Audience reviews
20 · Sample from the first available page, separate from the total number of ratings.
CaptainKenshiro
Note: I will refer to the protagonist as a she, and the co-protagonist as a he.
I don’t know why I never got around to watch this short title, when I wanted to do it for years. Since I recently rewatched and reviewed Aoi Hana, another adaptation of the same mangaka, I decided to do the same with this one, and I have to say, it’s clearly a better title.
Coincidentally (or not), it has a similarly looking visual style, consistent artwork, seemingly purposely unfinished yet beautiful backgrounds, and this time, much more vivid and expressive motions, expressions and body language, making these characters feel more alive than the ones from that other show. It even has the same issues of having way too simple character designs which even look alike to others from the same series, and just li…
Read at the sourceArtrill
[9.0/10]
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Wandering Son blew me away. A series that could've easily harbored so many of the negative qualities I associate romance anime with, such as an overabundance of melodrama, love triangles, and boring characterization was utterly subverted throughout this short, eleven episode run-time. So much so that I honestly felt surprised throughout most of my watch-through. While there is a love triangle, while there is melodrama, although thankfully it is reigned in, the characterization is far from boring and the writer(s) do an impeccable job with keeping you on your toes. This series doesn't go where I thought it would, as it spends it's run-time making sure you experience a believable s…
Read at the sourceMidievalfantasy
Story: 4/10
I wanted to watch this because of the promising premise of the anime delving in transgender issues, which is something one rarely sees, inside of anime and outside of it as well. When this anime was brought to my attention, I was very hopeful. When I watched it, I simply ended up being very disappointed.
While the anime does attempt to show transgender issues and the struggles that people with Gender Dysphoria go through, especially during the critical stage of puberty, it vitally comes shorts of its goal. Instead of really delving into the issues trans people go through, everything is glossed over and watered down.
At points it takes itself seriously and tries to show the issues. At other points it leaves you stretching your head with how confusing the characters are. I…
Read at the sourceDeviantDreamer
Hourou Musuko is a story about people struggling with their gender, sexuality and body, and about the people who are close to them.
I really liked the story, since I've never before watched any show dealing with these topics so well, I did however feel like the story wasn't going anywhere during some parts.
I also felt like the story could have been delivered better if there'd been some more episodes, since it felt like parts from the original manga were left out from this anime adaption, but I am not sure.
I loved this anime's art, its soft pastel colours made everything look very cute and lightened the mood a lot. The motion is fluent and there're a lot of subtle details,like cherry blossoms falling down, in the background.
The OST didn't include that many tracks but the tracks that…
Read at the sourceEzekiel_01
Anime Review No.6
Just finished watching Hourou Musuko and I say this is one great anime. The anime is well made and the production studio didn't failed to portray what is the series all about. Another best slice of life anime I watched this 2015.
Review: The content may contain "SPOILERS"
Plot (9/10)
The story revolves around 3 characters Nitori, Shuuichi, Chiba, Saori and Takatsuki, Yoshino. They are young teens struggling to adapt the new life of being a middle school student while undergoing the changes in puberty. Suppose to be your typical school life and slice of life anime series but it isn't. Unlike many generic school life series "Hourou Musuko" or "Wandering Son" have something that stand out among the rest. The plot discuss the topic of "transsexualism" in a way people ca…
Read at the sourceZeroHumor
Hourou Musuko's subject matter is rarely dealt with in anime: it explores the issues of gender identity and societal perception of gender roles through the lens of 5th graders, a particular age where puberty is becoming a thing, and clueless kids are changing into romantically involved teenagers. It's a time when kids become more aware of their surroundings, more conscious of their changing feelings; it's the perfect stage to explore how one may feel being an LGBT (lesbian-gay-bi-trans).
Needless to say, this subject is particularly sensitive given modern society's ambivalence towards LGBT, and anime typically dodges the bullet by giving LGBT characters ridiculously comedic roles in stories. Not here. For Hourou Musuko, the awareness, exploration, and acceptance of different gender pursu…
Read at the sourceMikasa_A
ok ,so let's see. I find the idea behind this anime is actually rly good, and important. but sadly, the themes that are being introduced are barely touched... it all stays very vague and superficial. I think it's a sweet strory about growing up when one is/feels diffrent than others. the show tries to cope with too many such subjects and therefor fails to rly deepen one... maybe more eisodes would have prevented that, and made it end up a rly good show but like this, it left too many questions and backgrounds unexplained, unanswered.
it sure is a diffrent kind of show, and i actually don't regret to have watched it. it's overall decent, the art, the sound, the story... the characters could need some more attention, and sometimes an insight would have been nice, especially at the beginning…
Read at the sourceAegair
I, like most people on this planet like things.
Things that I like come in many shapes and forms, one of which being anime and manga. One such anime / manga I like is Wandering Son. A character driven narrative that follows the lives of a handful of middle school children as they grow through puberty and the issues that they come up against. All in all this is a pretty standard setting and premise for an anime or manga, all it really needs is me adding on the words ‘fan service’ and ‘fighting power’ and really this description could be about 90% of any anime out there.
In actuality, the themes and overall feel of Wandering Son is something that I’ve found to be pretty unique in the medium. The series, and manga, may differ but some things that are shared between them, given that I have r…
Read at the sourceBringerof_D
"Roses are red, Violets are blue." The phrase is used as the subtitle of the first episode and sums up the conflict of the entire series.
One of the main ways we learn about the world is by being told. Told by those which we accept as our elders, an authority on the subject perhaps. They tell us how we should act, how we should be. They tell us what normal is, what's acceptable, and what is not. Roses are red, and violets are blue, boys are supposed to be one way and girls another. Anything that strays from those guidelines and doesn't fit into the mould are regarded as deviants. They are treated with disgust, or perhaps pitied as though they were ill. All the while you wonder that if you don't fit that mould, does that make you something else. This flower is clearly a rose, but it isn't…
Read at the sourceZergneedsfood
“What are little boys made of? Frogs and snails, and puppy dogs’ tails. That’s what little boys are made of.”
The third movement of Debussy’s Bergasmasque Suite plays softly in the background as a strong gust blows hundreds of cherry blossoms in the night sky. It’s a fitting piece not only for setting such a tranquil mood, but also referencing Paul Verdaine’s poem, Clair de Lune, whose first stanza is a decently fitting representation of what may be one of the most beautifully written slice of life anime out there.
“Your soul is a chosen landscape
Where charming masqueraders and bergamaskers go
Playing the lute and dancing and almost
Sad beneath their fanciful disguises.”
Story – 9/10
Hourou Musuko is a story about Shuiichi Nitori, a boy who wants to be a girl, Yoshino Takatsuki, a gi…
Read at the sourcemahoganycow
It's strange to think about the roles that we fall into based on our inborn qualities and the societies in which we live. The very existence of the term “cross-dressing” seems to rely on the assumption that there's a “right” way to anoint ourselves with clothes to wear based on our sex, and to do otherwise is to risk social exile. But what if a boy doesn't want to look like or act like a boy, and what if a girl doesn't want to develop into a woman? Do we have any freedom in this regard, or are we slaves to birth and societal convention? Wandering Son is a series which looks at the implications of these and other ideas by taking a peek into the life of a middle school student: The feminine boy, Nitori, who privately cross-dresses and begins to identify as a girl. Sometimes at odds with othe…
Read at the sourcecranbarrier
It is extremely rare to find an anime that approaches LGBTQ issues in any serious or in depth manner. The T in LGBTQ seems to get the least attention of all in the anime/manga world. This anime amazingly encompasses both MTF and FTM issues to an extent. It also does not approach it in an offensive or stereotypical way, as most animes that contain and trans character do. As someone who identifies as trans, this was extremely refreshing in an otherwise ignorant community.
The story was a little slow, but it is about growing up and that is how life can be. I was impressed that they incorporated so many little things that go along with dealing with puberty as someone questioning gender (things like feeling pressured to wear a bra or getting your period or your voice changing actually came up)…
Read at the sourcexDestinyStarzx
This anime, I can't quite put my finger on it.. It's really great and I love this anime, but yet it's not exactly a favourite yet. I do intend to read the manga eventually but for now, I have to say, it's one of those anime that you would end up loving because of the feeling it gives you.
Story: 9 Great
I loved the story. It's a pretty simple concept. A boy who wants to be a girl. Yet, it's such a sensitive and difficult situation. It does let the watcher understand that there's really not much of a difference for a guy who wants to want to be a girl from a normal guy. Nor a difference for a girl who wants to be a guy. End of the day, they are all humans and have feelings and wishes for things that everyone else wishes for. They just want to be accepted for who they are. It's pretty touc…
Read at the sourceWhammyman
Now, as a person who comes into contact with the field of sociology every now and then, and by extension discussions on gender and sexuality, the description of this show instantly drew my attention towards it. Sitting down to watch, and spurred on by other reviews, I was expecting to sit down to a deep and interesting series that put a spotlight on gender issues (helped by the title of the first episode "What Are Little Girls Made of?"). I...had a bit of a lukewarm reaction to the series.
Before I get to that though, I want to start off with what I think this series did right. The most important is that this series decided to try and look at the issue seriously. There is little to none anime antics in this series, which is great because the idea of crossdressing characters normally gets…
Read at the sourceYukariki
There is no doubt in anyone’s mind that a poorly researched work on a touchy subject can frustrate people off. The anime medium is infamous for blatantly using offensive stereotypes; One Piece is one of the weirdest examples out there for attacking racism and then, using racial stereotypes.
Then, there’s the animes that deal with the LGBT community.
Stereotyped as flamboyant creatures, the LGBT community suffers through insulting stereotypes and invectives. One of the least prominent group of the LGBT body is transgender community; there is so little focus on them. As far as most ignorant people are concerned, they are crossdressers. Nothing more.
Hourou Musuko, or Wandering Son, is a work, based on the bestselling manga, that focuses on crossdressers, puberty, and transgender issues. I…
Read at the sourceMizkodomo
The only reason that I would give Hourou Musuko a 5 rating, is because I love the Manga way to much. I might have had too high of expectations for the anime, but if I have a main grievance, it is the fact that they started the anime 20-30 chapters into the manga, and tried to make up for the loss of character development and plot, by having flash backs. I felt that with such limited time, (12 episodes) they weren't able to do such a beautiful manga justice. At all.
Tl;DR-I was severely disappointed with the anime, but I love the manga.
Read at the sourceTzu
Ever wonder why you were forced to do and wear what you were as a kid? Society labels you based on whats between your legs and not whats in your mind. The story breaks down the barriers of whats the norm and whats taboo to give you a story that isn't in the genre of slice of life but it should be.
At the coming of age where these questions are not yet asked, where children start to discover what gender they really are.
This story focuses on what little boys and little girls are made of, not by whats between your legs but whats in your mind. The way its supposed to be? According to society no, but the way it should be.
If you're into romances and stories that break down norm barriers, then Hourou Musuko is for you.
Read at the sourcenayama
I was really interested in this series' premise, because it doesn't happen often that an anime decides to deal with gender identity disorders, but I was disappointed with the way the topic was developed.
Sometimes I have the feeling that, both in anime and manga, authors decide to discuss challenging topics but then don't have the courage to do it thoroughly. This is what I felt watching Hourou Musuko as well. Actually, I don't know if it's because they lack the courage, because they fear the fans' reaction or because they just don't know enough, I guess it depends on the case. In this story it feels like they just wanted to use the idea because of its originality and not actually to discuss the topic realistically, though up to a certain point I used to think they were trying to be serio…
Read at the sourcerennb
The Winter 2011 season ushered in the worst ratings for Noitamina (a prestigious timeblock dedicated to short, quality anime such as Honey and Clover, Nodame Cantabile, and Eden of the East) yet. While I can understand the ratings declining because Noitamina’s action offering Fractale is, to put bluntly, complete fail, its dramatic offering, Hourou Musuko, is incredibly good. Admittedly, it's not the best of the timeslot, but it can stand comfortably with most of Noitamina's higher quality shows. At any rate, it makes Fractale even more of a joke.
Story
Hourou Musuko the original manga nears a hundred chapters, most of which are around twenty pages long. Hourou Musuko the anime reviewed here takes these hundred chapters and condenses them into a compact and coherent eleven-episode story.…
Read at the sourceWilio
Let me get this straight, I usually don’t watch gender-bender series or anything that is related to the genre. Actually, I don’t recall one anime that I saw that the focus was with cross-dressing of any sort. That said, Wandering Son would actually be the first anime that I have seen that made usage of this trope. And to be honest, it came to be one of the best series of the winter 2011. Wandering Son is a short and calm anime that was enjoyable for its simple, but thoughtful story.
Wandering Son starts off with an interesting structure. Instead of starting from an extremity, the beginning or the ending, the anime begins somewhere in the middle of the original story. Of course, it is assuming that either the viewer is familiar with the manga or is watching the series seriously. I’m saying…
Read at the source