Before I delve into my overall review of A Girl & Her Guard Dog as a season, I’ll begin first with a short section about its finale, episode 13. It was straightforward and primarily a recap of the entire season with Isaku reflecting on past events. For instance, Isaku shared a memory of her first meeting with Keiya and recalled a core moment when she drew a picture of him from episode 11. In the present, Keiya reveals the meaning behind his back tattoo — a symbol of his commitment to protect her for life. Keiya hands Isaku his katana while urging her to mark his back, but she only scratches him, understanding that it would cause him pain. Despite this, Keiya affirms his dedication and states that Isaku now owns him.
Following this intense moment, the narrative shifts to Isaku at school where she reassures her friend that everything is okay and their relationship has improved. Later at lunch, the couple shares a tender moment while enjoying tea and cuddling to stay warm. The episode concludes with a heartfelt kiss, marking the culmination of their journey throughout the entire season.
Personally, I found this episode to be quite disappointing. It heavily relied on recapping the series, and while it’s understandable that Isaku reflected on the memories, it consumed a significant portion of the episode. Although there was an official kiss marking the couple’s status, the latest episode lacked substance beyond that. It left me feeling rather sad and disappointed. Initially, I had hoped for more potential, especially considering it was the last episode of the series, but it seems my expectations were a bit too high. I give A Girl & Her Guard Dog episode 13 a 4/10.
Anyway, let’s next review A Girl & Her Guard Dog as a whole season.
Let’s address the animation quality of the series — the inconsistency of the character visuals and the lack of movements. For example, one of the most notable issues is the static facial expressions where mouths don’t move in sync with the dialogue. Overall, the animation quality of the series was not at its best. It even significantly declined in later episodes, which makes it disheartening and disappointing as it contributed to the overall experience of the anime. Not to mention, one major letdown was the frequent use of recaps of previous episodes, which felt like a waste of time for viewers.
If the animation had been better, it could have improved my perception of the storyline. I earnestly wished and hoped for an upward trend, but the animation seemed to worsen with each new episode. I mentioned all of this in my previous episode review articles. Unfortunately, my wishes never came to fruition. In my opinion, the most significant flaw of this anime is that the overall experience constantly left me genuinely disappointed.
For this overall season review of A Girl & Her Guard Dog, I must express my disappointment. Romance anime has been scarce in recent years so I had high hopes for this series, especially since I am a fan of the romance genre. Unfortunately, this series fell short of my expectations throughout its 13-episode run this 2023 Fall season. Each episode left me disappointed due to the storyline’s flow. It had some cute moments, but while I enjoy an age-gap romance in anime (I consider them a silly fictional escape), this series did not exactly align with my taste. With themes like this, it’s crucial to emphasize not emulating such relationships in real life, as certain boundaries should not be crossed.
As a non-manga reader, I remain open to the possibility that the manga might offer a different experience. I may consider picking it up in the future but right now, I have conflicted feelings for the series. The anime’s pacing and overall story did not resonate with my personal preferences for romance anime. Despite my disappointment, I still wish the manga all the best, maybe even surpass and prove itself more engaging than the anime. As I finish this review, I ultimately give this season of A Girl & Her Guard Dog a 5/10. As a romance anime fan, I can only look forward to the upcoming anime titles next year.
Screenshots via Crunchyroll
© Hatsuharu, Kodansha / A Girl & Her Guard Dog Production Committee