I gained slight interest of Genshiken after hearing about its premise. The story just being otaku life-style being explored in-depth and the praise I seen from the anime community/anime YouTubers made the series sounded very promising, though initially, I was turned off by its realistic otaku character design and the low production values of the anime to give it a shot years ago. My interest in the series came back at a time where I personally felt seriously depressed, questioning my purpose of being part of the anime/manga community as more of my in-depth, passionate analyses started to feel brushed off by most now, despite trying hard to get an interesting discussion rolling out of my analyses for this year. I figured that if I gave Genshiken a shot, maybe I could learn something more about the fans of each medium and get a greater understanding on how a natural otaku friendship forms. I chose to begin this series read the manga, since I still heavily disliked how the anime adaptation looked. Little did I know that I would become immensely/phenomenally engaged with Genshiken over the course of the manga’s ride.

The First Season was decent and had an interesting storyline, though a kinda bland beginning. The bold exploration of different kinds of Japanese otaku talking about otaku things (such as doujins, porn games, and cosplay) was interesting. There was also good, intriguing, and subtle/realistic character developments and complex/inner conflicts of discussing made the manga a nice read, but it did not make for a very engaging read. It was not until the first romance formed in the Genshiken (The romance after Saki/Kousaka) happened when the series finally became a captivating read. The character developments onward build up pretty greatly, with the last fifths of the first season personally impacting me to some degree in how I personally/boldly approach discussion on otaku hobbies.

The way Genshiken characters nonchalantly discuss even the most risqué subjects and naturally growing romances and friendships with each other was pretty inspiring to me. It was especially so inspiring for me with a certain couple that briefly develops an interesting story that involves working in the manga industry. The only complaints I have with the first season is just the extra content that explores each character’s personal tastes and online write-ups about fictional series created for Genshiken. The fictional anime/manga/game names made me cringe most of the time and the deep write-ups for fictional series did not interest me at all. As much as I understand the author wanting to add these to build extra layers to the otaku matters for the overall experience, I feel there were better ways to approach such deep explorations. The extra content broke the flow of the story for me so often, that I just skimmed over most fictional write-ups and character profiles just to read the next chapter. I understood the point of these and quickly moved from them after 10 chapters.

As for the Second Season, I personally think it is absolutely phenomenal and immensely entertaining. Although, the beginning chapters are rough. The story no longer focused on the growth/exploration the original Genshiken otakus, rather the new Genshiken members. I initially thought the new members had over-exaggerated personalities, despite the ok character developments that still show interesting otaku explorations that compliment with entertaining moments. That, the heavy focus on a certain/new Genshiken member’s conflicts, and the mangaka plot line slowly fading away made me worry that the series was going downhill with no interesting story directions to keep me interested. I did not understand what the author was doing, until the build-up to another huge plot line came around the 80+ chapter mark. That is when the series took off to an uncharted, immensely fascinating direction. I had become so engaged at that point, and my interest/care for the story/characters scaled higher and higher with each chapter.

I will not spoil what this plot line is, but I can tell you my compliments. Somehow, the mangaka managed to weave in otaku exploration, two super interesting character conflicts, SOMEHOW managing to make character growth feel realistic and natural, while also providing phenomenal build-up to the story, bringing several plot twists, and offering a colossal amount of entertaining moments that made me slowly love every character currently participating in this generation’s Genshiken club. The build-up led up to a sensational conclusion with the last 25 chapters that literally made me fucking explode in hype emotions for every fucking scene that happens. That plot line’s last chapters engaged and entertained me to a level that I have not felt in ages since first watching To Love-Ru Darkness’s 2nd season’s OVA conclusion. By the end, I could not help but feel depressed when reading the last chapter, knowing that it was the last time I will engage with these memorable characters, or should I say now, my closest friends.

I personally consider the Second Season way WAY better than the First Season, in terms of entertainment, engagement, and character arcs. For me, the First Season is easily outclassed by Second Season, no contest. Really, the only gripe I have honestly is that certain character’s conflict I mentioned earlier going on for too long. That character’s conflict grows so interesting as the plot line begins to set fortunately, but I felt there could have been more opportunities to have chapters exploring the other otakus and the older otakus that disappear in the story, but that is a minor complaint for me now. Everyone must read Genshiken. Whether you are a manga, anime, or gaming fan, I think you will have a great experience with this series, if you give it a chance to let the slow character developments and exploration unfold into something beautiful. I sincerely hope that the mangaka creates a Third Season, because I am very interested in the relationships that were established in the final chapters and the third generation of Genshiken members that could potentially make Third Season even more phenomenal than the Second Season. (I need more Ogiue and Sue in my life badly!!!)

Thank you Genshiken, for helping me fully accept my hobbies, demonstrating the true friendship of otakus, and giving me the courage to boldly express these hobbies to other fans across the globe. I will cherish the memories I have with Genshiken for years to come.