Anime Review: Tada-kun wa Koi wo Shinai - Forced Happy Ending

As more romance anime gets produced, it's hard to distinguish yourself from others unless you have unique characters or a unique synopsis. Some may say romance stories should be simple, while some say that it should be very different to one another. I agree on both sides - it needs to be complex and unique enough for me to care about the romance in the anime, but the idea shouldn't be too crazy or random. It needs to be believable, yet it is something that many of us cannot reach, but wish to reach. Tada-kun wa Koi wo Shinai really drew my attention when I was looking through the anime list for last season, and it was one of the first anime I watched from that season. Did I like it? I guess so, but let's flesh it out to why I have some hesitation to proclaim my love for this anime.

Tada-kun wa Koi wo Shinai has a unique yet simple romance story - a princess from overseas become infatuated with a Japanese guy who loves photography. Nothing too complex and I actually enjoyed this simple yet unbelievable plot. However, like a lot of pure romance stories, it had a lot of filler or awkward cliche moments, but maybe that's romance - romance is awkward after all. However one major negative I can decisively talk about is the ending - the anime's ending felt too forced and just gave us a happy ending. I didn't mind our main lovers getting together at the end, but it just felt so rushed for the viewer to appreciate it.

However, I have to praise the voice characters and the cast of characters in this anime since it's what makes this anime enjoyable to watch. You have a lot of big names in this series, so the voice acting wouldn't have been one of the anime's negatives. However, I sometimes find some of the characters too "unbelievable" - they feel too exaggerated and that could be a turnoff in a romance story. Nevertheless, the exaggerated characters bring comedic relief, which is absolutely necessary in a non-shoujo romance anime. The OP and EDs are extremely good to listen to, and I love the contrast between them. The OP is catchy and happy, whilst the ED carries a solemn and lonely tone - it highlights the ups and downs of romance, so that's another plus.

Overall, there really isn't much to say about romance anime like this. Sure this anime is above average and has a decent plot, but it's not going to be one that will pop up in my mind to recommend to someone. Should you give this anime a go? Sure, it has a simple plotline that differentiates itself from other counterparts, and the characters bring some comedic relief. If you want something chill and slightly funny anime, the characters in this anime will really satisfy your needs.