Animation is an art form, and a much underappreciated one at that. However, when compared to other traditional and modern forms of art, the minimum requirements on time (and therefore, money) to create an animated show or feature film is higher than almost any other form. Because of this, there is always the concern of business and profit behind almost every animated project. This is best seen in Japan and should not be forgotten: while many creators do put their creativity to great use with legitimately powerful storytelling, anime is commercialization personified. By 2017, it wasn't uncommon to see over 100 new anime shows being broadcast, now across the world thanks to online streaming, and the design of these shows hasn't really changed since decades prior: to make attractive characters put into emotional situations, making viewers feel connected and passionate towards them and their story, all while seeking the most efficient (also known as "limited") methods to portray said visuals onto the screen.With "The Pet Girl of Sakurasou" (or "The Pet Girl of Sakura Hall"), I (as a viewer) am very aware that the story both of the anime and the light novels it is based on is designed to pull me in. To summarize the story, it starts when high-school student Sorata is caught trying to keep a stray cat as a pet in his school dorm, violating the rules of the property. Unable to bare throwing out the cat, he agrees to move to "Sakura Hall," an old house-turned-dormatory with the reputation of having the most dysfunctional students on the campus. Indeed, Sorata meets Misaki, a hyperactive busty girl who doesn't lack energy, pouncing on all the residents, and often doing so without clothing onto her crush and co-resident Jin. Jin is a calm and collected man who spends almost every night out of the dorm, handling multiple romantic relationships at once and not showing any remorse for it. Ryunosuke is a shut-in programming prodogy, having created an AI-controlled maid (appearing as a chibi-style character on cell-phone screens) to communicate with the other residents through text and email, and otherwise avoiding all human contact, including skipping school. The teacher in charge of overseeing the dorm, Ms. Chihiro, is a single woman who shows little responsibilty towards the resident students or their dwelling, often going out drinking or otherwise complaining about her job. Already set up as a eccentric environment bound to bring comedy aplenty, things get more complicated when Mashiro joins the hall as a new transfer student. Mashiro was from a higher-class family and kept inside for most of her life, and as such is seemingly unable to do anything herself, be it cleaning, cooking, or even dressing herself properly to go outside. It ultimately falls on Sorata to take care of this high-maintenance "pet" of the hall.These types of slice-of-life stories are common in anime. Place the setting in an idealized high-school that teens and adults reminisce about, place some eccentric characters around the lead, and we subconciously place ourselves among them at feel like the show's events are part of our own cherished memories with old friends. But "Sakurasou" doesn't stop there. We quickly learn energetic Misaki is already creating her own anime, which has become a hit with fans around the world. Jin acts as Misaki's manager and works to become a scriptwriter. Ryunosuke holds jobs making software at a level beyond most adults. Soon, Sorata's friend Nanami also moves into the dorm, and works hard holding multiple jobs to support her training in become a voice actress. Even seemingly helpless Mashiro is a world-renowed artist, working traditionally in painting, but moving to the school on hopes of becoming a manga-author, and already having chapters published in a monthly magazine. Among these incredible talents of the school, Sorata himself feels compelled to feed his creativity, and begins his journey to... create video games. Why? Sorata didn't show any signs of passion towards any art form before this revelation a few episodes in, but it was the last creative-field of modern entertainment that the target audience would dream of working in.So yes, the show feels relatable by design to a specific target audience, including me. My dream jobs are in making games or animation, followed by making comics, voice acting, software and script-writing. This show personifies all of these in a collection of students that happen to live together in a idealized school setting at the peak of their youth. Comedy fills every episode, sexualized fanservice is found thanks to Mashiro and Misaki, and yes, there are even romantic triangles and relationships forming between all of the characters I've named. It feels manipulative, and that always haunted the back of my mind. But despite that, I couldn't help but thoroughly enjoy my time with "Sakurasou." It stands to me as a shining example of what the "slice-of-life" or "romance" genres can be in anime, surpasing most other competitors. 
There are multiple reasons why I think "Sakurasou" succeeds. At its core is its drama, even moreso than its comedy, that defines character development. Remember that we are looking at teenagers setting high goals for themselves here, some of whom have not yet succeeded. Much of the story focuses on their attempts, and true to life, not everyone is successful in pursuing their dreams. Imagine the anxiety in creating something without knowing if it will turn out well. Imagine waiting impatiently for hearing from a judging committee in the mail while still attending school. Imagine learning that months of your time were wasted when you are rejected. Imagine trying to communicate these emotions to friends who effortlessly succeeded when you couldn't. Not many shows take on as many creative-focused industries as this show does. In fact, few tackle job-searching at all, it's simply too depressing! But it is a great subject of drama, and we see laughter, tears, crying and yelling and apologizing from all of the characters. Some nearly have mental breakdowns from the stress. Believe it or not, it isn't too far off from real life either... it often feels that even if you work to the bone, you can't move forward even when you know the path you want to take. There aren't many conclusions to these stories by the end of the show, but instead a message to enjoy the journey, and just trying to move forward one step at a time. The romantic relationships also take a big focus, as expected with any show of this type set in high-school. Most relationships are one-on-one, but still heartbreaking when characters struggle to express how they really feel, or unable to accept themselves enough to meet a mutual lover at the half-way point to return those feelings. For Sorata, Mashiro and Nanami, there is an unspoken love-triangle between them, stalled because they either cannot admit their feelings or do not fully understand them, or because they already feel overburdened in their quest for success in creative pursuits. Over the course of the show, it feels like major steps in these relationships are made, even if many of them are still left frustratingly open-ended by the end. But because of those developments, it is still something I couldn't help but be invested in, and something I wanted to cheer on when key moments reach their climax.Perhaps the show seems like it is handling too much? This is also a strong point in "Sakurasou" 's favor. Early on, story developments occur at a brisk pace. Many "arcs" are resolved in one or two episodes, when most other shows could have dedicated many more. Because of this, few episodes feel like filler meant to fill the 24-episode count. It's almost exhausting, but in gives a lot of value for your time and money.The art style is a bit mroe attractive than most other anime. The character designs are well-defined, backgrounds are well-detailed. More striking is the color palette, filling the world with pastel purples, pinks and blues, with hints of yellow sunshine. I credit director Atsuko Ishizuka for that: she would go on to direct shows like "No Game No Life," suggesting that she alone is a powerful force in using color in exciting ways. Music repeats itself a bit too often during climax moments from the opening and ending themes, but I don't mind: these are upbeat j-pop songs that feel appropriate to the story, equal parts fond memories and life being what it is. There is no English dub, which I think is the only reason preventing the show from reaching a higher level of awareness with anime fans, but the Japanese actors do well in the varied and complex relationships and dramatic moments: I can imagine they had great fun with this show, and it alone could show their range well-enough to be a staple of their resume, the type of script students would use in class rehersals for years to come... you know, if Japanese-anime and scriptwriting was ever accepted as "art."The only faulter in near the end. Five of the last six episodes are dedicated to a storyline that would have been easy to predict: "Sakura Hall is being torn down, we need to help save it, we've made too many memories here!" It feels cliche, and even though many conclusions to other threads occur here, the overall arc feels too long compared to the rest of the show. Even the animation feels like it dropped in quality just a tad. But despite this, and even during this, "Sakurasou" is a strong example of story, art and direction coming together in a accessible form that anime clubs around the world can enjoy together. Yes, I fell into a trap designed to make me love these characters and to want more of them. But it's one thing to determine what the buttons are, it's another to be able to press them correctly. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a game project I really need to get back to working on...