There are significant spoilers in this review.

This is a rewritten version of this article. If you really wish to view the former version, please contact me.

Myself ; Yourself: fun yet greatly flawed. Let me be up front for this quick review: it crammed too much into too short of a series. Even one more episode could’ve helped, but I think a fully fleshed out 26-episode series would’ve done justice. It was Dogakobo shoving detail after detail down our throats, so a little breathing room would have been nice. I can’t say that it wasn’t a fun ride; I loved the show despite its flaws and mostly rushed ending.

The show revolves around five main characters and a sixth seemingly relevant character. Hidaka Sana, the main protagonist, is returning to his hometown after moving away with his family several years ago. Wakatsuki Syusuke and Syuri are fraternal twins that both have problems at home. Yatsushiro Nanaka is Sana’s love interest who has a mysterious past that she and her friends are keeping secret from Sana. Mochida Hinako is one of Syuri’s best friends and a possible competitor for Sana’s heart. Oribe Aoi is a bubbly senior that loves to help her friends. Then we have the two minor characters Hoshino Asami, a loli in love with Syusuke, and Fujimura Yuzuki, a homeroom teacher at their high school.

The studio did a decent job animating the show, but nothing spectacular to note. The same goes for the music, although I listened to the OP track, Kaori’s “Tears Infection,” for days on end. Voice acting was decent, but once again nothing of note with the exception of Aoi’s seiyuu, Kaneda Tomoko, whose voice can easily force me to crack a smile as I listen to her hilarious laughing and screaming.

So what exactly is the story about? Well grab a witch’s pot and throw in some siscon, a bit of emo rage, implausible histories, a slight pinch of fan service, epic drama, and backstabbing, and Myself ; Yourself will be the final product. It has a bit of everything and does at least an average job with each. Not only that, but the show focuses on every character at least once. Although it’s helpful to have every character fleshed out, a few characters are almost forgotten until the ending brings them back. Because a few of these subplots are not incredibly relevant to the main storyline at all, I found them more fitting for a 24+ episode series rather than cramming them in a short 13 episodes.

This isn’t School Days.

A common complaint is the epic failure of episode 13. It wasn’t terrible, but it unfortunately pushed the already fast pacing of the show too far. Ten whole years later? I wish the events between the ten years were explained; I can guess some of the events that occurred in that timeframe, but the scene is muddled with teasing. We don’t know the current status of the twins’ relationship (omg the rumor ends up being true?! twincestz?!), what allowed Nanaka to play the violin again, and how Hinako and Youta ended up together.

So why do I like this show again? Because it made me giddy with glee as I watched it. If an anime can do that, it is successful in my book, regardless of the rest of its quality. My thoughts on this anime aren’t concrete especially since there are glaring flaws that detract from the overall experience, but I did enjoy it and that’s what matters at the end.

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Verdict: It definitely isn’t the best anime around, and although some people absolutely hate it, Myself ; Yourself deserves a watch. After all, every anime has its good and bad points. I just wished it was lengthened to a few more episodes to unravel and resolve the questions and (minor) confusion I had. Otherwise, it’s a solid anime that I would watch multiple times.

This post is tagged myself ; yourself, review