This anime is based on the eroge of the same name created by Navel, though interestingly Shuffle’s manga version actually debuted a month before the game did. It’s worth noting that the manga is non-nude. The game is pornographic, and even has a fully uncensored / explicit version available.
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Download Links
Torrent. Seeders needed! Please seed for as long as possible when finished.
DDL (uncensored ED version) [1080p]: part1, part2
DDL (uncensored ED version) [720p]: part1, part2
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Series Information
Production Company: asread
Vintage: Summer / Fall 2005 (Memories OVA: Winter 2007)
Nipple sightings from other asread produced anime:
Mirai Nikki, Yuushibu, Ga-Rei-Zero (w/ AIC),
Other notable / recently relevant (non-nude) mainstream anime from asread:
Kiddy Girl-and, Lagrange – The Flower of Rin-ne 2, Minami-Ke, The Place Promised in our Early Days (co-production)
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Notable Seiyuu:
Yuko Goto as Kaede Fuyou
Yuko Goto is also well known for her roles as:
Haruka Nagami as Nerine
Haruka Nagami is also well known for her role as:
hitomi as Primula
hitomi is also well known for her roles as:
Miki Itou as Asa Shigure
Miki Itou is also well known for her roles as:
Sayaka Aoki as Lisianthus
Sayaka Aoki is also well known for her roles as:
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Thoughts on the anime
As I’ve said before, I watch ecchi for the titties. Nothing else.
Usually.
There are times when a nude fanservice series can actually surprise with effective comedy or a poignant, ensnaring story. Golden Boy is an all time comedy classic. Haganai is a well rounded comedy with effective storytelling. Ranma 1/2 is arguably the best action-comedy of all time. Ninja Scroll was one of the most bad-ass anime movies of all time. All of them had bare boobs, and I don’t think anyone really cared because they were all so awesome.
Shuffle is not quite on that level, but I will say this: I normally watch these fanservice series on 4x to 8x speed, often with subs and sound turned off. Even with sounds and subs off, by the time I hit episode fifteen I could tell this wasn’t your typical eroge adaptation.
Starting from about episode 15 or so, I watched the rest as if I was watching anime normally. Over the second half of that series, there were several unpredictable moments, twists, character transformations that were either terrific fun or devastating, and an ending that genuinely got me to tear up.
I would recommend this series to fans of both fanservice and mainstream anime. There was a lot more substance to Shuffle than you typically see in a harem series.
Production studio asread is such an interesting company. They do not shy from nudity, but until Yuushibu, they had only included nudity in serious non-ecchi series. I thought they kind of botched their adaptation of Mirai Nikki and I’ll never forgive them for making Kiddy Girl-and non-nude, but otherwise, they have a pretty strong track record with anime. Action, drama, moe, harem, art showcases, nude fanservice… they are one of the most diverse and unpredictable studios in the industry.
I was very impressed with the quality of art in this series, especially for ecchi and especially for the standards of 2005. For the most part, asread has a long track record of having excellent art in their works.
Something I learned today. Yuko Goto, who played Menace from Queen’s Blade, also played Asahina from Haruhi. She plays Kaede in this anime. I’ve heard her voice in so many supporting roles and am a big fan of hers, but I had no idea she played Asahina. That’s pretty neat.
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Thoughts on the fanservice video
First off, getting a 1080p BD rip for a series that aired in 2005 is incredibly fortunate and is a lot more fun to play around with, as higher quality / resolution allows me more freedom with zooming / close-ups.
The ending credits for this series were pretty much fanservice free, and none of the torrents I could find had NCOP or NCED files for either of them. Youtube had some creditless stuff but the quality was just too low. So I got a little creative to keep the OP creditless, and went with an eroge tribute for the ED, which actually uses a song from the Shuffle Memories OP.
Because the game was very X-rated and I don’t want to piss off the powers that be at Nyaa torrents, I censored the ending to keep it within guidelines. The uncensored ending is available for download from the links above.
I will probably release a true uncensored (explicit) version of that ED sequence some time in the future. I had hoped to release it today but I’ve just been so busy there’s been no time to make it. Hopefully I’ll get around to it in the next week or so. I’m behind schedule and I’ve got extra work/commitments away from the blog this week.
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Favorite Character
Kaede. I love yandere characters and Kaede’s mental instability near the end of the series added a welcome degree of suspense and unpredictability. When Kaede and Asa(?) met up under that bridge, it felt like there was a very real chance Shuffle could go in a School Days type direction at that moment. It didn’t, but the fact that the series made me believe it could have happened is enough.
Honorable mention: Lisianthus’ super slutty and fearless alter-ego.
