areaseven Posted January 1, 2004 Posted January 1, 2004 Sakura Tsuushin Kitty Film/Victor Entertainment, 1997-1998 ADV Films, 1999, 2002 Directed by Tsuguo Ozara Rated 17+ for nudity, sexual situations and strong language. Based on the manga by U-Jin (U-Jin Brand). Touma Inaba goes to Tokyo to prepare for his college exams. Then, one night, a young girl named Urara Kasuga drops by his hotel room. Dismissing her as a teenage call girl out to take away his virginity, Touma kicks her out, not knowing that she's his cousin whom he hasn't seen since childhood. After failing the first two exams due to a cold he received from Urara, Touma tries out Keio College when he bumps into the beautiful Mieko Yotsuba. He's determined to study with her and marry her in the end, but once again, he fails the entrance exams. Despite this, he saves face by pretending he passed the exams by giving her the thumbs-up. Still determined to be with Mieko, Touma returns to Tokyo and enrolls in cram school. He moves into a relative's apartment and realizes that he's living under the same roof with Urara. Not only does he have to try hard in cram school, he gets himself caught in a love triangle, as he still wants Mieko, and Urara has a deep affection for him. Story: C+ Here, we have another romance anime about some ronin (guy who has to retake the college exams) who falls in love with one chick while another is in love with him. And it's coming from U-Jin - one of the most infamous hentai artists in the manga industry. Sakura Diaries is not as raunchy as his other works, but it slips a perverted gesture or two in each episode. While we get to know about the two main characters, Sakura Diaries suffers from being too cliché. Still, it's pretty watchable, especially for those who are into romantic comedy. Animation: A- The character designs by Kunitoshi Okajima and Toshiaki Kobayashi are beautifully drawn and for a pseudo-hentai title, Sakura Diaries is well-animated. Soundtrack: A- Like porno movies, hentai titles usually have bad soundtracks. Sakura Diaries, however, has an excellent acoustic score by Mitsuo Hagita (Record of Lodoss War, Mobile Suit Gundam 0083), accompanied by the mellow opening theme "Kimi ni Mado Kara (From Your Window)" by Takako Kuwata. Sub vs. Dub Sakura Diaries features Mitsuaki Shinden as Touma, Kyoko Nagaue as Urara, and Rumi Kasahara (Pixy Misa in Magical Girl Pretty Sammy and Magical Project S) as Mieko. Don't bother with ADV's dub. DVD Extras: F Trailers are not extras. The Bottom Line Despite lacking originality, Sakura Diaries is actually a pretty good anime. A good rental for most viewers. Reference Anime News Network Quote
MrDisco Posted January 1, 2004 Posted January 1, 2004 seems like you reviewed the regular edition (which is odd b/c the picture you used is from the CE version). there is a collector's edition which contains scenes that were cut out (naturally explicit ones) and comes in sub only format. i myself loved this show. it is a small part of the story that goes much deeper in manga format (tales of drug abuse, teenage pregnancy, etc). Quote
gnollman Posted January 3, 2004 Posted January 3, 2004 Gotta agree with the Disco man.... I really enjoyed this series, but only the Collectors Edition is viewable... the non-Collectors version is highly cut and almost nonsensical.... I was highly surprised to see the U-Jin brand on this one, as I don't tend to enjoy his work, but this one is the exception... Quote
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