English Dub Series Review: Citrus

In the mood for a pulpy yuri romance between two step-sisters?

Overview (Spoilers Below):

Yuzu Aihara is clueless when it comes to love. After transferring to a new school due to her mother’s remarriage, she goes head to head with a mysterious dark-haired girl named Mei. Not only is Mei the student body president – she’s also her new step-sister. And what’s even more surprising is that Yuzu falls head-over-heels in love.

Throughout the course of the series, Yuzu and Mei struggle to understand each other’s feelings. Yuzu is eager to enter into a relationship with Mei at first, but quickly learns that the situation is more complicated than she thought. Not only are they step-sisters, but Mei has been hurt in the past, and doesn’t even know how to love herself yet. As these issues weren’t bad enough, a character from Yuzu’s past comes to town and stirs up tons of trouble. After overcoming endless drama, Yuzu gets one final chance to confess to Mei how she really feels. The show ends on a fairly upbeat note but leaves their future realistically open and unclear.

Our Take:

If you’re thinking about watching Citrus to see a cozy yuri romance, then run away while you can. From the very first episode, Citrus makes it clear that this is more of a rollercoaster ride than a tunnel-of-love. Everything from forced marriages to sexual blackmail is covered, leaving precious little time for the main couple to spend sweeter moments together. For the most part, I didn’t mind the melodrama that much, except for mid-way through the season, when Matsuri, a character from Yuzu’s past was introduced. She brings the whole show down for a couple episodes that don’t do a whole lot to advance the central plot. I feel like one episode would’ve been tolerable, but she sticks around long enough to wear out her welcome. Diminishing (or even eliminating) her storyline would’ve given the show more time to spend on Yuzu and Mei’s development.

Despite the issues I have with the plot and pacing of the show, I’ve got to admit that most of the characters who inhabit its world are pretty likable. Yuzu herself became one of my favorite protagonists of the season due to her. Mei is more of a mystery; the show makes it clear that she has a myriad of trust and self-esteem issues, but never gets around to dealing with them. The side characters are more hit or miss. There are some super entertaining and sweet characters, like Sara, and then there’s Matsuri, who is basically the devil incarnate. Mama Harumin is one of the best parts of the show, though, and is always a supportive friend to Yuzu throughout the chaos happening in her life.

The show doesn’t feature stunning animation or laudable direction, but it remained competent enough throughout its twelve episodes. Occasionally, there were even a few shots that looked cinematic in how they were composed and staged. The backgrounds don’t stand out, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. At least the characters never felt out of place in front of them. The music for the series is fine but contains only a few memorable tracks.

This is definitely a series that I can recommend to those who prefer watching in English. The dub is very well done. That starts with a solid cast, including Megan Shipman as Yuzu and Amber Lee Connors as Mei. Shipman does a fantastic job delivering a relatably awkward and in love adolescent. I didn’t feel like Connor’s performance as Mei was quite as successful, but by the end of the series, I think she had gotten better at fully-inhabiting Mei’s harsh monotone. The quality casting is carried over to the supporting characters, with Felecia Angelle and Margaret McDonald doing excellent work as Sara and Harumin. If there’s anything I could complain about, it would be Matsuri’s voice, which comes across as annoying high-pitched and grating. (Considering her character, maybe that’s what they were going for, though.) The adapted script is generally pretty good as a whole, only sounding unnatural a few times throughout the season. There were plenty of laugh-out-loud jokes mixed in, too. I think this is a show that can be enjoyed equally as much whether you prefer subs or dubs.

If you’re interested in a romance revolving around a lesbian couple (and if you can manage to sit through the non-consensual kissing and all of Matsuri’s plotline), then Citrus is certainly worth a watch. Its plot never reached amazing heights, but it populated its world with relatable, fun characters who experience personal growth as the season progresses. The visuals are fine, and the dub is pretty fantastic. Citrus may have been a little too sour at times for my tastes, but at the end of its run, I can confidently say it was a sweet enough series to enjoy.