"Have you ever fell in love?"
That's the first line of this series. It made me cringed. "
Oh god, not another shoujo anime please!" I said.
However, despite that dreaded feelings, I continued watching the rest of the first episode and by the time the ED song was playing, I was hooked, thank goodness.
Hatsukoi Limited (literally means First Love Limited) is a story about a bunch of teenage school girls/boys who are exploring and learning about love. Sounds rather generic, isn't it? Well it is not. Let me explain.
Hatsukoi Limited is a well executed romance anime. It involved a complex love web. The complexities of those loves, paired with the personalities of the characters are what make watching Hatsukoi Limited such an enjoyable ride despite it being only of 12 episodes. Eventhough the comedy in Hatsukoi Limited was derived from the combination of it's characters, slapstick and timing, I didn't think any of my brain cells died. Everything is done seamlessly and things never get stupid for the sake of comedy which was one of the reason I take pleasure in completing it.
Hatsukoi Limited does not begin and end each story lines within one or two episodes. It moves and develops those stories throughout the 12 episodes. Like I said it kind of complicated with such a large casts but this anime managed to pull this one by introducing them and addresses them slowly and flawlessly without the needs to stress it out.
To captured the various aspects of a first love, this anime needs a large cast. Don't fret though because it is impossible to get confused. The overall plots will adapt you to each of the major characters' development. You'll love watching them grow and mature throughout the series. I was surprised to find myself rooting for Kei-chan and Kusuda-kun and thought Yamamoto-san and Arihara-kun made such a good-looking couple. The characters are extremely likeable (even I liked characters that I usually hate). They are also easy to relate to because none of them seems too fictious or fantasy-like. I'm sure once upon a time we have all been through such similar situation.
They are all sorts of love. The typical unrequited love to brother/sister complex that borderline incest. Although I won't consider Hatsukoi Limited as ecchi, there are still some fanservice moments for the guys. So you perverted out there can enjoy this one too! As for the girls, don't worry. You will have no problem enduring those moments because it didn't feel overly forced.
The OP and the ED are catchy but nothing special. As for the voice of each characters, they fit perfectly.
Since this anime was done by J.C. Staff, a well-known animation studio, it was to be expected that the quality of the animation was quite high and there was never a point where I spotted any inconsitencies with the character designs. They did an amazing job with the adaptation leaving me wanting more and completely satisfied. It also makes me all giggly and girly, which I definitely am not!
I'll end this review with it's famous catch phrase: "Are you in love right now?"
Art and animation 9/10
Sound 8/10
Storyline 9/10
Characters 10/10
Enjoyment 10/10
Overall 9/10
