My Teen Romantic Comedy SNAFU

Now, I'll admit that the first time I saw the synopsis for this anime, I thought Oregairu would be a stereotypical romcom anime. Just think about it. There are two female main characters and a male character. The male character is an outcast. One of the female characters is the school's most beautiful girl. How original. But when I finished the first episode of this anime. I knew that this was something different. Something that manages to stray from the norm and becomes something extraordinary.

**Story:** Now, the story revolves around Hikigaya Hachiman. He is a high school student, an outcast of the entire school. Fortunately, this suits him just fine, as he has always wanted to be a loner and not make friends with anyone. It falls apart quickly, though: his teacher forces him to join a club that is supposed to help people with their problems. Even worse, the club also has the bright and beautiful 'ice-cold Beauty,' Yukino Yukinoshita (nicknamed that for her cold personality). Hilarity ensues. Now, the story revolves around the club helping out with people's requests and problems. Although the problems are simple, the way the main characters solve the problem isn't. The comedy usually revolves around Hachiman and Yukino's witty dialogue and sarcasm (which is funny, btw).

**Art:** The art was good most of the time. Backgrounds were filled with radiant colors and were nicely drawn. Character designs were also done well and fit well with the characters' personalities. It went a little low for some episodes, one or two, but all in all, it's pretty good.

**Sound:** The sound was quite impressive. The soundtrack fits well with the anime. The opening 'Yukitoki' is catchy, as I find myself humming to it in the shower days after I first heard it. The ending, I'm afraid, is good enough for an end.

**Character:** Now, this is where Oregairu excels the most. Let's start with Hikigaya Hachiman. Hachiman's crooked view of life and society is indeed one of the most exciting views of life that I've ever come across. His views of life affected my way of viewing life. Also, his monologues are exciting and show a bit more of his character. Yuki Yukinoshita is very opposite from Hachiman. She's intelligent, beautiful, and rich. But the exciting thing is she doesn't have friends either. Unlike Hachiman, her reason for not having friends is her icy demeanor and being too perfect. She, unlike Hachiman, believes that change is a good thing. Her sharp tongue is humorous, and her fights with Hachiman are hilarious. All in all, she is also a likable character. Yui Yuigahama, at first sight, would appear to be an stereotypical character. I couldn't say that I loved her as much as I loved the other two main characters, yet I would have to admit that without her, this anime wouldn't be as good. She's the one who pretty much holds the whole club together. Her character does end up developing into something independent and helpful, however.

In the end, Oregairu did turn out to be a good series. What I thought would be some stereotypical rom-com anime was something more than that. I would recommend it to anybody who watches anime.