All 12 episodes of Netflix’s latest anime release, Romantic Killer, were released on October 27, 2022 with Rie Takahashi and Mikako Komatsu voicing the unlikely leading duo of the series. It’s based on the Japanese manga of the same name written and illustrated by Wataru Momose.
Delving into a unique plot that fixes itself around the narrow-minded dating simulation scenarios, the anime centers around the curly, red-haired Anzu who lives and breathes for her three greatest desires – chocolate, video games and her endearing cat Momohiki. Her life though low on romance due to all her time being spent with these three lifelines, Riri – a video game cupid wizard takes it upon itself to turn her life around.
Netflix describes the anime as:
Living her best single life, romance is the last thing on Anzu’s mind, until a tiny matchmaking wizard suddenly turns her life into a clichéd rom-com.
-Romantic Killer Review Does Not Contain Any Spoilers-
Buying a seemingly regular video game titled “Romantic Thriller” that puts her in the midst of a dating simulation, thereby allowing her to live vicariously through it, the table-turning day in Anzu’s life introduces her to Riri, the cupid wizard. As soon as the game is switched on, it comes alive with its own agenda putting her romantic life together in order to address a very statistical issue in Japan.
However, as one can discern from experience, real-life isn’t as simplistic as a “dating sim” with its unidimensional caricatures leading the chapter. The same speaks for itself when Riri starts meddling with Anzu’s life, barring her from even seeing her three absolute aforementioned needs. In turn, it replaces these things with three boys with the aim of atleast one of them starting a relationship with her. Reading into these motives, Anzu swears to break its charm by not bending to its will and regaining her beloved entities soon, thus giving birth to a new avatar of herself based in real-life – the Romantic Killer.
Soon, Riri starts to realize, and us along with it, that our reality can’t be transformed by the bare means of administering perfect situations as encountered in games. Those stereotypes don’t hold in the real world because what comes across by the end is a heartwarming exchange between all of these characters presented through the usual filter of visual comedy in anime.
Also Read: Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities Episode 5-6 Review: Ghost, Demons and The Infamous Witch
Picking up on specific ‘simulating’ scenarios, the series takes up the challenge to break each of these down and reveal the ground-reality around young love and friendship – most of which- if not always – revolves around forming a connection with someone and feeling at ease around them. This becomes the most essential bit because letting down your walls and allowing someone to see your vulnerable self isn’t something teenagers are comfortable with, especially with all kinds of expectations and peer pressures (like the distressing aftermath of saying a simple ‘no’) riding on their backs.
The overtly laid down platter is not at all what it seems and the latter half of the season demonstrates true depth of human associations. Neither of these characters is the delimiting archetype or stereotype they are initially announced to be. They are so much more than that and the show eventually ends up becoming a lot more about friendships as opposed to the romantic packaging it lets on.
Romantic Killer: Worth the Watch?
It also takes on the challenge of striking at the visible changes teenagers go through during the stage of adolescence, pulling everyone’s attention and gaze towards oneself, which isn’t as flattering as some may perceive it to be. Even though it may feel as if the story is solely focusing on one aspect, it really isn’t. One needs to hold off their judgments till after watching the remainder of the series. This anime is far from a disappointment. It neither pitches a meagre love triangle to mess up with the viewers’ emotions nor does it restrict itself to an angsty reduction of love.
Addressing the overarching twist of love, it’s not so much about romance as it’s about these characters growing alongside each other. The charming visage of the show is not to mislead the viewer, but rather to hold in and then shed light (at the appropriate moment) on an unsettling reality that many choose to turn a blind eye toward. Most importantly, the series doesn’t beg to differ or draw the ‘either-or’ line between girls and boys.
What video games or simulations can’t take into count are the grey patches making up reality as it is and that the prevailing darkness in a person always arises out of a cause often overlooked during the initial stages. This is probably a first in a long time that an anime belonging to the category of romantic comedy hasn’t objectified any of its characters, even for the sake of comic tokenism. Plus, Riri’s character overthrows the conventional image of gender and plays with it lovingly.
Leaving out enough time for us to fall in love with the series as well as for the characters to evolve, the supreme moral left behind by the show is to stay true to yourself and help out a friend in need. You may not know how to deal with their anxieties but you can definitely hold out your hand for them to feel supported and loved.
Romantic Killer is now streaming on Netflix.
Also Read: Andor Episode 8 Recap and Review: The Complications Are Just Starting
OOOOHHHH ???????????????? WOW, where did netflix hide this pot of gold!?! This is actully fun to watch, its on pair with komi chan cant communite, this animation thats looking good, living eyes instead of dead eyes, make more crasy slaptic humor like this and i will thinking of NOT to quit my netflix, now the one thing maybe i feel bad about, that flying thing that forcing someone into love, hes acting evil, this must be ilegall act of magic, if she want to play video games and eat junk food, well let her, its her life, and the little magian stuff animal itself ???? i have seen cuter things in my life, im sure things could happen without magic, with that said, ???????? thumbs up.
Score: 4.6 ????