Is Kaguya Sama good? A Review

The anime Kaguya-Sama: Love Is War is carving out a niche audience of Seinen Fans within the otaku community for its unique take on the overdone rom-com genre. It has also been the recipient of many prestigious awards and nominations.

For the year 2020, it has had the privilege of winning the highly prestigious Shogakukan Manga Award in the general category alongside another anime. Even in the Crunchyroll Anime Awards, it has been nominated for awards in many categories.

1. Quick Review

The anime is notable for the unique approach to showing a high school romance. If you are bored out of your mind with the usual cliché storylines of most romance anime like I was, you will love this anime.

The source of humor and entertainment comes from the numerous antics and “battles” they fight to get the other to confess. Interspersed with high school drama and some weirdly “pragmatic” lessons about love being a battle, the anime is a beautiful anime that will not disappoint you.

2. Is it worth watching?

Kaguya-Sama: Love Is War is worth watching. It has brilliant slapstick humor with a mix of some romance and high school drama. It does get boring occasionally, but overall, it’s entertainment value outweighs its boring ones.

Kaguya-sama: Love is War | Official Trailer [English Subs]

I. Plot

Kaguya-Sama: Love Is War revolves around the trials and tribulations of the President and Vice-president of the Student Council, Miyuki Shirogane, and Kaguya Shinomiya. The two are the perfect couple and the ideal students as well.

Miyuki is the school topper and is well known all across the prefecture while Kaguya is the daughter of a multinational conglomerate and is extremely talented in art, music, and games.

The peculiarity about their relationship is that in spite of harboring an intense love for each other, both of them don’t want to be the first to confess. For a huge part of the anime, they’re obsessed with playing mind games to get the other one to ‘lose.’

The plot of the anime is a refreshing one in a sea of mediocre rom-coms. It does not approach the Rom-com format in the usual way. Instead, it makes the two characters engage with each other as if they were playing a chess game and retorting with clever punchlines.

It is a unique and interesting premise that is replete with fun and exciting “battles.” However, that does not mean that the story stagnates and doesn’t progress. It progresses at its own pace and does end up showing the two of them together towards the end, although other misunderstandings do occur even then.

II. Characters

The characters of Kaguya-Sama: Love Is War is funny, smart-mouthed, and ridiculous. The length to which the two characters of Miyuki and Kaguya go to, to ensure that they get the other to confess is so ridiculous that it is extremely funny.

Both of them come up with a countless number of humorous antics and verbal comebacks to win this war. The intensity of their “battles” is further spiced up by the addition of another faceless character who gives very snarky and sassy commentaries on the scenes.

Another character called Chika Fujiwara, who is also a member of the Student Council is a recurring character who adds another layer of comic relief to the plot. Though she looks like the typical anime girl who is sweet and simple-minded, she is super smart as well.

While the anime starts off as something goofy and comedic, it eventually elaborates on the complexities and multifaceted aspects of the characters. For this exemplary character development, Kaguya-Sama: Love is War deserves a pat on the back.

The countless battles Miyuki and Kaguya fight are so absurd but relatable as well. It is relatable in the sense that all of us have dealt with the pain and fun of having a crush who seemed disinterested.

3. Final Thoughts

The anime does a brilliant job of interspersing romance with slapstick comedy. It is lively, goofy, absurd, and yet, the anime also highlights the emotional depth of its plot.

Even the theme songs have very cringy and amusing animation and art. Cheesy love signs envelop the two, Miyuki and Kaguya. Watching the approximate 20 minutes of each episode doesn’t feel as long as other anime I’ve watched. This is a testament to the beauty and creativity of Kaguya-Sama.

4. Grade

5. Info Card

Watch Order

A watch order isn’t necessary.