Review of Amnesia

For starters, let's just say that I enjoyed this otome-based anime FAR better than I did Diabolik Lovers; though that's not saying much. Ah, Amnesia. What can I say about you? You're not utterly forgettable, but you aren't amazing either. You're just.... average. Maybe that's the worst outcome. This show doesn't have much rewatch value sadly, because unlike a game, you can't go back and redo things or see events from a different point of view. The story itself does have some clever aspects, but that's mostly due to the game, I feel. I didn't have much trouble following the story until the very end. Iexpect the game explains the plot much better than this show does, but that's the problem. One would have to go back and play the game to get the full story and experience, I feel. And a movie or show should never be like that. They should be able to fully stand on their own without the help of source material.

Now, as for characters, well, the male leads are all fine, but the female lead? She's a complete doormat. That's the problem when you make anime out of otome games. The main lead ends up having no personality because the main lead is usually the player taking control and making decisions. Oh, sure characters say that she has a personality, but as we all know in the world of the media: show, don't tell.

I didn't find myself hating any characters, though, so that's a plus. Some of them really have sympathetic moments, and of course, being one who has played a couple of these dating sims, I began to expect that not all of the love interests would be what they seem. It was quite entertaining to figure out who the psycho crazy boyfriend was. But of course, the over-the-top scenarios in otome games amuse me, so some might not find a certain character amusing like I did.

In the end, the major sin of this anime is not that it's dark, disturbing, or even badly presented. It's just bland; average, and sometimes that's worse than being downright awful.