Yep, you read that title right. In my humble opinion, Kaguya-sama: Love is War is the best anime of Winter 2019. I’m watching The Promised Neverland. I know that Mob Psycho’s second season is airing (I haven’t even seen the first season). Yes, Shield Hero and Dororo are receiving a lot of praise. All that said, I still feel that Kaguya-sama can’t be beat. There’s just something special about the crazy cast of characters, quick wit, hilarious comedy, and sweet love story that runs beneath it all.
The Characters
First of all, this show is absolutely hilarious, like, Konosuba funny. In case you haven’t been watching, (You’re missing out!) it follows the story of Kaguya Shinomiya and Miyuki Shirogane, the Vice President and President of the student council at Shuchiin Academy, respectively. The two characters are in love with one another but consider confessing to be losing in the war of love, so this leads to all sorts of hijinks centered around the two attempting to get the other to confess through crazy schemes and plots. Then, serving as foils to Kaguya and Shirogane are Chika Fujiwara and Yuu Ishigami. You’ve likely seen the video of Chika, the student council Secretary, dancing circulating the internet by now, so that should give you an idea of what she is like: peppy, a bit clueless, and absolutely adorable. Ishigami is a fan favorite of the manga readers. He’s the Treasurer of the student council, and a personal favorite of mine. Terrified of Kaguya, quiet, and depressed, he works very well as a counterpart to the always upbeat Chika.
While wonderful on their own, these characters definitely benefit from being part of an ensemble cast. Any grouping of them can lead to a unique and amazing scene. Chika is often described as the human embodiment of chaos, so naturally this lends very well to throwing off Kaguya’s carefully crafted plans. Completely unaware of the war waging around her, Chika’s nature keeps the show from drifting too far into scheming and obviously leads to some fantastic comedic scenes. Even the simplest of activities can descend into madness, such as Chika attempting to teach Shirogane how to play volleyball in episode 5.
Ishigami functions similarly to Chika, working as an obstacle between Kaguya and Shirogane. He, while usually having good intentions, tends to completely jeopardize Kaguya’s plans, for he is definitely one of the more perceptive of the group. He was able to relatively quickly pick up on Kaguya’s feelings for the President, and has received many a threat because of it. His bluntness is a nice contrast to the twisted workings of Kaguya and Shirogane’s minds, adding a refreshing twist to the show.
Rounding out the main cast, Kaguya, while not quiet as academically gifted as Shirogane, has him beat when it comes to plots. She will go to great lengths to gain the upper hand, whether that be utilizing the name of the Shinomiya house or it’s great number of employees, or simply putting in ridiculous amounts of her time. Her composed exterior tends to cover a flustered and panicked internal monologue though, especially if her plans go awry. This is where Shirogane shines. He thinks on his feet very well, able to counter the frankly insane amounts of work Kaguya puts in. Often filled with unearned confidence, he can usually at least avoid defeat, if not propel himself into the dominant position.
Kaguya-sama also has some fantastic side characters that make appearances here and there, to great comedic effect. Nagisa Kashiwagi and her now boyfriend, Tsubasa, are a great source of entertainment by asking the student council for romance advice and Hayasaka, Kaguya’s maid is often found exasperatedly helping Kaguya out with some ridiculous plot or simply catching her up with the times (Like teaching her how to use the internet). Even little sisters Kei Shirogane and Moeha Fujiwara show up in the anime.
The Story
The story, if you can even call it that, in Kaguya-sama is quite simple. As I mentioned earlier, the plot pretty much consists of little snippets out of the student council member’s lives in the battle of love between Kaguya and Shirogane. The episodes are usually split into three or four segments, each one containing one chapter from the manga. This works really well for this style of show. No joke or scenario overstays its welcome and it keeps a quick and snappy pace. You definitely don’t ever get bored watching this show. If you enjoyed shows like Nichijou or Acchi Kocchi, you should like Kaguya-sama too!
The Art, Direction, and Production
As a manga reader, I was a bit worried about how this show would translate over to an anime. I was afraid all the stylistic flourishes would be lost, along with the personality of the work. However, I had nothing to worry about. This show has style in spades. It is reminiscent of something studio SHAFT might put out, which isn’t surprising due to the fact that there are people who worked at SHAFT working on this show, even though it’s an A-1 Pictures production. The characters look fantastic and the animation is super clean and smooth. Just watch the OP or either of the ED’s to get a feel for the quality of Kaguya-sama. Making use of dramatic angles, fun effects, detailed lighting, and even the occasional horror anime trope, it creates an overall great looking show!
The OST is fun and peppy. While nothing absolutely mind-blowing, it does a great job highlighting the show without distracting from what is happening. I’m in love with the OP and both ED’s, so even if you don’t watch the show, make sure to give those a listen. And, on the topic of sound, I want to give major props to all of the voice actors on this show. Most are new to the anime scene, but you’d never know. They give some of the most expressive, funny, and layered performances I’ve ever heard in anime, and that’s saying something. I’ve watched a lot, and I mean a lot, of anime. The narrator, while some find his presence to be annoying, I think did an amazing job. He manages to bring a hilarious amount of gravity to the, in reality, minuscule problems that these high schoolers blow out of proportion.
Just Watch It!
While I could continue to ramble on and gush about how much I love this show for quite a while longer, I’m just going to urge you to watch it. It could very well be one of the best things you watch this season. (I’m aware the season is pretty much over, just roll with it.) At best it could be your new favorite show, and at worst it will make you laugh for half an hour each time you watch it. So, do yourself a favor and go give it a try. I don’t think you’ll regret it.
Anime Addict 