braulio84 - 2015-01-17 16:37:28

Story: In a Japan not quite like our own, the "youkai" (supernatural creatures) have started living together with humans. Now, in an ordinary school, all sorts of "monsters" attend regular classes. A human boy, Oohashi Shingo, finds himself attracted to one of these creatures, a "petopeto" called Fujimura Hatoko. Petoko, as she is called, is a minor monster, with only the power to stick to something she adores. Like Shingo....  (Source: ANN)

Hmm, now that doesn't seem like a bad idea for a story and could lead to a lot of different possibilities, and we do see different types of monsters in this show (it isn't much but hey, its at least something). I mean sure we've had monsters and humans interacting before in the same world and whether they end up good or not varies on the show/movie. There usually played for either drama, comedy, romance, or all three, and this show tries to focus on all of the three but its not done the best.

As a comedy, its done pretty poorly with some lame and uninspired jokes and almost none of them work, well I did laugh a few times but only out of sheer stupidity that happens later on in the show.

As a drama, its pretty decent. The ideas are good but there execution is ruined with poor music choices and some of the worst cutaway breaks I've ever seen. It could have been stronger if they didn't change the tones and ruined them (and repeat dialogue constantly just to stretch out the timeline). Even the pacing in this is bad, honestly this show is not at all good with cliffhangers 80% of the time.

The strongest aspect is the romance... kind of... but even then its still pretty weak, mainly cause of the ending, which I won't give away what happens, but if you're expecting some confessing and a kiss scene then prepare to be disappointed. I like the ending regardless but still, after all the buildup and bonding between the characters you expect a stronger conclusion besides... what we actually get.

Animation: The animation is pretty good. Character designs are all different from each other and are easily recognizable. There are background characters but once again like a lot of dated anime [that I know about] are in stills and are super awkward especially since we can hear them 'talk' while we see them in stills? It's... a little hard to explain really.

The main and secondary characters move fluidly for the most part, but when it comes to jumping and fighting (yes, there are some of those), its pretty weird and choppy. Lip syncs match to near perfection and the background animation on some of the scenery is really breathtaking, which is pretty impressive for an anime In 2005!

Sound: Ok I just want to get this out of the way, I hate the opening. Sure the animation in it is on par with the quality on the show, which is a good thing in this case, but the song is just terrible. The singer cannot sing at all, the instruments that play sound off key, and the lyrics are super dull.

The ending song is a lot better in my opinion, the song has a nicer and calmer tone, and the chorus is surprisingly catchy despite them sounding really dumb. (Bi-dung, Bi-dong, Bi-dung, Bi-dong) Sadly, the animation in the ED is not as good as in the OP.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbQVM24aayM

The OST are all forgettable and worse yet, play in inopportune moments during the course of the show. They was only one song that wasn't out of place but it played in the very last episode and was still pretty forgettable which is a darn shame.

At least the voice acting is good, for the most part. Everyone sounds in character to there persona and show some pretty good emotion in the heavier parts of the anime (though again the music and pacing ruin it). Some of the characters in this sound obnoxious and annoying and do nothing but scream and yell which get real annoying real quickly (I'm looking at you Chie).

Characters: Now let's talk about the characters. The main character Shingo is just a normal everyday dude who cares a lot for his friend Petoko and would do anything to help her, and its hinted that he may have feelings for her. So basically he's just a generic main character, in fact I think the other main characters have more dialogue then him and in some episodes he rarely gets any screen time much less any dialogue. Well at least he's one of the better GMC.

Hatoko, AKA Petoko is the other main character. Her main source of food is love. With lack of love or food she becomes transparent, which would eventually cause her to disappear. She fears that her race will eventually become extinct. Her mom had three girls before her and all were born insubstantial and faded out soon after birth. Her mom constantly presses her to have a child so she will no longer be in danger of fadeing out too. She is constantly ashamed of sticking to people, claiming that is how her race traps men into being their husbands. So basically she's also got not much personality.

She's nice and stuff at least, but knows when to speak up her mind so that's nice. They may not stand out on their own, but the chemistry that the two of them have and how much they care for each other do make up for it (which makes that one part in the ending all the more jarring).

Other characters like (human) Kanna and (kappa) Chochomaru start off as characters you'll, well, hate is a bit of a strong word, more like dislike at first but you'll eventually grow to like them as you see them develop as to why they are what they are now (though it might not make sense... at first), if that makes sense.

There are some characters in this that don't develop as much but still retain some likability like Kuguru (don't know any other name's that I know of beside that sadly).

However, not every character is a good one. The only one I truly despise (aside from some of the background characters) from beginning to end is Chie (I think that's her name), Shingo's younger sister. She's just your typical bratty younger sister who hates monsters for no reason other than to be a racist prick and like I said before, just yells and complains, it gets really annoying really fast. I wouldn't have minded AS much if she wasn't a recurring character...

While none of the characters are bad, except for Chie, they aren't that great either, but they do make most of the show pretty entertaining.

Enjoyment: This is a pretty surprising anime for me, it just seems like it'd be one of those generic and lame anime that would only be about decent at best, but I came across a pretty big surprise here. If the pacing was better and the music placements were not bad, then this definitely could have been stronger.

Pros: Intriguing concept, mostly likeable characters and voices, good development, nice ED, pretty catchy ending, pretty backgrounds.

Cons: Bad music placement, lame comedy, horrible OP, fans of romance will be unsatisfied with the ending, mediocre drama, some parts look dated.

Overall: What seemed to look like a dated anime that would only be ok at best turned into something much more, kind of If you come here for a romance, then you probably will not enjoy it especially with its ending.

Honestly I'd come here for the fantasy, drama, or even just a simple friendship between some friends, but that's just my opinion.

Take it for what its worth, or not.

Thanks for reading my 69th review~