Myself; Yourself

Myself; Yourself is a Slice of Life, Romance, Comedy, Drama about a boy (Sana) who had to leave his home town and his friends, with his parents. Then 5 years later he returns to see that quite a bit has changed. As this short anime series begins it is obvious that there’s nothing unique about it and that it is just the usual "visual novel" – to – "anime" adaptations that are released every season. The story begins normally enough by introducing the surroundings and the characters with their little quirks. There are also the typical Rom/Com clichéd moments that happen quite a lot (girl tripsover and lands on guy) however these jokes are executed well enough that it feels refreshing. Apart from the one or two serious moments in every episode there is no real drama in this series, until about halfway into the series. The good thing is that it doesn’t just unload a bunch of drama because a lot of it was just confirmation to previous speculations you may have had whilst watching. The characters in this anime have the typical personalities that most anime fans are used to seeing. However there is one girl (Aoi) who has a really odd and quirky personality that is really fun to watch but her voice can be both cute and annoying. Even with these pretty normal characters, they all are somewhat mysterious, which will give you the urge to watch the next episode, to find out what occurred in the past. The quality of the animation is really good with the best of it being in the detailed environments, which make good use of the light and shadows. The characters themselves also look good but there’s nothing special about their designs and they also lack fluid animation. The music is also good, most of the time, but there are times when it feels out of place, just like the OP and ED theme. Overall Myself; Yourself has proven to be something great to watch, for most Romance anime fans. It has all the basic elements to make a great story and some interesting characters to match. The one thing I can say is that behind all surprises and unexpected developments, this anime series lacks originality to make it stand out. Other than that it is a great show to watch. ^_^

I've had a lot of first impressions when I see an anime. Most of them end up being what I've had predicted while a few changes my perspective. Myself; Yorself is an example of an illusion. Seeing pictures of anime high school friends in one picture always seem to look like a typical comedy, romance, shoujo or a harem anime. That was what I thought. Story: 9 To be honest, I was part of the majority who thought "Myself; Yourself" was a harem anime. I've seen Myself; Yourself a number of times in different sites but the only reaction I usually get was "oh another stupid harem anime.give me a break". It took me about a year for me to take the initiative to watch this anime only because one of my favorite Seiyuus, Ami Koshimizu, voice acted the main character. I rarely rate a Romantic-Drama "9" because I rarely see one that can execute well. You can say this anime, has more of a dramatic based genre rather than romance because of the friendship link between the characters. Every episode gives you a glimpse of the story of these characters and true enough the story does get more interesting as you go further. It made me want more and more. Soon enough, I was able to finish this anime in just 2 days (It could have been 1 day if I slept at 3 AM). Yes, the story was that interesting. Art: 9 I can't deny that the art/animation I see nowadays does progress and becomes much more beautiful than the animes that were made in the late 2000s. But seeing the animes made during that year (Code Geass, School Days, ef-a tale of memories), I'm sure that the art was on par with every anime back then. Sound: 7 I really don't like the Opening "Song" although I love how the Opening "Animation" went (there's a difference). Although, the Ending song is much different. I actually liked the Ending song just because it reminded me of Steins; Gate (same singer) and it felt catchy. Character: 10 Character development, sure flourished the whole anime series. The characters were explained very well. You can see that their lives were acted on each of the person's lives. Some secrets were revealed during the anime and it did surprise me. I can't say I don't hate a character but then seeing how these characters went by during the anime made me understand how different people can be behind the naked eye. Enjoyment: 8 Knowing that I watched this 13-episode Anime within just 2 days clearly explains how I had a great time watching this anime. I don't think it's the enjoyment that led me to watch the anime in 2 days. I guess it was because I was curious to know what would be next. The anime was such a thrilling anime to watch that I was seeking for more answers from the upcoming episodes. I could have enjoyed this anime much more if only there was a different ending. To be frank, the ending was kind of laid back for me. For me, there was no spark at the ending. Overall: 8 Seeing how an anime can create romance in such a serious dramatic anime won me over. This anime is one of those "don't judge a book by its cover" because if you do then you will surely miss out something worth watching.

“Human life is at stake, so you should at least improve your cooking first...”- Hidaka Sana “I’m going to take a bath now. If you peek while I'm changing, I'm going to kill you, got it?” – Hinako Mochida Myself;Yourself is primarily a drama genre anime with little-to-medium romance. The Story: 7/10 ------------------ The anime starts with our male protagonist, Sana who has come back to his hometown of Sakuranomori, after leaving it 5 years before for the sake of his parents’ business plans. He is surprised to see that most things have not changed, until he meets Yatsushiro Nanaka, one of his best childhood friends when he wasyounger. The story here is rather simple. With new ideas introduced, they do not change much to the story. Basically all they do is reinforce the story to try and make it a little more interesting. Sometimes it is even used to reset character development in the story. The pacing of Myself;Yourself is solid. Did it feel quick? No. Did it feel slow? Sometimes, maybe. Some episodes can be considered to be ‘side quests’, if you will, and have no particular meaning to the main story. Despite this anime being a drama, it is rather comedic once things loosen up, notably at the beginning of the anime. The drama can be a little predictable, but the producers will always throw something at you to keep you on the edge wanting more. Romance is not as much as a major genre as drama, but it was well fleshed out- though it definitely is not as solid as some other series you can find. The ending is satisfying, though some may be disappointed that certain elements were not taken further at the end. The Art: 9/10 --------------- The art probably has to be one of the best for an anime that aired in 2007. Its scenery and characters are very well done, and they fit the personality very well. One dispute is with the size of Aoi’s breasts. She may be in high school, but hell. They’re bigger than her head. The art style is very fitting for the overall story because it incorporates a lot of ‘emotion shading’. When the characters are happy, the art is as if it’s happy itself. When the characters are sad/depressed, it’s almost as if the art is feeling that way as well. Character movement was smooth, albeit a little ‘blocky’ during some sections and background movement was just as good. The Sound: 7/10 ------------------- The OP and EDs in Myself;Yourself aren’t distinctly memorable. After watching the anime, you probably won’t even think anything of it. OSTs were very appropriate for the mood during a scene and blended in very well. Sometimes it worked so well you can’t even tell when it came in. Voice acting here wasn’t exactly the best, Aoi’s voice seemed to be the most annoying one out of all them because of her constantly high-pitching everything she says. Though it might not have been as good as other anime made this year, the voice acting was bearable. The Characters: 8/10 ------------------------ Not many character problems here, but one annoying thing here is how the writers would reset the relationship between characters whenever there was some ‘turning point’ drama in the story. Each of the cast is likable, even Aoi who is the one who brings most of the comedy to the anime. Nanaka appears to be the most mature in the story, and the main heroine. Her past is where most of the main drama comes out of. Sana is the main protagonist and the story mostly revolves around him and his ability to make decisions. Then you have the boy/girl twin, there’s quite a bit of comedy in the two- but that comedy is mostly because of disagreement between the two. Hinako comes in the end of the first ¼ of the anime, and she seems to actually be the most funniest- but can definitely be serious at times. The Enjoyment: 9/10 ------------------------ Personally, my enjoyment of Myself;Yourself was very good. The cliff hangers at the end of each episode kept me wanting more. I probably won’t watch this again, since this can be considered a type of ‘one time only’ anime. You probably won’t get much satisfaction watching this again. Myself;Yourself is the first romance/drama genre anime I have watched, a genre that I didn’t really like when I started watching anime. Seeing this changed it for me, and now I really enjoy the romance/drama category of anime. Overall: 8/10 --------------- Overall I think that Myself ; Yourself really is a great series. If you're going to start watching a teen, romance and drama anime this is definitely a good place to start.

Sadness, depression, times of complete darkness. Most of us have experienced at least one of these in our lives. The solution is finding ways to cope with it, or change it for the better. Myself;Yourself. I've been planning on watching this for a while now, little did I expect to find such an intriguing anime worthy of being watched in a single day! Despite the few flaws in the show, this is what most dramas should be like. Romance, fights, a look into people's pasts, and a twist ending all make up an excellent drama. To start off the review, let's go into the story. Sana iscoming back to his hometown for the first time in years. Things have changed, but at the same time, things haven't. He comes to this town with memories of his past, some in which he's trying to piece together to make it whole again, but one thing he does remember were the good times he spent with his friends as children. He then reunites with all of them in High School, happy, eh? At least most of the time. Throughout the story, there's comedy, hints of romance, scandal, and twists that'll make you either flip out or let your mouth hang in awe as to what just happened. This is why I like watching animes like these, they spice up the story with things people never expect to happen, and in the case of Myself;Yourself, most of the twists never end up being happy. When it comes to reviewing the artwork in an anime, I never really know what to say, it's either a big blank or a simple "It was good", I am never able to create a long paragraph about it, but Myself;Yourself has flawless art. The scenery was beautiful, the characters were portrayed in kind of a way that suits their personalities, and so on. Sound isn't one of my strongsuits either, but I can say for the most part that Myself;Yourself had excellent voice acting! Surprisingly though, the oldest character in the group (Aoi, a 3rd year in High School) sounded like a chipmunk with too much helium in it's lungs and apparently seemed to get high very often. In other words, her voice made you want to laugh out loud every time she spoke. For the most part it was funny, but at points it was just plain strange. Oh good, a strongsuit of mine. Characters. I liked them all, or at least most of them. The main character, Sana, seemed to be cool and collected most of the time, but somehow acted like a normal teenager at the same time (says the giant stack of playboy magazines sitting in a box out of reach from girls). Then there's Nanaka, mature and stern most of the time. Aoi, the drugged chipmunk, seemed to be hyperactive all the time, even in the most depressing of times. The twins, you can totally tell they're siblings, they bring the rough comedy to the anime with constant insults and fights breaking out between the two of them. Out of all the characters in the show, I think the only one that I despised almost as much as Sugou from Sword Art Online was the teacher that was always sucking up to the principal and being a douche-bag. Minor role, but he angered me. Despite the show having some good comedy and romance to it, along with some good stories, the show was... in a word... depressing for a portion of it. Most of the depression happens to be things that would end up spoiling the show for you, so I won't get into those, but I enjoyed the show a lot. I haven't seen many dramas (or at least I don't think I have), so watching this gave me a pretty good idea about what I should be looking for in dramas. Watch it, you'll enjoy it for the most part, just have a box of tissues, just in case.