Astro Note

I think I am the only person on my anilist friends list who actually COMPLETED this show. in fact, this was the only show that I did complete last season. i'm not entirely sure what kept me watching as every time the old woman appeared i wanted to ram my fist through my computer but alas, i did finish it! i'm not very experienced in reviewing shows so i'll just run through by things i think people might care about.

characters:
this is where astro note shines. most of the characters are likable, and the astro lodge is full of quirky and unique characters. my favorite would have to be teruko aka terurun the idol because i love the contrast between her idol personality and real life personality, and as an idol performer myself, i found her dedicated episode to be extremely relatable. i think she adds a lot to the show as a side character. one of the most (undeservingly) controversial characters in this show, and probably the reason for the low scores based on comments i saw was Ren. how is a little boy so controversial you ask? because he likes to wear a skirt. yep. that's it. if that for whatever reason makes you uncomfortable, you should probably reevaluate your priorities and get out of the comment sections of anime calling this show "woke indoctrination". ren is just a kid exploring his identity and has found something that makes him happy. the characters in the show understand him, so everyone else should too. however, the old purple haired woman sucked shit and ruined every scene she was in. i don't care if it's a common trope she should be exterminated
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music:__
not too much to say here. it was pleasant, but nothing really stood out to me too much. i do like the retro vibes of the opening and ending though, and the opening dance is very cute (it's also an ai furihata song so that's an instant win for me).
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plot and ending:__
without spoiling much, the plot is decent. it's a slowburn romcom with a lot of wacky antics. and by slow burn i do mean slow... but i didn't mind too much. the plot was pretty easy to predict, but i still thought that the episodes dedicated to individual side characters were well done. that being said, it did at times take away from our main couple, which i think led to the ending feeling a bit abrupt, and a lot of things happened extremely fast in the last 2 episodes. The ending did feel quite rushed. i was satisfied with how it ended though. I don't think it needed more than 12 episodes. It concluded nicely.

overall: 7.5/10 (anilist score is a 7 because i don't do decimals, but i will here for this review.)

I liked this show! i went into it expecting it to be similar to arakawa under the bridge, one of my favorite weird shaft shows from the early 2010s, and while it didn't quite live up to that show i do think it was decent and worth a watch. the low ratings are not deserved, and are likely from people made uncomfortable by a young kid questioning his gender throughout the show.