Synopsis:
Junpei Kōsaka is a second-year high school student who despises cats and has an allergy to them. It just so happens that his high schoolcrush is Kaede Mizuno, a girl who adores cats. One day, while walking home from school, Junpei kicks an empty can and unfortunately beans thelocal neko-jizō-sama (guardian deity of cats). He finds he can now understand what cats are saying, including his family's own ill-tempered cat, Nyamusasu. However, if he does not grant 100 wishes from cats, he will turn into a cat himself.
Type: Series
Genre: Comedy, Romance
Genre: Comedy, Romance
Status:Ongoing
Plot:
As a series debuting in the year of 2009, it is certainly aiming to be unique and at the same time entertain it's viewers with the classic Comedy and Romance genre. As any typical comedy anime series, Nyan Koi sports a semi-laid-back plot-line. The intentions for this type of plot is to provide a very small amount of drama and conflict to spice up the series yet at the same mainly focusing on the light-hearted antics of the protagonist. The strong point of this plot-line is not the funny moments that each episode contains. Instead it's the unique idea behind the series. What initially draws in the attention of curious viewers is the odd dilemma Kousaka-san finds himself in. As said in the synopsis, he is cursed and is forced to complete 100 deeds from cats. Usually in Anime you would typically expect a series in the Comedy and Romance genre to revolve around a protagonist in a somewhat Normal high school setting with only his love problems to contend with. In Nyan Koi, Kousaka-san must juggle wishes from his feline "friends" and the developing harem that creeps up on him in the series. Unfortunately, there is a slight imbalance between his love interests and the original dilemma. As the series goes on the imbalance becomes more and more noticeable to the point where most viewers would be much more drawn to his love problems rather than his struggle to fulfill 100 wishes. Although yes, it is very entertaining to watch Kousaka get dragged around by a bunch of cats, it is much more interesting to watch his interactions with the female cast. In the end, Nyan Koi's plot resembles most other Comedy/Romance plot-lines with the exception of Kousaka's feline duties from time to time. This is where Nyan Koi's weakness lies. The feline curse becomes more of an add-on of the series rather than an actual hard part of it. Keep in mind however, that the curse does obviously affect Kousaka's decisions but has very little impact on the otaku's view of the series when it is watched.
Plot Score: 2.5/5
Poor attempt at implementing a unique idea. Various comedic moments in the series and fun romantic scenes between characters.
Cast:
Most series in the Comedy/Romance genre try to stand out amongst others in the same genre by having a memorable cast. There's not much else they can do to stand out without creating some kind of amazing fantasy land of fiction. But then of course there's series of the same genre that have unbelievably unorthodox themes; that's just a completely different story. Other than that for the most part harems, slice of life, comedy, and drama must live off their cast after their series is over. Take Love Hina for example, excellent classic, breaking the mold harem anime with lovable characters. By now it is starting to become a real antique series however, if you go back a few years, Love Hina still had a pretty strong presence. That is because of the great cast of characters Ken Akamatsu had created. Nyan Koi on the other hand did not do such a great job.The cast is indeed enjoyable, but hardly memorable. There is very little to remember the characters for. The personalities of each character definitely tried to stay away from the cliche type anime characters we see, but nonetheless that effort had little effect on the otaku nation. Unfortunately I cannot go into detail of each characters traits because they are in fact a little bit unique like a normal person, but that's the problem, it's too normal. By normal I mean, no one is exactly the same and most people aren't extremely different. It's the people who are extremely different in clever ways that usually attract the most attention. Thus far Nyan Koi has not offered to introduce sort of character.
Cast Score: 3.0/5
Cast:
Most series in the Comedy/Romance genre try to stand out amongst others in the same genre by having a memorable cast. There's not much else they can do to stand out without creating some kind of amazing fantasy land of fiction. But then of course there's series of the same genre that have unbelievably unorthodox themes; that's just a completely different story. Other than that for the most part harems, slice of life, comedy, and drama must live off their cast after their series is over. Take Love Hina for example, excellent classic, breaking the mold harem anime with lovable characters. By now it is starting to become a real antique series however, if you go back a few years, Love Hina still had a pretty strong presence. That is because of the great cast of characters Ken Akamatsu had created. Nyan Koi on the other hand did not do such a great job.The cast is indeed enjoyable, but hardly memorable. There is very little to remember the characters for. The personalities of each character definitely tried to stay away from the cliche type anime characters we see, but nonetheless that effort had little effect on the otaku nation. Unfortunately I cannot go into detail of each characters traits because they are in fact a little bit unique like a normal person, but that's the problem, it's too normal. By normal I mean, no one is exactly the same and most people aren't extremely different. It's the people who are extremely different in clever ways that usually attract the most attention. Thus far Nyan Koi has not offered to introduce sort of character.
Cast Score: 3.0/5
Production:
With the advent of new technology and software in 2009, more and more anime series are being released with top of the line craftsmanship from great animation companies like Gainax. I have not pulled up the financial records of the producers of Nyan Koi however, it's pretty easy to tell that the series was slightly tight on its budget. At least I hope that is the case because the animation and directing of the series is very bland. There is nothing notable at all. Although its usually the plot and the characters that contribute the most to a series, you also must consider how well the series is produced. Nyan Koi does not bring top of the line animation, and it also fails to exhibit any creativity in the way its directed. We end with a typically job of animation from a series that is 50+ episodes long in a 12 episode long series. Usually the shorter the Anime is, the higher quality of animation there will be. From what I can tell, very little emphasis was put into the animation of Nyan Koi, and most of the quality work was put into the flow of the story. Years ago the animation and style of Nyan Koi would be celebrated by otakus everywhere, but as of 2009 its just not so special. Series like Bakemonogatari or K-ON! are far more superior in terms of style, creativity, and quality in its animation and directing. In cases like these, Nyan Koi would benefit A LOT from better craftsmanship.
Production Score: 2.0/5
The Conclusion: 2.5/5
All-in-All Nyan Koi is a series suited for watching when those big name series haven't released their latest episodes. It's not an extremely impressive Anime but it is a good interesting watch. Certainly it isn't a waste of time for those fans of the Comedy and Romance genre. Despite it's downsides Nyan Koi has it's share of good laughs and warm moments. As of late fall of 2009, there are easily more intriguing anime series to watch instead of Nyan Koi. However, once those are all over, it'll be worth going back into this fall season and digging up Nyan Koi to watch. If you're done watching all your favorite anime, it wouldn't hurt to download an episode of Nyan Koi, grab some drink, sit back, and laugh your ass off until the next week of releases come.
With the advent of new technology and software in 2009, more and more anime series are being released with top of the line craftsmanship from great animation companies like Gainax. I have not pulled up the financial records of the producers of Nyan Koi however, it's pretty easy to tell that the series was slightly tight on its budget. At least I hope that is the case because the animation and directing of the series is very bland. There is nothing notable at all. Although its usually the plot and the characters that contribute the most to a series, you also must consider how well the series is produced. Nyan Koi does not bring top of the line animation, and it also fails to exhibit any creativity in the way its directed. We end with a typically job of animation from a series that is 50+ episodes long in a 12 episode long series. Usually the shorter the Anime is, the higher quality of animation there will be. From what I can tell, very little emphasis was put into the animation of Nyan Koi, and most of the quality work was put into the flow of the story. Years ago the animation and style of Nyan Koi would be celebrated by otakus everywhere, but as of 2009 its just not so special. Series like Bakemonogatari or K-ON! are far more superior in terms of style, creativity, and quality in its animation and directing. In cases like these, Nyan Koi would benefit A LOT from better craftsmanship.
Production Score: 2.0/5
The Conclusion: 2.5/5
All-in-All Nyan Koi is a series suited for watching when those big name series haven't released their latest episodes. It's not an extremely impressive Anime but it is a good interesting watch. Certainly it isn't a waste of time for those fans of the Comedy and Romance genre. Despite it's downsides Nyan Koi has it's share of good laughs and warm moments. As of late fall of 2009, there are easily more intriguing anime series to watch instead of Nyan Koi. However, once those are all over, it'll be worth going back into this fall season and digging up Nyan Koi to watch. If you're done watching all your favorite anime, it wouldn't hurt to download an episode of Nyan Koi, grab some drink, sit back, and laugh your ass off until the next week of releases come.
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