My Teen Romantic Comedy SNAFU Review (Anime)
Yahello! Everyone knows I like my earnest romantic comedies with a solid cast, and My Teen Romantic Comedy SNAFU truly stands up there with the best of them and with my personal favourites.
I knew I’d always enjoy SNAFU but, being that there was nowhere to legally stream it within the UK, I found myself waiting for the official home release. Animatsu finally picked up this fantastic series and along with Golden Time in March, Animatsu have managed to bring out two of the best romantic comedies that have ever graced anime. SNAFU revolves around loner Hachiman Hikigaya as he’s forced to join the service club in an effort to learn how to be more optimistic and become more socially adept. It’s a heartwarming and sometimes bitter look into why some people choose to exclude themselves from social experiences, and how they’re able to accept this and make friends and cherished memories.
Hachiman is afraid of being hurt due to countless experiences where he’s been bullied and poorly treated by romantic interests and classmates, and lives a life where he believes putting little effort into things and being alone is the best way to live. Yukino Yukinoshita, leader of the Service Club, also suffers from being alone due to her abrasive nature and poor ability at being social. When the upbeat and optimistic Yui Yuigahama joins the Service Club, everyone finds themselves maturing with the help of one another and learning about how others live their lives. Not only is SNAFU a great romantic comedy, it’s a great story about growing up with some of the best written characters you could hope to find.
I’d like to talk about the characters and story a little more. Most of us have gone through times of loneliness for any number of reasons, and sometimes we choose to be alone. Being alone allows you to clearly think things through without any outside influence, and sometimes you just need time by yourself to find out things about yourself. But, as SNAFU goes to show, it’s possible to happily be alone and to use that experience to help others and to help yourself. It’s a show (and originally a light novel) that excels due to the author’s understanding of human nature and how people deal with life, and it really is a beautiful thing to watch. I can relate to a lot of what Hachiman says and experiences, and a lot of the growth he goes through.
The fantastic Brain’s Base animated SNAFU, and you might know them from Durarara!! and The Kawai Complex Guide to Manors and Hostel behaviour, and whilst they only animated the first season it’s nice to see that they’ve clearly put a lot of effort into it. When first watching it I felt it might’ve been a tad plain but my mind was quickly changed as I fell in love with it – I was drawn in by its art style and how brilliantly Hachiman’s design reflects his apathetic nature.
Brain’s Base are pros at animating human emotion and whilst there are a few companies I’d argue could do justice to SNAFU, I have no qualms with Brain’s Base doing it – they’re tend to only do one season on shows, so when I finally watch SNAFU season two I’m sure it’ll take some time to adjust to the new art style of studio Feel. I love the bright and warm colours, the character design and the various detailed environments, and Brain’s Base really have brought this to life in a way that makes me feel nostalgic and yearning for more – I may not have mentioned it earlier, but the entire show makes me feel rather nostalgic.
There’s no English Dub here which felt a bit more notable in this release as although I think many will connect and relate to the story and characters, I think a lot of people will find this easier if they could better understand SNAFU in their native language and its nuances, but there’s only Japanese available here. Personally, I don’t mind as I have zero complaints about the Japanese voice-over and the yellow subtitles aren’t nearly as garish as I worried that they would be! Whilst the voice-acting is undeniably amazing, I’m really fond of the OST too – particularly the OP which is in my head as I write this.
SNAFU is a special show and it’s one that I highly recommend due to how heartfelt, relatable and beautiful it is. I tend to watch a lot of romantic comedies and SNAFU stands up there with my favourites. It got me thinking about when I was a student and how I’ve changed since then and, in ways, how I haven’t changed. SNAFU is an earnest look into how young adults deal with school life and other people, and it’s something you should try to make sure to experience. My Teen Romantic Comedy SNAFU might have a bit of a silly name but don’t be turned away by it – if you’re anything like me, you’ll find that it’ll stick with you for a long time.
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