Cute But a Little Too Dramatic: Sanrio Boys

Synopsis

Kouta Hasegawa is a high school boy with a love for the Sanrio character Pom Pom Purin, though he hides this little fact. Upon entering high school, he encounters Yuu Mizuno, a boy who likes the bunny My Melody. This marks the beginning of his story as he along with Kouta, Yuu, Shunsuke Yoshino, Ryou Nishimiya, and Seiichirou Minamoto learn to accept their love of the characters instead of feeling embarrassed.

The Good

Given the premise and theme, it was expected that there would be no shortage of heartwarming moments, cuteness and product placement. That aside though, the series also gave a solid development to all of the characters. They all had their sweet moments and they all had their growth. Basically, the series presented a cute premise and gave depth to the story and the characters that were not fully expected.

For the beginning half of the series, it managed to present each of the characters’ stories and connect them to the viewer. The emotional and bonding moments that were done between though are one of the bigger highlights of the series. Other than the emotional aspect of the series though, the comedy managed to slip in well-enough. Then there is also the flow of the story, which is rather smooth overall.

The Bad

The biggest flaw to be found with the series is that it tends to go a bit heavy on the drama side of the story. It sometimes feels like it the series presents it’s drama with yelling and confrontation a little too much. For the beginning when the characters were dealing with their personal issues it worked, but as the series progressed, it feels a bit much in certain episodes. This most especially applies to Kouta.

Towards the end of the series, Kouta’s didn’t seem to match with the way that the other characters’ stories were panned out. Honestly, the whole concept of him not “shining” like the other characters just seem off.

Conclusion

The concept is great, the visuals are cute and most of the emotional moments hit rather well. As for the characters, their bond is rather cute and their stories, for the most part, was panned out all that well. Drama-wise it’s largely hit or miss given how for the most part it can get heavy-handed in how the characters confront each other. This most especially impacts Kouta as, towards the end, his story didn’t really give as big an impact as expected. Overall, it’s a cute and fun series that could have done its drama better.

Rating: 7/10