School Rumble - Review

Duration: 2 Seasons (26 ep per, 24 mins each) + 3rd Season OVA (2 ep)

Genre: Slice-of-life, Comedy, School-life, Romance

Many slice-of-life anime are successful because they focus and illustrate on people's day-to-day musings or interactions--primarily the more humorous sides. Most of those anime get a decent chuckle or nod acknowledging the various jokes/punch lines thrown. School Rumble is just one of those series that has its distinct charm that gets my blood pumped...for comedy.

Story

Tsukamoto Tenma, a seemingly ordinary second year high school student, has fallen in love with one of her classmates, Karasuma Oji. Timid and unexperienced in relationships, she is unable to confess her feelings. Making things worse, Tenma learns that Karasuma is going to transfer to another school next year. On the opposite side of the spectrum we have Harima Kenji, a typical delinquent/badass, who has fallen in love with Tenma. Similarly, he also has a difficulty confessing his feelings. Hilarity ensues. On the surface, a simple love triangle archetype for a romantic comedy, but don't let its simplicity deter you from watching it.

Characters

At first glance one may think there are too many characters to cover in School Rumble (and you would be right); for brevity reasons I shall cover the main ones. In retrospect, the minor characters won't even seem like minor characters as one will get to know them fairly well in random scenes and respective story arcs.

Tsukamoto Tenma: The focal girl of the series; she's just hilarious. An airhead most of the time, her random antics and outbursts make her a treat to watch. There's never a dull moment with Tenma to say the least.

Harima, Kenji: The focal guy of the series. Equally hilarious. What makes him likeable is his unwavering adoration for Tenma. Outside his tough and unsocial exterior is a thoughtful, strong-willed, misunderstood fool. A heavy case of tunnel vision and denseness makes Harima the butt end of numerous jokes. Not enough can be said about him.

Karasuma, Oji: Extremely random, has otherworldly super reflexes, and with an ungodly ugly bowl haircut, one questions why Tenma is so infatuated with him. A man of very few words, all we know is that he loves his curry.

Tsukamoto, Yakumo: Tenma's younger yet more competent sister. She is lusted by nearly every guy in school, but through some innate ability she is able to see the thoughts of the people who admire her. She can cook, clean, is good with animals, and with the body of a goddess, who wouldn't want her?

Sawachika, Eri: One of Tenma's friends who unexpectedly and unwillingly develops a crush for Harima. Born into a rich, high-class family, she is pretentious and has a unhealthy sense of entitlement. It goes without saying that she has some internal issues. Aside, she has her own quirks and charm which make her a fun character to watch.

Voice Acting/Sound

Much of the characters from the original Japanese dub are voiced quite well. Again, this is driven by my particularly heavy bias towards original voice work. The English dub is no slouch either, but various puns and references may be missed as a result. Specifically, the lead voice actors (Harima) and (Tenma) made for an extremely engaging series. One could always sense Harima's passion for Tenma every time he called out her name and Tenma's airheaded-ness in nearly every situation. There were some exceptions to the cast as I was a bit perplexed by the voicing of (Lala). In retrospect, it's fairly difficult to pinpoint how a Mexican luchadora speaking Japanese would sound like.

Much of the soundtrack from School Rumble is fairly standard. It's essentially a comedy, focusing on the jokes and various scenarios. Dramatically contemplative Harima scenes characterized by pensive-like music while scenes depicting more action embodied by some high pace/typical action music. Tracks tend to be recycled quite often and aren't particularly special, but one must keep in mind that the soundtrack isn't there to be groundbreaking or innovative. Aside, the first ending track "Kono Namida ga Arukara Tsugi no Ippo to Naru" by Ami Tokito is worth at least a sample listen--a real treat.

Loved
Laugh Out Loud Funny: When I say it was laugh out loud funny, I definitely mean it. There are too many scenes to consider when asked for a favorite one. The over the top antics and parodies to other anime simply have me in stitches. Of course there will be some hit and miss jokes that not everyone will get, but that is often the case with most comedies.

Dojibiron/Hacchake Basket: The series featured numerous parodies, but two stood out above the rest. To be honest, I wouldn't mind watching a spinoff series of these. The former is your typical Super Sentai/Power Rangers parody while the latter is an over the top basketball themed anime/manga. Some say it's filler, but I like it when animators play around a little bit with their characters. It's random as hell, but I love it.

Hated
Unrequited Love: As much as I love School Rumble, nothing really pans out in terms the relationships within the entire cast. The third 'season' OVA attempts to tighten loose ends on the love story, but essentially it is all for naught. Those looking for a Hollywood-romantic-comedy-type ending should look elsewhere. As a slice-of-life anime, it follows suit in which nothing significant will happen--just enjoy the ride.

The Lowdown: School Rumble has its special place in my all-time favorite anime list. Sure, it has some flaws with it's fairly open-ended and rushed ending; and I can confirm that I don't understand every single punch line/parody/outside reference, but the series is so damn funny I often revisit when I need a good laugh. As long as you're not expecting an elaborate storyline with cohesive twists and turns, you're going to enjoy it.

Notes: Watched entire series + 3rd season OVA (official Funimation sub) and parts of English dub.

Welcome to the NHK! - Review

Duration: 24 episodes (24 mins each)
Genre: Drama, Romance, Slice-of-Life

In today's technology driven society, it's fairly easy for one to become completely cut off from the world. The internet has certainly made people's lives a lot easier; some people are able to work from home, pay their bills, buy groceries, find a mate, and spend recreational time all in the comfort of their own home behind a computer monitor. Despite these ubiquitous advantages the Internet offers us, people have all but forgotten to communicate directly with people. Online social networks, text messaging, and MMORPGs are the bane of today's youth. When one is Before I sound any older,Welcome to the NHK sheds some light on the potential hazards of living one such life.

Story

Tatsuhiro Sato is a twenty some year old college drop out living in an apartment in Tokyo. A NEET (Not in Employment, Education, or Training) scraping by on monthly allowances from his parents, he lives a secluded/antisocial hikikomori lifestyle. Influenced in the past by a classmate of his, Sato begins to believe that there is an underground organization called the NHK (Nippon Hikikomori Kyokai) creating a society teeming with anti-social hikikomori--with him already stuck in a pitiful scenario. An opportune yet unfortunately depressing encounter with a young girl named Misaki changes Sato's life (for better or worse) as she hopes to break him away from his self-destructive lifestyle.

Characters

Sato, Tatsuhiro: Our main protagonist, he could be best generalized as one lacking any type of social competence whatsoever. Heavily dependent on the aid of others to sustain himself, his equivalent would be the stereotypical man who lives in his mom's basement type of person.

Yamazaki, Kaoru: Sato's high school acquaintance, he is your typical otaku character. Conveniently living next to Sato, they develop a close bond with each other as they encounter numerous problems, mostly rooted by Sato. A very blunt and straightforward character at first, but Yamazaki's issues later on make him quite personable--for me at least.

Nakahara, Misaki: After her first encounter with Sato, she presents him with a proposal to help him rid of his hikikomori ways. Mysteriously nice and upbeat most of the time, her motives for helping Sato are unknown for most of the series. Cute, nice, and delightful, most would call her wifey material.

Kashiwa, Hitomi: Sato's old high school classmate who for the most part causes Sato some trouble. She has the body of a goddess; the primary reason why Sato sticks around, but carries some ridiculous emotional baggage.

Aside from Misaki's oddly peculiar upbeat attitude, the main cast could be said as very depressing and problem-ridden. I felt a particularly close connection to these characters as I have personally gone through equally depressing circumstances. The characters are well rounded and developed nicely as the series progressed.

Voice Acting/Sound

With most slice-of-life anime, the interactions between characters is essential to its success. Welcome to the N.H.K's Japanese voice actors are well versed and fit the roles of their respective characters quite well. Yui Makino does a spectacular job as Misaki, playing the mysteriously innocent, altruistic girl. I was also impressed by Daisuke Sakaguchi's work as Yamazaki; compelling during his numerous outbursts of enthusiasm.

The soundtrack is also nothing to sniff at. Most will notice the incessant blaring of the Pururin theme, but in retrospect, the soundtrack set the tone well for each particular scene--joyful or gloomy. Tunes comprise of ambient/chill, jazz, and soft rock variety. Overall, the soundtrack definitely has some gems out there worth listening to again.

Loved
Brutal Reality: The world isn't perfect and one's life won't always go as planned. Misfortune and mistakes are to occur in life. These are a few of the messages I came to pull from Welcome to the N.H.K. Some of them may hit personally as the series evokes a gloomy and melancholy tone brought forth by issues of depression, hopelessness, and suicide. Despite the series ending on a fairly unsatisfying note, N.H.K delivers on its message that everyone will inevitably encounter bumps and hurdles in life, and it takes great deal of effort to work oneself out and above them. Are some of these problems applicable to everyone? Probably not. Inspiring perhaps? Definitely.

Pururin Anime: Simply a parody of other shoujo anime used within the series; I wouldn't mind watching a few episodes myself. That theme song is just too damn catchy, and yes I need to make a ringtone of it for my phone.

Hated
Lackluster ending: This tends to be the problem with most series, and N.H.K is no exception. I touched upon it earlier, but the ending needed some work. No doubt the string of events leading up to the ending had me over my seat with my mind blown waiting what would happen next, but to no avail. Again, there are some polarizing views on this, and the ending wasn't so devastatingly bad that I wanted my eight or so hours watching the series back; it just could have been approached better.

Ecchi scenes: Oh why oh why must great anime be watered down to random scenes of nudity? Yes, they are there for fanservice and the environment Yamazaki/Sato indulge in lends itself to very ecchi material anyhow. If there weren't those few boob shots, this series could be accessible to more audiences.

The Lowdown: Welcome to the N.H.K might be a turnoff for some as some facets of Japanese culture are introduced like otaku, hikikomori, NEETs as well as some ecchi scenes. It's not a typical sit-down-with-the-family type of anime, and if one were to be fairly open minded, one shall be treated to a very cute and whole-hearted romance anime with a bit if everything.

Notes: Watched all 24 episodes from beginning to end (official Funimation subs), and parts of English dub.

Jyu-Oh-Sei (Planet of the Beast King) - Review

Duration: 11 episodes (24 mins each)
Genre: Action, Adventure, Mystery, Drama, Sci-Fi

I managed to come across Jyu Oh Sei by means of a simple you may also like: recommendation through Hulu.com. When first reading the premise of Jyu Oh Sei, I was pretty interested despite not having a large interest in science-fiction-like environments. Two kids cast off to some primitive planet with its peculiar traits and hierarchal system; it sounded like something similar to Golding's Lord of the Flies. Surprisingly when looking at duration of the series, I was curious to see how the plot would play out in only 11 episodes. Typical adventure and action anime (Dragonball Z, Naruto, Full Metal Alchemist, Trigun) span over 30, 40, and more than 100 episodes, so I decided to give Jyu Oh Sei a whirl. Whether it would be good or not, I wouldn't be committing too much time to it.

Story

After witnessing the deaths of their parents, Thor and his twin brother Rai are cast off to a distant unknown planet (Chimaera) drastically different from their own. Originating from a technology driven planet, they are stuck in an environment where plant life has a heavy influence on the daily routines of every person. With only a beam knife to defend themselves with, Thor and Rai seek to find a way off the planet and to unravel the mystery behind their parents' deaths.

The planet is governed and separated by a set of various rings, each ruled by a respective leader called the "Top" (hehe there's some innuendo there) and his subordinates, a second and third. The planet's inhabitants are mostly men, thus women play an invaluable role of bearing children and are given special liberties including the freedom to choose their own mates. Civilization concentrates itself on strength and values those with the will to survive; is one able to abandon his humanity to inevitably be presented with an opportunity to leave the planet?

Characters

Thor: Not really exuding much manliness, Thor is the typical brat of this 'coming of age' story. Despite sharing the name with the awesome Norse God, he isn't very likable but his character grew with me as the series went on--it's probably the silver hair.

Tiz: A random girl who happens to stumble upon Thor at an opportune time to save him from a vicious plant beast. She takes a liking to Thor and declares him her mate. She's very energetic yet sound at the same time and the only bit of female eye candy you'll see for most of the series.

Third: Yup, that's his name. Not really unique like Thor or a tease like Tiz, he plays a vital role of informing Thor about the in and outs of planet Chimaera. As you would have guessed, he also the Third in ranking of the local ring. A fairly minor character early on, I didn't think too much about him until it was too late. Quite the opposite of Thor, he's the epitome of the cool, calm, and collected character.

There are some other minor characters I could delve into, but in the interest of keeping this review brief and spoiler free as possible; might as well leave them out.

Voice Acting/Sound

Oh where to start. It may be my personal preference to experience the original Japanese dub with subtitles first, but you can't go wrong with it. Everyone's voices seems fairly on par; nothing out of tune or out of place. To be honest, voices sound recycled and generic, but it's not bad. The English dub by Funimation is another story on the other hand. I can't say it's horrid, but Thor at times (and by at times I mean quite frequently) sounds like a five year old girl. Understandably he's an adolescent who hasn't gone through puberty yet, but if one were to just stumble in a room while hearing Thor voiced by Alison Viktorin, one would mistakenly suspect it to be an adolescent girl's voice. Aside, this could simply be my bias towards English voice actors and my initial liking of the Japanese VAs.

Although the soundtrack is fairly average, the ending track Te wo Tsunaide by Younha is gem and worth a listen through (below). No other track really stands out as much unless you count the opening, which is fairly cheesy, but has a distinct charm/campy feeling to it--it's polarizing to say the least.

Loved
Action Sequences: In each episode there will be at least a tidbit of action sequences with some fluid and detailed animation. The few scenes in which Thor takes action are well done and kept me interested going on to the next episode and so on. With respect to the rest of the animation, everything looks great though I found their noses a little too high-bridged for my taste.


Hated
Storyboard work anyone?: This series could have easily been stretched into 24 episodes or more. The story simply went at a blisteringly fast pace; as a result I was surprised to see so many things happen over the course of few episodes. I do have to say I was impressed how they were able to squeeze so many significant plot twists and turns within the few episodes. Regardless, some characters could have been fleshed out better and some incidents which occurred made me ask myself, "What the hell just happened?".

The Lowdown: If you're looking for a highly engaging anime, but in short of free time, Jyu Oh Sei fits the bill. As long as you don't let the plot holes bother you too much, it's quite enjoyable and fairly thought provoking to an extent. C'mon, the main character's name is Thor...

Notes: Watched official Funimation subs beginning to end and parts of English dub.