Setting expectations: This review is being written under a subjective lens and mainly for enjoyment. If you come to expect opinions from a very critical sense sorry but Im not your guy as we may have different tastes. The number of spoilers will be as minimal as possible to none. There are some image spoilers but its all out of context. Ill try my best to explain what are the things that worked for me and what doesnt in this review. Hopefully this will help you understand my point of view and let you come to your own conclusion about what this anime might be like for you. I preface because a lot of people online come to expect reviews to fit a mold of what they want which isnt always realistic. For me I just like to talk about anime I enjoy. And so this review is about such things. Sorry if this aint what youre looking for. 1080https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/409951964949118980/792916583408205881/vlcsnap00020.png Verdict Gochuumon wa Usagi Desu ka? BLOOM or Gochiusa Season 3 for short is a 12 episode anime released in Fall 2020. It was animated by Encourage Films Senki Zesshou Symphogear Shinryaku? Ika Musume / Squid Girl 2 and Miyakawake no Kuufuku and directed by Hiroyuki Hashimoto previous Gochiusa seasons. The anime is an adaptation of the Manga Gochuumon wa Usagi desu ka? by author Koi and the anime is a Comedy Slice of Life with CGDCT elements. The most unique thing about this season is the different scenarios with different character pairings that were never seen before onscreen something I didnt ask for but I welcomed very much. Review Summary Summary of: Background Im a big fan of the GochiUsa anime entries especially season 2. Ive been following this season 3 ever since Season 3 was first announced. With a new studio your worries may come in the beginning episodes but they gain their footing again as the show progressed dont worry Summary of: Story / Plot / Characters The great writing was able to set up great storylines and expansion of the world while also setting up a plot structure that allows character growth to shine. New characters are also introduced and done marvelously. Summary of: Visuals / Animation Dont expect to see visuals akin to Season 2 and OVA but the new style is still great to look at once you get used to it and you might enjoy it as much as previous seasons or even better Animation and Visuals have a rocky start in the beginning but improve as the season goes on definitely give it a chance. Summary of: Audio / Soundtrack / Voice Acting Great usage of audio. The OP and ED are what you expect from previous seasons. OST reuses certain tracks and possibly new tracks but Im unsure still quality background tracks. Finally the VAs did an incredible job and you feel the character chemistry happen onscreen. Props to Chino and Rizes VAs for an incredible job. Summary of: Overall A rocky start that worried me but it kept on getting better and better to the point where I feel safe in recommending this to fans of the series. Recommendation Rating I highly recommend this Gochiusa sequel it does the same things as previous seasons but it adds in new ideas that it feels fresh. Given that this is season 3 you should watch the previous seasons before seeing this one. If you liked the previous seasons youll like this new entry. It hits the same story beats as you would expect. On my rating scale I would give this a 9/10 which indicates that I loved this story. If you would like to see an explanation of my rating scale read below. If you would like to see more details in respect to my thoughts read the rest of the review below. 1080https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/409951964949118980/792916964376051712/vlcsnap00034.png Explaining my Rating Scale A common mistake with looking at ratings is how we associate the rating according to our own personal rating scale. An average anime could be seen as a 5 6 or a 7 depending on the persons criteria. As you all know ratings and stories are subjective hence the different tastes as well as rating scales. My Personal Rating Scale Anime: 4 and below = Considered dropped but I finished it for some reason. 5 = Meh no rewatch ever. 6 = Meh would only rewatch if forced. 7 = Acceptable and good entertainment enjoyable. 8 = Great entertainment not one of the best though. 9 = Loved the story Not lifechanging but incredible 10 = Chills intense emotional catharsis perfect and possibly lifechanging. 1080https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/409951964949118980/792917036408766504/vlcsnap00066.png Background I have watched all of the GochiUsa anime adapted onscreen from Season 1 2 OVA. Im a huge fan of all the anime adapted onscreen and had a great time with all of it. The CGDCT/moe aspect of Season 2 was a huge enjoyment that makes it second to none. I was waiting for Season 3 ever since I heard about it back in 2016/17. It has been a long time ever since the first announcement of the new season until seeing it air. When I saw the new animation studio for Season 3 I think its fair to say that big fans may have been a bit worried given that White Fox Kinema Citrus and production doA werent working on this aka the studios that worked on the previous seasons and OVA. Spoiler alert those worries can come to fruition in the beginning episodes but be rest assured they made the comeback of the century as the season went along I watched this with official subtitles while it was airing in Japanese Audio English subtitles. 1080https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/491883111651606540/792917256124235786/vlcsnap00177.png The Review Now the review. Ill be talking about the anime in the following categories: 1 Story / Plot / Characters Evaluation of Story As I mentioned before the story sets up new character pairings and very new situations. It makes the story beats really fresh and interesting. So many different situations with different characters that I never expected to work ended up being quite entertaining thanks to the great writing. They also explore more new things with the setting which adds more to the world in this show. Evaluation of Plot Structure Its episodicbased because its a slice of life show however it has many subplots happening in the background with references to callbacks here and there. Theres a great flow between episodes as you see characters progress grow and learn new things based on how the story goes. The series composition is great with how it handles each episode a testament to the team. Evaluation of Characters Its the same characters youve known since previous seasons and they all end up growing as characters. Its great to see each characters personality shine even more as we follow their storylines. Changes for the characters are subtle in nature and make a lot of sense. They also introduce new characters and they do a great job of introducing them into the show 1080https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/491883111651606540/792917332598587392/vlcsnap00085.png 2 Visuals / Animation Evaluation of Visual Art Theres a visual style change because this is a new studio. You must adjust your expectations accordingly. The biggest loss to me is the amazing moe factor being lost from Season 2 but the new studio and animators do a great job in compensating with good art to complement the storylines and scenes. Its something youll have to get used to but once you do youll be in for a treat The new style is a refreshing treat once you get used to it and who knows maybe youll like it better than previous seasons. Its not awful looking at all except the beginning episodes as they kept upping their game as the season progressed. I felt like there was stonks / linear progression in improvement as the season went along. This is a testament to the animators for this project and Im grateful they cared about this product this much to continue to improve. Definitely made watching this every week a treat. Evaluation of Animation They took a lot of cheap animator tricks in the beginning but I saw them start to properly animate as the season episodes progressed so definitely dont stress about the beginning. I feel like they were back to form by the middle and end 1080https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/491883111651606540/792917439914442772/vlcsnap00078.png 3 Audio / Soundtrack / Voice Acting Evaluation of Shows Audio Amazing usage of audio secondtonone as the director knows how to use it well for comedic purposes. It felt aboveaverage at parts to me personally. Evaluation of OP ED The OP is incredibly cute and a continuation of the previous OP sequences if you pay attention. Song for the OP is what you expect from Gochiusa. As for the ED we didnt get the Season 2 ED sequence but you definitely see remnants of it here and there. Song for the ED is what you expect from Gochiusa. I do like how they brought back the little aftercredit gags so definitely dont skip Evaluation of OST The OST felt like the same from previous seasons its quite nostalgic in a way hearing the same tracks but it was a welcomed one. I feel like there have been new tracks here and there but someone has to factcheck that lol. Regardless all of the tracks are great and fit the show. No track seems out of place given the tone/atmosphere of the show and there would be some standouts given some scenes too. Evaluation of VA If you were ever worried about the new studio dont fret. The Seiyuus/VAs were able to do a great job I felt the same amazing chemistry as the previous season and it was incredibly satisfying to see them voice act throughout the whole season. Maybe its my memory but Rize sounds deeper in this season but that could be from me not having seen this show in a long time. Regardless A+ to all of the voice actors in this season. No bad moments I can think of as I felt like they all hit it out of the park. Props to Chinos VA for the A+ effort you really see it as they show goes on. 1080https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/491883111651606540/792917642896998401/vlcsnap00004.png 4 Overall Im really happy that I watched this weekly Ive always had a grim feeling that this season would drop the ball at any episode while the show went on from its first episode. However it kept on getting better and better that Im really happy with the end result. If youre a fan of the previous Gochiusa seasons you MUST watch this new season Hopefully you learned something useful from the review. Thanks for reading. : 1080https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/491883111651606540/792917750145351711/vlcsnap00160.png