Paradise Kiss Review

And finally Paradise Kiss.

Yukari is a student hoping to get into college until one day she is scouted by a group of fashionable teenagers to model their dress for the festival. Yukari initially says no but the words of the group's leader George starts to fill Yukari with new possibilities that question why she should be fixated on college.
After more meetings, Yukari agrees to be the model and quickly befriends the group known as Paradise Kiss, but it soon becomes clear that George's influence is changing Yukari's path as she stops going to school, runs away from home and even sleeps and has sex with George which leads into wanting to pursue modelling as an actual career but more hurdles will get in her way as everything leads to the day that she finally wears the dress for Paradise Kiss.
If you ask me ten years ago, would I watch this anime I'd probably say no but now I'm not only interested but I actually like it.
It becomes more evident that Yukari is a rebel waiting for a cause as she really turns off the path that she was on, really getting to grips what teens her age are going through as they finish high school, and that's really when you start having doubts whether or not going to college is really the be all and end all of finding the perfect job and having a successful life. On the other side of the coin you have to really get into George's head to see if he's really giving advice or throwing insults, he's very cryptic but unlike Edgar in Earl and Fairy actually stays that way right to the end.
If there's anything I don't like is that Miwako has too many scenes, her voice is shreiky and irritating so I don't like it much when she's on screen, the dub is a mixed bag but mostly passable.
Final Verdict: Sophisticated in it's writing, stylish in design, clever in it's characters and a fantastic payoff to end on. Paradise Kiss is a great anime and derserves a lot of praise.

End