A Sister's All You Need

Y'know, the realization of writing reviews on this site for four years comes with some vague existentialism of wondering if anyone actually reads the things that I write, or if I've actually improved cause these things are just sort of self-proofread without my outside opinion. Bah, I'm getting ahead of myself. Let's just get into this thing. Story: First off, ignore the first five minutes. As a writer, Hashima Itsuki is peculiar. After getting an earful from his editor for the umpteenth time, he goes off on his usual schpeel about the greatness that is the 'imouto', before being promptly told to takehis work seriously and get his shit done on time, like any novelist with a deadline. And so, that's...basically where our story starts. Based solely on its cast, Imouto Sae (that's my shorthand this time around) is a slice of life romp seen through the eyes of its literature-based cast as Itsuki and the rest of the main cast do what writers do. Each episode is focused on the character interactions between the cast, whether it be for research for someone's book or spending time with one another through games that act more as a creative exercise for their brains. The show's naturally lax nature exudes the slice of life genre, utilizing a brand of conversational humor with the main focus being what the oddities that are its characters and how they are as people as the brunt of its comedic prowess. On the outside, not much really happens since episode after episode, it's basically the same thing, but slowly, we watch as more minute and complex matter arise. At times, the show ever so slightly shaves away its naturally fluffy and slice of life feel and touches upon the 'writer's struggle', or at least those relating to LN authors that adds more to the show. We sort of see the individual problems that each of the authors in the show face, touching upon different personal problems that add a nice subtlety to the overall story as the sunshine and rainbow of everything we see sheds away for that brief, sober moment amidst the characters' happily drunk nature being published authors. Yet despite that, the one problem I see from the show is that nothing seems to change. Sure there're events that lead one thing to another, but because the slightly deeper moments of the show fade away once they're over and leave but a shadow of their impact, much of what we get is the status quo which, while amusing, poses a problem when the moments of deeper thought were only just a few minutes ago. The ending also leaves a lot of loose ends that I'm not particularly fond of. Kind of like a 'read the manga' ending, but not so assholeish that they stop in the middle of some plotline that you'll never get an answer to. Overview: + Provides a nice look into the 'writer's struggle' + Never melodramatic despite being a show featuring interpersonal relationships and such - Tends to stick too much to the status quo - A bit too many loose ends by the end Characters: A connoisseur of the little sister, Hashima Itsuki is the writer of a magic academy series, or by its other name, 'trash'. (I jest, I jest.) Initially seen as nothing but a pervert too prideful in his own work, Itsuki has many moments where his inferiority shows through the cracks, and the cheerful facade that we see through most of the show slowly fades away as he reveals his own insecurities as a writer. As someone who's also been guilty of saying "I'm not good enough" to myself, I find Itsuki to exemplify much the internal battle inside someone who writes, with just enough of this hidden side of him to give us a proper character. Despite that subtle complexity, the true star of the show (at least in my eyes) is Nayuta herself, the popular 18 year old novelist who from episode one has never stopped trying to get into Itsuki's pants without committing a crime in the process. A natural prodigy at writing, much of her story lies in the events that led her to becomes the girl that we see her as now. It's less of a writer's struggle, and more of a personal struggle, but all the same is done in a way that adds just enough to her character to give us the viewer some more information. Aside from that though, Nayuta acts much like a supplementary character to Itsuki, giving him the drive to be the writer he always wanted to be. Their relationship is cute, and I personally really like the direction they went to explain why things between the two are the way they are. To round out the quartet, both Miyako and Haruto act as similar characters with their issues, boasting a personal and professional struggle respectively that again, adds enough to their characters to bolster and solidify their problems as looming parts of their lives, like how normal people are. Aside from them, the cast is filled with a cast of colorful weirdos that spice up the gaps that the main cast leaves behind. Everything from an accountant who takes joy in the squirming in others to a mangaka who wears a ribbon of questionable material provides us with a weird yet amusing spectrum that makes the episodes that much more fun. Overview: + Rounded main cast + Amusing side cast Art: Produced by Silver Link, the show replicates the original artist Kantoku's style of the slightly muted color palette in conjunction of super shiny, almost reflective hair that's commonplace in the works he draws for. Art quality is very consistent throughout due to the show's severe lack of need for any taxing animation (since everyone basically just sits around), and stands as a nice relaxing sight without anything bad to note. As far as fanservice goes, the show does have several choice moments that are certainly more risque than what the rest of the show is in comparison, but it's super tame, and if it ever gets out of hand, the show goes to use its various colorful slides with text on the front for 'censorship'. One of the most amusing ways to censor something if you ask me. (Though I will admit that Nayuta is the cause of most if not all of these so blame her.) Most of the perverted comedy is done through innuendos and spoken words, so visually, it's not severely apparent. Overview: + Consistent quality +/- Some fanservice, but not much Sound: Chouchou's "Ashita no Kimi sae Ireba Ii." stands as a song that when combined with the visuals, harkens to the whimsy that authors feel when writing their works, the wonder than a person feels when they put their imagination on paper. Personally, I feel like many of her other songs are more memorable, but this is no way a bad song and given the placement and usage of this song in the series, certainly has its impact. On the flipside, Aria Yuuki's "Donna Hoshizora yori mo, Donna Omoide yori mo" is a more somber piece that ends the episode on a calming and closing note that compared to the slightly more energetic whimsy of its OP counterpart, gives us pleasing resolution to the episode rather than some seiyuu song or something that doesn't have much impact Overview: + Nice and whimsical tracks Personal Enjoyment: I think my first reaction to watching this show's PV was 'Yes'. Not for really any particular reason, but it just seemed like the show I was really going to like. And surprise surprise, it was. It has the quality of touching on the personal problems and the insecurities and stress of making a good story and making a name for yourself in the publishing world without succumbing to melodrama or any kind of super contrived storyline which is refreshing in a landscape where anything drama-based resorts to melodrama. It's a show I watched because I was intrigued, but stayed because I genuinely resonated with the characters having had tinges of these problems myself when writing stuff in my own time. So for that, I appreciate this show and am really glad that this was something on my seasonal list. Did I like this show? If I haven't sung enough praises about my enjoyment of this show, then yes, I did like the show. In particular, I really like Nayuta. I'm always a fan of girls who know what they want and earnestly strive for that person they love because often times you get tsunderes or some other stupid trope of girls undeserving of the happy ending they get in the end without rhyme or reason. (Abuse is not love, girls) But more than that, the relationship both professional and personal between Itsuki and Nayuta stands as one of my absolute favorite things of the show because there is reason why Itsuki doesn't take the plunge and overall gives more depth to the protagonist. What didn't I like about this show? Nothing particularly irked me, but my only wish is that somehow they continue this. The loose ends were vaguely irritating and given the setup that we were given in the last few minutes, a sequel is all the more possible from that. (We do not talk about the first five minutes of the entire show. That shit is repressed.) Would I recommend this show? Personally, I say yes. Though the show is infamous for the first five minutes of the first episode, if you do get past that gate (and trust me, there is an explanation), you are in for a slice of life adventure that really is more than meets the eye. It's a lax show focused entirely on its characters and their interactions, taking time every now and then to expand upon its cast to smooth and polish them out a little more for depth. Plus it's got a nice helping of wackiness that makes things a helluva lot more entertaining than it should.

Do you like little sisters? Good, because our protagonist Itsuki loves them probably more than you do. I give this anime an overall score of 6, but that does not mean I think it is distasteful. In fact I think that some people will give this anime a 8 or 9, maybe even a 10. This review is a spoiler-free review by the way, but it would not hurt for people who have watched this anime already to read this review too. Story: I acknowledge how the story may seem non linear at times, but I assure you that this anime actually has an excellent narrative.The overall plot is Itsuki, an aspiring author, making his way through the light novel industry while passing through hardships. It is a story of friendship and comedy for the most part, but I would pay more attention to the background. This story is actually about a depressed young man who fights against reality, diving into his own form of escapism, probably retreating into his perverted light novels, only to realize how his peers have earned successes that he has yet to earn himself. For instance, one of his friends is a much more talented writer while the other has an anime in the works. Itsuki deals with his issue by not caring about it. As the anime goes on, you will find Itsuki making peace with himself, and I feel that this narrative would be enjoyable for literally anyone who has felt at least a taste of depression. The flaw to this narrative, however, is that it lacks a dark theme since this narrative only lies in the background, but the anime makes it obvious enough for an attentive audience to peace this together. So now that I have pointed out where your attention should be, I think you would find the story to be at least above average. (8) Art: Given the silver link art quality, I thought this anime would be able to use art to its advantage. I was right in some parts as the art is often used to show Itsuki's room clearly and everything outside as a foggy and generic setting. Although it gives the impression that Itsuki himself views the rest of the world as irrelevant, I feel that scenes where some of the girls are naked are more horrific rather than enjoyable. Now that I'm here, I would like to emphasize that the fan service is not good. I'm not a personal fan of fan service, but the anime is willing devote 5 minutes every two episodes to only showing fan service to the reader. (6) Sound: This is the worst category for good reason. So I did not hear anything in the background, I do not know why. Maybe it is to illustrate how Itsuki is living in the real world, but I think it is because the show did not have enough budget. Nevertheless the opening and ending are great, but I think the overall soundtrack could be used to describe the anime's overall mood rather than a deafening silence. (4) Character: Earlier I mentioned how this anime is actually a narrative of a depressed young man. That was a lie. This anime is really a narrative about multiple depressed people that hide their flaws from each other. I'm not going to say any spoilers, but I will just say that every episode has a little crack of the character and you will enjoy, or sympathize, with the character when he or she breaks. (8) Enjoyment: Please take this category with a grain of salt. I thought it was at best fair. I could see how other people would enjoy this anime more than I did because I really liked the episodes when the characters played board games, showing there inner flaws or making a spoof of another popular work, but I thought that the overall silence of the anime was very unfavorable. I suggest that you just pay attention to the character's dialogue because they really are interesting at times, and I also recommend that you treat this anime as a totally different work from the likes of Shirabako or any other anime with a Japanese entertainment industry. (6) Overall: This anime has its ups and downs, but I just have to give it a little more than average. I predict that there will be many who enjoy this and many who don't, but it's really a coin toss. Would you be willing to toss that coin? I would. There is something for anybody in this anime, but if you are more of a edgy type of guy I would say this anime is not for you. (6)

This is my favorite anime of all time(as of writing this review), so I am super biased in this review and most people probably won't like it as much as me, so take the review with a grain of salt. A sister's all you need is a well written story with interesting characters, that also touches on serious stuff if you look past the surface. If you have a problem with fan service then you shouldn't be looking at an anime with the ecchi tag. I wouldn't recommend this to someone who doesn't like dirty humor, because there is quite a bit of it. If youhave a normal amount of a problem with incest than this show is fine, but if you have a severe problem with it than you probably shouldn't watch this. If none of the above apply to you then I would recommend this show. The first few minutes are not the actual story so don't drop this because of what happens in the very beginning. I give this a 10/10 because I liked it from a few minutes into the first episode, and for some unexplainable reason it is my favorite. If you liked the anime read the light novels

Many people will probably dismiss Imouto sae Ireba Ii. as another Eromanga-Sensei, or straightly drop the show after seeing the first minutes of Episode 1. People can’t blame them since the first episode was a giant normie filter. Nevertheless, you shouldn’t judge it based on just the first impression. If you’re someone who’s new to watching anime, or someone who’s not comfortable watching 'unconventional' scenes, then this anime will probably throw you off. There’s a huge amount of sexual comments even in the first episode. The show doesn’t hold back when it comes to fan service. It’s a giant normie barrier. Your normie friend will gocrazy watching this show. But if you can overlook these things, there are many things that this anime has to offer. Let's skip discussing the plot and focus on two things that makes this anime good. On Being Informative: These are just small details, but the little explanation they add on some topics was a nice addition. For instance, the hometown tax, a system introduced in Japan in 2008, was briefly mentioned and explained in episode 4 of the anime. You just learned about taxes in an anime that has “Imouto” in its name. The anime also gives information about different things like drinks every episode. An example of that is the daiginjo sake featured in Episode 6. Nowadays, it's not common to find an anime that can both inform and entertain the viewers. On the Characters' Interactions: One of the good things about this anime is the characters’ interactions. It’s nothing spectacular but it’s definitely enjoyable. Scenes like Haruto and Itsuki getting teased, Miyako sympathizing with everyone, or when Itsuki struggles to meet the deadlines. We even get a general idea about the life of Light Novel authors in this anime. So.. Should you watch Imouto sae Ireba Ii.? The show isn’t something spectacular, but it definitely has many things to offer. It’s a great and enjoyable anime that doesn’t have any complicated plot. Give it a try and watch a few episodes before deciding if you like it or not. Overall, I'll give it 8/10.