Chuunibyou Demo Koi ga Shitai - 01

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Just writing out the name Chuunibyou Demo Koi ga Shitai is a bit of a pain, but I wouldn't have minded had this episode actually been a better than average watch.

On paper this series should be able to deliver: veteran director Tatsuya Ishihara and a light novel that carries the Kyoto Animation award. Trust me when I say that I understand that Kyoto Animation doesn't necessarily bring out series that are liked by everyone, and that's fine. I personally didn't get the appeal of K-ON! like everyone else did, so I understand the point of view that their work isn't all good but actually lacks in many ways, but even so this episode was just uninteresting.

Maybe it's because of lost in translation or maybe its because I hate cringe-worthy moments but I couldn't get behind the whole Chuunibyou "disease" being an important part of the plot. It reminded me a little of the dynamic between the main duo in Nodame Cantabile but in the slightest way possible.

This may be harsh critique from me considering that first episode did nothing much except set up an involuntary (for the time being) relationship between the main duo, establish a new love interest for the male lead and just bank on a slew of moe moments. Still, I wasn't overly impressed nor did I really feel the desire to watch the next episode any time soon or even follow this series on a weekly basis.

To me this is more K-ON! than other KyoAni works. It's cute, it's moe and that is why I won't enjoy it as much if I do complete this series; it relies too much on that. I was actually hoping for something a little more mature - not too much, Hyouka levels would be fine - but I guess that wasn't in the cards. KyoAni is a slow starter, so there is a possibility that the series will improve and that is why I'll continue watching it for the time being.