Kotoura-san Overall Review

Animation Company: AIC
Website: http://kotourasan.net/
Genre: Comedy, Romance, School
Airing Date: January 2013
Summary: A school love comedy. Kotoura Haruka is a 15-year-old girl who can read people’s minds. She has been suffering from troubles caused by her mind-reading ability, and her parents got divorced as a result. She moves to a new high school but tries to keep away from her classmates. Manabe Yoshihisa, one of her classmates, accepts and appreciates her ability and she begins to interact with her friends with his help – Source MAL
Trailer: PV 1,

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Story/Plot: 8/10
The story heavily revolved around Kotoura coming around to trust and depend on others. It may be a very simple story, but it is strong and captivating. There were a handful of sub-arcs connected to the main plot. They took places over a course of a few episodes before moving onto the next, but the plot always remained as the base. In the end they wrapped up most if not all the loose ends, but I wished they had some more time to expand on the ‘after-story’ Kotoura’s and her mother’s relationship.
 
Characters & Development: 7/10
Kotoura-san has a strong cast, each with their own individual quirks but as for developments not so much. This is why I am rating this a seven. Only the girls, Mifune, Moritani and Kotoura had their share of growth. However it was Moritani who was the one with the most dramatic character development of the entire cast. In the beginning YOU WILL HATE HER (If you don’t then- lets not go there.) and you will probably think, “THIS GIRL- FFFF, THERE IS NO WAY IN HELL I WILL EVER LIKE HER.” But then Moritani receives the opportunity prove you wrong. It’s because she had sunk so low that her development is so strong and outshines the others. By the end of the show it is ultimately up to you about how you feel about her character.
The boys on the other hand didn’t get any development. I would have liked to see more about what shaped them to being who they are. What frustrates me the most is that the while we were able to see where Daichi was coming from because of his childhood relationship with Mifune, I would have loved to learn more about Manabe as he was the only one who we never received any background on. And you know what, that is really too bad because Manabe is such an great character.
Animation Quality: 8/10
Kotoura-san’s character designs weren’t appealing to most people, the animation was still fine. Everything was very simple, fresh and when dark when it needed to be. Nothing much to say here folks.
Original Soundtrack: N/A

Uh… Yeah I’m not going to rate it when I can’t even judge it because the only time the OST really stood out to me was back in episode 1… that’s it. I suppose that would make it forgettable… The OP song drives me insane so I never watch the opening. The ED song on the other hand is great.
Overall Score:  8/10
Kotoura-san was one of the underdogs of the season as a handful of us, including myself had low expectations because of the character designs (which are actually not that bad). If anything, Kotoura-san reminded us to never judge a book by its cover- or genre since although it is a both romance and comedy it has its shares of heart wrenching drama. The drama was definitely the highlight of the show, so much that I am not sure whether I would have liked it as much if there weren’t any.
Recommendation: YES!
If you passed this because of the cover, then for the love of god watch the first episode! That alone should seal the deal for you. If you love romantic comedies with a share of (non-relationship) drama, this is definitely a show you will enjoy. It isn’t a must watch, but it is definitely a show you should consider adding to your “Planned to Watch” list.