Nukitashi—despite what it looks like, sounds like, and often is—is a story-driven visual novel that isn’t just basic eroge about a sex-positive island where free, public love isn’t just encouraged, it’s mandatory.
Instead, it’s a sexy comedy story about trauma, rebellion, acceptance, and… well, love.
However, while many are happy to accept the anime for what it presented them, Nukitashi is actually an adaptation of something, a series of visual novels that also has a manga series.
Is The Nukitashi Anime Telling The Same Story As The Visual Novel?
The beginning of the Nukitashi anime does adapt the common route from the visual novel—which basically just introduces the setting and characters—very well. However, from there, it does start to go off the rails and stops attempting to be a linear sort of adaptation of the visual novel by not committing to any girl’s route, and instead just trying to mash them all together.
The Nukitashi anime is very Nanase route-forward, but does incorporate elements of all girls routes into the story line. This leaves the story feeling a bit muddled, but still sexy and funny, but with an increasingly different and less clear story from the original visual novel.
As such, while the anime gave you a little taste of every girl’s route, it committed to none. Instead, it offered you an alternate sort of Nanase route.
While the girls remain much the same, do note that the main character in the visual novel is… a bit meaner to everyone. The anime really tamed down his sort of traumatized, angry personality.
What About The Nukitashi Manga?
The Nukitashi manga has even less relation to the anime as it is adapting the Nukitashi visual novel’s Misaki route.
It is, sadly, not a great alternative to just playing the game.
