Minor Spoilers for Episode 2

“If that’s what you want, I’ll do everything in my power to make you president. I’ll make sure you never stand alone again.”

I happened to be going through a move back when this summer anime season started, which led to me skipping my seasonal wrap-up reviews and first impressions reviews. It wasn’t until we were over a month into the season that I began playing catch-up, and this led to me only picking a handful of shows to sample. Overall, while I wouldn’t argue the summer anime season was particularly strong this year. It did have a surprising number of decent romance titles, and Alya Sometimes Hides Her Feelings in Russian was definitely one of the ones I looked forward to each week, even if it occasionally strayed into guilty pleasure territory.

The show features that blend of occasionally hilarious and occasionally lurid comedy that can leave a viewer laughing heavily one moment and questioning their viewership the next. Ultimately, a romantic comedy such as this lives or dies on the strengths of its characters. While I don’t think this is a title that will convert new fans to the genre, romance anime enthusiasts should take the opportunity to sample a few episodes.

At a glance, you could be forgiven for thinking that this show’s central gimmick would grow old after a while. However, the show is smart enough to use it as a narrative tool as well, and little shakeups to the formula keep it from becoming stale. As the title suggests, one of our romantic leads is Alisa “Alya” Kujou, a half-Russian student who her classmates perceive as being cold and aloof, to the point where she is even referred to as the “Ice Queen”. Only Masachika Kuze, who sits next to her in class, is capable of seeing through her front, due to the fact that, once again as the title suggests, Alya is constantly flirting with him… in Russian. This proves to be a good foundation for both comedy and romantic drama, as it allows Alya to express her inner thoughts and insecurities with the assumption that no one understands her.

Likewise, the secretly fluent Kuze is left trying to determine whether Alya actually means any of the things she’s saying in Russian, or if she’s simply venting by teasing him in a manner that he presumably can’t even understand. As viewers, we obviously know which way the needle is pointing, though Alya herself appears unsure. Kuze’s side of the dynamic is also understandable, given that he knows Alya well enough to know if he told her he could understand her, she’d close off and avoid him. It doesn’t hurt that Kuze himself is not simply a wet-blanket protagonist, but often uses the opportunities to tease Alya, both coaxing her out of her shell, while also occasionally having fun at her expense. The characters have a strong give-and-take that makes them an endearing pair to follow.

The rest of the cast are pretty amusing, but probably the most talked about member of the cast is Yuki Suou, a fellow member of the student council along with Alya, and former Middle School Student Council President for whom Kuze had served as VP. However, that is hardly the extent of her relationship with Kuze. Unbeknownst to the rest of the student body, Yuki is Kuze’s biological sister, though due to a toxic split within the family, they are not allowed to acknowledge this detail publicly. If I were to encapsulate Yuki’s personality in a single word, it would probably be “Troll,” as she is constantly taking opportunities to get a rise out of both Kuze and Alya.

For the most part, this is funny, but even though her sexually forward jokes targeted towards Kuze are clearly in jest, she is still part of one of the problems I have with the series. Much of her teasing is overtly sexual, and while the show makes it clear as early as the first episode that she and Kuze have a comfortable enough sibling relationship to have such back and forth, it still occasionally crosses the line from comedic to uncomfortable. 

The production was handled by Doga Kobo. The last romance series I saw from this studio was Shikimori’s Not Just a Cutie, unless you count Jellyfish Can’t Swim in the Night, which you probably shouldn’t. There is an interesting contrast which can be drawn between Alya Sometimes Hides Her Feelings and Shikimori. Alya has the stronger male lead, and I think this show’s comedy remained engaging much longer, but both shows do have a sense of stalling out in the latter half. I wouldn’t have minded a little more forward momentum in regards to Kuze and Alya’s relationship, but I’ll probably be back for season 2, which has already been announced.

As for the production itself, it’s fair to say Doga Kobo didn’t skimp. High school romance series don’t exactly demand sakuga moments, but you can still tell that the studio took opportunities to go above and beyond, albeit mainly in fanservice segments. This is the reason everyone in the anime community was making Tarantino jokes regarding the first episode. They also got a little creative with the EDs. Rather than having one consistent ED, Alya instead pulled a Chainsaw Man and had a different ED for each episode. The animation on these was much more limited than what we normally see in the average ED, so it’s possible they bit off a little more than they could chew with this venture. Though, given how often EDs are skipped, I suppose not much stood to be lost. 

Before I wrap up, a few Notes and Nitpicks:

• I legitimately didn’t realize they were swapping out the EDs until episode 4, at which point I did the mother of all double-takes and said out loud, “Wait, is that Hare Hare Yukai?!?” While it was fun hearing a cover of that song, it just isn’t complete without the dance.
• I am pleased to know this show has already been renewed. The uncertainty that comes with an open-ended finale can become something of a detriment when evaluating a show, so knowing that there will be more helps alleviate that.
• The show waits a while to go into detail as to why Kuze doesn’t publicly acknowledge he’s Yuki’s brother. This means, for the first few episodes, there is a sense that they might be doing it “fur teh lolz,” which just seemed odd. I think it would have been better to make the motivations clear much earlier.
• My least favorite moment in the entire series is the weird hypnosis gag that pops up in episode 9. It’s a shame, because it was such an engaging episode up to that point.
• I’m waffling a bit back and forth on what score I think this show deserves. I can’t decide between 3.5 and 4 stars. I think, given it still feels like a title for fans of a specific niche, I’ll probably go with the lower rating.
• The Japanese VA for Alya, Sumire Uesaka, is a Russophile who majored in Russian studies, and is presumably fluent (I certainly couldn’t tell one way or another). I like the fact that the English VA for her, Sarah Natochenny, is also fluent. It’s a nice bit of attention to detail in the casting for both versions.

Alya Sometimes Hides Her Feelings in Russian almost strays into guilty pleasure territory at points. While I unironically enjoy the characters and the comedy, the occasionally lurid elements or outright ridiculous things certain characters say can certainly disrupt that engagement, and the initially promising pacing seems to stall out midway. Still, for fans of romantic comedy anime, I’d certainly be willing to recommend they check out this one. I’ll be keeping an eye out for its return in the future.

Score: 3.5/5