Genre(s): Comedy, Romance, School
Age-Appropriateness: 13+ (Mild language, occasional sexual references and crude humor)
Platforms: Crunchyroll, Hulu, Funimation (Season 2 only on Funimation)
Episodes: 24
TheAwersome Rating: 8.8 / 10 (Hilarious and Heartwarming)
Premise: At the renowned Shuchiin Academy, Miyuki Shirogane and Kaguya Shinomiya are the student body’s top representatives. Ranked the top student in the nation and respected by peers and mentors alike, Miyuki serves as the student council president. Alongside him, the vice president Kaguya—eldest daughter of the wealthy Shinomiya family—excels in every field imaginable. They are the envy of the entire student body, regarded as the perfect couple.
However, despite both having already developed feelings for the other, neither are willing to admit them. The first to confess loses, will be looked down upon, and will be considered the lesser. With their honor and pride at stake, Miyuki and Kaguya are both equally determined to be the one to emerge victorious on the battlefield of love!
TheAwersome’s Thoughts: If you’ve been on the internet for the past two years, you’ve likely seen memes based on this show. This was one of the better executed anime comedies I’ve seen in a while. Timing and intensity of jokes are spot on in such a way that doesn’t leave with the usual aftertaste of “well that was forced/over the top/drawn out.” The mind games Kaguya and Miyuki play are such a delight and the voice acting is fantastic, particularly for Kaguya. The pacing is pretty fast, so you do have to pay some extra attention, but it is very rewarding. When this show isn’t busting your gut with its humor (which won Crunchyroll’s 2019 Best Comedy), it’s warming up your heart with tender and sweet moments. You’ll be surprised how quickly you get very attached to this fantastic cast.
TLDR: A smart and hilarious comedy with surprisingly heartwarming moments.
I always feel awkward when it comes time to add in my afterthoughts on something that I thoroughly loved, yet there isn’t much more to say. The show is straightforward and excellently done with a cast of great characters (who are also good people, which is always nice to see). It makes a lot of references to other shows, so those are always fun to see. Similar to a lot of anime adaptations of rom-com manga such as Teasing Master Takagi-san (which you could say Kaguya-sama is a faster, funnier, more intense version of the former, set in High School), each episode is a compilation of 3-5 shorter mini episodes. This causes long titles for the anime episodes themselves, such as “Kaguya Wants Affection / The Student Council Wants It to Be Said / Kaguya Wants Him to Send It / Miyuki Shirogane Wants to Talk.”
The OPs for both seasons are absolute bangers as well, using unexpected Funk and Soul themes.
At a Glance Anime 