Ookami Shoujo to Kuro Ouji Anime review

English: Wolf Girl and Black Prince

Synonyms: Ookami Shoujo to Kuroouji, Wolf Girl & Black Prince

Type: TV

Episodes: 12

Status: Finished Airing

Aired: Oct 5, 2014 to Dec 21, 2014

Producers: VAP, Yomiuri Telecasting Corporation, TYO Animations, Sentai FilmworksL, Nippon Television Network Corporation

Genres: Comedy, Romance, School, Shoujo

Duration: 24 min. per episode

Rating: PG-13 - Teens 13 or older

Check out the manga review here.

A desire for acceptance is something that most of us can relate to, and at times that can drive us to certain extremes. It's a premise that is not necessarily unique, but for a shoujo series it actually is. The clichéd trope of a spineless heroine and her tsundere love interest is all too common. However this series provides us with a slight variant; our main character is a compulsive liar and her love interest is a two-faced jerk who is content to treat her like a dog.

The story centers around Erika Shinohara, a vain 16-year-old girl who tells her friends about her romantic exploits, but she actually has no boyfriend. She claims that a handsome boy in a candid photo is her boyfriend, but it turns out that boy is a schoolmate named Kyouya Sata. She has no choice but to make him her fake boyfriend. Unfortunately, Sata may look like a sweet person, but he is actually an ultra-black-hearted sadist. Sata takes advantage of Erika's weakness and treats her like his dog.

Erika is not your traditional shoujo heroine, she's actually a plucky, resilient lead who actually seems to enjoy Kyouya's treatment. When situations arise that would stereotypically end in an angst-filled fight between our couple, Erika maintains her usual headstrong, blind determination to win over her ice-hearted prince. She does actually develop as the series progresses. Kyouya is, quite frankly, a jerk to Erika constantly and only occasionally showers her with some vague form of affection. But the series doesn't try too hard to redeem him—he has no sad backstory to fall on and his behaviour is not entirely without cause - being cynical and misanthropic seems to run in the family. The supporting cast is entertaining but they receive minimal attention or development. That is a disappointing fact about the series

In regards to the animation, the colour palette is vibrant and charming. In comparison to the manga, it actually has adapted all of the character designs quite nicely. Although it is like any other shoujo style, each design is unique and rather fitting giving each character's unique persona. Unfortunately another weak area is perhaps the soundtrack. The opening is catchy and adorable, but during the course of the series there are a few scenes with background music that just seem utterly out of place in an almost comedic sense. 

Overall, the series has enough merits to warrant it being a good shoujo anime. This certainly is not for everyone, it's not about a sweet couple that fall in love gradually—it's about two characters who are so entirely human that they are flawed and utterly unlikeable, but as a result of which, happen to be highly entertaining together.

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