Genre: Slice of Life, Romance, Drama, Comedy
Season: 1
Episodes: 24
Director: Atsuko Ishizuka
Studio: J.C Staff
Original Airtime: October 9, 2012 – March 26, 2013
Plot
The plot of The Pet Girl of Sakurasou revolves around Sorata who lives in Sakurasao dorm for ‘gifted students’. One day Mashiro Shiina who is also a brilliant artist moves into Sakurasao. Now the problem is Mashiro doesn’t have even the slightest bit of knowledge on how to take care of herself. So Sorata is apparently given the “Mashiro Duty” That means he has to wake Mashiro up, feed her, change her clothes for her and many other daily works. So he gradually gets the designation of master of Mashiro. Now Sorata must get on with his own life and ambition, look after Mashiro and protect her from the other weirdos of Sakurasao. Thus is the premise of anime.
Story: 8.3/10
The story of The Pet Girl of Sakurasou is excellent. The show from the word go draws the viewers in. Once you start watching it is hard to stop. The setup is extremely simple. It deals with the daily lives of a dorm filled with eccentric people. But the complexity of how each incident affects the relation of the characters is what truly makes this show stand out. The show has its fair share of plot twists despite being a slice of life anime. The pacing is not a big issue and I was satisfied seeing how well the J.C. Staff Studio has adapted the story The Pet Girl of Sakurasou.
Character: 8.5/10
The Pet Girl of Sakurasou has great bunch of characters. Most of the emphasis on Sorata, Mashiro and Nanami. Sorata is a very likeable character. A guy with no sense of a woman’s feelings and does not know how to act around women. Mashiro was also great, a girl adopting to her sorroundings and being introduced to various human emotion she never faced before. Nanami was probably the unsung hero of the show. Jin is your typical cool Senpai. The characters were extremely well portrayed. You will really feel attached to the characters and some characters will obviously break your heart. The character development was excellent keeping in mind the 24 episode window of The Pet Girl of Sakurasou.
Here are some notable characters from the anime:
Animation and Art: 8.5/10
The animation of The Pet Girl of Sakurasou is good. Pleasing to the eyes. They didn’t overdo the coloring. I felt like the both the drawing and coloring was as precise as it could be. There were some occasional issues with the animation but nothing that needs to be taken seriously. Overall J.C. Staff did a good job with the animation of The Pet Girl of Sakurasou and I’m quite satisfied with the way the visuals look and feel.
Here are some screenshots from the anime:
Music: 8/10
For an anime that has such a nice setup, a wonderful set of characters and great art-style, the soundtracks in The Pet Girl of Sakurasou didn’t really shine through. If there is one area where this lacks that would be the sound department. But among the 4 opening and ending themes I enjoyed the 2nd ending theme of the show, “Minna to Deaeru Hi” by Prime Number.
Enjoyment: 8.8/10
The Pet Girl of Sakurasou is extremely enjoyable. From lewd jokes to cute romantic moments, from frustration of failure to joy of victory this show has given us all. Each episode had something to offer. Each character stood out in their own way. Apart from an unsatisfactory finish this show barely put a foot wrong.
Final Thoughts
The Pet Girl of Sakurasou on the outside may appear to be just your everyday romantic comedy. But as you go deeper you’ll get to see emotional depth of the anime. How much insecurity and inferiority complex can cause obstruction in life and in various kinds of relationships is quite masterfully portrayed in this show. It is an anime that shows the conflict whether you should be depressed for your inability or be happy for your friends success. The Pet Girl of Sakurasou is a truly unique romantic comedy that everyone needs to watch.
