Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai // Review

 

A fun deep dive into this 13 episode anime that's free to watch on Crunchy Roll. If you adore romance that combines the supernatural that touch on darker themes then keep reading for my review. 

 

 Our main character, Sakuta, walks into the school library and notices a model/actress dressed as a bunny girl, and only he can see her. Meet Mai who is also a senior in is high school who has Puberty Syndrome:  a term used to describe abnormal experiences during adolescence as a result of sensitivity and instability, this is the magical plot device or supernatural part which also delves into some dark territory.

 It doesn't go too deep and tries to explain this phenomenon by quantum physics. Sakuta goes against the grain and doesn't care to fit in at school, where that is a big deal for his little sister, a character that's really important to the story because it's one of the main reasons why he believes in what Mai is going through. You've probably seen his little sister as that meme above, but who would've guessed her depressing backstory. To me, Puberty Syndrome was a metaphore for depression since there are serious side effects to Puberty Syndrome - dissapearing forever, not being able to eat, wanting to isolate yoursefl. Look at what happened to Kaeda and how  Puberty Syndrome affected her. Puberty Syndrome is treated as this mythological disease, which sounds a lot like how people view depression. It's an invisible illness.  

 

Satura doesn't want to see the pretty girl in class struggle alone.  I was able to relate to Mai and Kaeda and Koga because all of us have gone through something like anxiety or a life changing event and had to accept a difficult situation and make those necessary hard choices that bring about uncomfortable change and growth.  It felt like the show was trying to say with Puberty Syndrome that you don't have to go through it alone.

 Koga, the Laplace's Demon that comes in the middle of season 1, - who's Pberty syndrome is to repeat days that didn't work out for her was a skill she used to get  what she wanted. Until becoming entanged with Saktua. All the characters are written well and  bingeable. 

The way season 1 ends on Kaeda, i felt an emphasis on how the atmosphere or society can affect us. It depicts mental healt recovery: there is a scene showing how hard it is to step out of the apartment, the ending episodes show how Kaeda's old friendship was still there which to me was a great way of telling the audience that just one friend can make a difference. The end of season 1 had a message that life is hard for everyone and everyone is doing the best they can. So be kind.

Wait, where's the sexy waifus? Isn't this called RAscal Dreams of Bunny Girl Senpai? Don't worry, even though Mai isn't in a bunny girl costume every episode, you will still love the other characters - Fatuba, Tamoe, Romcoms are my guilty pleasure. I honestly felt like this was on of the best animes I've watched in a long time, and I wasn't heading into this expecting anything. I came for the "plot" and stayed for the plot.