Deadjournal

I’ve known about this anime for a long time and had been wanting to watch it, but I kept putting it off. A few days ago, I finally decided to give it a go. Well, I wish I hadn’t. The first five episodes were fairly enjoyable, and I even considered giving it an 8/10. However, as I kept watching, my internal rating dropped with almost every episode, eventually hitting 5/10 by the end. And that’s a score I reserve for outright trash. Unfortunately, To LOVE-Ru turned out to be exactly that kind of “trash” on par with Cosprayers and other disasters from Studio M.O.E.

The final episode felt like some forgotten OVA from the 90s, a complete shit. But it’s not all bad. The character design is decent, and the protagonist, while being a classic soft-spoken and feminine "nice guy," is surprisingly non-irritating. I also liked Lala, though that’s mostly because I have a soft spot for chaotic, energetic genki characters. Everyone else fades into the background; none of the other characters left any impression. It takes a special kind of talent to create a 26-episode anime where not a single character gets properly developed.

I had high hopes for Mikan, the protagonist’s sister, but she barely appeared in the series, which was disappointing. Overall, it was one letdown after another. That said, I’ll still watch the sequels since the person responsible for this mess, who has apparently never created anything but garbage, wasn’t involved.

This anime had potential, and if a studio like Shaft or KyoAni had taken the reins, it could have turned out to be a solid title. Unfortunately, it ended up in the hands of someone who completely butchered it. Here’s hoping the sequels do better.