Anime Review: Shuffle

As an anime fan, I admit that it can be hard to find an anime with a good romance behind it. However, Funimation got their hands on a gem back in the mid 2000s. This is where our first review comes into place, the anime called, Shuffle.

The franchise was first introduced an adult visual novel (a type of game) made for Microsoft Windows, and later as a cleaner version on the Playstation 2, but came into the US as a manga in 2004. Then in 2008, an anime of it came into the United States and put into English by Funimation studios. The series had 24 episodes, and luckily removed the elements that made the game an adult only game. The box set for the anime wasn’t released until 2009 and it is what is now available.

Considering a background like that, one would expect this to be basically hentai, but it actually isn’t. Does it have fan service? Yes. Is there nudity? Yes. Does that mean this is an anime only perverted minds would enjoy? No.

The World:

            The main theme of the world of this anime is that, the realm of the Gods and the realm of the Demons have opened up to the realm of the humans and they have learned to co-exist. As far as being able to tell the difference… The Gods have small pointed ears and the demons ears are longer and still pointed. Both of them have their own uniqueness to them and defined characteristics. Demons are skilled with magic and Gods have physical strength and build. So, this is actually a mixture of Fantasy and Romance. Which can turn out to be really good, which is the point in this case.

The Story:

            The story is about Rin, a human, young man in high school and living with his childhood friend, Kaede, and her dad due to a accident killing his parents and her mother.  Turns out, two girls, a demon (Nerine) and a god (Lisianthus also goes by Sia), both come to his school as new students and as fate seemed to add a bizarre twist, they know Rin from when they were younger and are both in love with him. Something like this wouldn’t be too big of an issue except for one thing… The two new girls, plus his childhood friend who also loves him, are rated as the hottest girls in school. So, not only does he have to choose a girl, but he also has every guy jealous of him and trying to beat the crap out of him. Not only that, but the new girls’ fathers are the kings of their respected realms and whichever he chooses will make him the heir to that realm and he could gain all the powers of either the Gods or the Demons… Talk about a hard choice.

Thoughts on the story:

            The story sounds very simple and downright bizarre, but it works out really well. It keeps you entertained and pulled in and it explains itself and the characters as it goes on and it keeps you wanting to watch it more and more.

Character Thoughts:

            Rin: Simply put, Rin is a fantastic character! You do feel jealousy towards him, but you also feel sympathy for him. He’s just all in all a good guy, who is trying to make everyone happy. Turns out it ends up blowing up in his face. As a protagonist, he is very likeable and relatable. It really is no wonder why all the main girls like him so much. He won’t give them a reason not to like him.

            Kaede: This character has by far the biggest twist in the entire series. Remember how in the story summary, we said she loved him. That was a light exaggeration. She is obsessed with him!! So much that she won’t do anything if it’s not for him. She takes care of everything for him, even when he asked her not to do it. At first you see her as a very innocent girl, then you see her go completely psycho and get scared of her.

            Nerine: She is a very quiet character, but very likeable. Unlike other girls in the show, she doesn’t try to seduce him as much as the others do. Her approach is more trying to impress him and do things that would make him happy emotionally instead of physically. Which in my opinion makes her different from the others and a very likeable character in that light. However, she does have some faulty moments. Her magic makes her threatening and with the very few moments it happens, it’s shocking.

            Lisianthus: Also known as Sia. Out of all the girls, this is the one that tries the hardest to get Rin to love her. She is one of those characters that have likeable moments, but also some moments I found her selfish and out of all of them, didn’t deserve to be with Rin. But she was fair in the end and gained an understanding for his feelings as well and was happy for him regardless of his decision in the end.

            Asa: This one I didn’t mention when explaining the story. She is human and another close friend to Rin, and does play a big part in the story. Out of all the girls, I would say this is my favorite one out of all them. She is very kind hearted, loyal, and always seems to have helped Rin whenever he needed someone to talk to. She also seemed to be the most human in the anime. She even teased him like any friend would and it was easy to tell how strong of a character she was and the part she plays in the story. Out of all the other girls, she was the one that at first seemed the least likely to end up with him, then they both developed in a direction where it seemed more likely. I could go one for hours about how likeable this character is, but I won’t for the sake of time.

            Primula: Also called Rimu, this is the youngest girl, but also the most interesting. She doesn’t show much emotion when she is first introduced, but is very attached to Rin. Then as it goes, she begins to show more emotion and becomes a more relatable character. She is a demon, and is quiet and calm like the other demons in the show. However, I didn’t see her as a romantic involvement with Rin. It seemed more like a brother/sister relationship. I thought it was a good move and added some depth and friendship in the show next to the romance.

Those are the main characters, as for the supportive characters. They are all enjoyable in their own light. I haven’t found anyone I hated or disliked in the show.

The Bottom Line:

            This show’s story and characters are fantastic. The voice acting works with every character and the direction the story goes in is almost flawless. The art style and animation pays great attention to detail. The thing that is a turn off is simply, fan service and nudity. This is based on an Adult Graphic Novel after all, but it wasn’t necessary. The story wouldn’t change at all if it were taken out. That is my one big issue with this anime. If it doesn’t bother you, go ahead and enjoy the story, as long as you are in the young adult age group. Final Verdict 7/10! It is a great anime. The nudity and fan service is a problem and a big one for me.