Review of Kaguya-sama: Love is War -Ultra Romantic-
Full disclosure that this is purely my opinion on this season alone as a manga reader. Beware of minor spoilers below. I'd be lying if I said Kaguya wasn't my favorite anime. It was the series that got me into the medium, shattering any prior notions that anime was only for children or creeps. It was also the series that got me into manga, as halfway through season 2, I found it nigh impossible to wait for the possibility of a third season. Thus, I binged the manga up to that point, and this came with its ups and downs. On one hand, my almost insurmountably-highexpectations were thoroughly surpassed, but on the other, I wouldn't get to experience the content for the first time in anime form. In the interim between the conclusion of season 2 and the announcement of season 3, I, like many others, went around telling people that a potential season 3 would be peak romcom. Once this season began airing, Kaguya, for the first time, had let me down (albeit very lightly). Part of this was due to spoiling myself with the manga, but there were also a few things that I think will go overlooked due to the way the season ended.
I'd hate to be one of those "the manga is better" snobs, but in this case, I do believe the manga handled the content of this season a bit better than the anime did. Perhaps it was the ability to binge the manga at my own leisure, but I felt that the pace of season 3 was a rollercoaster and that it lacked focus until halfway through. The first half of the season granted very little screen time to our main couple, instead opting to focus on some of the side characters and comedic gag chapters. Not only did our main hero and heroine lack screen time, but they also lacked screen time together — a rather peculiar decision when you consider the season's headline. By the time the second half rolled around, I had a bit of whiplash in the sense that the content of the episodes had changed drastically. Rather then having a gradual buildup to an eventual huge payoff, it felt like A-1 instead spent half the allotted time getting creative with some fan-favorite, non-serious content and the other half of the time rushing to wrap up the season. That being said, I don't think the season was bad by any means; I just think that the ending will cause many to turn a blind eye to some of its issues (and I don't blame them. I'd probably do the same as an anime-only).
Although it may lack the technical fidelity of shows like Violet Evergarden or Kimetsu no Yaiba, Kaguya-sama's art direction as a whole is solid. Even having read the manga, A-1 never fails to surprise me in how they can take a seemingly normal panel and transform it into an outrageously creative scene. On the surface, it isn't the prettiest show around, but it's no slouch either. 8/10.
As far as sound goes, I'd argue that Kaguya-sama is very good. Its seiyuu are evidently having fun voicing their characters, the openings and endings are some of the best in the industry, and its BGM feels both appropriate and polished. It's also fun hearing nods to popular songs and other anime music in some places (Take On Me, Holding Out For A Hero, Zenzenzense, Detective Conan, etc.). 9/10.
The plot is admittedly not the best, and I don't fault people for voicing their gripes that there has been little development in this regard. To people saying that we've followed the same formula for three seasons in a row (comedy focus -> serious arc -> comedy to conclude the serious arc), you're not wrong. I just feel that this show's strengths more than make up for its weakness in this department. 6/10.
Kaguya-sama's characters, particularly the main duo, are my absolute favorite part of this show. To anyone knocking the series for its characters being bland or formulaic, I implore you to look a little deeper into why things have transpired the way they have. You might be surprised. Shirogane is far from your typical dense romcom MC, Kaguya is a clinically-diagnosed tsundere but slowly comes out of her shell with help from our cast, and although Ishigami is kind of a blatant self-insert character, I think he's handled well. Those are just some of my surface-level thoughts on some of the main characters; I could write an entire thesis on what I like and dislike about each of them. Overall, I feel that every character serves a purpose, no matter how small, and everyone meshes together into a well-balanced cast. 10/10.
As I've mentioned previously, reading the manga slightly hindered my enjoyment of this season, and the rush to the finish didn't help it either. In its entirety, I still enjoyed it quite a bit. Even knowing how this season would end, the finale was immensely entertaining to watch, and I'm beyond excited to see where A-1 takes this series next. Overall enjoyment: 8/10.