Original Run: October 10, 2021 - December 26, 2021 Number of Episodes: 12 Genre: Comedy, Romance, Slice of Life Based on the Series Created By: Shiromanta
***Warning, the following may contain spoilers for My Senpai is Annoying. Reader discretion is advised.***
Series Synopsis
Futaba Igarashi (voiced by Tomori Kusunoki) loves living the adult life. Although many people mistake her to be much younger than she is due to her small stature, Futaba is a grown, career-focused woman and is one of her company’s most promising up-and-coming talents. However, she is still a rookie, and thus, makes the occasional mistake. Fortunately, Futaba can always rely on her senpai, Harumi Takeda (voiced by Shunsuke Takeuchi), for help.
Be that as it may, Futaba often grows annoyed with Harumi’s endless energy and booming presence. It also doesn’t help that Futaba thinks Harumi sees her as a little kid rather than a capable colleague. Or, at least, “colleague” is what she keeps trying to tell herself.
Even though she struggles to say it, Futaba has developed a massive crush on Harumi. Therefore, Futuba tries to get through the day without looking foolish in front of her beloved senpai.
Series Positives
Oh my good golly gosh, My Senpai is Annoying was so freaking cute. Like SO freaking cute. Here was a total stand out. Keep in mind; there were plenty of rock solid romantic, slice-of-life comedies that come out during 2021. Nevertheless, none of those others were as feel-good as this series was.
Or, in other words, this show was great.
And to get this out of the way, My Senpai is Annoying was my preferred kind of love story, i.e., it wasn’t in a goddamn high school setting.
While this is a personal preference, I would be remised if I acted as though there aren’t scores of excellent romance anime where the leads are teenagers. Be that as it may, having this type of narrative take place in a professional workplace rather than a classroom is far more relaxing.
My Senpai is Annoying had the same physical comedy, exaggerated gestures, and over-the-top facial expressions as any high school rom-com. However, the inherent creepiness of anime highlighting (and often blatantly sexualizing) the lives of minors simply wasn’t here.
Don’t get me wrong; this series had its share of service (granted, the most egregious incident came in the form of some well-defined bikinis). Still, it makes a world of difference when there is no question that the protagonists can give consent.
What’s more, My Senpai is Annoying was a brilliant character-based anime; its central cast was incredibly fun to follow; you legitimately want to get to know them. Most everyone in this series had hard-to-forget personalities. The consequence of this well-roundedness led to numerous insanely hilarious interactions, as well as some significant growth moments.
And I’m not just referring to Futaba and Harumi, whose relationship was unquestionably adorable. Not only did we get one couple to root for, but we also got a second, arguably sweeter love story in the form of Touko Sakurai and Souta Kazama (voiced respectively by Saori Hayami and Reiou Tsuchida).
Where Futaba and Harumi’s screen time was slapsticky in nature, it was terrific to watch Touko and Souta come together as a couple. The amount of chemistry between these two was precisely what you should expect from any romance.
To make a long story short, My Senpai is Annoying knocked it out of the park. Not only that, this show has a ton of potential left in reserve. It would be a huge shame if this series goes the same way as Recovery of an MMO Junkie and Wotakoi: Love Is Hard for Otaku, both of which have failed to secure a second season (as of this review’s February 2022 release).
It would make my day to learn of a My Senpai is Annoying 2; I know there is a lot more this show can offer.
If you’re looking for something to watch for your next date night, boy, do I have a recommendation for you. Once you get it started, My Senpai is Annoying is difficult to put down.
Series Negatives
Frankly, twelve episodes proved to be nowhere near enough time for this show to do everything. It really did feel as though we only scratched the bare surface of what My Senpai is Annoying could do.
For instance, a handful of secondary characters had quirks that could have led to fun side stories. Sadly, this series didn’t do much to utilize this material. Therefore, it was hard not to think that this show wasted its time introducing ideas that never came to fruition.
One casualty of this was Mona Tsukishiro (voiced by Aoi Koga). She was this huge question mark that My Senpai is Annoying failed to utilize.
However, this series’s biggest miss came from, of all people, Harumi. We only ever got a surface-level understanding of who he was. Compare his development to Futaba’s. We got glimpses into her past; she had lived a life before the start of this story. There was nothing like that with Harumi. He was merely a lovable teddy bear.
While this lack of development didn’t detract from this series in the long run, it is clear that My Senpai is Annoying was holding back. And if that is true, what a shame. That would mean this show could have been so much more.
And that is saying something since this series was already outstanding.
Final Thoughts
I had a blast with this show; I had no idea I would like it as much as I did. With that said, I knew this series had hooked me by the time I reached the halfway point of the first episode.
Not only was this a successful comedy, but this show was also a thoroughly satisfying romance story. You fall for this cast hard; you want to see the right people get together.
I know there is so much more life left in this series, and I can only hope we will return someday to see it come together.
Until then, My Senpai is Annoying has earned a resounding recommendation.
But these were just my thoughts. What are yours? Have you seen this series? How would you advise My Senpai is Annoying? Leave a comment down below because I would love to hear what you have to say.
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