Paripi Koumei

( Spoilers here ) I started this anime because nothing in the season was catching my attention, and as one of music fan i gave it a try and i didnt regret it. Probably this is my 2nd favorite show of the season and the most beautiful one. "Be crazy for me, make me shine one of you" The first thing who got me into this show and it really made me shine, Eiko's first appearance was an absolute banger to me and made me feel with high expectations about this, all episodes had their part of drama and comedy, happiness and sadness, that made them perfect in their own way... Every time a new episode came out i instantly went watching and after that i felt so mad because the "next episode" button has dissapeared. "Paripi Koumei" or "Ya Boy Kongming" is a hidden gem and a pretty underrated anime. [ Story ] • 8/10 Zhuge Liang, aka Kongming, was a military strategist during China's three kingdom period who was reincarnated to modern days at Japan. After his reincarnation he went to a club called BB Lounge, where he falls in love with a music by a certain Eiko. After enchanted by the voice he decides to help her to achieve her dreams to become a sucessful singer becoming her "tactician". His complex plans used in the past are transformed and used in the present day to eventually achieve Eiko's goals making Eiko take the first step and get her to sing at bigger festivals and consequently win the chance to play at Summer Sonia. [ Characters ] • 9/10 Each character is unique in this show, everyone with their problems or their unhappiness but who manage to move on with a happy face. Kongming is a tremendously smart guy who can create and use plans for all sorts of situations, thinking of all the alternatives that can be called "unforeseen" that can decrease the chance of success. He used to be a military strategist but there was an incident where he lost his life, after that he was reincarnated in modern days in Japan where he heard a song that was enchanted, thus having the desire to help the singer fulfill her dreams. Eiko, our other main character, who was born from a difficult family, tried to commit suicide in highschool and because of that she was saved by Kobayashi who took her to the BB Lounge where she met her passion for music. Kobayashi the owner of BB Lounge, he is a Three Kingdoms fanatic and because of that he decided to hire Kongming who said he would help Eiko to achieve her goals. Kawabe, a retired freestyle rapper who has throat issues and becomes a duo with Eiko thanks to Kongming. Last important character is Nanami, Eiko's best friend and also her biggest rival. [ Art/Animation ] • 10/10 The characters have vibrant and beautiful colors that make a wonderful highlight in the background, and the animation itself is so smooth and cleanclean. For most people can be just a simple art and animation but for me all the details together gave a lively atmosphere and a wonderful view for those watching. [ Sound ] • 10/10 Well, like a good music show the sound needs to be perfect, and yes, in paripi koumei the expectations are exceeded, Eiko's voice made me goosebumps every time she sang, any song in the show was perfect and when i first heard the op i immediately opened spotify and searched for the song because my friends, it was an absolute banger, its an unique op that shine in every way. [ Overall ] • 9/10 I enjoyed so much every episode and highly recommend to give a try to Paripi Koumei, definitely top 3 this season, if u enjoy music anime then you will like it. I hope Eiko made you shine like she did to me.

This show was incredibly unusual. Honestly when I first heard of it, it looked hella weird. I wasn't able to take it seriously, it looked like a comedy show without any seriousness in it. But when I saw how much love this show gets more than one time. I gave up and give it a try... And I am out of words. It was so enjoyable. All 12 episodes passed real quick despite it taking a week of endurance for every episode. Every episode was like 5 minutes for me. I want more of it. Comedy is a big factor in it it's not a lie, but this show has more than that. It tries to make you smile, it tries to make you feel. Honestly, I never saw a show with this much energy in it. This is the power of music I guess, and the music in the show is really strong I would say. Every episode contains loud and beautiful songs that pull you into the screen. I would say the only bad side of this show is the unsatisfaction feeling of having just 12 episodes to watch.

Okay, this anime caught me off guard with how good it is. I wasn't expecting anything out of ordinary but this really got me to the core. I'm not someone who's much into the musical genre but this was genuinely interesting and fun to watch. I really liked the music, the characters, the world setting, and the narrative. Kongming is just a flawless example of a good character design. Loved his character and strategies throughout the series. The character development of Eiko and Kabe-taijin was also very well done. Overall, a must-watch for most people. Just as how it's said in the anime, music has the power to bring everyone together.

To be honest I was kinda sceptical when I read the synopsis and saw the picture to the show on MyAnimeList. But all those great ratings made me watch it when the anime neared its end and I totally don't regret watching it! TL;DR: at the bottom of the review! The story used this established "isekai" background, but in a much more enjoyable, funny and most of all different way than those classic "a normal guy/girl is brought to a fantasy world", it's the opposite! And what's more interesting is, that the main character is indeed Koumei, the character from another time, but the spotlight is on Eiko! So you could say that Koumei is the reason things went the ways it went, but he always acted in the background what kept this anime interesting and didn't became too focused on the part that he's from another world. The story developed smoothly in those small 12 episodes, enough to get hooked on, especially after 2 episodes I really wanted to see how everything will resolve! Story: 8/10 The art style was enjoyable, nothing special, but I have to say that those performances were really well done without going overboard and those colors looked vibrant which gave the show an overall lively vibe throughout the show. Every character looked unique without getting out of line with crazy hair etc. (exception is of course Koumei). Art: 8/10 The sound, of course, what would that show be without THE SOUND! The voice actors, song writers and singers did a fantastic job on this one! I totally dig every song (even though I'm not on that hype train on the OP) and crave for more like the song in the last episode! That got me some goosebums, but of course it's because of that whole presentation: animation, story behind that, the climax, etc. Sound: 9/10 I said a bit to the characters already, but I really love those small background stories and how they were conveyed, like they were smaller stories accompanying one main story. Especially Kabe Taijin was so relatable and the character itself was overall well done, those rap battles were awesome! Eiko was a character I completely cheered for, she's full of energy, has lots of experience and was only missing two things to get to higher places (which I won't explain in detail because that would be small spoilers) and therefore slowly became what she wished for once those things there established. I really like this detail how her singing and music overall develops, even though I would've loved it if they would've put more empathy into her development instead of making those jumps in a few episodes. I struggled with the rating of the characters. I wanted to give it a solid 8, but I enjoyed every one of them, different fates, how they struggled and how they all resolved in their own way. And since those characters aren't too complex or too dark for this type of show they were portrayed the exact right way they have to be, even though there's still some (small) room for improvement! But then again, 12 episodes, what do you expect?! The overall pacing was perfect so don't get too greedy! Character: 9/10 I enjoyed this show a lot, almost too much! I started watching yesterday and watched 10 episodes in one swoop, I couldn't stop wondering what happens next and wanted to hear more songs and how the songstress will develop. How far will they go? How far will they reach? What I enjoyed the most besides the performances was how everything fell in place when Koumei did his magic work again and again! The fact, that the writer thought about using war strategies in a modern world was super interesting in itself! The climax in the end gave me everything I wanted from the show. It isn't as exciting as an action / drama show, but that doesn't have to be! Enjoyment: 9/10 Overall I'll give the show a strong 8! As I'm writing the review right now I jumped several times between 9 and 8, because for me it is a 9 just for enjoyment! And enjoyment is the most important part in my eyes! BUT: I've seen a lot of anime and if I have to compare it with another show that's kinda similar, let's say "Vivy: Fluorite Eye's Song" I'd rather prefer Vivy, because it told its story in a very beautiful way while the approach here is very straight forward! And I already gave Vivy a weak 9 so it's only fair and reflected to give this anime a (very) strong 8. People like me tend to give higher scores after they finished a good show which is why I have to compare to other ratings I've done in the last years. TL;DR: Don't be shy, give this show a nice try if you like music and its business, an overall solid story, relatable characters and a nice presentation throughout the show! After 2 episodes you'll know what you'll can expect from the other 10 episodes!

Once in a blue moon you come upon an anime that makes you think "This sounds so stupid, there's no way this can be good". Animes like Spice and Wolf with it's grand story of "merchant travels with a godess and does economics stuff". But then you give them a watch and... it just works. You don't know why or how this stupid, boring setting just does everything you want it to, but it does. This is one of these animes. A reverse Isekai about some old time war tactician being reborn in modern Shibuya to produce a singer? Stupid. But Kongming and Eiko have such a charming back-and-forth that first episode that you give it another go. Then the opening kicks in and then you know this is it. This anime works. Obviously, as an anime all about music the sound design is amazing, the characters are quirky in a charming way, that makes them so outlandish that they are likeable right away. The story follows much the same way, being so stupid that it just makes it FUN. This anime isn't deep or serious and it's not trying to be. While it does have one or two more serious moments, it's clear that the focus on the story is just to entertain and spread some good vibes. And it does accomplish exactly what it sets out to be. Three Kingdoms Tactician Zhuge Liang aka Kongming treating the production of Eiko as the same as the wars he used to wage and recreating the tactics he used to win deceisive battles throughout his real-life legend are nice nods. Indeed there is quote a number of "easter eggs" for those who are knowledgeable about the legends of Zhuge Liang, but no knowledge is required to enjoy the simple, underlieing story of this anime. If you want to complain about something, it's probably that the animations can be a bit wonky at times. It's pretty clear that the budget for art and animations for this anime were on the lower end, although the quality does ramp-up towards the final few episodes. All in all, it's hard to pin down why exactly this anime is as amazing as it is, apart from having the best opening of the season, and maybe even one of the best openings in anime as a while. But it's definitely worth the time. And I sure hope that a second season will be on it's way soon. It's one of the best anime of 2022, hands down.

Romance of the Music Industry. Ya Boy Kongming is one of the most unique music anime I’ve seen in a while. Well… that’s not quite true, I did watch Vivy: Fluortie Eye’s Song if you count a year as ‘not very long ago’ but, Vivy is a very different 10/10 to Kongming. The story of one of the most famous tacticians from the Three Kingdoms period of third-century China reincarnating into modern-day Tokyo and using his war tactics in the music industry by becoming a music manager to the ganki best girl, SMOKING HOT aspiring musical artist Eiko is genius. The show is very funny, surprisingly deep, has some banging music which I can’t stop listening too (that ED song though) all whilst it delivers sharp satire of the music industry, the back stabbing artists who uses less known artists as stepping stones and the corporate meddling agencies do to take unique music talents and bend them into something more “mainstream”. The team at studio P.A. Works did an amazing job on the animation. Not only does the anime look gorgeous, the actual music (guitar, drums, singing) is animated without short cuts and it looks amazing and it perfectly conveys the raw passion of the starving, inspiring artist which, as a musician myself hits so close to home. I seriously love watching animated instruments being played properly and the scene in the first episode of Eiko sat in her room playing the guitar and singing to Kongming genuinely gave me goosebumps. The characters are also all amazing. Kongming is always polite and respectful to others to a fault and the way the story integrates his victorious, three kingdoms war strategy’s to manipulate the music scene is genuinely fascinating. Eiko is so sweet, pure and wholesome whilst, unlike some waifu’s still having a likeable and complex personality *cough* *Shikimori-san* *cough* (as well as being smoking hot) that I would happily give up all of my worldly possessions for her and will fight anyone who lays a finger on her legs… sorry, what were we talking about? Honestly, if you haven’t watched this show then I implore you, please watch it. I swear you won’t regret it. This is one of though show where I will riot if it doesn’t get a second season so if there is one show you should be watching this season it Ya Boy Kongming… and Spy X Family… and Kaguya-sama… oh, and Dance Dance Danseur… and the second half of Komi Can’t Communicate, WHY IS THIS SEASON SO STACKED??? 10/10 Practically Perfect.

Paripi Koumei is one of those hidden gems that only some people have watched, but I'm sure that as time goes on, it'll get the attention it deserves. STORY: 8 The story revolves around Eiko, a girl who wants to become a singer, and the famous tactician Kongming. He's reborn in our era and he decides to help Eiko in her journey by using all sorts of tecniques invented by him in his other life. ART: 7 The art is good and the characters are nice but overall, nothing special. SOUND: 9 Probably the most important thing about this show, the music is really good, and I'm not talking about the OP and the ED (Both amazing), I'm talking about the songs in the show itself. There are rap battles and other really good songs. The ones that Eiko sings are kinda repetitive after some time but overall there's a good amount of songs. CHARACTER: 8 In this season the story revolves around Eiko, Kabe and Nanami. They all get a nice amount of screentime and we get to see their story and problems. We don't see much about Kongming though, I mean, after some episodes he looks like a supporting character and not a main one. We still see all of his tecniques but he spends less time on the screen. ENJOYMENT: 8 Overall, it's a pretty good show, especially the last two episodes. It's not a "musical" but a story about music. They don't start singing at random moments like in Disney movies and that's probably why I liked it when I first saw it. I honestly hope that we'll get a season 2, because the story isn't over yet and I'm interested to see how's it gonna continue. Well, the las thing that I can say is that you should give it a try, even if the music genre isn't your favourite there's surely something you'll like.

I had always been a fan of RoTK ever since I was a kid, and having consumed so much media related to RoTK over the years, everything from live action dramas to games to anime, you get the sense that the stories and its characters are all overdone, and that there is nothing new to explore with regards to the series. So, believe me when I was Paripi Koumei is the freshest take I've seen on RoTK in a long long while that doesn't stray too far from RoTK while being a uniquely original experience. Paripi Koumei is practically a reverse Isekai (or pretty much entirely is one considering how much of RoTK is Shu Propaganda/fiction), with Koumei himself (funnily enough voiced by the same guy who did Sima Yi in Dynasty Warriors) being a music producer in modern day Shibuya. After the obligatory Isekai Culture Shock gags, the show quickly and surprisingly gets into a comfortable groove with Koumei being this suave and savvy music producer to the real MC, Eiko. Eiko is just so adorable, and, in a season with so many great MCs, stands out as the cutest of them all. You can really get a sense that even the animation staff had fun animating her as even the in-between frames show a lot of effort being put into making her just so squishy and adorable, what with the exaggerated expressions and heart mouths and all. Koumei himself is no slouch either, though his genius does occasionally veer too close into "reading the script" territory. A lot of his strategems are based off of the famous sequences from the original RoTK, reinterpreted in a modern day sense. And it's usually fun to see how the series reinterprets these moments to fit in within the setting. However, as fun it is to see Koumei work his way through these situations with his unimaginable intellect/script-knowledge, his relevance becomes surprisingly minor come the second half once the Summer Sonia arc starts. And his (relative) absence is sorely felt as nearly every episode in the second half I find myself saying "Where's Koumei?". To be honest I'm not all that into the music, especially not that awful rap. The OP and ED are incredible and some of the best this season, but the insert songs just don't grab my attention like they should, despite Eiko and Nanamin supposedly being these wonderful divas, their songs are somewhere in the realm of mediocrity for the most part. And oh speaking of rap, why oh why does Kabetaijin get so much prominence in this. He's easily the weakest link of the bunch and his raps are just terrible. Paripi Koumei has been a fun show, though it is definitely much stronger whenever Koumei is onscreen. While Eiko's journey to the top is certainly nothing new or special, Eiko being such a lovable character definitely made the show for me, even if her songs ultimately never won me over as they did for Koumei. 7/10

I believe that this is the best anime of the season, interactions between characters felt really genuine and it managed to hit me with emotions where other shows can rarely manage to do that. Comedy was great and overall the show was quite unique, the mangaka wasn't scared to innovate instead of just going with what works and they managed to portray it well in the anime. Music throughout the 12 episodes was amazing, in like 95% of anime i skip opening/ending while Paripi Koumei managed to draw my attention and get me to listen to it every time and they put enough effort that they changed it as the story progressed and added characters so that it felt like you'd miss out on something if you skipped opening.

There is a reason why we all watch Anime. That given some disposable time we choose to watch anime, and not western TV shows. It doesn't matter what it exactly is for you, or how specific that reason might be - Kongming embodies that spirit of anime uniqueness so strongly that it rises above any differences in that regard, and reminds us why we choose to spend our time watching this medium, and care deeply enough to read a review of a Japaneese cartoon on a website called "MyAnimeList". "What do you mean SussyJack? Surely there must have been some reverse isekai stories done in traditional western works of culture, right? So how can it be so unique?" I'm so glad you asked. Yes, you certainly are right. Some even achieved a "cult classic" status, like "Les Visiteurs". And there indeed have been numerous others. So what do I mean by all of this? What is the difference? The difference is how the premise of reverse isekai is executed. In EVERY SINGLE OTHER WORK, the entire storytelling axis of the movie/tv show hinges on the heroes of the story being portrayed as bumbling idiots who are unfamiliar with the modern world, and "hilarious antics ensuing": "hey, look, he went to the bathroom, and he doesn't know how to use a toilet...!!! HAHAHAHHAHA LOOLOLOLOLOLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL" "haha, he was told to contact this guy, but he doesn't know how to use a telephone!!!111111 XDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD" Fuck off. This is maybe one level above literal no-context potty humor, and is the entire identity of all western reverse isekai stories. In Kongming, this entire axis of storytelling gets disposed of in THIRTY SECONDS, in a scene that is very humorous (like, actually humorous) to boot, the scene where he keeps asking Eiko questions, and finally asks about the Blockchain and she gets cutely anime-angry, lol. What instead is Kongming's identity is a mature story about pursuing your dreams, overcoming obstacles, complicated friend/rival relationships with conflicting motivations, all dipped in a sauce of Kongming shenanigans and Three Kingdom references. This perfectly encapsulates what in my opinion is the essence of anime - the juxtaposition of a medium that is deemed to be "childish" and writing that oftentimes is more mature than "normal" movies/tv, and thanks to the perceived lightness of the medium can tackle some themes head on, without constant "hehe we're totally doing this ironically wink wink" signalling. This is something that you will not find anywhere else, and is the reason why we're all gathered here today. For an anime to be "eligible" for a 10/10 from me, it needs to basically satisfy 2 conditions: It has to have a very high quality throughout with no obvious, glaring drawbacks (like the excruciatingly slow start in Steins gate or existence of Zenitsu), and in addition to the very high quality throughout it needs to have at least one element that is head and shoulders above the average seen in anime. In my opinion, Kongming has 3 such elements: 1. Mindblowing premise and its execution (went over that above) 2. Mindblowing opening number that is a shoehorn for best OP for the year, it singlehandedly forced a situation where the only relevant question in this category for the rest of 2022 is "is this OP better than Chitty Chitty Bang Bang?" 3. Mindblowingly good technical aspects of writing (more on that below) What I mean by technical aspects of writing? So you know how sometimes you can see that the author had a list of events/plot points in mind, and while on their own they might be fine, good even, they are crudely stiched together with no regard for the transition quality, whether this destroys the show's pacing or character's motivations/development up until now and such. One example of this would be the infamous Annie eating cake scene from Attack on Titan - where the author clearly had two plot points in mind - Eren becoming the Founder/the whole fight on the island and the rest of the squad forming Avengers to stop him, and paid no mind to how a transition between these "arcs" looks like, how it goes completely against the tone and characters up until that point, just rushed it out in order to get to the action scenes. In Kongming, every such aspect is a 10 out of 10 perfection. Some quick examples of what I mean: - Everything about Nanami, like the way she looks/is drawn, how she speaks, how the VA plays her etc. screams that Azalea and the produced image "is not her", so her being dissatisfied with it doesn't come off as a forced storyline just to make her join eiko or quit Azalea or whatever, but as a very natural consequence of what she wants to do, what plans she has for her musical future and such. Many storylines in many animes where the temporary antagonist in the end joins the protag feel so awfully shoehorned, like somebody hammered a square into a circle-shaped hole just because it is a plot point the author envisioned, but here it makes perfect sense, you don't even question it once. - The Key Time manager (Karasawa) is not a caricaturally guy but just a normal music business producer/"operator" who prioritizes making a profit. He isn't viciously exploiting 3 innocent girls because they mistakenly signed a contract or some shit, but that they went into this to escape the rut they were in - that way there is major tension in the story between their pure desires vs them coming to like the new reality of money and fame (at least the other 2). - The first half of the show had a procedural, "case of the week" feel to it (it is not inherently bad by any stretch, just stating a fact) - where they go up against a singer/musician, kongming employs an elaborate strategy, and they manage to win against all odds. Then the show went into a buildup mode without any cases of the week, which prevented the pacing of the show from being formulaic and makes sure the episodes are not necessarily always "self-contained-arcs" with little-to-no carryover. But after a few episodes of that some more adhd-inclined watchers could be a bit worried about the slower pace maybe? So the show included a "timeskip" of 7 days at the end of ep 8, showing that the pace will be picking up next time, instantly alleviating these concerns. This "pacing yoyo" masterfully differentiated the tempo of the story, preventing it from becoming stale. - Sometimes when the VA's cannot pull off a strong enough musical performance, the producers bring in singing voice doubles, but when this is not previously foreshadowed in any way at all (one example which comes to mind is the concert at the cultural festival in My Hero Academia), this takes you out of the immersion, that you feel a distinct "transition" from episode as normal -> big performance -> rest of the episode. Here, Nanami and Eiko just had singing doubles the entire time, which was absolutely the correct decision - you get used to it on episode 1, so there are no surprised down the road, and not to forget that they are supposed to basically shift the mood of anybody who listens to them on command, so bringing in top singer talent was completely warranted here. And there is literally not a single, even smallest cog in the whole story/show like the ones I've listed above that is not completely natural, that doesn't make perfect sense given the tone of the plot and setting, and which is not absolutely perfect. Some dare I say less in-depth reviews tend to be limited to a simple list of pros and cons. I rejected writing a review in such a format from the outset, but then I had this realization - if I HAD to, what would I even include in the cons list? I tried to come up with some "possibles" and, well, pretty much failed. - The fact that they only sang one song during Eiko's, gigantic airquotes, "training montage" and didn't add any others? That was done on purpose, to "show not tell" her progress by having us hear the difference between first renditions of "I'm still alive today" and the rooftop performanc…

Paripi Koumei is an interesting anime that takes the typical formula of 'reincarnation' to a whole new level and makes it 10 times better than it's usual counterparts. In the last 4 episodes this anime has surprised me not only in terms of character development but also in personality change as well of the main protagonist, otherwise known as Kongming. The animation and artwork is really good, but not great at some times when they have to used unnecessary 3d for rotation of the characters in this show. Otherwise everything else is great except for this aspect. The music is really lively and does make you feel like you are in Tokyo which is a very rare thing to do. The character interactions in this show are top-notch and Kongming is really developing his relationships with other people regardless of what they look like and where they came from. We can clearly see how the characters grow through their insecurities and problems even for the “perfect” Kongming that is so wonderful to watch. His ideologies of being a strict General ordering people to kill but in his new life he learns about the modern stuff that exist in Japan and absolutely gets along with these ideals. As for the development of Eiko and Kabetaijin their growth was wonderful, and I always love it when our protagonist influence their rivals and friends to become a better person, that’s always a treat. I am really enjoying the show for what it is and how every character can co-operate to the main MC despite the deeds he may have done in the past. Paripi Koumei is a great anime and i recommend this show to those who want to see a change in life (but not only be Reborn like Kongming did in this show) but also change the way you view things in nature forthcoming towards the future. "Trust me this is not another typical reborn show my friend" “I have done a lot of bad things in my life whilst being a general Before I am about to die I wish to reborn into a world filled of peace and not anger. I want to be a changed man I want to change the way I see things in life Please God please I beg of you Dies*” Last Words Of Kongming, "The Great General Of Three Kingdoms" Solid 8.25/10 show.

There is nothing more important than your dreams. That is what Paripi Koumei tells us about. Paripi Koumei is a brilliant story of one eccentric Chinese strategist reincarnated into modern day Japan. Meeting the brilliant Eiko, he uses his military prowess to share the world of EIKO around Japan. The story is an odd story, not alike another fantasy. But it's not a fantasy, it's a "reverse-isekai" of brilliant proportions. Going from being unknown to a massive sensation is something that is another basic trope, but the execution here is fun and exciting. There's so much excitement following Eiko, as well as the run-ins of Kabetaijin and Azalea along the way, with Kongming basically being the ultimate hypeman/advisor/mastermind. This anime is so beatutiful. The artwork is so pretty, and everything you see just looks amazing watching it. It's amazing how good the artwork in this anime is, and coupled with a brilliant story and its amazing characters, it brings out everything and everyone on screen. As a music anime, of course it has excellent music. The score of modern-day intertwined with traditional Chinese music makes this brilliant fantasy story feel surreal yet amazing. And the music itself, with the singing of the angelic EIKO, the rapping of Kabetaijin, and the voices of Azalea and Nanami are just something that is done extremely well. This truly is 11/10 music material. Plus, the opening and ending themes go super hard. The characters of this anime is amazing. Kongming is a brilliant OP character who somehow is both funny but not ridiculous (well maybe sometimes). Kongming's personality and his intelligence doesn't just make him great, but the fact that he isn't over the top means that he isn't some lame annoying character, but a character that feels like both a background and a main character, since he is able to bring out the real stars of the show, Eiko. Eiko is the shining light of youth, and her determination to go from nothing to going huge, with Kongming's advice is nothing short of amazing. She is the real star, but it's also clear that they are a very dynamic duo. Kabetaijin, Nanami, the owner, and many others are also so important, and they don't feel like they've been shoe-horned in, but instead feel like they've always been there as a proper part of the world. This series was just so great to watch. From the excitement of the music, to the twists in the story, it's nothing short of brilliant how enjoyable it was. The artwork and the music and the plot and the characters all work so well, and none of it overpowers each other, but rather enhances it as a whole. Overall, Paripi Koumei is not just another music anime, but a music anime that somehow doesn't take itself seriously, but also takes itself seriously. It's a very cohesive anime about finding dreams, and is truly inspiring to watch Eiko Tsukimi follow her dreams (and trust a guy from the Three Kingdoms period in China) become the star that is EIKO.

Tl;Dr: A refreshing reversal of the isekai genre, "Paripi Koumei" is reincarnation done right. Neatly juggling elements of music and Chinese history, this reverse-isekai earnestly makes a connection almost no one knew they wanted. The mastermind MC and his ensemble cast are gifted with solid character writing. Superb strategies and comedy ensure that the viewing experience is an absolute delight to follow. The importance of "Koumei's" infectious fun cannot be understated. This series is a certified Chitty Chitty Bang Bang-er. 7/10~ *** "Me meeting Kong Ming is like fish meeting water." - Source: Liu Bei, "Records of the Three Kingdoms" "Ya boi loves 'Ya Boi'." - Source: Trust Me Bro "Paripi Koumei" strikes me as a show whose ideas were picked out of a hat. If DALL·E 2 and other A.I. programmes are currently defining what's possible when leaving humans out of the creative process, we'd still be light years away from whatever the heck this show is supposed to be. "Koumei's" premise somehow feels more random than random, and I mean that in the very best way. Even as a skeptic who had his reservations going into the series premiere, it didn't take long for me to get hit with "Koumei's" infectious appeal. Make no mistake: "Koumei" is greater than the sum of its parts, with an arrangement as crazy as it is carefully calibrated to leave its audience grinning from start to finish. For anyone as unconvinced as I once was, join me in attempting to understand this underdog story. This review is spoiler-free, with a Tl;Dr below. Without further ado, let's jam. Full disclosure, I think getting through this show's synopsis is the toughest part about liking "Koumei". When coming across it for the first time I suffered a mild stroke, or at least some approximation of the malady that befalls MC. Zhuge Kongming, Imperial Chancellor of Shu Han, is introduced fighting against an illness, whilst his soldiers prepare for their own battle against an army in hot pursuit. Loyal statesman and strategist, Kongming found that his nation-building ambitions would outlast his physical body. Historical ambiguity aside, this fictional iteration of the figure laments letting down his Emperor: the late Liu Bei, who dreamed of ending the war under the unifying cause of peace. Dreaming of a reality where such peace exists, Kongming bids farewell to 3rd-Century China and finds himself in the afterlife, which sure as hell bears striking resemblance to a Halloween costume party in modern-day Shibuya, Japan. That night he stumbles upon a nightclub and its part-time performer Eiko, who captivates the reincarnated strategist through song. Eiko's passion has yet to get her music career off the ground, but Kongming is convinced of her abilities… and offers to be her talent manager… with the hope of "bringing peace to the world." Granted, we are talking about anime here, where the threshold for weirdness gets absolutely shattered on a seasonal basis. That being said, I initially wasn't prepared for the apparent incompatibility of "Koumei's" weird premise: a military mastermind from ancient China striving for world peace by booking live gigs for a small-time nightclub act. What I also didn't account for was how everything would come together really well. "Koumei" has a game plan, named "Authenticity." It comes in four steps, and can be understood through the "Thirty-Six Stratagems," a series of tactics Kongming frequently references in the anime. Let's take a page out of his playbook and figure out what makes "Koumei" work! Borrow a corpse to resurrect the soul (借屍還魂). --- Revive something from the past by giving it a new purpose, or reinterpret it to your advantage. Taking this proverb to a rather literal extreme, "Koumei's" awesome application of this strategy comes from its reincarnated "corpse" (husbando) MC. With the wit to match the might of a thousand 2D men, Kongming hard-carries "Koumei". He's always a treat to see on-screen. As expected, there are laughs to be had at the befuddled boomer's expense as he discovers how the blockchain works, but there's more to the character than these comedic juxtapositions. By remaining one step ahead of viewers, Kongming constantly demonstrates how well-thought-out he is, as audiences attempt to wrap their heads around his various motives and plans. On top of his smarts, Kongming also carries a diplomat's grace and respectable virtue when interacting with other cast members. Finally, it's clear that the guy's having a fun blast in the 21st Century, with the willing resolve to put himself out there and try out new things. All these attributes make for a well-defined and distinct protagonist who's a joy to watch. Thanks to these great ingredients, authenticity flows freely from Kongming, as this engaging enigma trades self-insert tropes for well-defined quirks that all feel purposeful as a fictional reinterpretation of this historical figure, who's a strong contender for my Best Boi of 2022. Admittedly, my fondness for this refreshing character partly stems from my biased distaste for the sea of dull, interchangeable MC archetypes courtesy of isekai & LN trends. So for those who do find themselves content with these mainstream conditions (which is perfectly OK,) maybe Kongming's appeal isn't gonna resonate as strongly with you as it did me. But the story doesn't end here, because the authenticity of "Koumei's" MC extends to the series as a whole. Lure the tiger out of the mountains (调虎离山) --- It is always wise to bring your competition out of a situation that favors him, to a position that favors you. This strategy states the importance of home-ground advantage when getting the drop on the opp. In storytelling, getting viewers to ask questions can reliably increase interest in a story, as opposed to playing it safe in familiar "tropey" territory. Due to the novelty of its unusual premise, "Koumei" hits the ground running in this regard, by limiting the audience's ability to anticipate what will happen next. Presumably like most people, I don't really know what shows I could reasonably compare "Koumei" with. Thankfully, the series' moving parts click in a way that's both fresh and satisfying. Early plotlines in "Koumei" revolve around our lead protagonist's mind games as a manager maestro. Kongming is tasked with giving Eiko the exposure she deserves. With limited promotional resources at hand, he is forced to square-up against more-established talent groups for audience engagement. Our tactician's goal involves beating the underdog's odds and employing creative methods of drawing crowds, so that Eiko can work her magic. The writing makes these unpredictable encounters satisfying to piece together, and rarely slows down. The strategic schemes our mastermind employs grow in complexity and scope to match the exponentially-rising trajectory of Eiko's career. Fun curveballs and detours incrementally throw us off the show's scent, thereby keeping us guessing on our toes. "Koumei" carefully drip-feeds answers on its own terms, leaving viewers hooked. Questions create intrigue and interest. And boi, does "Ya Boi" have some odd interests. Take the opportunity to pilfer a goat (順手牽羊) --- While carrying out one's plans, be flexible enough to take advantage of any opportunity that presents itself, however small. Ever the opportunistic comedy, "Koumei" makes the most out of its unusual premise. While the previous proverb is about getting the audience to ask questions, this step emphasizes the need for a story to provide answers. And here was my million dollar question: "In a story about a music manager, what can Zhuge Kongming and his time period bring to the table?" My big gripe prior to starting the show was with why the show would structure itself around such strangely specific subject matter. Despite going into "Koumei" without any knowledge of Chinese history, I now come away convinced that this is a good creative decision. The series regula…

As someone who normally has problems watching ongoing anime, may it be tedious or agonizing to watch, which I am still doing now, but my own curiosity would reinvigorate me to try something new, interesting, or never seen before. When I first heard about a random anime called ‘Paripi Koumei’ in anime news, I assumed that it would be a bad anime, normally because the premise felt bizarre and unconvincing, believing it to be a mess. So, I avoided it, judging it to be terrible and unworthy of my attention. What’s hilarious is how it took 4 episodes for me to finally start watching it and boy, have I never been so wrong. ‘Never judge a book by its cover.’ Paripi Koumei never was part of my watch plan, as I already had plenty of others to watch, Heroine Tarumono! Kiraware Heroine to Naisho no Oshigoto, Skeleton Knight in Another World and even dumb Komi-san can’t Communicate. What exactly happened was that I got real curious about it after I took a look at other anime besides the ones I’m watching this season. I shouldn’t be beating around the bush, about the anime, it’s really well done. Its bizarre premise is about Kongming, an incredible tactician that originally came from The Three Kingdoms and decides to help a depressed girl named Eiko who took music as her last resort of living after just randomly stumbling into a local nightclub. What had me hooked on it was how well it was executed, establishing dynamic character chemistry and interesting strategies being implemented into the plans of garnering attention to Eiko, the uprising underdog of the music industry with her beautiful voice, as Kongming states. In a way, an underdog story had me invested in what it had to offer. It’s quite amusing to see Paripi Koumei getting attention as more episodes came along, eventually becoming one of the better shows of this Spring. The thing is that it’s a reverse isekai, which many of its predecessors have done and added their twists to it. The twist here is that unlike The Devil is a Part-Timer, this one is dozen times better than it and has good music. In every episode, the main heroine, Eiko would always encounter obstacles on her way to stardom. After that, it becomes Kongming’s job to carve an effective way for Eiko to overcome it, while Kongming does his job to create havoc amongst the audience and focus their attention on Eiko, so that she can win the hearts of her audience, earning her fans. The story does try to vary, with instead, Eiko having to go outside and find herself by travelling somewhere a bit different from her own zone, introducing another character to the picture. Though, its formulaic approach done with effective execution and lovable characters made the story worth watching. Now, I would be lying if Paripi Koumei didn’t have some flaws. Despite the dynamic chemistry between the characters, the detail put into most of the characters are simplistic and fictional, while they go through obstacles which is inevitably true, their dialogues, motivations, and actions are of a generic protagonist. I won’t deny that the characters are properly conveyed through their way of weaving through obstacles, but we need to look back. Randomly does something that soothes the heart of its target? Check. Has one character originally saying no but decided to come back and do it anyway? Check. A dramatic plot twist where a random stranger so happens to be their opponent? Check. The simple things that happened in this story are predictable and easy to follow. But I’m not here to say that the anime is crap. With the simplistic characters, how are they still worth the attention? Clearly the voice acting is the solution, making them a lot of fun to watch because it was great watching the characters come to life with their in-character voices, absorbing me into the anime. About the music, it’s easily the best part of Paripi Koumei. The singers of their characters have done phenomenally well in this adaptation. The opening and ending are iconic to listen to, but they are just the appetizer, the real treat is when you listen to the songs the character poured their heart into it to make it a blast. The raps, the emotion, and the soul were fully captured by the singers. Long story short; they are incredible singers. As for the art and animation, it’s alright. For a P.A Works animation, they did a good job adapting it. It’s flashy and a treat for the eyes. The CGI can be a bit distracting, but it didn’t bother me much, nonetheless. The character designs also look clean and great especially Kongming, giving off the aura of an intelligent wise tactician and practically stands out the most out of all the characters in this anime. Is this anime for everyone? I wouldn’t think so, but I am sure this is for people who want a breath of fresh air from all the mediocrity they have watched after dozens of generic anime bullshit and tropes being replayed for the millionth time. Overall, I really like Paripi Koumei and I would consider it as the best of this season if it weren’t for Spy x Family and Kaguya-sama 3rd season.

If you are a Eastern historical nerds, you can gratitude of just showing Kongming and its creativity, but anime itself is not delicate. His characteristic is somewhat different from the real history. For example, his strategy was quoting historical one, but content inside was totally different. Kongming was not a type of doing his own basic things, rather than making a miracle. To be honest, the story is full of cliche, and keep repeating. Eiko wants, and Kongming solves. That's it. It's not deniable. However, I want to recommend this anime, just due to the existence of 96Neko as a singer starring Eiko. It's definitely music anime, and 96Neko, who has been a high-end Utaite, went well with song and character of Eiko. She was one of the famous Utaite in Nikodon, but even her successor was successful after debut in major, she is keeping her position in Nikodon. Staying in underground, even she's talented enough, for expressing what she wants, looked very similar with Eiko for me. Yes, I'm making a biased evaluation about this anime due to 96Neko.

premises is great, like who the hell can ever imagine about Zhuge Liang got reborn in a modern Japan? the 1st episode really hooked me up because light everywhere, loud music, and stuff and it carry on till the end of 1st half. the 2nd half really slow the paced down which i don't mind at all but after that fast paced 1st half, the 2nd half makes it kinda underwhelming. don't get me wrong, it's still good but it deducted a point from me. Music is really great! 96neko really fits EIKO personality when singing. and Kabe rap is really good too! opening and ending song really catchy. overall it's a good anime with a banger song. highly recommended!

What do you get when you combine idols and the romance of the three kingdoms? A clusterfuck presumably right? Wrong, you get a fun romp of Koumei from the Three Kingdoms being isekai’d into modern day Japan. With a mission to make aspiring idolstar, Eiko, world famous. Since he believes her songs have the power to bring world peace. The series reminded me of another series called “Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad” in more ways than one. How did it do that? And was this anime able to keep such a ludicrous concept interesting throughout its run? I’m unfamiliar with the Romance of Three-Kingdoms and Chinese history as a whole. So I was hesitant on picking up the series feeling that it wasn’t for me. I was relieved that “The Romace of the Three Kingdoms' ' wasn't required reading. Nonetheless, I was surprised at how much fun this show was, given the concept. I was expecting it to be the usual “smart man enters foreign territory that the audience is familiar with, and now has to get used to our culture.” I’ve seen that done in all kinds of media. Personally, I don’t think it can be executed more flawlessly than the way it was handled in SDF: Macross, but I digress. Koumei, being as smart as he is, doesn't stay in his dumbfounded state for long, and ends up throwing the world he’s in for a loop rather than vice versa like I’d presume. In fact most of the early episodes follow a monster of the week like structure, but more on that later. For now, I’d like to focus my attention towards the music. Possibly the most crucial component for making such an odd story work. Once again, I’m not too big into idols, or its culture. I think idols peaked with Lynn Minnmay from SDF Macross, dammit there I go again. Anyways, it presents a handful of idol songs that might have left Koumei speechless, but me being indifferent. Despite the show being centered around idol culture and that kind of music, the show also presents the audience with bits of rap, folk, and rock. The standout track from the OST the OP. BAN BAN A CHIKI CHIKI BAN BAN, is such a great opening song and the visuals are a wild trip of wild flashing colors and silly looking dance moves. The song never appears in the show itself, but still holds as one of the only worthwhile tracks for me. Despite the bombastic visuals of the opening, the animation and art style does its job. The animation only becomes notable when there’s a performance. The dance moves along with the eccentric on stage antics/exaggerations is clearly where the show’s budget went. Otherwise, I found the show pleasing to look at. I think it was a tasteful move to demonstrate what it was capable of only when absolutely necessary. Similar to the visuals, I found the voice acting to be quite well done. Eiko, Koumei’s (and Eiko’s boss to a lesser degree) seiyuus went above and beyond. Okiayu Ryoutarou does an exquisite job giving Koumei the cunning and calculated, yet warm demeanor his voice holds. But it’s a shame that once we enter the second half of this series, his voice becomes a faint voice echoing in the distance more and more. Because once we enter an arc dedicated to getting Eiko a spot on a world famous music festival, the scope of the Koumei’s strategies expands as does the cast, for better or for worse. Though many saw Kabe’s inclusion to the story as a detriment, I did not. Actually, his debut episode is still one of my favorites in the show. I thought the way the show presented his rise and fall from fame was a well executed change of pace from the norm. The way his story was cleverly implemented into the story was seamless. However I do think that from the episode after his debut onward, the show does slowly lose the magic it once had. Early on I had wished that the series wouldn’t be a monster of the week ordeal. Each episode presents a hurdle that spells out the end for Eiko’s singing career, only for Koumei to miraculously pull through and come in clutch with his stratagem. I got my wish and as stated, I was pleased, initially. But the more the series progressed, the more of what made this series so fun became relegated to the sidelines. That being, Kongming. And it’s a gradual deviation, because instead of the series focusing on the titular duo of Eiko and Koumei, more and more side characters get introduced. And as a result, the focus shifts and the time spent with Eiko and Koumei in the same area becomes infrequent. Kabe is often seen as the catalyst for the downfall of this show. But I disagree as I think it was Nanami’s arc that sealed it’s fate into mediocrity. The last exciting moment dedicated to kong-ming that reminds me of why I love the first few episodes so much, shows up again in Kabe’s rap duel with Kongming. Arguably the best moment of the show as we get an insane spectacle of their raps being personified into dragons and ancient chinese soldiers. Couple that Kabe’s solid verses getting decimated by Koumei’s eloquent soliloquies had me in stitches. Afterwards Kabe doesn’t have much impact on the narrative, with his ‘hoora’ being a diss track he made for Azaela being performed live in the climax of the show. Calling her out for being two faced and fake like she is. Speaking of fake, Nanami’s “bond” with Eiko was my least favorite aspect of this series. Eiko’s relationship with Kabe at the very least was relegated to being nothing more than co-workers and being decently acquainted with one another. Eiko comes across Nanami performing on the street for fun and is moved by her performance. This wouldn’t be so bad if it weren’t for the fact that their relationship moves at lightning speed. And before you know it, they’re already at the “the bffs split up phase” when, shocker, it's her band that’s been Eiko’s rival for the 100k follower challenge. Episode 7 onwards is dedicated to the following: Kabe bonding with his old pals, Nanami’s relationship with Eiko, Eiko trying to find her voice trying to impress a snobbish producer, and Azalea's group's uprising. Koumei is hardly present and most of the three kingdom references are completely dropped. It doesn’t help that the episodes become padded with Nanami’s song being played by both Eiko and Nanami spontaneously throughout. Not to mention, the laziness is only more apparent when these scenes are accompanied by stills or just shots of their audience smiling. Although I was never a huge fan of Eiko in the first place, she served as a good foil to Kong-ming. Being this young woman who’s in touch with current trends and being eager to rise to fame nicely contrasts Koumei's calm, smart, and whimsical demeanor. And though he’s from a different time period, he assimilates to the new world he’s presented rather quickly. And as I said earlier, the show didn’t let this trope overstay its welcome and for that I was pleasantly surprised. However, I would’ve preferred it if the series took this concept and experimented more with it than just dropping it completely. Perhaps if it were to show one of Koumei’s stratagems being foiled by either modern tech or something that exists now that didn’t then. Though it does show that Koumei wasn’t an infallible person in a touching scene where he feels guilt about not partying with the soldiers of his king's army before what would be their final battle. It doesn’t focus on Koumei or his stratagems after a certain point, and instead we’re given backstories to characters that aren’t nearly as interesting as the man who this show is named after. Paripi Koumei reminded me of another series called “Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad”. In that both are music series that deal with the long road it takes to become a superstar. But not only because of that, but because both develop a habit of playing the same few songs the in-universe characters created ad-nauseum throughout the series. And it’s done so often that it makes emotionally gripping moments feel like a parody of itself. The show started out with a ridiculous concept that surprised me with how wel…

The titular Kongming is a wartime strategist for his lord in ancient China, but then he dies and reappears (presumably in his 30's, though that's unclear) in modern-day Japan after wishing to be reborn in a time without conflict. He runs into Eiko, a young woman who is aspiring to be a famous singer, and decides that he will become her strategist to ensure that she becomes the singer that the world desperately needs. This is a series I thoroughly enjoyed with solid animation and a set of incredible songs, this series elevates itself through its titular character. Dude's a joy to watch every time he's on screen, whether he's being serious or bringing some levity. And yes, the OP is a bop. I like all of the main cast, actually. What holds it back is a real feeling of tension. Kongming is such an exceptional tactician that nothing ever seems to phase him, he's always one step ahead. The characters are struggling, clearly, but as the audience, it's hard to feel that there's any likelihood that they will fail. I'm hopeful that future seasons will introduce opponents who can stand against him, but as an introductory season, this was quite the master stroke.

Let me get one thing out of the way first: I went with "Mixed Feelings" for this one, because when I try to think of people in general, I think some will like this series a lot and others just won't feel as engaged by it regardless of the show's quality, and rather due to the oddball premise. Considering only my friends and acquaintances, from a personal point of view, I would in fact recommend this one to them. Overall, Paripi Koumei was a very pleasant surprise for me. I had low expectations based on the description of the anime; the weird pairing of historic chinese tactitian with the 'oshare' pop music theme reminiscent of idol anime, neither of which I'm personally not a huge fan of (yet) to begin with. Despite that, the anime doesn't fail to deliver on excitement, conflict and mood, surprisingly drawing me in to hit 'play next' with every ending episode (I prefer binging what I watch). The opening is entertaining and well paced in music as well in visuals, not lacking a tablespoon of silliness for comic relief. The show doesn't take long to make the viewer care about the characters and their struggles, all while light heartedly blending the historical battle tactics vibe of Kongming with the feel of pop music anime. The hiphop aspect surprised me too, some of the lyrics felt rather elaborate. Of course that's not to say, the show doesn't have cringy moments but there is a lot less of embarrassing instances and more wholehearted characterdrama. I also liked that the ending introduces main characters to the animation sequence as they join the show, as it shows how much the creators cared about detail. Seiyuus do a great job of conveying the difference between Eiko's and Nanami's level of singing. The musical score and animation are also solid, nothing groundbreaking, but also not leaving a lot to be wished for. With that said, nothing happened in the show that swooped me off of my legs in terms of originality and ingenuity. It manages to blend together two very different worlds but doesn't manage to create anything new or unique by doing so. I also felt that Kongming's inner drama was very detatched from the rest of the events, especially with flashback scenes of his old compatriots and master, which fail to create deep and meaningful parallel with his struggles with Eiko. Kongming doesn't really encounter significant conflict (neither inner nor outer) in the show, which dulls his development as a character. Not to say that he's not entertaining as he is, but providing a deeper, more emotional connection to his new friends and their struggles would be a spice that could substitute for the empty feeling flashbacks without purposeful drama. Having said that, Paripi Koumei nearly missed the 9 mark, making it 8/10, a well produced, entertaining anime to watch. I'd definitely be on board for a season 2 if we ever get one, and I've also made a note to myself about checking out the manga, as I'm interested in what else will happen to Kongming, Eiko and their partners in crime.

I hate historic dramas. I also dislike musical shows, and japaneese music, pop in particular. So, if you're like me, there's one thing I'd like you to hear from me: don't miss watching this anime. It's a great 'starter' show, and after watching it I could see myself watching some other historical and maybe musical anime after all. Even though I'm quite sure other anime in this genre can't really compare with it. What is really well done in this show is probably the restraint in which the different genres are given to the viewer. There is historical mumbling about such and such battle in xxx AD, and this and that strategy, but they stop piling it on before someone who's less than interested in such matters gets bored. There are japaneese pop songs sung by main character, but rather than them, the main focus is 'backstage', and how audience is being pulled into listening to them. And with how highly different ancient history and modern pop are, the show really never gets boring thanks to the genres being skillfully juggled to keep you hooked on. I'm very glad I watched this anime in the end, and I hope you'll be as well. However, if, after watching first 2 episodes you don't enjoy the show, you can probably drop it, since there are no drastic changes in how story progresses from episode 2 forward.