Reviews for Okitsura: Fell in Love with an Okinawan Girl, but I Just Wish I Know What She's Saying

Okinawa tourism ad wrapped with a heartwarming romcom. Tl;dr Watch this if you want to have a good time, you will love it Okitsura is an anime that wears its intentions on its sleeve. Its main goal is to introduce the viewers to Okinawa's culture and highlight its differences from the rest of Japan. The goal is, to be frank, a tough sell if you don't care about Okinawa or can't catch the spirit of the gags. However, Okitsura is worth watching because you don't need to relate to Okinawa. Yes, I don't give a shit about the language, I'm not going to remember jackshit fromsome Duolingo ass translation, but I understand the feeling of stepping into a new place, out of my comfort zone, and diving into new experiences, and I believe anyone does.

What sets this anime apart is its unpretentious direction and writing. You can step into the character's feelings because they are full of life and purposefully portrayed. You can immerse yourself in the anime's gags because they are well-timed and visually clever. When the main character faces the unknown, the show showers you with absurdity and intentionality. When the show tries to be romantic, the anime embraces the setting with sincerity and youthfulness. When the show tries to hit a punchline, it pulls some shisha antics to make things sillier. The anime is honest and straightforward. It wants you to relax and enjoy, with Okinawa propaganda slipping smoothly towards your brain.

The only caveat that an insane person would have is the animation. Yes, the animation is cheap and sometimes sucks in terms of fluidity. Honestly, who gives a damn? The creativity and the coloring are top-notch and rich. The anime works without nailing a dance sequence or with arms moving like a low-effort jpeg, and sometimes the animation is so bad you can laugh at it. I would call that a win-win.

So yeah, I'd recommend this anime for anyone who wants to chill watching something cute, witty, and earnest. The premise might be uninteresting if you are not into romance or couldn't care less about Okinawa, but you'll find yourself loving it after a while because the anime plays the right notes all the time.

Okitsura is perhaps the most innovative travel ad of all time. Why make YouTube videos or commercials promoting your island when you can make an anime with cute girls and romance? The island of Okinawa is one of the most interesting places on earth, but I knew relatively little about it coming into this other than the US military presence on the island. For 3 months this show served as a crash course in Okinawan culture and history and I can honestly say the propaganda worked on me, I want to visit! But equally impressive is how good the show is. It started out prettyslow to me, I didn’t really connect with the characters, but after 3-4 episodes and weekly doses of Kana I was hooked. It’s educational, wholesome and a genuinely fun time. It’s a bit frustrating to watch at times because the main girl is NOT the best girl, but even with that it’s a very enjoyable experience and I highly recommend it to anyone curious about Okinawa travel lovers.

This show’s pretty simple. Every week we learn 3-4 things about Okinawan culture and language and then there’s a romantic subplot with the MC having a crush on a local Okinawan girl. Now I love the educational stuff, there’s so much packed into this show and it does a great job of highlighting the differences between Okinawa and mainland Japan which I think many foreigners won’t have known about! Where it loses me is with the romance, at least as it relates to the main ship here. The MC is from mainland Japan and can’t understand the local Okinawan girl which is sort of the plot device used to teach the audience about Okinawan culture. For me, I hated their dynamic because it makes zero sense for the MC to be head over heels for a girl he can’t even have a proper convo with! It reminded me of Doug Censor Martin dating the Mexican weather lady back in the day. Like there’s only so much that you can actually learn about a person when y’all can’t communicate intimately and natively. The side character, Kana, ended up being the best girl in this series. She and the MC have the best chemistry, she speaks standard Japanese fluently and serves as his translator to Kyan(main girl) and Okinawan culture instructor. It’s just hard to really get behind a romcom plotline like this when the main girl is so obviously worst girl.

Romance aside, the main trio are fun to watch. The comedy landed for me in the show and seeing them get up to local Okinawan activities every week was cool. Their relationship almost felt like watching a travel vlog or something. For such a small place, there’s so much to do on Okinawa and the show gives you a nice idea of the variety of activities. The MC definitely acts like a dense idiot, but Kana is so good that I sort of overlooked it.

Projection wise, nothing to write home about. Show looks solid, the voice acting is top notch especially with how they showcase the dialectal/linguistic differences between Okinawan and standard Japanese.

This isn’t the best show in the world, but there’s just something about it that drew me in and kept me hooked. After a while I really enjoyed every episode and it seemed like they went by so quickly. It’s certainly informative and even with the MC being annoying as hell at times, the cast are fun to watch. I feel confident recommending this to anyone interested in learning about Japan/Okinawa or looking for a light hearted romcom!

Okitsura gets 7/10.

This is just an advert for a prefecture in Japan. stretched into a 12 episode anime. No actual focus on story development. Just facts about Okinawa. Extremely dissapointing and boring season finale. Nothing had came out of anything. All the emotional or special moments were executed in a way where they don't actually have an impact on the story. In other words, just temporary moments with no value. Whenever an impactful scene is about to happen, it ALWAYS turns out to be some comedic red herring. The romance goes absolutely nowhere of course. It's just non stop teasing. I guess if you're into being edgedthen go for it.

SPOILER:

They really pranked us with the finale. They dragged out a seemingly story impacting development, only for it to be an unfunny red herring. All this anime cares about is telling facts about the Okinawa prefecture of Japan. That's LITERALLY it. What a dissapointing ''story'' if you can even call it that.

Okitsura (Okinawa de Suki ni Natta Ko ga Hougen Sugite Tsurasugiru) – A Surprisingly Hilarious & Heartfelt Cultural Romcom Okay, this anime is funny as hell. I went into Okinawa de Suki ni Natta Ko ga Hougen Sugite Tsurasugiru expecting a lightweight romcom, but what I got was a beautifully written, laugh-out-loud cultural deep dive—with a love triangle to boot! The premise? A city boy from mainland Japan falls for a girl in Okinawa... only to find her dialect is so strong, he can barely understand her. Comedy gold, trust me. Add in another girl who also likes him, and boom—classic love triangle energy. But here’s the twist:unlike most anime that treat Okinawa like a fanservice-filled beach episode, this one actually explores the region.

We’re talking real cultural contrast: dialect confusion, lifestyle differences, and even subtle social issues faced by the Okinawan community. It’s funny, relatable, and refreshingly respectful.

Animation and voice acting? 8/10 for both—shockingly high considering it’s from Studio Millepensee, a studio I usually associate with average-at-best productions. But this one? Totally surprised me. The voice acting sells every joke and emotion perfectly.

Haven’t read the manga, so I can’t speak to the adaptation—but as a standalone anime? I loved it.

P.S. I’m rooting for Kana all the way. Girl deserves the win.

Final Rating: 8/10

Watch if you love: dialect humor, regional culture, romcoms with actual depth.

Okitsura really is a great example of why I appreciate watching seasonals so much. This show has like a 6.8 on MAL, and I know I shouldn’t base whether I watch something on a stupid score, but with so many “great” anime out there I want to see, it’s hard to justify watching a “6” even if it could be good. Anyway, with all that said, I love Okitsura. I love tropical anime, and since there aren’t many of them, I was looking forward to Okitsura ever since I saw the first trailer. And i’m happy to say that, in my opinion, it hits all theright beats. It’s cute, just funny enough, the characters are endearing, and the production—i.e., the art and music—is solid. And all in all, it’s just a great time learning about Okinawa and it’s culture, especially since I think it’d be neat to visit one day.

If you like slice-of-life, a hint of romance, a tropical setting, and full episodes made up of mini-episodes like me, I highly recommend this show—or if you just want a chill show to have on in the background.

I came for the romance, got fooled, but stayed for the Okinawan culture and the good vibes. OkiTsura has no real plot, and the romantic premise is just an excuse to justify character interactions, but it's never developed. The series is episodic in nature, mostly a collection of trivia and fun facts about Okinawa and the Ryūkyū Islands (which sometimes might be slightly oversimplified, so be aware). Don't expect character growth or any progression in general, because there's none. We get just a glimpse in the last episode, but that's it. The show for the most part is very formulaic: the MC gets involved in an everydayscenario with Hina, or Kana, or both, there's a misunderstanding due to the cultural gap since he is a main-island Japanese, that's cleared by one of the female leads and a narrator. Many times during these scenarios the protagonists will experience some sort of romantic/awkward situation.

This formula makes the anime quite repetitive, although the atmosphere is always laid back and enjoyable.

The only saving grace is the friendship of Kana and Hina, the two real main characters of the show, which the audience gets to know through a bunch of sweet flashbacks. It's really too little to save the writing, though.

From a visual perspective, I'd say that direction, scene composition and photography are nice. The animation looks quite cheap, but the staff used all the tricks in the book to make it as dynamic as possible (close-ups, zoom-ins/outs, etc.), and the end result is pleasant. Background are usually just OK, with some exceptions that really stand out, but to be fair I had higher expectations (you're in Okinawa and you show me just the usual, generic anime beach?). There's some CGI here and there, mainly for cars and the sea. It blends in just fine, with some highlights, e.g. the seashore effect is great. What is really worth mentioning in the visuals is the character design: bubbly and cute, with great coloring and ESPECIALLY wonderful lineart. It's so rare to see weighted lines for characters in today's seasonal animes: they give so much depth but are also a pain to animate. Here they were used sparingly but effectively, and I really appreciated this touch.

From the sound production perspective, the OST was fitting, featuring many local instruments and typical Okinawan melodies. The OP is hella catchy and the various EDs, sung by Hina and Kana's voice actors, are really sweet. Talking about VAs, Fairouz (Kana) really killed it. She has become one of my favourites in the last few years.

FINAL THOUGHTS:

Definitely not a show for the ages, but if you like laid back series with feel-good vibes, then this might be for you.

Just remember that there's a big fat zero under the label "story progression and character growth".

I feel that the author mainly wanted to explore Okinawa and the romance was a bolted on plot device they didn't really care about. The story simply plucks random and unrelated situations that can lead to explaining an aspect of Okinawan culture. On to this there is a mildest sprinkling of bashful flirting. However, there is absolutely no character development, our MC is a carboard cut out that is a bit dense and gormless, while very amiable, he has no personality. We have never come to know anything of his internal workings, other than the fact that he likes this one girl, but we don'tknow why he likes her.. Is it just physical attraction? Is it because she is a firecracker, brimming with enthusiasm? We have no clue. The rest are the same surface deep interchangeable anybodys. The only relationship we delve into is the one between the childhood friend girls, but even that is only used to reenforce the understanding of the cultural reference. For me, the only character with any real motivation is Yae Agena, who wants to help her friend find love, but again, she must only have about 5 minutes of screentime throughout the entire series. I think my point is proven by the fact that the character with the biggest screentime is the mascot Shiisa that explains the cultural references. In the manga, it is fine, because the reference is usually explained within one panel, but in the anime, the cultural explanations can take over half the episode.

To enjoy this, you really have to fill in so many details yourself, and maybe there is something to the expression of less is more, as your mind does so much of the work, but for me, there are far too many holes for my imagination to fill in the gaping gaps. As for the cultural references... I don't really care for word plays and misunderstandings of the natural history of the island. I am so "meh" I am not here to be educated. The title points to human relationships and romance, not the culture, so we are cheated of our expectations.

Okitsura is probably the most unique anime, It's essentially about an island in Japan called “Okinawa” and it centers around basically a kind of love triangle but never takes the dive to do anything with that and keeps the romance stuff to cute Flustered/Overthinking moments This is normally not the show I'd ever sit down and watch but this still very much impressed me, The animation is surprising fantastic irritatingly me so (Keep in mind this is the same studio that made fucking Berserk 2016, I'm not kidding look it up) The characters are cute, There isn't anything groundbreaking about them they remain in therealm of generic anime characters and somewhat interesting depending on what episode you are currently watching

This anime is also surprisingly educational and might be one of the first animated seriously teach me something aside from the Okinawa traditions, Like having an segment on the “Iriomote cat” which is an endangered species of cat that I shit you not it looks almost indistinguishable from a regular house cat with the only real differences being The “Iriomote cat” eats reptiles like frogs snakes ect

This was a cute little distraction of a show, My ranking for it is a 7/10

This anime is one of those shows you can enjoy without putting too much thought into it—just a cute and wholesome, feel-good romcom. It’s nothing too special or groundbreaking, but it’s still enjoyable for what it is. One of the best things about this anime is its aesthetic and design. It feels like eating an orange under the shower—bright, cheerful, and sparkly. The anime really missed the opportunity to be the perfect summer anime by airing in winter. The romance isn’t very prominent, but it’s definitely there, and you can tell. It has a lot of cute moments, and both heroines really help with that because, goodlord, they’re adorable. Romance aside, this anime also provides lots of fun trivia and facts about Okinawa and its culture. Though some of it is exaggerated, you can still learn something from it.

This anime also makes me feel like I’ve fallen in love with an Okinawan girl because I, too, wish I knew what the heroine was saying. So, just a piece of advice: find a platform that provides a fully translated all the "Uchinaaguchi" to watch this anime, as it can leave you just as confused as the MC.

Overall, it's a great anime to watch if you have some spare time.

A decent anime that people seem to miss the point of. This show is a great way for people who are interested in going to Okinawa (or any of the other Okinawan islands) to learn about the culture and way of life there. After spending the September before this show aired in Ishigaki, I can honestly say that this show gives some good first hand insight into the Okinawan way of life. It is incredibly informative about the local culture, dialect, nature, festivals and other traditions/quirks that differ from mainland Japan. The romance aspect of the show isn't anything particularly amazing and is really just a driving forcein the background to keep the story going along smoothly.

>New guy transfers to the island, girl falls in love with him.

>The transfer student in order to impress the girl therefore learns more about her way of life.

>And therefore we also learn more about her way of life.

In summary.

If you are planning on going to Okinawa or are interested in an in delth look into the culture there.

Then this is the show for you.

If you want teen romance then look somewhere else.

8/10 Does what it set out to do. 😊

A promotional anime for the island of Okinawa that uses romance as a lure to attract more viewers. Okitsura is an anime whose main attraction is short segments dedicated to exploring interesting facts about the small island of Okinawa. This formula, in 12 episodes, never becomes tiresome and works for most of the trivia. It's a story that draws you in interested in the possible romance, and you stay because you generate interest in the facts about Okinawa. While each segment follows a formula of having outsiders ask questions and receive an explanation, the anime often allows itself to be creative. It features many sketches thatare quite funny, with characters portrayed as animals, professionals, and versions of an older Japan. This gives the story a certain level of freshness, so it never feels repetitive. A positive point about the trivia presented is that they are completely understandable to viewers outside of Japan. These aren't such local references that only Japanese audiences can understand. In fact, I'd bet that regardless of the country, Okinawa will remind you of that city or state in your country that's often mocked for its unusual customs.

The anime plays very well with romance clichés to keep you eager for the next episode. Only this ends up being bait to sneak in a new curiosity, leaving you feeling foolish for having fallen for such an obvious deception. The story knows its strengths and tries to exploit them, so it won't pull any punches when it comes to playing with romance fans' expectations. Personally, my favorite segments are where the two main characters have flashbacks to some event from their childhood. The emotional bond between them feels so genuine that their childhood adventures become extremely entertaining, so much so that they may even stir up memories of your own childhood. In fact, if the anime had taken this approach throughout its entire story, it would have had more consistency, because romance bait can be a double-edged sword at the end. Otherwise, the solid friendship they built will always feel beautiful.

Not everything is positive, just as a strong point in many episodes becomes a negative point, which is the trivia itself. Especially in the second half of the anime, you reach a point where you feel like they're running out of fun facts, and they start pointing out anything and everything, hoping the viewer will be interested in things like the material of the pavement or whether iguanas sing in Okinawa. Since each trivia has a dedicated segment, if a fact isn't relevant to you, the segment automatically loses all its value as educational and entertainment material. The supporting cast, while varied, isn't fully utilized. Of the six members of the main group of friends, three are exploited to the last drop, one appears every few segments, and the other two exist as mere decoration. The island has a large number of personalities, but they are sporadic characters who appear once and are never seen again. So if a secondary character catches your attention, hold on to them cherished memories because you'll likely never see them again.

Okitsura is an anime whose entire value lies in its educational and informative material. Obviously, this is a niche anime for people who want to learn about this small territory in a fun way. If you're not interested in cultural, geographical, and historical facts, or are looking for romance, then this story won't be for you. The strongest recommendation I can make is to watch the first episode to learn about the anime's dynamics and see if it convinces you. In the end, one episode is enough to know whether you like it or not.

Okinawa de Suki ni Natta Ko ga Hougen Sugite Tsurasugiru English: The Girl I Like in Okinawa Has Such a Strong Dialect It's Hard to Handle If you’ve ever wanted a crash course in Okinawan culture, complete with a side of awkward teenage romance, then Okinawa de Suki ni Natta Ko ga Hougen Sugite Tsurasugiru might be just what you're looking for. This charming little series weaves the unique dialect and customs of Okinawa into its episodes, making it both an educational and entertaining watch. Plot and Characters: The series is structured as a collection of shorts, each one focusing on the dynamic between three main characters: a boywho harbors a crush on an Okinawan girl, her friend who plays translator and has a crush on him, and the clueless Okinawan girl. The interactions are light-hearted and humorous, centered around the boy’s struggles to understand her dialect, while her friend subtly vies for his attention. It’s a love triangle set against the backdrop of Okinawa’s vibrant culture.

Art and Animation:

One of the standout features of this series is the art. The colors are vivid, and the Okinawan themes are beautifully rendered, capturing the essence of the island’s culture. The animation might not be groundbreaking, but the aesthetic choices elevate the show, making it visually pleasing and a joy to watch.

Pacing and Plot:

The plot itself is pretty simple and, admittedly, slow-paced. It’s more of a slice-of-life than a gripping drama. But that’s part of its charm. It’s the kind of anime you can unwind with, enjoying the gentle humor and cultural tidbits without any high-stakes drama.

Final Thoughts:

Okinawa de Suki ni Natta Ko ga Hougen Sugite Tsurasugiru is a peaceful, slow-paced series perfect for a relaxing watch. While the plot may not be particularly thrilling, the cultural insights and beautiful art make it worth a look. If you’re in the mood for something laid-back and educational with a touch of romance, give this one a try.

Okitsura: Fell in Love with an Okinawan Girl, but I Just Wish I Know What She's Saying Is a very average Rom-Com that is worth a watch. Just to note I will refer to the anime as Okitsura because the title is outrageously long. Okitsura is a very decent Rom com anime, Ill start off with talking about the comedy, The comedy in this anime is average, It's unlikely you will cry laughing or laugh alot at this anime but it certainly does have its moments. But this anime is more so an anime about every day Okinawan life rather than it being a romcom, Alotof the anime is spent experiencing parts of Okinawan culture, like Okinawan myths, Natural disasters ETC, With a side focus on the romantic connection between the male MC and Female MC'S.

Just to state again, The romance in this anime is Sub-Par at best, There is mentions of things like crushes and romantic interest but that is as far as it goes, It's more so like an excuse to make an anime about the culture of Okinawa. Still this anime is very interesting at times learning about all the facts about Okinawa, Like the wildlife, Culture, and day to day events. Everything about this anime has an Okinawan spin to it and it certainly just adds a nice little charm to the anime itself. From what I heard it is very similar to Hokkaido Gals are super cute, so if you liked that anime you probably will like this one aswell.

Now onto the quality stuff. The animation is average but at times the island of Okinawa can look like nice eye candy on the screen. Alot of the time it is very typical anime backdrops, Japanese streets if that makes sense? Its just all very typical so nothing special. The Music itself is also really forgettable, I can't even remember what it sounds like having just finished the show. It's mediocre at best and is easily the worst part of the show itself.

Overall Okitsura is a decent Rom-Com with a focus on Okinawan culture rather than romance itself, It has an OK plot but the main treat lies in the SOL elements of the anime itself. Overall 7/10.

After some manga writer wanted to take Okinawa to the top but without it being noticeable high degree of publicity of telling the conspiracies and culture of Okinawa he read the girl I like speaks Russian and thought what if I hide the publicity with a romantic misunderstandings plus native Okinawan dialect with pretty girls and the result was Okinawa de Suki ni Natta Ko ga Hougen Sugite Tsurasugiru It is not new to see animes that promote a prefecture of Japan generally these anime the quality is varied and I can say that here the problem with the language works generating funny moments but alreadywhen you enter the love triangle the plot fails the interactions become superficial and everything is very long with the generic personalities the typical clueless of love I hope that the girl who wins is Higa, Kana so that the anime could have a decent ending

The chaotic direction of the anime is not saved either from the Dialogues covering the screen, static backgrounds, characters with rough movements and a camera game that is always shaky or with close and far shots to cover the static backgrounds. The only thing they did right was to make a different ED for each chapter, highlighting the theme of the chapter. It is not surprising since the studio in charge is Millepensee, the ones who made Berserk (2016) and after these years and having other projects with 2D, they have not learned from their mistakes.

What will come next: The girl I like is a zombie who only babbles, The girl I like speaks Portuguese, The girl I like speaks a dead language, The girl I like has no language, The girl I like is a Martian who only says bibubobi and The girl I like only speaks Elvish languages

TLDR; Watch this if you're interested in Okinawan culture and don't focus too heavily on the romance aspect, and you might enjoy this. Okitsura is yet another addition to the semi-edutainment style of anime that we've been starting to see pop up over the last few years, but with this one set in Okinawa. The show has surprisingly good animation for what it is and only really falters consistently any time they use CG animation. The main characters are well animated using a sort of Konosuba-esque style with loose and funny shapes for faces during comedic moments and more detailed faces during more serious or focusedmoments. The rest of the supporting cast is also decently drawn and reasonably distinct from one another most of the time, although you'll be hard-pressed to remember anyone's name, unfortunately.

The music is pleasant sounding and feels mostly appropriate to the setting and circumstances. It uses a lot of steel drum and Japanese string instruments to make a nice tropical-Japanese sound. The OP is decent, but I personally preferred the EDs, which occasionally change depending on the plot of the given episode. I preferred the default one personally, which shows the main girls trying to ride a bike as a peaceful song (which sounds like it might've been sung by the girls' VAs) plays in the background.

Unless you're very familiar with Okinawan culture and activities or the source material (which I'm not), it's difficult to tell how well the show does at introducing and explaining the various references and dialect aspects. For what it's worth though, I found the show both informative and somewhat entertaining.

The show gets a little messier from here though. The character and story writing are quite lackluster. The lead character, Teru, in particular, as other reviewers have mentioned, is boring and receives almost no development throughout the show. It's not always clear as to why he's attracted to the "main" girl, Hina, either. The show instead seems to instead spend more time fleshing out the ever-growing romantic feelings of the other main girl, Kana, who acts as a translator for the male lead and the other characters.

Teru, naturally, is meant to be a vessel for the audience, so he's understandably not going to know Okinawan right away, but he never even tries to learn enough Okinawan to be able to talk to his crush himself. Instead, Kana is nearly always around to translate for them. Learning a new language, even a dialect, can be challenging and time-consuming, but the fact that it doesn't seem like he tries to learn much beyond what is translated for him, despite being in love with someone he can barely understand, is disappointing.

What's left are characters whose minimal and confusing development left me disappointed. The show even spends more time info-dumping with the Shisaa mascot than it does developing the lead characters relationship, despite said relationship being the namesake of the show.

The bottom line is, if you can temper your expectations for the romantic subplot and focus on the informative aspects of the show about Okinawa, it's people, and it's culture, you might enjoy this show. If you thought you'd be getting a cute romance on top of that though, you'll be a bit disappointed, unfortunately.

OkiTsura may not be a genre defining work but it manages to perfectly understand what makes a slice of life comedy show enjoyable. Featuring a nice warm (literally in this case) atmosphere and a fun cast of characters with good chemistry, throw in some trivia on a topic most people aren't well versed in and that's really all it takes to make a more than decent show. Luckily, OkiTsura makes sure to elevate these elements to the highest standard it's capable of and it makes for a really enjoyable experience. The show is far more interested in Okinawa than it is about the romance aspectof things. While there are the standard romcom plot fake out developments that you'd expect, they're generally few and far between and it's much more interested in immersing the viewing in the community as a whole rather than string them along with a relationship that isn't going to go anywhere. Okinawa is a highly communal area and this is perfectly reflected in the show. Nameless characters and pedestrians are generally incorporated into scenes and it helps make the whole place feel alive. The core cast may be small, consisting of mostly 3 characters, but the amount of people in the show is extremely large, feeding into a close knit feel good communal bond.

The main characters are great too. Teru isn't actually a standout guy or anything but he manages to serve his purpose well as someone new to the culture and puts himself out there more than most stock self inserts. While Teru does have a crush on Hina, her friendship with Kana is arguably a more important part of the show than his feelings for Hina. As is expected from an anime like this, Teru isn't exactly proactive in his quest for Hina's affection, but instead of dwelling on this fact (as many anime do) the show smartly pivots into broadcasting how close Hina is with her friend Kana. Kana may have a crush on Teru, which could have easily led into a typical love triangle cast but instead the show attributes it equal importance as her friendship with Hina in order to prevent this sort of development. This feeds into the communal closeness mentioned earlier as Hina and Kana are best friends and multiple episodes are dedicated entirely to their past together as a means to strengthen the kinds of people that Okinawans are. This serves the duel purpose of adding to the show's incredibly comfy atmosphere by displaying a more "natural" Okinawa without Teru requiring explanations for everything, as well as elevating the chemistry between Kana and Hina. OkiTsura actively tries to avoid stagnation and instead wants to envelop the viewer in the Okinawan's warmth by presenting as many carefree moments as possible making it an extremely pleasant watch.

OkiTsura also works extremely well at teaching you about Okinawa itself. This might seem silly to point out but there's plenty of shows which gimmicks such as this which abandon the trivia aspects early on, luckily this is not the case here because Okinawa is quite a fascinating place to learn about. Anecdotally, as someone who knows Japanese, hearing the completely different dialects and unique words for things was extremely interesting, I was just as lost as Teru and appreciated Kana's translations (and the Japanese subtitles as well which were a nice touch). Even in the final episode they set out to throw in trivia about the culture, and although around half of it is presented through cutaways rather than natural dialogue it doesn't take away from the overall experience all that much.

OkiTsura's a pretty safe show in general and plays things relatively fast so there aren't that many notable points which detract from the experience but there are two minor ones which show up every now and then. First, this isn't exactly a technically impressive show. Granted, it's a slice of life comedy so expectations aren't high but for the most part the show keeps motion to a minimum and doesn't aim to have too many visually impressive scenes. There are two major instances of CG being used which ends up looking very unpleasant but it's mostly relegated to the background or shorter scenes thankfully. The other is in regard to the romcom tropes mentioned earlier. On one hand, Kana's crush on Teru is done extremely well and a major highlight of the show but on the other Teru's crush on Hina is done as typically as possible. Kana gets away with it because it's often done in tandem with comedy (also she's just really cute) but Teru's advances on Hina end up playing out in a way that seems to only exist to remind the viewer that he has a crush on her. Every single time it ends up going nowhere and by the end of show they feel much more like close friends than someone with unrequited love. Luckily, just as with the less technically impressive moments, this is only a minor part of the show and it spends the bulk of it's runtime on it's strengths of good vibes and comedy instead.

Overall, OkiTsura is a very pleasant show. It came into fruition with a clear plan and understanding of what both works and doesn't work within it's genre. While it doesn't aim too high, it executes exactly what it wants and needs to do perfectly resulting in an extremely fun experience. You'll quickly find yourself fully immersed and having a great time soaking in the Okinawan way of life, and who knows you might end up learning a thing or two.

PREMISE A boy from Tokyo moves to Okinawa and gets into a love triangle. VISUAL/SOUND They do a good job of making it feel like you’re in a place that’s distinctly not mainland Japan. There are more cars driving around, we’re always near the beach, the roads are bigger and straighter, even the sun is different. This is the main thing you should be looking for in an anime about Okinawa and it’s done well, better than a lot of Okinawa vacation specials in other anime so kudos to this show for that. Character designs aren’t bad either: lovers of brown girls willlike what they see and despite everyone having a similar face and simple clothing they do a good job of keeping their distinct appeals in mind. Designated loser Kana in particular is very attractive and the animation director did a great job of keeping her bust size consistent and ideal for a JK to boot.

Voice acting is quite good; Fairouz Ai as Kana in particular is excellent as she always is. Kitou Akari as Kyan shows her range well and manages to really sound like she isn’t from Tokyo which is nice. The BGM heavily reuses a few tracks that aren’t that interesting but they do suit the content well enough. The OP is a very good and has one of the better recent anime dance sequences in it; the ED is just okay.

STORY

There are essentially two stories going on that meet only on occasion: first a high school love triangle that can be cute at times and gives the girls a chance to fawn over the bland male MC but isn’t anything too interesting. It tries hard to bait you into thinking it will have a real ending but this is anime and it of course doesn’t. Second there’s an almost nonfiction story about how Okinawa differs from mainland Japan that is more unique. We get to see local festivals, superstitions, foods, less obvious differences like car-centricity, typhoon perparedness, local chains, strange kanji in names, natural history of local animal species, some things that are hard to believe like people from Okinawa allegedly always swimming with their street clothes on. It’s a change at least.

VERDICT

Pass

Sometimes, an interesting, culturally complex world doesn’t need to be educed from the mind. The islands of Okinawa are strange and fascinating enough to mainland Japanese (and us gaijins) that inspiration can be taken from reality. However, this can be a problem. Be prepared: instead of the standard exposition you’d find in a fictional story, in OkiTsura, you’ll be inundated and interrupted by the overt narration of real-world facts; by subtitles that take up half the screen so poor old Takeshi in Tokyo can understand half the shit people say in this anime. But look at it from a different angle and you may findthese aspects fun and educational.

This is a genuinely hilarious show. Admittedly, the premise is quite gimmicky and the writers really hammer that titular gimmick home, but only for the first few episodes, which is understandable. As the series progresses, the language barrier seems less an opportunity for toddler-level humor than for something educational. The true humor of the anime comes from its sharp and dry delivery of punchlines, the exaggerated reactions to them and the natural eccentricity of the prefecture that forms the base of most jokes. Additionally, there are references here and there to popular anime which caught me off guard and made me chuckle. Finally, the RomCom aspect: it’s neat. Clichéd, but sweet nonetheless. Personally, I don’t care which girl gets with the MC, but if you’re passionate about this sort of stuff, go ahead. There’s enough ammunition (screen time together) supplied, though it does seem to lean heavily in the blonde’s favor.

While it can feel like an ad for the prefecture at times, the anime is informative. We experience Okinawa somewhat vicariously through the MC. But he is so often in a state of culture shock, he may as well be culture paralyzed. What I like, however, is how the shock is felt by both parties. That’s realistic, and it leads to some hilarious situations. Overall, you can feel the fondness and love the author has for his Okinawan experience. I learned a lot over the course of just 12 episodes and no doubt most of those trivia came from personal anecdotes. It’s stuff neither Mr Wikipedia nor Chatbot #253 would know—it’s local knowledge. That’s insightful. And when most new anime seem to be a soulless regurgitation of what’s past, it’s refreshing to see one every now and then that speaks from the heart.

That being said, if you’re expecting some highly emotional and nostalgia-inducing anime—no. This is a wacky, light-hearted RomCom through and through; it just so happens to be educational too. The characters are nice but nothing special. Same goes for the animation, aside from a horrible CG festival. All in all, if you aren’t irked by the vague sense of being tricked into watching a commercial, and are open to learning about potentially useless information on an island you will probably never visit in your life, this is a good watch. Who knows? It’s not fiction. Maybe one day you’ll actually find your way there. And when you’re there, you’ll be ready to flex your whistling and kachaashii skills like a true weeb.

6.5/10 needs more American presence

Man..I was pretty let down by this anime. Although I sincerely do not regret watching it because its a very enjoyable watch, its such a nice, light-hearted anime.The characters are good people and very kind to our MC. MC is a sweetie pie who just wants to understand his crush’s culture so he can bond with her and make Okinawa his home. Hinna is a ray of sunshine who deserves all the happiness in the world. And Higa is also such a sweetheart with a heart of gold. I am just upset that this anime made me fall in love with all of these charactersonly to just sweep the rug out from under me and finish with a typical Harem ending…”And we will never know who he chooses”.

We barely get any progress at all with Hinna and overall Higa’s crush is just kind of like a rock in your shoe. You forget about her in every interaction that Hinna and MC have and suddenly you remember its there only because its annoying you. The lessons this anime teaches are really entertaining and I’m glad I got to learn about such a heartwarming people. But seriously….It would have been so simple to just let the textile scene lead to a confession and settle it right there. There was more chemistry between MC and Higa’s grandma than with Higa herself. Higa was just crushing on him for the sake of it. I wish they would have respected MC’s intentions from the beginning and built on that rather than trying to shove MCxHiga down our throats.

Good watch if you wanna watch something light-hearted and pretty and are curious about Japan culture. It’s not a bad watch for romance fans as long as you don’t care for a satisfying ending and are just interested in seeing some cute interactions.

Another great show. It was a great watch, though I have to say I wouldn't call it romance. It was definitely cute and wholesome, but most of the episodes were just fun facts about Okinawa and the folk role or how it goes there. As for the romance, I wouldn't call it romance much because it was more focused on culture of Okinawa than your casual romance anime and seeing how it played out, Kana should be the one instead of Hina seeing how the romance mostly happened even slightly forward between them than Hina. As for whether to watch or not, this felt more like talkingabout Okinawa in general without much story to progress, romance was slight, but there were scenes for sure. Definitely worth a watch for fun but don't go expecting your usual romance moments or progress.