Review of Days with My Stepsister

Wow... I am stunned... With a title like that, I had every reason to believe that this would be some more HOT trash to add to the bad anime romance pile! But listen. Whatever you think is gonna take place in this series, I assure you that it's NOTHING like you think its gonna be! Something like this should've been destined to be terrible. But I cannot stress enough just how unbelievably pleasant and and beautiful the entire experience was. The two leads are almost TOO perfect. They treat one another with so much respect and understanding throughout each and every point of their relationship,its almost hard to believe.

And ya, it's a weird situation! They're high school classmates who suddenly get their lives uprooted and become step-siblings, having no prior knowledge of one another's existence. And after having lived most of their lives in solitude without anyone in and out of their family to rely on, they find a sense of calm and gentleness that they've never had before. So now they're faced with navigating these feelings while trying to do whats best for their new relationship, as well as their parents' relationship. There's NO miscommunication. NO fighting. NO fan service. NO insults. And I kid you not, the words "baka" and "hentai" do not get said ONCE by a SINGLE character in this ENTIRE series! A literal miracle!

Story aside, this is such a peaceful series. I can see some being bored by it, but I absolutely loved it. The music is consistently quiet and serene to match the quiet nature of the two leads. The animation is, to put it bluntly, some of the most stunning works of art I've ever seen. There are SO many gorgeous shots, especially during some of the inner monologue moments. The lighting, the shadows, the water, the clouds, its ALL. SO. BEAUTIFUL. I honestly have nothing bad to say about this series. It shocked me in every single solitary way and told a very uniquely difficult love story with as much maturity and dignity as humanly possible. Seriously. If you were worried about this series in any way whatsoever, I highly encourage you to take a risk. I promise you won't be disappointed.

10/10