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REVIEW: Kamisama Kiss Episodes 1 - 7 Streaming


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Stark700



Joined: 30 Jan 2012
Posts: 11762
Location: Earth
PostPosted: Mon Dec 03, 2012 12:39 am Reply with quote
This series seems so-so and medicore for me so far. I do enjoy some of the comedy presented as well as the lighthearted drama. Might also give the manga a shot but the review summed it up pretty much my thoughts.
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phoenixalia



Joined: 20 Dec 2011
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PostPosted: Mon Dec 03, 2012 2:45 am Reply with quote
this series is wonderful. Its a romantic comedy and its how a romantic comedy SHOULD be.
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dtm42



Joined: 05 Feb 2008
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PostPosted: Mon Dec 03, 2012 3:10 am Reply with quote
Kamisama Hajimemashita is the weakest of the three currently-airing Shoujo series. But that's only because the other two are even better; this show is actually quite solid in its own right. I really enjoy watching it every week, and the two main characters have really grown on me. As Rebecca said the voice work is very strong, but I'd like to give a shout-out to the very impressive OP and ED.
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ChibiKangaroo



Joined: 01 Feb 2010
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PostPosted: Mon Dec 03, 2012 8:07 am Reply with quote
I watched the first episode hoping that the interesting premise of the show would be backed up well by the rest of it. Although I agree that the acting was pretty good and I was moderately entertained by the show, I just couldn't get past how off-putting Tomoe was. It was kind of like Inuyasha without any of his charm or humor to soften the clash of personalities between him and the protagonist.
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pachy_boy



Joined: 09 Mar 2006
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PostPosted: Mon Dec 03, 2012 8:09 am Reply with quote
Watching the first episode, it genuinely felt like Akitaro Daichi's next Fruits Basket series. Like its predecessor, Kamisama Kiss shares the same-styled humor, shoujo comedy/drama fantasy, art design, and breathy OP/ED theme songs--and yet still able to stand on its own. All of that made the difference in having this enjoyable show make the cut for me and stick with it.
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dtm42



Joined: 05 Feb 2008
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PostPosted: Mon Dec 03, 2012 8:49 am Reply with quote
ChibiKangaroo wrote:
I watched the first episode hoping that the interesting premise of the show would be backed up well by the rest of it. Although I agree that the acting was pretty good and I was moderately entertained by the show, I just couldn't get past how off-putting Tomoe was. It was kind of like Inuyasha without any of his charm or humor to soften the clash of personalities between him and the protagonist.


Oh come off it, Inuyasha didn't have any charm or humour to speak of, he's merely your typical obnoxious childish Takahashi male protagonist but with a chip on his shoulder. Tomoe does have a dry and biting sense of humour, and as for charm well it just takes time for Nanami to break through the front he puts up. He actually has a very soft and adorable side, he's just normally very good at hiding it.
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ChibiKangaroo



Joined: 01 Feb 2010
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PostPosted: Mon Dec 03, 2012 10:57 am Reply with quote
dtm42 wrote:
ChibiKangaroo wrote:
I watched the first episode hoping that the interesting premise of the show would be backed up well by the rest of it. Although I agree that the acting was pretty good and I was moderately entertained by the show, I just couldn't get past how off-putting Tomoe was. It was kind of like Inuyasha without any of his charm or humor to soften the clash of personalities between him and the protagonist.


Oh come off it, Inuyasha didn't have any charm or humour to speak of, he's merely your typical obnoxious childish Takahashi male protagonist but with a chip on his shoulder. Tomoe does have a dry and biting sense of humour, and as for charm well it just takes time for Nanami to break through the front he puts up. He actually has a very soft and adorable side, he's just normally very good at hiding it.


I think Inuyasha was made to be very charming. Like Tomoe, he's played as a jerk when the protagonist first meets him, but even from the get go, Inuyasha had clear motivation behind his jerk-like behavior. He says from the start that he wants the jewel in order to become a full demon, because he's only a half demon and thus he's some kind of outcast. It allows the viewer to feel sympathy for him even as he initially seems like some kind of villain. Sympathy adds charm to a character. The Inuyasha series did a pretty good job of building on that initial sympathy, making Inuyasha more and more of a confused and misunderstood character who gradually is changed by Kagome's love (I know, ultimate girl wish-fulfillment). Also, the humor of Inuyasha mainly starts early on when he gets the bead necklace put on him and Kagome is able to control him by using the "sit" command. As a result, every time he becomes mean or unnecessarily violent, there is humor injected into the scene by him being pancaked against the ground. I thought Inuyasha was also written as a fairly funny character aside from that too. His self-confidence and greed are usually made out to be so over the top that it is often played effectively for laughs by the other characters.

Maybe Tomoe eventually turns around like that as well, but i'm only speaking from my experience of the first episode. I was trying out a lot of the new stuff from this season and watched one episode of Kamisama Kiss because I like Shojou stuff with a romantic angle (loved Fruits Basket and Ouran High School Host Club), and the first reaction was that I really did not like Tomoe and didn't think I could continue. It might be because the writing does not try to make him all that sympathetic in that first episode. He just appears to be a total jerk with no real motivation at all. The only thing they threw in there was the people writing letters to the god and Tomoe catalogueing them for when the god came back. It wasn't very effective for me because it didn't seem personal, in comparison to Inuyasha's motivation which was extremely personal (i.e. struggle with self-identity). Maybe I'll try more at some point, but I think they didn't do a good job of making the first episode something that would hook a larger number of viewers.
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dtm42



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PostPosted: Mon Dec 03, 2012 1:41 pm Reply with quote
That "sit" command with Inuyasha is not him being funny, it is Kagome using the necklace. Tomoe actually has a sense of humour in his own right. He does have a backstory which we get to eventually (episodes eight to ten are all about his past), but even before then he's displayed his softer side. And he's sympathetic too, because he was abandoned by his master for twenty years and he doesn't yet know why.

If you watch episodes two and three you'll realise that your initial impression of him was mistaken.
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tuxedocat



Joined: 14 Dec 2009
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PostPosted: Mon Dec 03, 2012 5:08 pm Reply with quote
I'm not surprised at the comparisons to Inuyasha. I think the mangaka probably grew up with Takahashi (like many of us).

However, I don't think a negative comparison is fair based on just the first episode. Really, BOTH Tomoe and Inuyasha looked like jerks in their first episodes. Really. I've recently been re-watching Inuyasha, and in the first few episodes he is really a jerk to just about everyone. just sayin'...

For me, Kamisama Hajimemashita is pure, lighthearted entertainment. Nothing too deep, just pleasant and fun. ---and I love all the references to folklore. Admittedly, that's kind of my favorite thing about anime - when a show explores Japanese history and folklore. Hooks me every time.

The weakest shojo (to my specific tastes) this season is Say "I Love You", but that is because it is such a soap opera. Generally soap operas are hit-or-miss with me. That being said, it is still fairly good. I just don't find it as pleasantly entertaining as Kamisama and My Little Monster. Still, I would buy all three of these titles.
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dragon695



Joined: 28 Nov 2008
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PostPosted: Mon Dec 03, 2012 10:34 pm Reply with quote
dtm42 wrote:
That "sit" command with Inuyasha is not him being funny, it is Kagome using the necklace. Tomoe actually has a sense of humour in his own right. He does have a backstory which we get to eventually (episodes eight to ten are all about his past), but even before then he's displayed his softer side. And he's sympathetic too, because he was abandoned by his master for twenty years and he doesn't yet know why.

If you watch episodes two and three you'll realise that your initial impression of him was mistaken.

I suspect that his master was someone he loved in the past? Not that there's anything wrong with that.

I'm enjoying it mostly because I crave Japanese folklore/youkai shows that we see so little of as of late (everything is stupid highschool crap). Since Natsume is on hiatus for a year or two, I've got to fill the gaps somehow.


Last edited by dragon695 on Mon Dec 03, 2012 10:40 pm; edited 1 time in total
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dtm42



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PostPosted: Mon Dec 03, 2012 10:38 pm Reply with quote
dragon695 wrote:
I suspect that his master was someone he loved in the past?


We've been told that Tomoe really respected Mikage or whatever his name is, and that Tomoe was devastated when Mikage left. The circumstances of their initial meeting will be covered in the upcoming episode ten.
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dragon695



Joined: 28 Nov 2008
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PostPosted: Mon Dec 03, 2012 10:42 pm Reply with quote
dtm42 wrote:
dragon695 wrote:
I suspect that his master was someone he loved in the past?


We've been told that Tomoe really respected Mikage or whatever his name is, and that Tomoe was devastated when Mikage left. The circumstances of their initial meeting will be covered in the upcoming episode ten.

I guess I had better get caught up then, since I'm already an episode behind. Embarassed
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nargun



Joined: 29 Mar 2006
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PostPosted: Tue Dec 04, 2012 5:19 pm Reply with quote
tuxedocat wrote:
I'm not surprised at the comparisons to Inuyasha.


I am. I mean, I shouldn't be, I've been watching japtoons for near twenty years now and the inability of large segments of the userbase to see through surface presentation to thematics [or indeed to see thematics at all; seriously people, FLCL is a pretty straightforward show] shouldn't surprise me any more... but, seriously, the two shows are nothing alike.
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tuxedocat



Joined: 14 Dec 2009
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PostPosted: Tue Dec 04, 2012 6:00 pm Reply with quote
nargun wrote:
tuxedocat wrote:
I'm not surprised at the comparisons to Inuyasha.


I am. I mean, I shouldn't be, I've been watching japtoons for near twenty years now and the inability of large segments of the userbase to see through surface presentation to thematics [or indeed to see thematics at all; seriously people, FLCL is a pretty straightforward show] shouldn't surprise me any more... but, seriously, the two shows are nothing alike.


Inuyasha - White haired bishie male protagonist with ears and an attitude
Kamisama - White haired bishie male protagonist with ears (and tail) and an attitude

Inuyasha - reincarnated female priestess with spoiler[ a crunchy, shikon jewel center ]
Kamisama - spoiler[reincarnated(?)] female land god with spoiler[ a crunchy dragon-eye center (episodes 7 & 8)]

Inuyasha control command "Sit, Boy!" spoiler[due to the necklace, which he can't remove]
Kamisama control command spoiler[ compelling voice command ability as part of being a land god. ]

Sure, the two series are entirely different in tone and setting, since Inuyasha is a shonen set mostly in the Sengoku Era and Kamisama is a shojo with a modern setting. And yes, the characters personalities are much different, since Tomoe is obviously a lot more mature in his bearing than Inuyasha ever was.
Still, there are enough obvious Inuyasha homages in there for fans to make fair comparisons.
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ChibiKangaroo



Joined: 01 Feb 2010
Posts: 2941
PostPosted: Wed Dec 05, 2012 11:25 am Reply with quote
tuxedocat wrote:
nargun wrote:
tuxedocat wrote:
I'm not surprised at the comparisons to Inuyasha.


I am. I mean, I shouldn't be, I've been watching japtoons for near twenty years now and the inability of large segments of the userbase to see through surface presentation to thematics [or indeed to see thematics at all; seriously people, FLCL is a pretty straightforward show] shouldn't surprise me any more... but, seriously, the two shows are nothing alike.


Inuyasha - White haired bishie male protagonist with ears and an attitude
Kamisama - White haired bishie male protagonist with ears (and tail) and an attitude

Inuyasha - reincarnated female priestess with spoiler[ a crunchy, shikon jewel center ]
Kamisama - spoiler[reincarnated(?)] female land god with spoiler[ a crunchy dragon-eye center (episodes 7 & 8)]

Inuyasha control command "Sit, Boy!" spoiler[due to the necklace, which he can't remove]
Kamisama control command spoiler[ compelling voice command ability as part of being a land god. ]

Sure, the two series are entirely different in tone and setting, since Inuyasha is a shonen set mostly in the Sengoku Era and Kamisama is a shojo with a modern setting. And yes, the characters personalities are much different, since Tomoe is obviously a lot more mature in his bearing than Inuyasha ever was.
Still, there are enough obvious Inuyasha homages in there for fans to make fair comparisons.


Thank you tuxedocat. I thought the comparison to Inuyasha was pretty obvious given the canine eared supernatural bishie with a jerk-ish attitude begrudgingly (at first) protecting a sweet priestess/goddess human girl who is strong-willed and manages to assert some kind of involuntary control over the bishie. Obviously, there are differences between the shows. This is not copyright infringement we are talking about here. However, I think it is silly to object to the comparison itself.
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