'Classroom of the Elite' is trying to have two cakes and eat both: A power fantasy featuring a male character who completely wipes the floor with every single one of his peers, and the story of an average high school student struggling to understand the tumultuous world he now finds himself in. Our protagonist is one Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, a student 'just like any other' who is, of course, concealing true power beyond this facade in the way of superior intellect, physical ability, and observational skills. Over the course of his first year of schooling, Ayanokoji weaponizes these abilities to encourage his classmates to change for the better while completing special exams proposed by the school.

While characters with superhuman abilities that easily best others can be intriguing, it's important to showcase growth of other characters first and foremost, rather than letting the overpowered badass take the stage all the time. It's a premise that a lot of the novels in the same vein as this one fail to actually make use of properly, often becoming dull with time because you're just watching the main character win over and over again. Take 'Jujutsu Kaisen''s Gojo as an example, a character with the title of 'The Strongest', someone who is seen as a mentor for other characters, inspiring them to change while showcasing his abilities in turn. Ayanokoji sits on the opposite end of this premise, as a main character who ends up coming out on top in the end of every scenario, bar none, sometimes without even having to lift a finger. Those same elements about inspiring change through his actions are there, but when the people he is inspiring to change are all characters who sometimes don't appear for multiple books on end, it's difficult to really laud him as this sort of person who lifts others up.

However, being overpowered is only one of the cakes that 'Classroom of the Elite' wants Ayanokoji's hand in. The other cake is a mixture of typical high school life and ignorance, as it wants the main character to also be like everyone else, when he's just not, and that's okay. In fact, the times where we get to see him be anything but normal are the most interesting ones. That's why I don't understand why we're given a mandatory scene in each of these books where Ayanokoji must turn to the camera and say to the audience of people reading that, 'Hey, just so you know, I'm a normal guy.', like we didn't just watch him manipulate his peers with next to zero effort. It's obvious that the intended effect is to understand that Ayanokoji is somewhat normal, wanting friends and to protect what he cares about, but the story itself is holding out on admitting that no, he isn't normal, and that that's okay.

Ayanokoji, the protagonist of this story, is presented from the onset as an unreliable narrator, sometimes withholding information about his actions by vaguely eluding to or completely skipping over crucial moments in the story, only to reveal them later as a key to unlock the reader's knowledge and leave you with a satisfying conclusion. That is the intended effect, at least. You see, it's actually pretty shocking and intriguing the first three or four times that this happens, and is used pretty well in the beginning, but when this becomes the resolution and expected order of events, the status quo for the series as a whole? That's when it loses its charm. Books are an incredibly restrictive medium, and withholding information is just one of many tools that writers can use to convey suspense or achieve greater levels of mystery in the actions of their characters, but there are other ways to leave the reader feeling satisfied and outsmarted by a main character rather than just not telling them something. 'Classroom of the Elite' even utilizes some of those other methods, but never as a conclusion, just one or two parts of the story. The talents are there but they're being misplaced, spent recklessly, and it's frustrating, knowing that the author is capable but just choosing to be lazy.

As for the other characters involved here, Horikita Suzune, our secondary protagonist, is definitely a highlight when she's given room to breathe and be someone who the story deems necessary to progress. Watching her grow into someone who is hard for even our main character to understand made her development feel genuinely earned by the end. A lot of the best moments in the series go to her, and seeing her grow through Ayanokoji's actions is something I wish got more focus. She's someone who truly embodies the core of this story, and this series would be much better if she were the main character. Getting to see Ayanokoji being shrouded in mystery and having her figure out what he'd done behind the scenes would be much healthier for the premise here, and increase the intrigue for both characters exponentially. Most of the supporting cast are pretty well done here too, and honestly their stories are more interesting than what Ayanokoji has going on at times. I love Ryuen but that's entirely my own bias.

'Classroom of the Elite' holds the top spot in the light novel category on AniList, and this is for a slew of reasons. It's a story that anyone can enjoy, with a premise that will grab you in the first novel and make you want to hold on for a ride of entirely mediocre quality. It's also self-explanatory, cluing the reader into every choice being made and why by the end, revealing its entire hand with little to no mystery or suspense left for you to squeeze out of it. By the end of the first novel, you will have experienced every emotion that Year One has to offer to you. Read this series if you enjoyed Eighty-Six. There's a lot of overlap.