Netsuzou Trap: NTR

Lol, maybe this is what Citrus wanted to achieve?

(Netorare: Cheating or being unfaithful to a significant other, lit. "taken away by sleeping with", abbreviated NTR)

I came for the yuri content, stayed after the first episode because of the erotic scenes (let's say I liked the pacing and the balance between romance and sex) and watched the whole show because of the story. Now looking back, I must say, this show really has substance. (Don't think about a mindless hentai/ecchi, please. It contains explicit sex scenes, but nothing graphic.)

I really appreciate when besides love, sex is not out of the equation, and honestly, I'm pretty bored of those innocent, platonic shows where everybody gets a heart attack just by holding hands and maybe we see a kiss at the end and nobody knows what the heck they want or what's going on and everybody is warm hearted and the bad guys are just a little bad. (Kase-san and Morning glories is a stellar example for the opposite, where they actually start with the kiss :) and pysical attraction is not ignored - especially in the manga -, but that's a more pure hearted show than this one.)

Thing is that NTR is dirty and the world is cold. But not unbelievably dirty, even so, it seems pretty realistically dirty. There are more twisted things happening in real life, so it's just about your personal preference, if you are interested or not in the love story of four more or less wrecked teenagers. We get here a good girl-bad girl, good guy-bad guy setup and it's pretty obvious where they are coming from ("I don't like girls, but I like sex"). Their morals, their motivations and intentions are clear, their actions are justified and their communication is straight, which is a great achievement in itself. It's a must anyway, because episodes just run under ten minutes each, so there is no time to waste.

So, yeah, the characters are messed. I mean, some of them are pretty messed. But unlike in Citrus, where one of the girls is clearly mentally ill and would require professional help - which makes the show a sick experience to watch for me -, NTR comes close to it, but doesn't cross that line.

It's not for everybody and not just because of the blatant sex scenes, yuri content, abusement and exploition between the characters. Also because, like in real life, there is no justice served at the end. The ending is positive, satisfying, well founded, does not seem rushed, but it's bitter and sweet. Obviously, not everybody gets what they deserve or desire. And this level of realism is why it became one of my favorite shows in the genre. (The other one is Bloom Into You, but that's just too innocent.)

Because it's yuri, do you want to support an abusive romance? Would you like to see explicit yuri scenes without consent? Do you want to witness someone being dishonest and hurting other people? Do you enjoy seeing people who are so unlikeable that even the most insecure people can point to them and say, "At least I'm not like them"? Then you should use NTR.

Not only is NTR a terrible narrative with terrible characters, but it's also a terrible story with terrible people doing terrible things. First of all, aside from the main character, none of these characters are likeable. Yuma is at most mediocre, and she commits horrible things despite it being evident that they are bad. In the end, I think it's better to blame her for Hotaru's mistreatment than to despise her on her own. But even knowing this, her own "feelings" for Hotaru are so forced and badly executed that it's difficult to appreciate her. Her surroundings and the decisions made about her by the storyline have tarnished her.

The two worst characters on the program are Fujiwara and Hotaru, who are infamous for their aggressive and manipulative ways. In an effort to persuade Yuma that her love for her is acceptable, Hotaru abuses her without her permission. She uses Yuma as her practice and vent, manipulating her into depending on her for everything. This is a typical abuse technique that makes it more difficult for the victim to leave their abuser. The primary plot is around an abusive partnership.

Furthermore, it is unacceptable for Fujiwara to mistreat Hotaru for whatever reason. It feels so forced that it's difficult to take it seriously, which just serves to diminish it. They obviously want to find some kind of justification for one of their leads to be abusive, but their attempts are unsuccessful. Something like that can't easily be solved by magic, especially when the antagonist is blatantly malevolent. It appears phony and as though it was all staged to justify her actions. Which, once more, disgusts me.

Even in situations where there is no abuse, the two females essentially tell one another that they shouldn't or can't do the same things that they do. I'm not sure why, but NTR is here to entertain me with a bunch of controlling douchebags.

The unfortunate thing is that the last guy is genuinely good-looking and exemplifies what a good partner should be like. All he has to show for it, though, is being duped and misled. It brings me great joy to witness the suffering of this one good person. Regards, NTR.

Drama and echii fanservice are mixed together in the plot, but too much drama overpowers the echii. The show is worse than NTR since the story stagnates for a large chunk of the episode. There's a tiny upside to this stalling: it keeps the yuri lovers apart. The show is cyclical; it has obscene situations that are not consented upon, harsh romances, and unlikeable characters. Those who like to watch characters that are unlikeable could find NTR appealing.

Not only is the production value appalling, but the art is also really poor. Because these morally reprehensible people overshadowed my interest in the other aspects of the event, I never really paid attention to the sound. One finds it difficult to care about any other aspect of a show when it glorifies a couple for their infidelity and abuse. NTR is among the worst anime series ever made, with a plot that never seems to end and some of the most unlikeable characters you can imagine.

This anime is okay. It could be better but overall this show is still good. So I'll let it slide this once