Manga Started out strong...then...
I wanted to like Maid-sama and for a while I really did. Misaki was pretty cool and while Usui could get annoying, he was entertaining with his sharp wit. It had its funny moments for sure. Then it dropped hard. I disliked how Misaki's personality made a complete 180 whenever Usui was around and her 'badass' personality was nothing more than an overdone Tsundere, hating Usui for some pretty idiotic reasons. And Usui...good Lord. His 'perfect' personality was so exaggerated its not even funny. The worst part is that neither of them changed. Oh, Misaki did, but not for the better.
Now, while it just sounds like I'm trashing the series, its not BAD. Just...remarkably mediocre. It's a fun ride but hardly any development in the main leads...AND their relationship.
If I sound a bit unfair in my review, I'm sorry but I have little tolerance for cliches and poorly done tsunderes.
Manga Most fun I have had with an anime in a while
So I decided to take a break from heavier anime to check out more lighthearted slice-of-life and shoujo series. I wasn't looking for anything particularly deep or thought-provoking, just something fun and entertaining. And boy did Kaichou wa Maid-sama! deliver. The series is hilarious, never taking itself too seriously. I'm usually not a big fan of the tsundere archetype at all, but Misaki is a great protagonist in my eyes whose circumstances in life, including the departure of her father and the stress of taking his place as one of the providers for her family, justify quite a few of her antics. Usui's perfection at virtually everything should make him a boring love interest in theory, but the unpredictable nature of his character (e.g. being completely serious in one moment and then offering snarky comments in super-deformed mode in the next) makes him really entertaining to watch. I really liked the way the two play off one another, forming something of an unstoppable duo whose victories were predictable yet oddly satisfying. The supporting cast, made up of their school mates and Misaki's fellow employees at Maid Latte, tend to invoke typical anime archetypes, but enough key quirks and situations are thrown in to keep them largely likable. Overall the show itself plays off like a cute, quirky café (fittingly enough) where you can sit back and have fun for a while. Not earth-shattering, but very memorable and entertaining.