Rent-A-Girlfriend (2020) Weird and Unique: short review

Premise: Rent a girlfriend (also known as Kanojo, Okarishimasu) is a romantic comedy, the story of Kazuya, a college student. After Kazuya’s girlfriend, Mami Nanami, ditched him, Kazuya heartbrokenly rents a girlfriend to get rid of Mami out of his head. He rents Chizuru, a stunning perfect girl in every way. The rental plot goes beyond what they expected when both Kazuya and Chizuru’s grandmothers thought they were dating. Things get even complex when both discover they attend the same college.

Review: As for the story, it’s decently simple; with the help of Chizuru, Kazuya is determined to change. At first, he wants to get laid more than anything, and now when he has a chance with Ruka, he chooses not to. As predicted, Kazuya and Chizuru fall for each other but don’t open up to others because Kazuya thinks Chizuru is out of her league, Chizuru knows how he still loves Mami. Sometimes the story gets annoyingly repeated, and some unnecessary subplots and scenes come with the cost of the main plot.

What makes Rent A Girlfriend interesting is the characters. I don’t mind if the main character is an antihero, heartless or pathetic if well written. Here to some extent, the characters are well written. That’s why I want to punch Kazuya for every wrong choice he makes because I cared about that character. I want him to get along with Chizuru. Kazuya, 20 years old virgin desperate to get a girlfriend, is also a kinder and genuinely cares about the people around him.

On the other hand, Chizuru, a professionally perfect girl, is opposite Kazuya’s character. She is the most substantial part of the series. Her sharp tongue and glamour is a big plus to the series. The dynamic between Kazuya and Chizuru is good initially, but it never grows after some episodes, clearly when they have room to develop this character.

Mami Nanami dumps Kazuya after one month of dating for no reason; she is a manipulative envious person and is vital for the story. Mainly the drama progresses because of her character. Rent a girlfriend comes to the comedy genre more than rom-com.

Rent A Girlfriend is from TMS Entertainment studios, which brought excellent anime series like Dr.Stone (2019) and ReLife (2016). Here, the Animation, from characters to lightning, even the clothing looks ideal for a rom-com. The opening song is catchy; the background music is decent.

Conclusion: Overall, Rent A Girlfriend (2020) is fun and enjoyable. It could be better with some plot, limiting its stupidity and letting the characters grow. My rating 6/10

Genre: Comedy, Romance
Episodes: 12 | Second season announced
Release: 2020 | Status – Finished Airing