Masamune-kun no Revenge

I cannot say that I did not enjoy this show. In fact, I kind of already knew beforehand that I might be interested in it because as a mischievous person in my youth who was sometimes rejected because of my appearance (and who also had no discernment and so always went crazy for the prettiest and nastiest creature around, thinking he could see her hidden beauty as well) I actually see this as a subject matter pretty close to my heart. The idea of revenge also appealed to me then, and the naive belief that everything would turn around and there would be a romantic happy ending appealed to me even more, being a hopeless dreamer in my youth. There are a lot of the standard tropes, a love story worthy of a soap opera, and the ending is actually quite predictable (even though we are going to have to wait for a second season, because no one knows yet if it will ever be made). However, it is easy to watch, you might even smile at times, and the main female protagonist is such a strange combination of being insufferable and inner beauty that I grew quite fond of her. I quite liked the male protagonist too, and I found his efforts at supposedly cool behavior and cruel revenge in contrast to his indecision and confusion (yeah, the boy is starting to get into it) quite likable. So, I was intrigued, although not as much as I would be looking forward to each new episode. With this show, it was more like - "New episode, OK, why not?". In the language of numbers, it is 6.2/10. (27.05.2023)

The first season was alright for me, at least according to my review of it. This time, it took a while before I got on the right wavelength that took me to the desired finale. I couldn't shake the feeling, though, that the initial episodes with the trip to France and Muriel felt like tedious filler, and I didn't find much enjoyment in them. However, things picked up with the first major revelation, and the main couple finally getting together, albeit somewhat unexpectedly. It was quite entertaining for me. From there, I was curious about what would unfold next, what new twists the series would introduce. Honestly, the romantic triangle and the attempt to create the impression that Yoshino had a chance didn't quite resonate with me, although it made sense given her role in the story and her closeness to the hero. The second half delved into the fact that the entire main relationship wasn't working because there were unresolved issues that needed to be addressed. This was at times intriguing, sometimes a bit odd, but I was never bored. Right up until the last episode, I found myself curious about how it would all wrap up. The authors managed to momentarily break my firm conviction of how everything would play out. That's why the finale felt particularly satisfying to me. Everything fell into place, and contrary to others, I was glad — it felt like my team had won! So, after a hesitant start, an interesting middle, a slightly shaky finish, and a satisfying ending, I'm giving the second season a 6/10. (18.09.2023)