Okay, so after avoiding this game because I’d heard it was comparable to Collar X Malice, which is my most hated (*cough*) strongly disliked otome game of all time, I finally caved when Bustafellows was available on the Nintendo e-shop for $10. I mean, even I can take a risk for $10.
And I’m so happy I did! I absolutely LOVED Shu! And to my absolute surprise, he and his route sky-rocketed to the top 5 of my favorite otome heroes and routes of all time!
In my opinion, this game is nothing like Collar X Malice, which works in Bustafellows favor in every way!
Character and plot analysis and light spoilers after the cut! Per the game developer’s request, I will keep this article focused on my thoughts of this route.
I’m not going to lie.
A large percentage of my enjoyment in this route is due to voice actor Yoshimasa Hosoya. I don’t know what rock I have been living under to just now hear the work of this man, but good gracious! This performance made me swoon. It’s so so so so-so-so-so good! You hear Hosoya’s subtle chuckles, laughs, and sighs. Gosh darn it, you can even hear the man smile! And these are my favorite types of voice acting performances! I love the performances that are more than simply reading the script. Hosoya breathed life into Shu and that was one of my favorite parts of the route!
I also loved the overall production of this game. I’ve never experienced an otome game of this caliber! I was amazed how some of the backgrounds had movement, like Scarecrow’s living room! The fire in the fireplace flickered. Lamps had a glowing light. The pool’s water had a subtle movement. It was genuinely amazing! I loved…I’m not sure the correct name of this…the animation of the cityscape that would signal the changing of the scenes! I mean, come on, the subway train moved in the background! So much attention to detail!
I loved the animations of when the characters were driving in the car and the animation from the helicopter escape! The illusion of real movement was really neat! I would have loved to see more of that throughout the game.
I loved how certain scenes had realistic sound effects in the background. The scenes in the restaurants sounded like you were in a restaurant. The scenes on the streets in New Sieg sounded like you were on the city streets of New York City. I think I even heard the fire crackling from the fireplace in Scarecrow’s living room! I loved this touch!
The cat storyline was delightful and I loved how the writers utilized this storyline and wove it into the plot of the game. I found myself laughing out loud numerous times! As a cat owner, the scene where the cat won’t eat the food because she doesn’t like it was just too real!
The cast chemistry was great! All of the characters were likeable (in my opinion), even Helvetica! He had a charm about him that I found amusing, and I can’t say I disagreed with his practical, rational assessment of most issues. I adored Scarecrow! He’s such a little sweetie! Mozu just made me amusedly shake my head at his scientific understanding of all issues. I enjoyed seeing him care for Teuta in his own unique way! Limbo was a great group leader and I found him fun. I loved how he talked about his dog Max and how Limbo tried to apply his knowledge of dogs to cats! This poor guy tried to relate!
I also really enjoyed Teuta as the heroine! Teuta isn’t afraid to speak her mind and say things to people that they might not want to hear. Of course, that sometimes gets her into trouble, but this girl isn’t afraid to stick up for what she thinks is right! I thought the scenes where she wrestled with the consequences of the time-traveling power were well-done. It added to Teuta’s sense of humanity and I really appreciated that.
In fact, I think my favorite thing about Teuta is that she is willing to wrestle with the tough questions. When she finds out that Shu is a hitman who kills people for a living, she has to take a step back and think about what this all means to her. I love that Teuta is brave enough to tell people she needs time to think about things. She doesn’t give into pressure to give immediate responses to things she’s not sure about.
Teuta wants to understand others. And she’s wise enough to know, that developing the understanding of things she doesn’t comprehend takes time. She gives herself the grace to think through things on her own terms, which makes her such an enjoyable heroine to experience the story with!
Teuta uses her mind to puzzle out what she believes. Of course, her insatiable curiosity can get her into trouble at times, but it’s an asset to her journalism career. Between her desire to wrestle with tough topics and her hard-nosed determination, there is nothing Teuta can’t do! I enjoyed reading about Teuta’s desire to be a top-notch journalist who makes a difference in the world.
The only writing I found a bit jarring was the jump from the common route into Shu’s route. I felt like in the first 3 ½ chapters, Shu’s distrust of Teuta naturally changed into acceptance of her being in the group. But at the end of chapter 4, Shu is clearly attracted to Teuta. He proceeds to flirt and charmingly tease Teuta about her swimsuit. To me, his flirting and teasing was abrupt. I honestly could not tell from his earlier interactions with her in the common route, that he was interested in her in anyway.
After this, you immediately enter his route. And, for some reason, he’s ready to completely open up to her and tell her things about himself that he’s never told to Limbo (arguably his best friend in the group).
And hey! I’m not going to complain about the hero and heroine openly communicating about their pasts and their thoughts and feelings! This is absolutely fantastic!
BUT.
I will say that this change, in how Shu approached and communicated with Teuta, was abrupt. It genuinely surprised me, considering how Shu was in the common route, that he was opening up to Teuta that quickly in his own route! I kind of sat back for a moment and thought, “Okay, writers! I did not see this coming!”
And like I get it. The pacing of the plot of Shu’s route was fantastic! Sometimes otome games lose me to boredom in their meandering and bloated plots. Bustafellows felt slim, trim, and streamlined when it came to the plot of the story and I genuinely appreciated this approach to storytelling! I think the only downside, considering how much the common route dominated the story, is it left the writers less time to completely flesh out Shu’s feelings towards Teuta.
But I really loved Shu and Teuta’s relationship, so I can’t really complain about how the writers chose to write Shu’s route. The abrupt change in Shu’s attitude towards Teuta only took me out of the story for a short bit. It wasn’t long until I was, again, completely invested in the story.
Shu was such a likeable hero for me…and, yes, I know he’s a hitman. I loved his calm and steady personality that, kind of, hid his mischievous sense of humor!
Shu is the stoic “muscle” of group and handles a lot of the dirty work that Limbo, Scarecrow, Mozu, and Helvetica can’t or won’t do. I will say, that I know Limbo, Scarecrow, Mozu and Helvetica do some variation of dirty work, but I’m not sure they are killing or physically threatening people. I think this role rests solely on Shu’s shoulders alone.
Shu is completely dependable and trustworthy and it was *lowkey* adorable to see how he trails Limbo throughout the common route. I don’t know if he’s Limbo’s bodyguard or just likes helping Limbo out, but these two men were fairly inseparable. There was a definite trust between Limbo and Shu and it was totally endearing! They make great partners in crime!
Shu’s so straightforward and addresses anything, he sees as a problem, head-on! He seems mature, and like he knows his way around women, but sometimes he is painfully unaware of how Teuta thinks! And if Shu doesn’t see something as a problem, he doesn’t think there is anything to fix! So, while he is straightforward with his communications, there are moments when he has obvious (to everyone else!) blind spots! This trait of his is completely endearing, and also leads to some funny situations with regards to Teuta. The poor man thinks everything is fine, as Teuta is trying to solve problems that Shu doesn’t even realize exist! I loved this dynamic!
In his route, Shu had to wrestle with how he saw life. Being a hitman, Shu knows his job is dangerous and he could die at any time. So, he developed a very c’est la vie attitude towards his life. It’s not that he goes looking for death, but he apathetically believes he could die at any moment. I really enjoyed his gradual change in how he appreciated the life he had.
Shu and Teuta are very different people, and it was wonderful to see them find a middle ground so they could come together. Being different isn’t bad and the two of them make-up for each other’s weaknesses. I don’t think their relationship would be easy, but I do think that being so different and being open to compromise, strengthens their ability to live fulfilling lives. They open doors for each other and act as bridges to other ways of life that neither of them would have known without each other.
And that is a lovely dynamic for a romantic relationship!
-Final Thoughts-
I never expected to enjoy this game as much as I did! The plot was straight-forward and streamlined, which I really appreciated! There wasn’t a lot of bloat to the story, which made it engaging and fast paced. Though, I do think the poor pacing of Shu’s feelings toward Teuta came at the expense of the streamlined plot pacing, it wasn’t a deal breaker for me.
I loved Shu and Teuta. They were great as individual characters and as a couple. I appreciated their open way of communicating and that, from the very beginning, they were never afraid to talk about hard topics with each other. There was an earnest honesty between them that was endearing! So, for me, Shu is a great hero of a great route!
I was completely blown away, and I know I’ll be diving back into the world of Bustafellows very soon!
Otomes as Novels 