by Burkely Hermann, Guest Reviewer

Since its release in late January, tens of thousands of people have watched the first episode of No Love 1/2 on Internet Archive and on YouTube where it is age restricted because it “may be inappropriate for some users.” No Love 1/2 is created by Anne Yue (also known as Atelier), with help from producer Matthew Nguyen, and crew members working on 3D animation, sound design, casting, and voice direction. In a YouTube comment, Atelier stated that due to disappointment over rarely animating women or working on any girls’ love projects as a professional gaming industry animator, she worked for nine months to complete episode one. She promised at least two more episodes and hoped the episode would inspire others.

No Love 1/2 is more than a “cocktail mix of yuri with neo-noir and girls-with-guns.” Although those elements are prominent in the only episode presently released, which is 20 minutes long, there is more going on.

The episode begins with Hannah (voiced by Hanako Watanabe) meeting Melissa “Mel”/”Lisa” (voiced by Tasch Ritter). Mel worries about the planned heist while blowing smoke at Hannah even though she says her girlfriend, Annabel, “hates” that smell. It quickly goes wrong. Mel is hanging out at her bar when Nicky (voiced by Amanda Hufford) beats her up. She tells Mel she needs to give her the amount that the platinum bars, which she stole, are worth. She gives Mel three days to get “her” money back. Some time later, Mel busts into Hannah’s office, confronting Hannah when she’s about to make sweet love to Annabel (voiced by Madeline Dorroh). Surprised to see this in front of her, she says they need to talk.

She threatens her with her gun, believing that Hannah sold her out. However, Hannah is a skilled one-armed fighter and she easily disarms Mel. Hannah learns about a woman she detests: Nicky. Mel says she throws “one hell of a haymaker,” referring to a powerful, wide-swinging punch “designed to deliver a heavy blow” to any opponent. It turns out that Nicky, a mid-level mob boss in the criminal organization, is working for a crony, Holland (voiced by Maia Harlap). The latter threatens her, demanding money equivalent to ten kilos of “her platinum” and claims that Nicky will be targeted after she gets the money.

The next day, Hannah admits to her girlfriend that she is responsible for Mel getting into this mess. Later, her boss, a Black woman named Velda (voiced by Maganda Marie), who saved her in the past, coldly implies that Mel’s death is an “acceptable loss.” Hannah worries that Mel might compromise them. Her boss tells her she is getting “soft.” In a poignant scene, Mel challenges Hannah, saying she is only worried if she will rat her out and not about if she lives or dies. They have a nice heart-to-heart afterward. All this makes the series stronger than Metallic Rouge, which also features girls with guns, but has an infuriating storyline.

The episode’s final part has a gun fight between herself, Hannah, and Nicky’s goons, mostly involving handguns, with Hannah expertly using a sniper rifle. Hannah and Mel escape while Nicky is terrified to learn about Hannah. Velda is disappointed. She says that because Hannah got too “sentimental,” they couldn’t off Nicky. This sets the stage for future episodes.

No Love 1/2 was animated with Blender/Goo Engine. The resulting smooth 3D animation used various sources for modelling and animation, without using any machine learning/A.I. tools/algorithms. The neo-noir style, with music by Damien Osborne and lo sé, reminded me of yurish anime centering on girls with guns like the ever-popular Lycoris Recoil and three classic Bee Train series: Noir, El Cazador de la Bruja, and Madlax. Even though I thought immediately of early seasons of RWBY, that series did not use Blender. Seasons 1-3 used Poser and Autodesk Maya. Blender was prominently used in films like Flow, I Lost My Body, and Next Gen.

The voice cast of No Love 1/2 includes VTubers/streamers, game developers, vocalists, and singers, and those who are LGBTQ+, neurodivergent, Cantonese, and bilingual. Some voice cast lent their voices to characters in indie animated series (The Amazing Digital Circus and Monkey Wrench) and assorted anime (Wadance, Yakuza Fiancé, and Reborn as a Vending Machine). Furthermore, Nguyen, producer of No Love 1/2, is Vietnamese-American. He previously created an arcade flight action video game, Project Wingman.

The relationship between Hannah and Annabel is a major part of No Love 1/2. Hannah demands that Mel leave while touching Annabel’s breast, and asking if Mel if they can talk later. This is shown openly and unabashedly. When Mel enters Hannah’s office, she is taken aback at her boss’s boldness but does not object to the fact that Hannah is in a romantic relationship with a woman. Later in the episode, Annabel and Hannah lie the same bed together.

In another scene, Hannah’s shirt is unbuttoned and Annabel’s neck has hickeys, implying they had sex the previous night. The romance between these two characters is healthy, rather than toxic or abusive. In addition, Annabel and Hannah softly look into each other’s eyes and, at certain points, it is almost like they are staring at the viewer.

When Hannah and Velda talk at an arcade, Annabel is happily playing a claw game. Velda doesn’t mind her being there. Again, in the world of No Love 1/2, characters don’t even bat an eye at lesbian relationships. Lastly, Hannah shows she is considerate by not smoking around her girlfriend because she dislikes the smell.

Ratings: 
Art – 9
Story – 8
Characters – 9
Service – 4 or 5 (There’s some partial nudity, implied sex, and an almost-sex scene)
Yuri – 5 or 6 (at the very least)
Music – 9

Overall- 9

Burkely Hermann is a writer, researcher, and former metadata librarian. His reviews can be read on Pop Culture Maniacs or his personal WordPress blog. He can be followed on Instagram, Bluesky, or on Mastadon communities such as library.love, glammr.us, genealysis.social, and historians.social.