Kamisama Kiss Ep. 1

Initial impression – almost no original ideas (4/10)

Autumn 2012 (13 episodes) (Japanese title – Kamisama Hajimemashita) (more info)

While I don’t hate Fruits Basket, it’s just not written in a style that I’m very fond of.  The male characters are all androgynous pretty boys, side characters show no potential, ideas come and go on a whim and the premise is really hard to swallow.  So when Kamisama Kiss follows that formula like it was cut from a piece of the Fruits Basket quilt, even someone who liked that setup more than me ought to give this series a second thought.  The degree to which it’s ripping off its inspirational material is staggering.  The female lead starts out homeless, it’s centered on the premise of gods and spirits and the main man in her life is an unlikeable jerk that the viewers are expected to forgive just because he happens to be there for her at the last minute.

That’s not to say it isn’t fun.  Being subjected to all the responsibilities of a god without any of the upsides is full of opportunities for all kinds of hilarious trouble.  Maybe I’m just the wrong kind of person to have an appropriate attention span for this kind of random flow.  I’d say check out Kamisama Kiss if you were a Fruits Basket fan, but don’t be surprised if it turns out to be a disappointingly shallow spinoff.

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