Review of Don't Toy with Me, Miss Nagatoro

Don't Toy With Me, Miss Nagatoro is a very simple show, I don't have a great deal to say about it because there isn't a great deal of substance to comment on. It's a comedy with an appeal that's based around the interactions between Naoto Hachioji, a shy, introverted manga artist who doesn't have a lot of backbone and Hayase Nagatoro, a pushy, extroverted delinquent who also doesn't actually have much of a backbone. On the surface, Don't Toy With Me, Miss Nagatoro is reminiscent of other light-hearted romances between 2 characters that are opposite one another in ways that allow them to learn fromone another and develop while engaging in funny scenarios born from their quirky opposition. A recent, popular example of this archetype is My Dress Up Darling, where Gojo's passion and skill combine with Marin's confidence in her interests to create a powerful cosplaying duo, where romance gradually blossoms as their mutual admiration for one another develops alongside their development as characters. Clever character writing is essential for this dynamic to work: not only do the characters have to have interesting motivations and personality traits, but they have to combine perfectly with another character like jigsaw pieces to form the type of deeply satisfying relationship I described before.

Unfortunately, I don't think Nagatoro and Hachioji have this deep character writing that allows them to have a relationship that I can truly get behind. Yes, they're opposites in many ways (introverted vs extroverted, playful vs serious), but these oppositions never lead to any growth for either character or admiration of each other beyond surface level appreciation of their talents/appearance. The generally good dialogue writing and the wacky animation serve to create a fun, light-hearted tone, but the weakness of the character writing leaves each episode feeling fundamentally hollow. It's for this reason that by around episode 5, I felt that I'd seen everything there was to see and was pretty bored thereafter.

That being said, I appreciate that this show is a comedy and that not every anime has to source its appeal from thought provoking characters encased in a masterfully written plot to be considered of high quality. I mean, Jojo's Bizzare Adventure is a show about big dudes punching each other that has more holes in its plot than flat earthers have in their theory, but it still manages to be beloved worldwide because being logically consistent was never the point. Therefore, I think it's reasonable to set my complaints aside, to an extent, to just ask the most important question: is Don't Toy With Me, Miss Nagatoro funny? I don't think so, I never really laughed during the duration of the show, which I think is due the predictable nature of the writing that bored me quickly, but I must admit that other people might find it humorous, as more than anything else, how funny a piece of media is is based on personal preference.

Overall, Don't Mess With Me, Miss Nagatoro, isn't a complete disaster: there are some surface level elements to the character that are enjoyable and the art is pretty good, but overall, I can't recommend the show because it didn't have enough meat on its bones to keep my attention from beginning to end without forcing myself to watch.