Recent reviews by Putraman

※ Wonderful Everyday (Subarashiki Hibi aka Subahibi) contains disturbing images and scenes of explicit (sexual) violence. The R18 patch is necessary.

Don’t judge a book by its cover. In Subahibi's case, make that the first few chapters – there’s more than meets the eye here, and coming to grips with the material requires a complete viewing. It’s telling how some of the negativity come from readers only partway through, where Subahibi is at its most convoluted and shocking.

I don’t blame them. Heed the warnings but keep your expectations in check. This is, first and foremost, an eroge so it does suffer from superfluous H-scenes. It’s denpa, which alludes to unreliable narrators. And as a philosophically-inclined piece, it’s not here to provide all the answers.

That’s all you need to know. I dived in just as blind and so should you.

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No? Well, the VN is purely narrative with a few branching paths and endings, so a guide isn’t entirely needed. You may need to power through the opening before things gets moving, after which you’ll swing between confusion, terror, doubt, sympathy, disgust, and miraculously, happiness.

Immediately we’re thrown some Lewis Caroll and Wittgenstein. Classics and philosophy are rife, which can be a hit-or-miss for the reader — it’s either food for thought, stating the obvious, or pretentious literary masturbation. While I quite liked their approach, it gets overbearing whenever characters spout passages most teenagers have no business quoting.

Some of the sex scenes set-up key characters and events. It doesn’t shy away from being depressing and uncomfortable, or from exploring the tragic consequences that follow. Nonetheless, I get the impression that Subahibi is actively checking a list of fetishes for the eroge crowd.

Certain reveals may come across as clichés or easy excuses, though I feel they work given Subahibi’s context. Remember: Caroll and Wittgenstein. Covering up these bumps are the great soundtrack and notable voice acting from Yuki and Takuji.

20/7 found the wonderful everyday.

I really wanted to answer the phone. 9/10

Error: Viewing too much awesome.

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Game over.