Ore no Imouto ga Konnani Kawaii Wake ga Nai Specials

If you've seen Oreimo, you can probably extrapolate what you thought about S1 here.

Broadly speaking, I thought Oreimo was funny and had a good cast and could be touching at times and I agree with that in these specials too.

However, this is more Ore...

The first episode is the ~true~ ending to S1 (which kind of hurts S1 in retrospect since now there's just a random episode there to hedge your bets that can now be discarded) and it was fine. I kinda skipped around since a lot of it is just repurposed from the end of S1 but I got the main jist of it.

The ... second episode is where it starts cooking.

If you are a Kuroneko fan, you will be eating good here. I like Kuroneko but she's probably my least favorite of the main girls? She's not bad but I never really got the spark between her and Kyousuke and this did not change over the course of these specials.

The main thing I think makes these specials pop is the new character, Sena. I wouldn't mind if they brought her into the fold with Kirino and Kuroneko and Saori, she provides a new layer of imouto power to the series since Kuroneko is Big Sis and Saori

Anyway, I thought she had the best joke in the specials, perhaps even the whole series up to this point, obviously I won't spoil it but yeah, I think she has her own niche which would fit in alongside the imouto pervert, chuuni dork, and... uh... whatever Saori watches? She was building a mech in one episode so I'm headcanoning her as a Gundam fan.

Other than that, I appreciate that they do a little more with the game development club. Oreimo S1's novelist arc kinda lost me when Kirino went from legitimately terrible, unreadable garbage to published novelist in the same episode so seeing Kuroneko and Sena actually having to work together (to make something recognized as shit, no less) is actually such an improvement.

The Imo finally comes back in the final episode and honestly, I kind of missed her presence in these specials, so it was nice to see.

I think these specials heavily depend on two questions:
1. How much do you like Oreimo
2. How much do you like Kuroneko

If you like Oreimo a lot, check it out. As someone who may or may not have accidentally watched a few episodes of Oreimo S2 before watching these specials, you're going to need it.

If you like Kuroneko, definitely check it out.

I'd imagine if you're reading a review for the SPECIALS of Oreimo, you should probably check this out unless you really don't like Kuroneko.

Even if you don't like Oreimo because of Kirino specifically, Kirino isn't in this a whole lot so you can enjoy what Oreimo could be if Kirino was just Thanos snapped off the face of the planet.

The special serves as an alternative take, yet what truly perplexes is how the later season chooses to follow this deviation rather than the original narrative. While the series continues to revel in its eccentricity without ever truly confronting its peculiarities which has been a constant standpoint, this installment demonstrates a more deliberate effort. The direction is notably stronger, and though the weirdness remains unaddressed, the execution feels far more refined.

Growth is sporadically evident, with glimpses of mediocre character progression to only be washed away. The climax is though is nicely built up, offering a rare moment of narrative cohesion. However, despite its improvements, the ... special could have delved deeper into its themes. Still, as a concise four-episode arc, it remains a commendable attempt keeping the series in mind. Miles away from perfect, yet undeniably a step in the right direction.

If you are watching this a decade later just as me, you probably had the opportunity to watch another work from the dearest Taketatsu Ayana, Dagashi Kashi Season 2.

This ONA has the EXACT same problem Dagashi Kashi had: "where is the protagonist?", we still have Kyousuke and the upgraded to main character Gokou "Kuroneko" Ruri, but honestly I don't get the hype over her, maybe it is yet another Hanakana character that people love for the seiyuu and not for itself. Anyway, the main issue is "where is the 'imo' of 'oreimo'?". Kirino doesn't show up until the second half of the last episode, and ... considering episode 12 TRUE ENDING is at least 50% the same as the episode 12 of season 1, you could say that Kirino was vanishing of her own show for almost 70% of the time, what's the point?

They weren't trying to show how Kyousuke missed her, the writers were developing Kuroneko's story since she will be a main character in season 2, so his longing for Kirino was secondary in this ONA, despite what he says in the last episode.

So most of the time in this ONA the "little sister" thing felt collateral to what was going on, if it was any other series, alright this ONA would have been good, average score a bit too high imo, but still at least a 7, but that is not the case, this was supposed to be a show about a "little sister", where the little sister shows up in the last moments, they didn't bother to make the episodes about Kyousuke missing her, only about Kuroneko.

That's why I felt that Dagashi Kashi 2 is the same as this, and oh the irony that Ayachi happens to be in those two shows, still I really like her.