Little Busters! Definitely hits the spot when it comes to playing on your emotions. For similar shows, I'd say I preferred The Pet Girl of Sakurasou overall, but Little Busters! was better in all departments than Love Hina save for slapstick and silliness :P
Strengths:
It makes you laugh. Quite a few original and quirky aspects to its humour too.
It (nearly for me) makes you cry. Some of ...
Little Busters! Definitely hits the spot when it comes to playing on your emotions. For similar shows, I'd say I preferred The Pet Girl of Sakurasou overall, but Little Busters! was better in all departments than Love Hina save for slapstick and silliness :P
Strengths:
It makes you laugh. Quite a few original and quirky aspects to its humour too.
It (nearly for me) makes you cry. Some of these emotional moments were the best parts of the show in my view. If you're thinking about quitting early, know that the show gets better as it progresses.
It has a very satisfying plot comprising several character development arcs.
It doesn't contain romance and anime-sexual-tension which separates it from some other stuff and keeps its core, revolving around the purest of group friendships, very strong. The boyish/girlish MC is no perverted, hysteric harem-lord adored for no reason, he's actually quite passable and you feel that he merits any affection he receives.
The music is good. OP and ED grow on you as they do in other animes. Sometimes the selection feels a little limited, but I like how they made use of music in some cases - it reminds me of old games in which a characters' song will play in the background when they have their little moment. Quite cute.
Character designs and movement are colourful and dynamic respectively. Some nice visuals but again, it's nothing particularly original.
The characters themselves were fairly interesting and had enough depth each to make it worthwhile. The difficult task of balancing between them to ensure that they all got enough screen-time and an actual role in the group was exceptionally carried out. Each character's evolution is discreetly referenced by their subsequent interactions with the group, and as I said before, it's quite satisfying to see.
The messages contained were positive and uplifting, given a bit of depth by the presence of some darkness and the difficulties each character faces.
Weaknesses:
To be honest, I found some of the moe faces a little bland and void of personality. Also, the super-moe moments were a bit eye-rollish, and some of the voice-acting was a tad saturated in attempted cuteness to the point of being annoying (looking at you, Komari-san).
It was not very watchable. I found myself trying hard to stay interested because the content was a little bland for a good amount of many episodes.
It was not particularly adventurous overall. Although it has a distinct charm to it, don't expect any new recipes for emotionally-oriented entertainment. Little Busters! sticks to tried and tested techniques rather than innovating.
Despite its sombre moments, I was never really left in a 'mood' following watching episodes of Little Busters! Which is in truth something I crave when I watch anime. Despite this, I can say that I feel good after finishing the season, and that applying some of the show's lessons to your own life is quite rewarding.
I guess the humour was rather hit-or-miss, then again that's how I feel about most funny anime so Little Busters! Shouldn't be counted as particular in that sense.
Overall, I'd say Little Busters! Was worth the watch, but don't go into it expecting something very original, addictive or profound. Watch at will if you're looking for something charming, pure, satisfying and consistent. I would give it a 3.5 if the site allowed it, but I feel that a 4 does it more justice than a 3. Wafu!
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