |
 Stretch
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[series:1747#628] | ||||||
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(All episodes watched): Here's a show that was denigrated when it first came out as a Urusei Yatsura ripoff and was lumped into the same category as the sleazy Kanokon--yet has proven remarkably funny and imaginitive, with the result that I consider it a personal favorite of the Spring-Summer '08 season, Right from episode one, it struck me that what I liked here was the “dopey-ecchi” attitude rather than the kind of sleazy-ecchi one of Kanokon. Maybe this was because suggestive things happened more by accident here than by being intentionally shoved in my face, which is easier to laugh at, I think. What would you expect Sairenji to think after walking into a locker room and finding Rito and Lala naked on the floor together? In fact they have a perfectly valid excuse, provided you can suspend disbelief and accept the odd premise of this show--which isn't all that difficult, since it doesn't take itself very seriously. Initially, To Love-Ru didn't strike me as terribly funny (though it would, later on); the best joke of episode one seemed to be the way some of the credits were displayed (and the fact that the fansubbers immediately copied the technique). Perhaps I was too confused by the madcap pacing to catch a number of good jokes, which I noticed while rewatching the episode later on. I guess I prefer a show that isn’t trying to do something which it knows it can’t over ones that are expecting me to laugh but I’m not. In other words, my first impression was that this seemed like a modest show which ought to be fun. Though it got off to a bit of a slow start, it was soon clear that the word "modest" didn't do it justice. Episode four was priceless. This was one of those all too rare episodes (of any series) which had me laughing so hard that tears were streaming down my face. I had to pause the show and go wash my face. I enjoyed this one more than an episode of my #1 favorite series which I watched later on that evening. To Love-Ru is one of the block of four spring season comedies (along with Kanokon, Zettai Karen Children, and Kamen no Maid Guy) which I especially look forward to, even if not every episode is as good as this one was. I'm beginning to think that there is a new trend in anime, in which the makers of not particularly fantastic shows occasionally commission high quality talent to make them one exceptionally good episode; this happened during Rosario + Vampire. Maybe the idea is that viewers will feel that they had better watch them all, or else they'll miss the really good one. I say this because episode twelve was in a class by itself compared to the remainder of the series. It dealt with the school athletic festival and had a wacky, distinctly different sense of humor and was much funnier than usual. If it weren't for the familiar characters I'd almost have thought it was part of an entirely different series. It felt like something Gainax would do. As it turned out, it wasn't just a matter of one or two exceptional episodes. Episode 15 was great fun as well. It's like some episodes are in a completely different league than the rest, as if they'd been made by a completely different staff. This one was sort of like a hunting trip to The Land that Time Forgot. It involved Amazons, Dinosaurs and King Kong--it was whacked. Yuki's comment of "how the hell did this happen?" was appropriate. On a side note, I noticed that Sairenji was the star of the new second season ED sequence--could she really be a serious contender for Yuki's heart, contrary to standard operating procedure where the nutty big boobed girl who appears out of nowhere always wins out? The series seems to be on a roll, as episode 16 was great as well. Maybe a different staff made the second season episodes. Anyway, this one involved Yuki and the girls going to a waterpark, where Run (pale green hair) tries to get his attention. This show is getting so crazy lately (in a good way). This episode was full of scandalous jokes, ones that were ecchi yet not perverted somehow. Or maybe I should say it was the scriptwriters rather than the characters themselves who come across as perverted. At one point I was swearing "Oh God!" yet laughing sincerely. Some people disparaged To Love-Ru early on as an Urusei Yatsura ripoff, but I think it has come into it's own as a unique and hilarious show--I like it better than that classic. Another noteworthy episode would be number 20, which basically dispenses with everything about the usual plot and characters and goes off on a wild tangent--If it weren't for the OP sequence you'd think it was an entirely different show. The subject is "Explosive Heat Girl Magical Kyoko", a bizarre borderline pyromaniac whose motto is "Whatever the problem is, I'll solve it by burning". It turns out that this is an absurd TV-show-within-a-TV-show which Lala has taken a liking to. It was fun and I wonder if, like Kujibiki Unbalance, it might become a full fledged series someday; If it was made by the same team as this joke episode, it would surely be a hit. To Love-Ru ends much like Urusei Yatsura began, with Rito forced into a competition against the aliens with the fate of Earth at stake. I dreaded an excessively predictable, simplistic ending, but thankfully that didn't happen; it was a little understated, really. Some might say that the final resolution of the love triangle between Rito, Lala and Sairenji was a cop-out, but I can't see how any other choice would have worked nearly as well. Perhaps the most telling comment I can make is that I definitely felt sorry that the series was coming to an end. Most shows, especially ones that are a full 26 episodes long, have begun to overstay their welcome as I near the end. As a result, I'm glad to wrap them up and move on to something new. But To Love-Ru was one of those all too rare shows which I wished still had a ways to go. I'll definitely be rewatching it in it's entirety someday. See Rito at Screaming Anime Characters. My favorite line: "I'll use these convenient piranhas that only eat swim suits" --Run Last updated Friday, October 03 2008. Created Tuesday, April 08 2008. | ||||||||
| Unevaluated |
 Forbin
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[series:1747#1573] | ||||||
Analysis : 1 Fansub watched.
Last updated Monday, April 07 2008. Created Monday, April 07 2008. | ||||||||
| Unevaluated |
 Jan-Chan
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[series:1747#967] | ||||||
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This series appears to be an updated version of that classic Urusei Yatsura, in which a normal everyday boy, who has his eye set on getting close to a pretty girl in his class, finds himself engaged to and living with an alien princess and gets caught up in the antics of her off-world family and friends.
Last updated Friday, March 28 2008. Created Friday, March 28 2008. | ||||||||
Other Sites
| Name | URL |
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| Japanese Series Web Site | http://www.j-toloveru.com/ |
| TBS (TV station) Series Web site | http://www.tbs.co.jp/anime/to-love-ru/ |
