Saiki Kusuo No Psi-nan

Imagine if you have all the super psychic powers in the world. Naturally you would want to flaunt it or show how awesome you are, right? Well, not really. Because for our main protagonist in Saiki Kusuo No Psi-nan, he could be the most powerful human ever and even more than the most powerful comic characters. However he yearns for a peaceful, ordinary and uneventful life. It would be better if nobody knows about it or if he has to use them. Anything that is deemed troublesome, he wouldn’t want it. However as we all come to expect, God isn’t going to make his life a smooth sailing and peaceful one because of all the idiots and their antics around him. He is forced to live a more ‘interesting’ and super life thanks to all the unnecessary troubles.

Episode 1A
Kusuo Saiki narrates he was born with psychic powers although his parents are both normal people. Normally, parents would have sent such special child to research centres but being the laidback parents they are, they kept Saiki and enjoyed making use of his powers. You will understand why he puts up such an emotionless face after all these years because of this. Like now his father gets locked out of the house and wants him to help open it. With psychic powers. Worse, his parents aren’t on talking terms. Like any other typical household after being married for so long, they want to kill each other.

Episode 1B
Mother treats her son with utmost care while discriminating against her husband during dinner time. Shoe as food? Saiki is forced to intervene before they kill each other because he can also read their thoughts they still love each other despite their outrageous behaviour. So he makes them think aloud and when they realize they still love each other, they reconcile. Now Saiki can enjoy his favourite black jelly pudding dessert. Mother snatches it away to give to father as sign of peace. Saiki is enraged as his psychic powers breaks all the glass and windows!

Episode 1C
It is no fun when you can read other people’s minds. That is why Saiki knows everything and can take action before the undesirable happens or just win it. However, there is one guy whom his mind reading abilities cannot work on: Riki Nendou. In short, this butt chin guy is an idiot. He might look like a delinquent but he is actually a nice guy but in an idiotic way. Like this time he tries to help a student fainted at the opening ceremony by giving him a kiss! CPR, if you should say. That student of course was trying to feign illness to get out of the assembly. So trouble might come to them if the teacher finds out they are faking it so Saiki is forced to help by heating up the thermometer just to make it look like they are really sick. Nendou thought he is also sick with some disease and thus an ambulance is called to stretcher Saiki away.

Episode 1D
Shun Kaidou AKA The Jet Black Wings. In one word: Chuunibyou! He thinks Saiki is his comrade or something and wants him to help to find some evil dragon snake. Because nobody believes him and mocks him, Saiki is forced to use a bit of his powers to teleport a snake in class to avoid Kaidou having mental breakdown in the toilet. It is Kaidou’s chance to prove his manliness as he tries to save a girl from being bitten but at this point he is too late to realize he is scared as hell. Saiki intervenes using lightning to zap him. Though everyone is impressed with Kaidou’s ‘powers’, this made Kaidou’s chuunibyou get even worse.

Episode 1E
Kokomi Teruhashi thinks she is the prettiest girl around, in which she is. Not only that, she thinks she is perfect and kind. So when she bumps into Saiki who shows no reaction whatsoever (she expects others to fall in love with her at first sight), she keeps bugging him in trying to get the right reaction. His swift teleporting allows him to dodge her hugs. You can tell she is in denial that he isn’t interested in her the least bit but she keeps thinking if he thinks she is an illusion or has a past too tragic to notice her. Seeing Nendou around, Saiki by his instinct teleports to a faraway place. Luckily nobody saw it. This makes Teruhashi wonder if she is the one seeing illusions and could it be that she has fallen for Saiki?!

Episode 2A
The class plays dodgeball. Saiki didn’t want to get involve but with Kineshi Hairo revving up everyone, I guess nobody is left out. Saiki is at least glad he is in Hairo’s team since he can leave it all to him. Saiki purposely goes out but some rule makes it impossible so he is still in the game. Nendou singlehandedly takes out all but Saiki and Hairo. Saiki thought of going out by sacrificing himself to protect Nendou but this revs him up to protect Saiki. Now he has got to go this alone. The fate of his team now rests on Saiki!

Episode 2B
Saiki is in a dilemma. He doesn’t want to attract attention but if he makes it obvious, he’ll be the target of bullies or admiration. At first Saiki’s shot may seem weak but his spin ball is deadly. He knocks out a couple of opponents and at this point Hairo returns after seeing Saiki’s amazing ‘determination’. In the end, Hairo wins it for his team. When everyone starts to like how cool Saiki is, Nendou hugs him for being the best and everyone’s likeability starts dropping.

Episode 2C
There seems to be another girl who likes Saiki. Chiyo Yumehara can’t keep starring at how handsome he is! He can read her mind she is going to do obvious cliché stuffs to make him notice her like bumping into him. But with Saiki’s powers, Yumehara always fails. It is sad that she is forced to give up on him so Saiki wishes her the best and to find someone else. He didn’t realize it was so fast because another guy, Takeru Shinoda came to already steal her heart.

Episode 2D
It’s time for Saiki’s parents to have fun using their son’s powers again. This time they want him to help move the furniture around. Due to the marital spat, they were living in separate rooms and want to move back together again. He does as told but they are never satisfied with the position because it is blocking something. This pisses off Saiki that he just crashes everything in the wall to make a giant hole. Well, they love it since the room is ‘bigger’ now. A few more moving before they realize they should have just move their stuffs to a bigger room. So revert it to everything as it was? Don’t be mad… While his powers might look like everything went back to normal, what he did was just revert back time. This means their beds are back in separate rooms.

Episode 2E
Saiki explains to us why despite his strange appearance, he doesn’t stand out in the eyes of others. Simple. In this world, this is all normal. So he gives a few examples how he makes others perceive unnatural things as normal. You can say he changes people’s values and common sense. Like how everybody in this world has colourful hair except black. Since Saiki was born with pink hair, he used mind control to have everyone think having colourful hair is the norm! So when you see a delinquent trying to fight a teacher and he fights back using some clothes ripping moves, that’s normal!

Episode 3A
Uryoku Chouno is a street magician but of course Saiki can see through his crummy tricks. It is his own undoing when he used a homeless guy for a trick. Due to bad timing, the people saw his lame trick. And he forgot about the dead pigeon in his hat… Saiki is forced to listen to his story how he lost his job and his wife left him. He became so disillusioned that he thought becoming an illusionist is his fate! So he turned down a job offer for that? Saiki wakes him up by using his own powers for a superior trick. That should make him stop, right? Chouno now wants to become his disciple!

Episode 3B
Saiki wants to watch a mystery drama on TV but since he is early, he has to watch Chouno putting up a live magic feat. He wonders if he can do this escape feat because he sounds so unready and the trick has already started rolling! Fearing this would disrupt his programme, Saiki teleports into the box to help him out but it seems he isn’t in. He already crawled out from underneath. Saiki’s screwed. He can’t use his teleport after a few minutes. Luckily, thanks to his powers, he is able to escape all the swords poking through, doused with flames and steamrolled over. He manages to get out by tunnelling through the soft ground. Chouno gets the applause when he appears all in good timing. Saiki thought he can go home and watch his drama but the actor makes his special appearance to promote the upcoming programme and since Saiki can read his mind, it kills his mood reading his thoughts of how the killer is.

Episode 3C
Kaidou enters some room in school and makes contact with another fellow chuunibyou guy. You see all the weird poses and rituals they do and when that guy alerts they are being attacked by forces and that Kaidou must leave all his precious items behind, one would clearly know this is a scam. True enough it is. Thankfully, Saiki was spying nearby and teaches that guy a lesson by becoming a dark force to scare the hell out of him. Next day when Kaidou returns, the room is messed up and he thinks that the dark force has really got this place. Unknown to him, that dark force is Saiki, right beside him.

Episode 3D
Saiki is not pleased that Nendou is here to bring him to the beach. Mother is happy he has a friend (even more so, Nendou thought she is Saiki’s sister!). So mom forces Saiki to go along with Nendou. After all, he went to all this trouble to get him. Kaidou is also here but he can’t swim. Drowning in shallow waters? You got to be an expert to do that. Nendou also wants to hit on girls but with that kind of face? No chance! When a girl is drowning, Nendou swims to save her. But he has to save Kaidou first. And then Hairo whose leg cramped up while he is trying to do the same rescue. Can he carry all of them? Saiki uses his powers to ease the burden. The girl is grateful and Nendou thinks she has fallen for him. But the only person fallen for his coolness is… Hairo!!!

Episode 3E
At the start of the new school term, Saiki and Kaidou notices Nendou acting strange. He is depressed. They follow him and seeing he is smiling at little girls, could he be a lolicon?! They think he is buying flowers and cakes to lure them so when they confront him, he brings them to his dad’s grave. They realize he wasn’t looking at young girls but at their father! That look is still perverted, though. Nendou never knew how his father looked like since he died young but mom always told him he looked like him. Saiki is shocked to see Nendou’s dad as a ghost sitting on a tombstone. They look really alike. Saiki tries to forget what he saw as he doesn’t believe in ghosts. But when he goes home, there is a letter addressing to him that he knows he is a psychic!

Episode 4A
Turns out to be Reita Toritsuka. He wants to be his disciple and promises not to tell others about his powers. Toritsuka meets Saiki in his home and admits his powers are to see ghosts. He proves it by explaining all the ghosts hanging around in his room! And there is one rubbing his butt on his face!!! Since he knows Saiki can read minds, he gets straight to his intention he wants to use his powers to make money and peep at girls! Saiki tells him to leave and accidentally touches his hand. This means Saiki temporarily receives Toritsuka’s powers as he sees all the ghosts hanging around. He must have it tough like him too.

Episode 4B
To his dismay, Toritsuka becomes a popular transfer student next class. There are lots of girls bugging him about their guardian spirit and he obliges to tell all the weird spirits by their side. He isn’t so interested in the guys, though. So obliges some like Kaidou’s guardian spirit is a Chihuahua! He tries to ignore Nendou because he thought he is a ghost! He better tell his guardian spirit or else he will never shut up about it. An old hag? Later Toritsuka has Saiki touch him to explain why he thought Nendou was a ghost. Because Nendou’s dad is his guardian spirit!

Episode 4C
Saiki didn’t want to do it but he is forced to help Hairo complete an arch for the sports festival which is somewhat broken. Saiki could use his powers easily but he has a policy of not doing it in front of others. And if he doesn’t help out, he won’t hear the end of Hairo complaining. Hairo goes to get the wood as Saiki does what is necessary and then wait for him. But he is taking too long so he uses his psychic power to check on him. He is lugging a tree back since the store is out of wood?! Saiki is hoping he just gives up but he never. Seeing his spirit, others come to help finish it. But they ask why he is doing so when the sports festival is in a month’s time. Because a month passes quickly! No words…

Episode 4D
Saiki is home alone after his parents went for a wedding reception. Yeah, he doesn’t want to read the negative thoughts of the guests how married couples are always doomed. As he is cleaning up, he spots a cockroach. He instantly teleports to Texas! He hates bugs because he can’t read their minds. Just like Nendou? Is he a bug too? He could have stayed here longer had he not remember mom reminded him there was a delivery. So using his teleport to the front door, to his dismay it is Nendou. He didn’t want him to show up at this point but gets an idea to use him to rid of the roach. But he didn’t count on how barbaric he is because Nendou uses his hands to smash them! When his parents return and give him chocolates but accidentally drop them, they look like chocolates and Saiki instantly teleports to Palau.

Episode 4E
Saiki is worried again. Because Yumehara might start falling in love with him again as her relationship with Takeru is heading downhill. That guy is as boring as hell! Not only that, his feet stinks, rude to cashiers and dislocates his jaw easily when laughing and it kills the mood. You bet Saiki is going to indirectly help to put the spark back in their relationship. For example, he switches Takeru’s dry squid snack with a cute bunny doll as his anniversary present. Just when Yumehara’s love meter for him is at an all-time high, it just takes a second for it to destroy everything because at a restaurant all his bad habits start to show. She can’t take this anymore and breaks up with him.

Episode 5A
Saiki needs to go home to watch an important anime and can’t miss it. Otherwise he can read in everyone’s heads about its spoilers. However getting home isn’t easy as the paths are blocked by Kaidou, Nendou, Teruhashi or Hairo. He can’t escape. He thought of waiting for a while but the longer he waits, the more the mobilize others to look for him! So the only way is to turn invisible but this come with limitations. He can stay invisible for 10 minutes and if somebody touches him, he will be visible again instantly. Saiki seems to be doing well till Toritsuka taps his shoulder. He could see ghosts, right? Or anything transparent? Hey everybody look! Saiki is here!

Episode 5B
Saiki didn’t want to come to the sports day but his parents insisted since they bought a new video camera. But they’re busy filming each other… Saiki’s class isn’t doing well and with many of the events coming in at last place. During Nendou’s turn for the scavenger hunt, he plucks out Saiki’s antenna and he suddenly collapses!

Episode 5C
Because of that the international space station, science lab and tribal village detect some anomalies! It is the end of the world! The moment Nendou puts it back, Saiki revives and everything returns to normal. Saved? Saiki explains the antennas on his head are to regulate his growing powers. It is some sort of limiter so it doesn’t make him do his every day stuffs looking like an overpowered kid. But even with the antenna back, Saiki notices he can’t control his motor actions and powers well. During the tug of war, Saiki accidentally rips the rope. He tries to fix it by pulling it together but he pulls the opponents over. Their class wins?

Episode 5D
Now that the class is in 2nd place, they’re getting pretty confident. So they are going to beat class 2 who is top of the rankings. They challenge each other and the loser will have all the boys of the losing class shave their heads like a buzz cut. Not something Saiki wants. During the bean throwing event, Saiki uses his powers to cheat a little. I mean, it doesn’t say using super powers are illegal, right? But another class wins because they use their ‘brains’. They put all the beans in a sack and then throw it into the basket. Isn’t that illegal? In the final relay race, Kaidou makes a bad start but with Nendou’s creepy run, he catches up. It is Hairo’s turn to pass to Saiki the anchor. But he trips! Saiki heard one of the guys cheated by tripping him. No more nice guy so Saiki uses his power to zoom pass the competition. But just before the finish line, he collapses. He still couldn’t control his powers? In the end Hairo, Saiki, Nendou and Kaidou shave their heads but the other guys in their class didn’t because wasn’t the deal only to do so if they lost to class 2?

Episode 5E
The school is going to have a fire drill so Hairo reminds them the importance of the abbreviation SOS. Be prepared to hear SOS puns throughout. As they make their way out, they hit a dead end. Obviously Saiki realizes the class wasn’t paying attention to the announcement that this place is the source of the fire so it is obviously shut off. Hairo then gets this bright idea to smash through the shutter. Of course they get scolded by the teacher for destroying a newly installed shutter. Saiki tells us this drill is useless because a fire at school will never happen thanks to his powers to immediately extinguish it.

Episode 6A
Saiki is weighing his options to buy jelly which is the cheapest and gives him more grams for his money. Unfortunately he ends up buying the most expensive and with the least grams. It better be worth the premium title it states or he’ll burn down the factory! As he rushes home to eat it, somebody’s baseball almost knocks it off his hand. Saiki would want to teach this little kid a lesson but Nendou is with him. Oh no. Now he has to go find the ball with him. Of course Saiki knows he has fling it into the deep ocean. But after hearing how the ball is important to the kid and belonged to his grandpa, Saiki could easily teleport his baseball back but that ability comes with a price as he needs to teleport an equal worth of items. So he ends up sacrificing his jelly. He can get his jelly another time but there will never be another ball for this kid. When he returns home, it seems that kid and his family have dropped 3 of those premium jellies as thanks. Happiest day of his life. One good deed deserves another!

Episode 6B
Saiki notices a shady fortune teller nearby that is attracting lots of customers. He checks it out and Kaidou is currently one of the customers. He can tell Kaidou is being easily scammed because his chuunibyou is so easy to read. Normally Saiki wouldn’t want anything to do with him and leaves but since the fortune teller is selling him an expensive charm that would definitely make him friends with Saiki, you bet he is going to intervene. As the next customer, not sure what Saiki did but the fortune teller instantly refunds the money. Saiki’s intention is that he doesn’t want Kaidou to rely on items to make friends but on his own accord. But that guy already thinks the charm is working.

Episode 6C
Teruhashi once again tries to get Saiki to react to her but to no avail. As Saiki is with Nendou and Kaidou, the latter duo of course give their expected reaction. Because Nendou brings them to a dilapidated ramen shop, Saiki hopes a prideful girl like her will refuse to enter and this will make her likeability with them drop. They won’t hang out with each other anymore and this saves Saiki from future bothers. Surprisingly Kaidou is the one speaking up for Teruhashi. She swallows her pride to enter. Even more shocking to see the ugly owner and served ramen that pigs won’t even eat! But guess what? She swallows her pride and gulps them down! Thanks to that, Saiki’s likeability for her goes up?!

Episode 6D
Toritsuka knows many spirits are friendly and can get information from them. Of course if he wants to know a girl’s panties colour, they won’t really help him. Heck, even ghosts don’t do bad stuffs. In school, he thinks of helping a girl find her lost gym clothes in hopes it will make him famous and likeable among girls. Using his ghost network, he manages to trace the culprit but the last ghost begs and hopes for him to overlooks this. With Toritsuka bent on his determination, he enters the room but the culprit has already fled after hearing his ruckus. The girl thinks he is the true thief and beats him up. Well, at least he got to know her pantsu colour…

Episode 6E
Saiki knows that if he wakes up from a disastrous dream with a headache, it is like a premonition that disaster would happen. Since his dream foretold an explosion, he figures it is from a petrol station near his home. Saiki narrates how something minor like a small stone kicked up can cause a domino effect. It sounds exaggerative but Saiki believes his actions may have also saved many lives. And so nothing happens after Saiki picks up the stone. But then he has another premonition of another explosion. He has no clue where it is this time. Nendou is hit by a rock and shows it to Kaidou thinking it is a meteor. He throws it away but it hits cans of gasoline lined up by Hairo in the hallway. A student trips on a stone which hits the light. The sparks fall down into… Saiki’s hands. Phew. Just in time.

Episode 7A
A cat is stuck between the walls and despite begging for help, he is really obnoxious. Saiki wouldn’t really want to get involved in this but the cat continues to beg. Still, his cocky attitude prevails because he thinks cats are superior to humans! So when he finally says the magic word to help, Saiki helps. But the cat is mad when Saiki doesn’t even pet him as he thinks all humans love petting cats. So how is the cat going to get back at him? He tries to sneak into the house and become their pet. Well, mom is allergic to cats. Out you go.

Episode 7B
What does Saiki hate more than Christmas night? Nendou joining his family for Christmas dinner! When Saiki’s parents learn his dad died young and Santa has never visited him, father goes all out to act as Santa. Yeah, even making Saiki use his ability to teleport a reindeer. It’s a normal deer, by the way. Well, Nendou actually believes he is the real Santa! When dad gives Nendou a present, he notes this is his second present. Why, did Santa never visited him ever? Well, he gets his present not from Santa but from mom who leaves it at his bed while he is asleep. Such good mom…

Episode 7C
Saiki also hates New Year shrine visiting. Especially when dad is praying not to God but for Saiki’s help to win the lottery! Saiki prays for a quiet New Year but apparently God doesn’t exist since here comes Kaidou. He meets his parents who think their wish for Saiki to have more friends is answered. Guess what? Kaidou also wishes for more friends and here comes Hairo. Same thing. Meet the parents. More friends wish. Here comes Nendou. Is it Saiki or is he the only one whose wish isn’t granted?

Episode 7D
Since Nendou doesn’t know how to make a wish, Saiki’s dad teaches him. He makes an example wish like wishing for his son to get a girlfriend. Saiki has a bad feeling about this and true enough his worst fears come true because here comes Teruhashi. Saiki wants to go home and it gets from bad to worse with his parents inviting his friends home for lunch! During that, Saiki’s mom accidentally says that her son has no friends because she is a psychic. A long dead silence of shock… Well, is that the quietness Saiki hoped for? But Saiki isn’t panicking yet because the key is to change the subject and these idiots will forget about it. But his dad sucks and it makes the atmosphere even more awkward.

Episode 7E
When the friends leave, they still can’t get it out of their mind if Saiki is really a psychic. So the only way for Saiki to ‘erase’ this is to use some banana mascot stick to whack their minds! Actually it is supposed to ‘erase’ the word ‘psychic’ from their brains. One downside of this is that he can erase a minute of memory at most. The other big downside is that because of that empty memory space created, the brain will fill it with other made up memories. It can either turn out for the better or worse but in Saiki’s case you know how his friends will remember this in their own twisted ways. Saiki admits he just can’t beat God.

Episode 8A
Everyone fears and hates the PE teacher, Matsuzaki as he always confiscates items in class. But Saiki doesn’t hate him so much since Matsuzaki is an ‘ally’ to timid students like him. Saiki hears Takahashi and his gang are going to get back at Matsuzaki by writing a love letter. Well, they didn’t think he would show up but he did and waited! Takahashi and co are laughing and they are shocked when a girl turns up! Actually it is Saiki in disguise. Matsuzaki straightaway rejects her and why it is inappropriate for them to have a relationship. That is why he waited. Saiki then makes Takahashi and co out of their hiding. Surprisingly Matsuzaki returns their confiscated items. They now respect him and apologize but it seems they have fallen for the female Saiki.

Episode 8B
It is Valentine’s Day as Saiki sees Hairo getting lots of chocolates from girls. Ranging from helping with lawsuits and saving from the clutches of a sabre tooth cat! Kaidou seems to get one too. He is nervous. When he realizes it is from Takahashi, he gets excited. Actually it is from Nendou and just a trick! Poor Kaidou… Nendou then tries to cheer him up since he too didn’t get one. But Kaidou might have the last laugh since a girl calls him to give him hers. Kaidou gives Nendou a sarcastic smirk. Teruhashi is distraught as rumours spread she brought chocolates to school. This means all the guys are annoyingly bugging her. She did bring but it is for Saiki. However thinking how if everyone finds out and they’ll beat him up and start World War 3, she throws it away. Saiki catches it.

Episode 8C
Saiki is home alone and what is worse than Nendou bugging him? His ghost dad! At first he tries to ignore him but he is just persistent. He teleports to a deserted island but he can still follow. Even bombing the island, the ghost can regenerate?! He seeks Toritsuka’s advice and Saiki didn’t really thought about it that only spirits can harm spirits. So Saiki temporarily goes into astral projection to beat up Nendou’s dad. Since Toritsuka is messing with his real body, Saiki returns to physically beat him up.

Episode 8D
Saiki knows his mom always trusts others, that is why she is an easy prey for direct sales scam. Yeah, she really bought lots of useless stuffs and an easy target on the scammer’s list. Of course during the family discussion, the only way is to show their resistance. On the next time, she again gives in easily. This time Saiki helps out by relaying telepathic thoughts of the scammer. Since mommy heard he is planning to scam the family till they go bankrupt, she turns into a demon and hunts him down! That should keep him away forever. Saiki notices a ring and when he picks it up, his psychic powers are sealed.

Episode 8E
Saiki researches that despite being an ordinary ring, it seems things made from germanium can seal his power. He revels in this as he could no longer read the minds of others. Well, the downside is that he couldn’t tell if his parents are coming into his room. But he decides to keep this ring on and not lose heart. The first thing he does is to visit the cinema. Every visit since young spoilt his mood because of spoilers. Thanks to the sealing, he can’t hear them now. But he bumps into several people and spills his food. Worse, he didn’t realize he sat next to Teruhashi! What is she thinking now… Then she tells him she is here with someone else. Her boyfriend? Hey, doesn’t Toru Mugami the star of this movie! As the crowd realizes who he is, they start swarming around him and the screening is cancelled.

Episode 9A
Teruhashi is troubled if Saiki has got the wrong idea. But guess what? Mugami is actually her brother! Saiki’s parents are shocked to see Mugami at their doorstep. Saiki isn’t because he has seen this coming and knows what’s coming next. Mugami whose real name is Makoto explains his relationship with Teruhashi. Then he warns Saiki to stay away from his sister. In short, this pervert thinks he is the only guy fit to marry her! Mugami is shocked his sister is here (Saiki telepathically summoned her here to take him back). Teruhashi doesn’t appreciate what her brother has done, thinking Saiki might be worried about her getting a wrong idea about him. This makes her hate her big brother and will never talk to him again. Mugami goes into shock. Too bad Teruhashi didn’t take him back.

Episode 9B
Saiki doesn’t need to study for the exams because he can read people’s minds for the answer. Of course he can be tops but since he doesn’t want to stand out, he purposely gets some answer wrong so he could be ranked in the middle. Nendou has failed so many times and is warned he would be held back. Like he even understands what that means. Nendou is confident of his lucky pencil that will guide his answers. During the exams, Saiki notices Nendou getting correct answers. He realizes Toritsuka is using ghosts to cheat. So Nendou’s dad is unwittingly helping his son. In the end, Nendou who always ranks dead last rose up to the middle of the rankings, beating Saiki by a place.

Episode 9C
Saiki sees Chouno homeless on the street. He wanted to ignore him but with Chouno pleading him to be his assistant for his next important magic show because his ex-wife, Midori is coming to see, does Saiki have a choice? In the box disappearing trick, Saiki is supposed to crawl via underground tunnel from one box to another. The trapdoor is jammed so he uses his power to magically appear in which everyone saw it with their own eyes! Just when Chouno thought his wife is coming in, here comes Nendou. But wait. He thinks Nendou is his wife?!

Episode 9D
Chouno narrates he was a stressed office worker who found solace talking his problems to a café waitress, Midori. Despite knowing she was a widow with a kid, he proposed to her. They got married but he fell into despair after he got fired. Midori took her child and left. So he hopes this performance will make her come back to him. Wait. Midori looks like Nendou?! Double wait. She is Nendou’s mom?! In the box sawing trick, Saiki has no problems using his power but before the show starts, Nendou wants to be the assistant. Saiki wonders how Chouno can get him out of this problem because this is just an ordinary box. Chouno then can’t do it because Nendou looks like Midori. The crowd gets mad and beats him up. Though, Saiki felt he made the right decision. Despite losing his job and no money, Midori gives him some hope by leaving some money in his account. Then she changes her mind upon hearing how he wants to buy expensive cheap magic tools.

Episode 9E
In class, almost everyone is invited to karaoke. However when Teruhashi won’t join in thinking Saiki won’t be there, it’s gloom and doom. Saiki patrons a regular café that serves his favourite jelly. But his regular visits is under threat when fellow classmate, Chisato Mera is working here part time. She gets clumsy upon seeing Saiki. She pleads to keep this a secret as the school prohibits students from working. Otherwise she will have to quit her 100 other jobs! Saiki knows she is poor from her eating habits. Yeah, she is starring at his jelly. I guess he lets her have it. Saiki is okay not telling anybody about this. But here comes Matsuzaki. Oh no. When he sees her… He praises her for working hard! It seems Saiki has used his power to change the logic of his world so it is now natural for students to work. In class when everyone is invited to karaoke, this time Teruhashi wants to join in. Everyone is happy. But when Nendou wants in, it’s gloom and doom. The new nature of the world?

Episode 10A
During the physical examination, Hairo seems to view Nendou as his rival. However Nendou always seem to do better despite everyone else not enthusiastic about Nendou’s higher score. So in the final test, Hairo beats him and considers it ultimate victory. Till he realizes Kaidou had the better score and learns the lesson that there is always someone else above you. Maybe not for Saiki…

Episode 10B
That cat is still hanging outside Saiki’s house till he makes him submit. Anp (lame name given by Saiki’s dad) suddenly falls in love with another cat, Pussy (yes, that’s her name you sick perverts). Yeah, it’s mating season. Saiki notices this and decides to use this to his advantage. He transforms into a cat and tries to help Anp hook up with her so he won’t hang around. The plan is to make Anp look like the hero coming into the scene to beat up Saiki harassing her. So when Anp comes into the scene, Saiki is missing (he went to toilet) and Pussy misinterprets Anp as the harasser. Even more so when Anp is in f*cking position! Saiki tries to help out but he accidentally uses his immense strength to hit Anp away. Now Pussy is in love with him and wants to mate! And thus Saiki now has 2 cats bugging him outside his house. One wants to f*ck, the other out for revenge…

Episode 10C
Saiki buys a crappy game on sale and plays it. His patience is tested with all the bugs like downgraded graphics, stupid story flow and no save point so when you die you have to start all over again including watching the unskippable scenes. So when he finally succeeds and a safe point emerges, he notices his controller is damaged and uses his power to restore it. Too bad this means restoring the game back to the start. The game got destroyed…

Episode 10D
Kaidou is walking home with Saiki and Nendou and not pleased when he bumps into his mom who invites them in. Normally Saiki would agree to go home but since she is serving his favourite jelly, let’s go. Mom since to be pretty nice to his friends. That is, until she learns they have no future plans for college. She becomes strict and wants them to study right now! Then she tells Kaidou not to friend them anymore or he will end up stupid like them. However for the first time Kaidou defies her. He won’t unfriend them because they are his friends. Normally Saiki would have agreed to his mom’s reasoning since Kaidou’s grades are falling to more he hangs out with them. When mom returns, she is shocked to see all the workbooks have been completed. She thinks they are genius. Kaidou is shocked to see mom serving them like kings. Because Saiki gets unlimited servings of his favourite jelly… That’s why…

Episode 10E
Toritsuka pleads to Saiki for help to make him get close to a girl he likes, Yoriko Itano. If he knows a lot about her even the number of moles on her body, shouldn’t he be asking her directly? Eventually Toritsuka decides to use a host club guy spirit to temporary possess his body to do the job. Toritsuka becomes smooth operator in stealing Yoriko’s heart. But it develops to fast as he wants to kiss. When the host club guy leaves his body, Yoriko sees his ugly kissing face and slaps him. Next, he uses an ordinary high school guy. He may look normal but he is like a protagonist of a romance simulation with many girls liking him! Toritsuka is able to make amends and she is on the verge of forgiving him when he slips and his hand on her boob. She gets mad and slaps him. She won’t fall for him next time. Typical romance simulation cliché…

Episode 11A
Saiki regrets helping this little kid, Yuuta Iridatsu getting his balloon. Because that careless super jump he made, now Yuuta thinks he is Cyborg Cider Man No. 2! Who? Some blatant product advertisement… Yuuta keeps bugging him to show off his moves and puts himself in danger, forcing Saiki to make his move which only enhances his misinterpretation. Yuuta realizes too late he is lost (or rather he thinks mommy is lost) so Yuuta has to once again use his powers to find her. Finally mother and son are reunited and when he tries to introduce his hero, Saiki has erased all evidence he ever exist. That would have been the end of it had not Yuuta’s family just moved in next door to Saiki’s home!

Episode 11B
Saiki’s dad is late for work and begs his son to teleport him there. Because Saiki is around, his boss is kinder to him and doesn’t slap him as usual. Yeah… Dad decides to show Saiki around. Saiki never knew what his dad’s job because he often switches them. So now he is working in a knockoff manga publisher Shuensha? Saiki sees how frightening the employees are as they harass their manga artists to finish up. Just when dad is doing well and doesn’t need Saiki’s help, he accidentally spills coffee on a manuscript to be sent for printing. See he come running to Saiki again…

Episode 11C
Saiki thinks he has the entire day to himself. Too bad Yuuta is home alone too and he is going to stop by to play. So they watch that Cider Man show and Yuuta just can’t shut up yelling and screaming for his hero. When Nendou arrives, Yuuta thinks he is the evil Baron Cola. Heck, they look so similar! Nendou makes a scary facial expression that would probably leave Yuuta with some trauma.

Episode 11D
Saiki visits the festivals but with his classmates around, you know it isn’t going to be fun. He then realizes his wallet is missing. A person like him this careless? He tries to read other people’s mind and learns there are others who realize their wallet is missing. Oh no. A prowling pickpocket. Saiki then becomes angry that a pickpocket got him. A psychic who couldn’t see this coming?! He is going to pay! So when he finds the culprit, first he dumps an abandoned bike on him and then confronts him with a scary mask. Get ready for your lesson. He lets the police take him in as he returns all the stolen wallets that unsurprisingly belong to his classmates.

Episode 11E
Teruhashi and Yumehara have been thinking a lot about Saiki recently… Worse, they bump into each other and talk to each other at a diner. Too bad it is awkward since they don’t talk much to each other. Then they try to ask if they have someone they like. They quickly jump to conclusion that the other likes Saiki because of the reaction when his name is mentioned. The alarm is raised. Even worse, Saiki is in the next table and heard this. He needs to solve this before it gets out of hand. But stupid Nendou makes his presence known and the girls see Saiki. Their blushing reaction on makes them jump the gun the other really likes Saiki. Saiki uses his power to bump Kaidou to Yumehara and Nendou to Teruhashi as well as warming their faces to make it look like they blush. Although Saiki is spared from a disaster, he can’t feel he made it more complicated as the girls now think the other likes Kaidou or Nendou.

Episode 12A
For the school trip to Okinawa, the class is to be divided into groups of 6. 3 boys and 3 girls. Saiki thought of joining whoever is left over but saving the best for last clearly this is not. Because he got Nendou and Kaidou. Because everybody is pestering Teruhashi to join, it is decided via raffle which girl group joins which boy group. Teruhashi has an amazing luck to pull out Saiki’s group had not Saiki interfered to switch with Takahashi’s group. Saiki’s group got a bunch of ugly girls. He doesn’t mind. But since they don’t like Nendou and would want to switch out, Teruhashi offers it. However Saiki again uses his power to interfere. He somewhat makes Mera unable to join do to work commitments. This means the group structure has changed and all groups are reshuffled again!

Episode 12B
Mugami threatens Saiki about doing anything to his sister during the trip. Clearly he is making false accusations with such livid details. In fact, he is going to skip work and come along. Saiki knows the trip will be ruined if he comes along. Then he sees Mera working and wishing she would love to go on the trip. Time to work his magic. So now the groups revert to back it originally was with Teruhashi and Yumehara happy to join Saiki’s ranks. However an impending typhoon threatens to cancel their trip. Everyone is so disappointed because they have been overly excited about it. Yeah, see how Hairo is screaming for the sun. This Saiki has to again use his power to dispel the typhoon. All smiles for everyone again.

Episode 12C
With Kaidou getting airsick, Saiki teleports back to his home to get his medicine. Saiki is tired from using his power and just when he is about to rest, Takahashi has stomach pains. Again the use of his power to revert his body to an earlier time where there was no pain. But it will eventually come again… Then he sees premonition of the plane crashing. Now he becomes Superman to support the plane till it safely lands. By this time he is quite tired but his friends tease him he got airsick.

Episode 12D
Kaidou shows off his Okinawan dialect chops. Cool, right? Because Teruhashi is amazed, this makes him more excited. However he starts overusing it and now it becomes annoying. It is between the devil and the deep blue sea for Saiki to follow which group to get souvenirs. So the lesser of 2 evils would be to follow the guys watching a live fight between a mongoose and a snack. Too bad ‘live’ means recorded TV. In it the end it is a ploy by the shopkeeper to sell his goods in which Kaidou bought them.

Episode 12E
Takahashi’s group wants to peep at the girls on the other side of the outdoor hotspring. They even brought periscopes. But it keeps focusing on Nendou! Thank Saiki for his prevention power. Takahashi and co get rowdy blaming Nendou of his interference but when they see his manhood, they become silent… Size does matter. I suppose Teruhashi and Yumehara have practised hard how to barge into Saiki’s room to play Uno. Saiki won’t have any of it and teleports to the beach where he sleeps on beach chair due to exhaustion. Teruhashi is looking for him and sees him sleeping. She gets excited thinking of unholy thoughts. Then she did the unthinkable by pulling out one of his antennas. Saiki wakes up thanks to Toritsuka being noisy. Why is he so panicky? Because the entire hotel is gone!

Episode 13A
Saiki knows he must have teleported the hotel unconsciously as the cut lines are smooth. Toritsuka thinks he has killed everyone because they spot skeletons beneath. But since there is also a sunken ship, Saiki knows he must have teleported it to the middle of the ocean. Quickly without everyone noticing, he teleports the whole building back. Now the problem is Teruhashi because he reads the minds of the girls that she isn’t back yet. He then realizes she is lost in a forest with a bear! Quickly he teleports to hit the bear away. He fears his identity is exposed but it seems Teruhashi think this is a dream. Meanwhile Toritsuka wonders why all the girls are around him. Saiki has used hypnosis on them to make them think he is Teruhashi. Yeah, he is going to love their company.

Episode 13B
If you’re wondering why Saiki is just sitting there letting Teruhashi hold him, it is because without his antenna, the mere touch would kill her. He has to wait for her to fall asleep and then bring her back. However since she believes this is a lucid dream, she starts wishing for things and Saiki has to use his power to make it come true. Then she wants Saiki to be submissive to her. If you think Saiki has finally given in, he switched places with Toritsuka and hypnotized Teruhashi to view that guy as him. Saiki gets his antenna back and returns to get his much needed sleep. But the next day he has deal with some more trouble because he read Yumehara’s mind that she is going to try to seduce him by showing off her sexy swimsuit body after staving off sweets for a month.

Episode 13C
The crowd is surrounding the locker room and when Teruhashi pops up, everyone is blown away. This makes Yumehara unable to go out. When she did, nobody paid attention to her. But when Mera comes out after that, the crowd reacts wildly and giving her more attention. Yumehara tries not to take heart. As long Saiki notices, everything will be okay. But he didn’t. She’s sitting there dejectedly when Kaidou comes by to talk. He blushes because he is trying to hide the fact he can’t swim. She thinks he is reacting to her swimsuit.

Episode 13D
A couple of guys try to hit on Teruhashi. Kaidou comes to her defence. They tell him to beat it and he becomes scared. When Yumehara steps in, they mock her she is jealous because no one wants to hit on her. This is when Kaidou punches them. But no effect! Saiki uses his power to make it painful. After they run away, Yumehara now falls for Kaidou. A big relief for Saiki.

Episode 13E
On the last day of the trip, there is a store serving very limited special ice cream with his favourite topping on it. He needs to ditch the guys to go there. Thankfully the store people distract them for Saiki to make his way. However he bumps into several obstacles like Takahashi and his stomach problems (forced to get the teacher) and Mugami finally showing up (he grabs the wrong girl thinking she is his sister but since the celebrity is recognized, he’ll be kept busy). When he finally arrives at the store, the rest of his group are already there and they ordered the same special. This means there is no more left for Saiki. However everyone shares their portion and now he has the biggest size. Saiki is glad this isn’t bad after all.

Episode 14A
The girls are excited over a new transfer student. But they lose hope after seeing this gloomy glasses guy. Aren Kuboyasu is trying to be a normal student. He narrates his parents are gangsters and naturally he grew up as one too. However he got tired of it and wants to live a normal life. However it might be tough for him since he has a tendency to go back to his delinquent ways. Thankfully his rational has him stop in time. I can’t blame him if he turns back into one especially meeting idiotic Nendou who claims he was such a badass a few years back. When Kuboyasu sees a real extortion incident, he does good by becoming a gangster to get rid of the punk. Then he threatens the victim he didn’t see anything or else… Bad habits die hard.

Episode 14B
Kuboyasu thinks he needs to make normal friends. Not gangsters but those who look weak. Yeah, he had to pick Saiki. Saiki gives his annoyed looks to chase him away. Then he meets Kaidou and despite not talking on the same level, they get along well. Then there is Toritsuka bugging him to be his friend and Teruhashi as usually stealing his heart. Because Hairo quotes lines from his old leader, he gets along with him. Don’t even begin with Nendou… But when Kuboyasu sees all of them gathering around Saiki, he thinks he is the real mastermind pulling the strings.

Episode 14C
Somehow Saiki and Kaidou accompany Nendou to visit his dad’s grave. It gets worse when there are 3 Nendous. The ghostly father, the mother and the son. Yeah, all can’t tell each other apart. Back home, father realizes he is in love with mom and needs to confess. Believing this will make him pass over, Saiki helps out by temporarily removing Nendou’s spirit and letting dad use his body to go confess. Awkward to see son confessing to mom?! He is halfway through when he collapses. Possession time ran out. Mom thinks he has become a man and will return his hidden porn magazine. Dad is infuriate she got it wrong. Looks like he didn’t rest in peace.

Episode 14D
Saiki continues to patron the café where Mera works. Because a newly café just opened opposite, business has been dropping and the owner is having unstable emotions! At this rate he’ll go crazy and the café closed down. So they sit down to think of ways to revive the café. Mera doesn’t want to destroy the competitor because there is a chance she might work there! The owner suggests a maid café and since Mera isn’t supportive, he increases her hourly wage. The higher the pay, the more she is into it. At this point, Saiki believes the café has lost its value and leaves. However the owner comes to his senses and decides to keep things as they are. The customers might be few but they still come. For their sake he doesn’t want to destroy the environment. Saiki believes he is right because despite the slow business, his coffee and jelly continue to maintain standard. He uses his power to guide a couple of potential customers to patron the place.

Episode 14E
After seeing a magical detective show starring Mugami, Kaidou now acts like one. So the case of a missing vase at school, he plays the detective but it seems he gets it wrong and Hairo is the one feeding the most information. Then when Kaidou accuses Takahashi as the culprit because of the obvious clues, it turns out Takahashi did break the vase out of anger but fixed it back up (that’s where he got the cuts). But as for who broke the glass, Saiki remembers he swapped and teleported his forgotten umbrella with a tennis ball.

Episode 15A
Hairo leads the class to do something for the cultural festival. Everyone is busy with their clubs so they thought holding a rock exhibition would be the best. Hairo chastises them for trying to skip out on a rare school event so everyone is motivated. Not Saiki. He would love to have the rock exhibition. So we have all of them give silly ideas from your typical maid cafes to haunted houses and everyone almost vetoing Teruhashi’s planetarium. Because it is taking too long and Saiki wants to go home and watch his show, he makes a small comet crash into the class. Everyone is in awe and Hairo approves holding a rock exhibition.

Episode 15B
Toritsuka wants Saiki to join his band for the festival. Yeah, they’re there to just get the chicks. Too bad none know how to play any instrument! Yup, they’re hoping for Saiki to use his powers to make them look cool. Saiki walks away but when Toritsuka threatens him about that Okinawa incident, Saiki uses his power to ‘train’ them although it is just an illusion to think they sound good. It gets to their head that they start practising their signatures and calling girls for dates rather than doing any real practice.

Episode 15C
You know how ‘unique’ everyone’s rock is when you see rocks in shapes of a tennis racquet. Yeah… This exhibition is going to rock! Saiki and co walk around and enter the haunted house. Kaidou is scared of everything despite acting tough. The ghosts try to scare them but got scared seeing Nendou’s face. When the gang decides to play a prank and play the ghost, the first person they try to scare is Nendou’s mom! That’s scary! Kaidou’s out for good. Apparently Nendou’s mom and Saiki’s parents have become good friends must to Saiki’s dismay. As Saiki goes to the toilet to wash his face, Nendou picks up his glasses. Unfortunately those glasses regulate his powers so without them any living thing looking into his eyes turns into stone!

Episode 15D
Saiki can’t turn back time since turning into stone is like turning dead. He needs to wait a day for the effect to wear off. Saiki’s dad enters so he borrows his glasses. As long something covers his eyes, his powers are kept in check. Dad is amazed with this Nendou statue and almost breaks him. Nendou’s mom comes in and thinks this is part of the rock exhibition. They bring it to the classroom whereby the principal is so impressed with this gorilla that he has the class win the best award! But with boys fooling around Nendou, Saiki’s dad becomes paranoid to try and stop them. He got arrested and thrown out. Yuuta fools around too so Saiki has to use his body to cushion the statue’s fall. Everyone sees this and thinks Saiki is the sculptor. They even believe they are such good friends. Saiki thinks maybe it would be better if it just breaks…

Episode 15E
Saiki, Kaidou and Nendou are lost on their way to the class’ wrap up party. Kaidou is bad in directions despite Hairo on the phone trying to give him directions but Saiki is purposely not saying as he doesn’t want to join the party. Therefore he lets Kaidou lead as he takes the wrong turn at the first step all the time. It is obviously they are lost and end up in shady parts of town. Then at a yakuza house, they almost got into trouble when Saiki finally teleports them to the party. He is amazed at their perseverance to get here. And the party is also ending. However they still have enough hype to suggest for another wrap up party.

Episode 16A
Because Teruhashi catches Mugami sleeping in her bed and sniffing her pillow, she hates him. Now that she won’t talk to him, Mugami complains to Saiki about it and wants him to go warn Teruhashi that since he will be acting in town, to avoid this place at all cost or else the people will swamp and scout her. Naturally Saiki tells her how her brother was bugging him. She gets mad but feels the need to apologize. She gets this idea to go on a date as apology. Saiki is forced to accept as he read her mind she’ll go crazy if he rejects. So they go to the next town where nobody knows them. The local guys treat her like a princess. While at a café, Saiki senses Mugami’s change in shooting location and is coming here. Got to go now. Teruhashi is giving those guys handshake? It’s a big town, right? Of all the places, they have to pick here. Luckily he just turns the door sign to ‘close’.

Episode 16B
Saiki would love to end this date and go home but sensing Mugami is at the train station, he decides to prolong the ‘date’ at a mall, making her happy. He also decides to use this opportunity to make her hate her by doing things selfishly and beating her flat in all games. It looks like it is working since Teruhashi is starting to be depressed. Because Saiki has been concentrating too much on her, he didn’t realize Mugami is sitting behind him. Too bad they are spotted as jealous brother sends his men to get them. Saiki takes Teruhashi’s hand and run and hide. He thinks she will hate him for taking her hand suddenly. However her heart starts fluttering and kinda likes it. Gap moe?

Episode 16C
Saiki’s dad is supposed to play Santa and deliver presents to several houses. Too bad he sprained his back and Saiki already used his healing power this morning. Naturally Saiki doesn’t want to take up the job no matter how much dad pleaded. Until mom decides to do it. Can’t let mom wear that Santa suit, right? And so Saiki has to deal with ungrateful brats who are too smart for their own good. Being Santa just doesn’t quite cut it these days. For the last house, the family is fighting since the father has to leave for emergency work. The son is praying to Santa he doesn’t need presents but for the family to spend Christmas together. So Santa is God now? Time for Saiki to work his magic and somehow make the company call him that the issue is solved. The kid is grateful for Santa as Saiki recognizes how tough Santa had it. No wonder he takes off for 364 days a year.

Episode 16D
After this Santa fiasco, Saiki threatens his dad to give more New Year’s money. He decides to get a new TV and he knows this annoying salesman is trying to sell at cutthroat prices. Of course we know Saiki’s psychic powers so enables him to have info at his fingertips so the salesman is forced to give him large discounts. Not satisfied, he tries to sell other stuffs. Saiki isn’t moved until he realizes a jelly maker. It has lots of other functions! Wow! He is still impressed despite having a much higher price. But he can only pick one. He decides to go with the TV since he weighs the option of having to clean up and running out of batteries. But when the salesman throws all that solution in, it’s a deal!

Episode 16E
A compilation of short skits. Nendou tries to annoy everyone by doing first of everything for the new year. He notices Mera eating her first ramen and she is glad she is finally paid or else she would have to eat grass and snow. It is already the 20th… Toritsuka brags how he tried to hit the bell 108 times to remove earthly desires but succumbs to it to let other people do his job like taking money and looking at boobs while they’re at it. Yumehara realizes she has gained weight. Maybe the towel is heavy. Not. She assumes her hairband is the heavy one and doesn’t weigh herself further. Now for some more ice cream. Hairo is so passionate to beat Nendou in a snowball fight that he gives off heat melting everything. Teruhashi is devastated she waited for Saiki’s New Year’s card but never arrived. Then she starts thinking maybe he fears getting rejected or has bad handwriting. Actually Saiki wanted to give it to her to get her likeability for him to decrease. Now he isn’t sure.

Episode 17A
Kaidou sees Kuboyasu beating up delinquents who threaten him. It makes him wonder if he is really a delinquent. Worse, he seeks Nendou for advice and when Kuboyasu wants in, in Kaidou’s vision he sees him as threatening! Kaidou gets even nervous when Nendou accidentally sneezes on Kuboyasu and wipes his face. Any time now… Kaidou still has doubts if he is really a delinquent but with his delinquent-like actions, that doubt is about to be erased. On the way home with Saiki, a group of delinquents try to extort them for money.

Episode 17B
Kaidou withstands their beating up and even rips off the boss’ arm! Too bad that is just his fantasy. Kaidou meekly gives his wallet. Saiki is about to give his too since he put a curse on it but Kaidou makes Saiki run. Slow runner Kaidou gets caught and Saiki has no intention of helping him. But hearing Kaidou telling him to escape, Saiki has a change of heart. On second thought, since Kuboyasu is here, might as well let him deal with it. Kaidou tells Kuboyasu to run away with Saiki. But since the delinquents think they can get tough on Kuboyasu, he beats them all up. Kuboyasu is surprised that Kaidou already knew of his delinquent past. Kaidou sounds cool when he says his past doesn’t matter. It is the present and future that matters. They become friends and shake hands but Kuboyasu’s grip is so hard it nearly kills Kaidou. Or maybe he is just weak.

Episode 17C
Because of a closed ramen shop, Nendou and Kaidou decide to settle their animosity at an arcade. They play air hockey and no doubt Nendou’s athleticism is giving him the edge. Thus Kaidou does dirty tricks all the way to win the game. Nendou admits defeat but when he says he never thought of even blocking, it makes him the real winner. Then they go take a commemorative photo but still end up trying to outdo each other.

Episode 17D
The gang are shocked to see Nendou working part time at a convenience store. The shop might go to ruin as he doesn’t know how to use the register, gives freebies and extra change! Even Kuboyasu had to help him out on his behalf! It is revealed the store manager is grateful to Nendou for saving his life and since he would do anything for him, Nendou requested for work. Too bad now he has to fire him for all the complaints and short in the register. Nendou soon finds work in his usual ramen store. Because he is always clumsy, he got fired again. The gang learns he is trying to save money to buy his mom a present. Next week is her birthday. He would like to show his appreciation as she singlehandedly raised him. Kaidou and Kuboyasu are so touched that they want to help work with him. Not Saiki, though. So they apply at a restaurant but Nendou didn’t?! I mean, that kind of face how can he even pass the interview? Actually Saiki used his powers to make Nendou look different. However the trio could still mess up and cause trouble.

Episode 17E
The guys are to run a marathon race in the cold winter around school. Hairo is trying to compete with Nendou so naturally the duo are far ahead. Out of 90 boys, Saiki wants to remain in the middle. Amazingly Kaidou can keep up with Saiki? Halfway, they pass several boys out of breath. They were trying to keep pace with Hairo and Nendou but couldn’t. At this rate Saiki will end up at a higher rank and doesn’t want that. So he restores everyone’s strength. Hairo can’t believe despite Nendou running backwards, he still can’t keep up. So he cheats by distracting him as he takes first place! Saiki crosses the line at 44th. Did he miss somebody out? Kaidou despite his strength restored, he has already tired out.

Episode 18A
Teruhashi visits Saiki’s house again to learn cooking from his mom. But she got so nervous that she accidentally rang the doorbell of Yuuta’s house. Her beauty doesn’t have any effect on him and he doesn’t like her. Apparently Saiki knew she was coming and was hiding in Yuuta’s house. Dang. Teruhashi starts blushing when mom comments they look like a married couple. Even more when she serves a free cake that she got from the ones she bought but had love designs all over. However hate starts building up inside as Yuuta calls her aunty (a taboo word in her long list apparently), eats the cake barbarically and tells her to shut it when he is watching Cider Man. She feels sad and leaves. Saiki feels bad but has no choice as Yuuta is his weapon against her. Yuuta then sees a character in Cider Man that looks like Teruhashi. Actually they don’t look alike at all! There goes Saiki’s secret weapon since Yuuta is now attached to Teruhashi.

Episode 18B
Saiki is at a restaurant and forgot his wallet. As he doesn’t want to stand out, he can’t call his parents for money knowing how annoying they are. Yeah, his dumb friends won’t do either. The only choice is to teleport exchange items close to its value and trade it up. As items in his room aren’t enough, he starts exchanging stuffs from others. This means his father now got his pants down in front of a female colleague, which leads to Nendou is eating his belt, which leads to Kaidou eating his lunch, which leads to Toritsuka having his study, which leads to dad holding his porn. Yeah, arrested. Eventually Saiki has enough to pay and leaves. He would love to repay them someday but seeing the trouble they are facing, perhaps washing dishes was the better option.

Episode 18C
Anp breaks Saiki’s dad’s mecha. Dad pleads for it to be restored. Restored. In its unassembled form. Start from scratch again. Anp thinks Saiki has opened up to him when he carries him. But it is just to put him outside. As he makes a commotion, he sees something rolling by and eats it. He chokes on it so dad becomes concerned. Saiki reduces his size to take out a mecha part from his throat. As he can’t go back to normal size yet, it is inconvenient to go to the toilet but he finds a coin under the fridge. Then he spots a cockroach. Run! He has to borrow dad’s mecha to fight it but luckily Anp easily smacks it dead. Saiki has renewed respect for Anp and treats him nicely.

Episode 18D
Kongou is a delinquent senior. Saiki knows and avoids his extortion. When Kongou gets rough, Saiki telepathically gets Matsuzaki for help. Matsuzaki chides him for his delinquent behaviour and wants to see him graduate. Though, Kongou blames Saiki he wanted to extort money for his haircut. Kongou tries to extort from other students. Normally Saiki wouldn’t care but seeing how his school’s reputation is at stake, he makes him say a retard word. So Kongou uses his own money to get a haircut. But it is a dangerous one so Saiki has the barber do a buzz cut. Next day, Kongou is going to get violent on Saiki but he sends telepathic images into his mind how Matsuzaki had to apologize to everyone for his behaviour. He is so touched that he changes into a good guy! Who is this unrecognizable guy?! He wants to graduate. Matsuzaki is shocked to see his change. But he relays the bad news he missed too many days and will have to repeat a year. See you next year then.

Episode 18E
Saiki is only joining his class’ karaoke is because the joint makes some great parfait and the waiting time makes it worthwhile. As his order is at the bottom, we hear Teruhashi being a goddess so much so everyone clamours around her and doesn’t give a damn when Kaidou is up. Saiki is mad when somebody’s order of the parfait came first. Now he has to wait another while. When Nendou sings, he wants a duet with Saiki! So he teleports to the toilet to wait till it’s over. When he returns, everyone is close to dead! Nendou’s singing kills! And he thinks he sang everyone to sleep! Lucky his parfait is here. Too bad the waiter didn’t make it. However it is his turn to sing. He asks Nendou to sing a duet with him. Everyone bolts out in instantly! Oh yeah. Now to enjoy in peace.

Episode 19A
Saiki and his family visit his grandparents in the mountains. While grandma is a nice person, the biggest bother is grandpa. Your typical unsociable tough male pride. Though his grandparents do not know about Saiki’s powers, Saiki can still read their thoughts and this is the real reason grandpa is a real pain in the ass: He is actually tsundere! He loves Saiki and his mom but hates his dad. So despite his cold behaviour in front of them, behind another room he is just squealing in delight!

Episode 19B
We know he is so happy they can stay here for a few days although he would’ve wanted them to stay for 3 years! He is happy hearing Saiki would come bring him cake to his room. Imagine his disgust when it is Saiki’s dad instead. So when Saiki himself comes, he wastes his opportunity to talk to him by acting his usual tsundere. Saiki gives him another chance although they just sat there quietly eating the cake.

Episode 19C
Next day they visit the amusement park. It is so rundown that it could break apart any time. Maybe right now because a screw just came loose! Yeah, the only ride Saiki wants is to ride home. Too bad grandpa got free tickets. And they have to sign a waiver before riding. Saiki’s dad has the scariest ride of his life since his safety belt came off. Of course Saiki held him down and grandpa got jealous he took advantage of it. So while dad is out with mom, grandpa rides in the Ferris Wheel with Saiki. He needs to say something quick. So he badmouths dad as pathetic. Sure, dad may be an idiot but it is still his dad. Thus Saiki uses his power to shake the Ferris Wheel to scare grandpa. However grandpa covers Saiki and promises to protect him. Saiki has renewed respect for grandpa and maybe he is just different than dad. But seeing him out like dad, maybe they’re the same after all.

Episode 19D
Saiki’s family will be leaving for home. Grandpa drives them home but would love for them to stay longer. Because train schedules are far and apart, grandpa devised a plan by siphoning fuel from the car the night before. Out of gas and too far to walk to the station. Saiki saw this coming and put the gas back in the boot. As they drive along, an avalanche blocks the road. Grandpa is happy. The only way is for Saiki to use his powers. Well, it is about time his grandparents should know. Grandma has always known something was off because of mom’s nervous habits. So after they reveal Saiki’s power and has him demonstrate a few of them, his grandparents are shock beyond words. Grandpa thought if Saiki had teleportation, he could have come see him more often. Then he realizes. Could he also read minds of others? Loud and clear.

Episode 19E
A new video game came out and Saiki wanted to buy it but somehow Nendou blocked him. So he requested mom to buy it when he is at school today. However Saiki has to face challenges in the form of his classmates who are trying to get in his way. So like a video game simulator, he selects choices to ‘progress’. Then it turns out that this whole thing is the game he is playing. But it is not a game about Saiki. The reason why everybody looks so familiar is because Saiki used his hypnosis powers on us to make the characters look so.

Episode 20A
Toritsuka has been using spirits of people resembling dead famous people like John Lennon, Bruce Lee and Steve Jobs to get chicks. Really. He is super popular! Now he has a harem! However relying too much of them means he has no control over his body as the spirits take turns to possess him as they want to relive the moment of being alive. With possessed Toritsuka changing personalities and acting odd, by the time Saiki chases the spirits away, the girls already lose interest in him. Seeing how desperate Toritsuka is, he wants to date Saiki who is in the form of a girl!

Episode 20B
Toritsuka wanted to join clubs to get the chicks. Thanks to his dumb and failed camouflage as a girl, obviously they’re not going to let him in. The only way is to create his own club. The occult club. It seems only this girl, Arisu Makino is interested. Yeah, she needed to join a club to do a ritual that requires sacrifice of 6 humans! Unfortunately she isn’t cute. Kaidou wants to join and because of that Yumehara too. Toritsuka won’t let boys join so Yumehara threatens to quit too. Saiki decides to test their love by temporarily turning off the lights. While Kaidou and Yumehara have no change, surprisingly Toritsuka is now in love with Arisu!

Episode 20C
Saiki is motivated for home economics class because they are making crepes. Too bad he chose the wrong people in his group. He thought Nendou and Kuboyasu couldn’t cook but they are great. So he is stuck with noobs like Kaidou and Hairo. Yeah, they literally burn their food or turn it into some creepy dark magic face. Each time their food is wasted, Mera goes to ‘collect’. Eventually with them wasting so much ingredients and Mera eventually eating them all up, Saiki is glad Nendou wants to share his. Hope you like tuna salad crepes…

Episode 20D
Saiki realizes a certain movement is now making their move. They are of course Teruhashi’s secret fan club and with all the pictures taken between Saiki and Teruhashi together, you bet they are going to put a stop to this. Saiki allows himself to be kidnapped seeing if he gets purged by them is the only way to make Teruhashi stop bugging him. Saiki didn’t realize Sawakita who is his classmate is the leader of this movement. We see all of them display their creepy twisted love for Teruhashi. As they all decide what to do with Saiki, the ultimate kill is when they think Saiki had a secret baby with her (that moment with Yuuta). They really want to purge him but Sawakita reminds them Teruhashi’s happiness is most important even at the cost of their lives. Because if they hurt Saiki, she will be hurt. So they all just leave him alone and left, much to Saiki’s disappointment. He didn’t get purged…

Episode 20E
Saiki is puzzled that everyone and everything seems to be making puns or named after 100. Yeah, no matter how silly everything is, they just have to use 100. Why do they love this number? Can you guess it? There is even a counter keeping the number of times this number is referenced. So once we reach 100, Saiki learns that this episode is the 100th overall. And then everything stops and returns to normal.

Episode 21A
A baseball accidentally hits off Saiki’s antenna. Now his powers are out of control. He has to be very careful. If you’re asking why he can’t just turn back time, he is afraid it will go back 7 years! So luckily he manages to teleport back to his home. Right in the midst between his parents before they’re starting to make out! They realize his antenna is broken but since they can’t fix it, there is only one person who can. Oh no. Saiki doesn’t like that person. It is his elder brother, Kuusuke in London.

Episode 21B
So here they are in London and Saiki to prevent from overusing his powers is now like a vegetable. His parents are having fun around London instead of getting this done. Eventually Kuusuke comes to see them. It is obvious the brothers hate each other. Flashback reveals Kuusuke was born a genius. He is a reason why the parents aren’t shocked when Saiki was born. Note, Kuusuke has no psychic powers. Because of that, Saiki always unwittingly beats him in anything. After Kuusuke fixes the antenna, Saiki is shocked he can’t read Kuusuke’s mind.

Episode 21C
Flashback reveals Kuusuke always tries to do better than his brother but fails. Because Saiki always ends up doing even better! Got perfect 100% in all tests? Saiki got 9 million!!! WTF??!!! So when Kuusuke reached 14 years old, he decided to go to London to study. After earning his PhD, he created something that would block out Saiki reading his mind. He wants Saiki to come to his lab. After losing another round of rock-scissors-paper to him, it seems Kuusuke has kept count exactly all the losses for every game they have played! Kuusuke won none! Thus he wants to play a game of tag that covers the entire region of London. He can use whatever transportation within the 3 hour limit to get away. Win and he will treat him to this hotel’s desserts. But Saiki is further shocked that Kuusuke has brought Nendou and Kaidou. He did so to surprise Saiki and will have them help him out in this game.

Episode 21D
As the game begins, the tube is on strike and the queue for the bus is long. Saiki believes Kuusuke has calculated for this and is closing in. They run away via bicycle but Kuusuke comes chasing in a bike! Saiki then realizes his antenna serves as a tracker for his GPS. Trying to hide in crowded places, Kuusuke makes an announcement to make them look like offenders and has the crowd chase and corner them in a toilet cubicle. Kuusuke thinks he is about to win but he got to wrong toilet. Saiki and co are on a different storey because GPS is flat and can’t tell the difference between levels. Another loss for Kuusuke. While enjoying the desserts, it is revealed that Kuusuke is a masochist and loves losing to him. That is why Saiki hates him.

Episode 21E
So Kuusuke takes out his frustrations by badmouthing Kaidou and Nendou? Since they have some time before they flight, they visit the art museum. Kaidou suddenly becomes an art connoisseur with fancy comments. Well, can’t argue with that. It’s art. Even this freaking doodle Nendou drew in 3 seconds. Because of that, the museum director thinks he has potential. Kaidou won’t lose out and draws a scary doodle. Not art? Well, this famous contemporary artist says it is! Man, we don’t get art.

Episode 22A
Saiki thought he will have a whole month of vacation without those nuisances. However here they all come to bug him to join whatever activities. Saiki tries to evade them all and gives a reason of being busy with his club but once the rest realize their activities do not overlap, they sign up Saiki for their club activities. Yeah, whole month gone. He only has one day left of freedom. Oh, mom put that as a date with Teruhashi. So the first club activity is with the occult club. It is obvious Toritsuka and Yumehara wants to attract Arisa and Kaidou respectively. So they ‘team up’.

Episode 22B
During the kimodameshi, they try to rig the pairings. Yeah, Arisa and Kaidou would prefer to be Saiki’s partner. Saiki undoes the rigging as Toritsuka ends up with Yumehara. But they start falling in love with each other when he saves her from tripping. But when a wild boar attacks, Toritsuka runs away for himself, leaving her behind. I guess their romance ended there. Next, Saiki joins in Hairo’s tennis club. Nendou is also roped in. The coach sees Nendou as a prodigy due to his supernatural strength. When Hairo challenges Nendou, Nendou wants Saiki to play as his partner.

Episode 22C
The match is mainly Hairo and Nendou trying to outdo each other. Saiki plans to end this by hitting it out so the rest will think he sucks and will not bug him to join. However he hits too far out of range. They now love him! Nearby is Mera hallucinating because she ate some poisonous mushroom. Nendou joins her? Saiki soon attends a shady lab test with Mera and Nendou. Everything screams shady but since Saiki read the doctor’s mind, the pills are just placebo. However the next day he notices Mera’s boobs gone and Nendou’s right arm bulging big! Thinking it is the pill’s side effect, he uses his power to revert back to before.

Episode 22D
However as more days passed, the weirder their body gets. From being giants to getting old. So much so Saiki has to sneakily substitute their pill with his snack. At the end of the trial, the doctor reveals the pills were all placebo. But Saiki points out to Nendou and Mera still having side effects (buffed up!). The doctor explains a certain poisonous mushroom causes those effects and it is harmless as they will return to normal after an hour. Yeah, looks like it was Saiki who was affected the most by this experiment. Now Saiki joins Kaidou and Kuboyasu in getting a motorbike licence. They hit the driving school but the baldy instructor loves making BKB puns as he makes Kaidou lift a very heavy bike and Kuboyasu is alien to road signs. But after seeing their determination not to give up, he passes them. Everyone is happy celebrating that they forgot to get their licence. Except for Saiki who already got them.

Episode 22E
It must be a depressing day for Teruhashi at the amusement park. What is supposed to be a date with Saiki turns out looking like a family outing since he brought Yuuta! It’s a good thing he did as you don’t know how many “Ohs” she is planning to make him say. Teruhashi is further dumbfounded when Yuuta doesn’t want to sit any rides but is here for the hero show. As part of the show, the monster takes Teruhashi hostage. Because she is so darn pretty, the hero and monster fight to get her attention. Eventually the monster knocks out the hero. Who will save the day? Yuuta bugs Saiki AKA Cider Man No. 2 for the job! Then the crowd also makes Saiki go up to rescue so he has no choice but to defeat the monster. Teruhashi hugs him like how rescued damsels always do but Saiki isn’t impressed.

Episode 23A
Oh no. We’re getting another transfer student? But Metori Saiko is not just an ordinary kid. He is filthy rich! Yeah, his family owns a conglomerate. He transfers into Saiki’s class, flaunts his wealth and tells everyone he doesn’t intend to be their friends. So why is here in the first place? Ah, he wants to make Teruhashi his wife! You’d think her fan club would be against it but he has bought them out with his money and now they are his lackeys! Saiko makes his move on Teruhashi and Saiki knows it will be trouble. As he races to reach her, he enters too late as he hears Teruhashi rejecting Saiko because she loves Saiki! Gasp!

Episode 23B
Saiki pretends to be asleep to bluff her he didn’t hear that. You’d think it would be the end of it but here is how a rich kid does his revenge. Mugami is harassed with a fake scandal and Saiki’s dad is to be transferred to Siberia! Soon Saiki’s friends also have indirect harassment as he tells them to think carefully before messing with him. But Saiki knows he picked the wrong guy to mess with. Outside Saiko’s mansion, Teruhashi’s fan club boys revolt. Because Teruhashi is looking sad. Saiki in a mask faces off with Saiko who thought he could buy him out. But Saiki scatters the money outside. It is Saiko’s bodyguards scrambling for it and the fan boys ignoring them to beat the SPs up. Saiki then notes if he really wanted to buy him out it would have been a mountain of his favourite jelly.

Episode 23C
Saiki’s grandparents are here to visit. Just in time when dad was about to make love with mom. You can bet tsundere grandpa beats him up. So as they go shopping in town, grandpa continues to treat dad badly. The ladies didn’t like this bullying and leave him alone. Saiki is worried about that as he spies on grandpa. It looks like he is about to get into a fight with Nendou but they become good friends! Grandpa is in a dilemma to buy a present for his grandson so Nendou has a few suggestions. Eventually he got a pair of glasses and as he hands it like a tsundere, Saiki switches with dad. Though it wasn’t his intention, the ladies are glad thinking the guys made up. Ah well, this isn’t so bad.

Episode 23D
Kaidou invites his friends for Halloween at his place. Saiki shows up in his normal attire. Hairo and Kuboyasu have no idea what it is so they go to the cheap store to buy cheap stuffs. Hairo has a plastic bag over his head and Kuboyasu is supposed to be a mummy but wrapped in toilet paper. Nendou arrives in his normal outfit but others think he is a real monster! They brought weird pumpkins or char siew. When kids come to trick or treat, they are alien to this so they get shot in the face with some stinky water.

Episode 23E
Saiko is depressed ever since he lost. But his father (shining like God so much so you can’t see his face or body because of too much jewellery!) won’t allow him to lose. So when he confronts Saiki and co, they aren’t going to entertain him. Except Nendou. Thinking this is the perfect guy to make as his lackey and get his revenge, he treats him to food while trying to buy him with money. Nendou accepts whatever food he treats but declines each time Saiko throws money to be his lackey. He is baffled with Nendou wanting to be equal friends. When Nendou wants to treat him back, Saiko throws down the ultimatum to take his money or not. Because dad always told him there is nothing in this world money can’t buy! Nendou takes his money. But he empties it and throws the case into the river as floating device to save a drowning boy. Actually Saiki has a help in making it float since aluminium casing is pretty heavy. This leaves Saiko disillusioned. He threw away money to save a kid he doesn’t know. He thinks father has lied to him.

Episode 24A
Chouno and his assistant are super famous magicians. Not kidding! Thus Saiki gets a ticket to his show. But wait a minute. Why is it more of a gag comedy than a magic show? Well, everyone is laughing. At the backstage, Chouno thanks Saiki and tells him how they have incorporated comedy into magic from their failures. Saiki is happy for them but as he leaves, he hears a jealous magician not too pleased of being the opening act. This dude thinks Saiki has something to do with Chouno and decides to make him show his magic. Get a little taste of his psychic power.

Episode 24B
Yumehara is fat! Teruhashi can’t bring herself to tell her but Mera is sure hell blunt as she mistakes her to be a pig and tries to eat her! Once she realizes she is fat, she tries to do some jogging and sit-ups. Saiki is also shock to see her new form and knows she won’t lose weight at this rate since her mind is only filled with sweets. Saiki is not obligated to help her but will do so as he understands her struggle. So he makes her see visions of Kaidou who hates fat girls and this gives her the motivation to continue. When he returns later in the day, he is shocked to see her still at it. Peeking into her mind, Kaidou has turned into some sadistic bastard and she’s loving it! Lucky for her, Yumehara turns back into her hot body. When Kaidou speaks to her, she prostrates like a slave and will do anything at his command.

Episode 24C
During the break between the class, Saiki can’t catch a break because every damn supporting character comes up to his face to bug him about something. Like as though they want to get their 2 seconds of fame especially for those characters who don’t get to appear much. So when class restarts, Saiki thought this would be his reprieve but the hot beautiful teacher has him solve problems on the board.

Episode 24D
Saiki knows something is up with his friends as they ignore him. He thinks they are bullying him but he knows they are planning a surprise birthday for him tomorrow. Minus Nendou, the gang are happy their plan to keep it a surprise is going well. They can’t wait to see his surprised face! Well, Saiki notes that he himself is already surprise by this. Because tomorrow isn’t his birthday and is only in 3 months! So whose birthday is it? His dad. They discuss the presents they will give him. Hairo a carved sculpture, Teruhashi and Yumehara will bake a cake with his face, Kuboyasu and Mera has recorded a video of random people wishing him happy birthday and finally when you think Kaidou’s letter is his typical chuunibyou, it is actually a heartfelt friendship letter! OMG! So touching! Did he really write that?! But the next day, Saiki goes straight home after school instead of cleaning duties. Kaidou initiates the next plan to gather outside his house and pop the surprise. But what if somebody else answers? Just do it! Luckily Saiki opens and he looks really surprised. Actually, it is Saiki’s father whom Saiki placed a hypnosis on everyone to make him look like himself in the eyes of others. When Nendou arrives, he thought he saw 2 Saikis. Luckily quick thinking Saiki hides behind a mirror. Phew.

Episode 24E
As the friends continue to celebrate in his home, it gets awkward because the friends are asking about Saiki’s parents and dad thought they’re asking about his dead parents. During the break, Saiki manages to explain to him and wants him to continue to play along. When he returns, the guys are chiding him of brushing off his parents’ death lightly. The friends show their presents but each time it gets broken, Saiki uses his power to revert it back. After having some fun, dad wants Saiki to switch. For the first time, dad is being an assertive dad telling him to go join them. He understands he didn’t want to so as to not hurt their feelings. But he is wrong. They came for him. Even if he ends up hurting them, he should go. Saiki is just about to join in when he hears them wondering despite he is happy, he looks distant. Is he forcing himself to go along with them? Screw all the overthinking. Saiki just enters to join them. Let the party continue.

Psycho Comebacks
Safe to say that I was having so much fun laughing and enjoying all the silly antics that before I knew it, it is already over. Could this be my new favourite nonsensical comedy taking over Gintama? I wouldn’t put it that way. Gintama has its own silly and wonderful charms. This series has its own silly and wonderful charms. It’s like comparing apples to oranges. Even though I enjoyed this series as much, I can’t compare between them as they are worlds apart. More importantly, as long as this anime is good (for my standards), that is already good enough for me. It doesn’t need me to start comparing to others. Oh wait. I just broke that rule…

Originally the anime was aired as separate 5 minute episodes on weekdays. At the end of every week, these short compilations are then compiled to make a single episode. Thus the reason why the series is conveniently divided into 5 minute short skits. The bite size length makes it easier to watch and enjoy although some of them are one long ‘arcs’ divided into several parts. Thus the comedic effect are fast and spontaneous, keeping the flow of laughter at a speedy but not too frenzy pace, sometimes making the comebacks unexpected.

Thanks to the gag comedy feature of this anime, all the main and supporting characters are just lovable despite how stupid and idiotic they are. Even more hilarious when their personalities clash. Even with Saiko as the ‘antagonist’, you’ll find it hard to hate him because he is just as silly as everyone. Each of the characters has their own distinct personality and despite once you’ll get to know what they really are and they stay the same throughout the series, you won’t get tired of it even though they keep spamming the same recurring jokes based on their personality. Because it would really suck if their character would start changing from what has been established. We want everyone to be idiots! So never change, Saiki and co. But there is enough variety in the jokes to make it feel fresh and keep coming back for more.

Now, Saiki may come off as the most serious and least nonsensical among the gang but I assure you that he is as idiotic as the rest albeit to a much lesser degree (maybe because he rarely puts on a smile?). As the main character, it looks like his main role and entire life is to be the king of comebacks, which is the main staple of this series and what most of the gags in this anime revolves around. You would think that Saiki has always been troubled by his usual nuisances and despite he is, he never loses his cool or temper. My theory is that he really considers them as his friends despite he might not want to admit it himself. Despite their flaws and being a pest, they still have their own pride that is enough to constitute what it takes for a friendship. Noticed even how if he got dragged into activities he doesn’t want to participate, he still goes along with it? He could have not given a f*ck and walk away. But he sees through it partly because he doesn’t any more trouble and also he really likes their company! Don’t be surprised. He might be tsundere! Just like grandpa! It runs in the family…

Saiki isn’t 100% invincible since he has his own ‘weaknesses’ in the form of his favourite jelly and his uncontrollable powers once his antenna is not working. As he takes great caution not to misuse his powers so as not to stand out, he is the epitome of that overused superhero line, “With great powers come great responsibility”. On a trivial note, it is hard to figure if Saiki ever opens his mouth and converses. Because from our point of view he is always talking through his thoughts. Yeah, easier to animate, right?

The rest of the characters help ramp up the comedic effect and like I’ve said, because of how dumb and idiotic they are, it is hard to hate them. Like Hairo and his ever energetic positivism (whatever happened to his accidental butt showing that started off as a running joke?), Kaidou’s chuunibyou and tendency to act tough but is actually a wuss when it comes to the real deal, Mera’s poor background that makes her work everywhere and a one who is hard-up and do anything for food, Toritsuka and his perverted desires and Kuboyasu trying hard to not go back to his delinquent past.

Nendou is a wild card and might look like the biggest idiot. But he is also the biggest friend that anyone would have. Or not. This guy is true to his heart and life. He says what is on his mind and is honest to goodness despite sometimes his thinking and methods are as awkward as f*ck. But he treasures his friendship a lot. Yeah, I guess as annoying as he may be, being friends with him isn’t perfect and comes with a few quirks. You just need to deal with it. He could be up for the best character of the series since his mom and deceased dad are pretty much wacko and like his clones. I would love to know why he is the only person whom Saiki cannot read his mind. Maybe he actually does not think. Everything is just spontaneous. Hey, can’t read one’s mind if one isn’t thinking in the first place. We were hoping maybe Teruhashi would finally get Saiki’s heart? Why do I have a feeling that it will never work out so long as this gag anime exists? Perhaps she is the only character with some sort of change. Initially wanting to get Saiki to be in awe for her, slowly you can tell she starts falling for him despite she is still under the impression to awe him. It would have been nice for boyfriend-hopping Yumehara to have been a potential for Saiki’s harem but that girl has moved on to Kaidou. Another clueless guy in love…

The other minor characters too are fun. Like Saiki’s parents who are totally wacko in their own way. Because Saiki’s dad must be one of those useless fathers who depends on his son to get him out of whatever fix. And then there is this shady job he does. Although we know he works in an editorial department of a magazine, but it seems most of the work he does is licking his boss’ shoes… I know. His running joke. I suppose the final episode of him actually like a real dad is supposed to remind us that he is still a dad. Nah! Better he continues to play the idiot. Don’t forget his tsundere grandpa who could be one of the very few male tsunderes in the world, the masochistic Kuusuke, Yuuta who loves Cider Man so much that he sees its characters everywhere, failed magician Chouno, Anp the show’s (short-lived) mascot who wants humans to bow before his feline species, siscon Mugami and Matsuzaki who seems to play the strict and fierce teacher but usually for the sake of his students.

In between the skits and episodes especially in the latter half of the series, a short variety segment to test your psychic skills. Of course this short part is also for some laughs as it feels more than luck than anything psychic. Because if you’re a normal person like me without any psychic powers, getting none right is the norm. So the variety of ‘psychic tests’ includes guessing the winner of a 100m race, guessing the opponent would put up rock or scissors or paper, guessing the missing blank word Toritsuka would say and guessing which of the cards is hiding a certain character. If you get any one of them right, don’t be too happy thinking you’re a psychic. Not some latent psychic power that made you arrive at that answer even if you think it is. It’s just luck. Plain luck. That’s all.

Hiroshi Kamiya is recognizable as Saiki despite playing a character with a very deadpan voice. Other recognizable casts are Yukari Tamura as Yumehara, Yoshitsugu Matsuoka as Anp, Showtaro Morikubo, as Chouno and Satoshi Hino as Hairo. At first I had this dilemma wondering if Mamiko Noto was behind Saiki’s mom. Something felt odd. Was she trying too hard to sound like an overly cute mom? Well, it was Rikako Aikawa as Saiki’s mom (Hare in Hare+Guu). The most surprising one I find is Daisuke Ono as Nendou. Yes, this guy who was Kuroshitsuji’s Sebastian voicing a rough sounding character? Wow. So different. No wonder I couldn’t recognize him. Never in a million years. It’s a refreshing thing to hear him voice a very different role. Sometimes it’s good to break the mould once in a while otherwise like yours truly starts pigeon holing and stereotyping their voice for certain roles.

The other casts are Nobunaga Shimazaki as Kaidou (Shido in Date A Live), Ai Kayano as Teruhashi (Inori in Guilty Crown), Natsuki Hanae as Toritsuka (Inaho in Aldnoah.Zero), Maaya Uchida as Mera (Rikka in Chuunibyou Demo Koi Ga Shitai), Yoshimasa Hosoya as Kuboyasu (Reiner in Shingeki No Kyojin), Masaya Matsukaze as Saiko (Ren in Jigoku Shoujo), Kenji Nojima as Kuusuke (Yuuto in High School DxD), Tomoaki Maeno as Mugami (Schubert in ClassicaLoid), Tarou Yamaguchi as Matsuzaki (Borma in Ghost In The Shell series), Yumiko Kobayashi as Yuuta (Sarah in Love Hina), Taishi Murata as Takahashi (Ibusaki in Shokugeki No Souma) and Mitsuo Iwata as Saiki’s dad (Ivankov in One Piece). Amazingly there are many other casts although they play very small roles like extra characters in the background. Many of them too voice multiple minor roles. It’s not like we’re going to really recognize them, right?

The first opening, Seishun Wa Zankoku Ja Nai by Natsuki Hanae sounds not too bad but I can’t help feel that he sounds a bit gay. Maybe playing Toritsuka for a while made him sound so? The same can be said for the second ending theme, Kokoro which is also sung by him. I would have love this song very much because the beat gave me the nostalgia feel that it sounded like Johnny Hates Jazz’s songs like Turn Back The Clock and Shattered Dreams. If you love denpa songs, then the first ending theme should suit your taste. Sai Psi Sai Kouchou by Dempagumi Inc is filled with craziness that it doesn’t sound that bad. The frantic pace of the music and the crazy sound effects make it quite a decent song. Though they try to replicate this for the second opening theme, Psi Desu I Like You also by Dempagumi Inc, but personally this one doesn’t feel as catchy as the former. There are a few BGMs too and one that somehow reminds me of Flash Gordon… That spacey feel… Cool!

The art and drawing are bright and vivid although the character designs have a bit of this cartoonish feel. It works for a gag anime to enhance the comedic effect. I mean when you see Nendou and he has got this very obvious butt chin sticking out like a sore butt thumb, you know that almost everyone else is going to look a bit odd or funny. Like Hairo’s spikey hair that could almost rival a Super Saiyan, Takahashi looking like a clown without all the clown makeup and Teruhashi’s bright aura around her like as though she is some goddess. Is she? This anime is animated by a collaboration between a veteran studio and a relatively new one, J.C. Staff and Egg Firm. Egg what?

Overall, this is a very funny and entertaining series that you should watch if you are looking for a laugh. Or many laughs. Something that money can never buy. *Smirks*. Everything might be awkward and silly but you should have expected that this series isn’t based on logic anyway. So successful this series that it doesn’t take a psychic to tell that there is going to be a second season. We hope Saiki won’t use his powers to change the perception and the law of the world. Because he would have done so if he wanted a more peaceful life. So what does this tell us about him? He wants more idiotic chaos! Or maybe we have already been under Saiki’s control and perception ever since we watched this series… Oh who cares? As long as we are happy having our mindless fun and laughter, right? Now to find that black coffee jello as offering for Saiki…

Hand Shakers

At first the name of the series seems a little suspicious. Because Hand Shakers sounds like a name that would be befit a porn title. Holy sh*t! Right. Only dirty minded people can think of this. Rest assured that it isn’t so. Instead it is a sci-fi action thriller. So what is new about this series? Teams in pairs fight each other in battles in which if you win enough of your matches, you get to meet God. Yeah, you can’t get more original than that. Because the way you are supposed to fight your opponents by summoning so called awesome weapons is by joining hands (really), thus the name of the series and the term given to all those who participate in this flimsy battle thinking they can meet Almighty based on this flimsy unproven reasoning. Oh yeah. Very original indeed…

Episode 1
Tazuna Takatsuki is in an intense battle and ‘complaining’ he would rather be fixing old watches than in this sh*t. His opponents seem to be S&M fetish couple because the girl is giving out ambiguous moans, chains tightly wrapped all around her and her super big bust feels like it is going to explode anytime. Seriously. We go back a little while in time in class as Tazuna talks to Lily Hojou. It makes them look like a couple but they’re not. Or are they? With those kind of boobs, I would sure love to f*ck date her. He fixes some broken device of hers. After school, he is supposed to meet Nagamasa Makihara at his lab. His lab looks like the hospital where his sister died holding his hands. Trauma? Then he sees a girl in bed. She looks exactly like his sister but isn’t. When Koyori Akutagawa grabs his hand, suddenly he experiences some sort of augmented reality and some voice telling him he’s received this Revelation of Babel, blah, blah, blah. In short, he is now a Hand Shaker. When Makihara enters, he is so happy Tazuna is now a Hand Shaker but warns never to let go of Koyori’s hand otherwise she will die. Say what?! Before things can sink in for Tazuna, the place is under attack by chains. He takes Koyori and runs outside. He sees that chain S&M couple as the attackers, Break and Bind. Break is cocky when he learns Tazuna is a newbie and doesn’t even know terms like Nimrod and Ziggurat. He relentlessly attacks. When Tazuna decides to stop running and fight back, his refusal to let go of Koyori’s hands (because she was going to) as it traumatizes him about his sister’s death suddenly has him unleash his Nimrod: Loads of gears? Break isn’t pleased as he tortures Bind to sound more sexually suggestive to increase his power attacks but nothing much happens. This guy is still cocky yet upset he should beat this pipsqueak easily. Because now Tazuna assembles all the gears to become a giant sword and fight back.

Episode 2
Tazuna defeats Break. In the aftermath, Makihara explains Break has been sent to the hospital and they’ll be fine. He explains about Hand Shakers. Selected people who have to fight each other in which the winner will get to meet God and get their wish granted. Yeah, as original as ever. Some terms are explained like Nimrod (weapon) and Ziggurat (the parallel where Hand Shakers fight) as well as the reason of holding hands is to gain power and recharge to create Nimrod. When a pair loses a fight, they lose their powers and thus can no longer participate in battles. Because Koyori’ is also in a Ziggurat in this reality, you let go her hand, she dies because it drains her power and existence. So is Tazuna going to forever live his life holding her hand? Don’t worry, Makihara can iron out the adult stuffs and make it work. Because now Tazuna’s parents welcome Koyori into their household with open arms. Maybe they just want to tease their son in this ‘romance’. After dinner, it is the awkward bath scene. How do you take off your clothes? Apparently if you let go of her hand, she won’t die immediately so Tazuna has to do things quick before grasping it back again. So awkward this guy that he got his nose bleed all over the place. Now who is going to clean this up? In school, Tazuna introduces Koyori on her behalf (excuse given, she is from Brazil and too shy to talk). You bet the other guys are going to get jealous at how close they are since they never let go their hands. They run away from the unruly mob and bump into Lily. Tazuna introduces the girls as Lily hands him her brother’s handheld to fix.

Episode 3
Not sure what Makihara did but now he tells Tazuna that he is able to let go of Koyori’s hand for 15 minutes for his whatever needed break time. Centeotl Group’s Chizuru Mitsudera and her subordinate, Hayate Azuma arrive at school to do a presentation of improving the cafeteria’s school efficiency. Due to her petite size, many believe she is just a school girl and worse, Hayate’s underling. The duo then bump into Tazuna and Koyori who invite them to treat them at their group’s outlet, Cocktail Corn. After nice servings of parfait and hospitality, you start to wonder why they get such good free service. Turns out Chizuru and Hayate are Hand Shakers too. They know about Tazuna and Koyori and set this all up. Chizuru and Hayate’s past reveals how they were ostracized due to office politicking. So down and out as they drink their woes, they had this wish God will hear them out and all hat prejudicial stuff disappear. Confident Chizuru and Hayate go on the offensive with their acrobatic stuff and speed. Tazuna is only left defending since Koyori is being useless standing there holding hands.

Episode 4
So when Tazuna decides to fight back, he has to deal with Chizuru’s clones. The guys start fighting their individual battle but Hayate lost and Chizuru concedes defeat. In the aftermath, Chizuru and Hayate profusely apologize to them for not knowing the life threatening condition that Koyori has. They respect Tazuna for fighting and protecting Koyori who doesn’t have her own Nimrod. Chizuru then explains one of the abilities of holding hands is that they are able to exchange memories and emotions. Tazuna doesn’t know anything about Koyori because she was sleeping all the time prior to her awakening. Then she explains about the triggering of Ziggurat. One way is when 2 sets of Hand Shakers get within a certain distance holding hands. Because Tazuna and Koyori are always holding hand, they are easy targets because it is like ‘advertising’ they are Hand Shakers. That is why Hand Shakers have their own nicknames to avoid the inconvenience in real life of their real identity being found out. This is another way to trigger Ziggurat without holding hands as long as the Hand Shaker knows your identity. Chizuru and Hayate decide to become their guardians and their first order is to give them at nickname. At least for Tazuna. He is nicknamed Single Gear. After they leave, Chizuru becomes very frustrated that they actually lost. She thought they could win. Hayate almost killed them because he was crying too and his eyes aren’t on the road! What a way to blow away the blues via drinking. That’s the adult way.

Episode 5
Tazuna and Koyori hang out in another restaurant belonging to Centeotl with Chizuru and Hayate. When they leave, suddenly Tazuna realizes Koyori is missing. How the f*ck can they lose each other if they were holding hands?! Koyori is lost and starts crying upon realizing Tazuna isn’t holding her hand. Luckily she is found by Lily and her younger brother, Masaru. They take her to a card tournament where Masaru owns his opponent. Lily is being supportive of Masaru but does she has to be cheering this loud? It’s embarrassing. For the crowd, that is. After that Lily personally plays with Koyori and loses! Note, this is Koyori’s first time. But that made the girls become friends. Funny. Girls bonding over a card game? Tazuna is searching around as he calls Makihara about the problem. Now you only want to start thinking about putting GPS on her? Tazuna is then called out by a man, Daichi Nagaoka who seems to know Makihara. He reveals Makihara was once a Hand Shaker and asks Tazuna his reason for fighting. Does he know he is destroying the wish of others by defeating them? Well, what is Tazuna’s wish actually? Let’s say it has something to do with his dead sister. Nagaoka tells him off that Koyori is not his sister’s substitute as he is fighting to keep her alive. At this point, Lily calls Tazuna to inform Koyori’s whereabouts. Gotta leave. Lily realizes she doesn’t have enough money so Masaru offers to pay. Lily feels embarrassed as she confides in Koyori about her secret. She’s in love with Masaru?! When Tazuna arrives, for the first time you can see Koyori’s face lit up with joy as she runs to him. When both pairs hold hands, suddenly they enter Ziggurat. Lily and Masaru are Hand Shakers? Why doesn’t that surprise me? As they both don’t want to fight each other, one way to escape Ziggurat is for both sides to lose their will to fight. Nothing happens. The siblings take it as a challenge that they want to fight and go into combat mode.

Episode 6
Taking Yugioh and whatever card games to the next level, Masaru’s Nimrod is materializing the properties of the card for the attack. To drag out the ‘explosive’ action, thus we get a flashback of the siblings. Lily is praised by her parents because of her outstanding performance and hope she would do even better. Masaru on the other hand is a total opposite. He only cares about his card game and this made mom cry and scream her head off. Like he cared. So Lily went to nicely talk to him and I suppose the clincher was Lily being ‘cute’ when she is clumsy. He allows her to hug him and that’s when she professed her love to him. A start of their close bond. So close that you could smell incest coming up. Back to the fight, Tazuna takes a beating but luckily Koyori decides to stop being a liability and do something useful. Remember she is also good in this card game? She has deduced Masaru’s attacking pattern and leads Tazuna to avoid them. Both sides face off and give each other one last chance to stop fighting. It feels odd because they express they don’t want to hurt the other but yet they eventually go through with it. Even weirder when Masaru finishes all his cards, Lily immediately stops him as she doesn’t want to see him hurt. But he asks permission to borrow her cards instead and she relents. Apparently this wasn’t good enough because we all know Tazuna is main character material as he charges through the final push to strike down Masaru. They lose. Cue for Lily to put up her emotional drama for Masaru. She doesn’t blame Masaru for losing as she feels it was her selfishness that made him do this. You think so? And they both realize how weird they are for confessing they love each other. I’m so weird out by this now…

Episode 7
Tazuna confronts Makihara about him being an ex-Hand Shaker. He confirms it and also never got to meet God. Obviously he lost, right? When asked about Koyori being put to sleep, she already had a condition that made her lose her memories and ability to sleep. As she was born a Hand Shaker, she had a partner before Tazuna but that partner’s identity was unknown. Makihara was desperate to keep her alive so he put her to sleep. So when Tazuna was able to hold her hand, it made him happy. Now Tazuna has a problem regarding his class for the cultural festival. His friend had some problem getting some ingredients. He took it to Lily and got rejected so he wants Tazuna to talk to her again because they know each other, right? And yeah, we could see some double standards because she would try for him. Unfortunately she couldn’t so Tazuna turns to Chizuru for help in which she agrees. Then another problem arises when all the cooks in their class got into some mishap. That’s the thing when you do secret training. Guess what? Koyori volunteers to cook. So testing her cooking at home, wow, it’s like she has a natural talent to be a top chef. Part of the deal for Chizuru to supply the ingredients is for Koyori to wear a traditional Japanese outfit in which she looks stunning of course. This should rake in the big bucks. They experience brisk business during the festival and whatever problems the utensils and burners gave them on that day, Tazuna the handyman can fix them. In the end, it’s such a roaring success that their class also won the best booth award. Literally icing on the cake.

Episode 8
If you think Kodama Azawa is an idol performing in an ordinary concert, please note that she is a Hand Shaker who is singing as her way of fighting. Yup, her opponents do not stand a chance. She has chubby Hibiki Moriyama as her partner and manager who sucks up to her. But the most annoying thing about Kodama is how she loves to quote lines from historical personalities to show how knowledgeable she is. Shut the f-… And you may have guessed it, Tazuna and Koyori are their next opponents. We right away get into the thick of the action because why go through all the sappy pre-fight drama when you can just jump in and kick each other’s ass. Yeah, to distract us from the boring fight in which Kodama is dominating like hell, more of her quotes. Please shut the f-… Surprisingly but not surprisingly as well, Tazuna almost lost! Actually he could have but managed to escape with his life. Kodama unleashed a powerful attack and Tazuna protected Koyori using his body. If they weren’t underwater, Tazuna could have been flat, if you know what I mean. And it is that underwater too how they made their escape. As Makihara treats him, he tells them that they are probably Hand Shakers who are closer to God. Hand Shakers who defeat many opponents gain the powers of those they defeat. This explains why their Nimrod is affecting Ziggurat itself. Because Tazuna is main character material, now we hear his resolve to protect Koyori, blah, blah, blah. You’re luck there is a next time for you. Now we shift our attention to Kodama and Hibiki who are supposed to be preparing for a real world concert. Then they get the bad news their stupid president has cancelled it. Kodama remains positive (more quotes, please) because she’ll do everything and anything for her fans. Because being an idol is like being God. That’s why she is going to win. Wow. I think that is true in a lot of aspects. Finally, we see the drama of Koyori crying while beside Tazuna. Because it tugs our heart strings to see a kawaii girl cry like this.

Episode 9
Now falls sick from his wound’s infection. Makihara is no medical doctor but he tells him to be positive and rest. Too bad Tazuna wants to show his main character badly because he still wants to get up and go fight. All for Koyori’s sake says he. He knows where to find her since she is a famous idol. When his parents are concerned about him, he talks back and tells them to shut up! Oh my. Then they tell him to look at Koyori’s face and see if she really wants to do this. Kawaii girl crying… Nope. Nothing wrong. WTF???!!! So now he doesn’t think Koyori can think on her own (partly true) because he has to win for her at all cost? So typically main character. The rematch is here but this time Tazuna has the home advantage of being in his Ziggurat. It doesn’t bother Kodama since she would prefer to defeat him in his own world. As they start, Tazuna and Koyori target Hibiki. Lucky fat guy can run. As expected, Tazuna takes a beating once Kodama is ready. This pathetic sight has Koyori really tearing up. Then like how cliché it is, memories of times spent with Tazuna trigger her to have some magical girl transformation into a fairy (supposedly her Nimrod). Better, she can now speak properly without struggling. You know they both kick ass when Kodama starts sweating. Couldn’t find the right words now, can you? To cut this battle short, Kodama lost. As expected. Now we see her crying and rant how she suddenly realizes everything. She had no fans. She blames herself to be fake anyway and should have taken up some shady offer doing shady things if she knew this was going to happen. Wait. What? You mean you won’t regret doing porn? Kodama knows she has always been winning because Hibiki has been exchanging info with a certain doctor and arranging who she fights with. That way they would avoid opponents having an advantage over them. Kodama thinks it is all over but it’s time for Hibiki to bring back her spirits. He is going to stick with her through thick and thin. Otherwise why would he throw his life away and follow a little girl to become her fan and manager? On second thought, that sounds creepy. Hey, at least he is still her fan. To show Kodama is a strong girl, she rebounds and won’t retire yet. Lastly, Tazuna apologizes to Koyori for being selfish and thanks her contribution that had them won the battle. The best part is that Koyori can converse like normal and no longer some dumb retard. They thank each other for being together.

Episode 10
Now that Koyori is no longer a retard, Makihara is really grateful to Tazuna from the bottom of his heart. Thankfully the duo don’t have to stay and see him shed tears of joy as they are called by Chizuru to work part time in one of her restaurants. It is a good thing Koyori is put in the kitchen with Tazuna firstly I don’t think Chizuru will get any work done since she’ll be staring at how cute Koyori is in her waitress outfit. Secondly, it would be so freaking awkward to see a pair of waiters taking your orders while holding hands. Like, are you trying to trigger me or something? For some reason, Hayate lectures them about some life lesson. I suppose they’re lacking in content so they had to waste time with this crap. Koyori might not be a retard but she is still dense so she thinks all that may be because he likes Chizuru? This makes petite girl fluster so much so she takes it out on Hayate with her weird back punching whatever. Lily and Masaru visit them but nothing much. After Tazuna and Koyori get their pay, Chizuru suggests they go out on a date. Why is Hayate blushing too? Tazuna and Koyori stop by a shopping mall where Kodama is performing. They meet Hibiki who is happy that they get to go on with their lives. Then they meet up with Makihara but won’t want to accompany him to some boring science fair. Time to insert the much needed drama because here comes Nagaoka. He is disappointed Tazuna continues to be Makihara’s slave. Makihara on the other hand isn’t pleased to see him. He had a feeling he wasn’t dead but during that long absence he never bothered to contact him whatsoever. Tazuna asks who this guy is so Makihara hints an old acquaintance who once had a deeper relationship. Don’t tell me you’re gay???!!! Here is a surprise. Nagaoka is seen holding the hand of a girl looking pretty in a kimono, Mayumi. Is she Koyori’s clone? No prizes to guess he is a Hand Shaker too. Nagaoka won’t say how he saved Mayumi’s life. But before he ends this, he is going to reveal everything what Makihara never told them. So this is okay?

Episode 11
Your obligatory flashback episode. Makihara and Nagaoka were Hand Shaker partners. Also, their senior researcher, Akutagawa and his wife were also Hand Shaker partners. They go about fighting such matches to gather more data about this phenomenon. One day, Akutagawa’s wife gave birth to twins, Mayumi and Koyori but inside Ziggurat, dispelling lots of theories they have come up along the years as these children were naturally born Hand Shakers. However happy times didn’t last because many Hand Shakers target them. I mean, kids are easy targets, right? It is heart breaking to see the twins cry each time they survive each brutal attack thanks to their parents as well as Makihara-Nagaoka pair. The more this happens, the crazier and ruthless Akutagawa became. As long as he could defeat the enemy, any underhanded and dirty tricks are all fair game. Akutagawa will not heed Makihara’s advice for more solid data because it is better to put things into practice. He believes of winning this game to reach God and break this curse. So when Akutagawa and his wife beat their final Hand Shaker pair, they disappeared. It is never known if they had met God or they died. Despite so, a funeral was held for them. More bad luck when the twins fall into coma. It is Nagaoka’s turn to go crazy. Believing this isn’t what Akutagawa would want, he will carry out his will. So he kidnaps only Mayumi? Why only her? Makihara tries to plead rational to him as they are researchers but Nagaoka is sceptical if the research would ever end. Goodbye. Oh man, did he jump out of a window with a girl in hand?! After Koyori lost her partner, Makihara put her into deep sleep. Nagaoka also did the same but with drugs. That will only destroy her heart. Makihara continues explanation about emotions between the partners that form a bond that becomes Hand Shakers. Because that bond between Makihara and Nagaoka broke, that was how they stopped being Hand Shakers. So Nagaoka is using some sort of drugs too to force Mayumi to love him? Is this why they are Hand Shakers? Tazuna learns Nagaoka was the one who sent Kodama after him. As he has watched his battles, he understands his fighting style. So it’s decided. They’re going to fight. Because Tazuna isn’t going to accept the other option of backing down and putting Koyori back to sleep. Besides, it is Koyori’s will to fight too. They decide this together. Off they go into Ziggurat. But Makihara isn’t worried and knows Tazuna will win. Yeah, me too. Main character.

Episode 12
The fight begins but what is this Tazuna and Koyori using their fleeing tactic? Apparently Mayumi’s Nimrod is dangerous as her bouncing balls can change the Ziggurat. With Nagaoka easily dismantling Tazuna’s gear sword, fighting him head on will not be easy. Time for some moral signalling because Mayumi starts to get weak as she is creating too many Ziggurats and Nagaoka is forcing her to carry on instead of resting. Tazuna chides Nagaoka for wanting Mayumi to disappear. He doesn’t care. He’ll make them disappear before they do. Because of that, Tazuna and Koyori manage to power up and do powerful moves to injure Nagaoka. He is not defeated yet but he still wants to continue. Then this is the ‘funny’ part. Mayumi stops being a retard and speaks for the first time! And because Mayumi is going way past her limit and going to disappear, now Nagaoka is worried?! What the?! Mayumi doesn’t mind disappearing if it is to protect him. So leave it to our young heroes to save her. I don’t know what they do just touching her to bring her back even if they had no guarantee it would work. But it did. Because of that, Nagaoka loses his will to fight and they return to reality. When Tazuna asks why couldn’t he continue his research with Makihara like always, Mayumi hints Nagaoka has some sort of illness and not much time. He is doing this because he is kind and only fights battles which he sacrifices himself. Oh really? That one didn’t look like it to me. Mayumi knows all this because of their bond so she felt his heart and all. If you’re wondering why he didn’t just ask Makihara for help because he is his partner, it is precisely that reason why he couldn’t. Huh? Is this guy a tsundere or something? Nagaoka leaves with Mayumi hoping one day they will fight them again. In the aftermath, Makihara checks up Koyori and doesn’t find any threatening anomalies although her condition stays the same. He hopes to leave it to him to find Nagaoka and then hopes to take care of Mayumi. Trying to be responsible? Nagaoka’s wish to God is to find a cure for the twins, though happy Mayumi hints hers is something else. Lastly, after all that scenery time wasting scenes, we are hinted that God might be some ossan waiting for a Hand Shaker to challenge him.

OVA
This episode shows the past between Koyori and Mayumi. However there is nothing much and is a complete waste of time because it doesn’t tell us anything more. From what I understand, in the aftermath of Akutagawa and his wife defeating the last Hand Shakers, they disappeared. Makihara, Nagaoka and Shigure take the girls out to town. It was such a happy day. Until Nagaoka went to get some drinks, Shigure betrays and knocks out Makihara. She is the partner of Kouichi and their plan is to defeat the Hand Shaker guys by taking either one of them as hostage. That is good enough for them to ‘win’. Because if they defeat the girls, they will disappear so what better way to just defeat the adults and cease them from being Hand Shakers. The girls disagree and fight them. They manage to stand their ground enough until Nagaoka comes back to defend them. With Makihara backing up, the duo try to escape but is stopped dead in their tracks. Ironically after they are defeated, Nagaoka tells them to leave. Just like that?! Is seeing their repentant face enough to assure they will not try this crap again? In the aftermath, Mayumi is most affected. She becomes traumatic that this always happens to them and can’t live normal lives. Heart breaking loli crying :’(. Not sure whether this next change in scene goes further back or forward. Because after the funeral of Akutagawa and his wife, the girls become vegetables. It is thanks to an organ donor that managed to keep them alive but still at vegetative state. And that organ donor happened to be Musubu, Tazuna’s sister who just passed away. Yeah, what a sad day for the family. What a sad day for Tazuna. No use having regrets now. The end. That’s about it, people. Are we so disappointed?

Head Shaking…
Oh dear. Thank goodness it is over. It was just horrible. I don’t think I can stand another season of it. There were probably lots of unanswered questions that I might want to ask but it could be just me not remembering them if they were explained because I find this series so bad. If I do remember them, I don’t really want to open a can of worms by trying to figure it out and put the (incomplete) pieces of the puzzle together. After all, the scientists couldn’t figure it out so why should I? After watching a couple of episodes, I already had this sinking feeling in my guts that this wasn’t going to turn out great. True enough that fear comes true during halfway when I realized this anime is just crap and boring. But I already have one foot in the grave and how bad can half a dozen more episodes be? Yeah, it is going to get worse…

There isn’t really much to the story and somehow everything that has happened feels forced and put together overnight. Because this is an original anime so somebody has to come up with the plot and everything. Everything feels so convenient and predictable right from the start when Tazuna is the chosen one to awaken Koyori and how a noob like him even won his first battle against his first opponent whom I believe is a much experienced Hand Shaker. Everything screams and points toward the fact that he is main character material. He can’t lose big, that’s it.

Because this is sci-fi, something that I am not really fond of, there are some explanations of sci-fi terms. I want to say that I am too dumb to understand them but I find that whatever science fiction theories they come up here aren’t that complicated and it is mainly because it isn’t much either. You get the basic gist of what a Nimrod and Ziggurat is but anything more like its history and workings are all up in the air. Conveniently classified as still under being researched. Heck, even this meeting God theory after beating a certain number of Hand Shakers feels like a shaky theory itself. Nothing is really conclusive. Because of that, this is your cheap and crappy reason for our characters to engage in exaggerated high adrenaline sci-fi battles.

I have this feeling that this series is trying to replicate another anime series, K. The very obvious fact I said so is because GoHands, the animation studio who made this crap also produced that said anime. You can see the very strikingly similar styles in almost every aspect of this series and although it tries hard to be better, it seemingly fails. I am not really a fan of the K series and even though I didn’t really fathom what really went on there, at least by comparison K is still a much better anime than this one.

Obviously the art style takes very much after K. This is very evident as you can see the very odd colouring that messes with your mind. Because you wonder if they producers didn’t feel like finishing the scene or they just ran out of certain colours and just went ahead like that. If you have watched K and Coppelion (another series under GoHands), you would understand what I mean when I am talking about the visuals. The fact that the characters look very young and child-like doesn’t make it any better. At least in K we have hot bishonen guys and in Coppelion we had a few bishoujo girls. But here everyone looks so young or cute that it is hard to take them seriously. I mean look at Chizuru. She looks like an elementary school girl (which is so for the series’ running joke). Is it me or do some of the girls look like dolls. Koyori, Mayumi and even Lily look like one so much so they look a bit unrealistic. Oh, Chizuru and Kodama look close enough that sometimes I get confused between them. Even more similar looking than the twins… Same case for Tazuna and Masaru. And one of the worst offenders in the visuals department is the use of CGI. It isn’t so obvious at first but then you slowly realize how jarring and odd for it to be mixed with 2D drawing. It seems so awkward enough that you might want to tell them to go back and take proper programming classes. Maybe that is why the colour and hues are bizarre enough to distract you from the horrendous CG effects.

Another section that this series tries hard to emulate K is the music department. Remember how K had an awesome soundtrack filled with a handful of very catchy BGMs? I’m not saying that I love the entire K soundtrack but there are a few songs that I really like and can’t stop hearing till today (of course I don’t hear them every day). In here, the BGMs have this feel like as though they are trying to copy those pieces like the jazzy and casual ones. Unfortunately as cool as they may sound, it really didn’t resonate with me. Making it fare worse is that such music is played during conversations so it feels and sounds really odd to hear characters talking and then this kind of music being played in the background. Maybe it is to distract you from the horrendous plot and make you confused and not pay close attention to what they are saying.

Then there are the action sequences too. K was popular enough because it had beautifully choreographed fighting sequences. They do it with style! But for Hand Shakers, it is hardly the case because the action bits feel all too messy and all over the place. To show like as though they are battling each other, you see them jumping and running around all over. And with the camera angles trying to follow them, it tries to make an impression that the battle is so over the top epic. I don’t know. I just find them boring. Because everyone seems to only have 1 or 2 unique weapon fighting styles that they keep spamming over and over again. Worse, I don’t really understand how it all works. Because I don’t really know about Tazuna and Koyori’s Sprocket Gear and Single Gear. Just pieces of gears mashed together to look like swords so he could swing and strike the enemy or it could all come together as a shield. Masaru kept spamming his cards and Kodama sings or whips around. With not so spectacular CGI and effects, no wonder it became a yawn fest. Also the fact that you know who is going to win because at this point you keep remembering who the main character is.

As if to distract you from all that or to add more value, thus one of the cheesiest and cliché fanservice ever. Because you have this feeling that they are trying to rein you in when the first episode features a busty BDSM woman in some chain orgasm scene. Yeah, it definitely would make you go WTF. And then for obvious fanservice, Lily’s bust has been ramped up many times fold to make it so obvious and numb pervy otaku minds in hopes that they will not notice how crappy the overall anime is. I mean look at Lily. Doesn’t she look like a sex doll?! And for those who aren’t into big monster cow tits, thus an obligatory bath scene of Koyori with Tazuna. Yeah, it was damn awkward… By the way on a trivial note, if you watched Seitokai Yakuindomo, a series filled with dirty jokes, sexual innuendoes and subtexts, it was produced by GoHands too. Not saying that Hand Shakers have such indecent jokes but just saying maybe they want to have their own brand of such fanservice?

Now on to the characters. Disappointing. Shallow. Generic. What else can I say? Like I have said earlier on, Tazuna is the cliché and standard of what it means to be a main character. He is pretty normal and doesn’t stand out until he is forced into some extraordinary circumstances in which he becomes the unwitting hero. And yes, his own sense of justice and responsibility which makes him all a bit annoying because there was one time he went too far with it. That’s just plain selfish. Of course he realizes his mistake and instead of being a dictator over Koyori’s life, they discuss and do things together. Heck, they don’t even need to discuss. They sort of know each other so well that it is assumed they want to do things together. You can tell from their smile on their face and the confidence when they say it. Oh heck. Just make it simple. Anything about Tazuna, please refer to main character status and characteristics. Enough said. At least you can say he is the guy who keeps on holding to his girl’s hand till the end. Yes. Till the very end.

Koyori on the other hand starts off as an annoying character because she is more of a retard and excess baggage-cum-liability whenever Tazuna goes into battles. You thought she would be cute because there is a certain charm when girls don’t talk a lot (sexist!) but unfortunately not Koyori. The shaky reasoning for her to constantly need to be holding hands with Tazuna is a shaky reason why they need to be together. Besides, I don’t even know anymore how long she can go on without holding hands without dying. I see her fine most of the time. Better be safe than sorry? And so as to make it simple like her Tazuna counterpart, please refer to token heroine or damsel in distress for most of the early parts and then after her awakening, she is ‘promoted’ to (questionably) strong female lead. And yeah, I find this part of her a bit annoying too: She has a penchant to say “It’s because we’re together”. It’s like her catchphrase. Anything that does not need further reasoning or explanation, say this to shut us all up. Okay. Moving along…

Then you have other supporting characters thrown in who aren’t memorable but annoying in their own ways. Like Makihara who is always sounding positive and cheerful to a point it is annoying. Right. Who needs a gloomy researcher? And we make him a little more unique because of his love for Chinese siew mai as well as him reminding us how positive he is. His total opposite in character is seen in Nagaoka as he harbours misguided hatred and revulsion against everything that has happened. And what do you know? He isn’t really the bad guy as we think he should be. Because with Mayumi also miraculously stopped being a retard and explain things nicely, it’s like they’re assuming we’re getting the wrong idea about this guy and to correct that perception. He is just misunderstood because he doesn’t say it straight to your face. Imagine how quickly everything would have been solved had he signalled his thoughts clearly. Yeah, the sisters wouldn’t even be fighting each other then.

Like shonen genre, enemies Tazuna and Koyori fought and defeated somewhat become their friends. And then you get to know their silly personality as part of the character building like Chizuru and Hayate being a comedian pair if not for the fact they run a chain of restaurants around the city. Also that joke of Chizuru being Hayate’s subordinate that annoys her and she loves to take it out on him. Subtle romance? Whatever. Then you have another annoying pair with Lily having extreme brother complex as she fawns all over Masaru. So much for love triangle potentials with Tazuna. Lastly the most annoying pair ever would be Kodama and Hibiki. Thank goodness they lost because Kodama will not shut up about her quotes from famous past people. Better for her to keep on singing as a lesser idol than a serial quote master.

And while we are on the subject of pairings, let me just speculate on the fail romance it tries to bring in. Freaking obvious would be Tazuna and Koyori whom you will get to see for the entire series about their bonding. Because if a guy keeps holding a girl’s hand, it has got to mean that their relationship must be taken to higher and deeper levels. I guess guys love it because it makes them feel useful and needed when they help out retarded girls who constantly need protection. It is trying to say that couples who hold hands for long periods of time will be together for very long and forever. Because literally you didn’t let go and that’s why you’re still together, silly! As Lily already loves her little brother, it raises thoughts about incest as we forget about the possibility of her turning into a jealous slut trying to steal Tazuna away from Koyori. Hayate and Chizuru better stop their manzai comedy act and start hitching up with each other instead of watching Tazuna and Koyori make progress with theirs. Oh right. Don’t want to make it look illegal of a man dating a loli. Finally Hibiki can scream and be amazed forever with Kodama as an eternal fan boy. Even if she has zero fans, at least she has one fan she can count on by her side.

Having said all that, my biggest speculation about meeting God thingy is probably one big scam for all Hand Shakers to re-examine their lives and go about living the way they should in the first place. Do you not see how the world did not end for them? They continue their lives like normal like as though they have never been a Hand Shaker in the first place. Therefore instead of taking the laziest shortcut of getting God to become your genie or become God yourself, why not take destiny into your own hands instead? Don’t you see this is much more fulfilling? Hence for better or worse, this shaky and shady Hand Shaker system might be a blessing and greater good after all. But then again, it might all be just one big crap that nobody understands. F*ck that ossan whoever he is. He might just be another Hand Shaker trolling us for all we know.

There are a few recognizable seiyuus landing their voice to this series but even so they can’t save it. They are Tomokazu Sugita as Hibiki (sounding just a little creepy with his fan boy-cum-manager role), Showtaro Morikubo as Makihara (almost turning into One Piece’s Bartolomeo), Satomi Arai as Tazuna’s mom, Mikako Komatsu as Kodama and Kenjiro Tsuda as Nagaoka. I was surprised to learn that Jun Fukuyama and Youko Hikasa were also present but their roles were just very miniscule and cameo as Break and Bind respectively. The other casts are Souma Saitou as Tazuna (Kain in Kyoukai No Rinne), Sumire Morohoshi as Koyori (Erica in Fate/Kaleid Liner Prisma Ilya 3rei), Ai Kayano as Lily (Inori in Guilty Crown), Ayumu Murase as Masaru (Kazuo in Hatsukoi Monster), Sumire Uesaka as Chizuru (Sanae in Chuunibyou Demo Koi Ga Shitai), Kaito Ishikawa as Hayate (Genos in One Punch Man) and Ai Kakuma as Mayumi (Est in Seirei Tsukai No Blade Dance).

I have to admit that one tolerable thing that I like is the opening theme, One Hand Message by OxT. This rock based theme with its funky base line does have this epic feel and I guess it is quite fitting for an action genre for this anime. If the song sounds a bit familiar it is because it is the same group which sang the opening theme for another anime, Clattanoia from Overlord. That song was cool. The same can’t be said for the ending theme, Yumeiru Ame by Akino Arai. Not only it is a slow piece but it sounds creepy the way the singer sings it. It is as though she is trying to whisper and do a slight falsetto while singing. Heck, it reminded me of the ending songs for the retro anime, Outlaw Star. Oh wait. It’s the same singer! This confirms it. After decades, she actually sounds creepy.

Overall, this is one disappointing anime that you need to stay away if you are very prone and sensitive in getting disappointed. Everything is so bad, forced and predictable that imagining a porn version of this series would be even more entertaining. Like Koyori can never let go of Tazuna’s dick and he is constantly getting rubbed. HOLY SH*T!!!!!! I can’t believe I actually thought of that. If you are looking for better sci-fi series, even I would say To Aru Majutsu No Index is way much better despite I hate all its confusing terminologies and I can’t remember much of that show that has now become a distant memory in my head.

This anime might be a failure but so as not to be pessimistic, Albert Einstein once said, “Anyone who has never made a mistake, never tried anything new”. Well, we know this show is definitely a mistake. To quote from Thomas Edison, “I have not failed. I just found 10,000 ways that won’t work”. Well, we now know this series is one of the ways it won’t work. Michael Jordan once said, “I have failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed”. Well, looks like this anime needs to try again. Many more times. Also from him, “I can accept failure. Everyone has failed at something. But I can’t accept not trying”. Well, try harder next time, this anime. Oh, I realized I went on too long about this. “Never miss a good chance to shut up”, said Will Rogers.

Seitokai Yakuindomo S2

HIDOI DESU YO!!! After cruelly waiting for the OVAs for the first season to all come out and watch them, just when I thought I was finally done with them, then came the second season. Well, it isn’t so much about Seitokai Yakuindomo S2 as the TV series taking its sweet time coming out. You guessed it. It is again the OVAs taking its damn sweet time! That is why I am ‘forced’ to delay watching this series so that I can watch it all at one go. And after 2 years for the 6 OVAs of the second season to come out, I just thought to screw it and just watch whatever comes or else I would never start. So don’t blame me why this blog is more than 3 years ‘late’. Hey, it’s not a retro anime so it isn’t that kind of late I’m talking about. And you wonder why I really waited that long to just watch the sequel and its OVAs. Sighs. The things I do to watch an anime filled with sexual innuendo jokes and puns…

Episode 1
* We’re already starting off with a dirty joke regarding airlines and cleavages. Then we seem to have a dog’s eye view as we go through the city and school as part and parcel of the introduction of the characters in the series. Including dirty jokes from Shino about Tsuda’s hanging dick.
* It is supposed to be Kotomi’s first day of high school but she got lost in the city since she realized she lost her handphone. Thankfully it is found.
* Suzu also lost her dog and surprisingly it somehow found its way to school and thus why we had certain scenes from a dog’s eye view. Everybody gathers for a group photo.
* Already the start of the new term and Tsuda is trying to stave off a wave of dirty jokes from Shino and Aria. Like Shino advising him to watch out for his family jewels.
* Ironically they have noticed that more and more opposite sex are chatting freely with each other. A cause for concern? Although Suzu argues it doesn’t matter as long as they pick the right place and time, leave it to Shino to come up with cliché ideas that make it sound so dirty. For a while we are not sure if the student council is going enforce strictly the rule because if they don’t let couples f*ck, they’ll be responsible in declining birth rates.
* I didn’t know the dried squid episode continues into this season. When Tsuda enters the room, he sees a dried squid on the table. Next to it is a butt sex toy covert with yoghurt. We can see where this is going…
* Shino summons Toki since she has not joined a club and as per school rules, all students must join one. Before she knows it, she is entering a judo duel with Mitsuba. If Mitsuba wins, Toki will join the club. Otherwise, Toki will be the club captain. There’s no way out of this… In the end, Mitsuba’s experience has her taking down Toki in no time. Toki is now a new judo club member.

Episode 2
* After their usual patrol, the student council sit together for lunch. They notice Suzu not feeling well and her temperature is high. She is taken to the infirmary to rest. I’m sure some of the friends mean well suggesting stuffs to make her feel better. Like Todoroki’s vibrator… Fortunately she recovers in time for the budget meeting. Though, she is now weak from hunger.
* Uomi visits Ousai. Shino gives her a tour around and there is a separate screen to show us and compare how Shino did the same for Tsuda then. Only with more sexual innuendoes now. After the tour she notices that the males have to use the same toilet as the male teachers. As Ousai has only been converted to co-ed for 1 year, it would be troublesome for male students to walk all the way there and even more awkward if they bump into their teachers. She proposes a male’s toilet in one of the floors. This leads to them discussing of adding an additional surveillance room just for Tsuda. Does he want to see guys jerk off?!
* Lots of students are suffering from the effects of hay fever. So for Kotomi, she solved this problem by plugging up both her nose holes. Actually, that didn’t solve anything.
* Thanks to more cheesy dirty jokes, Tsuda writes a typo on the paper. He wants corrective fluid but he should have been more specific because it only allows Shino to ‘attack’ with her dirty suggestions. He manages to make the correction but realizes his permanent marker has soaked through the paper and messed up the table. Shino can help with that but in exchange he needs to teach her how to wipe her browser history.
* When all the girls somehow run out of tissue, the first person they go ask is Tsuda. Why do they assume that this guy carries extra tissues with him? Who is the dirty minded one?!
* The dried squid saga continues. Before Tsuda could do anything, Hata has already seen this ambiguous scene. He tries to explain and it seems Hata understood what he said as she repeats what he has told her. However she isn’t going to let this juicy story go and will sensationalise it. When Tsuda takes some tissues to wipe some yoghurt off his mouth, he spots Aria looking in…

Episode 3
* The second years will be taking a field trip to Okinawa. Todoroki can’t seem to get pass the metal detector and when she finally does, it seems her vibrator has been the culprit.
* With Tsuda and Suzu gone for the trip, Shino and Aria feel ‘lonely’. Yeah, nobody to rebut their dirty jokes. Don’t worry. Kotomi is here to relief her brother. We’re so worried… Uh huh. She didn’t know being part of the student council is such hard work.
* During the field trip, Tsuda and Suzu are shocked to see Hata around. She claims her newspaper club has no second years… So she’s here illegal… She needs a favour from them and that is to keep an eye on teachers Michishita and Daimon. She smells some romance between them. Of course Tsuda will not be a snitch.
* Suzu wanders around herself and realizes too late that she is lost! And she dropped her handphone somewhere. So a search is conducted for her. Ironically when Yokoshima can’t help being attracted to a store that sells penis biscuits (yes, those actually exist), that is where Suzu is. She was waiting here as she knew someone was bound to react to these.
* Kotomi goes home tired. It looks like she missed her brother as she visits his room. But now is the chance to find his hidden porn magazines! Not going to find any…
* The field trip continues to some scuba activity. Hata continues to remind Tsuda about his ‘mission’. Not giving in… The scuba dive as well as feeding fish gives Yokoshima a dirty idea… Looks like our Ousai student council girls aren’t going to be left out because they too conduct their own pool activity in school premise! Kotomi tells Shino that there are rumours going around that Tsuda and Shino are dating. Shino dismisses their relationship is anything like that.
* That evening, Tsuda sees Daimon giving Michishita some shiny present (no, it’s not jewellery). He thinks to keep this to himself and not tell Hata.
* Shortly he gets a call from Shino. Missed him? Actually, she called just to ask if he has any wet dreams. Hang up now.
* Back in school, Michishita catches Yokoshima red handed in some strange masturbation act. Putting fish feed over her privates and let the fish…

Episode 4
* Uomi got wet when a car splashed puddle on her. The student council lends her a jersey to wear. She tries to mention several of her ‘interesting’ parts wet in a bid to make Tsuda have a boner. After her clothes are dried, she puts them back on as the girls notice her undershirt is short. Shino believes by exposing her stomach will eventually lead to exposing her underboobs.
* Igarashi is doing her moral policing job as well. But each time she comments how those offenders should have taken after a certain role model student like Suzu, her believes are smashed after seeing them too ‘breaking’ some sort of moral code.
* The dried squid episode continues. Tsuda explains to Aria. She teases him a naughty boy before running away and apologizing for disturbing. Looks like she too got the wrong idea. Tsuda realizes too late he has left the room and when he returns, Suzu is now standing there.
* Todoroki explains to us the history of vibrators of Japan!
* Kotomi can’t sit still while studying in the library so Todoroki suggests a chair with a vibrator!
* Tsuda and Kotomi fail their tests so they have to take a make-up exam. The student council girls offer to coach them but since their good subject is maths, they have to decide who gets to teach it. Suzu wins since she is the treasurer. Obviously she is good in calculations and this prompts Kotomi to quip that she is a calculating woman.
* Noticing Tsuda has a bad posture while studying, Aria and Shino thought of putting a porn magazine on his head to correct it.
* Hata has been spying outside their house in hopes of finding some scoop. Too bad she couldn’t find any. So she tries to make Shino cosplay as a cat?
* The student council members and Kotomi are at Aria’s family amusement park to test some of the rides. Thankfully Suzu is tall enough to ride them. Barely.
* Tsuda thought Shino is afraid of heights. Yes she is. But those which are fun do not count.
* At the end of the day, everyone has had enough rides to last a lifetime. But the perverted girls think it would be more exciting to take the rides going commando or nude.
* Tsuda doesn’t understand Kotomi’s new form of pleasure since she did experience rides of other amusement parks before. Actually Kotomi’s panties got wet during an earlier ride and since she has been riding the rest without any till they got home. Her eyes have been opened to a new world…

Episode 5
* Kotomi sends a dick picture of Tsuda when he is a baby to Shino. However she sent the wrong picture of Tsuda’s face Photoshop on a bodybuilder’s body. You bet Shino is going to be confused about the bulge.
* Hata tries to interview Shino about the affair allegations with Tsuda. Shino dismisses it and wants to know where she heard those rumours. Hata accidental mentions of her careful information manipulation. So she’s the source!
* Hata is to write an article for the school’s new swimsuit. The student council didn’t know about this and are surprised to find out only when they have to model for it. Shino felt jealous Aria doesn’t need to use a pad. On the contrary she does. It is to make it look like she is a guy hiding her crotch! Then they tease Tsuda he should use one to make his bulge look bigger.
* Mitsuba is leading her judo club to train like doing bunny hops up the stairs and running a marathon through the city. Toki might be a fast runner but it seems she got lost in the city.
* A cat seems to be taking residence in the school after students carelessly start feeding it. Now it is causing mischiefs by stealing items. So when it steals a judo member’s towel, they try to catch it but Mitsuba catches Tsuda?! Is this supposed to be a pun of a thief of your heart?
* So the best way to lure the cat down from the tree is for Aria to dress up as a cat and be its friend? Anyway it worked. It is revealed that the cat has its own family and was stealing to take care.
* As the judo club will be competing in the Nationals, a rally is held to boost their morale. Surprisingly Yokoshima gives the first speech like as though she watched the judo club grow. Daimon is actually the judo club’s advisor.
* All the judo club members then give their own speech which is then rebutted by the crowd. A few more performances from other clubs follow after that. Kotomi sees Toki who skipped out on the rally. Toki claims she got special permission from Mitsuba to skip it since she doesn’t like this kind of stuff. But Kotomi thinks she doesn’t like being visually molested by the crowd.

Episode 6
* Shino is in a dilemma. Because a guy from the talent agency asked if she would like to be a model. This is the same agency that handles the currently rising pop idol group, Triple Booking. As she ponders about it and thinking about the times with her friends, she decides to take up the offer.
* At the agency she meets the staff as well as Triple Booking in the flesh. Why do I have a feeling they take after so closely certain main characters… But one of them whose name sounds similar to Shino seems to have the same perverted thinking like Shino. Only in anime where it is natural for more girls to be horny.
* The manager wants her to take voice lessons as well despite only being scouted for modelling. She views Shino having the potential but after hearing her say a streak of perverted words… So Shino takes up voice training. They let her sing whatever song she wants. What kind of song has so many horny words?
* Shino becomes a famous idol. One day she meets up with Tsuda for dinner. He introduces her to his girlfriend. Somebody who looks exactly like her and shares the same name?! Apparently all this was just a dream. Shino decides to reject the offer as she wants to focus on her studies.
* More squid saga. Tsuda and Suzu are in sync as they try to explain themselves. After Suzu hears him out, she tries to clean it up. However she starts getting suspicious if this was yoghurt, then how come it is so sticky like…
* The student council will hold a self-defence drill. They have the judo club do demonstrations. Tsuda is made to be the ‘victim’ and gets a taste of Mitsuba’s hell throw. Doesn’t matter if you are sadistic or masochistic. It still hurts like hell.
* Igarashi didn’t really want to participate as Hata tries to psycho her that this may help her get over her androphobia. She faces Tsuda but caves in. She got a lot of advice on self-defence but if it is from Shino, be prepared for lots of sexual subtexts. Perhaps she has reach a point of being sceptical so when Tsuda is being nice to her and praises her, it still makes her heart rate go up. Not of the romantic kind.
* Aria thought of having a naked bath with Dejima for some female bonding. But the maid got naked and prepares herself in bed.
* Tsuda accidentally hits his hand on the furniture. He licks it but Shino sees this and is shocked he is trying to kiss his lover.
* Continuing from the squid episode. Shino and Kotomi notice Aria spacing out. She tells them about Tsuda and the sex toy. This is where they go full blast with their dirty thoughts and opinions. Unfiltered, uncensored and unstoppable. See how important a straight man is? They decide to talk to him.

Episode 7
* Suzu is walking her dog and meets several people she knows like Dejima, Hata, Yokoshima and even her mom. All of them tell her their recent experience which has something to do with f*cking outdoors.
* Aria draws Roman alphabets of WXY vertically which looks like the body and anatomy of a woman. Others try to ‘correct’ it.
* Growing a morning glory in the room, they discuss what it means. Also read: Sexual subtexts.
* Todoroki buys 2 copies of manga. One for use and the other to keep. She also buys 2 cucumbers. One to eat and the other to play with.
* Tsuda and Kotomi see each other’s grades. With Tsuda having A’s and B’s, she quips that is the reason he can’t move on to the third C-base.
* The gang help to take out the telescope in Tsuda’s family garage so that Kotomi can watch the stars as part of her research. But sifting through the stuffs, Kotomi is busy reading old manga instead of being busy with her hands. Tsuda takes out old porn magazines so Shino quips he will have his hands really busy this time.
* Once the telescope is assembled, Shino makes jokes how telescopes aren’t just used to point up. They are also pointed down to peep at women bathing. She also makes a joke of the different angle of the telescope to represent erection at different ages.
* Suzu helps adjust the telescope to let Kotomi see certain constellations. Too bad Kotomi has no idea what she is saying or seeing.
* Before the school’s pool is opened for summer use, the student council members are testing it. Dejima acts as their lifeguard but her intentions of teaching CPR have sexual subtext to it.
* When the pool opens, the student council members become lifeguards and are paid ice cream. Shino is very focused in watching the girls to find who is wearing fake pads.
* With Uomi joining in, this prompts Tsuda to remember he also took the entrance exam for Eiryou and passed. However he picked Ousai since it was closer and the slope towards Eiryou was killing. It made Uomi annoyed.
* Kotomi’s leg cramps up despite being in the shallow part of the pool so Tsuda and Shino dive in to save her. Luckily it is nothing serious. Shino notes she has to go commando now.

Episode 8
* The student council members are at the beach to scout for next year’s seaside school trip location. Expect the usual beach antics. Like Tsuda putting lotion on Aria’s back in in return she does the same but only with her feet. Shino lost a beach volleyball game and took the lost seriously. He says it is just a game so she accuses him of playing with her heart!
* They test the route for the kimodameshi. Suzu is very afraid of the dark and couldn’t stop clinging to Tsuda. You know how awkward he is having to stoop and walk all the way.
* In their room, when they hear strange tapping on the ceiling, Suzu quickly bolts to the bath. Turns out to be a stag beetle attracted by the light.
* Then they visit the festivals. They play the shooting gallery and Suzu again freaks out when they order guns for an extra person. Actually Kotomi is using both hands to shoot. She misses all with her left.
* So the fun is over and now reality hits them that they haven’t do their homework. When the student council girls arrive at Tsuda’s home for it, Kotomi has already fled. Dejima serves them as they study. When Tsuda claps because they are finally done, Dejima barges in but disappointed it is only a clap. She thought it was the sound of hips banging.
* More dried squid! Suzu questions what the heck this sticky liquid is then. Seriously Tsuda doesn’t know. She freaks out when some of them get stuck on her shirt. You think nothing could get worse than this? As Tsuda tries to calm her down, they realize a few girls staring at them…
* Tsuda learns of his Photoshop bodybuilder photo when Shino sends one to him asking for his opinion. He is going to have a long talk with Kotomi… Shino then calls Suzu who is in the midst of supervising Mitsuba and Todoroki studying. Mitsuba feels sleepy so Todoroki has a great idea for her to use a vibrator to wake her up. Then they pet Suzu’s dog for a change of pace.
* Shino calls Aria next who mentions she is dripping in sweat all over. It isn’t any sexual subtext but you know how she says it, right?
* Kotomi is in big trouble as Tsuda seeks answers for this picture. Apparently she used it in her elective and the teacher gave praises of this splendid art! What is wrong with everybody! He doesn’t blame her for putting it in her handphone since the teacher judged it as good. But there had better not be other copies. Well you see… In the art gallery, a large crowd gathers around that picture but slightly modified with a samba theme. And a bigger bulge. Kotomi is a dead girl… By the way, did you see Todoroki’s art sample in the form of a vibrator?

Episode 9
* Hata down in the dumps? Apparently she lacks club members to finish articles so that’s where the student council is roped in to help out. Of course as you would have guessed the articles would be anything but normal. Take for instance words that people find hard to pronounce. They interview people and some give weird answers. But don’t ask Yokoshima. Because the hardest words are about breaking up…
* There are rumours that Daimon and Michishita are engaged. Don’t worry. Hata will use her brilliant conversational skills to confirm that. Just bring them to her. So we see her like a sly interrogator trying to make them admit. Because she saw them stuck it in! The engagement ring. Michishita believes it is time to admit so she confirms they are getting married.
* With the article published, the school is now abuzz of the teachers’ engagement. Hata would love to repay the student councils. Tsuda suggests she owes them but she purposely misconstrues that as he wants her to blow them. You want her to suck it?!
* Tsuda and Suzu are unsure of an unfamiliar person in their room. Shino and Aria recognize her as Furuya, the previous student council president. She gets along well with them and you wonder if they take their dirty talking after her. Maybe…
* Suzu likes Furuya since she doesn’t comment about her height. Noting that Suzu is the treasure, Furuya would love to help out. However she uses an abacus as she is not familiar using electronic devices. Shino proudly teaches her how to use her computer although it was Tsuda who taught Shino those methods.
* Before she leaves, she gives them tickets to her university’s festival. Shino and Aria have been here before. Yeah, they remember some amateur porn backdrop somewhere along the hallway…
* They visit her class’ café which is using a western theme. Suzu wants to go to the toilet but Furuya wants to train her stamina by letting her go through the haunted house.
* They attend a concert by Triple Booking. Suzu gets their signature and they mistake her to be a small girl till they learn her age. They feel bad and try to sooth her by saying she looks younger than her age. Suzu doesn’t feel any better, though.
* Uomi and Tsuda learn that their cousins are getting married to each other. This will make them related. Uomi wants him to call her onee-chan. At the wedding, the bride is giving a touching speech that has everyone in tears. Except for Kotomi. She’s just yawning.
* When Shino learns that Uomi and Tsuda are somewhat related now, she starts puffing. She gives an excuse that her mouth is full with the wedding treats.

Episode 10
* The student council heads to the mountains of Aria’s family estate to go mushroom picking. Oh. I can see where this is going… Dejima is their guide and she is rarely dressed in casual clothes since it would be difficult to go hiking in a maid outfit.
* Because Suzu brings a little bell to ward off bears, the nice ring has Tsuda keep mentioning how much he finds it cute and wants it. Please not that Suzu’s name means bell. So you can imagine each time she flusters when he says that.
* Don’t forget sexual innuendoes like Dejima preferring to stick dark mushrooms in her mouth without hesitation and Shino wanting Tsuda to show his long mushroom.
* After finish picking, they cook their pickings in a cabin. There is a special plant Dejima found. Where? At the spot where she was peeing. Let’s hope it was cleaned.
* As the cabin has only 2 rooms, Dejima is upset she has to choose whom to sleep with. Tsuda decides to sleep in the living room. Due to equality, all the girls decide to sleep in the living room. Defeats the purpose, doesn’t it?
* Back at school, the student council also functions as lost and found department. Kotomi has found a lost panty in the locker room. It belongs to Aria. Shino tells her to write her name on it next time. If not, put her passport picture on it.
* Tsuda feels he isn’t full from lunch. Mitsuba like a tsundere gives him her food. Suzu is stressed from the recent work. Todoroki like a tsundere gives her a vibrator.
* The student council are busy preparing the pumpkins for Halloween. Shino makes her witch costume and as she sits on the broom, she wonders if it has a groin protector.
* Suzu dresses up fully in a pumpkin costume. However everyone can recognize it is her. The smartest girl in school and she can’t figure out why? Hint: Her stature.
* During the Halloween, Hata notices Igarashi dressed like a fairy and proceeds to taunt how indecent her dress looks. It might be enough to turn people on.
* Some of the students take part in a costume contest. Todoroki might look normal in a Medusa outfit. Just that her snake hairs are made out of vibrators! The judo club wins the competition.
* Aria who was complaining how tight her outfit was for her boobs all day long, when Halloween over, she is reluctant to take it off as she has put so much effort in making it.

Episode 11
* Shino suggests writing an article about the rulebook since Ousai turned co-ed. How come those new rules sound like sexual innuendoes? Not surprising where they come from, right? Suzu notices Tsuda’s crooked blazer’s tail. She volunteers to hold it for him but it makes her look like a child holding on to her father.
* Igarashi joins the student council to do some year-end cleaning up. There is also supposed to be a surprise spot check tomorrow but she fears people may have got wind of it. Cue for Shino and Aria to make leaking jokes. Suzu suggests using codes to prevent such leaks. Cue for Shino and Aria to come up with sexual innuendo codes.
* When Aria asks Shino how many sugar cubes she wants, she thought she was asking her age. When Tsuda asks the same for Suzu, she also misinterprets the same way.
* The good news is that the spot check rumours didn’t spread. But because Hata was eavesdropping on them, she misinterpreted the whole thing and those coded words she heard them say she used it in her article. A whole bunch of new rumours that Shino is on top and Tsuda the bottom?
* The student council are invited by Uomi to visit her school’s cultural festival. Uomi shows them around and most of what the classes are doing are based on the concept of interactive fun. Sorry, no porn related activities, though.
* The student council and the teachers shovel snow outside school before the closing ceremony. Aria slips due to the slipperiness but still can quip how she got snow in her butt. Tsuda remembers fond memories of making snowman. Shino too. Only she tried to pee on it to make it look like lemon flavour.
* Back in their room, Shino and Aria note how the year is nearly coming to an end. They didn’t realize the year passed by so quickly and start looking at Tsuda hinting about ‘fast’ jokes.
* Everyone gathers for sukiyaki. Aria tries to eat a huge wiener and this turns on Dejima. She can’t stop drooling. Kotomi right away goes to sleep after the meal and doesn’t heed her brother’s words that she’ll turn into a cow. Till Suzu scientifically explains how all that will lead to cancer did she immediately get back up.
* When everyone is asleep, Shino dresses up as Santa to give everyone surprise presents. She looks at Kotomi sleeping very erotically. Because Tsuda quips the grass is greener, she checks Kotomi’s ‘grass’! After putting Suzu’s, Shino didn’t expect Aria to still be awake. Aria can tell she is Shino though the latter lies poorly she is Santa. But Santa is a foreigner. She is his illegitimate child.
* Shino would like to help Aria sleep better. Since Aria prefers to hug a big pillow, Shino wonders if Suzu fits the bill. Doesn’t hurt to try. So Aria wakes Suzu up and in a scary tone says she wants to have her! Shino translates that as she wants to sleep with her. Still sends shivers down Suzu’s spine, though.

Episode 12
* It is New Year. The gang lines up to get their lucky bags. Igarashi is also there but to remind them to behave since Ousai has a reputation. Not sure what kind of reputation she meant because Shino is already making a dirty pun to her.
* Uomi flashes a ‘V’ to Suzu. So she flashes back. Because of her stature, her sign lines up perfectly with her ‘V-line’. A trap by Uomi to hug her unexpectedly.
* Hata interviews everyone about their resolution but can’t help insert her own dirty thoughts into it.
* Shino almost drank Tsuda’s teacup and thus almost had an indirect kiss. This makes Aria quip if he wears her panties on his head does that mean his lips has indirectly kissed her crotch.
* Mitsuba has the student council put up a manager recruitment poster for her judo club. Kotomi thinks of trying because she is not in any clubs and has no experience. Better don’t.
* Shino advises everyone to sleep well so as not to catch cold. Igarashi heard that and chides her for knowing everyone’s sleep pattern. However Shino and Aria turn the tables on her because how does she know that they know about people’s sleep pattern? Gotcha!
* Aria feels her back is stiff so Shino volunteers to massage her shoulders. However she massages her boobs and then ‘curses’ them to grow bigger so she could have more backaches!
* The girls give their chocolates to Tsuda. Spying Shino had to opine he should make a tsundere reaction. Suzu is unsure how to give hers so Aria has her follow this script of hers. She totally acts like a tsundere. However Tsuda has no reaction since he is unfamiliar with it.
* Tsuda thinks what needs to be given on White Day. Kotomi suggests it can be more than candies. Bananas… Get what she meant?! As he is shopping for candies, he bumps into Uomi. Coincidentally the student council girls are also here. How did Aria think Uomi is here to strip Tsuda? Uomi understands Tsuda’s intention to hide what he is doing. So she says they’re dating. Shock? Eventually they found out. Tsuda returns the student council girls the chocolate. Sorry Kotomi. None for you.
* The squid saga continues. Tsuda tells Suzu not to move as he takes off the liquid from her shirt. This feels like fake slime. So Tsuda calls all the ‘suspects’ since they are those he ran into after he went to the cafeteria. He has them explain their alibi. Kotomi sounds the most suspicious since she is most nervous. Last is Hata as she explains hers. She is the one who put it. That’s it?! What an end to this mini saga.
* Shino thinks of making lunch for Tsuda since his lunch is too simple. He thought of asking for a sandwich but Shino misinterprets of the sexual kind. Suzu also shyly hints about it and asks him what he likes to eat, he didn’t get the clue and says gummies.
* Tsuda walks home with Uomi. Shino, Suzu and Mitsuba see this and they have this uneasy feeling in their heart.

Episode 13
* When Tsuda goes home, he is surprised to find Uomi. Kotomi told her that their parents won’t be home. Shortly, Shino is at the door. Do I smell some sort of rivalry coming up? They both get fired up cooking for him. Hope they don’t burn the house down. Also, they are making too many dirty jokes. Hurry up before Tsuda dies of hunger.
* Since it is already late, Uomi wants to stay. This makes Shino also want to stay. They watch a DVD of a silent movie. The girls start making jokes about silent sex.
* At night when they sleep, Uomi asks Shino when she wanted to stay and she followed suit, does this mean she likes Tsuda? Shino denies that so Uomi quips she doesn’t need that maybe because he is already her slave.
* Next day, Suzu and Aria visit but are shocked to see Uomi and Shino in. This prompts Aria to wonder if they had a foursome.
* The girls help do the housework. Tsuda feels bad they’re doing the work and tries to cook for them. He should have known better than to cook bukkake soba. You know what they’ll say, right?
* By evening, the girls leave and hints they would come again if the chance arises. Kotomi just got off the phone with her parents. Looks like they won’t be back tonight either. So extended stay?
* Hata interviews Shino and Tsuda. All she needs now is a caption. Since student council husband and wife would do, how about master and slave? Shino approves! And you wonder why Shino later is mad at Hata when rumours about them start spreading.
* Since Igarashi is still afraid of boys, Shino suggests Tsuda to train her by breathing on her from behind. This makes her freak out and slip on the stairs. Tsuda grabs her hand. She is okay. Is she cured? When another guy bumps into her, she freezes. Shino is suspicious how come it only works for Tsuda.
* Mitsuba used to think she wanted to be a guy a long time ago but her parents keep telling her to act like a girl. Because guys can say things they want and talk aloud as they want. Well, obviously she doesn’t realize Todoroki has been doing all that since like forever.
* Tsuda represents the first year to read the valediction for the graduates. Lots of tears and emotions on the final day seeing their seniors graduate. Tsuda and Suzu chase after graduated Shino and Aria. They are mad they left without saying anything. It is because where the heck are they going with that giant sushi roll in hand?! They have some spare and let Tsuda and Suzu eat them. Why does it look like they’re sucking dicks?
* Tsuda finds it weird for them to eat it at this point of the year so Shino what Ousai’s student council is really about: Sushi rolls. There’s some history dating back how merchants and geishas would use them. Thus sushi rolls is a great demonstration of how eroticism and tradition can come together in wonderful collaborations. Good things come from dirty jokes!

OVA 14
* The student council girls converge at Tsuda’s house for New Year’s lunch. Tsuda ate too much and needs to loosen his belt. This prompts Aria to also take off her chastity belt. It was the first time Tsuda saw what it is and didn’t know what it was and thus no punchline.
* Kotomi feels her handwriting in calligraphy sucks. Obviously she thinks of writing with her butt.
* Tsuda drops his eraser in the room. As he crawls around to find it, Shino comes in and thinks he is into some baby S&M play. He tries to pretend to do push-ups but now she thinks he is having air sex.
* Igarashi catches Hata trying to spy on Shino and Tsuda. Since she is convinced by rumours about them as an item, Igarashi hopes Suzu would conduct a private investigation into their affair. Aria had to quip about investigating private parts…
* The girls are in the sauna. Shino’s bikini top came off. She thinks her skin is so smooth that it caused this wardrobe malfunction when it is actually the wrong size.
* The gang go skiing. Suzu fails in getting off the ski lift and starts thinking people would think of her as a small girl who fell down.
* When they play snowball fight, Kotomi finally has snow in her face and this is what she wanted because it looked like she got a facial.
* The student council are having some sort of heat endurance in the room with their clothes fully on. Kotomi loses out first and strips and being the only semi-naked one somewhat thrills her. Shino eventually calls this endurance off because she didn’t lose any weight. So that’s her ulterior motive…
* Now we have the entire class having an ice endurance in the pool. Aria comments how beaver keeps warm with their fur and this prompts Hata to twist what she is implying. Those with the hairiest beaver will have an advantage. Who is feeling demoralized now?
* Slowly some of the contestants who can’t stand further the cold get out. Kotomi and Todoroki can’t stand it and they want to wet themselves. Eventually Mitsuba and Suzu (barely trying to keep afloat) outlast everybody and become double winners.
* Uomi wonders if she should grow her hair as long as Shino. Shino states the good points of doing so. Like using your hair as a bra.
* A beautiful sunset and Uomi realizes she left her handphone at home. Because of this, she gives an excuse that she will be coming to Tsuda’s home.
* Shino leaves school late after everybody has left and chances upon Furuya. She notes Shino has become a fine president and asks her successor. Sheepishly she says Tsuda tentatively. Shino panics when Furuya hints she knows. About her forgetting to wear panties today that’s why she waited for everyone to leave before making her move.

OVA 15
* Shino sprains her ankle during PE. Thus she wants Tsuda to read her speech at the assembly. Of course he is nervous and can’t do it. Shino thinks of using Suzu as her crutch. They look so awkward. When they trip and Tsuda tries to catch them, Aria walks in and see the duo riding him like a cowboy…
* Hata requests the student council to narrow down photos she took on the judo club as its poster. When they narrow it down to 2, it is decided a coin toss would decide the final. Since none of them have a coin, Aria suggests using a dakimakura. Toki eventually has a coin. But she tosses in style and causes it to drop on the floor. Now everyone is searching…
* The student council members are cheering for their school’s softball team. They are facing off with Eiryou in the first round. This means an odd showdown between Shino and Uomi. Tsuda realizes his watch died so Shino had to quip maybe it was because he was moving his wrist like a piston… Get it? She then suggests buying a new one instead. Since he has nostalgic attachment to it, this makes her quip about his virginity.
* Hata hopes Suzu can help out take photos of the tennis match since she will be elsewhere. She tells her to seek Tsuda’s help. Suzu thought she could do it by herself but then she understands what Hata meant. The crowd is blocking her. She sits on Tsuda’s shoulders for a better view.
* Now they go cheer on the judo team. Toki injured her foot in the previous match. She believes it is nothing and can still go on. Till Kotomi made a naughty joke about it that almost demoralizes her.
* During lunch, Tsuda eats a plum and can’t help salivate from the sourness. Suzu shows her extensive knowledge about the secretion that protects membranes and teeth. Too bad Shino ruined it with a fellatio quip.
* The student council members do radio exercise to prevent sluggishness during the summer. Igarashi sees them and Shino invites her. She declines because she doesn’t have constipation. When Igarashi’s hand accidentally touches Tsuda’s, Aria knocks her out by quipping his right hand is also his lover.
* Dejima is caught in the act rolling around in Aria’s bed and smelling her pillow. Yes, she has been watching from the start. Dejima loves it and wants her to continue watching and be embarrassed!

OVA 16
* Kotomi is late for school and gets scolded by Shino. However she tries to play dumb which makes her look even guiltier. Suzu suggests adjusting her clock to 5 minutes earlier. Guess what? That is too tough so she set her clock to 5 seconds earlier!
* Suzu’s dog again sneaks into school. Igarashi seems to be able to pet it despite it is male. Aria comments this means there must be someone out there for her. When Igarashi says she prefers men who take pride in themselves, Aria twists her words that she would want to step on their pride and dominate them.
* Hata interviews the student council girls in hopes there would be some love conflict. Disappointed there is none, Aria and Shino further add Tsuda can only use 2 holes at once and that it is going to be a foursome.
* Hata comes to the student council’s room because she lost her camera. She is going crazy as she treats her camera like a part of her body. A certain reproductive body part. Luckily they have it. As part of the procedure before they return, Shino asks what is inside. Hata changes her mind that this camera might not be hers.
* A cat is outside the school gates, Tsuda and Shino tried to pet it but got their hands stuck. When Suzu reports to Aria, she rushes down to the infirmary to confirm. Thank goodness they aren’t stuck in that sense. So when Aria tells this to Yokoshima, she got the wrong idea they were fisting.
* When Shino changes the light, it slips her hands but it falls and bounces off Aria’s boobs. Yet Shino is mad. So they switch boob sizes with Shino putting loads of pads and Aria wearing a girdle to restrain them. Both are very uncomfortable with it.
* The class has a marathon race. Because the starting pistol is broken and they have no replacement, Shino has this idea of using a swatter to hit Tsuda’s ass!
* Hata interviews Daimon of his impressive stamina. He brags he is the PE teacher after all. This makes her wonder if he trains himself with Michishita at night…
* Tsuda and co make their way to school despite the heavy snow. When they reach school, Daimon tells them school is cancelled. They left early and didn’t see the announcement on TV.
* Yokoshima joins the student council in their room for lunch. She is hungry and brought 3 portions of food for herself, thus there were 3 sets of cutlery given to her.
* They play the king game. Yokoshima becomes king and has Aria confess her failed relationships. None. She hasn’t even been into one. Disappointed? When Tsuda is king, the girls stare at her. This makes him uneasy so they tell him to order them to do whatever he wants because he is their master. Imagine what is running through Igarashi’s mind when she overheard that.
* During the parent-teacher conference, Uomi becomes Tsuda’s guardian. Yokoshima reads Tsuda’s status quo grades although he is doing a fine job as the vice president that everyone is confident with him. Uomi knew he was a good boy because she purposely put her panties in his obvious sight and yet he didn’t touch them. It’s a good thing he didn’t fall for this trap.

OVA 17
* Kotomi goes to school without fixing her hair. Because she is certain she is going to sleep through class!
* Tsuda realizes too late the curry bread he bought yesterday has expired. Shino comforts him that it is better than an expired condom.
* The student council finds a yearbook in which Yokoshima was a student. When Tsuda notes she is an OB of this school, she didn’t like how that abbreviation of old boys make her sound. So Aria believes it meant old b*tch for her.
* Todoroki decides to enter a robotic competition and has completed her robot. All that is left is to attach a dick.
* The student council along with Mitsuba and Toki play tennis. Aria has had some experience before so she coaches them. Although she was quite good then, why did she quit? Her boobs weighed her down. Suzu cannot reach the ball despite jumping. So what she do? She throws her racquet in the air. Nailed it! The ball accidentally hits Tsuda in the crotch. They worry if the swelling would mean he is happy about it. Aria personally coaches Tsuda. As she takes him from behind, he could feel an odd sensation. It’s her strap on dildo!
* Eh? Still have more dried squid episode? This time we see how Hata placed the ‘mysterious liquid’. She just waltzes in and smacks it there when nobody is in. There. Simple.
* Uomi is calling Tsuda in an affectionate way from outside the school gates. This has all the girls swooning over their supposed relationship. The more ambiguous her words, the more the girls swoon. Apparently Tsuda’s parents are going on a trip again. So Uomi’s worried about him being home alone. What about Kotomi? She’ll be staying at Toki’s place.
* Next morning, Tsuda finds the rest of his student council girls along with Uomi making breakfast for him. Time to be careful… Shino and Suzu act like tsundere dismissing they are worried about what Tsuda did last night. So Tsuda explains what happened which is pretty much nothing but leave it to Uomi to twist the words to give a wrong idea. So when they heave a sigh of relief that nothing happened, they realize they are late for school.
* Shino seems like being nostalgic in the student council room. Everything looks fine and dandy till a picture of that Photoshop Tsuda drops out from a book (overly tanned and bigger boobs samba theme?!). She cannot stop laughing and it seems Kotomi has won the bet.

OVA 18
* Uomi is late for school and the reason she gives is because she stayed over at a boy’s place. Purposely trying to shock everyone?
* Suzu thought of changing her hairstyle. Eventually she decided to stick with the old one and this almost caused her to be late for school. When Aria asks if Tsuda notices anything different about her and he couldn’t tell, she pouts revealing she went to a beauty salon.
* Tsuda notices the judo club practising. Since they are playing around and getting each other wet with the hose, Tsuda gets conscious and realizes there is nowhere safe to look. Then he looks at Suzu and this makes her mad for thinking she is a safe space.
* Hata wants to go on a lookout that will span overnight since a kappa is said to have been spotted. Although the student council don’t really approve of this, they allow it since they will accompany her. Hata uses her dad’s apartment nearby for the stakeout. Suzu asserts she isn’t scared of the supernatural but as usual gets freaked out by the slightest.
* Each will take turns on the lookout. For those who are sleeping, it seems they are short a sleeping bag. Aria thought she had counted right. Tsuda reminds her his dick isn’t counted is one! Suzu is stuck in the toilet as there is no toilet paper. Hata says she didn’t prepare any but she can use the talisman there. Time for Suzu to freak out. I wonder if all her sh*t came out…
* They talk about what to do if they really find a kappa. Tsuda will sell the picture to a magazine. Suzu will keep it a secret to ascertain it. Shino wants to use it to make Ousai famous and Aria wants to be its friend. Hata chides them all for believing that a kappa exists…
* Hata suddenly sounds the alert that a kappa is spotted! What is it doing?! Intense anal f*cking???!!! Tsuda thinks it is Dejima with a man.
* In the end, the kappa didn’t appear so they leave somewhat disappointed. It is revealed later that the kappa is indeed Dejima in one. Her day off is over. Time to go back.
* Shino and Uomi swap schools for a day. Uomi as acting Ousai student council president hopes her team can call each other by their first names. Suzu and Aria blush when Tsuda tries it. Uomi thinks they blush too easily as she lifts up Aria’s skirt.
* During the meeting, Igarashi can’t help be irritated over how close Uomi is to Tsuda till she had to tell her off. Later Hata interviews Uomi. She is hoping to hear some love triangle since Uomi is considering a certain someone as a friend and rival. It gets weird since Uomi admits she likes NRT and doesn’t mind losing.
* We take a look at Shino’s side. She is nervous. She thought slapping her own cheeks to alleviate it would leave marks. So instead she slaps her own butt! Eiryou’s student council vice president, Mori walks in and sees this… She will soon learn all the sex quips that Shino will quip unashamedly.
* For example when the principal makes his speech about looking at different perspectives, Shino takes a look at a girl sitting on a floor and imagines it from a different sex position perspective!
* Shino looks like she is alone and feeling home sick. Mori thought of talking to her and asks about her vice. However she gets jealous and pouts that she will not tell her about him! Once Shino leaves, she is happy her Ousai counterparts are here to pick her up.

OVA 19
* The student council gang are on summer vacation camping by the river. Tsuda hopes the girls could lend him a hand so Aria thought he wants to jerk off! To pitch the tent!!!
* Tsuda wonders how they are going to start a fire. Shino thought of using the plastic bottle as lens to make a spark. Dejima on the other hand wants Aria to spank her butt. That’s a different fire…
* They watch the beautiful night stars. Kotomi hopes that she could find a new star and name it. This is because so she can sell its naming rights at a high price. Suzu is scared for a while when she saw markings on the rock that made it look like a human face. Shino has a solution: Draw panties over those markings.
* That night while sleeping, Suzu seems to be looking nervous and begging to Tsuda that she can’t take it anymore. We’ve seen this coming from miles away. She just wants to go to the toilet.
* Back home, Uomi pays her visit. Tsuda politely says she can make herself at home. She wants to start undressing… As they discuss Aria who is probably on holiday in Europe right now, Kotomi is confident she can speak a few European languages since she thinks she heard a few of those words in manga and games.
* The judo club doesn’t have enough members training during the holiday. So they borrow a doll somehow the student council has? I know we’re asking if it really is a sex doll… Yup, it has a voice function of the ambiguous kind too. Despite looking like a bishoujo, I find it looking creepy… After practice, the gang is split to eat cold or hot food. Mitsuba suggests both. Tsuda reminds her their stomachs will explode.
* At Tsuda’s place, the student council members are doing their homework. Tsuda suggests making some cold adult flavour snacks. Aria is quick to response if it is semen…
* The gang reflects if they did anything meaningful during their vacation. All state their noble doings until Aria says hers grew 1 or 2 sizes bigger. It’s her heart, not her bust…
* Hata takes photos of the student council in their school uniform as part of the school’s brochure. Suzu notices she isn’t used much and is quite free when Hata requests to use her indoor shoes as she needs to take pictures of every item Ousai has. Suzu is puzzled since she is better off using a new one. Don’t worry, Hata intends to label everything as used. Suzu rejects.
* Tsuda sees the final product and Hata did quite a good job. Of course she Photoshop some of them. Like how Shino has very big boobs… A girl can only dream..

Shimoneta To Iu Gainen Ga Sonzai Shinai Taikutsu Na Koukou Seikatsu
Well, well. It seems that instead of making me go crazy with another OVA, there was a movie announced. Phew. Thank goodness. Because if you know me, seems I have this aversion of anime movies and because of this ‘loophole’, it spares me the excruciating wait of waiting to watch it. Because I’m not. Haha! In your face! Make that, in your cum filled face! Whoops!!!! So this is how a few episodes of this series has corrupted my mind. Oh wait. Aren’t they releasing a new OVA with it? ARGH!!!

So this second season and its OVAs don’t really bring anything new to the table. The same format of short skits in each episode and with a big majority of them ending up with some sort of sexual innuendo punchline by a dirty minded character and a comeback from a non-dirty minded character to retort it all. Some are funny, some I couldn’t really understand and some made me wonder if these characters just love to talk dirty. Though, I feel the sex jokes and puns are just funny enough to make you react a little, a little chuckle instead of bursting into a loud laughter and start rolling on the ground laughing till your tummy hurts. At least better than making weird noises from the bedroom… That is why I feel they have this small section in some episodes called “Aria’s What’s This” to test to see how dirty minded you are. Uh huh. It shows a shadow outline of something you think it would be racy but it’s not. That’s the punch line. Shame on you if you think of something dirty!

As for the characters, they still remain the same and nothing much changes. After all, we are here to hear their dirty thoughts instead of watching them develop into proper characters, right? Well even if there is anything that ‘develops’, it is how good and natural they are making dirty jokes and comebacks. Oh, they’re already good at this since the first season so this season isn’t any different. So really, nothing about them changes. Except maybe a slight minor thing like Tsuda and Uomi are now somewhat related but that doesn’t really affect anything important. Oh, maybe for Tsuda’s unofficial harem since Uomi is now making more appearances than before although still sparingly. Then there is Daimon and Michishita getting married but that isn’t important since there aren’t any teen sex jokes we can capitalize from it, right? Then there is Igarashi’s slight improvement towards Tsuda’s ‘touch’ but so minimal that it is the same as no progress.

Since I have nothing else to talk about the characters, let me just repeat a few of the things to remind myself. Because like Tsuda whose role is to be the straight man rebuking all the perverted jibes and wisecracks his perverted ladies come up with. Since he is doing it on a very regular basis, we hear him retort in all sorts of voice tones ranging from angry, surprise and to even one that makes him sound like a retard. When you have been retorting for so long, it really dumbs down your IQ and personality. Thankfully Tsuda isn’t influenced by them yet.

To give variety to Tsuda as the straight man, Suzu can be considered as his ‘partner’. So if Tsuda isn’t the one retorting, it would be Suzu, one of the very few main girls in this series who isn’t dirty minded (also to show and remind us that not all girls are perverts). Therefore in order to make her stand out (pun not intended), you will notice they keep making this somewhat a running joke of her. Whenever Suzu’s head is barely peeping at the edge of your screen, there will be an indicator to tell us this is where Suzu’s head is. Really. I believe it is done deliberately in every episode so you won’t miss her or mistake that ‘bump’ to be something else. And as if to give variety and not annoy us viewers each time this happens, sometimes they use the indicators to indicate others too like Shino’s head and Aria’s boobs. Thanks for pointing them out. Couldn’t tell them if they weren’t denoted (read sarcasm). I remember Suzu would go into F-bomb rage whenever her stature is pointed out. It seems less here though she still does get mad.

As for the other dirty minded girls especially Shino, Aria and Kotomi (who feels like she is a pseudo member of the student council, though she is part of the go home club), sometimes you wonder if they are consciously dirty minded or perhaps they unconsciously think it is the norm because they are making such indecent jokes like as though it is their second nature and naturally. The irony is that when it she starts thinking it to be on a pervert level (at least on what she considers to be so), she baulks. She doesn’t approve of it but has she looked at herself in the mirror of the kind the things she said? I have this theory is that maybe she is making those dirty jokes just to get Tsuda’s attention. You know, she likes him. More on the romance later. But after so long, she would at least have gotten the idea. Unless she loves seeing his reaction and retorts. As for Aria, she continues to be the polite and gentle rich lady as though being a dirty minded is the way she was raised.

So throw in a dirty minded little sister Kotomi, an obviously dirty minded robotics maniac Todoroki (I am starting to believe she has a penchant for dildos), a frustrated dirty minded teacher Yokoshima, a masochistic dirty minded maid Dejima, a subtly dirty minded student council president of another school Uomi, you’ve got almost a full cast of perverts designated to make you laugh via indecent jokes. Hata is also a pervert in a way but I view her as more of a sly schemer trying to get racy scoops to spice things up despite her deadpan voice and looks. Okay, in this sense she is a pervert too. Mitsuba isn’t actually a pervert but being a simpleton, she does sometimes act and says things that makes her look a little bit like one. Toki is the farthest away as being dirty minded but since she is more of a delinquent type, her presence in this sexual innuendo obsessed series is very light. Surprisingly Furuya as the previous student council president is introduced as a new character but nothing much that would impact anything except that she too is another dirty minded girl but has matured a little ever since she entered university. Still one, though. With her, it makes me wonder if being dirty minded is a tradition for Ousai’s student council president. Because if so, Tsuda is going to break that combo.

It was this wishful thinking of mind to hope for some sort of harem or romance. I can speculate that the student council girls have a thing for him whether they realize it or just being in denial. It is especially evident when they come over to Tsuda’s house to make him breakfast or dinner. Are they really that worried about him? Aria might look like she is sticking around because it is fun and oblivious to love but you’ll never know. Now with Uomi in the mix, the competition might get heated up since she looks like far most the dangerous one because she has this still waters run deep aura. I won’t discount Igarashi since her ‘miraculous’ cure over Tsuda’s touch only means to speculate that she has feelings for him. I can’t tell for Mitsuba since judo is all on her mind. There was one time in the last season indicating this but it was just red herring. This season there is that cat catching incident. Although it doesn’t indicate much, let’s keep our options of his harem open, shall we? I am guessing why no one is making any sudden moves yet because who knows when Hata will pounce out from nowhere to scoop up scandalous stuffs and spread it faster than the plague or computer virus.

The art and animation style as well as the seiyuus are pretty much consistent and the same as the previous season. Now that I come to realize that GoHands animated this series and all its seasons and OVAs, I now noticed that a few scenes have odd colour hues although they are not very obvious. If you watched K, Coppelion and recently that stink bomb known as Hand Shakers (why does this anime title still feels like a dirty pun?), you will understand what I mean about the weird colour tones used. But for this series, everything is still mostly colourful and bright except for some very few scenes. Like in the previous season too, Triple Booking does the opening theme of Hanasaku Saikou Legend Days which feels like a typical genki anime denpa song, and Satomi Satou doing the ending theme, Mirai Night which is a rock beat.

Overall, if you love sex jokes but not horny enough to watch ecchi anime or even real hentai and porn, these ‘high quality’ sexual innuendoes and puns would be the right aphrodisiac tonic for that lonely nights boring nights when the only option is to play with yourself play single player video games or watch a movie meant for singles. Definitely not for those easily offended who will start screaming sexist and perversion every second. This series f*cks those kind of people and goes ahead boldly with its brand of jokes. Only in anime where you can find a bunch of dirty minded girls who can spew sex jokes so much that it makes you cringe after hearing them too much. Nah! Do gamer guys ever get bored of their gamer girls? The couple that talks dirty together, stays dirty together? Just to note, it’s not a dirtier mind that I have after watching this. Just a sexier imagination.

N/B: Shino should have made a joke about SYD. Sucking… Your… Dick…

Kuzu No Honkai

What do you do when the person whom you have always loved does not love you back? But you are in desperate need of that love too. You need that fantasy to keep moving forward or you’ll wither like flower before your time is up. Well, as sick as it might seem, Kuzu No Honkai ‘suggests’ you date another person as a substitute for that lonely empty heart! Not just any substitute. Example: The person X whom you love who is seeing person Y, and that person Z who has a one-sided crush on person Y also needs to be fulfilled. So what a better way for you and person Z, 2 lonely hearts to nurse each other’s broken heart and unfulfilled dreams and fantasies by making a pact to date and make out with each other until whoever achieves that goal first. Or maybe never. Warning: This series has NTR (netorare – look it up if you’re unfamiliar) and love making scenes…

Episode 1
Hanabi Yasuraoka is in love with her homeroom teacher, Narumi Kanai who is also her childhood friend whom she fondly calls her big brother. But reality has it that Narumi and his fellow teacher, Akane Minagawa very much like each other. Then it gets a little complicated because Hanabi is also in a relationship with fellow classmate, Mugi Awaya. But they’re not actually a real couple. A fake couple who view each other as replacements. Confused? Flashback when Hanabi first enrolled in high school, she is super glad Narumi became her homeroom teacher. She could be with him every day. But that soon changed quickly when she realizes Narumi had feelings for Akane. She hates that middle aged chick. More flashbacks of how close Hanabi and Narumi are during their younger days. Because Hanabi can’t cook, he knew Narumi wanted to quickly get a wife instead of relying on Hanabi’s mom. Hanabi couldn’t be angrier because of all people she had to bump in today, it had to be Akane. Nothing untoward happened as she notices Mugi have the same lifeless eyes as she does. Hanabi and Mugi soon find comfort in each other as they helplessly watch their crushes walk and talk together. Mugi reveals Akane was his tutor in junior high and how lucky he thought he was to learn she became a high school teacher. And then this happened. So back in his place as the hapless rejects bum around, Mugi starts kissing her. He suggests for her to pretend seeing him as Narumi like how he pretends to see her as Akane. Hanabi agrees since if they’re going to do this, might as well do it properly. And hence our first soft porn scene as Mugi slowly undresses her and caresses her female parts while Hanabi tries to focus not to look at Mugi’s face and concentrate he is actually Narumi. She felt good. Too bad an SMS from Narumi put the brakes on this unholy act. What a lousy feeling to read his thank you note. Mugi suggests to make a pact to depend on each other. He assures he won’t fall in love with her because she is not his type. And so is he. Hence the pact that neither would fall in love with the other began. The pact dissolves when one of them manages to make it with the person they really love. Stopping short of sex, they don’t see the problem of relying on the other if they feel lonely. So too bad to the other guys who confessed to Hanabi and got rejected. Oh heck, they’ll get rejected anyway.

Episode 2
As Mugi is about to kiss Hanabi in broad daylight, they are stopped by the screams of this petite girl, Noriko “Moca” Kamomebata. As explained, they are childhood friends from the same apartment. A teacher once saw them like prince and princess so this concept got stuck with Moca. She grew up trying to be a princess and all that is left for the prince to take the bait. And then this happened. By the way, Moca is short for “MOst Cutest Angel” I thought she wanted to be a princess? Anyway, it seems Hanabi also remembers Moca because they went to the same kindergarten. Both hate each other. Still do. Moca accuses her for just putting a nice façade before Mugi. Mugi doesn’t deny Hanabi as a horrible person so this gives her ‘permission’ for her to grab Moca by the collar to put some fear. Moca continues to disrupt their date as they try to ignore her like as though she’s a ghost. Eventually Hanabi has had enough of her being a brat and gets tough. Moca now accuses her of dating Mugi so she can brag to be cool. Despite running away, she vows not to give up. Hanabi realizes she is alone with Narumi in the teacher’s room. It’s her best chance. But then she knows it is Akane playing the piano next door. Look at how mesmerized his face is. Because of that, Hanabi takes out her frustrations singing in a karaoke joint. She sucks. She forces Mugi into a duet. He also sucks. Yeah, now they just feel lousier. So they go back to his place and continue romancing each other in this episode’s fix of soft porn. This time licking each other’s tongue… Damn it lasted so short. I guess Hanabi dating Mugi has some of her classmates thinking she is the master of dating and seeks her advice. It’s one of those complicated love problems. Girl loves childhood friend boy. They go to different schools. He finds new love. She can’t give up on him. But she too has an admirer and dates him. Now she can’t choose either. Yeah, it’s too heavy even for Hanabi’s standards. That is why Hanabi goes to talk to her best (and only) friend Sanae Ebato. She almost choked when Hanabi asks if she has a crush on someone. She gives her earnest opinion. It’s not like she would fall for a person for a particular talent so she would get something out of it. Hanabi feels relieved hearing this and before Sanae knows it, she is invited to stay over at Hanabi’s place. Sanae looks worried. I know this is her first time but what could go wrong between girls, right? Unless you’re talking about them suddenly getting into hot lesbian action!!! How the f*ck did this screw up like this?!

Episode 3
Sanae was troubled by a molester in a crowded train. Hanabi helped chased him away. Then she walked and hold her hand all the way to the exam hall. It was Sanae’s first love. Sanae can’t sleep a wink next to Hanabi on her small bed. She can’t take it anymore and that’s when she started kissing her. Sanae cries as she seeks answers if Hanabi does like Mugi at all. She has a feeling she doesn’t because she has always been watching her. Like a stalker? After Hanabi explains the circumstances, Sanae doesn’t understand why she couldn’t be her replacement then. Screw that. Please continue with lesbian make out. Next day, Hanabi and Moca pass each other. Already a ruined day for the latter. Hanabi tries hard to ignore her as the princess screams not to take her only Mugi from her. It makes Hanabi feel worse because she is just running away. We take a detour to see a bit of Mugi’s flashback. Back in junior high, there was this tomboyish but beautiful girl, Mei Hayakawa. Despite her skinny frame, she has big boobs. Mugi knows because they make out before! She was a lonely girl seeking comfort in him. Because she was dominating over him, he felt scared. Mugi wakes up and is surprised Hanabi has come over to lie next to him. So close that she felt his erected dick. He tells her to touch it. More flashbacks about Mei. When they graduated, she decided not to go to high school. Their relationship was never found out and it ended like that.

Mugi decides not to let Hanabi touch his dick since he might not stop. She doesn’t mind it. You can’t blame her. It’s her first time. She almost broke it! So he guides her how to do a handjob… Seeing how pleased he is, it makes Hanabi think she could touch him easily but not Sanae. Was it because she is a girl? Her conflicted feelings has her crying and then confessing she wants to try fall in love with him. While they eat out, they spot Akane with a man. Hanabi thinks he is her younger brother but his hands are all over her. Next day, Mugi tells her that he remembers that guy as one of the students she used to tutor, Takuya Terauchi. This makes Hanabi agitated because Mugi doesn’t see things the way she does. She was only imagining they had some connection. Mugi is his own person and loves Akane. She might just be looking for someone better, an excuse to get over Narumi and move on. Feeling angry, she confronts Akane about last night. She confirms Takuya is just a friend. This only makes Hanabi suspicious because if there is nothing between them, then why did she signalled her to keep this a secret? Both of them have the same guy whom they don’t want to find out about this. Could it be she has realized Hanabi’s feelings for Narumi? Then what about Mugi’s feelings for her? The bell rings, breaking their conversation. Akane leaves as Hanabi could smell the faint scent of cigarettes on the same dress that she wore from last night.

Episode 4
Akane narrates how she loves the feeling of being wanted. It all started when her best friend’s boyfriend liked her. She didn’t like him but was interested in the attention he was receiving since his girlfriend knew about this. It was then Akane love that feeling of exploiting others. So right now the guy she is seeing, she has lost interest and has set her sights on Narumi. Because she knows that look on Hanabi’s face. She blames her for not realizing she is on this side of the divide. Rather, she didn’t want to notice. That is why she is curious to see when she lets her guard down and has set up for Hanabi and Narumi to come talk to her at the same time at the music room so she could see Hanabi’s painful face when Narumi confesses to her. Narumi narrates he lost his mom a long time ago. As the years passed, he could only remember she had long hair. Just like Akane. Now the time has come for him to get this off his chest. He summons his courage to confess he loves her. Hanabi sees this and runs away. That satisfied look in Akane’s eyes. Just as planned. Hanabi falls into depression. Despite thinking how brave Narumi was, she now has to come to terms that the duo will be together and she would hate seeing that every day. She thought of telling Mugi this but she realizes she only wants to rely on him and not hurt him. He’ll find out himself eventually.

On her way back, Sanae calls out to her. Yeah, she has been following her alright. Hanabi is so hurt that she rushes to hug her. Then they just drop their bags and make out right in public. Luckily nobody around. Then they go home to continue more of their lesbian action. Sanae tries to be considerate. She can stop if she doesn’t want to do this. But Hanabi wants to continue. Because she loves her. Sanae takes this as her concept of love as a friend. She knows she is someone special and can’t say no in fear of losing her. That is why she is going to take whatever she can from her, even if it is her warmth. The lesbianism is getting hotter but Hanabi stops halfway as she tries to fantasize about Narumi but can’t help visualize Sanae’s face. Sanae continues to touch Hanabi in her sensitive places. She doesn’t want her to stop now because it feels good. And then the lesbian sex blows up until Hanabi has her void filled by her. She might feel good now because her conscious (in the form of her younger self) is now trying to make her feel guilty that she took advantage of someone else’s feelings and is no different from Akane. The painful truth is that she already knows it and even more so she is no match for Akane. Next day, Hanabi confronts Akane but it seems the latter knows about the feelings of Narumi and Mugi beforehand. Hanabi is shocked when Akane also knows that Mugi is relying on an accessible classmate to fill the void as replacement for the person he has no chance for. Even more shocking when she admits she loves the feeling of being desired by men even if she doesn’t love them back.

Episode 5
Hanabi narrates how mom cried when father left. Hanabi would have found comfort in being alone had not Narumi came to console her. Thus she can’t understand why for him who offered her a safe space is now abandoning her. Mugi knows about Akane’s ways. When he was still making out with Mei, she showed him Akane’s true colours as they spied on her dating an older man. He cried himself to sleep that night of the shock. But the next day, Akane came to tutor him like normal. It felt like a porn scene because she is doing things to make him conscious like ‘accidentally’ showing her cleavage. So what does Mugi have to do to ease this lousy feeling? He calls Mei and to go have sex at a love hotel! She agrees to it since she is partly responsible for his ‘adolescence’. A hot summer’s day and I wonder if the heat get to our fake lovers because it’s like they’re in heat to make out on the school’s rooftop. They can tell the other slept with somebody else but they don’t care and continue making out. They must be so confused about their loneliness because despite the pain it brings them, they also feel good. Can’t get enough? They return to Mugi’s place for more! Meanwhile Akane is bored. Damn bored! She knew Narumi would be boring but she didn’t expect this honest guy is THIS boring! So to take her anger out, she goes drinking with him and gets a little drunk. She slips as he catches her and accidentally says Hanabi’s name. The sparkle is back in this b*tch’s eyes. Boring no more. So now they’re in a hotel and she can’t believe he is asking permission for this. Then she plays the sympathy card as she mentions how close Narumi is with Hanabi. He probably wants to ease that guilt and quickly kisses her. Got him. Too easy. Back to Mugi and Hanabi, he notices a hickey on her neck and wants to give one too. She agrees but only on a condition he goes all the way. First real sex?! Unfortunately it hurts for her so they give up. Is it because they aren’t really in love with each other that they can’t do it? Hanabi leaves and doesn’t answer his question if they should start dating for real. Back home she feels lonely and hopes she has someone to sleep with. WTF?! Didn’t you just… Brace yourself because the next day is about to get worse. When Hanabi passes by Akane, the latter whispers in her ears that last night she had sex with Narumi. World collapsing in 3… 2… 1…

Episode 6
Hanabi wonders what it’s like to play with other people’s emotions. In that case, she wants to take everybody who loves Akane away and make them hers. She wants the feelings others have for Akane. She doesn’t care if it hurts others or if she’ll go empty inside. Thus Hanabi talks to Mugi and wants to date him for real. Then she tells Sanae about it because as her best friend she doesn’t want to use her anymore. However Sanae wants her to continue using her. She has already prepared herself as she starts kissing her. Hanabi pushes her away but Sanae notes she still won’t let her go. Even at the library, Sanae sits next to her and starts molesting her thigh! Be quiet… And another one in the infirmary. It’s alright if nobody finds out. Sanae says no matter how hurt or corrupted she becomes, she will still accept her. She advises to keep her feelings closed off or she’ll break. It makes Hanabi think if everyone including Akane is sad and lonely. Hanabi meets Takuya in the streets. He tries to hit on her and remembering Sanae’s words she could easily make men fall in love with her, she agrees to accompany him. So they go out together as she asks his relationship with Akane. He knows Akane has got others and he will never get her heart. This makes Hanabi feel disgusted because if that is how he views himself, then he is probably trying to do the same by recruiting her into his groupies. It’s sad and pathetic because all Hanabi wants is to beat Akane.

So Hanabi fakes she longs for love and has him make those eyes that he longs for her. Though she is still sceptical about going further as she is worried about feelings. Takuya doesn’t see any problem. If she feels good, the other emotions will follow. This has her think when she made out with Mugi and imagined Narumi, part of her must be longing for Mugi. The date ends with Hanabi managing to convince Takuya to take their relationship slowly. She learnt a few things from this. That Akane has enough self-respect and self-worth unlike herself who relies on opinions of others for her own self-worth. Thus a simple rejection is all is needed to end and making them feel that way is what love is. Hanabi remembers telling Narumi that relatives told her daddy left because she was born. He assured her this will never happen with them because they will never become romantic. Sanae warns Mugi not to let his guard down as Hanabi is popular with guys. It makes him wonder if she is cheating on him. Next time Mugi makes out with Hanabi, he notices she got better in kissing and wonders if she is now better in hiding it. He likes it that way. Now he has to hear another earful from Moca about the same thing. Hanabi doesn’t want you. It’s okay if he is totally in love with her but it’s not. So why can’t it be her? He then asks if she would like to go out on a date with him. She agrees since it is the first time he asks. She loves him enough to live with that.

Episode 7
Moca remembers she once dated somebody other than Mugi. Too bad she can’t remember his face or name so she doesn’t really consider that as a real date. It was just playing pretend. Hanabi hangs out with Takuya but since this guy is bugging for sex (and admitting sex is all that is on his mind), she gets annoyed. When he receives a call, he decides to leave. So who is this girl he is going out next? The girl who would give him sex! Hanabi becomes depressed thinking she failed to get him to be obsessed all over her. She has fallen so far she can’t tell the difference between love and lust. She is desperate for someone to think she is worth something and at the same time can’t help unrequited love feels empty. Moca goes out with Mugi. I don’t think she can really concentrate on the date since she keeps thinking about the love between them. After a movie and dinner, Mugi notices she hasn’t been looking at him for a while. That’s when they kiss. Next thing they know, they are in Mugi’s place. Lying on his bed, she remembers using her feminine charms to get her way with Mugi during kindergarten. Therefore she knows she isn’t the pure princess she ought to be. She couldn’t care what real love is about now because she isn’t going to throw this chance to make out with Mugi. She doesn’t need him to give her an answer if he loves her as long as she remains cute in his eyes. After saying another round of “I love you”, Mugi goes further to strip her and touch her body. She is scared but allows him. But then he stops. He can’t bring himself to sully her is because of himself. Moca knows he considers her special. All she wants is to live in the same world as him. If she can’t have that, what’s the point of being special. Then she realizes this isn’t helping her at all. Because she can’t throw it away, it’s holding her up. She doesn’t want it anymore. Moca leaves. Now Mugi and Hanabi find company in each other. They note they should have done this a long time.

Episode 8
Sanae meets up with her relative, Atsuya Kirishima. Despite losing contact with each other since young, a recent relative funeral reconnected them again. He had a crush on her and wanted to date her. However she slapped him after he hugged her. He knows she has someone she likes and is a girl. Despite Sanae always confirming she will never have feelings for him, he keeps thinking it is because she doesn’t label him as boy or girl. Just Atsuya. He still thinks he has a chance. Mugi and Hanabi are studying together. Mugi says he will go confess to Akane after this. She decides to jump on this bandwagon too. But right after they’re done studying, they make out with each other. To ease the nervousness? But it’s making them more nervous. So nervous that Mugi can’t finish her. Naturally. After he leaves, Hanabi remembers the previous memories of Narumi she has always treasured. No matter how warped or clumsy, she’ll love as hard as she can since there is nobody else better than him. Mugi successfully asks Akane to meet up. Since he knows he is going to get rejected, his nervousness has her take the lead. Once he calms down, he confesses he likes her. She knows it. He knows she knows it. For some reason, despite his inner heart against it, Mugi starts calling her a liar and such. Is it because he has always known he could never have her? He further calls her a slut and broken narcissist and yet he pushes her down onto the bed, undressing her and ready to make out? He wants to be her first and change her. See if he can say and keep all that after making out with her. Meanwhile Hanabi also meets up with Narumi. She sums up her courage to tell him she liked him. She still likes him and has been in love with him for a long time. She starts breaking down and the moment he hugs her, she cries her heart out. She knows this is the first and last time he will hug her like this. It makes her want to cry more. Even if it is not romantic love, she is happy to know she is important to him. And so her unrequited love has ended and she feels she is ready to move on.

Episode 9
Hanabi waited for Mugi last night but he never showed up. Only a text next morning to apologize. Could it be he really hit it off? She knows he is being tricked but sees visions of Akane telling her how men love to be tricked. Thus to soothe her rejected heart, Hanabi agrees to go on a trip with Sanae. When they arrive at Sanae’s family cabin, they are shocked to see Atsuya around. Lesbian programme ruined? So it gets really awkward between the trio. He is trying to make his advances but Sanae keeps her distance. As she blames him for ruining things, he knows what this trip is all about. Sanae knows Hanabi will never fall for her and thus this trip as their final memories together. She wants to end things cleanly but he doesn’t think she has what it takes. That night, the girls make out. Next morning, Hanabi wakes up early and sees Atsuya in the garden. He asks whom she likes. Since she doesn’t know, he makes it more specific. Be clear about her feelings for Sanae as she is not a replacement. She must decide on this trip. The girls hang out for the rest of the day and when they return, accidentally Hanabi talks how refreshing this trip is after being rejected by Narumi. Sanae hugs her and wants to tell her something. Hanabi knows what it is and won’t let her. Sanae goes ahead anyway to explain what this trip was about. In the end, she just has to let her go. They’ll sleep separately tonight and leave separately tomorrow. So no lesbian sex tonight? Hanabi won’t have it either. So she asks Sanae to be her friend, causing her to get mad and shoot back she doesn’t know how much she loves her. Hanabi will not leave her alone as she wished and wants to know more about her. Sanae realizes both of them have frightened eyes. A passionate lesbian kiss to forget it all. Can they? Next morning, Hanabi already left. Atsuya commends her for doing her best. Sanae realizes Atsuya is also going through like what she did. She decides to trust him a little. Hanabi returns to school. Annoying Moca mocks her she looks like she has been rejected. Hanabi fires back that Moca has ALWAYS been rejected! However Moca is not perturbed. For the umpteenth time proclaiming her love for Mugi is longer and much more, she now feels refreshed after what happened. Hanabi will only understand if she does something for herself. Hanabi thinks that she has thinks she has been standing all alone in this world when she didn’t have the courage to take walk on her own. Meanwhile Mugi continues to make out with Akane. Like a script straight out from porn. Teacher visits home. Parents not in. So? F*ck me, right?!

Episode 10
Mugi knows this is all role playing but he can’t help go with the flow. Don’t want to spoil it when a woman f*cks you, right? Akane narrates as she remembers the first time she lost her virginity to her senior. The more she did it, the more she felt loved. All while enjoying her own worth. She can take all their jealousy and pile them up to play with them on whim. She keeps doing this because that is all she knows about herself. This is all she knows. The only way to keep herself standing. Mugi wants to date her next week but too bad, it’s her date with Narumi. Not satisfied, somewhere privately in school, Mugi ‘assaults’ Akane just to tell her he is mad. She didn’t flinch and instead comments how handsome he is while being mad. Mugi realizes he is just scared and doesn’t want to be hated by the one he loves. He hopes she won’t go for the date but she won’t listen. This makes Mugi wonder if she is lonely because she has no attachment to the affection she gets. She doesn’t turn anyone away nor chase after those who leave. So Akane meets up with Narumi at the aquarium. It’s such a boring date. It makes Akane irritated because how can a guy who slept with her once doesn’t seem to want to do it again? How can they still continue to go on dates and act as if everything is normal? It makes it look as though Akane is pursuing him. She has decided. She is done with him.

At the end of the day when they leave, before Akane could say what she want, here comes Takuya calling her a slut and dating another man. While Takuya’s current girlfriend is scolding him for being no different, Akane feels like punching him and telling him off how he failed her test and thus dumped as her boyfriend. But that would be out of her character. Takuya leaves by warning Narumi to be careful of this slut. Before Narumi can asks, Akane admits that she is a slut who sleeps with anyone. She likes it when men showers he with attention and she can use this to stir jealousy in other women. Since she can’t stop, this is their last date. Goodbye. Akane thought it would be over and would go back romancing high school boys but surprisingly he grabs her hand and hugs her. He even tells her to not to stop. Is he more twisted than she thought? So while making out with Mugi, she keeps wondering it wasn’t that Narumi who couldn’t let go. It was her who couldn’t let go. So they talk about if they like the one they’re seeing to see other people. Of course not. This has Mugi ponder about the reason he made a pact with Hanabi and how he used Moca. It is because he is afraid of changing and clinging on to aspects of his parts he can’t let go. Despite all this, there is a person who still loves him so he has to change. It’s not too late. Apparently for his final attachment, Mugi tries to be assertive with Akane to go out on a date. He is done reading timings and signs. Despite screaming out his pathetic worthless self, he could feel the excitement in this. That’s why he still didn’t realize that she gets caught up easily. At least not yet.

Episode 11
Akane remembers one of the guys she had a fling with couldn’t accept what she was doing. He looked so sad and angry. She isn’t sure of her own feelings either because she feels so disconnected. So now here she is on a trip with Narumi. At the inn, she hints of doing it but he gets embarrassed and excuses himself. What? No wonder Akane’s appalled. She thinks back that she forced him to drink alcohol and thus they’re here now. After Narumi takes a bath, he accidentally steps on his glasses. Blind as a bat, he fumbles his way back to his room. He talks to Akane and trying to compare her beauty but she asks him if he doesn’t mind about her being a slut. What do you mean he is okay with it because she likes it? So being a slut is like a hobby? This throws Akane off as she chides him she wants to know his feelings about this. Since he has to think (seriously) she wants him to hate it! Say what?! And if he doesn’t get upset, she’ll hate him! WTF?! Must be drunk. Anyhow, he still loves her. This makes her confused why despite all that has happened he still loves her. After kissing her forehead, he says he just wants the person eh cares to have a happy life. One thing led to another as they start to make out. Perhaps for the first time, Akane felt genuinely good. But next morning they wake up with a great hangover. I believe it was the alcohol and not the sex… Akane gets another surprise when Narumi proposes to her to marry him. Although she agrees, she knows she is still calculative and needs to ascertain this. So the next date she goes out with Mugi. He knows it will be their first and last. He knows all he thinks he knows about her like how she doesn’t feel comfortable unless she attaches herself to something, the reason she clings to roles is to be freed from her boredom. In that case he hopes that be that. Before he can say what he wants, Akane drops the bombshell that she’s getting married. Stunned, he realizes she wasn’t a sad lonely woman trying to define herself to the world through a man. She has this beautiful look that is now taking a shape of her own. She has changed. There are probably many things he wanted to say but he only congratulated her. After they part, Mugi realizes he loved her as a weak and manipulative woman. He pours his heart out letting her know he will not forget how much he loved her before she changed. All she does is thank him and broken hearted Mugi is left crying in the rain.

Episode 12
By autumn, the school cultural festival is here. Hanabi seems to be living a normal life till Mugi passes before her. It made her remember how Narumi personally came to tell her about his engagement to Akane. She noticed he stopped wearing glasses. She would have preferred him with glasses as this look reminds her of his old self. She accepted his invitation to his wedding and wouldn’t miss it for the world. During the festival, Hanabi visits a class holding a fashion show. One of them is Moca in a wedding dress she designed herself. She looks damn beautiful. It made her think she was alone from the start. Her pact with Mugi was meaningless. So why did they make it in the first place? Why did they meet? During the new school term, a boy classmate seems to be interested in Hanabi. He wanted to confess to her which makes her uneasy and panicky. Before anything could happen, Sanae took her away and tells him hands off her ‘property’. But Hanabi didn’t leave him hanging. She apologizes and thanks him. Sanae has cut her hair short. She feels refreshed with her new start. The class celebrates and congratulates Narumi and Akane’s wedding. Akane gives Hanabi a ‘loser bouquet’ and manages to rile her up one last time by warning her not to let Narumi get stolen. Hanabi and Mugi talk. She wonders if they should make a new contract now that they have both lost their love. However he didn’t want to. Hanabi loves Narumi enough to accept his love so she’s okay now. She is glad to have met Mugi. Hanabi narrates they are looking for real love even if it hurts them. Even so, they will continue to seek it. Although they don’t want to let go and let it end, they have to say goodbye. They don’t need to be saved yet. As they’re looking for real love, they’ll continue to live on. Hanabi and Mugi part ways.

Nisekoi: Love Hurts
Despite the boring melodrama of the final episode, OMG why do I feel so sad???!!! Why do I feel my heart sinking?! Is it because I am sad that Hanabi and Mugi didn’t end up with each other as consolation because deep down inside perhaps that was what I really wanted. It was just sad and depressing that they decided to be together in the end but that would be for the best. For if they had chosen to remain together whether be a real couple or a fake one, it would only remind them of the pain why they resorted to this pact in the first place. Yeah so, although I’m really sad they couldn’t be together, on the bright side they have taken a big step to free themselves from this past love that is chaining them down.

Basically the entire premise of this series revolves around everybody (or at least the characters that are involved) wants to be loved. They want that special attention that satisfies them of being loved. Despite how repulsive some might view it, it is only human nature that we seek such love and comfort and in this case as seen here, they have gone the extra length to fulfil that gap. It doesn’t matter if it is the same gender, blood related or professional status/relationship. Sex ‘transcends’ all that. We do so because we can. For others who aren’t as ‘lucky’ as them (most probably otaku like us watching this), we fall back on porn. Haha! Oops…

Therefore this entire series sometimes feels like an excuse for soft porn. Just that no actual genitals were shown and no real penetration was seen. Whether it is to enhance the dramatic effect or a distraction from the mundane melodrama, this would probably be what this series would be most infamously and controversially be remembered for. It is the reason why we chose to watch it. Unless you ‘accidentally’ stumble onto this anime without checking out the plot first. Yeah, right. Not really sure if the BDs will include more detailed footage… The scenes are suggestive enough to make your horny imagination go wild. Or at least stimulate your libido in a cheesy fashion. This is assuming those watching the series aren’t innocent toddlers anymore. I’m not saying that watching these scenes would want to make you go f*ck immediately but there is a tendency that you may because unlike porn that has unrealistic sex and porn logic, how should I put it, you would find this more ‘relatable’ and ‘down to earth’. Really. I know, many of the sex scenes here feel empty and lack the passionate drive of actual couples making out when there is real love involved. But sex is still sex. Can’t argue with that, can you?

In the name of love, the characters have become tragic characters suitable for Shakespeare’s tragic plays. For the whole dozen episodes they were suffering from one way or another. Hopeless romantics if you should call them. Even their short respite in substitute partners does not really ease their pain and loneliness in the long run. Until they break free from this cycle they can never truly be happy. Thus there is a sense that we can relate to when the characters put up their fake façade and act that everything is seemingly okay. Because for most of us, life is like that too.

Depending on your moral stance, the characters can be the immoral scums to walk the face of the planet or you can sympathize with their cause. For Hanabi and Mugi, they are just seeking solace in each other’s company while yearning to have what they could not. For most of the part, they’re like dead walking zombies and you can see it in their lifeless eyes. Perhaps this unrequited and unattainable that they seek through this substitution was perhaps a blessing in disguise because it made them think and reflect their desires and in the end they somewhat manage to make peace and break free from this cycle of suffering. For Sanae and Moca, it felt like a final passionate one night stand was all it took for them to say their goodbye. Not sure if Sanae would be giving Atsuya a chance now that she has made her closure with Hanabi. But that’s a different story entirely.

I was somewhat predicting Hanabi and Mugi would eventually fall for each other because typical romance drama pattern. After all, they already said goodbye and let go their crushes and seeing that they hit off decently well with each other, why not? There were times when they were together and it looked like it were genuine moments that maybe this could be the spark of their new romance if everything else fails. Alas it was not meant to be and in a way it broke my heart too. It is a good thing that everybody was strong enough to realize the unreachable reality they are facing and move on.

The story seems to shift slowly towards Akane and less of Hanabi in the closing stages. She is perhaps a character who stood out the most. She is a perfect example of what it means for a still water runs deep. Beautiful on the outside, slutty on the inside. It wasn’t surprising to me when she was revealed as to more than meets the eye. Because I anticipated nobody in this anime is squeaky clean. Really. Her actions of sleeping with many men for attention and the thrill of dominance over others make her a character you’ll love to hate. Till you realize that she is most probably in the same boat as Hanabi. She’s in this ‘business’ for so long that she herself doesn’t know why she does what she does. A hobby? A life’s work? So when she broke out of those shackles, it’s like she found a new enlightenment and reborn again. It was like as though she was trying to find the right guy to break her out of this cycle. So who says old sluts can’t change? It was never a competition between her and Hanabi over Narumi. Rather, a realization of what true love had meant to them all the while.

Narumi is an odd person. Among all the characters, he is like an angel compared to them. Again, depending on your moral compass, his acceptance of Akane in sleeping around is very much up to debate. Put yourself in his shoes. Would you want to woman you love that you will spend the rest of your life with to openly sleep around with men? This is assuming if Akane continues her usual ways. On the other hand, Narumi accepting Akane as she is would seem like he is an open minded fellow and in a way it is good because when you love a person, you don’t really see those flaws as flaws. You accept them as a whole for the person they are. Because of those flaws, it makes you, you. Imagine him coming home one day to catch his wife in bed with another man. Just awkward…

In another way, it makes Narumi naïve and don’t really love her. Or he is saying all that because he doesn’t understand the impact or what it means to be a slut. Because in our society, the norm is sex is sacred to the one true love in your life. Your married partner, that is. Screw that. Lots of people are having pre-marital sex at a younger age. Hey, can’t say you have pre-marital sex if you won’t ever get married in the first place, right?! So hopefully Narumi who fell in love with Akane because she has this faint reminiscent about his late mom would continue to grow his genuine love for her.

I read many praise the art of this series because of how it preserves very closely to the art style of the manga. Basically there are quite a few scenes whereby the art style gets sketchy and simple. Like as though it is incomplete. Then there are those ‘special effects’ in which serves more as dramatic visualizations when the characters go into their monologue. Despite all that, the scenes are mostly in bright and vivid colours. Except those sex in the dark scenes of course. So the artwork may not be very obvious at first and looks very conventional Japanese anime but if you observe closer, you might see that little difference. Animated by Lerche who brought to us Ansatsu Kyoushitsu, the Danganronpa series, Unbreakable Machine Doll and Carnival Phantasm.

The voice acting that stands out the most is Aki Toyosaki as Akane. Although still very much recognizable, it is a very different departure from her usual airhead roles like K-ON!’s Yui, Seikon No Qwaser’s Tomo and Noragami’s Kofuku. It is a different of her that you rarely get to hear. There is an air of scheming devilishness behind her voice which makes her character a whole lot creepier as well as the sadness you can feel just by the way she narrates why she loves sleeping around with other men. Also recognizable is Haruka Tomatsu as Sanae. Like Aki Toyosaki, the joker feel in her voice has been casted away for a more serious and dramatic feel. Unlike her other less serious roles like WWW.Working!!’s Miyakoshi or Punch Line’s Rabura, there is more serious emotional impact on this one. Not Magi’s Morgiana since this character doesn’t talk much and has little emotions. Something like ReLIFE’s Kariu if you want to compare.

For the rest of the casts, it is understandably why most of them sound so gloomy for a big part of the series especially the main duo. Even if they do sound lively at times, it feels hollow. Chika Anzai’s Hanabi might as well add to her other list of nearly similar emotionless characters like Hibike! Euphonium’s Reina, Hai To Gensou No Grimgar’s Mary and Qualidea Code’s Asuha. The other casts are Nobunaga Shimazaki as Mugi (titular character in Handa-kun), Kenji Nojima as Narumi (Yuuto in High School DxD), Shiori Izawa as Moca (Pina in Sword Art Online) and Shintarou Asanuma as Atsuya (Tsuda in Seitokai Yakuindomo). The opening theme is rock based, Uso No Hibana by 96Neko. It is the ending theme that somewhat stands out. Heikousen by Sayuri despite a lively rock outfit, I can’t help feel that there is a tinge of sadness to it. It’s possibly because of the lyrics. But it is the singer’s voice that is, well, a bit flat. Especially the opening lines when there is not much music, she’s like singing it aloud in almost one flat one. And then when the music gets heavier, it somewhat shields that part as her singing remains the same.

There is a live action version of this series currently running in Japan. As if we need more soft porn to corrupt our minds. Why not head straight for real porn? Oops! Although I have not seen any episodes of it (don’t intend to. Because. 3D), I believe it wouldn’t be as obviously raunchy as I think it would be otherwise it wouldn’t air over the airwaves in the first place. I guess animes with uncanny sexual content have a higher chance of getting a live adaptation because I remember that chastise belt anime, Saikin Imouto No Yousu Ga Chotto Okashiin Da Ga got a live action film adaptation after the anime. Because sex sells. Sort of.

Overall, this thought provoking (and libido provoking) series is not for everyone as it is controversial. It is one of those series where you need to have an open mind if you to fully appreciate the plot and characters. The soft porn scenes might be a turn off to some but I don’t blame you if you are uncomfortable watching sex scenes even though many of today’s TV shows have ridiculous make out acts. Despite the tragic nature of the series, I still find that the overall story enjoyable. Not because of primarily the sex scenes, mind you. They’re like the okazu ;p… The Beatles might have said and sung All You Need Is Love Better but easier said than done because love is just freaking weird and complicated as seen here. But then again, is it love or lust? This show can be summed up with this saying: It is better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all. Well, back to more porn for us lonely singly otaku guys ;p… :-/… :’-(.

Soushin Shoujo Matoi

Why is it always a cliché and sort of a death flag that when a main character who wishes to be normal, plain and ordinary will soon find himself/herself having great latent powers and then being forced and thrust into a fate of saving the world. Like as though God is bored and heard that one kid who doesn’t wish to stand out and decided to screw it up for him/her. Yeah… Apparently out main protagonist in Soushin Shoujo Matoi didn’t read enough manga or watch her fair share of anime to realize that she possesses all the attributes that would ruin the normal life she yearns for. In this case, she’ll turn into some sacred slayer-cum-exorcist girl (substituted term used for magical girl here) to fight evil spirits from another dimension. And don’t bother praying and hoping for life to turn back to normal till you do your job and live out your destiny. Because you have got to be special to be ordinary. Wait. Say what?!

Episode 1
Western soldiers getting owned by an unknown force. Why they speaking bad English? Here comes this high-tech blonde priestess, Clarus Tonitrus and her partner, Cariot, Anti-Creed from Fatima to show how to exorcise this malevolence spirit called Night, exorcist girl style. Too bad it escapes. At Tenma Shrine, Matoi Sumeragi and Yuma Kusanagi are manning the stalls as miko priestess. Her father, Shingo would have loved to join them but as a police officer he is called in to investigate a murder case in a modelling studio. Flashback shows the owner, Sadamitsu Shimizu who is also a painter kidnapped and killed women for his art but was possessed by a mysterious force possessed him soon after. Haruka Luciela from IATO is at the shrine to request to see the shrine’s most sacred treasure. With those huge boobs, I’m sure Yuma’s dad who is the head priest is willing to show her anything. He takes out a stone believed to be so. She checks it and finds nothing in the database. That’s all. Leaving so soon? Next day as Shingo and his partner, Hideo “Poochi” Tezuka are trying to find a connection in this murder case, Luciela pops up noting the resemblance of a string of deaths in Holland 2 years ago. Apparently the police chief requested her to work on this case so she’s all legal. But she lost me there about this Plasma thingy explanation.

While investigating the murder site and trying to connect it with some occult, it hit Luciela if there are any old building still standing in the area. That would be Tenma Shrine. You mean they have to rush back all the way there now? Hold on to your horses, this girl drifts like the wind! Better be quick because this Shimizu dude has turned into a zombie and is attacking the shrine. Many are down. Before the girls are owned, Luciela drives her car up the steep stairs! Enough time for Shingo to pin him down. However Shimizu grows stronger like the Hulk and tosses him like a ragdoll. I don’t even know why Yuma thinks she can use her family scroll to exorcise him. Apparently Shingo’s stone resonates with Matoi instead and she turns into an exorcist girl! Shimizu is attracted by the stone, ignores Yuma to attack her but Matoi kicks ass and her barrier is impregnable. So powerful the possessing Night escapes. Luciela wonders if this form is Fatima but doesn’t think so because her Divine Union is different. Shingo hugs Matoi as she looks very much like his wife, Shiori. It could have been valid had not his hands were grabbing onto Matoi’s non-existence boobs. Now see him fly across the pond. Matoi runs away and prays to God to return to normal life. Is it too much to ask to just lead an ordinary life? Well, she did turn back. Without her clothes. Damn she should have been more specific.

Episode 2
Shingo is at the hospital treating his wounds. Poochi updates him about Shimizu’s interrogation. He has a case of amnesia and only remembers abducting the victim. Shingo remembers the stone his wife gave to him. She has him promise to look after Matoi till she returns. Matoi manages to find her way back to her house. Still naked. Too bad it is Yuma who is waiting for her. Jealous that she didn’t get those cool exorcism powers, she starts taunting her as an exhibitionist. Suddenly some godly spirit is projected out from Matoi’s forehead. What does she do? Avoid reality and go to sleep! Think this is still a dream? Because that god is still there! Too bad only she and Yuma can see it. So in the school gym’s storeroom as Yuma blabs about the rightful power that should have been hers just because she is from a descendent of exorcists, she proclaims herself as Matoi’s ‘manager’ to practice transform and do exorcism duties. Well, Matoi did transform but not by her own will. Too bad in gym class all the boys see this exorcist girl. Whip out those handphones and start snapping! Matoi, you should know how the internet works because they’re not going to listen to you not to post or Tweet it! Poochi shows Shingo this trending viral video. Luciela also sees this but has to meet up with her colleague, Roy. After explaining her observations on Matoi, he decides to settle this himself.

Matoi has quickly developed a fan base. There are some cases even requesting her to do real exorcism. A bank robbery occurs nearby and somehow it falls on Matoi’s shoulders to stop it. Because Yuma says so. Shingo is on site as he tries to negotiate with the robber. He recognizes him as Kasai, a wanted white collar criminal. However Kasai is not in talking mood and shows that same zombie behaviour Shimizu did. They are distracted when Matoi comes in. And gets shot! Phew. Nothing happened. Suddenly reality turns into another dimension. This is what is called the Gate of Caelum as explained by Clarus and Cariot. They’re here on a mission too. Obviously Matoi gets owned trying to protect useless Yuma. You thought the Night is being pervy but he is trying to extract the stone out from Matoi’s chest. But Clarus’ cuts in between and easily destroys this Night. Matoi is spammed with terms she doesn’t know. Good. Because Clarus is going to kill her! That is when her god appears to protect her. Clarus backs down knowing this is not a Night. She wouldn’t have shown any mercy if it was. Clarus knows Roy is watching (rather, the Night that is possessing him) and warns that she is coming for him. She leaves and advises them Matoi to do the same as the space is crumbling. Oh dear. This means Matoi who is topless needs to run! Unfortunately she is streaking through a sea of people back in reality. Let’s hope they don’t post and Tweet this!

Episode 3
Matoi tries to sneak away MGS style in a card box? She thought Yuma was a traitor leaving her all alone but don’t be too quick to judge. She went to buy some clothes. Matoi’s worst fears come true. She is the new internet sensation and her video has 50 million hits!!! Oh, she’s blaming her god for this? Luciela gets work from her superior that Roy was possessed and thus all intel they’ve got have been compromised. Roy meets up with Creed Killer who is willing to let him possess a better vessel: Dosan Odagiri, a popular medium. Yuma’s dad thought it is a good idea for her to have a tutor. Or maybe he just loves Luciela’s knockers and has her teach his daughter and Matoi some English. Clarus also keeps watch on them but takes no action as since without the Regalia, she is harmless. Luciela hints she is interested in the exorcist girl that is taking internet by storm. Because she look so much like Matoi, right? Then she poses a thought provoking question to Matoi what if there are many dimensions and a higher dimensional being enters a lower dimension, can the lower one see the higher one? Yes, but we see them as gods. That is why most supernatural that occurs without explanation. Shingo is not pleased that Luciela is also helping to cook. He doesn’t like her profiling. She is good and can tell there is somewhat a strain in the father-daughter relationship as Matoi calls him by his first name. He reveals he was a workaholic so his parents took Matoi away to their hometown. It has only been 3 months since they’ve moved here and living together. Shiori was listed as missing. That is why father and daughter decided to wait together till she returns. A Gate of Caelum opens nearby. Clarus moves in to engage possessed Odagiri. She notes he is much stronger. Could it be the latent abilities of the human he is possessing? Matoi and Yuma decide to check it out. Because Yuma wants her to transform and save the day, their noisy arguing attracts Odagiri’s attention. All girls get owned in the commotion. Cariot helps Luciela take Matoi and Yuma away while injured Clarus continues to fight the Night. Matoi wonders why she won’t run away and Cariot explains she has a mission she must complete even at the cost of her life. This won’t do for Matoi as she runs back and her will to stop this violence has her transform. Too bad she got owned again. This isn’t time for talking, Matoi. Clarus easily separates her enemy from the possessed. But now standing before her is Creed Killer.

Episode 4
Flashback 3 years ago, Clarus had a partner named Flors Oriens. However their partnership only lasted for 1.5 years. Clarus continues to attack Creed Killer despite being injured. Creed Killer doesn’t take her seriously and instead targets Matoi. In her bid to save and help Clarus, Matoi somehow opens a Gate of Caelum to absorb them. Inside the other dimension, Matoi manages to open such gates to escape from Creed Killer. When Clarus wakes up by Matoi’s side, she wants to stay by her knowing Creed Killer will appear. She wants to do this to get her revenge. More flashback reveals Clarus and Flors went on defeating Nights in their missions. Flors was saddened that the powers received from God are only to fight. She believed this wasn’t what God wanted despite Clarus trying to explain the humans possessed by Nights no longer become themselves and the only way to keep the number of victims down is to destroy Nights themselves. One day, Flors and Creed Killer faced off. She believed she can talk and reason to him. Too bad she got zapped. She turned into a vegetable with her organs and circulation halted as a strong gravitational field inside her body was opened. Only her Divine Union saved her life. Clarus viewed Flors’ weakness was her sin and her own sin as being too open hearted. She vowed not to make any more such mistakes. Clarus explains to Matoi a few terms like Divine Union (pacts formed with higher dimensional beings) and Nights (evil higher dimensional beings who possess humans and control them). She warns her not to get in the way if she is not willing to fight. Oh good. Here comes Creed Killer. After Clarus destroys his Night, Creed Killer gets mad and opens a Gate of Caelum to throw them back into reality. The free fall could have killed them had not Matoi materialize wings. Clarus doesn’t know why Matoi is helping her despite having no reason to fight. Because she wants to. Good enough for you? Matoi then summons together all the gods (colourful aurora light show?) to impede Creed Killer’s power and enough time for Clarus to defeat him.

Episode 5
What is this time that is making Matoi nervous? Her fellow school mates staring like a dagger at her. Actually they are starring at Clarus who is now a transfer student in her school?! Wow. Such blonde beauty. I can see why some guys are ready to turn into slave masochists. Cariot reports to his higher up about Creed Killer’s defeat. He also reports a very powerful Regalia that Matoi has unintentionally. Naturally they would want to collect it themselves to prevent it from falling into Nights’ hands. However it is deeply imbedded inside her and forced extraction would only kill her. Thus for now they are to observe her and the reason Clarus is staying close to her. Matoi and Yuma take Clarus to Tokyo and have fun like how normal girls should. Well, they can’t avoid all the stares from everyone at how lovely the blonde is. Luckily Matoi and Yuma become her ‘bodyguards’ to turn down guys who dare enough to try ask Clarus out. Yuma then seeks a favour from Clarus. Yeah, it’s that god thingy she thinks she is supposed to have but didn’t get. The only way Clarus can test is her Divine Union as she summons her god to make it pass through her. If she doesn’t have such powers, it would walk right through her. However some crazy barrier seems to be preventing it. When it gets too intense, some seal broke and out comes a fox and a tanuki! Kawaii! These are supposed to be her familiars? Clarus’ deduction is that Yuma was already aligned with a higher dimensional being to begin with. The fox and tanuki transform into their kiddie children form and run away from Yuma. Because of that, they are scaring other people. Matoi and Clarus transform to find the duo in the other dimension. They don’t want Yuma to help seeing they are afraid of her and might do more harm. Of course Yuma isn’t going to sit back and do nothing. Matoi and Clarus get duped by the duo and now they are hounded by people who think they are that internet sensation. Yuma is at the shrine praying. She feels sad that they might hate her. Flashback reveals she had them when she was young so Yuma had fun using their powers. However her grandpa, Seigen viewed it as too early and sealed them. They have been watching Yuma grow up behind the scenes and were always with her. The fox and tanuki sympathize with her, come out of their hiding and the trio start a dancing weirdly.

Episode 6
Yuma is breaking the fourth wall to tell us about her exciting debut as a new exorcist girl. Yeah, she’s even contemplating of changing the show’s name… With 2 gods by her side, Kuu (fox) and Kai (tanuki), Yuma has already created a website to advertise herself for exorcism requests! However with those not of the Nights type, she’ll surely be most disappointed. Because having 2 spirits is very rare, Cariot wants Clarus to add Yuma to her watch list. Yuma gets excited hearing a mascot in town is possessed. Oh, look at this cute little Night thing. Clarus seeks Cariot’s advice since it is doing nothing harmful except for being cute. Exterminate it. To avoid public nuisance, she opens the Gate of Caelum to destroy it. Too bad she didn’t have enough resolve to kill it for good because it was so cute. Now it gets mad and turns into a giant monster rampaging back in reality. Matoi could have done something even if it’s futile had not those fans holding her back and take pictures. Clarus and Matoi are sealed in its cube barrier. Before it can stomp them, Yuma and Kuu try to suppress it back with their barrier. She won’t run away despite they tell her to or else there is no point in becoming an exorcist girl if she can’t protect anyone. When Kai decides to stop being scared, he joins in. Behold! Yuma’s form when she transform. She has best of both worlds as she can switch between defence and offence seamlessly depending on whether she is using Kuu or Kai. With that, Clarus is able to break free and destroy it for good. Matoi and Yuma already wise up about transforming back so they pack some clothes beforehand. They stumble into Shingo who is not happy that Matoi once again went into a dangerous area on her own. Matoi is scared seeing her father’s angry face but he hugs her and is glad she is okay.

Episode 7
Yuma and Matoi pass their test under Luciela’s guidance. Thus Yuma is happy and looking forward to her summer vacation at the beach! Wohoo! And excuse for Luciela fanservice in that sexy bodacious body! No wonder Poochi invites himself along on this trip with Shingo. With Yuma ushering Clarus to join in, we get our variety of blonde bombshell fanservice too. Too bad Poochi, you’re not the guy who is at the centre of the harem. They stay at the near Tenkai Shrine, they are greeted by Yayoi Amane who is the acting miko priestess head of the shrine. She is happy to see Shingo and it took him a while to recognize her. She was Shiori’s student and under her wing was taught how to be a miko priestess. Naturally Matoi would love to ask about her mom. But Yayoi mentions the kind and perfect teacher she was even if it was for a short time. As for how Shiori met Shingo, Matoi would be better off asking her dad. Yuma decides to have the gang play kimodameshi. Poochi is praying so hard to God to be paired with one of the babes but ends up paired with Shingo. Maybe God heard his wish, that’s why… What is scarier than stumbling upon a ghost? Stumbling into a person possessed by a Night! So Shingo runs back to tell Matoi just to get back to the shrine. No buts about it. Yeah, he wants to be a hero and deal with it all by himself. Doesn’t take a genius to tell the cops got knocked out. Clarus will handle this herself. Matoi is in a great dilemma to listen to her father’s words or not so as not to worry him like last time. Yuma understands how she feels but now that she is an exorcist girl, that is why she is going to fight. However the Night is absorbing all their attacks. Before Yuma could be its fodder, a majestic water dragon appears. The Night think it can absorb it too. But can you absorb the entire ocean? Boom goes the Night. Certainly that dragon is not from Matoi but Yayoi who vows to protect Shingo. Otherwise she won’t be able to face Shiori.

Episode 8
As the local police investigate the scene, Shingo confronts Luciela about the exorcist girl and demons. She won’t say as everything is classified. This makes him mad and warns her not to drag his daughter and friend into this. Clarus and Cariot discuss about Yayoi’s Divine Union. They can tell it is dying soon and Yayoi will lose its powers. The head of Tenkai Shrine, Azumi “Azu” Azuma returns. She sees Yayoi who is recovering (she collapsed after her victory) and they discuss about Matoi being unified with the God of Myriads. Luciela talks to Cariot about Anti-Creed trying to recruit Matoi. He assures they aren’t as her religious beliefs are vastly different. With Azu joining in, Cariot wants to know why Nights invade this world. She doesn’t know. Depending on which dimension they came from, their motivations will change. All they can do is take whatever they throw at them till hope arrives. She also warns Clarus about depending on her Divine Union and will hit her limit someday. Matoi talks to Shingo as he reveals this is the place he met Shiori. It was love at first sight. She gave up being a miko priestess to marry him. He doesn’t know why she left so he drowned himself with work despite Shiori telling him to take care of Matoi. He left her alone. He failed as a father. Matoi is glad they’re living together now and will continue to believe in mom. When they see Poochi collapsed after being assaulted by beach babes he is trying to hit on, those babes got possessed by Nights. Shingo again wants to be a hero so Matoi transforms and tells him to believe in her because this is something no ordinary humans can handle. Don’t make your family worry. Daughter telling this to her father? Clarus and Yuma fail to finish the combined Nights. Yayoi intervenes but she has grown weaker. Her god dies once her powers is used up. Matoi saves her and now it’s her turn to kick ass. She summons the powers of all the surrounding gods to create some golden sword and finish off the Night. Yayoi notes this isn’t the power of the God of Myriads but Matoi’s wish. Seigen senses Matoi’s awakening and will be the one who will open the gate to the highest dimension.

Episode 9
The frequency of Nights attacking have increased. A cause to worry for Yuma. Why? Because she’s running out of clothes! So when she comes in her old gym bloomers, Yuma thinks it’s time to increase the quality of fanservice! Sorry, I’m not into bloomers… They’ve gotten so good at their game that Yuma now even leaves cards indicating the exorcist girls were here. Advertising? It seems there is a reason why Cariot is letting the girls fight with Clarus more often. He thought the Nights’ intention was Matoi’s Regalia but now it feels like Nights deliberately planned their attacks to test their powers. To figure out their motive, hence they will be fighting in the front lines. Matoi on her day off tries to buy more cheap clothes! Understandably. She also hangs out with Shingo but it gets awkward because nothing to talk! As they head up a tower, they are confronted by Saphirus, another Night possessing a woman. Shingo wants to promptly tell Matoi to leave but looks like she has already transformed and giving an excuse she has guided his daughter to safety. Saphirus traps them in a barrier and this results the place’s temperature quickly dropping below zero. Matoi is unable to use her myriad powers. So much so she is in danger of losing her clothes as her transformation can’t last! She hides and tells Shingo not to look. This scene reminds him of a very familiar one he had with Shiori. But Shingo collapses from the cold. Meanwhile the rest rush to the scene courtesy to Luciela’s drifting but even so, they cannot penetrate the barrier. So what do they do? First, they have Yuma transform into her defence mode. Then Clarus blasts her through the barrier with all her might!!! Defence against defence? Well, like fighting fire with fire. Can’t argue with that. The warmth return and Matoi is able to use her myriad powers again. For some odd reason, Saphirus returns check on the barrier but Shingo throws a blessed dagger to kill her. Although not entirely dead yet, she finds the current body useless and tries to take over Shingo. However his stones kick her out immediately and she is killed by its spirit that looks a lot like Shiori. This brings tears to Matoi’s eyes as she is now sure mom was an exorcist girl.

Episode 10
Shingo is recuperating in hospital with Poochi by his side. Ludos, Saphirus’ partner is not pleased that his boss, Set sent her alone to fight Matoi and she died. He wants to exact revenge but Set won’t allow him. See that hole in the sky? That’s Cavitas, the gate to the highest dimension. Once it fully opens, it will unify and connect all 24 dimensions into one. This is their objective. Our Earthling side has also noticed the opening of Cavitas. It is a similar event that happened 10 years ago. Thus Matoi and all the related parties are called by Seigen and Azu to talk about what is happening as well as the truth behind Shiori. When Cavitas fully opens, it will connect all dimensions into one, thus all natural laws will collapse when the borders between dimensions disappear. The highest and most powerful miko priestess at that time was sent to close it 10 years ago and she was no other than Shiori. However she never returned after travelling into the highest dimension and they had no way of contacting her. They never knew what happened to her. As a result what could have been the biggest calamity was averted. Which means to say that Matoi is the only one strong enough to close it. Not Yuma even if she volunteers and definitely not Clarus. Their gods aren’t powerful enough to transcend the higher dimensions. Matoi feels all this is too sudden and wants to think about it. The world is going to end and you want to think about it because of your feelings? Anyway, she asks why mom decided to go to the highest dimension. Wait. I thought it was because she was the strongest? Seigen replies she went because he ordered her as the head of the family. This makes Matoi sadder. Yuma feels angry as she throws her weak punches at grandpa, blaming everyone for making Matoi cry and being selfish.

So Matoi is talking to her god about this task she might be doing. What worries her the most that if she is gone, Shingo will be alone. Cariot gets a distressed call from Fatima that Nights have attacked their base. Anti-Creed’s Regalia have been destroyed. This means Clarus is the only Anti-Creed who can fight. But now in Japan they are being attacked by Ludos who is seeking revenge on Saphirus’ death. Using light and flames to melt everything down, he lets these low dimensional beings know they are the ones refusing to accept the creation of a new world as Cavitas is the will of the highest dimensional being. Once Matoi is on scene, Ludos tries to provoke her but Yuma tells her not to fight if she doesn’t want to. Leave it to her to her to handle this. Clarus tries to enter another dimension to find Ludos’ true body and defeat him but he is not scared since her powers are limited and cracks are showing in her armour once she reaches higher dimensions. Before Ludos’ fireball can kill Matoi, her god protects her. Matoi is now fully awakened as she transforms and fight. She thanks Yuma for getting angry on her behalf. Matoi easily defeats Ludos in the other dimension. When Ludos confronts Set about leaving such a powerful girl alone, he is stopped by Phegor (we all know him as Creed Killer) who tells him this isn’t the real Set. Just his corpse. Ludos dies in vain as Phegor tries to find out this imposter’s goal. Well, he’s not saying anything. The plot further thickens when Shingo confronts Poochi and points his gun at him. He wants to know why he is after Matoi.

Episode 11
It seems Shingo has deduced that the exorcist girls are Matoi and Yuma based on the cases that have happened so far. He thought it was odd they were always chasing after the Nights but it all seemed to perfect. He then realizes it is Nights who are after them and someone has to be pulling the strings manipulating them behind the scenes. Poochi panics and despite all his good alibi, Shingo did his homework and found everything traced back to him. He is now asking Poochi of this not as a police officer but as a father. When he fires, a barrier stops the bullet. Poochi shows his true self. Or rather the being that is possessing him. He assures he is never after Matoi in the first place. To cut short all that mumbo-jumbo: The world is going to be destroyed. Only Matoi can save it. Like Shiori did. Shingo can’t believe his wife and daughter have to be implicated. Where’s God when you need him?! Anyway, Poochi will not interfere if they wish to save the world. All he will do is just watch as the fate of the dimensions are decided. Shingo soon calls Matoi for assurance but all he hears is her apology. For what? Cariot and Clarus are contemplating if the latter should go out and fight. The irony is that Clarus is the last battling Anti-Creed so is it wise to stop her from fighting and ‘save’ her? Seigen and Yuma’s dad are lamenting why their women have to bear this cruel fate. They even think of giving up and let the world get destroyed! However Yuma won’t allow that. Or else her exorcist girl dream won’t come true. She’ll protect the world together with Matoi.

Meanwhile Yayoi shows Matoi the stage where they sent off Shiori. She reminds her that their wish becomes their power. Unless you wish something from the bottom of your heart, it won’t come true. Luciela receives word from IATO that they have detected Cavitas stop growing. Although without proof, they believe Shiori is still alive trying to keep things together. This gives Matoi enough motivation to make her decision that she will be going to the highest dimension to fight and bring back mom. Guess what? Her will is so great that she heals all the people who were possessed by Nights lying in coma! Then she goes to mom’s shrine to make her peace. She once hated her for leaving the family but realizes she never stopped being her mom. She even has time to make peace with Shingo the next morning before she leaves for her mission. Shingo lets her go but after that lets go all his tears. Yuma defies her grandpa and dad to meet up with Matoi. Yayoi encourages her because apparently men have no balls for this kind of things! Same case with Clarus to Cariot. However he tells her to stop lying to herself that she is doing this because of her fate and job. It’s because she wants to as a person. As Clarus. The trio get ready to head out into the stage.

Episode 12
As they zoom pass the dimensions, the space gets weirder and more abstract. But halfway they are stopped by Phegor who is of course here to get his revenge on the girls. Clarus will stay behind to take care of him while the duo go ahead. Meanwhile everyone else on Earth isn’t just going to sit back and rely on the trio. They are trying to repel the invading Nights trying to possess the other ordinary humans. However it is a worldwide phenomenon as Nights are attacking everywhere. Clarus has reached her limit as her armour cracks. Phegor doesn’t even need to lift a finger to kill her because she will cease to exist in this dimension once that happens. So what has got a dying girl got to do but remember all the things that are important to her. That turns out to be her wish and power source as she is ‘reborn’ (including obtaining a new dress) to destroy Phegor for good. Heck, even enough to go help stranded Matoi and Yuma being hindered by Nights and continue their journey. Meanwhile Poochi is observing the events as he narrates his fascination with humans trying to protect their lowly puny dimension. As Shiori was the first one to stop this dimension of endless cycle of destruction and rebirth, he then guided Matoi to have her own Divine Union. He is curious to know their source of power. The trio are now just a dimension away from the top. However Nights won’t be their enemy. It is the dimension itself rejecting them. Yuma and Clarus cannot proceed further so they leave their wishes to Matoi. Matoi searches around and when she thinks this giant gate is her mom, she tries to reach her but somehow she can never get near. Poochi tells us Shiori has assimilated with her god and become the gate herself. It is the only thing that prevented the dimensions from combining. But since she is weakening, now Matoi has to make a decision to become the gate.

Matoi sees through the eyes of her mom of her life. She even manages to meet her in person. Yeah, it felt like forever trying to hold the gate, eh? So what does Matoi do? I don’t know what dimension twisting thing she did but she finally manages to bring back Shiori. Everything on Earth reverts to normal like as though the calamity never happened. Yes, it’s a sign Matoi has succeeded. With Cavitas closing, now everyone makes a wish for the safe return of you-know-who. Poochi cannot believe the simple wish of wanting to be normal and then calling all the myriad powers of every dimension to rewrite the fabric of the universe is the source of their power. Yeah, crap, right? He dispossesses Poochi, leaving him stranded. Shingo wakes up at home having this weird dream he wished his ladies come home. Well, that wish has come true and he is not dreaming. Shiori’s home and so is Matoi who calls Shingo her dad for the first time. Matoi’s true normal life begins after her god leaves. In the aftermath, Matoi is happy to lead a normal life. The foreigners return to their country and Clarus to Flors’ side (still a vegetable). Matoi might be getting the shivers seeing her parents getting lovey-dovey in public. Hey, have to make up for 10 years of affection, no? However Yuma has Matoi tag along for another mission. She got word from Luciela there are Night remnants. Time for the exorcist girls to do their work. Can Matoi do it without her god? Oh wait. It returns! Say goodbye to your normal life again.

Episode 13 (Special)
If you are a fan of Yuma and can’t get enough of her, well uhm, this special recap episode has her narrating the important events of the series in her usual cutie voice and a few optimistic wise cracks. Well, I suppose if they can’t give her a spinoff series of her own, a special recap episode will do. At least she ‘took over’ the opening credits animation to make it seem like it is her show.

Sorry For Being An (Almost) Ordinary Magical Girl
“Ordinary is the best!”, says Matoi, right? Well… I wonder if that kind of ending is typically cliché and ordinary to boot with. It’s not that I have foresight or clairvoyance powers because I somewhat predicted this kind of ending whereby our main heroine saves the day with the most simplest and ridiculous reason (rewriting all logic of the universe? Like becoming God?) that perhaps only lowly dimensional beings can understand. Then in a sick ‘twist’, Matoi’s ordinary life is short-lived because she has to go exorcising again. Because circumstances. Which is the irony because for the big part of the series she has been an exorcist girl and that itself is ordinary. See what I mean there? So if Matoi isn’t so keen on this lowly exorcising job, maybe she can leave it to Yuma to take over. It’s her turn to shine since that is her wish, right? Well, keep wishing you Yuma fans if you want to see a spinoff sequel of her.

I don’t really want to blame the story and plot’s originality as being generic and ordinary because this series is an original anime series after all (written by the producers of the anime studio themselves). Not based on any manga, light novel or game. You don’t really have a solid source material to fall back on. While I do not have any proof, I’m guessing that they have taken certain elements from other magical girl genres and try to come up with this average series. I mean, put yourself in their shoes to come up and write a new refreshing magical girl story. Hard, right? Yeah, not my problem… So as a result we’ve got a pretty generic overall storyline and an ending that feels rushed, forced, convenient and clichéd. I mean, get this. Shiori was stuck in the highest dimension trying to prevent all the dimensions from merging. It took 10 years later for her daughter to come and make the earnest wish of wanting to become a normal family again to turn everything, and I mean everything back to normal again. Wait. So mom didn’t actually think about this?! Man, what was she thinking all this time?!

And now that Clarus is the only Anti-Creed left, does this mean Fatima is over? Hell like we care about them. Let’s just hope Nights won’t attack again and Cavitas will not try in opening again in 10 years. I’m sure it won’t because remember, Matoi rewrote everything! I bet she made a side note for higher dimensional beings never to wreak havoc on the peaceful third dimension ever again. Unless she forgot… What?! You forgot the most important thing to prevent history from repeating itself? Oh, that’s pretty normal, forgetting important stuffs. So anything else that is unexplained or cannot be understood, just remember to think Matoi rewrote it all to ease the plot, conclusion and our simpleton minds. Don’t think too much. Ordinary is the best!

Though, I do find it interesting that it touches the subject about different and higher dimension beings and the perception we have when encountering them. I am not sure and don’t remember much of the story or theory that I read long ago about the fourth dimension in which we perceive the higher dimension as some sort of God as our senses cannot fully comprehend their existence. At the same time when a higher dimension being looks down (not as in cocky or arrogant, mind you) upon us, they see everything that defines our existence, which makes it pretty scary. Unfortunately this concept is not really explored here. It just mentions the existence of the different dimensions and the rationale why we believe there are gods and some so far as to think we have encountered them (the supernatural aspect). This series would have been a bit more interesting if they expand on this but you know, anything that can’t be explained, blame it on the supernatural.

The characters are basically a hit and miss. Can you say that the characters here are basically one dimensional? Pun intended anyhow. Despite having such few main and supporting characters, they don’t really make much of an impact in the sense that they are just there for the convenience of the plot. For instance they tried to make Clarus has having some sort of back story with Flors but it feels so forced and flimsy that It would have been as bad if she didn’t have this back story to begin with. Like as though they needed to give her some sort of back story so as not to make her look like some western exorcist without a past. A reason that she needs to keep fighting Nights. A reason to face off with Phegor (twice!), a diversion that could also have been done without. A reason for her to have some sort of a happy ending because her wish came true as we see her sitting next to Flors and there is some little body movement indicating she is still not totally brain dead. And yeah, a reason to have an extra magical girl for kick ass variety.

I’m sure you can guess what I’m going to say about Matoi as the main character already. Pretty generic and ordinary for a middle school girl turned exorcist girl. As though, she is trying too hard to be ordinary and because of that draws attention. You forgot to read the ‘main character’ label on your forehead. So as not to make her into some sort of Mary Sue character, they try to give her some real world issues that perhaps some of us can relate to. Perhaps, daddy issues. Not to say that her relationship with Shingo is very strained but it feels a bit like strangers in the same house. After all, when you have your own daughter calling you by your first name for a big part of life, doesn’t it just feels estranged? I am not sure what kind of promise Matoi made to her mom but if she really wanted to renew her family again, she could have at least start by calling him dad or papa. Being a single parent isn’t really an ideal family but yeah, at least that’s a start she could have made. Perhaps she yearns to be so ordinary that the irony is that she stands out. Heck, she even quoted something like this in the final episode about the need to be special to be ordinary. Not sure if she is trying to play with words. That is why it surpasses logics of higher beings how a simple wish to be normal could just rewrite everything. Because humans. Because we can. And Matoi is your typical main character material. She must have a good ending or else fans will scream their head off.

If you ask me, the best character of the series goes to Yuma. I want to classify her as the same category as Kill La Kill’s Mako but I realize the latter is in a whole different category altogether. Though, I could feel there is some of Mako’s vibes coming off from Yuma. Essentially Yuma’s energetic and lively personality makes this bland and ordinary magical girl series more watchable. She is the cute mascot of the series, even way cuter than Kuu and Kai if I should say. Those spirits felt so redundant that you’d wish they stayed invisible forever. I mean, what is the deal with Kai as he is always shivering and scared of something. Huh? So therefore Yuma is the best, right? You can’t hate her honest-in-your-face goodness as she also tends to make us smile while sometimes breaking the fourth wall. Friendship power, right? It could have been a lot different had she been the main character. This is one of the few instances where the sidekick shines better than the main character. So I guess Yuma too got her wish granted in the end because now she can go exorcising for all she wants. She just dragged Matoi into the whole shenanigan again. Way to go Yuma. Never change.

The rest of the characters come off as bland and just there to fill the role or whatever there is needed for them to be there. Because I don’t see how Luciela’s character plays any important part as she is seen mostly hanging out with the gang and getting her intel from IATO or something. I don’t even remember why she is even assigned to observe them and even so she doesn’t do anything impactful to the plot. It is the same for Cariot who is just like supervising Clarus, that’s all. Poochi is reduced to a comic relief character and dumb idiot (not to be confused with Yuma’s character, please) and to throw us off guard, the reason he got possessed by a higher being who definitely isn’t God.

Seigen, Azu and Yayoi are like needed because you need a family of related exorcists to ramp up some family drama in which otherwise would not have been necessary in the first place and the story would have been cut much shorter. At least Shingo fares a bit better because as a single working parent, he is facing issues of trying to reconcile with his estranged daughter but comes off as a bit awkward. Yeah well, not many guys can have a happy ending of getting their wife and family back in order again. Was 10 years’ worth it? I guess so.

I thought Phegor was going to be like the antagonist of the series and something felt off when he was defeated too early and quickly. Yeah, I don’t know how he survived but my guts are telling me his role exists to give Clarus some sort of motivation and back story as I have said earlier. Otherwise these Nights dimensional beings as we all humans conveniently lump together are a big mystery. Their reasoning on why they attack our human world is a mystery. The reason why they can’t even beat the crap out of our powerless sh*t is also a mystery. And the existence of good gods and spirits that latch themselves to highly spiritual ladies like our main trio is also a mystery. Who the heck they are and why they do so are never really explained. Heck, I was guessing Matoi’s god was Shiori. Even if she became the gate, I thought she transcended time and space and could have existed as another spiritual being. Oh well, at least it saves me from criticising how cliché it would be had it turn out that way. Damn if they do, damn if they don’t.

That higher dimensional being that possessed Poochi also adds more questions and answers. Definitely he isn’t God because he won’t be resorting to this sh*t if he wanted things to go his way. So he is like experimenting and toying with Shingo’s ladies just to find what makes them strong. They’re humans. Enough said. There is more than meets the eye to this mysterious existence but too bad it isn’t fully explored. And whoever from the highest dimensions and why they want to merge everything into one would also be good to know but I feel that we would be disappointed if we ever get to know the reason. So for plot convenience, we don’t.

Another cliché to avoid the series being too boring is to add fanservice. Ah yes. How can you not have a mindless swimsuit beach episode that doesn’t contribute to the overall plot? Heck, this statement is even somewhat parodied in one of Yuma’s lines. Like as though they saw us viewers coming with this ‘critique’ and got back at us first. Nothing gets the horny otaku boys to watch a series like cheap fanservice. This is the only reason why I think Luciela exists because she has got the biggest rack among the ladies. What else would she be doing except going around flaunting her cleavage? I wanted to make some spiritual power joke on this but there doesn’t seem to be a connection…

The mind boggling fanservice would be the one whereby the clothes of our exorcist girls just simply disappear when they revert back to their normal form. It screams WTF. What happened to the clothes they were wearing in the first place? If you’re saying they are temporarily transported to a different dimension for ‘safekeeping’ (like how Fairy Tail’s Erza does with her various armours), shouldn’t they be automatically transported back? Why do they have to be naked when exorcist girl time is over? I figure this would be the series’ running joke of turning Matoi into some kind of sacrilegious streaker in the initial episodes and thus the other running joke of her being an internet sensation. Ah, it is so easy to be famous on the internet these days. Maybe ordinary clothes dissolve in other dimensions, the reason they need to transform and change. Nah. I’ll stick to fanservice reasons.

If you want to stay for the action parts, don’t. It feels like an obligated distraction because why else would you have a magical girl show if you do not have fights with baddies? Oh yeah. That magical girl show, Mahou Shoujo Nante Mou Ii Desu Kara didn’t have any fighting at all… Anyway, the set moves of the exorcist girls aren’t that spectacular because they’ll cover it up with all the flashy magical effects and voila, you have your typical battles. Sometimes instead of fighting nameless Nights, thus you have Saphirus and Ludos simply created to make it feel like as though they’re fighting a mini boss but alas, they go as fast as they come. Not sure even if fighting Phegor twice was necessary but Clarus needs to flex her skills and transform into her final true form even if it is just for a brief period and overall redundant.

The art and animation style are pretty decent and ordinary too. This is after all coming from the anime studio, White Fox, the one who did Re: Zero Kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu, Steins;Gate, Akame Ga Kill, Katanagatari and Jormungand. Everything is bright and colourful like the myriad powers that Matoi sucks from the surrounding gods make it look like some sort of neon lights effect. Then there is the other dimensions which seem so abstract that you thought you might have gone into another anime: Flip Flappers. Yeah well, sometimes I feel this is what you might be seeing if you are too high on drugs… Or some failed contemporary artist who got some writer’s/painter’s block. CGI is also used but mainly for the gods and spirits ‘haunting’ the exorcist girls. Just ordinary…

The designs of the exorcist girl outfits don’t look attractive to me. Clarus has a more westernized outfit (inclusive of an automated voice of its own) while Matoi and Yuma have more of an oriental and miko priestess design infused to it. Is it me or does Matoi in her exorcist girl form look like a cross between Madoka and Mami from Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica? As for the designs of Nights, it felt like they had to stick with this protozoa Halloween theme to give that horror look. Is it me or does Phegor look like a cross between a clown, circus ringmaster and an ex-WWE wrestler? Erm… Mr Fuji?! And why do I have a feeling that Luciela’s red streak of hair over her predominantly blonde head is trying to follow Kill La Kill’s Ryuuko’s style?

Voice acting feels pretty ordinary with me recognizing Ayako Kawasumi as Luciela, Haruka Tomatsu as Clarus (full serious mode) and Satomi Satou as Flors (what a waste since she only had voicing roles for a single episode and that itself is very limited). I thought I haven’t heard Sayaka Ohara for a while and when she surprisingly come back making a cameo, guess who she plays? That’s right. Another villainess role, Saphirus. Oh yeah. You can’t run away from that stereotypical villainess voice. I thought Nobuyuki Hiyama as Cariot sounded so tired in his role that he reminds me of a similar sounding character he played in Juuou Mujin No Fafnir. The rest of the casts are Ayaka Suwa as Matoi (Ikumi in Jinsei), Naomi Oozora as Yuma (Satania in Gabriel Dropout), Hiroki Touchi as Shingo (Lily in Fairy Tail), Atsushi Abe as Poochi (Touma in To Aru Majutsu No Index), Ayahi Takagi as Yayoi (Chris in Senki Zesshou Symphogear), Kinryuu Arimoto as Seigen (Whitebeard in One Piece), Mayumi Shintani as Azu (Haruko in FLCL), Masami Iwasaki as Phegor (Itonokogiri in Gyakuten Saiban) and Shintarou Asanuma as Ludos (Tsuda in Seitokai Yakuindomo).

The opening theme, Choumusubi Amulet by Mia Regina sounds rather okay. A rock beat fused with a bit of traditional tune. I think I prefer the ending theme, My Only Place by Sphere. It feels like a slow country music that makes you want to close your eyes on a nice day and think of all the nice ordinary things that you would love to be doing. If you have heard Sweet Home Song, the ending theme from the anime, Asatte No Houkou, you would know what I mean. While I don’t really notice the BGMs of this series, I noticed one sounding like a voice hymn usually played in battles. In short, it just sounds weird. Maybe it fits the supernatural theme but sometimes I just get the feeling that a priestess was nearby singing that chant to make things work.

Overall, this is just an ordinary magical girl anime with supernatural elements trying to be extraordinary in its own way but fell back into its typical ordinary clichés. If you want a really dark and shocking magical girl series, you’re better off watching Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica and Mahou Shoujo Ikusei Keikaku. Still, this series has its own charm but I could only think of Yuma as its salvation. Damn it, Yuma should have rewritten the whole thing instead and we have got a magical series that need not take itself too seriously. Oh wait. You shouldn’t either for this one. Never mind the generic plot. Never mind the generic characters. Never mind the generic action sequences. Never mind the cheap fanservice. Because nothing stands out more than just being ordinarily ordinary. Ordinary is the best!

Koro-sensei Quest

How do you still keep a series alive after everything has ended for good and wrapped up nicely? Why, you make a sequel spinoff! This is very much for Ansatsu Kyoushitsu when they had Koro-sensei Quest. Although this spinoff adapted from the manga was published many years ago and has little bearing on the actual plot of the parent series. As you might have guessed from the title and the cute promo poster, it is going to be one of those nonsensical slapstick comedies using the characters of the series. Chibified characters, that is. Like how they did it for Shingeki! Kyojin Chuugakkou, Suzumiya Haruhi-chan No Yuutsu, that Petit Eva series and that Rock Lee spinoff from Naruto thingy. Yeah, things are more fun and cute when characters are in chibi form. And if you’re tired of the storyline about kids being trained as assassins to kill their teacher, time to change its setting to an RPG world where our young warriors are trained by the demon lord himself to defeat him. Wait. What?!

Episode 1
Class 3-E can’t kill Koro. They flop big time. Not surprising. How can you kill the big bad boss when you are just at level 1? Heck, even Isogai’s armour might be grand at first look but it just covers his front! His back is exposed! Too poor to buy a proper armour? Karasuma explains that Koro is the demon lord whom they are hired to kill. Why them? It seems Class 3-E has a special random ability called bug. Like Isogai buying half an armour itself is a bug. But not Kaede’s small boobs or Okajima’s porn collection? Koro will train them up to a level where they will be able to defeat him since he is longing for a good fight. So the first training will have them break their mind set of being weak. They will be fighting with the weakest creatures: Slimes. The slimes thought the demon lord is here to sacrifice humans himself but it looks like he wants to sacrifice them! Would you believe it the slimes are owning Class 3-E? That weak, huh? The girls view Isogai as manly when he tries to stop the slimes but with his naked exposed to them. Jealous Okajima strips himself to do the same but is branded a pervert. Double standards. Nagisa’s random bug has him buffed up like that guy from The Fist Of The North Star. His fireball magic defeats them. This gives the rest motivation to defeat the rest. With everyone celebrating, why is Nagisa nervous? He can’t change back from his buffed mode. Don’t worry, Koro administers some sauna solution to flush out all the bugs in his body. Nothing happens. Only Koro is the one who has shrunk.

Episode 2
Right now the class has no one who can be a true hero. Isogai might have good leadership skills but his half armour doesn’t quite cut it. Karasuma suggests having powerful warriors who somewhat live in caves to join them. One of them is Karma. As they head into the cave, Koro explains of Karma’s bug. The more he scorns others, the more bad luck befalls on him. Then he continues to belittle and more bad luck ensues. Repeat cycle. Yes, it goes into negative points. The cave is littered with traps so Koro easily disarms them all and even makes them more dangerous. Drawing the trademark logo of One Piece is one of them. They stumble into some mushroom people. When one of them manages to slice off Koro’s hand, it turns out to be Karma in disguise. He starts mocking them and true enough all the bad luck follows. Nagisa knows him as a childhood friend and hopes he would join. But Karma refuses and can take on Koro alone. However his net trap failed and this gave Koro enough time to resurrect himself at the hotspring. Then he takes Karma to that hotspring and tries to convince him to join the party and not let his skills go to waste. He would like to think about it but everyone has already accepted him and made it so like he has joined the party for good.

Episode 3
Karasuma teaches the students how to use a sword. Woah! Can you slice a whole mountain like that!? With the girls swooning over him, Koro gets jealous and tries to teach them his style. But which human has got tentacles and fire breath? You just lost to them. As they head to town to buy equipment, they realize the entire town is being charmed by a witch named Irina AKA Bitch. So they head to her tower and despite a shady woman begging for water, Maehara fell into Bitch’s charm trap to become her slave. She is so sexy that she doesn’t need to lift a finger because Okajima and Koro voluntarily fall into her charm! Those boobs are FTW! Bitch kidnaps the girls to hold experiment on them while she has her slaves drive out the other boys. Karasuma will deal with them to let them save the rest. Bitch turns the other guys into her slaves and pushes out Karma and Nagisa out of the window. Luckily Koro saves them. How did he break the spell? He wasn’t charmed in the first place and only pretending. Remember, he is the demon king. Karasuma frees the girls and he becomes more popular with them, earning Koro’s jealousy as he calls him gay. Then they teach Bitch a lesson to never misbehave and it sounded so ambiguous you might think it came from a hentai scene. Okajima is turned on by this and is charmed into her slave a second time.

Episode 4
Asano as the priest is watching with Karasuma the next quest of Class 3-E as Koro takes them to the Ruins of Tribulation. Asano is doubting Koro as a teacher and thus this test. Doesn’t Asano feel like the bad guy here? In the ruins, they meet the guardian who will have them face 3 tests. The first one is to sniff out an imposter. A fake has been slipped into their ranks and they must quickly discover who. Koro panics first as he hopes his students will trust him. Okajima believes he can sniff out real girls so they beat him up and should just kick him out anyway. Karma tries to kill Koro as proof he is the real deal. He mocks this trial and is sent falling through a trapdoor. Karma has left the party? They manage to catch the fake who is a goody version of Terasaka. The next test must have them tell an embarrassing secret of their comrade. Koro is a pro in this as his stalker tendencies has got him lots of juicy details of his students. Nagisa won’t stand for this and takes out his own notes of his weakness. He whispers them all to the guardian… The last trial is self-sacrifice. They have to push a button that opens their door but locks the other one forever. A ceiling will crush the trapped one. Without hesitating, Koro presses his button to let his students escape. He will not abandon his students. The trials have left Asano shocked and confused and for now he will allow Koro to remain as a teacher. Everyone is to head home when Karma says that had they left Koro behind, they would have defeated him for good. This mockery has him fall through another trapdoor.

Episode 5
Everyone is excited they’ll get a transfer student. But they are surprised to see this giant tablet. Ritsu is supposed to be some autonomous magic stone tablet thingy despite it looks like it is somebody inside a box. Anything you can’t explain, she calls it magic. She almost defeats Koro with it but he high magic usage means she is constantly eating to replenish. Koro takes them to a cave to fight stone monsters to level up. Ritsu thinks she can handle them all and petrifies her classmates. She does not cooperate with them and does everything herself. Koro then lets her see how the rest of Class 3-E cooperate and defeat the stone monster boss (having work and family problems?), Koro convinces her to tweak her a little so that she would have a higher chance of defeating him. Next day, everyone is shocked to see Ritsu in the form of a normal girl and also very cooperative and cheerful. Koro deciphered some ancient language at the back of the tablet for this trick. Then he wants Ritsu to tell of a sure way to remove mosaic censors from porn. Wait. He can unlock an ancient language but not mosaic censors? I thought he is can do everything?!

Episode 6
The gang thinks of having Itona join their ranks to have a higher chance. But don’t bother looking for him. He is here, breaking a hole in the wall. Itona is sent by Shiro who views Koro as unworthy of the demon lord title. Sucking up to Asano and being charmed by Bitch’s boobs, that kind of attitude won’t do for solidarity. Thus Shiro has set up Itona to kill Koro and take over. Before they can get down to it, the girls hold some quiz to see who is more worthy. Koro and Itona doesn’t get the first question of saving the princess (Nagisa forced to cross-dress) right and it is Karma who steals the limelight. For the test of maintaining their facial expression when Bitch does her sexy dance, they may have preserved their composure but that is because they have already become her love slaves. So the final quiz is to see who can make the biggest and scariest face. Too bad everyone gets freaked out from the queen of horror herself, Hazama. She takes the cake easily. Koro laments his loss and Itona thinks being bad also needs humour. He rips his own tentacles and leave. Because of that, Shiro kicks him out and with nowhere to go, he will be joining Class 3-E to brush up on his humour. The hole in the wall is his first attempt.

Episode 7
Class 3-E head that the Big Five led by Gakushuu is coming here. They are a group of paladins under the pope. Koro has recruited Bitch to gather some info. After seducing men and making them talk while drunk, she has learnt that they are targeting this class since there are rumours that the demon lord is there. Because this collaboration of the demon lord training Class 3-E is top secret and nobody else knows it except for the pope, they can be imprisoned if found out. So they try to put some disguise on Koro. Close enough… Gakushuu who always has a tendency to want to be the first in everything, leads his men to barge into Class 3-E. Another bunch of people who don’t know how to use the door. Itona shouldn’t be saying this… Gakushuu uses his Light Orb to sense if Koro is the demon lord. But since he keeps dodging, the Light Orb gets ruined. The Big Five can’t believe it and are at a loss so they start discussing their next action. Gakushuu materializes an ice blade that only he can create but Karma easily duplicates it. Before both of them can be at each other’s throat, Koro mentions about the pope and it sends the Big Five into panic mode. I mean, they’re really panicking like it is the end of the world. Koro knows Asano has not given any directives for this quest. This means they are doing this on their own accord. Imagine if super strict Asano finds out about this recklessness and lax in discipline. Especially the broken Light Orb… Time to withdraw. Koro’s lesson for the day is that information can also be a weapon. But Karasuma passes a stack of bills as part of Bitch’s intelligence fee and other miscellaneous expenses. A cost even too high for Koro…

Episode 8
The gang are going to open a mysterious box and Koro is most afraid if it is some powerful monster… Nagisa opens it but nothing happens. Or does it? Actually everybody swaps bodies! So we have mayhem as they figure out who is who. And the other kind of chaos like Okajima in a girl’s body trying to molest himself and Kaede ecstatic that she now has big boobs. Then there is Bitch in Karasuma’s body trying to rape him in her body. Or is it like raping herself? Everyone thought Chiba and Hayami didn’t swap but their personalities are so similar it doesn’t make a difference. As they go find a cure, some thought Okajima has passed out because they tied him up too tight. Turns out he enjoys this bondage. Noticing Karma is gone, they realize his clothes (Nagisa’s) on the ground. They thought he has been done in but turns out he is wearing a swimsuit (remember, he is in Nagisa’s body) and parading around. They finally find an orb that switches them back. Those who were enjoying themselves are now regretting… They notice Koro acting strange. Has he not swap back? Turns out Koro swapped with a caterpillar monster.

Episode 9
Nagisa has been kidnapped by Takaoka and his men. They mistake him to be a girl. Kaede is mad because they also kidnapped her pudding. Thus Ritsu puts together a rescue team via magic (fax actually). Koro seems to have sealed himself in an orb to make the exchange easier. The students wise up and try to defeat him. Too bad his defence is impregnable. The gang face off with Smog first. However Fuwa defeats him by telling the truth about the world! Next, Grip flatters about himself so Karma uses his scorning bad luck to take each other out. Gastro goes trigger happy but Chiba and Hayami’s sniping right in his nuts end it all. Before Takaoka can give his speech, he is already sniped by the sniper duo in the balls! Kaede is absolutely thrilled to rescue her pudding and starts eating it. Takaoka unveils Nagisa cross-dressed as a princess. Nakamura and Karma can’t stop teasing and taking pictures. When Kaede collapses, Takaoka reveals the pudding is poison and only a kiss from a princess can wake her up. Well, Nagisa fits the bill! Everybody wants to see them kiss (including the baddies) so they egg him to do it. Nagisa summons his courage and does so. Kaede wakes up and feels hot inside. No, it’s not love. She turns into… Green Koro? So mad that she destroys the place.

Episode 10
The girls see Bitch to make their Valentine’s chocolates. They should know better. Because some of the guys who ate them turn into zombies! Except for Sugino. He turned into Hulk? Looks like Kanzaki’s chocolates weren’t made from Bitch’s formula. She bought it from the normal store. Okajima didn’t get any chocolates and he is acting like a zombie. Suspicious… Luckily the effect wears out after a day (except for Sugino). The class gets a shock when they hear Takebayashi is leaving them to join the paladins. So whatever the sad reasons we hear, it all boils down to because he didn’t get any chocolates. So they tie him up and discuss how to bring him back. All the girls dressed as maids? I’m in! Why is Nagisa dressed as one too and how come he looks the cutest?! Too bad their maid seduction didn’t work on Takebayashi. Because they are not 2D! Ritsu decides to use her magic to bring him back. So she devours him? Now that he is back out, he is enlightened and somewhat levelled up. Yeah, he even starts singing… Whatever. At least he is back with the class.

Episode 11
A flashback on how Koro as a human before he became the demon lord. A year ago, Koro was the best hero in the land, vanquishing every monster there is. Realizing there is no room for improvement in this dead end job, he sees Yukimura to get a suitable job change. She suggests being the demon lord because the current demon lord too has run out of room for growth and is moving out. They meet up to handover the titles and such. The current demon lord plans on going to another world and become a warlock. While going through the treasure room, Koro wears the demon lord’s robes and it cursed him to become a yellow octopus. One day his disciple comes running in mad. How can a former hero become a demon lord?! In fact, Koro thought being a hero was boring. Being a demon lord is even more boring! He is glad he came so they can have fun. Apparently his disciple didn’t like all of this so to calm down his anger, Yukimura even suggests changing to a suitable job. Yeah, they counselled him. Koro is further bored as the demon king. So much time that he feeds a his dungeon monsters, tending to them, tidying up the castle and placing treasures all over and yet no heroes came. That is when he has this idea to train warriors to become stronger than him. The rest is history. Karasuma and Bitch are listening to his story but they note how much fun he is having now as the demon lord. As for his disciple, he took up some reaper job and disappeared somewhere. Koro teaches his clueless students about changing jobs, failing and trying again. Not that they understand.

Episode 12
We see the dreams and thoughts of our ‘fallen’ Class 3-E students as they trek deep into Koro’s dungeon. For every obstacle or trap, some of them stay behind to let the rest pass. So brave… Sniff, sniff. And some just got screwed by pure bad luck. So a handful of them finally reach Koro’s room. They are shocked to see him singing for their graduation ceremony. Koro reveals that he was fired by Asano after he discovers he was fooling around with the students. So he thought he would go out with a bang with this graduation. So this is all a joke? So what about all the traps and their fallen comrades? Before he could explain, the real Terasaka enters. Oh my! He is so buffed up! Apparently he trained himself after he was swapped and lost. He is level 99! OMG! He has saved his friends and will now have Koro’s head. Koro starts panicking as he reveals all the traps were just dummies. He even tries to make a deal with them to join him or maybe he is everyone’s dad! Just don’t kill me! And Nagisa is worried that Koro might die at this rate because Terasaka is really going to kill him. Isn’t that the point of this whole thing? The place starts to collapse as the traps were pushed to their limits. With their only exit blocked, Koro wants Nagisa to use his bug. He must! I’m not sure what this bug is but it looks like the adventure log vanished… This means they are back to where they are at the end of the last episode. Have to do everything again? Koro is glad he is back to a point he isn’t fired. Yeah, it could have been worse. Be thankful it wasn’t a bug that wiped out your saved games or corrupted your system.

Mini Side Quest Still In Progress
I was expecting it would somewhat end like this. Because with a plot being the irony itself, it would be very sad and ‘unacceptable’ if Class 3-E manage to complete their task of eliminating the demon lord. Quest over, now what? So I figure it would be more on the lines they’ll be together like how they should. Although I was expecting a complete reset as the big punch line. You know, everyone getting frustrated that their saved game file got corrupted and have to redo everything from the start again. So mad that they really want to kill Koro again and the cycle repeats. Who would want to restart a tough game from scratch again, right? I mean, would you want to play Dark Souls from zero again?

The plot is fun and enjoyable and despite it has no influence on the original parent story, if you have watched the original one you can tell that many of the stories here are somewhat a rehash of it. Like how Ritsu and Itona came to join Class 3-E as well as the face off with Takaoka and his groupies and Nagisa’s kiss on Kaede, all albeit presented in a funny and different manner. So if you have not watched the original story, you will not lose much or even anything at all.

Other than the main story of Koro leading his students into various (mis)adventures and trying to level them up (don’t really see how but don’t really care either), many of the episodes break this flow by inserting short funny skits that aren’t related to the main plot. For instance we have a couple of skits featuring Bitch in some S&M torture to give off an impression of some sexual innuendo till she ends it with some unexpected punchline. Then there is that I-don’t-really-get-what-this-means flower watering and gardening scene, also that I-don’t-really-get-what-all-that-talk-means Asano’s PA advice and an I-don’t-really-get-their-joke stand-up comedy duo of Shiro and Yanagisawa. Yeah, only in this world where both those guys can exist separately. Oops! Too late for spoilers alert?

Oddly, despite the even funnier tone of this spinoff, I wasn’t really laughing harder as compared to the original series. Not because the jokes here are not as funny but rather because in the original story itself, Koro himself is already a big joker. Sure, there are times where he gets serious but overall this yellow smiley octopus is so damn good at everything including impossible tasks that he does it in his ‘leisurely’ pace that it is hard to take him seriously. Thus Koro feels right at home in this spinoff as if he was in the original series.

It is a hit and miss for some of the Class 3-E characters for me here. Once again some of them aren’t very prominent here as they were in the original series. It is hard for all the nearly 30 students to have their fair share of screen time. Therefore there are some whom I don’t even remember their faces or their names. But as for the series regulars, some of them have been turned into a comic relief and running. For instance, like how Shingeki! Kyojin Chuugakkou turned Armin into some ‘hooded’ character as he is always seen without his blanket, here they turn Karma into some bad luck guy where basins keep dropping on his head each time he scorns. A staple running joke of the series and it is guaranteed you will see at least one such scene per episode that Karma appears.

Other characters turning into running jokes include Nagisa being made to cross-dress as a girl more often than he was in the original series, Isogai’s poor status personified in his half armour and the Kunikigaoka mascot takes on the role of various dungeon monsters. Heck, even Terasaka has been turned into some nice guy who speaks only English ever since that imposter trial. Then there are some who remain the same as they are because in the original series they were already like that. Only the idiocy enhanced. Like Okajima who is the biggest pervert among all the boys is turned into an even bigger pervert but thanks to his limited screen time, he didn’t turn into a serial molester or become the true enemy of girls! But still a pervert nonetheless.

The opening theme is Re:Quest sung by Aya Suzaki (voice of Kaede). It starts off with somewhat a grand fantasy-like feel before turning into a weird denpa song with crazy synthesizer effects and fast talking lyrics. I prefer the ending theme much better because it is instrumental although its tune is based off the first season’s opening theme. Seishun Satsubatsu-ron Remix gives us old otaku viewers some nostalgia because of its retro 8-bit video game sound accompanied with a rhythm gaming style animation. Well, if you play games in your youth. In this form, I find the piece quite catchy and much better than the original version when the entire Class 3-E was singing and doing that weird high-5 dance thingy. Oh, speaking of which, this time they’re doing some punching-the-air version. At least it doesn’t look that all bad.

Overall, this is a fun and enjoyable comedy series designed as a ‘soft landing’ approach for fans of the series who are still trying to come to terms and get over the fact that the series has ended for real. It also works as a great standalone series by itself that any other Tom, Dick and Harry who have never watched the show will still feel entertained with its funny and brand of jokes. When a game is really over, the main mission done and all the side quests completed, do you play the entire game again? Or do you hope and wait for a sequel? So… Koro-sensei sci-fi space opera next, please?

Masamune-kun No Revenge

Be careful who you treat badly or call ugly during your younger days. Because in the future they will come back in the form of an attractive person, steal your heart, sweep you off your feet and when you are so deep in love with that person only to realize too late this was the person you mistreated and a long time ago and now you have got your just desserts. Boo hoo. Why didn’t I treat that person better then? Well too late for that now. You’re left in tears with a broken heart. That sounds like the ultimate revenge plot, right? This is what Masamune-kun No Revenge is all about. Girl rejects boy. He transforms himself into an unrecognizable hunk and plans to get his revenge to dump her when she is all over him. Well, not as easy as you would think it would be. But I think it would be fun to see all the trials and near misses as he seeks to complete this ultimate quest. Hey, at least he didn’t grow up and think he should kill her like in that Hollywood movie.

Episode 1
Masamune Makabe is such a handsome dude that random girls on the street can just fall in love with him. We see the double standards as he is peeping at cute girls playing tennis, he is then called out. Turns out they are accusing of a plain guy of taking unauthorized pictures of them. As for Masamune, he is so cute that they would love this new transfer student to join their club. At school, there is a commotion at the compound. This guy, Shigeo Yamada is trying to confess to Aki Adagaki. So she returns her answer via loud speaker all the perverted fetish that she had her servants spied on him. Now that everyone is creep out of this guy, Aki ends it by calling him Moleo since he has a hair on his mole. Dead. Then Aki barges into Masamune’s class just to ask for Akio Tanabe. She doesn’t know who he is so she harasses Masamune instead. When the real Tanabe makes himself known, she tears his confession letter before his eyes! Masamune learns from class rep Tae Futaba and girly guy, Kojuurou Shuri that she is nicknamed Cruel Princess. Despite being beautiful and good in studies, her personality stinks. She hates guys and does more than reject them. Yup, she gives them nicknames. So Tanabe is now Pudding Prince? I guess being the rich daughter of a conglomerate gives her a free pass to be a tyrant. Looks like Masamune has a bone to pick with her. He tries to dig up more information by observing her and can see she has her own groupie of females. He tries to follow her but loses her. Then he notices her closest lackey, Yoshino Koiwai. She is acting strangely. He sees her enter a storeroom. Bingo. That is where Aki is. A spider scares the hell out of Masamune as he stumbles in. Acting he was just passing by, he notices the high calories food she has been eating bought by Yoshino. Plus, a few boxes of them! Aki panics and explains some calorie condition she is having. Not that I quite understand. Although she threatens him not to tell others, he now has a trump card against her.

Because of that, he is able to get closer to her at times so rumours start swirling that the Cruel Princess may be falling in love. After school as Aki has Yoshino to buy her something to eat, she is confronted by Tanabe. He is jealous that he rejected her but because Masamune is a hot guy, she hangs out with him. He tries to cut her hair but luckily Masamune grabs it by the blades. His bleeding hand has Tanabe running away. Masamune is hurting like hell inside but needs to put up a cool front. He makes her fluster when he says she is cuter when she smiles. Masamune reveals to us this is his revenge. When he was young, he was fat and ugly. As his father was rich, he was often targeted by bullies. Aki saved him and naturally he looked as her as his saviour. He tried to confess but was shot down and called a Pig’s Foot. Ever since, he has worked out his body to become this hot. He hates her so much and will do whatever it takes to make her fall in love with him before telling her who he is and dumping her in the most awesome way. This is his perfect Dead Or Love Plan. Next day, he finds a love letter in his shoe locker. But it has big words “Pig’s Foot” written on it. Busted?

Episode 2
Masamune is trying to figure out who the perpetrator is. It can’t be Aki because this is clearly not her style. Thinking back about his traumatic past is painful enough. He doesn’t want to go back there again. During lunch time, he sees Yoshino having a tough time to buy bread. As she blunders, she hands over the task to him. It’s no easy feat but he manages to get them. Then he follows her back to Aki’s hideout to test and check if she knows his identity. Nope. Safe. He flirts with her a little to get her irritated and flustered. On his way home, he falls into a trap. Realizing this is setup by the perpetrator because she calls him Pig’s Foot. Who is she? Yoshino! Does this girl know all about him? He thinks back hard. Oh. She is one of Aki’s many servants. Yoshino explains her family has been serving the Adagaki family for 300 years. Masamune laments his plan has failed and tells her to laugh at it. Surprisingly, Yoshino tells him to go ahead with it and she will support him. However he doesn’t trust her so he still decides to go on his own. As Masamune helps out Futaba, he wants to exchange email address but realizes he has never done it before and baulks. His handphone has zero contacts! Surprisingly Futaba soon asks if Masamune is free to go out with her to the movies. Is that a date? Masamune reminds himself about his goal so he turns her down. This gives him confidence about his popularity. Aki heard about it so he thinks she is jealous so he plays the cool guy to ask her out. No reaction. Strangely she thanks him so he asks to exchange email address. She claims her handphone is under repair and to wait here next week. When he does, she didn’t turn up. It seems she has left notes for him to follow to the next clue. It all leads him on a wild goose hunt to back where he started in which Aki shows a big sign of refusal. Masamune is mad he is being toyed with. Yoshino comes in to remind him that she can be of help. She adds her contacts into his handphone.

Episode 3
For the upcoming proficiency test, if one fails, the entire class must take a supplementary class for a week. Kojuurou being the hopeless one, Masamune offers to tutor him. This sets off wild yaoi fantasies for Futaba. As they are studying in the library, also there is Aki helping Yoshino. Thinking Yoshino is on his side, Masamune challenges to see who does better in the test. If he wins, she will date him. Otherwise he will allow her to give her a nickname in which he will wear until he graduates. That isn’t enough so she adds he must pay for her lunch too. It’s on. But Masamune is disheartened when Yoshino says she can’t help him. Because he decided this on his own, it ruined her timing. You’re on your own. So we see all parties putting in the effort. The morning test was okay. After the lunch break, Masamune suddenly starts to feel pain in his stomach. Could it be Yoshino sabotaged his coffee since he met her during the break? He holds on till the end. Then he marches his way down to Aki’s class to look for her. However she is not in because she is sick. Does this mean Masamune won hand’s down? So why did Yoshino poison his drink? Actually turns out his mom made his lunch from expired food. Masamune turns up for supplementary class with Aki. This isn’t so bad as he considers it a date.

But soon after Yoshino calls him to set up a date with Aki. She is sure she will be there. He is shocked to see Aki dressed in something that resembles cosplay. And she has the cheek to lecture him all about proper dress code during dates. Probably her thinking is messed up. Masamune calls Yoshino to make sure about this. She explains because she obeys Aki’s every word, thus Aki will trust everything she has to say. Which means this date was some elaborated setup with elaborated settings for Aki to save Masamune. Aki flexes her power since she booked the entire cinema just for them. It could’ve been just a lame zombie flick. Till scenes of zombie sex orgy!!! WTF???!!! Can’t believe Aki still has lots of appetite after watching this. This has Masamune thinking to old Aki was much more arrogant and crueller. She on the other hand believes this condition of hers started when something awful happened in her past. When a young girl asks her about her funny dress, she was proudly about to explain it all so Masamune had to take her away. He has to tell her how her dress code is wrong so she heads to the nearest shop to buy appropriate clothes. She got so embarrassed thinking about it that she screamed so Masamune came running in to check. What do you expect when you see a girl in her undies? Face punch! When he wakes up, he is lying on her lap. Then she just leaves him and goes home. Masamune calls Yoshino and believes this lap pillow is part of her plan. She has no idea about it. Yoshino reveals the reason she is helping him is to help Aki. With Masamune dumping her, this will make her modest as she will have to re-examine herself. It will benefit Yoshino as much it will do Aki some good.

Episode 4
Masamune thinks he can learn from manga to go in for the kill. But all those ‘lovely’ stuffs he did for her, she just feels disgusted. So Yoshino had to tell him to stop and mix it up. Instead of always attacking, sometimes he must withdraw. He takes up her advice and it soon becomes painful that Aki too is ignoring him. Is this the end? Then one day she angrily confronts him. She then struggles with him until she blurts out she can’t understand him. At this point, her face is red flushed in embarrassment. It is what Masamune has been waiting for. The moment she has fallen for him. Unfortunately he hasn’t thought out this far and runs away! Wasted chance! So he runs to Yoshino to brainstorm for ideas. She suggests writing a letter since he might screw up orally. However Aki catches him trying to put his letter in her shoe locker. She throws it away and hates him! She can’t fool him any longer! Eh? What just happened? Is she playing hard to get? Is this how tsundere works? Flashback reveals when Masamune fled, Aki followed him and saw him with Yoshino. She thinks he is secretly seeing her behind her back. You can bet she is mad about him seeing he tried to ask her out many times. When she confronts Yoshino, she did admit that Masamune did contact her but for some meeting. Yoshino uses her magic to assure Masamune only has eyes for her and that she too likes him. Aki is a bit confused, though. Something about she would never fall in love with a boy again after that horrendous past. Aki walks home irritated. Thinking about the fact she hurt others so she won’t get herself hurt. She is unsure if Masamune actually likes her. Too deep in thought that she didn’t keep her eyes on the road. She would have been run over by a car had not Masamune saved her. Including a nice lecture on why her life matters most to him because he can’t live without her. At this point the atmosphere between them is good. Could have been the most romantic scene so far had not the driver interrupted to check on whether she is okay. It took her this long? But the moment she sees Masamune, she thanks God fate has allowed her to see him. She hugs him! Who the heck is this chick?!

Episode 5
Masamune thinks she has got the wrong person. But she did get his name right. Before anything else could happen, her bodyguard, Shidou reminds her it is time to go. Masamune has lots of thinking to do. He thinks of making it up to Aki but it seems she has ordered Yoshino to not let him go near her. If he does, fire away those ball bearings! Yoshino can tell something has happened so Masamune explains. He thinks Yoshino has abandoned him when she goes away. Not like he was going to count on her in the end. Masamune continues to crack his head on who that chick is. But it gets very cliché now since that girl, Neko Fujinomiya is a new transfer student in his class! During the break, he wants to go talk to her but all the girls swarm around her. So when he finally manages to do so, all the girls have already heard that Neko transferred here because of him. She feels indebted to him. 3 years ago when she was out in the cold on Christmas soliciting for donations, Masamune was a kind spirit to give his coat and donated a nice sum. Masamune quickly takes her away to talk because he knows there is something wrong. 3 years ago he was still a fatty. That was a lie concocted by Neko. The truth is embarrassing and she would rather keep it that away, though it still doesn’t change the fact she admires him. As Masamune still has revenge on his mind, he has to turn down her confession. She feels frustrated but pries more about the girl he likes. Heck, why does he even need to show her who Aki is? Because now Neko boldly confronts her in class. But before anything untoward can happen, the wind blew up her skirt and they saw her wearing no panties!!! Anyway, Aki is still mad and leaves. Masamune catches up and tries to explain but she is not open for discussion. A little struggle ensues and she accidentally punches the teacher. Now they’ve earned a pool cleaning job. They’re still arguing, though. With Aki obviously trying to get back at him by splashing a bucket of water. Since it is too heavy she falls into the pool. Thinking she is drowning, he dives in but she is fine. More argument as Masamune tries to nail it to her that he likes her. He isn’t expecting it will get through to her but she tells him to prove it. With a kiss.

Episode 6
Masamune wonders if he should go ahead with the kiss because this is supposed to be the final big stage where he dumps her. Desperate not to lose her attention, he grabs her and is about to kiss but she baulks and punches him. Nice uppercut. Before anything else can happen, Futaba and her swimming club are here to practice. Later Neko finds Masamune and has lunch with him. She is very particular about her nutrients so bear with her weird health food. He thought he can shoot her down with whatever questions but instead he is taken in by her words that he doesn’t realize his own charms. Yoshino follows Neko because she senses this woman is dangerous and the need to take her down. However it is Yoshino who gets caught. Despite playing the retard, Neko tells her to stop the charade. Masamune returns home only to his shock to see Yoshino and Neko helping his loli mom, Kinue (I thought she was his kindergarten sister???!!!) in the kitchen. Turns out Kinue stumbled upon them in the streets and invited them for dinner because they were wearing the same school uniform as her son. So she picks up anybody just like that? Yoshino and Neko get a glimpse of his room filled with weight lifting machines. Masamune thought Neko is trying to flirt with him but manages to resist. He had to put a stop to his younger sister, Chinatsu who can’t believe he brought home female friends from spilling out about his fatty past. After dinner, the girls even get dressed in yukata to play fireworks. This haunts Yoshino because Aki used to strap her to one and blast off. Then there’s this watermelon spitting contest between Kinue and Chinatsu. Don’t even ask… With Neko looking cute, Masamune wonders if he would have fallen for her if not for his revenge plot. After everything is done, Yoshino warns him not to get caught up in Neko’s pace. He is sure he isn’t. Seems there is more than meets the eye because Kinue is glad to have met Neko again after all these years and Neko is in possession of a picture of young chubby Masamune with Aki. Masamune tries to use Neko’s words to charm Aki. Not moved. In fact it makes him look like a moron. Don’t come crying to Yoshino…

Episode 7
Aki is furious that Masamune has put an invitation on her desk for a summer break at Okinawa. However his grand plan falls apart when she says she will be spending her holidays at her own island villa and will be bringing along Kojuurou! Luckily that guy panics and won’t go unless Masamune is with him (gay moment?). Masamune takes advantage of this to invite them or nothing. Because of that, Neko also wants in. And so does Futaba. Aki has no choice but to bring them all along. But Yoshino warns Masamune that he must get some results on this trip or else she will tell Aki everything they have been up to! On Tsunade Island, they are welcomed by Midori Yuisaki who is the secretary of Aki’s dad (and just off being dumped by her boyfriend). Masamune thinks fast to produce a shocking result. He proclaims he is Aki’s boyfriend! Embarrassed Aki throws her luggage in his face. His gamble pays off because she has to maintain her image in front of others and didn’t go berserk. On the beach, Neko tries to flirt with him but Aki surprisingly breaks them up. She warns her not to give Neko the wrong idea since they are ‘dating’ and also be careful not to be the one to be played out. In the eyes of others, they look like a normal couple. But away from it all, Aki treats him as a slave. So go bring her food. Yuisaki is very suspicious of Masamune as Aki’s boyfriend. When she started working as the family’s secretary (fresh off from being dumped by her boyfriend too), she witnessed countless times her ruthless rejection of men. She loves her evil man-hating aura. That is why she wants to know what makes Masamune different and expose him. That night the gang play kimodameshi. Masamune knows the order is rigged and his plan to save Aki at the crucial timing when she is too scared to move. On the other hand, Yuisaki also plans to expose the coward in him by scaring him in front of Aki. Things move smoothly until Yuisaki gets scared by Jason and his chainsaw!!! OMG! So scary!!! Actually it’s Yoshino but it’s too dark to see anyway. She runs away and passes Aki, both scaring the sh*t out of each other. Then she runs out and unwittingly scares the rest before being knocked out by running into a pole. When she wakes up, she is surprised Masamune is carrying her. Yuisaki now has a good impression of Masamune as he explains how much he wants to care for Aki. She feels bad for being prejudicial against him.

Episode 8
Masamune surprisingly gets a call from Aki to meet up since he forgot to take a luggage back from the island. He realizes his photo is missing. Thinking back, he believes Neko stole it. So while out with Aki, he can’t help think deeply why Neko did this. This means his revenge scheme is in danger. Too deep in his thoughts that Aki got fed up and left him stranded. Like he got dumped, eh? Shortly, he gets a call from Neko inviting him to her place. On pretence to go to the bathroom, he searches her room but is discovered. When he asks her a series of questions, it seems she is admitting to sneaking into his room. She also admits she took the photo. It’s right here. In her cleavage. Is his plan busted? However she finds his fatty version cute. This throws him off. He is paralyzed that a girl would actually say this to him. Because of that, Neko kisses him. Things are about to get steamy but Masamune could only think of Aki. Then he explains how he was bullied. It was partly his fault since he too was a brat used money to show off. Comparing Neko to Aki, he tells her he can’t go further if she is not serious. He takes his photo back and leaves. Neko is left heart broken in her dark room. Next day, the friends are supposed to meet up with Futaba as she invited them to the pool. Masamune feels awkward to face Neko but Futaba says she isn’t coming because she called in this morning to cancel. Nothing much happens during the pool but on their way home, Shidou suddenly confronts Masamune, mad that he might have done something to Neko. She is now missing. Masamune didn’t think she would have ran far but Shidou scolds him for being close to her and yet not know about her medical condition. She left them all behind. So all those nutrients were actually her medication? Wow. She is really one sick girl. And yet she puts up this façade that she is such a nice girl. Must be hard. Shidou demands Masamune for an explanation because he knows he was at her place last night. Busted. In a pinch, he says he was there to decline going out with Neko. Because he chose Aki.

Episode 9
They split up to find Neko but she is nowhere in sight. Masamune and Aki get the same idea that she might be at school. It gets awkward between them. Especially Aki commenting about him rejecting Neko and that she felt bad for her. This makes him mad thinking she doesn’t think guys have feelings too. He wants to tell her his nickname but a paper airplane interrupt. He realizes Neko is on the rooftop trying to imitate a popular romance manga. He manages to catch her before she collapses. She recovers well at the hospital. After speaking to Aki, she summons Masamune to talk privately. Flashback reveals she has a certain illness that needs to undergo surgery otherwise she risks death. She agreed to grandpa’s suggestion in trying it out with a condition that she wants to fall in love. So the truth is, she picked from several pictures of potential suitors and Masamune happened to ‘won the lottery’. You can thank his loli mom for submitting his photo. Neko might be sad over her one-sided love but she has no regrets. She was able to experience them first hand. The talk must be so long that for the others waiting outside, Futaba admits she actually likes Masamune! But she feels glad she didn’t confess and kept it to herself because they get to stay friends. When Masamune comes out, he ignores everybody and just goes straight home so that he could pack his bags and redo his training. He isn’t going to waver now and keep pushing his revenge plan. Mom thought he was running away from home… Neko has another precious photo. A picture of young fat Masamune with her together in a family group photo when their parents hosted a party. Aki on the other hand thinks a lot on what Neko told her to not act tough. Was there a reason for her to deny his love because he sincerely loves her? As she cracks her head pondering if she should fall for him, a short chubby boy pops up. He knows her. She instantly recognizes him as Masamune. Wait. What?!

Episode 10
Actually he is Kanetsugu Gasou and his nickname is Masamune. He has a letter from grandpa stating that Aki will marry into his family. Thus he is now a guest in Aki’s home. The new school term starts. Aki already rejects the first guy bold and dumb enough to ask her. Her lackeys, Mari Mizuno, Sonoka Kaneko and Kikune Kiba although aren’t happy Aki seems to be spending less time with them and more with Masamune, when they see Kanetsugu with her they think she will outright reject him. Didn’t. Shock! Seems Kanetsugu will also transfer to this school. Masamune is shocked to see Neko in class. Apparently she went for surgery overseas, took a month to recover and just return. She is somewhat upset that there was no progress between Masamune and Aki. How can he when his thoughts were worried about her? When Masamune goes to see Aki, he is shocked to see her with Kanetsugu. Even more shocking to know he is her betrothed! Time to bug Yoshino-sama but there is nothing she can do too as she just found out about this and perhaps Aki really likes him? Unacceptable! Masamune observes Kanetsugu and despite his less than appealing appearance, he is good in sports, good in studies and a nice personality that blends easily with others. But the biggest problem is him being close to Aki. While Aki’s lackeys lament the fading vision of their yuri garden, they stumble into Kanetsugu and want to teach him a lesson but he is here to clear something up with them. Futaba wants the class to do a play for the cultural festival. Kojuurou will be Snow White and Masamune the prince. Unanimous vote! But Masamune has got more urgent problems on his mind. He tries to impose on Aki when Kanetsugu is not around but she gives him the cold shoulder. The lackeys watching this vow to protect Aki from this beast. Flashback shows Kanetsugu revealing he doesn’t want to marry Aki. Although he likes her, he views her as a goddess and doesn’t even think of touching or kissing her. He knows his place. WTF?! Because Aki’s class is also doing Snow White, Sonoka who is part of the student council vetoes to have Aki’s class do the play. When Futaba learns of this, she ends up with a showdown with Aki. Please note Aki is the Snow White and Kanetsugu is the prince. So we have both messed up plays. One with a fat prince and the other with 2 guys in the leading roles. Before their showdown can get heated, Aki backs down like a docile hamster heeding Kanetsugu’s words to be considerate. Masamune suggests the winner decided via popular vote. Of course he adds another condition for Kanetsugu. The winner gets to dance with someone at the post-festival party. You’re on.

Episode 11
Futaba turns into a hell director as she tries to shape up Kojuurou into a princess. Well, she did succeed in making him run away and cry like a girl. Thanks to Neko’s kindness, could it be that Kojuurou has fallen for her? Meanwhile Kanetsugu reveals to us about his ‘special’ position with Aki. His family is very poor and he has been tasked to pull them out of the doldrums. Some adults they are whoever forced this responsibility on him. So during one of Aki’s family parties, Yuisaki mistakes Kanetsugu to be fatty Masamune. He decided to play along. Masamune catches a bit of a cold because he has been training last night. Shirtless. After Neko guides him to rest at the infirmary, later on he is then missing. Oh, now it is his turn to go missing. Since their play is in the afternoon, they start looking around for him. Masamune has been kidnapped by Kikune who is tasked to watch over him till the festival is over. However it seems that the other class has problems because Kanetsugu is also missing! Apparently he was looking for a place to change. Yoshino (disguised as a witch) guided him to some room and locked him in there. Kikune forces Masamune to listen to her flashback why she sucks up to Aki. There was this one senior guy whom she couldn’t beat in kendo because he always cheated. One day he confessed to Aki but she shot him down and defeated him without even touching him. Kikune became impressed and followed her. However Masamune points out that what they are doing is no different than her senior as they are being sneaky. Kikune falls for the bait and feels guilty. She soon gets a call by Mari who wants to speak to Masamune. She thinks Kanetsugu gone is his doing. She wants to call this a draw. Masamune doesn’t have the details but he believes Yoshino has done something. He uses this to his advantage and won’t back down, claiming their class is the one going up first. When Kikune thinks Masamune planned this out too, she attacks him. Is Masamune going to jump from the window many floors down? He hangs on the ledge and lets her jump through. Don’t worry. Fountain below. Masamune explains to Futaba and Kojuurou what has happened. He thinks everything is settled but they find it strange because Aki’s class play is now running. So they’re starting without a prince? Well, Aki decided to go ahead without one. She never thought of relying on a prince in the first place.

Episode 12
The play is already underway. After hearing from Mari about Aki’s resolve, Masamune can’t let it end just like that. He needs to call Yoshino to call off her whatever plan but she is on stage performing. In that case, there is only one way left. One that makes Neko sad. Can you guess what it is? After seeking Mari’s permission, Masamune goes up on stage as the replacement prince! He is nervous and his fever is preventing him from being 100% cool. He sums up his courage to finally give us the moment we all have been waiting for: A kiss with Snow White! But it’s taking a bit long so surprised Aki punches him. The gang head for a karaoke party to celebrate the success of their festival. Aki’s class wins by default since Masamune’s class play was cancelled. Though, Aki and Masamune won the best actress and actor award respectively. Only Futaba is sad because all her hard work was not put into used. Though Kanetsugu offer to replace Masamune’s part, it seems Futaba will not allow anybody but Masamune to pair up with Kojuurou! They take turns singing with Aki of course being good enough to make her lackeys cry. Neko must be hinting something when she sings a breakup song. Yoshino sounds so monotonous as though she is singing for a funeral! Sonoka and Kikune think Masamune’s weakness is karaoke since he is acting strange (actually it’s the awkwardness of sitting next to Neko). So they confront him when he excuses himself to the toilet but luckily Aki tells them not to bully him. Is she concerned about him? Actually she just came out to eat. Neko and Aki sing a beautiful duet together before Masamune ends it. Because he is so freaking horrible that everybody almost died!!! Even the computer can’t calculate his score! Oh, but he manages to burn a few calories? After everyone has left, Masamune and Aki hang out for a while. She hints of wanting to repay what he did at the festival. He suggests she kiss him. Wait. She agrees?! Close your eyes… But we all should know better that Aki was just trolling as she puts a sweet potato in his mouth. Disappointed? Yoshino chides Masamune for wasting this chance to get his revenge and kill it off. Now he has to wait longer. Don’t worry. There’s this upcoming class trip to Paris. Yeah, what a better way than to exact his revenge plan in the city of love.

Revenge Is A Dish Best Served Smokin’ Hot And Sugary Sweet
Sighs… Why did it end so ‘abruptly’? Sure, I was caught in the pace of whatever silly things they were doing that I nearly forgot he was supposed to get his revenge on Aki. But whatever. So to justify the end of the season, thus we get one lousy kiss? And that doesn’t really count because it was just a play on stage. But a kiss is still a kiss in Casablanca. Oh heck, next trip is Paris, France not Morocco… Sorry, bad joke.

There seems to be a lot of missed potentials and developments here. Perhaps a dozen of episodes are not enough to justify the growth of the plot and the characters thrown into the mix and so far that have been introduced to us. I don’t know. By the time the series ended, I felt that a lot of potentials were wasted and the plot was taking somewhat a long detour or perhaps getting lost. Funny thing is that I didn’t expect Masamune to exact his revenge by the time the series ends because that would mean rushing things and sacrificing everything else. However at the same time everything doesn’t seem to move and gets distracted by other characters and their shenanigans. For example in the latter half of the series whereby Masamune has to deal with Neko and then the sudden appearance of rival Kanetsugu. Some of the characters like Aki and Kanetsugu have interesting pasts which need to be further explored but for this season they’re just scratching the surface and nothing more.

Thus the characters themselves are a hit and miss. Owing to the nature of this series, there would be a few characters tossed into the pool to spice things up instead of flogging a dead horse of showing from start to finish Masamune trying to use his not-so-charming charms to get right into Aki’s heart but at the same time Aki plays the stubborn mule because of her past and pride. Each of them has some sort of issue in the past that brings them to this ‘complicated’ relationship mix but nothing quite very deep as they are mostly snippets of flashbacks. For example, Neko and her whatever illness. They try to make her a mysterious girl seemingly hiding behind an eternal smile and her excessive medication dosage to hint something. And then when they unravel her background, it was just this simple and even simpler when she just went for the surgery and came back alive. Like as though it was nothing harrowing. Okay, so we didn’t get to see this part but you get what I mean. As if they needed to get her story out of the way quickly since they need to move on and the series is coming to an end. At least for this season.

Masamune as a smoking hot handsome hunk seems like he can do no wrong as the main protagonist simply because he is a smoking hot handsome hunk. Yeah, those abs just sealed it. It might not be a laughing matter but to realize his only goal in life is to steal Aki’s heart and then dump her at the right moment feels unnerving. In the sense that after he successfully dumps her, what next in life? Because at this point in moment his life’s goal is just that and nothing else. Aside from the usual workout to lose any fats. So would his life become empty once he accomplished his mission? Unless Aki really is a tough nut to crack and this would go on well into their twilight years. Man, I don’t want to stick around that long for a revenge story.

Aki is portrayed as b*tch to make viewers spite her as much as possible without having her to become one of the most vilest and hated characters in anime history. Heh. There are much worst b*tches than her I’ve seen. Clearly Aki has her own past issues to deal with, the reason she acts so and playing hard to get. However like any normal girl her age, with such a cool handsome guy trying to hit on her, resisting would be very hard to do unless you’re a lesbian, which clearly Aki isn’t. At least from what we can see. We also don’t see much of her past and how she ended so that would have given us better understanding of her character. It is mostly just short snippets of her younger days and nothing more. Sometimes she plays hard to get and at times she is just confused about her feelings. I am putting my money that Masamune’s revenge plan would fail because my guts are telling me that the duo would eventually fall in love. I mean, this is how it is supposed to turn out in reel life, right?!

Yoshino feels like she has a hidden agenda in helping Masamune. Because of her poker face and her ability to act as a retard perfectly, it is sometimes hard to tell what she intends if she really wants the best for Aki to re-examine herself. Maybe there is a thicker revenge plot lurking behind that we just don’t know and she might be using Masamune as a puppet to further her own ulterior motive. Don’t say. You will never know. Futaba and Kojuurou feel like adding up for the numbers although at this point they don’t really influence and impact the overall direction of the plot. Kanetsugu also feels like a shady guy seeing that it looks like he is after Aki for her wealth based on his background. If he ends up pairing with Aki, it would be like beauty and the beast. Heh. It shows that even short fat guys can be winners. But don’t be too quick to judge either. I’m also betting that he would slowly develop to love Aki for real and hence the real competition between the Masamunes.

I thought this series would end up being somewhat a harem because the main female quartet I suspect have a thing for him. The obvious ones are Neko and Futaba who sadly is just unrequited love. She might be watching from the sides but who knows when she’ll become assertive if the rest slips up. Then you have Aki being like a potential tsundere and maybe Yoshino is helping out Masamune is actually because she likes him! Gasp! Didn’t see that coming? And Kojuurou is one of those characters whom you can’t discern if he is a boy or girl. Despite being told he is a boy, over the years we have learnt to develop some kind of scepticism that maybe he could be just trolling us. I mean, even during pool and beach scenes, this guy is never shirtless, giving us the possibility that he might still be a flat chested girl. Because if he acts like a girl (almost) and sounds like a girl, then it must be… Surprisingly I didn’t really expect for Kojuurou to develop feelings for Neko although this is only hinted. Like as though we need to give Neko some sort of consolation and that Kojuurou isn’t some supporting sidekick and has the right to like somebody too. And of course to prove that he isn’t just yaoi fodder with Masamune for fujoshi girls. Funny, because Futaba seems to be one as she doesn’t pass up the chance to fantasize about them and yet still harbours a one-sided crush on Masamune. Maybe that is her consolation for not being able to be Masamune’s girl. And there’s the yuri side of Aki’s lackeys but they’re unimportant…

Chinatsu and Kinue aren’t really pivotal to the overall plot (as of yet) but the only fact that they appear here is so that we could be stunned and dumbfounded at the loli mother Kinue is. I know this is anime where middle aged mothers can look like a kindergarten child. She isn’t the first, though (see Okusama Ga Seitokaichou, Takamiya Nasuno Desu and Mikakunin De Shinkoukei for loli mom reference). You thought she has shrunk over the ages but take a closer look in flashbacks and past photos. She looks exactly the same! Maybe she has that kind of condition that makes her unable to grow past her kiddie size. Yeah, anime misappropriate that look. Anyway it is just freaking weird to have a mother that looks and acts like a child. Literally you could say she never grew up. It makes you wonder if her husband has been mistakenly arrested for dating a loli. Worse, can you imagine that small body size giving birth to healthy ordinary children?!

The artwork and animation style is pretty standard conforming to our bishoujo and bishonen expectations. Animated by Silver Link, a veteran anime studio who has brought a handful of animes with similar bishoujo and bishonen content like Strike The Blood, Kokoro Connect, Ange Vierge and Rakudai Kishi No Cavalry. Although the series doesn’t spam fanservice all the time, there are a few sparingly across the series. Some more obvious like Yoshino’s retard tripping that reveals her full blown glorious pantsu shot. Others are a bit subtle but still obvious enough like Neko’s cleavage and a scene whereby the girls are changing. Is it me or does Yoshino look a bit like Midori from Hibike! Euphonium? Just take away the emotions and you have Aki’s personal maid-cum-attendant.

In the voice acting department, nothing much to shout about with me recognizing Saori Hayami as Kojuurou, Yui Ogura as Kinue and Ami Koshimizu as Yuisaki. I thought Mari sounded very familiar and it took me a while to realize that it was Satomi Satou behind it. It is hard to recognize her if she doesn’t put up her trademark dreamy voice and instead go into full serious mode. I don’t know why but I thought it was Eri Kitamura behind Aki’s voice despite at many points I am sure it wasn’t her. Turns out it was Ayaka Ohashi (Yayaka in Flip Flappers). Natsuki Hanae as Masamune on the other hand sounds so much like his other character, Qwenthur from Heavy Object.

The other casts are Inori Minase as Yoshino (Chino in Gochuumon Wa Usagi Desu Ka), Suzuko Mimori as Neko (Umi in Love Live), Mitsuki Saiga as Kanetsugu (Phantom in MAR), Azusa Tadokoro as Futaba (Kotori in Gokukoku No Brynhildr), You Taichi as Shidou (Anzu in Prison School), Kanae Itou as Kikune (Sanae in Shinryaku! Ika Musume), Mariya Ise as Sonoka (Levi in Fairy Tail) and Asuka Oogame as Chinatsu (Daidalos in Sora No Otoshimono). The opening theme, Wagamama Mirror Heart by Ayaka Ohashi is rather okay as a lively anime pop while the ending theme, Elemental World by ChouCho is also another anime pop piece albeit at a more moderate pace.

Overall, we know this isn’t really a revenge story but a blossoming love comedy romance. It might look like the end goal of Masamune’s Dead Or Love Plan is to dump Aki but if you examine closer, all both sides want are just to be loved and somebody to love. The fear of rejection twisted and made things complicated. And the irony of not judging a book by its cover but we see Masamune toning up to shape and Aki being the natural beauty she is makes it even more relatable because naturally we are attracted to what is beautiful even if beauty standards are a social construct. So what do you say in giving this series a chance? It might have characters and plots that leave more to be desired but maybe this isn’t a cold and bitter dish called revenge in the first place. Bitter melon salad anyone? Ugh… At least it doesn’t leave a bad aftertaste I’m fine with that.

Blue Gender

Imagine yourself putting yourself to sleep in a cryogenic freezer in hopes to see a better world in the future. And when that supposed time came, all you see is destruction and overrun by aliens. Is this the future you sign up for? Oh hell. This is reality. Deal with it! This is the case for our main protagonist in Blue Gender. He has an incurable disease that current medical technology cannot cure so he undergoes a programme in hopes the future will hold a key to save his life. Should have wished he slept forever because now it has turned into a hell hole and a survival mode set on the most difficult level ever.

Episode 1: One Day
Yuji Kaido wakes up in a daze and confused. He has been sleeping in some chamber and several men are trying to transport him out. They are then attacked and devoured by a bug monster. Yuji is of course terrified as he climbs out of the chamber. He could have been its next meal had not a mecha ally save him. But since he doesn’t know if this is friend or foe, he runs away. His memories slowly come back as he looks around his dystopian surrounding. Wasn’t Japan a pretty normal place? Oh yeah. The doctor told him he had an incurable disease. He and a few other patients underwent some genome therapy. Something about the current medical technology isn’t available to cure them so they are put to sleep and to be waken up several years later. Well, looks like Yuji woke up to a nightmare. He might want to go back to sleep… Because monster bugs eat and spit out humans like giant cabbage balls! He further remembers his best friend Takashi promised to take him to a faraway trip the next time he wakes up. Wanna bet he is already in a ‘faraway place’ right now? Just kidding. Another bug attacks. Luckily mecha ally saves the day. This time Yuji sees the pilot’s face. Marlene Angel and she is human. Thank goodness, right? She has him follow her orders if he wants to live. More bugs invade. Luckily her comrades, Keith Bean and Joey Heald jump in to help kick bug ass. Once the rest of the team arrives, they bomb the entire facility as they make their escape. Yuji has some questions. Marlene answers them. This is the year 20131. Those monsters are called Blue, a mysterious lifeform that is a threat to mankind.

Episode 2: Cry
While they rest and eat, Yuji learns that there were orders to retrieve Sleeper samples like him. Luckily Yuji as the only surviving Sleeper left because had there been no survivors, the team would have been abandoned. Yuji becomes mad because he didn’t want to wake up to this nightmare. I suppose a few more explanations to calm him down? It is unknown how long Blue existed but their existence was confirmed in 2017. At first they thought it is some biological weapon created by a rogue nation but they soon turn out different. They are attracted to human civilization to feed on them. Before you know it, Earth has become their nesting ground. Blue has also evolved in their own ways. When humans ran out of place to hide, the survivors are now living in space orbiting the planet, Second Earth. The team is to wait for pickup orders. Yuji is still not happy and would rather continue sleeping? Or would he rather die? Marlene tells him off he is free to die. But till she clears her orders to bring him back to the space station, he must live. As the team prepares to take off at the sea airport, Yuji sees many other Sleepers. Apparently there are quite a few around the country and other teams have orders to retrieve them. Guess what? Yuji wants to wake them all up! WTF?! He himself didn’t want to wake up to this nightmare and now he wants to let other Sleepers experience this nightmare?! Oh yeah, Blue now attacks. Such great timing. This surprise attack results in lots of casualties. And Yuji still wants to wake up those Sleepers? Marlene, please slap this guy to his senses. Thank you. Let’s go. Eventually they manage to take flight. Too bad other Sleepers perished. Good news? Perished in their sleep. Sorry, my bad. Yuji is still angry he would rather die than wake up to this nightmare. But then he changes his mind he doesn’t want to lose to these bugs.

Episode 3: Trial
With the rise in activity of Blue, they have to take a detour to meet up with the recovery team. They are still being attacked. Since Yuji is still chicken sh*t, in the aftermath he wants to learn how to fight to be of use. But Marlene is against it since she won’t jeopardize the mission. Joey wants to give Yuji a chance since they are short on men so Marlene will only allow 3 days. I hope that’s enough time. Luckily Yuji has some talent. Then there is this weird moment whereby Joey is humming a song Yuji’s mom once sang to him. It’s nostalgic. Strange to hear both guys hum a strange tune… Next day when they are to depart to sea, another Blue wave attacks. Yuji and Joey team up in their mecha to fight but Yuji still has some fear. Okay, make that lots of fear. Their mecha is knocked down and despite Yuji trying to draw his will to live, he is still pissing in his pants when the Blue is trying to rip open the mecha. Again he needs Marlene to save his ass while he conveniently faints. When he wakes up, the team is starting to depart. He goes to join Joey fixing the mecha. And they hum that weird tune together… Why do I find this creepier than Blue?

Episode 4: Agony
When they arrive in Korea, it seems the entire recovery team is wiped out. They need to find a way to contact Second Earth now. As they move along, Yuji spots a young girl, Yung and her dog being cornered by a Blue. The team ignores his plea to go rescue her so Yuji jumps out to go kill the Blue. Wow. His first kill! Proud, aren’t you? But Marlene slaps him because this would only attract more Blue. For the time being they have to camp here so they follow Yung to some secret hideout where there are other survivors. Yuji is so happy to see others but it seems they aren’t too happy to see them. Yuji disobeys orders as he follows Yung deeper. He sees more people suffering. Can his heart take it? A man tells Yung not to listen to Yuji because people from Second Earth cannot be trusted. When Yuji returns to camp, he demands answers about the people’s condition here. Marlene explains due to limited resources of Second Earth, only those who are picked get to live there. Those left behind are assumed dead. In short, they were abandoned. Don’t tell me Yuji is going to try and save them all? So that night as he sits alone in agony, Yung comes to offer him her food! He isn’t so bad to eat them. Just take one and give back the rest to her. Yung finds him different from the rest so he explains he is from another era. An era where he looked to the future with hope. Safe to say this isn’t the future he was looking for. He promises to save her. He has an idea to contact Second Earth and show them this place’s condition. Then they’ll send a rescue party. Did he lose heart when he returns to camp because he sees Joey and Marlene having sex! Next day, they move out and storm a telecommunications tower. It’s their only chance to contact with Second Earth. But will everything still be working because it is now a nesting for Blue. Oh, they get to witness one hatching right now. It has evolved too!

Episode 5: Priority
Knowing just hatched Blue won’t attack them, they head to the communication room. Surprisingly it is still working although the interference is great. It seems the Russian picks them up so this is their next destination. Apparently the evolved Blue attack them. Marlene is injured but not as bad as Joey. Oddly, this guy asks Yuji if he remembers their friendship song before he dies! WTF?! No wonder Yuji is so traumatized. And Marlene acts like she doesn’t give a damn about Joey’s death. Then they go blow up the bridge which is the only way to get to the secret hideout. Apparently Blue in this area can’t fly or swim but they sure can make their own bridge! Yuji is not happy Marlene plans to use the survivors as bait to lure Blue to a certain area and wipe them out. If he has a better way to save them, please say so. The assault begins and all seems going well till there are too many Blue overrunning the place. All the survivors get killed or eaten. Strangely, Yuji and Yung stare at each other before he sees her being killed before her eyes. WTF. The commander is going to sacrifice himself to blow up the place to take Blue along with him. He tells Marlene to complete her mission to return Yuji. After the big explosion, Yuji becomes sad that he couldn’t save Yung.

Episode 6: Relation
As they trek through the highlands, Yuji still can’t get over Yung’s death. Marlene tells him those people were doomed from the start and that there was nothing they could do. This makes him even mad as he thinks she thinks nothing of those lives. He wants her to spit out the truth she loves Joey because he saw them making out that night. Marlene brushes it off as anything scandalous. Because they don’t know when they will die, it is only right they want to do things that feel alive. They are living in a different time and Yuji’s old values don’t mean anything. They take shelter from the cold as Marlene huddles close to him for body warmth. This didn’t give sweet dreams to Yuji, though. Instead he has Blue nightmare and wakes up in cold sweat. At least he is glad he is still alive. Continuing their trek, Marlene seems tired and slips off the ledge. Luckily Yuji catches her. She feels like she owes him but after all she has done to save him, he calls it even. Suddenly it’s like Yuji has a change in character as he becomes positive! He tells about his promise with Takashi and has hope he might be on Second Earth. She dismisses it due to the selection process. She adds she wasn’t selected too but rather picked up by a rescue squad during another attack wave from Blue. Her hatred for Blue who killed her parents made her trained hard and became a top military student. She also had to learn about ‘survival’ because men forced themselves on her and called it some sort of charm to make it back alive. She likes it? Yuji maintains his optimism that he would go all the way to Second Earth. After all, they’ve already come this far. He wants them to get there alive. That’s the buzzword. It makes Marlene happy and kisses him.

Episode 7: Sympathy
They stumble into a mini paradise. An abandoned township to be exact. It’s no surprise they quickly refresh themselves in the pool. But a damn Blue just had to attack. Luckily Marlene wounds it enough so it escapes. A guy named Dice in a mecha came too late. He claims he is the only friend they’ll find around here. Dice seems to take a liking for Yuji as he has him help fix his mecha while he ignores Marlene. When Marlene threatens, he swiftly overpowers her. But since there is a sign that the Blue might be coming back, they quickly make haste. In his hideout, Dice asks if Yuji would stay here a little longer. But Yuji has come this far and he wants to get to the Russian station with her. Dice understands but can’t come along with them since there is something he still has to do. Next morning, it seems Marlene has left in his mecha. Dice deduces she has gone back to that township since it has a supply depot that houses a buggy. True enough she is there but that damn Blue returns to attack. Yuji tries to be a hero and become the decoy. When Dice struggles with it, he wants Yuji to shoot the core. He can’t do it because Dice is dangerously close to it. With Marlene firing away, Yuji just dumps his worries and follows suit. Finally that pesky Blue is dead. Dice pays tribute to a nearby grave and claims his work is done. He is now able to leave this place and join the duo on their journey.

Episode 8: Oasis
Sandstorm. Blue attack. Almost out of ammunition. But what could be worse than all these? Yuji falling off the buggy! Horror! Luckily he is picked up by a nomad tribe. He makes friends with the chief’s daughter, Elena. Wow. Yuji really getting used to the life in the countryside. Heck, there is even time for them to have romance? And when they are about to kiss, a large explosion ruined the moment. Oh. Looks like bad gangs are coming. If you’ve seen Mad Max, you’ll know what I mean. After rounding up the nomads, they claim to be some military unit hunting down Blue. They are short on supplies and want them to hand over whatever they have. When they refuse, they get violent and start ransacking the place. Elena tries to be a hero but gets kidnapped. This forces Yuji to become a hero as he easily hijacks the mecha and fights back till they escape. Despite the day is saved, the nomads now fear Yuji. They even ignore him. Only Elena won’t treat Yuji like sh*t. She goes to be by his side to talk to him. He found a map to the Russian station in the mecha but is now unsure if he would find any answers if he goes there. Elena says he won’t change wherever he goes. She wants him to stay here by her side. It’s easy to convince a man by inviting a kiss. No interruptions this time. And one thing led to another. No wonder Yuji is all smiles next morning. But then he hears motorized sounds coming from a distance. Looks like Marlene and Dice are closing in.

Episode 9: Confirm
Yuji is happy to see Dice and Marlene, vice versa. Marlene doesn’t look too happy to see Elena close to him. After refilling, Marlene wants to continue their journey but Yuji says he is staying. She fires a warning shot and warns him she will drag him by force. Elena dares her to kill them. Yuji protects her. Marlene puts her gun down. What now? Yuji packs up with the nomads and leave, thinking he will be fine with this happy life. A Blue then attacks Marlene and Dice. They are having a hard time fighting it. Yuji could hear the commotion in the back. Now he is in a dilemma if he should go back and help. So he’s not resolved to live to nomad life? Because here he is thinking which woman he should choose. Screw all that because blondes are better. Yuji turns back and this leaves Elena sad and disappointed. Bye. Yuji went back to get the mecha to help fight and destroy the Blue. Then Yuji continues his journey with them to the Russian station. Once arrived, they part ways with Dice.

Episode 10: Tactics
Several Blue try to attack the base but unmanned sentries easily destroy them. If so, why didn’t the entire Earth armed them you ask? Well, they require lots of energy and their range is limited. And now they have a programming bug problem as they cannot distinguish friend or foe and attack the duo. Luckily the guys from the base help them out. The commander explains their next mission to destroy a Blue nesting in the main computer area so they can get the sentries back on their side and blast off to Second Earth. Later Yuji finds another Sleeper. Seamus Han says he was the one who found her. This beautiful angel asleep in a world of her own instead of this filth they are stuck in. He is sad that they cannot be together much longer once he hands her over to Second Earth. He is dismayed those people think of her more than nothing but a lab specimen. This makes Yuji think a lot about his own predicament. Regretting you should have chosen Elena? Next day, the assault begins. Marlene is in a group fending off Blue and the sentries while Yuji is with Han’s team sneaking into the base to hack the terminal. Yuji is really anxious and trying to pressure Han to be faster because Marlene is really in danger with ammo running low. Why don’t you do it yourself? Finally Han overwrites the system. They prepare to blast off but something is wrong. Han has betrayed the team as he is going to blast off alone with his angel.

Episode 11: Go Mad
Suddenly there’s no power. You think Han is stupid for coming back but he knows they can’t kill him as he is the only one who knows how to hack. They go check out the power source and find an evolved Blue feeding on the energy. Now everybody is scared. Nobody knows what to do. They can’t simply fire or risk damage the sensitive controls. And those out there fighting the horde are fast running out of ammo. Han then just loses it. As he tries to pry the bug off, he screams about giving his angel a better life and fate than this hell hole. I guess the bug got fed up of his incessant stabbing on its hard shell so it turns around and sucks the hell out of his life force. And after only Han died, they shoot and kill it. WTF. The rest try to figure out how to restore the power. Yuji wants to go support Marlene despite the commander won’t let him. He punches him and doesn’t care about his operation. He is going to fight. All the fighters in the battlefield have been killed. Marlene is the only one left. She is about to blow up herself but here comes Yuji to the rescue as he commands supporter sentries to aid her. She tries to be a hero that she is prepared to risk her life. All that wavers when Yuji ‘threatens’ he isn’t going to space without her. And so she comes with him and they blast off in the shuttle. Yuji treats her wounds and realizes it is good to be alive. Then he kisses her. Good to be alive indeed. However it is ruined when a Blue parasite using Han’s body attacks. Yuji uses his body to protect Marlene before she finishes it off. True horror for Marlene when she sees his blood floating all over.

Episode 12: Progress
After Yuji rolls into ICU, Marlene is brought to the high council. Guess what? Despite her efforts, they blame her for falling behind schedule and accuse her for making the Sample fight. Despite telling about Yuji’s volunteerism, they think it is fabrication. Then they argue about the Sample condition and how to proceed to the next phase. Anyhow, Marlene is deemed not fit for active squad combat and will be sent for re-education. As she heads to the medical facility for check-up, she goes to find Yuji. She is glad he is still alive although being experimented on. Realizing that the council has deemed her unfit as a soldier, she now needs to prove to them in her on way otherwise because she believes she did nothing wrong. But she gets off on a bad start during the mecha simulation. Because she tries to save the humans, she hesitates. This earns her points deduction. And why does one of the humans have to look like Yung?! Now she spaces out and loses. The drill sergeant, Amick Hendar punches her! Then in the team simulation, against orders to leave the injured teammate behind and get along with the mission, Marlene defies orders to help him while killing Blue along the way. She has got to show everyone this way because this was how she survived with Yuji. Although impressive, they up the difficulty and Marlene loses. She is sent back to the medical facility but she is happy because she can go see Yuji. However he is already gone.

Episode 13: Heresy
Marlene is caught by Amick. She undergoes more training and fails. For some reason, the security around her is lax because Marlene manages to hack and find information on the guy who took Yuji away. He is Seno Miyagi, a director of the military’s science division. Amick picks up her defection and sends an army to intercept her. Marlene is not as dumb as you think, giving the soldiers the runabout. Then she disguise herself as a nurse personnel to get more information on Miyagi. Adding more insult, the soldiers must really not know how Marlene look like because she is extracting data right before them! Worse, Amick and another high profile director, Doug Vreiss are addressing this problem a few feet away! They’re blaming each other that they aren’t supervising Marlene enough but have to solve this problem before the high council discovers it or they’ll be severely punished. While they’re at that, Marlene is already done and is now on her way to experiment room where Miyagi is. It seems his team is experimenting on an evolving Blue which has completely fused with a human body. She takes him hostage back to his room to ask for Yuji’s whereabouts. Since he won’t say, she hacks his computer and access privileges. At this time, the hacking has made her whereabouts known. Amick leads the arrest but after Marlene is done, she short circuits the place and makes her escape. Apparently those dumbs soldiers can’t see in the dark. She runs all the way to the lab where Yuji is but the final hurdle stops her. They have revoke her access privileges. Cornered, I don’t think telling how Yuji is more than just a sample isn’t going to convince them. Before she could be arrested, somebody opens the door to let her in before closing it shut. Inside the lab, Marlene is horrified to see the experiment on Yuji. I don’t think screaming his name would make him wake- Oh wait. It did!

Episode 14: Set
With Yuji waking up, Marlene breaks into the experiment area just to get him. With the high council already noticing this, they bring both Yuji and Marlene in for hearing. They want Marlene to explain her actions and because she stays silent, they mock her for doing this to try and find a sex partner. And when Marlene does break her silence, she says she doesn’t know why she is doing this! All she knows is that she can’t let Yuji be. If that doesn’t sound like love, I don’t know what is. Interestingly, they agree to tell her the truth with a condition that she gives Yuji back unconditionally. Long story short, 2 years ago they discovered data from Sleepers containing some B cells that can activate and produce some antibodies that can wipe out Blue. Combining it with the mecha stimulates the cells further and even heals injuries quickly. Yuji realizes he was once begging for help but now he is going to help the world. Miyagi intercepts and suggests letting Marlene stay with Yuji as it would be interesting to see their interaction. The high council disagrees and as they argue about authority and rights, Yuji makes his offer. He agrees to let them use his body for whatever experiment to fight Blue. However he will accept nobody but Marlene as his partner. Marlene, you look so happy. The high council goes with Miyagi’s suggestion. Yuji and Marlene are taken to a training facility where there are other awakened Sleepers. One of them includes a young girl, Alicia Whistle who is flirting and bugging with Yuji the instant she sees him because she wants to know about life down on Earth. I don’t think it’s pretty. Marlene and Yuji show what they’ve got as they ride the mecha to battle another one. Although impressive, they lost. Noting how impressive their opponent is, they believe he too is a Sleeper. Marlene remembers seeing Tony Frost in the first lab with Yuji.

Episode 15: Calm
In another simulation, Alicia is totally slacking as she watches in awe Yuji and Marlene kick Blue ass. Later Alicia seems to love molesting Marlene’s soft skin. She hints she wants to take Yuji and thinks Marlene is acting dumb since she says she has no feelings whatsoever for him. Says the woman who caused pandemonium throughout the station over a Sample. Yuji talks to Tony. He wonders why he is maintaining his equipment since the mechanics here do a very good job. Tony doesn’t trust anyone. He believes everyone here is not right. His past life on Earth doesn’t mean anything and his goal is to survive. Alicia takes Yuji somewhere. Marlene, you looking worried for a woman who doesn’t care about Yuji… In some dark area, Alicia dropped her bag, asked Yuji to get it and then leaves him to almost fall to his death while she goes spy on something! What is it so interesting that she had to almost kill him? There’s a couple having sex! Apparently everywhere if you take a closer look, there are couples making out! However this isn’t Alicia’s goal as he takes him somewhere else. Somehow they got lost and end up in some restricted area where laser beams are constantly shooting at them. Run! Meanwhile Marlene too is in the midst of getting f*cked. Too bad Yuji is on her mind so she dumps the guy to go look for him. Worried, isn’t she? But she stumbles into Tony and finds out he is trying to hack data on Yuji and Alicia. Too bad he hacked wrongly and the security sounded. Marlene escapes and as she hides, this is where she bumps into Yuji. What are you doing here? Then they see the magnificent view of a sunrise over Earth. Yuji believes this is what Alicia wanted to show him. Speaking of her, she is separated and watching this sunrise elsewhere. And she’s blaming Yuji…

Episode 16: A Sign
Teams are instructed to take down Blue nesting in Africa. However the Blue wave are just too many and the fighters are panicking they have no core to destroy as in their data. Worst, they are ordered to maintain their position instead of retreating and got slaughtered. Now it is time for Yuji and his team to head into a battlefield with a new upgraded mecha. Tony kicks ass and uses his instinct to find and destroy the Blue’s core! Then he goes off by himself to finish a nestling on his own! One man army? Alicia is being a liability, being scared at everything and needs to be saved by Yuji. In the end, Yuji’s team has a new mission. Because the main nesting cannot be destroyed by missile, they are to sneak in and detonate it. Yuji is preoccupied with enhancing his mecha’s performance to stay on par with Tony that he ignores Alicia’s advances. Yo girl, ain’t nobody got time for that! As the mission gets underway, Tony again goes off by himself. Yuji suggests he and Marlene go set the explosives while the rest rendezvous with Tony. Alicia didn’t like that. Who is he to give orders? Yeah, she follows him. So after setting the explosives, they are confronted by the Blue hordes. Yuji tries to be a hero and take them down, thinking he can be Tony’s equal. Yeah, this guy is on fire. Could have been done in had not Marlene saved him. They manage to leave in time before the detonation takes down the nesting. In the aftermath, Tony is reprimanded by the superior. Despite the mission a success, there were so many disobedience. So he thinks he can win the war by himself? Tony just smiles and says back, isn’t that why they woke up Sleepers? Plus, feel free to win the war by themselves if they think they can. Marlene talks to Yuji about his ‘competition’ with Tony. He’s got this inferior complex to him and wants to be stronger to save Earth from Blue.

Episode 17: Eclosion
Yuji’s team are fighting another horde of Blue. This is part of Yuji’s plan of using himself as bait so the rest can destroy the nesting faster and they can all return to Second Earth together. Tony didn’t think he could do it and this pissed him off very much. So they settled it via coin toss and Yuji won. While fighting Blue, Marlene notices Yuji very agitated and trying to rush things. He feels he is responsible for this operation and cannot fail. They stumble into several African kids living in the jungle. Because of incoming Blue, Yuji fires away and doesn’t care about those kids. Marlene tries to make him stop but he won’t let her get in the way. She sees Yuji become a savage taking down a Blue. As they rest at the rendezvous point, Alicia as usual comes to b*tch and flatter how good Yuji is. Marlene isn’t moved because she believes this is not the real Yuji. Alicia thinks she is jealous of him since he is now a better soldier than her. Marlene goes to talk to Yuji but he is obsessed in tweaking his mecha to improve its performance and beat Tony. Yeah, this guy is keeping a score. When she asks about those kids they saw, she is shocked to hear he doesn’t care about them. If they are going to exterminate Blue, they cannot concern themselves with such trivial matters. He believes they will eventually be killed by Blue. As another sortie is alerted, Marlene is shocked and sad to see the gleeful killer look on his face as he suits up to go fight Blue.

Episode 18: Chaos
Marlene wakes up from a nightmare that Yuji ruthlessly kills Blue and even sacrificed her for it. Yuji receives high praises during testing. Because he thinks he has already come this far, instead of testing, he continues to train. Marlene notices Miyagi coming in to see the data of the Sleepers personally. She suspects something amiss because he once said to test out Yuji’s abilities with Marlene by his side but now the environment has totally changed. Fellow comrade Rick thought he could have sex with Marlene but she uses her feminine charms to let him be her donkey to deliver some data to Miyagi. Later Marlene is ‘arrested’ and brought to Miyagi’s secret hideout. He has received her data. Comparing with the earlier data, he realizes the Sleepers’ data has been tampered. The Sleepers’ B cells have a higher value than expected. It seems not only they have superhuman powers, they have this telepathic connection with Blue. This means they can read Blue’s minds and predict their movement. But there is a darker meaning to all this. When B cells first appeared decades ago, there were no treatment and thus those infected reluctantly became Sleepers. Experiments of B cells were conducted on various animals to find a cure but it all backfired. However the B cells evolved and you can say Blue is actually the product of those experiments! This also means Sleepers have a potential to become Blue themselves when their B cells are activated, usually when under stress or being pushed. Yuji is no longer an ordinary human with his B cells slowly taking over, he is becoming more and more like Blue every day. Guess who will occupy Earth when those Blue are eliminated? Marlene disagrees and believes Yuji is human like her. Miyagi is glad he has chosen her. She might get through Yuji via human emotions. That is why he wants her to join his secret organization, Arks to fight against the high council’s plan to progress on this. They will need to remove the high council from their position of influence. The alert is sounded for another mission on Earth. Too bad the soldiers leaves without Marlene. What is just but one solider? Too late to rendezvous with them, Marlene. You are left behind. Screaming Yuji’s name won’t help either because this guy is obsessed in settling his score with Tony for this mission.

Episode 19: Collapse
Marlene still insists on going to save Yuji. Miyagi suggests hijacking the shuttle dock first. So they start raiding and the entire place got locked down. By the time they hijacked the shuttle dock, the high council members have already fled in their comfy ship. Meanwhile Alicia is happy she gets to pair up with Yuji to replace Marlene. Too bad she still slacks. Then she watches in awe as Yuji and Tony are in fierce Blue massacre. Yeah, they’ll eradicate this North American nest in not time. Then it turns to shock as she watches him overkill a dead Blue. He then shoots at her direction without warning when a Blue creeps up on her. She is mad that he could have killed her but he is even madder. Get in the way of his Blue and he’ll shoot you! Oh dear. Is this really the guy you like? Looks like killing Blue only soothes him. Sorry, I take that back. It makes him crazier. So Alicia is wondering if she dump Yuji or not when Tony offers her to join him. Marlene has arrived and sees Yuji in a pinch. Don’t worry. He manages to get out of it and kills all the bugging Blue. Not too sure if she is happy or disappointed. It should be the latter because she could see his madman face. Yeah, killing Blue is like his meth.

Episode 20: Versus
I suppose words aren’t going through Yuji. Because trying to warn him how he’ll turn into something more ferocious than Blue makes him attack her. Not surprisingly he couldn’t finish her off because he knows she is his saviour but also the one who woke him up in this hell hole. Yet he can’t kill her. WTF. He defeats her and then goes off to happily kill more Blue. Thanks to Tony and Alicia going off on their own deep inside the Blue’s nest, the outside teams are having trouble fending off the Blue. Eventually all of them got annihilated. It shows you they’re useless without Sleepers, eh? Meanwhile Miyagi continues his shutdown of all other stations on Second Earth to cut off the lifeline to the high council. Marlene again confronts Yuji and fights him. She is going to do all it takes to stop him. He fires away and when he shoots off her helmet, it seems it makes him remember something. Yuji is defeated in his hesitation but that isn’t enough to stop him. He claims how he lost everything and is alone. Nothing will stand in his way. Blah, blah, blah. Marlene is just sad listening to his drama. Not sure if he is a bad shot or just purposely missing her because she walks closer to him and doesn’t fear being shot. She wants Yuji to return to his original self. There is still hope. So how do you make a man turn back to his old self? Why, you kiss him! A montage of Marlene flashes through his mind. Looks like he calmed down. Even if it is a victory for Marlene, looks like the remaining troops have evacuated and left them stranded.

Episode 21: Joker
Marlene is able to find a working shuttle. She goes to get Yuji but he is still in vegetable state. Meanwhile Miyagi contacts the high council for them to give up. However they tell him they did nothing wrong and something on Miyagi’s part that he did they deflect the blame to him. Also, they threaten the hundreds of sleeping Sleepers in the medical facility that they could dispose of. Because of Miyagi’s humanitarian side, they expect him to give a positive answer and return the military facility back to them. When Tony and Alicia’s shuttle hail Second Earth, Miyagi suddenly orders not to let them in and shuts them out. The high council on the other hand welcome the Sleepers with open arms as they believe their B cells are the only factor to take back Earth. Guess what? Tony and Alicia brought back Blue to invade! The party’s here! Tony then contacts Miyagi to tell about his plans to destroy Second Earth and to prove that all their worst fears are true. Because Blue were evolved by the same B cells like Sleepers, this means Sleepers are also meant to kill humans. Therefore the awakening of Blue was no accident but destiny. Mankind was doomed to be exterminated long before they destroy the planet. To stop Tony from ramming the station into theirs, some troops try to invade. What were they thinking? They became instant Blue fodder! It’s like waiting for their meal to arrive. Gochisousama. Marlene manages to contact Miyagi and been told the atrocity that Tony is trying to commit. This makes Yuji go crazier. Miyagi places his hopes on them to stop Tony. If they fail to stop his madness, they must kill him. That statement somehow calmed Yuji. The thought of killing him… Now he gets serious that he can do it. I don’t know who is crazier at this point.

Episode 22: Dogma
Yuji and Marlene enter the space station. They find Lu Li Chang, the only survivor among the high council cowering and hiding in fear. Even more so when she sees Yuji as she thinks he is like Tony. When they hear something breaking through from the other side of the door, it turns out to be Rick and his team including Lu’s twin sister, Su who has been working for the high council by manipulating data on Sleepers’ performance to deceive Miyagi. They just never thought it would turn out like this. Their priority is to stop Tony and Lu’s guess he would be at the main computer trying to activate the propulsion to move the space station. Yuji, Marlene and Rick make their way there and they are surprised to see Alicia in their way. I guess no use trying to talk to her since she has become something like Tony. But Yuji refuses to give up. I mean, if Marlene managed to get through him, why not the same for Alicia, right? So this guy tries to nicely tell her things but you can see Alicia descending into madness as she blames it all on her jealousy that he prefers Marlene to her. Flashback shows when she was with Tony in that nest, she was freaking scared being surrounded by Blue although they didn’t harm her. Tony then gives her hug a Blue’s egg while telling her how they are the messiah, blah, blah, blah. Alicia must be so grossed out in hugging the egg and that is when she got ‘brainwashed’ and ‘reborn’. Yeah, just an egg… But she has had it and order the Blue to attack and kill everybody. Marlene and Rick fend them off while Yuji is still adamant in trying to get through Alicia but she is throwing tantrums like a child. Rick gets injured after Yuji retrains Alicia. Rick tells Marlene to shoot Alicia. She hesitates since Rick says do it and Yuji says don’t. Yuji stands in between. I suppose he can’t see this coming because Alicia pulls out a knife and is about to stab him when she gets shot. By Rick.

Episode 23: Soliste
Lu and Su have everyone evacuate the space station. After patching up Rick and Alicia, Yuji and Marlene want them to evacuate since they would only be in the way in their fight against Tony. Sad but true. Yuji and Marlene make their way to the main computer and have to fend off automatons sent by Tony. Finally they are outside the room, Yuji must be feeling chivalrous because he signals to Tony that he is here to stop him! So much about any surprise attack. But then again, Tony would have anticipated people trying to stop him. Tony hooks himself up to a computer as Yuji tries to get through his head about him doing this. Tony explains about some grand will that needs to be done and thus Sleepers like him will be the one to carry it out. In short, he views himself as a messiah. Maybe he just wants to do it for himself. I suppose this revelation that B cells were born on Earth and that Earth knew mankind would give birth to Blue by its own hand sounds like crap. So why is Yuji and Marlene looking so shock? Yuji becomes mad when Tony plays footage how other humans continue to be slaughtered by the Blue onslaught. Meanwhile Rick gets killed off by a Blue. Alicia just wakes up and walks away like a boss. After a few struggles, Yuji shoots Tony in the face. Then they regroup with Lu to evacuate and flee the space station as fast as they can as it will soon self-detonate. At this point Yuji realizes Rick and Alicia aren’t on board and fears the worst. Tony isn’t dead. I guess he is really a messiah as he cannot die after taking a few bullets in the face. But before him is Alicia. She thinks they have had enough. Tony is wrong. Screw this grand will thingy. They just woke up too early and should go back to sleep. Tony is looking pretty scared now for a messiah. Alicia hugs him and wishes for Yuji to live. The space station explodes.

Episode 24: Compass
Miyagi is now the new leader as he addresses the crowd of their success and casualties. He explains how every living thing’s cells have this self-destruct order to purge impurities. Therefore those Sleepers with B cells are actually Earth’s way of self-destructing (what Tony called it as its grand will). You serious? Thus he suggests making Second Earth their permanent home because if they try to take back Earth, they’ll only be attacked by more Blue. So sever their ties with Earth and we can live peacefully till kingdom come. You serious? I guess everyone is so tired of thinking and fighting, they just give him a round of applause. However not Yuji. He is now overcome with guilt that he is the same like Tony and didn’t save anyone. Marlene, can you calm this dude down? Amick and Doug are thrown into prison. However Amick escapes by using the oldest trick in the book. Because the stupid guard didn’t see her inside from his peeping hole and unlocked the door to check. She’s hiding behind the door in the blind spot you dimwit! Oh, now he is dead. Amick wanted to kill Doug too but he pleads she needs his help to get out of here for his goal is only to get back at traitor Miyagi. Amick hijacks a ship to return to Earth. She rather die there than in this prison hole to stay true to her principle she has always lived by (to take back Earth, that is). Miyagi lets her go since she isn’t doing harm to others. Although Yuji opposes, here comes Doug to take Miyagi hostage. He tries to get Yuji on his side but when he won’t, he targets Yuji. This gives enough time for Miyagi to shoot him dead. Too bad. Yuji is even more frustrated when Miyagi doesn’t answer his questions. Because of that, he is now feeling guiltier about his existence as a Sleeper and the reason he woke up. Though Marlene is responsible for that, she is glad she did wake him up. From now on, no matter what happens, she wants to always be with him. Enough to calm that guy down. It’s so beautiful when they’re not talking because they have a really long kiss. And then it leads to sex! Are you glad you’re alive now? Nothing beats the blues like sex. But I don’t know if it is a happy thing for Marlene since she’s remembering her past amidst the intercourse.

Episode 25: Adagio
Yuji leads a mission down to South America. They come into contact a village of local tribes and make camp there. Although there is big Blue’s nest nearby, there have been no signs of Blue ever since. Flashback shows Miyagi noticing a migration pattern of Blue all heading towards Guyana. As he doesn’t have enough information to deduce if this is a threat, Yuji volunteers to check it out. From what I understand, it seems Yuji is prepared not to come back to Second Earth too since this place doesn’t have enough supplies. It seems so peaceful and a different form of living as Yuji and Marlene go about their usual activities. One morning she wakes up without Yuji next to her. While finding him, she sees a big trail of destruction. She goes to tell Yuji who is test bombing the nest about it. Accounts from the villagers confirm their reports that Blue were migrating on this trail about 3 months ago. Funny thing is that the trail leads away from the nest. As they follow the trail, it leads them to a deep chasm. Yuji leads half his unit inside while the rest standby outside. They are shocked to stumble corpses of Blue. Marlene thinks this is a Blue graveyard. Could it be that Blue received a suicide order from Earth? Once humans are purged, Blue becomes the main population and because they are the new ‘threat’, Earth gave the order to purge themselves. This sounds so f*cked up but it could be possible. However Yuji doesn’t feel good. He feels a strange force coming deep from this place. Then the ground caves in. They next thing they see is a mysterious energy before them. And a hideous ugly mother Blue emerges. This makes Yuji mad.

Episode 26: Let Me
The Blue is super fast and strong, killing lots of the team. Marlene tries to scan for its core but there is none! Are they screwed? Yuji suggests concentrating on the gaps in its armour and rip it apart from the inside out. Easier said than done since it is still a tough nut to crack. Finally Yuji manages to stick his gun into its mouth and fire away, splattering all its guts and insides. Too bad the casualty list is high. In fact only Yuji and Marlene are left. Better stop Yuji before he goes on a guilt trip blaming himself for the deaths of his men. All that is left is to find the answer in the energy. However he tells Marlene not to come with him. He will go this alone. His reason is because he has the B cells, it is most likely to treat him as a friendly compared to Marlene. Who knows what it will do to her if she steps in. We soon realize why Marlene is desperate to be with Yuji and continue living together. It’s because she’s pregnant! Oh yeah. Don’t want to be alone, right? Don’t want their unborn child to be fatherless, right? So Yuji tries his convincing skills again that he needs to ascertain what Earth wants, if this is going to happen again, etc. He is this doing this for their unborn child. That sealed it. As Marlene heads back out, Yuji climbs and interacts with some weird liquid trying to imitate his movements. Then he enters and once he reaches the core, he becomes one with Earth! Really. He can see everything from anywhere on Earth! Even peeking through the past when humans thrive to the emergence of Blue! Man, this guy is now the 3D Google Maps! Yuji realizes Earth has now been reborn. Meanwhile on Second Earth, all the dying inhabitants become crazy. They rebel against Miyagi and they shoot him to pieces! Violent death! That’s not all! They start killing each other till Second Earth destroys itself! Good riddance? No need to care about them anymore. Not sure death by Blue or this is worse. Marlene anxiously wait for Yuji’s return at the village. Then she is all smiles when he comes back. A big hug and a big kiss. Yuji is glad Marlene is right that they can live a happy life here together.

Blue Haven Is A Place On Earth
Uhm… I don’t know. Doesn’t the ending feel a bit lame? I mean, it is a good ending only because Yuji and Marlene survived all the odds against them to continue to be together in the end. But aside that, everything else feels somewhat rushed. Like how they tried to kill off the madness on Second Earth like as though they don’t want to give a f*ck about them anymore. What a dramatic way to end them. Then what was that understanding Yuji had when he was inside the core? Was it really Earth’s will? Left to viewers’ discretion? Is it puny humans with no B cells can never understand? I can’t believe it. After coming all this way and this is the kind of answer and ending we get? It’s like they ran out of ideas and stopped caring. Overall, this retro piece is still entertaining even though there were a handful of moments that were dumb and didn’t make sense. And yeah, there were quite a few of them like Marlene’s commotion through Second Earth just to get to Yuji. Oh well. All that matters is Yuji and Marlene end up together, right?

I believe that veteran anime viewers would watch this mature sci-fi series for its character development which is heavily focused on Yuji and Marlene. There is certain a lot going on between them and that they have gone through to make steady amounts of development and drive the story forward. We see how events from the start when Yuji was found changed them and the decisions they make that perhaps had an important outcome and bearing of the fate of humanity.

For instance, Yuji started off as a whiny brat whom you will love to slap because he can’t adjust himself and get over the fact that the utopia and hope he had been pining for is long gone and vanished. He also has this empathy to save other humans because he could relate with them. Marlene on the other hand is a typical by-the-book soldier bent on keeping him alive till she completes her mission, hence no unnecessary emotions all the way. The dynamics and interaction between the duo and their journey on Earth as they try to get to Second Earth affected their overall character because by halfway they switch personalities. Marlene is now the one with empathy and compassion while Yuji turned into a heartless competitive I-must-be-number-one jerk. The irony of their existence and relationship is based on one saving the other. Marlene saved Yuji and awakened him. After that it is Yuji’s turn to ‘save’ Marlene during their journey on Earth. Back on Second Earth it is her turn to save him from the unscrupulous high council and self-destruction. And now that they are together, he finally saves both of themselves (if I may so include their unborn child too) from it all in the end.

There are many other characters but they only fulfil their necessary role as given. Like Tony was predictably turning into a mini boss antagonist when he awakened as the destroyer-cum-saviour of mankind. There isn’t much to know about his past because the way they set him up to be the baddie towards the end. Alicia also feels a bit wasted. She was supposed to be Marlene’s love rival but I feel that itself never got off the ground. She does make her little moves but it doesn’t impact on anything in a great way. She is more like observing and wishing she was Yuji’s lover instead as she is more of a useless but lucky girl in the battlefield. It’s a good thing they kill her off with Tony to save the trouble of unnecessary drama should she survive. Because it would be awkwardly painful to see her coming in between Yuji and Marlene at the closing stages when their bond is already at a crucial stage.

For the rest of the other minor characters, you can’t help wonder what happened to them. Because like I’ve said, they somewhat just exist to fulfil their role that would ultimately drive the impact and plot on Yuji and Marlene. So what happened to Dice after he drove them to the Russian space station? Do we not care what happened to him or if he has become Blue fodder? What about Elena? Yuji had sex with her. That has got to be important, right? Oh. Maybe not. I guess her nomad tribe can live off the land. And whatever happened to Amick after she escaped down to Earth? Don’t care, right? She can be Blue food for all we care. Should have been shot with Doug and save us the trouble of thinking about her fate. Just like how they finally did it with the entire Second Earth in the end. Man, I still can’t get this ‘big joke’ out of my head.

If you think about it, the true antagonist of this entire series is planet Earth itself. You think that our planet is just some big rock filled with the right compounds to sustain life but we have all taken granted for it until this anime. Yup. Earth is such as a badass that it can’t take the overpopulation of humans and their wastefulness of resources that it had to go to this elaborated length to just wipe out humans. Yeah, and you thought God exists, eh? And when humans are gone and no longer a sizeable number causing threats, it had the Blue kill itself. Ah, mother Earth can now be filled with the abundance of only Mother Nature. Earth, why you sneaky little piece of rock. Perhaps Earth made Second Earth go berserk and kill themselves too. After all, we shouldn’t underestimate our little blue planet. A handful of natives, a few scattered and abandoned humans as well as main heroes Yuji and Marlene aren’t enough to destroy Earth, right? At least a few centuries later. That will be another story.

One thing I realized while watching the series is the hilarious but unintentional misspelling and bad grammar! I know this series was released right before the turn of the millennium and perhaps at that time Japanese weren’t still very proficient in basic English when it comes to show business. Therefore it is quite funny to see them misspell certain words and the bad grammar that are usually on screen instructions or signs. Making it even funnier and ironic is the fact that the characters in this show are assumed to be non-Japanese. Okay, so they may not be English but thinking about it if they made this simple mistake only makes it feel that such mistakes can only be made by a Japanese who didn’t do much spell checking to begin with and thought it was alright and even in the worst case scenario nobody would noticed. I sure did.

Commenting on the action sequences, they aren’t the most spectacular but they are pretty decent in that era. Be warned that there would be lots of blood, gore and sometimes human bodies being split in half whenever puny humans try to combat the hordes of Blue. Even if blood don’t look as real as today’s standards, at least better than some animes that cut out blood entirely and make it look like as though every kill is empty. Looking at you, Noir…

Art and drawing are of course in retro style. Even if I were to watch it during that era, I believe the animation is pretty decent and solid for its time. Because of the sci-fi genre that mixes several nationalities together, the characters mainly do not look like your typical conventional Japanese anime character with big wide eyes and kawaii looks. Sometimes you might think a western company collaborated with a Japanese studio to produce this anime. It was AIC who produced this anime. They did classic hits like Tenchi Muyou series, Aa! Megami-sama and Sakura Taisen just to name a few. As for the Blue creatures, sometimes I feel like their designs were rejects from Ultraman or Masked Rider series. Uh huh. I felt that such bug monsters could easily be passed off as monster-of-the-week in those sentai shows. Some look creepy, some look weird and some look nasty. Well, anything goes as long as they look threatening to mankind.

Both the opening and ending themes are sung by Houko Kuwashima who is also the voice of Marlene. While Tokihanate as the opener is your usual rock outfit to get you into the groove of this anime, it is the ending theme, Ai Ga Oshiete Kureta that stands out and I like the most. This is a very slow and beautiful piece despite at times it somehow reminds me of The Bangles’ Eternal Flame. I’m not saying this song is very similar but I have this feel that somewhere during the song it might just break out into that piece. Oh beware. The ending credits animation is entirely on naked Marlene. This means seeing her full blown tits for certain parts of the animation. Not sure if the version I am watching is some uncut version as I couldn’t find other versions of it. Well, this show isn’t meant for kids to begin with.

There was a movie released a few years after the TV series ended. However as I read it is a big summary of the TV series. This means lots of drama and scenes that made this show a decent one all went out of the window. Even the final arc was not even inside due to time constraints and thus a different ending. Not even new animated scenes could save it since they basically sever and dismember the efforts and dynamics of the TV series into this piece of crap. Oh, I didn’t watch it. Not planning to after reading a few reviews trashing it like how Blue carves up humans like a hit knife through butter.

Overall, this is quite a mature anime for its time and definitely not for younger audience as it deals with some dark themes as well as a handful of sex scenes. It might not be popular than some of the other more famous animes during that era like Neon Genesis Evangelion, Slayers, Cowboy Bebop and even Rurouni Kenshin but it is still something worth to check out if you like sci-fi drama and action. Sometimes there is a reason why we humans have incurable diseases. It is just Earth’s way of saying, “Please die. Just, just die…”. That is why for now there is no remake of this series like how Hollywood is currently doing as they have run out of ideas. Thank goodness Japan don’t really do remakes, right? Oh right, the Negima series… Sometimes it is best for an anime like this one to be just crystalized this way and sleep forever like the way it is. For better or worse. We don’t want to wake up in a future that has a remake or reboot worse off than the original and make us nostalgic how the good ol’ days were much better off.

Idol Jihen

OMG! How did Donald Trump win the recent American elections?! How can this happen?! The world is coming to an end!!! It is time to return to our safe space and propagate and assure ourselves that there is still hope. Because in a time of darkness, there will be a light that will rise and shine above it all to bring us hope. To fight the evil and corrupted politicians and greedy congressmen and power hungry assemblymen. That is why we have idols running as legislators! I’m not kidding. At least this is according to Idol Jihen. If AKB0048 is to sci-fi and Love Live is too irrelevant and only for high school, this series might be the timely appropriate. I guess people are just fed up of typical corrupted policymakers that they decide to give idols the chance to run for office. What do idols know about politics and governance? Who cares? As long as we get to enjoy their concerts. Hey. My drain is clogged since last week and it stinks. Somebody care to come clean it up? I can’t. I have to attend that idol’s concert…

Episode 1
A shady bribery is going on between these old guys… Then the politician chokes and dies on his snack. Now with the Niigata seat vacant, Sachie Kondou and her assistant Kamishiro are looking around for local girls to represent the Heroine Party. Then she sees Natsuki Hoshina revving up the farmers by singing in their paddy fields. Feeling she is the right candidate, she asks Natsuki to join the idol election audition at Tokyo. So the audition is to run up a hill so high that goes past the clouds? Isn’t that more of a mountain? And what is this about idols needing to reach the top? For real? Apparently only Natsuki passed as she is the only one who managed to complete the run. Kamishiro is sceptical if she is the right candidate because right now Japan has no president and they can do without jokers. Don’t worry. Everything will somehow work out… That’s what they all say. Natsuki being the rookie and noob, stutters in her speech and when confronted with rival Rougai Party who is more accustomed with their typical political speech, how does Natsuki overcome this? She blurts out for the men to make her a woman! Wait. What?! Can idols say that? Well, all those old men are definitely interested in her now… Then Shizuka Onimaru (a twice elected idol dietwoman) arrives as requested by Sachie to help out. She is supposed to sing a duet with Natsuki in a live concert. However Shizuka doesn’t believe Natsuki is up to her par yet and will train her. Despite Natsuki bloopers a lot and doesn’t give up, Shizuka decides she is not up to mark. She doesn’t have what it takes to be on stage with her. Natsuki feels down but nothing but a little farming to help bring her motivation back. Shizuka also remembers Sachie removing her from the team. Despite having exceptional talent, her aura hurts others. Natsuki only appears on stage. Some of the crowd is displeased since Natsuki is nervous and Shizuka isn’t around. Well, she’s at the backstage. If she is having whatever doubts, leave it to Sachie to change her mind on that. So the crowd returns once Shizuka appears. Before they could start singing, Rougai Party starts their deafening speech on their usual propaganda. Natsuki then starts singing to drown out the interference. Such beautiful flowery aura. Safe to say we know who the people will vote next. Yeah, even this Rougai Party candidate. Now that Natsuki is elected in, she is still nervous but will do her best. Despite Rougai Party still have the clear majority in the house, a few shady old politicians won’t let these idol dietwomen gain momentum.

Episode 2
The Heroine Party is at a local dumpsite that is legal by law. They see Chinatsu Ryuusekidou of Sunlight Party and a few other idol dietwoman trying to stop the dumping and save the environment. But the local politician tells them off this is his land is graciously offering for garbage to be dumped. Don’t tell me you want to be selfish and dump it in other districts, do you? No choice, they let them through. When Shizuka confronts Chinatsu, immediately the latter slaps her! Whatever history they had, Chinatsu still won’t forgive her. Later that night, Natsuki returns to the dumpsite to find Chinatsu trying to clean up. She learns Chinatsu was raised in this area and often played here a lot. Natsuki offers to help but Chinatsu will not accept any help especially from Heroine Party. When Natsuki tells Sachie about this, she believes Shizuka did something to prevent hurting others but because she never explained it well and left, the others viewed it as betrayal. Natsuki isn’t one to let this drag on so she again pleads to Chinatsu for help. Instantly shot down. With Shizuka and other idol dietwomen wanting to give this a chance, Chinatsu relents but with a condition: A bungee jump challenge at different heights! What is this about idols need to be brave and face the crowd? Anyway if Natsuki falters, Shizuka must apologize to Mizuki Fudou, the chairwoman of Sunlight Party. But it seems Natsuki has no qualms about jumping and does so without hesitation unlike Chinatsu who is barely hiding her fear. On the final and highest jump, Chinatsu faints! Natsuki is a little scared but manages to summon her courage since they will lose their chance to help the villagers. Then the bungee rope snaps… I know there is a river below but how can she survive at that height?! Anyway, while diving, Natsuki has an idea on what to do with the dump. The next day, lots of people have gathered and turning the dump into pieces of art! A free voucher for an idol handshake for every garbage you refurbish! The politician doesn’t like this and sends his boys to beat them up?! How could they? How do you stop rampaging mobsters? You hold an idol concert to turn them into fan boys! OMFG! And so the dumpsite is saved but Natsuki is sad that the newspaper only reported on Sunlight Party. No Heroine Party was mentioned. Welcome to politics. Meanwhile the Rougai Party guys heard one of their guys have resigned but aren’t going to press the panic button yet. Losing a member or two won’t hurt they party. Unless the masses demand change, their regime is safe…

Episode 3
Heroine Party is at Nekonoshima, an island filled with cats cohabitating with humans. They are here for a request to find missing cats and if you think that is tough, all the cats on the island are missing! The only cat on the island is Boss, the sacred leader of all. Oddly, the local assemblywoman hates cats but she looks like one. Also on this island to help out are the Starlight Party members, Sakurako Iizuka (chairwoman), Isuzu Narukami and Shirayuki Arai. They go around looking for clues. Starlight Party visit and pray at all the shrines (a million yen donation?) and find alphabets on stones. Heroine Party on the other hand are doing finding a needle in a haystack as well as asking residents. One of them relates one night he saw all the cats being lured to some ship by some smoke. Someone was feeding them. When he accidentally made a sound, the cat monster reared its ugly head. Doesn’t she look like the assemblywoman? Natsuki tries to tease boss with cattails until he can’t stand it anymore and starts chasing her. It leads them to a spot where they find the assemblywoman’s glasses with catnip smell. Definitely it’s her. With everyone taking a break at the udon store, the old lady tells them about the island’s legend. When cats disappear, 4 maidens shall come from beyond the sea and dance upon the stone stages of cats. Want to guess who are those maidens? And so our idol dietwomen each stand on those stones and start singing. Such beautiful beam of light that it turns the assemblywoman into a cat lover! Get this. A wave of cats is seen swimming from across the ocean back to the island! I thought cats hate water? Just in time for some grand cat festival too. People pour catnip everywhere on the street and let a huge tidal wave of cat rampage through. Yeah, who wouldn’t love the feeling of being drowned by cats.

Episode 4
A bratty politician tries to tick off the idol dietwomen about their fancy idol dress in the diet hall. But they got the last laugh when they say something on the lines to each his/her own. Because of that, he and his secretary try to concoct a plan to embarrass them especially with the upcoming swimsuit competition. Last year’s defending champion, the Bishoujo Party (wait, what?) gives their opening speech and Natsuki can’t help go with the flow and let out her own excitement. It may be embarrassing but at least she is bursting with honesty energy. Isn’t it no surprise all the spectators are men? As the water competitions kick off, it is obviously rigged and some of the girls suspect Rougai Party is behind this as many get eliminated too early and there is one whereby you get naughty octopi all over you if you fall into the water (sorry, no tentacle rape). So our evil politicians think they have got the last laugh but our dietwomen is the one having them because they turn around this mishap and turn those octopi into takoyaki! They’re selling well! Natsuki makes friends with the chairwoman of Bishoujo Party, Ume “Momo” Momoi. She loves the sea and her dream is to check out all the beaches in the world. The game continues as the girls are suspicious they need to put on certain swimsuits. Their worst fear comes true because in the next game where they have to take out their opponents via water gun, their swimsuits disintegrate when soaked. Before more wardrobe malfunction could happen, Momo leads the pack to stay calm and give the right timing for them to counterattack and win the game. If you think that wasn’t cheesy enough, in the last game where they must climb a tower to grab a microphone at the top to sing and win it, the scaffolding is obviously tampered as it starts collapsing. How can they survive that? Because Bishoujo Party starts singing and that is what keeps them afloat! WTF???!!! At the same time turning their evil counterparts into their biggest fans! In the end, Bishoujo Party wins the overall and they take a group photo together. Hey. Did the Rougai Party big boss just Liked their post?

Episode 5
Shizuka is on her day off as she meets her father. He tells her to stop this idol business and return to him. She is smart enough to know this won’t last forever. Of course she isn’t going to listen to him. Meanwhile Natsuki becomes a police chief for a day. Yeah, the chief inspector just became her biggest fan. So you think it is easy being a police chief? Apparently yeah. As long as you’re as cute as her. Then the biggest incident to happen: A hostage situation at a day care. It seems members of the Wakaba Party are taken hostage by… Children of the day care?! It is learnt that this day care will be closing down soon and the kids who have nowhere to go are against this. Yeah, drastic times call for drastic measures. Natsuki thinks she can talk to them but instead got captured. Way to go. But to her shock she learns the Wakaba Party members (are they lolis?!) are in cohorts with the kids. They heard their story that they have both parents who work. This is where they hangout until their parents get home so if this place goes, will they be considered homeless then? The local politician is here and he makes things worse by blaming the mothers of those kids. He believes a woman’s place is at home taking care of children. Easily triggered people shouldn’t be watching this episode. So how to solve this problem? When the day care is torn down, a business centre will be built. This means more income and revenue and thus mothers don’t have to work anymore and can better look after their children. Great plan. When this hostage drama gets dragged out, the politician decides to storm in. Seriously? They’re just kids. Anybody who take hostages are as good as terrorists! Well, I can see the equality there. Luckily Shizuka relays this to Natsuki so everyone starts preparing traps like Home Alone style. I mean, it makes the police force look so silly when they storm in only to slip on marbles, thrown used diapers, fall into pitfalls and blasted with pepper balloons. When the politician gets worked up over this farce, little does he know he stirred a mini beehive. He gets stung. Mothers of those kid quickly administer aid and help remove the beehive. Shortly Shizuka lectures him about those mothers being professionals in various areas and since they are invaluable to society, is it alright to keep them confined at home? You know everything is okay and over when the kids return to their moms, Wakaba Party starts singing and the politician turning over a new leaf apologizing to the mothers and tearing up the business centre proposal. Oh yeah, he quit his Rougai Party too. Starting to get worried you’re losing more men, eh?

Episode 6
Mika Kozuru of New Subculture Party loves astronomy but she is too shy to articulate her proposal to use the diet building’s observatory to launch bottle rockets and stimulate the people’s interest in space so this pesky old politician shoots it down with ease. Later Mika explains her scientific proposal perfectly to Heroine Party and hope they could team up for this event. However here comes that pesky old dude to warn them why the observatory is off limits because of hauntings and ghost sightings. He shouldn’t have said only God or a saint can help because here comes Ringo Yami from SOS Party as she is a self-proclaimed Ghostbuster. It’s time to bust some ghosts. Of course the old guy won’t let them have their way since if their proposal gets approved, budget allocations for them will be cut. So our Ghostbusters enter the observatory and what do you know? There’s a real ghost! Everybody is freaking out now and no exorcism method can work. What a time to regret your unfulfilled election promises? Oh great. Now the ghosts have multiplied! Meanwhile Mika who got lost from the group stumbles into 3 great statesmen. Want to bet they’re the real ghosts or rather the bronze statues come to life? They praise how the idol dietwomen are keeping Rougai Party at bay and advise her not to let them push her around. This helps Mika articulate her vision clearly. Team Ghostbusters realize they have been had after they destroy a hologram projector. They know that pesky old dude was behind this since he dropped his fan. Though he escapes, he bumps into Mika. This time she tells him she isn’t going to give up her proposal with full confidence. You can’t beat that smile. Speechless, eh? After hearing Natsuki say how the observatory lighted up like a planetarium after they stopped the projector, Mika makes a little revision in her proposal since she wants to appeal to a broader audience. Her stargazing event is approved and is popular among the people. Meanwhile Shizuka’s father still will not approve of her idol work. Nothing. Shizuka remains defiant.

Episode 7
The locals at Niigata are protesting the proposed site to build a stadium. Naturally Natsuki is going to help them. She learns the construction company behind this is Onimaru Construction. Sounds familiar? So being an idol dietwoman gives her the right to waltz in to see the president? Luckily he is passing by so he lets her in to see what she has to say. She hopes it would be re-evaluated but he instantly shoots her down that it is government sponsored and cannot be changed. Also, don’t take politics as fun and games! Kamishiro must be having a real headache to learn what Natsuki did but that didn’t stop her. After learning Shizuka is the president’s daughter, she bugs her to go talk to her father only to be shot down. Since Shizuka is not one to say, Sachie explains Shizuka as the only daughter and people had expectations she would follow her father’s footsteps. When she didn’t, everyone was surprised and naturally it caused tensions in their relationship. The president is seeing Rougai Party’s boss and assures what his daughter does has no bearing on what he does. Natsuki continues to bug Shizuka. Since she is stubborn, Natsuki notes she is so like her dad. This makes her snap back. She isn’t stubborn. She makes her own decisions! Can’t argue with that. As Natsuki can’t think of an idea, Sanpei a local boy from her hometown sends in drawings of kids about their feelings of the stadium. They decide to show this to the president but he apparently didn’t give a damn as usual. Not even one look. What a pity those drawings got wet in the rain… Are they going to give up? Instead, they are boosted when Shizuka joins in. They’re going to fight back via public forum and do a live concert. So they dance their way into the audiences’ hearts (because I believe everyone here is against the stadium). Shizuka’s dad did turn up as he observes the crowd. Though it seemed it has failed to convince him, their fan club petitions are starting to gain momentum. Then this shocking thing just came in over the news. The president decides to re-evaluate the project and scale it down to how the people would want and appreciate it! Yeah, their feelings finally reached him. So when Rougai Party boss confronts him about letting his emotions get the better of him, he is reminded his daughter’s actions has no bearing on what he does. All he wants is to make a stadium where people can gather and smile. Take that. Looks like somebody is going to move his hand to crush those idol dietwomen.

Episode 8
With the idols doing more concerts and their congress job better, those Rougai Party guys are starting to get worried with all the recent strings of resignation from their side. They are asking their boss who is also Japan’s Prime Minister Touichirou Sakuraba why he has not taken any action. Don’t worry. He already has. Because the bigger they are, the harder they fall. Natsuki and Shizuka are to be interviewed on TV. Shizuka cautions her to watch what she says because the media who is completely leaning on Rougai Party’s side can twist what she says. As the show starts, the host asks them about what they are doing this for. Natsuki being her honest self goes on happily talking about people’s smiles. Gotcha. The host then in turn plays clips of their past achievements but with a twist. The illegal dumpsite might have been solved but the garbage has to go somewhere and it’s nowhere but the streets. The cats on Nekonoshima have become pests ravaging crops while the day care still lacks funding and in danger of being closed. Natsuki cannot refute any of it. Even though Sachie knows this is heavily edited to one side and Rougai Party had pre-taped all this. Natsuki has no time being depressed because Sanpei calls to voice his concern that the stadium is now cancelled! Shizuka confronts her dad on it and it seems because the company changed the blueprints, the government decided to really re-evaluate this project. Of course he is not going out without a fight and warns Shizuka her value as a true dietwoman is now being tested. With idol dietwomen popularity plunging, a gossip magazine releases an article and photo of Shizuka having an affair with an older man. It is obviously her father but because they worded their statement as speculation, trying to report or fight it will prove nothing. Rougai Party is really coming for them. Natsuki is being lectured by Shizuka about her duty as elected representative since she somewhat fears going to diet building now. But Heroine Party isn’t just facing problems. Other idol dietwoman parties too. Chinatsu is mad the media is accusing Mizuki of plastic surgery. Sakurako is suspected of misusing government funds when it is her own money to buy clothes. Bishoujo Party is ridiculed that they are too dumb to read kanji. Wakaba Party still wets their bed? Who is telling New Subculture Party to go back to space? Who is telling SOS Party to return to the shadows? At times like these, they decide to band together to fight against Rougai Party. So they fight in a way they know best: Holding concerts to address the string of idol bashing. Before they can start, a helicopter lands in the middle of the stage. Who are these 4 beautiful babes? Hey. Aren’t they sent by Rougai Party? Are they like the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse?!

Episode 9
Saki Shiraga, Kazumi Mukai, Maybelle Takasaki and Megu Izumisawa are part of the legendary idol group, Cherry 7 who help Kagura Mikazuki the only female idol dietwoman in history and paved the way for idols to become part of the diet. When they decide to join them, they are attacked! WTF?! Holding a sword, machine gun and magic explosion wand?! Is Cherry 7 mercenaries now?! Apparently they are not here to support these idols and feel they have lost their way as idol dietwoman. Cherry 7 was hired by Rougai Party to test their worthiness. Surprisingly, Sakuraba comes on stage to show several accusations and scandals for each of the party. Then he belittles them how they are nowhere near Mikazuki and not only they do not solve problems as dietwomen but fail as idols too. He has come up with a proposal to ban idols to be dietwoman. The crowd is silent. Sakuraba takes this as their shocking approval. So before they can block that bill, they must defeat Cherry 7 first. Shizuka calls Mizuki and the other parties in hopes they could unite and band together. However Chinatsu tells her off she is the one to say as she was the least cooperative. Plus, all of them are busy trying to clear their scandals. With all the arguing, Mizuki steps in who tells them they will lose to Cherry 7 unless they give it their all. Chinatsu disagrees with this unity thingy. Because competition makes them push forward, she suggests holding a competition to see which of them is better to take on Cherry 7. Agreed. Mizuki will be the judge. Up till now you must have noticed Natsuki being depressed as hell. So leave it to Shizuka to give her speech about trust and believe and blow Natsuki out of the doldrums. There. Done. As they sing and dance, they realize there is this strange mix of strong power they produced together. Yup. Looks like they need to unite and form a cross-partisan unit against Cherry 7.

Episode 10
The cross-partisan unit is called Smile Kiss and they receive equal coverage with Cherry 7. However Natsuki is back to gloomsville as she continues to slack in her practice. Then with all the nonstop protest calls to their office, her motivation takes a dive. One day she just cannot dance anymore and her voice cannot sing. So Shizuka chides her and lets her go home. It gets even worse when she picks up a complaint call from a construction guy asking his money back for the failed stadium project. As she talks to Sachie about her problem, she is advised to go see those people. Thus Natsuki returns to Niigata and didn’t show up for practice so Shizuka has Chinatsu replace her part. This has Chinatsu commenting that is all Natsuki is worth to her. She abandoned her with ease just like she did with them. At Niigata, Natsuki apologizes to all the workers there. She reflects about being unable to help Shizuka and despite forming a duet with her, she was always trying her best to catch up to her. Sanpei then has her watch TV. The decisive concert is live right now. Natsuki is brought to tears seeing her teammates wearing the same ribbon colour as hers (original each of them had a unique colour assigned). As predicted, Cherry 7 is currently leading a big gap in the polls. Suspiciously when Natsuki starts cheering for her team, the lead starts to cut… In the end, the one who got the most votes is… Smile Kiss!!! They did it! Hooray! Not so fast. Because Sakuraba has immediately hold a press conference. Despite the idols’ amazing performance, don’t be fooled by this illusion. Their performance is just that. A fleeting pleasure of self-gratification. It doesn’t solve problems or enrich people’s lives. Then this is the damning statement that would make or break his bill: Those idol dietwomen were so caught up practising for their performance, they didn’t even do a single job as politicians for the past few week! Oh no…

Episode 11
The vote on the bill is out. And the result is… Rougai Party is celebrating and giving their victory speech. Thanks to that, our idol dietwomen are all doom and gloom especially with Shizuka blaming herself and taking responsibility for it all. Hey, for an idol this is literally the end of the world. Natsuki too is in gloomsville. She can’t even do farm work properly and cries even while eating. Yeah, food must taste this good. Because she continues to cry about not being able to make anyone smile, grandma had to tell her about the rising star story of Mikazuki. A dark age where she rose up and shone through the darkness. People soon started following her and the nation slowly came back out into the light. Asked why she became an idol dietwoman, simple, she wanted to make others smile. As advised, Natsuki goes around town to see what has changed. Remember that guy from the first episode who ran against Natsuki in the by-election? He is sweeping the streets in hopes of getting to know his people better! He has left Rougai Party and became an independent. He thanks Natsuki for changing him. This really makes her day as Natsuki runs all over the place (places of past episodes where there were ‘issues’) to find that all of those ex-Rougai Party people have changed for the better. Like that dumpster is now a museum with all recycled items. That cat island is now booming with cats and the day care gets to continue operating. All because of Natsuki. Oh my. Natsuki is so happy she is swirling around in a flower field?! Hope it doesn’t get to her head. Meanwhile it is about time Shizuka also has come to her senses. She realizes her selfishness when she left Sunlight Party and was only imposing her feelings upon others. It is not she has changed but rather been changed. Thanks to a certain twintail too. Of course the inevitable Natsuki and Shizuka making up again. This time Shizuka views her as her real partner. Their next move is to put up another concert albeit just the duo. But isn’t this against the act? I’m not sure about there are those who voted against it so they want to sing for them but hey, isn’t it still illegal? Are they breaking the law? Oh what the heck. Idols always have their way. So as they gear up for the concert, on that very day we already have a crisis. Not a single soul turned up! OMG! Is it because it is raining? Or is that just symbolic?

Episode 12
Apparently somebody hacked into their website to say the concert is cancelled. I think I know who… Even so, the duo will continue to perform because they are idols. Their song resonates throughout the city so much so curious people slowly start streaming in to hear them. Even the other idol dietwomen see this over the internet and make their way. However Sakuraba anticipated this and puts his next plan in motion. A gridlock in the city and shut down of all transports! Don’t worry. The idols get by with the help of ex-Rougai Party members as they make their way via other methods. By foot, sewer or parachute. The craziest one being Momo as she surfs her entire way there! I know the road is wet and slippery but this?! As the crowd builds up and wanting an encore, Natsuki and Shizuka team up with the other idol dietwomen to put on another sterling performance. Their ideology and party may be different but their feelings are the same. Even Cherry 7 is down here to support them. Sakuraba goes down to the field himself to take command. However the riot police will not listen to his order. It seems the police chief who has been promoted to the central office is the one taking charge. With ex-Rougai Party members reminding him about the infringement of free speech, Sakuraba sees the intense crowd that keeps flowing in and Smile Kiss continue to perform, he then gives out a maniacal laughter. He accepts the challenge of the idol dietwomen. In the aftermath, Sakuraba makes a press conference that he is dissolving the diet for a general election. We see a montage of everyone working hard in their campaign. It is no surprise that all the idol dietwomen get re-elected. Yeah, between a cute idol and an old bald dude. Who would you pick? Don’t tell me you’re going to pick based on character, ability, aptitude, etc! It seems Sakuraba is also re-elected. Although he is still against idols becoming dietwomen and will stick with his stance, he challenges them to follow their own convictions if they insist. They can’t let him win because that will mean the end of their dream.

Make Japan Great Again!
Are we done yet? Okay. The fun is over. Time to return to reality. Don’t be fooled by this anime to think that entering politics is damn easy. Yeah, they certainly do make it look like a whole lot of fun here. Because as you can see the idol dietwomen continue to keep their hair all proper and clean after everything. I don’t know if Rougai Party manages to still retain its stranglehold and majority but it might be so because if every single idol dietwomen were elected and assuming there were no new ones, this would mean status quo, right? Definitely need more idol dietwomen and such parties to enter the diet if we are to cleanse Japan of typical old corrupted politicians and make Japan great again!

It is already a no brainer that we have cute idols holding double jobs working as politicians. But it is even dumber to see how idols can actually instantly change bad politicians into good ones! OMFG! This is so unrealistic! You can evidently see how these idols here do it as some of the episodes feature the baddie politician of the week and our heroines get to save the day by ‘purifying’ them via concert, so to speak. Because if this formula truly works and if the idols were serious in trying to weed out corrupted governing practices, don’t you think they would have just hold a nationwide concert that is broadcasted live to all forms of media? Guaranteed to have the biggest, most stubborn and most vile politicians turn into your biggest fan! No doubt about it! So why bother doing small local concerts and change only 1 immoral politician at a time when you can do it all in one big go! So tell me, are these idols serious in changing Japan for the better or do they really know what it takes to run a country? But to show that Sakuraba isn’t as bad as he looks, he is seen attending a concert in the final moments and even tapping his feet to their beat. Oh ho. He may not look like it on the outside but is he converted on the inside? We’ll never know. He is after all the big final boss that our idol dietwomen needs to defeat.

I know some people aren’t really into idols but in this anime what I usually notice that many have this herd mentality. That bill to ban idol dietwomen kills it. Unless Sakuraba is an excellent eloquent smooth talker, the people here feel like they follow their feelings over what they heard. It is like they have no faith in the idols at all. One minute ago they were singing praises about them and the next minute they turn on them because of this WTF scandal that they don’t even care to dig deeper to understand why they didn’t do their governing job. It is scary in real life that idols are walking on thin ice to satisfy ‘hardcore fans’ who would without hesitation turncoat and desert their favourite idol once a scandal arises. But as far for the people in this anime is concerned, it is like they are hoping idols can magically solve their problems that could have taken a little longer to resolve. Oh right. Maybe that’s why they voted idols in. Something different than your conservative politicians. Or maybe the idols’ singing is the one brainwashing people to vote for them? Told you about this silly aspect. In that case do you not think an idol is very similar to a politician? Swaying people with sweet words on stage while looking good. It only takes a scandal to tarnish their name and bring them down. Oh, the similarities…

It is pretty much disappointing that with so many idols from different parties, it is sad that many of them don’t get decent screen time. The most is that they have an episode for them but that is if Natsuki and Shizuka get involved. Even more so, you don’t really get to understand what those parties are fighting for. Heck, what does Heroine Party stand for anyway? Making it worse, the 7 idol dietwoman parties seem to be a representation of some sort of stereotype like the Wakaba Party seem to have only little lolis (are they saying politics is child’s play?) and the Bishoujo Party have members that look more like tanned surfer girls than pretty kawaii ladies. Because I only see Ringo as the only member in SOS Party, I am starting to make generalizations of the party is some sort of gothic fashion party. I don’t know much about the legendary Cherry 7 but looking at them feels like as though their theme is armed and dangerous. It certainly looks so. Plus, with them draping in black, it looks as though they’ve returned from a funeral. Really.

Even the development and friendship drama between Natsuki and Shizuka fails. It just feels generic. Young inexperienced new girl comes into party to pair up with a veteran who defected from another party. They go around helping people to bring about smiles and they make it seem so easy and effortless as I wonder is it because of their idol status makes their job a lot easier an uncomplicated. Then we have a little bit of family drama and tension between Shizuka and her father only to be conveniently and predictably resolved. All because he attended a live concert of Shizuka? Sure, he claims he operates differently from his daughter. But think about this. Has he not heard her daughter sing from other formats even assuming if this is the first time he attends it live? So why now? Both father and daughter have been so stubborn to the point they could be strangers. Thus is it her music? Plot convenience? Reminder that idols’ songs are always the best? Well, can’t have Shizuka’s father as the baddie seeing the real antagonists have been set as Rougai Party. Then there’s the past between Shizuka and Sunlight Party which had potential but never explored further and thus it feels wasted and redundant to somewhat tie a loose connection between them. It wouldn’t make any difference had she not been linked to it in the first place.

And Natsuki is so inexperienced and at time useless that whenever things doesn’t go the right way, she starts going into depression and bums around doing nothing. WTF. I know she is in shock but clearly when she decided to run for candidacy, did she not know the risks? Maybe she doesn’t. Welcome to the world of politics where everything isn’t rosy and sunshine. Except maybe when you’re an idol whose singing can change everything including giving off those special flowery effects while you are at it. Despite being cheery and at her own pace in nature, ironically it takes her a while and even advice or guidance from others to reach out to her before she gets her gears going like normal again. Oh right. Nobody is perfect. But aren’t idols supposed to be perfect?

Art and drawing are pretty standard with your pretty idols looking more like bishoujos (except for the loli ones). Not too sure if the outfit they were is their uniform because if it is, it makes them look like cosplay. Because of the idols looking pretty and cute, corrupted politicians especially from Rougai Party have this typical trademark of what is stereotyped as bad guy looks. I see Mr Sakuraba, you have very thick gorilla eyebrows and deep voice that is only reserved for evil leaders… So cliché. Hence for those politicians who turned over a new leaf, they look pretty normal and decent after that. Is this some sort of discrimination? CGI is also used but very sparingly only when the idols start prancing on stage as a big group. However it is not that noticeable because such concerts itself do not last very long. The series is a joint production between MAPPA and Studio VOLN whose other collaboration is the alternate updated version of Ushio & Tora.

At the end of each episode, there is an end card illustrated by several people. Some illustrated twice for different episodes. Somehow they look all the same to me… What is worse than some end cards which serve as idol fanservice? That idol keeps reminding us that the DVDs are going to be out and be sure to buy them. Are they trying to condition and brainwash us to buy this disappointing show? I know I won’t be bought out. Even if you pay me to buy it I won’t. Wait. Did I just make a no brainer statement?

The voice acting just feels normal and decent and nothing to shout about. Mostly are relatively new seiyuus that I still can’t recognize or veteran ones but I still can’t recognize such as Sarara Yashima as Natsuki (Sayo in Bishoujo Yuugi Unit Crane Game Girls), Mai Fuchigami as Shizuka (Nagisa in Ansatsu Kyoushitsu), Reina Ueda as Sachie (Mira in Dimension W), Sarah Emi Bridcutt as Chinatsu (Chika in HaruChika), Lynn as Mizuki (titular character in Fuuka), Yuuki Fujiwara as Kamishiro (Liang in Nanbaka) and Kouji Ishii as Sakuraba (Garterbelt in Panty And Stocking With Garterbelt). Old veteran seiyuus I recognized helmed roles as the legendary Cherry 7 like Yukari Tamura as Saki and Kana Ueda as Maybelle. I’m going to skip the rest of the list because there are a whole lot of seiyuus lending their voices here and most of them only had a fraction of their dialogue or none at all. I mean, am I serious and hardworking enough to list down all the idols representing all 47 prefectures of Japan?! Are you crazy?! But what is interesting to note is that all of the seiyuus do actually represent and were born in the prefecture of the idol dietwoman that they play.

If you really like idol brand of music, this series has a few of them. I’m not into it so that is probably why I don’t really find the idol-like opening theme, Utae! Ai No Kouyaku by Smile Kiss to my liking. But the ending theme, Respect by the duet of Natsuki and Shizuka feels a bit weird. Pop idol music relying heavily on the synthesizers and effects plus a bit of Arabic feel. In almost every episode there would be an insert song featuring that idol dietwoman party in focus but none really to my liking.

We should have a reality TV show whereby politician wannabes have to go through tests and challenges viewed by millions on TV to see what it takes to become one. It would have been interesting to see how candidates get eliminated by a different voting procedure. I know Donald Trump becoming president doesn’t mean anybody else can become president especially those from the entertainment industry. Oh wait. There’s Ronald Reagan… Then there is Kanye West for 2020…And what’s this? Katy Perry also? The Rock too? Really, America? If it really turns out that celebrity singers are going to run for the Oval Office, then we can call this new reality TV show Ameican Idol. What do you mean that name is already taken?!

Overall, this is quite a disappointing series trying to cash in on the idol craze that is still riding high on its wave in Japan and some parts of the world. Because if you really want good idol material to watch on TV, Love Live and even AKB0048 do it better. So it only goes to show that idols are best and can be in the form of high school girls trying to stop their school from closing down or space revolutionaries fighting against the banning of music. Anything suits them as long as it is not politics. Now we know they don’t mix. Because it would be really bad and sad if idols were to use their star power to side a certain party for the elections like we have seen in the recent American elections. Thus there is a reason why specific jobs exists and even in the same category. Not everything is one glove fits all size and nobody can wear all hats. Some things don’t go together as we learn here, idols and politics. Truly this is not the case of grooming a horse to be a fine horse. It is rather a cat can never become a horse! If they are going to make another season, you bet I am going to cast my big “NO!” vote even if it is just a referendum. Come on, people. Let’s not support sh*tty animes again. No more disappointing animes. Say no to substandard animes. LET’S MAKE ANIME GREAT AGAIN!!!

P/S: A politician and an idol walk into a bar… They become scandal fodder for tomorrow’s tabloid headlines!

Gabriel Dropout

Do you once have this experience whereby you have a certain perception and view of something only to be shocked or disappointed when you see the real deal? Just like that Paris Syndrome in which Japanese people will go into shock when they see the real Eifel Tower. So can you believe what is absolutely so shocking that would turn angels astray? I’m not kidding. The expectations of mankind has been so vastly different that for a pure angel who came down to Earth to help is left in shock so much so she decides to just f*ck all that and become a bum. Really. I’m not kidding! Basically this is the premise of Gabriel Dropout. An angel who just graduated with high scores and promising future descending onto Earth only to see the blasphemous and ungodly activities of humans. So how? Well, if you can’t beat them, join them! And so this is a (funny) story of how a fallen angel has sunk so low that light could never reach her as well as her equally failed friends as they continue their pitifully and ironically funny existence of life on Earth.

Episode 1A
Gabriel White Tenma graduates top of her class as an angel. She and other graduated angels will now attend human schools to learn more about them before coming back as full-fledged angels. You know they’re screwed when they choose Japan, right? So Gabriel is fascinated with the human world. At least in Japan. She gets hooked on helping people on MMORPG via healing them. She loves to help them out but it seems she ran out of healing points. Need more? Buy them! And because more and more people are seeking her help, she succumbs to the temptation of paying! And before you know it, Gabriel turns into a total NEET! Her messy room and lifestyle is a far cry from the honour student she once was! Her demon friend, Vignette “Vigne” April Tsukinose has to straighten her out but Gabriel doesn’t give a damn. Gabriel isn’t afraid to admit she is useless and she has no intentions of returning to heaven and thinks all those angelic stuffs are overrated. Yes, she admits herself as a fallen angel. Or as she puts it herself, fail-len angel! So when she finally decides to go to school, she feels lazy to walk and is going to teleport. However she only teleports her panties. All the boys must be worshipping to the sudden appearance of this ‘God’.

Episode 1B
Satanichia “Satania” McDowell Kurumizawa is the self-proclaimed future queen of hell. She thought of giving Gabriel trouble. But she is shocked to see her spilling her drink, not giving a f*ck to recycle. When Satania tries to make her, she ends up cleaning it herself because she lost a game. Satania fantasizes about her diabolical plan to embarrass Gabriel. Too bad she runs out of toilet paper and is now stuck in her cubicle. In class when the teacher (let’s call this baldy Sensei) signals his students to hand in their homework, she is proud that she did not do a single bit and is not sorry at all. Soon her maniacal laughter turns into cries after she gets punished. Boo hoo.

Episode 1C
Gabriel overslept and doesn’t give a damn about the promise to go shopping with Vigne today. You can see why Vigne is visibly upset after waiting for hours. So they clean up Gabriel’s hell apartment. Gabriel notices her halo corrupted and black but doesn’t give a damn. In fact she likes it. Vigne goes into shock when Gabriel quips she isn’t acting so demonic since she is responsible, etc. So Vigne is asking an angel how to be a demon? How about killing someone? How could you?! Are you a demon for thinking like that?! They spot a cockroach. Vigne freaks out and overkills it. Gabriel’s room is destroyed. Was that demonic enough?

Episode 1D
Raphiel Ainsworth Shiraha is bored ever since she came to the human wold. But now she has God to thank for when she sees Satania fighting with a dog over a melon bread! Pure entertainment. This idiot is going to be her toy. Satania actually took Raphiel’s advice to talk in dog language to get her feelings through. How many barks is it going to take? When Satania gives up, Raphiel mocks she is running away. She then gets serious to fight back. So did the dog. She lost. And would you know this is the umpteenth time. Oh, did I mention Raphiel is in the class next door and went to the same angel school with Gabriel? Vigne thinks she is a nice girl and could be friends. But after seeing how Raphiel mocks Satania by enticing her with a melon bread if she licks her feet like a dog, she might want to be careful in choosing her friends.

Episode 2A
Is Gabriel racist for not wanting to go to the cafeteria because there are too many humans? And no, Vigne isn’t going to pay for your lunch. They spot Satania trying to go somewhere with her lunch. Turns out that poor demon is eating alone. She gets a shock when they want to eat with her. And somehow the dog stole her melon bread. Satania becomes her haughty self trying to make them beg to eat with her. They leave her alone and now she is the one begging to eat with them. Satania orders udon for all of them. Gabriel didn’t like it so the lunch is on her. Satania shows her inept ways when she doesn’t even know how to use disposable chopsticks. Gabriel decides to play a trick on her since Satania doesn’t know this spicy condiment. Following Gabriel’s advice, Satania dumps loads of it into her udon. Time to taste. Delicious! Oh well, demons can stand hot things, right? The prank backfires as Satania peppers the spice in Gabriel’s udon. Try it. It’s great.

Episode 2B
The class president, Machiko notices Gabriel is the only one who hasn’t submit her career survey form. Then she overhears her talking with Vigne about submitting a survey to heaven about the diet of single men?! She is confused and thinks they are trying to find husbands. She can’t help make some comments and get lost in her fantasies of what they say. One including Gabriel’s wish to destroy the world?! When Gabriel finally submits the proper one, Machiko is shocked to see her first career choice is to do nothing all day long. It’s the same for her second and third choice. Laziness…

Episode 2C
The girls are supposed to cook but with Satania bringing some ugly deep sea fish and Gabriel ingredients for curry, boy, this is going to be tough for Vigne. You can tell she is going to get worked up from their idiocy from cutting the fish to chopping the vegetables. It’s like running a nursery? When it’s done, the end product looks inedible. But it tastes delicious to Satania…

Episode 2D
Satania gets a rude awakening when she finds Raphiel sleeping next to her! She wants to toy her be her friend but obviously Satania doesn’t share the same sentiments. Before she can kick her out, Raphiel says the buzzword: She wants to be her disciple. And that is enough to get her to change her mind. So the great master Satania orders her to do shopping. Guess what? Raphiel gives excuse she is tired! Instead, why not demonstrate how awesome master is? With that, Satania didn’t even know she is doing the errand for Raphiel’s breakfast. Next mission is to spy on Gabriel’s weakness. Nope. Don’t understand. If that isn’t bad enough, Raphiel thinks sleeping together with her is too cramped and that she wants to sleep alone in her futon. You’re fired.

Episode 3A
Gabriel is working part time at a coffee house. She’s not happy either. She needs the money for microtransactions! With such bad service, you’d think Master would have fired her. But he thinks she is a foreigner and lacks knowledge about the local custom and tries his best not to scold her. Even if he has to do the bulk of the work. Even if she criticizes his proud house blend. Even if she says she likes to continue working here because nobody comes here. Even if she will not work on weekends and only once a week. Boy, I’m surprised she isn’t fired. I can’t believe there is such tolerant (also read, dumb) people. Drink that house blend of yours. You’re going to need it…

Episode 3B
Vigne can’t believe Raphiel is also a top student at angel academy. Realizing she knows nothing about her, she decides to talk to her. She’ll soon get to know her twisted ways of fun because Raphiel loves watching all kinds of movies in the sense of finding contrasts in dubbing and the subtitles and a roulette cream puff (one is super spicy that will have you sleepless nights). Thankfully both girls didn’t pick it. But when Raphiel spots Satania, she immediately has her eat the last cream puff. Raphiel is going to in for some shock when Satania loves its taste…

Episode 3C
When Satania enters the coffee house, instantly Gabriel beats her up and throws her out! Master still won’t fire her? Satania becomes a customer and thought she could be king but Gabriel gives her bad service. Master treats her his special house blend but with Gabriel threatening to spill and not serve her, the one thing that hurts Master the most is how Gabriel notes how much this coffee sucks! Remember her taste deaf… Later Vigne visits and Master is afraid of youngsters like her. His fear comes true when she orders the special house blend. He braces for the worst when Vigne claims how super good it is. His confidence restored. She’s an angel! Demon actually…

Episode 3D
It’s just not Gabriel’s day. The air-cond died, she’s sweating like hell and mosquitoes are biting her. An angel can’t even beat those little bugs? Satania picked the wrong day to go bug her because Gabriel is so in a bad mood that she beats her up and then tells her to fix her place. Then she goes to Vigne’s place and make herself home there. Use her air-cond, use her bath, use her t-shirt, get her bites treated and even staying for dinner. Heck, she is staying for the night too. And she’s all forgotten about Satania still knocked out at her place.

Episode 4A
Satania is upset that her friends left her out in discussing about a beach trip. So she makes it obvious hinting that she is damn free to go. Raphiel and Gabriel play a prank on her to just tell her, not invite her. That priceless shock face… Eventually Vigne invites her and Satania becomes cocky. Now you know why, right? They make a guidebook for their trip but they have to first deal with their exams. You know about the remedial classes if you fail, right? Thankfully they all pass (it must be a miracle) but on the day of the beach trip, it rains! Gabriel is happy as she doesn’t want to do this and go home. Satania will not stop b*tching about it so Raphiel might have pulled some strings to clear the skies! It is their first time on a human beach and the first thing Gabriel does is to stay under the parasol and surf the internet. In order to entice her to do beach things, Satania fails in her swimming and Vigne is just boring in making sand castles. Raphiel then has Satania become the watermelon for the watermelon splitting! Now this gets Gabriel’s attention. She wants to do it! Oh no. Satania almost loses her life when Gabriel smashes the bat but missed just inches. Gabriel joins in the rest of the fun like splashing water (throwing sea life with Satania?), eating shaved ice cream and being buried in the sand (the dog almost peed on Satania!). In the end, it was a fun day and they all head back sleeping on the train home. Even angels and demons do get tired from the fun in the sun.

Episode 4B
Vigne thought she is going to have fun for the rest of the summer till Gabriel barges in to copy her homework. Well, Vigne should have seen this coming, right? Yeah, Satania is here to copy too. While guiding the dumb ones, Satania wants to know how Vigne and Gabriel met. It was a time when Gabriel was still the pure innocent angel. She bumped into Vigne who was lost looking for her apartment. Gabriel gladly helped guide her there. Before they part, Gabriel also said she just moved here and doesn’t have any friends yet. She hopes Vigne could be her friend since they are going to the same school too. The rest is history but Satania couldn’t believe this ‘creepy’ story that she puts up the freakiest face ever. Yeah, it sounded like Gabriel was a totally different person. You don’t say because disappointed Vigne would really love to have that old Gabriel back.

Episode 5A
Tapris Sugarbell Chisaki just arrived from heaven to Earth. In a spacesuit? Is everything on Earth dangerous? She hopes to find Gabriel she looks up so much. Yeah… At school she doesn’t recognize Gabriel since the latter is extorting her for money to buy a can drink. Luckily Raphiel is here and recognizes Tapris. She is happy to know she’s got a new ‘toy’… Imagine Tapris’ shock to realize this ruffian is Gabriel and that angelic version was a lie. Raphiel further aggravates the situation by saying that a demon made Gabriel’s downfall. Of course you know what kind of idiocy would ensue when she is going to let Tapris handle Satania. Because Satania already blunders herself by waiting and locking herself in the locker. When she manages to get out, she proudly claims how she subdued Gabriel under her command by showing picture ‘proof’. Gullible but scared Tapris wants to avenge her so they decide to play old maid? Satania obviously sucks at the game but she cheats to win it. Hey, she’s the devil so all is fair for her. Satania gloats on her victory while Tapris runs away in tears. And Raphiel has the best entertainment of all. Thank you God for this amusement. Tapris bumps into Vigne and by this time she already has trust issues. However Vigne is kind enough to help her and restore some faith. Tapris loves her kindness and Vigne loves being looked up as a senior. But then the dream shatters when Gabriel points out Vigne is a demon. Trust issues coming back again as Tapris accuses Vigne of playing nice to let her guard down. Vigne tries to dismiss it but the damage is done. She fears Tapris hates her now. However she gives her some hope that she would still love to join her for tea.

Episode 5B
Tapris is glad to stay with Gabriel. Till she sees how filthy a pig sty her room is! Oh dear. Her halo is getting corrupted by the disappointment. Gabriel then tells off Tapris to stop trying to clean up or anything. Because Vigne already did it and she failed to change! Tapris can’t believe Gabriel continues to play her online game till 3am. She is sad of the good ol’ days when Gabriel was kinder. Sniff, sniff. Can’t help think back of those days, eh? Next morning, Tapris wakes up to find a blanket over her and thinks Gabriel covered it for her and slept on the floor herself. She is further touched when she thinks Gabriel left her a present on the way out. Actually it is burnable garbage! This has Tapris scold her that today is not burnable garbage day!

Episode 6A
Satania after failed attempts to get back at Gabriel, finally buys a gun from hell’s network shopping channel. It is believed when shot at, you won’t stop laughing for 10 minutes. Huh? Surprisingly, Gabriel admits she has lost. This makes Satania very happy and cocky. But Satania still wants to get her revenge and shoot her so Gabriel asks if she has tested it out to see if it works. Apparently not. Gabriel offers to fix it. And what do you know? Gabriel shoots her! Now Satania can’t stop laughing! Hey, at least it’s working. The idiot deserves it, right? So when Sensei enters and she still can’t stop laughing, you can say she died laughing…

Episode 6B
Satania continues to challenge Gabriel but the latter doesn’t give a damn. Then Raphiel pops up and wants in. I mean, if Satania is going to win, she needs someone to tell her awesome legacy, right? That sealed it. So they’ll be playing shogi. Obviously Satania doesn’t know how to play and quickly refers to a book. Clearly she still doesn’t know how to play after making the first wrong move. Taking advantage of this is Raphiel of course. She starts penalizing Satania based on rules from other sports. Not even whatever Batman formation can save you. Gabriel also makes full use of her idiocy to win the game via God piece. Next day, Satania challenges her again to shogi and loses in a more pathetic fashion.

Episode 6C
Machiko is only posing like a chuunibyou because Satania is using her as a model for an art competition. May God bless her soul. Of course Satania is being picky what kind of pose should motivate her. Because Machiko won’t strip, Satania gets bored. Machiko feels responsible if Satania cannot finish her drawing because of her. She hopes the props will give her some motivation but nothing. Desperate, Machiko decides to just strip for her sake but Vigne tries to stop her. That silly pose has Satania start drawing. Turns out to be sh*t that even a 5 year old could do better… Anyway, Vigne won first place for her surreal picture of Gabriel. Now that’s art.

Episode 6D
The girls arrive at Gabriel’s place to go trick or treating. Apparently she’s not interested but they invite themselves in. Vigne tries to convince her to do this activity with them and wants her to put on a Halloween costume. Gabriel decides to go with her own real angel outfit so with Raphiel’s help, Vigne manages to put on a monster cat costume on her. Satania leads the way to a person’s house for trick or treating. Little do everyone know that house is Sensei’s! So this is Satania’s way of trying to get back at him because apparently on Halloween everything is fair play? Surprisingly Sensei has got sweets for them. Satania is not satisfied but he gives her a limited deluxe edition of a melon bread. Now you’re talking. But then it got stolen by a dog. Trick or dog?

Episode 7A
Lazy Gabriel does nothing but sleep and play her online games while Vigne is hardworking in her chores. At the end of the day, both are shocked to see their allowances are reduced! Vigne confides with Raphiel on this and she says it may be because she isn’t acting like a devil. So her advice is to make her dress up like a bear? Ah-kuma. Akuma! Get the pun! Not even Master’s coffee can help her so Master decides to talk to this ‘angel’ who appreciates his coffee. Apparently she wants to be bad. Yeah, as shocking it may sound but it’s true. As he is bent on helping her, they try to brainstorm ways for her to become a bad girl since Master was once a rebel himself. So the first order is dress sloppily? I think Gabriel trumps her on that. Then she is supposed to skip class but since that is too evil, try avoid taking notes for the entire lesson. That itself is like skipping class. Vigne doesn’t realize how hard it is to do nothing for an hour! In the end when she tries to show off to Gabriel she didn’t do anything, she didn’t even react. How disappointing. On her way to the toilet, Satania notices her dressed differently. Vigne is invigorated and gives her a high-5. The same when she gets back to Gabriel. Not that she understands. Too bad Vigne’s allowance didn’t change. Obviously…

Episode 7B
Poor Vigne caught a human cold and has to stay in bed. She tries to count Cerberus to sleep but it seems they won’t jump the fence and pile up before it. A nightmare? She is woken up by Raphiel and Satania who are obviously here to play. She kicks them out so she can get some rest. Yeah, don’t want your fever to go up further. So she counts Gabriel this time but still the same problem of not jumping over the fence, falling asleep before it and piling up. When she blows her top and wakes up, she is surprised Gabriel is by her side. Although it is to pass her notes from class, devilish Gabriel was actually doodling on her face. Vigne might feel better till she realizes Gabriel also passes her own homework for her to do on her behalf! Hey, didn’t she say she was feeling better? Yeah, she even made sick Vigne make her tea. After kicking her out, Vigne realizes Gabriel left some snacks for her takes heart she cares for her.

Episode 8A
Raphiel realizes her bra is too tight. She manages to hook it but today is not her today because it is physical examinations. This means Gabriel is throwing a tantrum she doesn’t want to participate and Vigne had to bribe her by treating her yakiniku after that. So while Gabriel is doing the minimum effort just to get it over, Satania is overhyped and passes each test with flying colours. On the other hand, Raphiel is trying to stay low in fear her bra hook might snap anytime. What a bummer since she can’t do any pranks. The 100m dash is the last test. To avoid Satania being cocky for a week, Raphiel agrees to stop her by challenging her. Raphiel wins at the expense of her bra snapping. Therefore it is odd for others to see the winner sad and the loser happy (because one lost isn’t enough to put down an idiot’s spirit).

Episode 8B
Vigne and Satania attend an interview test handled by Sensei. Vigne is trying to be cautious but stupid Satania is acting and saying things that would definitely incur his wrath. But Vigne is surprised that Sensei doesn’t blow his top and continues his interview. Thus Vigne can’t help fall in and out of paranoia thinking the next stupid thing Satania says or does will be the killing blow. But nothing happens. Sensei is just cool. Hmm… His kindness is even scarier? Vigne herself slips up from all the overthinking but nothing as she thought has happened. The interview ends. But then Sensei calls Satania to stay back. He needs to talk to her. This is where the real hell begins…

Episode 8C
Gabriel has spent so much on microtransactions that she has no money for dinner. So how to feed her hunger? She is going to join the cooking club! Great. Because Machiko is in that club. Obviously Gabriel is joining to get free food. She doesn’t care if club members Tanaka and Ueno are in the same class with her. She orders lots of food and being the proud cooks they are, they agree to whip them up for her. Gabriel doesn’t even listen to how they meticulously prepare the food with their heart and soul. She devours them and even asks for seconds! The girls think it is a challenge so they make more for her. Gabriel is satisfied with everything and will definitely come back for more. Tanaka and Ueno are in high spirits too because if Gabriel joins their club, they hope to change it to a taste testing club. Not happening, says Machiko.

Episode 8D
On a rainy day when Satania forgot her umbrella, Raphiel offers to share hers. Now, Satania might be an idiot but she is not stupid so by this time she has learnt that every time Raphiel offers something, it must be some kind of trap. Satania relents but all the way as they walk, she cannot let her guard down and becomes paranoid thinking of all the traps she might have laid out. Yeah, silly conspiracy theories. In actual fact Raphiel has planned nothing. But come to think of it don’t you think this also means this is part of her plan to see her paranoid reaction? When the rain stops, Satania picks up a frog. She notices Raphiel scared of it. Time to turn the tables as Satania chases after her to let her touch it. For once Raphiel did not get her way…

Episode 9A
Vigne is eager to celebrate Christmas. A demon celebrating the birth of Christ? But Satania calls. She hates this day and wants to strike fear in all humans! She is coming over to derive a plan. But when she arrives, Vigne and Raphiel throw a surprise Christmas bash in hopes to make her forget. Some melon bread will do the charm to distract her and stay at this party. But you know Raphiel. She is going to have her own fun teasing her. One of them includes making her the ‘star’ by dressing her up as a reindeer but leashed like a dog. Vigne hopes to distract her to decorate the cake. Since Satania ate the entire decoration, Raphiel replaces with a cross. What is a cross for… Luckily Vigne lets her decorate her cake into her own evil version. Just when Satania thinks Christmas is about celebrating the rebirth of the devil, Vigne loses it. She keeps spamming Merry Christmas in her face. When Gabriel comes over, she sees Satania tied in a corner. Vigne has ignored her presence… Even the dog is mocking and slapping her! When Satania gets cocky trying to curse the world, she backs down when Vigne fork ‘accidentally slips from her hand’. Raphiel cheers her up by saying good kids get presents. But Satania is a demon. Don’t worry. Just listen to her and she’ll get some… And so Satania acts like a baby before realizing she’s been duped. Because there are no presents here…

Episode 9B
The girls visit the shrine on New Year’s Eve. Because Gabriel almost got lost in the crowd, luckily Vigne pulled her out before she blows her apocalypse trumpet! Because the angels are of western background, kneeling and praying at a Japanese shrine seems odd and hell of a confusing! Vigne tells of the tradition of adults giving kids money. Gabriel has no need for that since she has the lottery! She’s not cheating, isn’t she? Well, she’s just praying to God for her number. That’s cheating! Vigne rips it apart. You demon! Technically correct… When they drink sweet sake, Gabriel gets drunk. She turns into her angel form and is going to blow her trumpet as she flies into the sky! Everyone is stunned seeing this. UMA?

Episode 9C
Time for our girls to return to their respective heaven or hell. Gabriel is acting so nice not because she fears God. As heaven forbids human items, there is an exception if you are an honour student and have a valid reason. At the customs, Satania thinks she can fool the angels. Take her away, please… Gabriel lets the custom check her stuffs. She explains this is foodstuff she got as souvenir for her family. A bit too heavy to be food, isn’t it? A handheld console inside… The customs isn’t buying that is human food these days. Confiscated. What about this dual screen Blu-ray player? Pancake griddle. Confiscated. The laptop is her last item. Gabriel realizes she has failed because she is trying to BS them. So she reworded it in a way that this laptop has internet that she uses to apply info and save humans. Very impressive. But heaven’s library has got tons of computer and with connectivity too. Feel free to use them. So her laptop? Confiscated. GODDAMNIT! Did I hear that right?! Meanwhile Vigne is profusely apologizing to the interrogating angels for Satania’s behaviour. But the latter is unrepentant so Vigne forces her to. Wow. Even heaven there’s a scary place.

Episode 10A
After passing the customs, Gabriel returns home but only her hyper genki little sister, Haniel is home. She is excited to hear her stay on Earth. Too bad Gabriel isn’t interested and passes her brooding behaviour as maturity. In order not to let Haniel down, she decides to play with her. Noticed how they play old games before electronic devices became a fad? Yeah… Those were good times… Gabriel wonders is heaven is stuck in some feudal era or something.

Episode 10B
Satania returns to her home and lies plus exaggerates how she is steadily having humans grovel beneath her feet, much to her parents’ delight. They praise her as their talented daughter. How about that angel they heard who is giving her trouble? Don’t worry. She is in the midst of bringing her to the dark side! Let’s toast to that! The only sane person in this room is Satania’s little brother who notes how crazy his family who just runs a bakery is. I guess that looks on his face means he is tired of playing the straight man and can’t wait to grow up to leave the house.

Episode 10C
Vigne can’t wait to meet her folks. Especially that small baby monster whom she picked up injured before she left for Earth, Chappy. Imagine her shock when Chappy is now way bigger than her! She can’t believe it is her cute little pet. She is having doubts whether to take it for a walk on a leash as mom suggests and true enough, it starts running and pulling her along. Meanwhile Satania is training her little baby monster, Alexander (Charizard?) when Satania and Chappy run into them. Satania gets scared seeing how big and powerful Chappy is. Yeah, Alexander even had to play dead…

Episode 10D
Raphiel returns to her mansion. My, she is like a noble with her own house servant, Martiel. As all her family members are out with appointments, Raphiel also has hers but she finds them boring and has Martiel do the necessary to deny them. Martiel might seem decent till she wants to get hold of her underwear. This is because Martiel might be a masochist and loves her milady’s scorn. Long time no scorn, eh? Raphiel isn’t so kind enough to allow such unholy act even when she tries to photograph her while bathing.

Episode 10E
Gabriel and Raphiel see their principal. His light aura is blinding! They are to report their accomplishments on Earth. Raphiel explains hers like an honour student. When it is Gabriel’s turn (was she sleeping?), she starts passionately explaining how she saved 2 countries! OMG! She’s not lying, is she?! As she slowly unravels how she did so, it would have occur to us she was referring to her online game. Yeah, next update when? Despite flabbergasted, the principal is glad they are doing well and increases their allowance. Later Gabriel and Raphiel hang out together but they are so bored with nothing to do. They play a staring game and obviously nobody can beat Raphiel. Raphiel gets a call from Satania. She wants to know how to sneak into heaven. Raphiel agrees to meet up at the gates to brainstorm. Yeah, this is more interesting, right?

Episode 11A
Satania just bought a melon bread and is anticipating for that dog to steal. But it doesn’t pop up. Then Raphiel points out it has been caught by a dog catcher. No more running joke? Shockingly, Satania runs after it to rescue and free it! Am I dreaming? It shows its gratitude by eating her melon bread. Well, things are back to normal. Because all of their places do not allow pets, Satania thought she could ask her dad to change her living place. She is asked to do it herself since she is the future queen of hell. Too bad she is broke because somehow the demon shopping keeps ‘stealing’ her money. Bad financial planning if I should say. So how? Satania and the dog run away together looking for a place to live. Thanks to Raphiel registering a tracking GPS on her, she is as far north at Hokkaido. Time to get her back. Satania is sad and insists she wants to live with her ‘familiar’ when she gets a call from Gabriel. It seems she has made a deal with Master to adopt it since his apartment allows pets in exchange she will work a little harder. Twice per week. So little…

Episode 11B
Tapris visits the human world but is somewhat made a fool when she doesn’t even know how to use the simplest machine or mechanism. Didn’t know she had to push a button to cross the streets, eh? This reminds her she has never touched a PC before and perhaps she could learn to use one to help Gabriel and save her. The best way to learn is at the public library. We see her being a total noob at the computer. Trying to use the hamster (mouse) and then hovering it over to the internet icon. She waits… Nothing happens… Did she do something wrong? Is the machine broken? Panic time. Luckily the librarian helps her out by introducing loads of books for PC beginners. Too much to read… Don’t understand a thing… Later Tapris tells Gabriel about her ‘achievement’ in using a PC so Gabriel agrees to teach her some. However Tapris knows a bit of C+ and Java. Now she is aiming for PHP. Is she trying to become a programmer?

Episode 11C
Tapris waits for a certain demon to pop up at Gabriel’s place to accuse her. Turns out to be Raphiel. Better apologize. But Tapris is still suspicious of Vigne although the latter says she’ll get used to it over time. The reason today for their gathering is because of a takoyaki party in which Vigne has brought a cooking grill just for it. Gabriel tries to show off she knows how to make them but messes up. Tapris tries her hand but they all turned out black. Vigne the master shows it how it is done. Finally Satania arrives late because an important person always shows up in late fashion (so she believes) but now rues how her portion is finished. The reason she is late was because she was buying this dark pot for a dark nabe. The rest tell her to have fun by herself since they told her it was going to be a takoyaki party. Wasted… As Tapris leaves, she tells Gabriel that her elder sister will visit tomorrow morning. Oh Gabriel, you don’t mean to look so shock, do you?

Episode 12A
Gabriel is really panicking of her sister’s visit. Zelel is believed to be a more capable and talented angel. So much so Satania doesn’t want to mess with her but Gabriel won’t let her go and calls her a traitor! So desperate that Gabriel is willing to destroy the world! Can’t visit Earth if there is no Earth in the first place. See how awesome Zelel is when angelic white feathers rain down and humans can’t see her presence. At Gabriel’s doorstep, she is greeted by cute Gabriel in a cat maid outfit? The night before, Gabriel roped in her friends to play along with this cute little sister role. She learnt it from the MMORPG whereby playing the cute little sister allows you to get free help. Zelel meets Vigne the first time who is forced to lie and cover up all of Gabriel’s laziness! The lying is killing her! But can she fool Zelel? She knows something is amiss. So we see Gabriel lie through her teeth. Lie after lie. Including Satania tied up and all the garbage dumped inside the closet because Satania wouldn’t play along. So when Satania busts out, Gabriel frames her as the evil arch demon whom she is trying to make her fall. Worse, Satania stupidly plays along sings she believes she is the demon lord. However this is where Zelel puts her foot down. She knows Gabriel has been living a life of decadence ever since. She thought of coming here and if Gabriel repented her actions, she would be lenient. But now she is even trying to implicate her friends. How low can you go? Apparently even further for Gabriel as she accuses big sister of trying to fooling her! If that doesn’t work, perhaps prostrate herself to apologize. And when she thinks she got her guard down, fire some angelic arrow in her face! Too bad Zelel saw it coming, caught it and deflects it back. Gabriel, that’s the last straw. You’re coming back for re-education. And Zelel isn’t going to wait till she finishes today’s MMO events.

Episode 12B
A week later, Gabriel comes back all changed! OMG! She’s so good! Is this the Gabriel we all know?! Oh yeah. This is the Gabriel Vigne knew when she first came to Earth. She is studious that Sensei even cries! She even cleans the toilet before Machiko had the chance! So true! You’re not hallucinating! The odd part is how her friends missed the old corrupted Gabriel. Yeah, even if she was a pain in the ass for Vigne, why does she want the old Gabriel back? Even Satania who enjoyed making Gabriel her lackey till she started taking over her life and finances to turn her into a better demon! Thus Raphiel suggests they should turn her back into a fail-len angel again. So when they converge in her room to tell her so, Gabriel gives out an evil laughter. She puts up a secret barrier that no one else outside can hear. It seems she had them fooled. She was just putting up an act. If she can fool them, it means she can fool Zelel. She will act all good till she goes away. I guess that re-education of just being yelled at didn’t work. But if you think Gabriel is getting her way, think again. Zelel heard it. No flimsy barrier is going to stop her as she has clairvoyance. Now sh*t hits the fan as Zelel will take Gabriel back to heaven for further re-education. This means she cannot set foot on Earth anymore. Desperate Gabriel now plays the friendship card that she can’t leave her friends behind. Guess what? Zelel believes it! WTF?! She’s even crying?! But wait… There’s a catch! Zelel will stay with her on Earth to help with her rehabilitation. Oh sh*t… At this point’s Satania’s melon bread drops and the dog comes in to eat it. Then everyone sees this ‘horrifying’ sight. Zelel squealing like a little girl because she is afraid of dogs! She can’t stay on Earth like this and vanishes back to heaven! Just like that, Gabriel is proud she has ‘vanquished’ the ‘evil’ and immediately returns to her online gaming. And that is how peace continue to reign on Earth. Soon Vigne reminds her that she needs to pass the exams or she will be held back a year. Gabriel thinks she is a powerful being since she has driven out Zelel so she decides to teleport to school. Only her skirt teleported. Please don’t destroy the Earth just because of that!

OVA 1
The quartet head for the hotsprings. Satania has brought lots of luggage and with that smirk on her face, the rest can tell she has a plan that is bound to backfire. At the inn, it seems Satania keeps pestering Gabriel to go with her to the hotspring. But Gabriel feels lazy and when Vigne volunteers, she is shot down. Before they can go to the hotspring, they play ping pong in which Satania lost to Gabriel. Twice. Curse yourself for not knowing the rules. Then they have some good food in which after makes Gabriel feel sleepy. So much so Satania really cried and pleads for her to just come with her to the hotspring. Okay, okay. Let’s go. We see those heavenly light censors for the angels and those dark black holes for the demon. But Vigne has got her entire body emitting holy light! Is she God?! Now that everyone is at the hotspring, Satania returns to her devilish self to unleash her devilish scheme. She summons a giant slime but nobody is scared because they played with this toy before when they were young. Satania wants to slime to teach Gabriel a lesson but was devoured instead. As Vigne tries to rescue her, she got tentacle raped. The slime wanted to pick Gabriel but then it passes her and tentacle rapes Raphiel instead. Why do I have a feeling it has to do with boobs? Gabriel got mad and purifies it with her arrow. Then she ‘purifies’ Satania with the wooden scoop. Everyone has had a relaxing bath except for Satania still knocked out…

OVA 2
On a cold day, the girls stumble unto a blind girl at a park. However she can see them and identifies them as angels! Apparently she isn’t totally blind but has imperfect vision. Somehow she could see them clearly in detail. Isn’t it insulting when she calls Vigne as the most angelic of them all? Yeah, she should just quit being a demon. One day, Gabriel buys her a drink and accompanies her. It seems her other friends have also separately bought her stuffs. Blind girl tells Gabriel of her upcoming eye surgery in which she could see again. However the procedure is risky and failure means she will lose her sight forever. She tries to keep positive while Gabriel also tries to give some encouragement. Of course her other friends also know about this. However as Raphiel points out, they can’t intervene as they are only trainees. The best they could do is hope for a miracle from God. So for the next few days, the friends spend time and hang out with blind girl. Even that dog steals Satania’s melon bread to give it to her. Aww, so sweet? I guess they have been splurging so much just for her and then one day she isn’t at her usual place. When an ambulance passes by, they heard the people talking a girl with a cane got hit by a car. Blind girl is in hospital and her condition isn’t looking too good. Satania is most emotional as she blames the angels for being useless. The doctors are losing blind girl when she starts to see Gabriel in her angel form before her. She realizes they are really angels and Gabriel is here to take her to heaven. That’s why they all let her have so much fun till the end. After a flash of light, blind girl wakes up. Her parents are relieved. Even better, she can now see clearly! Indeed a miracle! The demon girls are crying over this good news. Raphiel talks to Gabriel how she broke a sacred rule and will soon face punishment. She isn’t scared since she considers herself a fallen angel. Shortly, Gabriel is summoned by heaven. A month later, it seems she got off lightly. Well, if you consider her allowance close to zero as a slap on the wrist. She sees (ex) blind girl living her normal life with her friends. When Gabriel returns her dropped handkerchief, she doesn’t seem to recognize her. But she felt somewhat familiar and thanks her with a big smile anyway. Not too sure if she is playing dumb or she is this grateful for her returned handkerchief. It made Gabriel’s day. Now motivated for a little manual labour?

Failure: The Easiest Achievement!
Now you know why Earth is screwed. Now you also know why Jesus Christ never came down a second time to save us from our sins. Because with angels like Gabriel around, it sure proved that the son of God died in vain! Oh Gabriel. With angels like you and the f*cked up attitudes of humans all over, it is no wonder why Apocalypse and Judgment Day will be coming sooner than ever. And when that happens, heaven will be such a barren place and hell filled to the brim, crammed with everyone and no breathing space. Phew. Thank goodness I am imagining this only on this anime’s level of what might happen.

The bite size skits that are only several minutes long per episode makes it enjoyable and fun to watch. Without any proper plot, it allows more flexibility and freedom for the characters to do more random and funny stuffs to tickle our funny bones. I mean, for a change we have seen so many shows about humans failing. How about angels and demons failing for a change? Fail the human way. No wonder it is so much fun seeing them trying to understand and adapt to our pervasive fail culture.

The characters are lovable despite I can safely say that they are all dumb failures! Angel or demon, none are any wiser or any more successful. Yes, that includes you too, Vigne. Because on one hand we have angels who are too lazy to do God’s work and on the other hand we have demons who are arrogantly dim-witted to do any actual harm, let alone hurt a fly. So if you think Earth is screwed, it would be even more worrisome to think that heaven and hell itself are screwed! With future angels and demons like these, you bet heaven and hell will crumble in no time, leaving souls of the dead to forever wander in limbo. Scary, no?

Gabriel as the titular character has fallen down the corrupted path so much that it makes you wonder if God is really the Almighty, the omniscient and omnipotent being. Again it makes you think if God is really God in doing His job because the moment Gabriel has fallen, you might think God would have done something to punish this lazy couldn’t-care-less internet-addicted angel. Remember, Gabriel is a top angel graduated from her heavenly school. Therefore all eyes would be focused on her or at least there would be some parties who would keep watch on her for updates for her ‘splendid work’. But instead she has been left idle to do whatever she wants. Is heaven dead? Because do they not feel that Earth didn’t change for the better? Heck, mankind has never changed so perhaps heaven never placed any real hope to begin with?

Anyhow, with Gabriel even managing to lie and worm her way to cover her unholy activities, don’t you think that maybe this isn’t really Gabriel’s fault? The fault lies in heaven’s system that they even allow this to slip by! OMG. In that sense it is scary to think that heaven might not actually exist. No wonder Gabriel wants to be a NEET. It’s so much fun. You know how unrewarding and ungrateful many humans are after being helped even by a heavenly being, no? Gabriel has been such a lazy failure that if she really turns back to become good, it will be like fish out of water. We are so used to her being a big fail that even being a true angel won’t cut it. So it goes to show that we love Gabriel for being Gabriel. Never change… Just don’t get caught…

Satania doesn’t fare any better than Gabriel because of her constant idiocy. Blinded by her own arrogance, she is drowned in her own baseless confidence that everything would one day bend to her will. She might even be passed off as a kid having chuunibyou issues. Thanks to her stupidity, Satania is mainly the comic relief character as she is the resident troublemaker and mischief maker as well as that overused running joke of the dog stealing her melon bread. Come to think of it, if she always allows a puny dog to steal her food, what if one day when she is an adult she will always have her throne stolen from her? So keep up with the good job being an idiot (not like she would learn any lesson anyway) because making us laugh with her silliness is what she unconsciously does best.

I feel Raphiel is the most dangerous among the four. Overall she might not really pose a threat to mankind but what I meant is that because of her constant smiling face like as though it is stuck in that expression forever and I have never seen her really blowing her top, you really don’t know what is going on in her mind. Of course that sneaky devilish grin is a big hint that she has some sort of scheme planned out. What is worse than a fallen angel is an angel who toys with you for her own amusement and entertainment. Thankfully Satania is that toy. Too much fun to let go. Remember not to overuse her because toys too have their expiry date when played too often and will breakdown. Though in Satania’s case of thick headedness it will last a very long time.

So like in every group, you need one who tows the line and puts others in line when they step out. Vigne as the most rationale and responsible among the quartet is also considered a failure since she is born of a demon but yet does goodie angelic stuffs. Yeah, based on this technicality is the reason why she is a big failure like the rest of her groupies. It’s like she was born in the wrong place and body. A demon doing good? That’s a sign of failure! Because it would have been a sh*tload scary if Vigne really stayed true to her demon roots and becomes a responsibly terrifying demon. It might be true that Vigne might be a sadist-cum-masochist on Gabriel. Look how when Gabriel became good despite being an act and Vigne was all unsatisfied. Is she saying that she loves yelling at Gabriel and being annoyed by her? Well, better to know the angel than the devil. Oh wait. That’s not right…

The other supporting characters are fun too like Tapris who is trying hard to be a good angel but fumbles a lot along the way. At this rate I fear she might become Gabriel the second. Hopefully from the looks of it she is persevering but she too has her limits. You thought Zelel would be the ultimate match for Gabriel but with her fear of dogs, it seems that this angel proves that not every angel is perfect. Makes you wonder if there are dogs in heaven… See our image of the almighty shatter when you see angels being afraid of Earthly things. Machiko is another funny girl. Though with limited scenes, she is mainly concerned of feeling responsible for the outcome of things and goes to great length for that even if it makes her look stupid. No one messes with hardcore baldy Sensei but Satania never seems to learn. He might look strict and in the wrong job (he should have been somebody’s SP or bodyguard) but deep down he has quite a soft spot too. Halloween candies from this guy? Never would have thought of it. Master is too kind. Another adult trying to be responsible? Having a part timer like Gabriel, other employers would not have tolerated kids like her who dictate the terms of her employment. It makes you wonder who is working for who. If you ever find this guy please let me know. Because I also want to work under him like Gabriel.

Art and animation lean towards the cute and kawaii feel. The colours are bright and vivid giving more effect on the comedy aspect. Sometimes it makes you think that hell isn’t such a bad place after all because at least physically everybody and everything there looks so cute. Cute enough to be dumb. Animated by Doga Kobo, you might find the art style of this anime to be familiar since the studio has also animated quite a number of series with this cute and kawaii design such as Himouto! Umaru-chan, YuruYuri, New Game, Sansha Sanyou, GJ-Bu, Mikakunin De Shinkoukei and Love Lab. See the similarities in these animes?

I love Kana Hanazawa as Raphiel. Her voice definitely fits Raphiel’s sneaky character very well. Despite always sounding sweet and polite, you can’t help feel that there is some sort of devilish scheming plan behind it without sounding like a retard. All too perfect. The other casts include Miyu Tomita as Gabriel (Otako in Oshiete! Galko-chan), Saori Oonishi as Vigne (Miyuki in Shomin Sample), Naomi Oozora as Satania (Inari in Inari Kon Kon), Inori Minase as Tapris (Noel in Sora No Method), Mai Fuchigami as Machiko (Nagisa in Ansatsu Kyoushitsu), Hidekyuki Umezu as Master (Diamante in One Piece), Tsuyoshi Koyama as Sensei (Leon in Trinity Blood), Sumire Morohoshi as Haniel (Seira in GJ-Bu), Yukiyo Fujii as Martiel (Latifa in Amagi Brilliant Park) and Miyuki Sawashiro still recognizable as Zelel.

Both the opening and ending themes are sung by the main quartet (Gabriel, Vigne, Satania and Raphiel, that is). Gabriel Drop Kick as the opener is sure one hell (or heaven) of a crazy song. I think I can classify it as one of those denpa songs. Its tune goes back and forth between its angelic melody and devilish hard rock beat. It is more evident for the ending theme, Hallelujah Essaim. It sounds darker and has this fiendish badass feel to it. A song that truly befits evil demons and corrupted fallen angels. A song that would most likely fit if they team up to dominate the world.

Overall, this is one of the funniest anime series for the season and I totally recommend you check it out if you are looking for some laughs. Just be warned that although the characters are likeable, they are not to be taken as role models. At least you can tell the producers put in some effort in making this anime decently satisfying. It would have been a very big irony had they slack on it. Come to think of it, maybe Gabriel and co are allowed to continue their depraved ways not because God isn’t looking. It is could be a part of His bigger plan. When ordinary humans get to know how f*cked up these angels and demons are, maybe they’ll think about it and bring about some change. Oh yeah. That must be it. Or they could not be bothered and continue failing till kingdom come. Humans. Failing has never been so fun…

Demi-chan Wa Kataritai

Have you ever thought of interviewing with a vampire? Or a dullahan? Or a snow woman? No? Is it because you are afraid of your blood being sucked? Or get decapitated? Or get frozen? You see, we have heard so many stories about these creatures from folklores with its different versions from around the world and yet we know so little about them. At least to the common man. But how would you like to get to know more about them by interviewing with them? You mean just go up to them and talk like normal? Yes. That is how. Well, at least in Demi-chan Wa Kataritai, you don’t have scary looking monsters that would scare the hell out of you while you are interviewing them. Heck, they are cute looking high school girls! This very much helps. However don’t be mistaken that this anime is about knowing in depth about such creatures. It mostly tells of the bond and some of the issues that they go through being one in a human society. Because you see these girls could have been ordinary humans if not for a mutated gene that turned them into… Say what?! Let’s just get on with the interview show. The interview with the vampire… Dullahan, snow woman and succubus.

Episode 1
Tetsuo Takahashi is a biological teacher who is very interested in finding out more and interviewing demi-humans (demi for short). However he laments he has yet to meet one. That is, until the new maths teacher, Sakie Satou also introduces herself as a succubus. He tries to talk to her but she keeps keeping her distance in fear that she might evoke sexual thoughts. That’s why she is dressed so plain. As he laments his luck, Hikari Takanashi then comes to seek his help as she needs him to carry Kyouko Machi to the infirmary because she has no strength. Takahashi is pretty confident in his ability to tell a person’s health by the face. That is, if the student is a dullahan and has no head! With Yuki Kusakabe, a snow woman being stretchered in for heat stroke and Hikari admitting she is a vampire, Takahashi must be knocking his head that he never knew a bunch of demi are right under his nose. He talks to Hikari about his interest in the demi and is surprised she agrees to be interviewed as long as she could hang out in his lab. Later Hikari introduces to him her younger twin sister, Himari. However she is not a vampire or a demi. Say what? As explained, demi occurs as a result of mutation than genetics so it is possible for a twin to become a demi and the other a normal human. In the interview, Hikari debunks age old myths that vampires need to drink blood. It is more of anaemic. But they do still need blood and the government do provide them. What about her vampire teeth. Does she suck blood with them? Not really. She doesn’t want others to hate her. But it seems she only drinks blood from girls and not from guys because she has never fallen in love before. Takahashi quips it is seen as an expression of sexual desire. She is after all at that age. When Hikari leaves, she plays a prank on him by using pencils to stab on the back of his neck like as though she bit it. Later Machi’s body is seen delivering a letter to Takahashi. She thanks him for carrying her to the infirmary and heard from Hikari so she would love to be interviewed by him sometimes. He replies she can stop by any time.

Episode 2
Takahashi feels a bit weird out interviewing Machi since she has to be holding her head. He gets permission to touch her flames shooting out from her neck. Although it feels like air, it does put pressure on her nerves. Apparently Machi has trouble interacting with others and making friends. I mean, can you talk normally to a person without a head? He suggests telling jokes as ice breaker. Machi requests him to hug her. There isn’t anything scandalous about it. Unless if you’re talking about Hikari spying on them and when they realize too late, she is starting to spread this juicy news to everyone. Machi then quips Takahashi is now a dullahan. Because now his head will roll! First joke?! Takahashi zooms to stop Hikari spreading bad rumours. Next day, Hikari seems to be supporting Machi to go on a date. After making her reveal the person she would like to go out with is Takahashi, that devilish smirk on her face says she’s in for the ride. So Hikari sets up Machi with Takahashi but there’s a catch. He’ll only go out with the head while Hikari supervises the body at home. So called experiment. Isn’t it odd to see Takahashi walking around with a head? Nobody seems to be freaking out. Hikari observes Machi’s body making gestures she can’t understand. Cheeky Hikari then presses her tits. If she could only hear how her head gave out that squeal. Your curious question is answered. How does a dullahan go to the toilet? Yeah well, Machi’s body is bumping into furniture. After writing it down, Hikari slowly guides the body to the toilet and in the process freaks out Himari. The rest of the day wasn’t anything much but they had a great time. Takahashi also observed and learnt something. Because Machi has to always carry her head, she lacks that dynamic balance when she walks. Thus he requests the principal for her to carry a backpack instead of a regulation bag in one hand which is more dangerous. Machi is grateful for this consideration.

Episode 3
Sakie narrates her ‘disadvantages’ of being a succubus. She has to be very careful when men are around her due to her aphrodisiac effect of sexually arousing them. Since she can also affect dreams, she has to live far away and alone in a rural area. Thus her home is the only place she can hang loose. Of course this means a woman her age has a lot on her mind thinking if she could get married. One day she accidentally bumps into Takahashi. She flusters in fear of the effect but he is calm and cool. Maybe it has no effect on people with no strong sexual desires? In actual fact Takahashi was putting up a strong front in trying not to lose himself. Takahashi interviews Hikari about blood sucking and if it really has sexual undertones. She is flustering about the topic though she has never fallen in love before. Hikari tries to do a prank on him by lightly kissing him on the cheek. Then she quips kissing is easier than sucking blood. No reaction. Looks like the joke is on her as he writes it down in his memo. Takahashi tries to talk to Yuki many times but no luck this time either. Sakie is helping Machi to put back books in the library. They talk about the person they like and they both realize they like Takahashi. Sakie feels weird for being in ‘competition’ with her. They describe his good qualities and this only makes Sakie sulk and lament about being single. Is this what being a real adult is all about? Yuki hears a couple of girls badmouthing her. They are talking how arrogant that b*tch is since she turned down a guy who tried to invite her out. They think she thinks of herself as some kind of idol or something. Takahashi suddenly feels the air getting cold. He spots a depressed Yuki sitting in front of his door.

Episode 4
Yuki breaks down as she tells him about the rumours behind her back. He hugs her as he notices her tears become rock solid ice. This makes him resolved to protect her. Sakie admires Takahashi’s consideration for the demi students and really wants to do her part to help. Careful. Not so close those boobs… Later Takahashi sees Hikari bringing Yuki to confront those girls. Hikari is going to give them her piece of mind. She doesn’t condone to them badmouthing others just because everyone else is doing it but if they still want to do it, do it where she can’t hear them. I guess a little tears to make it all convincing? Apparently Hikari is saying all that because of a promise made to Himari. Now it’s Yuki’s turn to give her thoughts. Actually she just apologizes. Stunned, right? When Hikari goes home, she rewards herself by sleeping on Himari’s lap. Takahashi calls the demi trio for a meeting. Basically he is giving them an avenue to speak out if they have any problem. Since Sakie is a woman and easier to relate to, they can speak whatever they want to her. Hikari then suggests a hug from Takahashi. Sakie really wants one too but I suppose it’s a bad idea… The oddest hug is hugging Machi’s body. Her tits pressing onto his body is too much for him to handle. Because the rest are so flat, right? Himari on her way home bumps into Takahashi and talks to him. She is quite sceptical about him and wonders if he sees her sister as an experimental subject. She thinks demi are all that is only on his mind since he starts asking about Hikari’s vampire traits. For example, Hikari is not allergic to garlic as opposed to the popular myth. Takahashi’s logical deduction is that vampires have strong senses and that’s why they fear the stench of garlic. Himari then asks him straight if he is not interested in Hikari’s human side. It is true Hikari doesn’t act like a vampire but it is her human side that makes her like a vampire. This is what makes her unique. He tries to see something from both sides as seeing from one side won’t understand or solve problems for the other. She is satisfied with his answer and would trust him if not an ambiguous message from Hikari saying Takahashi hugged and attacked her! Himari rushes home after chastising that demi lover. Although that message was just a prank to get her home faster but Hikari didn’t know she was with Takahashi at that time.

Episode 5
Yuki worries she can puff out cold air enough to freeze hot water. She thought of living a normal life in high school without anyone knowing she is a demi. But ever since that overheating incident, she accidentally told everyone she was a snow woman to avoid them touching her. Previously she lived in a cold place with snow and had no problems with people knowing she is a demi. But with a change in climate, she is nervous and stressed out about it. That’s why she steered clear of others. Takahashi does more research on the snow woman legend and find the variations all end tragically. When he relates this to her and notices her feet giving out cold, he brings back a basin of hot water and has her soak her feet in it while reading the folklore. Then ice start to pop out from the water. He deduces it is her cold sweat that freezes when she is nervous and she sweats from her soles. Yuki is relieved over this but when Takahashi wants to take the ice samples back to his college for further analysis, she won’t allow because she considers that as sexual harassment. Yuki is cheerful enough to hang out with Hikari and Machi. With her giving permission to touch and hug all they want, Hikari instantly goes for one. And even nibbling? Takahashi talks to the demi girls about the friends’ way of calling each other. Hikari has a weird penchant of giving nickname to others. For Takahashi, status quo is the best. Yuki then talks to Yusuke Satake, the boy whom she turned down an invitation. She apologizes for that and would love to hang out with him. Satake is so happy but that turned into shock when he realizes he is the only guy around. Shouldn’t you be happy???!!! Unless demi girl harem isn’t his thing.

Episode 6
Takahashi visits Hikari’s house and talks to her father who is a househusband. He thanks Takahashi for helping the demi girls become friends. Because of that, their parents also keep in touch with each other. With the sisters back home, Takahashi can’t help notice they are like night and day. Yes, and they argue like this all the time. Sensei is here and they still continue arguing. Especially Hikari who is trying to act tough and make bad blood puns. Till she gets her hair messed up by Himari. They even continue arguing when mom comes home. Takahashi notes dad has bleached his hair. It is for Hikari’s sake so that she won’t be too obvious within the family. Even Himari has lightened her hair a little though she dismisses it as fashion. One morning, Hikari is in panic and needs Himari to do her hair. Annoyed sister won’t of course. In the library with Takahashi, Himari learns something devastating. Because vampires cannot see themselves in mirrors (and something about being connected to their souls too), this means Hikari depended on someone to do her hair, Himari is suddenly overcome with guilt. She has done something bad. She runs around school to find her sister. She needs to apologize. But it is ultimately her embarrassment when Hikari can actually see herself in the mirror. How can she even forget they can see each other in the mirror when she help did her hair? Jumping to conclusions… At least this incidents bonded the sisters closer together. And then back to normal quarrelling… When Takahashi returns to his room, he sees Machi sleeping on the couch. He puts a blanket over her and then falls asleep on his desk. Machi then wakes up and sees him. She does the same for him and at the same time, Hikari’s dad is here to pick her up (at this point Takahashi has awakened but pretends to continue sleeping). Machi doesn’t know anything about this. Dad says he texted Hikari personally to tell her but since she didn’t, it must be her prank. After they leave, Takahashi reads a letter left by Machi thanking him for the blanket. With the parents doing a lot for the demi girls, Takahashi is motivated to do more for them.

Episode 7
Sakie sees a boy crying in the hallway. She thinks he is a foreigner from his blonde hair. Talking to him, Kurtz is German and came here with someone but got lost. Sakie can tell when Kurtz is lying but knows he is overall a good person. When Takahashi comes to warn Sakie of a suspicious person in school (Hikari gave exaggerated details), Kurtz believes he needs to find this person to protect Sakie. When that suspicious person is at the corner, Kurtz beats him up! Turns out Sakie knows this guy, Ugaki. He is from the police force and Kurtz is his partner. As Takahashi takes Kurtz to register as a guest for the school, Ugaki talks to Sakie and hints Kurtz is their weapon against succubi (Sakie’s touch seems not to have an effect on him earlier on). They are here to investigate incidents caused by succubi. When Ugaki tries to offer his help to her to look for a husband, she tells him there is someone she likes but is oblivious to her aphrodisiac effect. He dismisses it so because it could have an effect on him but he isn’t showing it. This makes Sakie go into an unbearable rant about her feelings. Kurtz wanders around and sees Satake showing his friend a sexy picture of Sakie. He snatches the handphone and ticks him off about his shady voyeurism. But Satake argues about being a normal high school student and even if Sakie wasn’t a succubus, he still likes her. He screams out loud knowing this is shady. Kurtz likes his answer and gives back his handphone. Takahashi talks to Ugaki and has heard from blabbermouth Kurtz about their job. Despite they are in the demi-human department, their job has nothing to do with them. Back in the days when demi-humans were new and caused trouble, the department was busy. But with the government intervening and people accepting them, there has been lesser troubles. Those that are, are mainly from succubi who use their aphrodisiac affect for mischief. It is hard to tell if they do it on purpose that is why many succubi hate him as he interrogates them. There are some very rare good ones like Sakie. He hopes Takahashi can do his best to look after the demi in this school as they make a world where they can feel at ease.

Episode 8
The test results are up. Hikari is proud Himari is 2nd overall. However she is shocked that Machi is ranked 5th! She has always thought the dullahan was as dumb as her! This has Takahashi berate her on being jealous of others instead of improving herself. Hikari thought she can solve this with her hug but he’s not giving it to her. Now she is bugging Yuki to help her study. Later Yuki realizes she dropped her manga. As she goes to find it, she sees Sakie picked it up. They talk about several topics but it seems all of them has Yukie trying to control herself not to laugh. It’s giving her a creepy face… The ultimate one came when Sakie relates during her school days a school gangster challenged her to use her aphrodisiac effect on him. She gave him a judo throw and while twisting his arm, he turned into a masochist wanting for more. It destroyed his reputation and bad boys stayed away from her. Funny, right? With Takahashi asking about Hikari’s preference to suck blood or bite, thus Hikari holds the first ever arm biting championship. Huh? With Machi and Yuki joining the experiment, it seems Hikari is a pro and can give scores and describe the arm she bites like food. Maybe she is trying to get back at Takahashi since she gives him a failing score for an inedible arm. Yuki has the highest score and ‘wins’. This has Takahashi asking about Sakie. Apparently Hikari views her as normal and has no tendency to chew on her. This makes Takahashi think that sucking blood is based on eating based. But he is confused seeing Hikari did say it has sexual nuances. If you go by this logic, Sakie a succubus should be the best choice. Unconsciously this makes him blurt out Sakie should be the tastiest woman. The girls misconstrue his words and call him a pervert. Hikari does well on her next test. The results are out too. Hikari sees Himari has dropped a place to 3rd. She wants to know who knocked her off and falls into shock upon seeing Machi’s name. Yeah, she is ranked 1st! Traitor!!! Still think of her being smart was just a joke? WTF?!

Episode 9
Sakie is drunk at home and roleplaying her teddy bear as Takahashi. How is she going to be educated today? She gets a call from Ugaki who knows she likes Takahashi. He encourages her to use her aphrodisiac effect on him. Wouldn’t she like to see his embarrassed looks? And if she dawdles around, he might find himself a new girlfriend. So the next day as she talks to him, she takes off her jersey and glasses. No effect. Embarrassing. Actually he is really trying to hold it in. This guy is a good poker face. When she relates her aphrodisiac problem and doesn’t want men simply falling for her charms, Takahashi draws up a chart on the sexiness appeal of a normal woman compared to a succubus. This interesting topic has her join in as she notes this is why she respects him a lot. As Takahashi is trying to be sincere, she too will try to be sincere without using her aphrodisiac. As she zips up her jersey, her boobs got stuck. Takahashi almost succumbed to the erotic effect. His face almost gave way. Later Sakie calls Ugaki to relay the good news about their ‘progress’ and their common ground. Yuki sees Takahashi in hopes of controlling her cold air power. Because summer is here, she thought she could do something about it. So she is standing in a basin of water cursing and trying to create cold air? Didn’t work. But she did sweat and create lots of ice from her soles. Hikari and Machi join in to cool their feet. After a hot outdoor day, they can sure appreciate the cool air-conditioning in Takahashi’s room. So to cool themselves further, they think of telling a scary ghost story. But it involves Machi as a decapitated body so it sounds more funny than scary. The girls wonder why Machi always wears an extra vest despite it is hot. She’s sweaty too but as she reveals what is underneath, let’s say the girls are shocked to see huge melons… Just enough time for Machi to pull them back down since Takahashi is back with popsicles that they requested. He is confused why they are now ‘frozen’.

Episode 10
Hikari tells the girls that she kissed Takahashi on the cheek. Although that was just as a prank. This makes Machi think if she should try it out too. So on a pretence to help him carry boxes, she tries to do it but her nervousness makes it so awkward that they trip. Although no injuries, this makes Takahashi mad as he scolds her about being reckless. It hit Machi hard. She realizes she is in the wrong and runs away in tears. Hikari and Yuki learn about this so they bring Takahashi to talk and reconcile. Both apologize for being too emotional. As a dullahan’s body still remains a big mystery, Takahashi suggests getting an opinion from someone from a different field. So they head down to his college to meet with his old classmate who specializes in physics. He stayed back at college to do some research. Souma as warned is a weirdo since he only has 1 expression on his face. I bet that isn’t a mask either… From what I understand, Souma believes Machi’s dullahan existence is due to some high dimensional wormhole tunnel. Because if she puts food in her mouth, it will somehow teleport into her stomach. Plus, when Machi had her endoscope test, it is revealed inside there is skin around so she does have a neck. Just that perhaps her neck is in a separate space. So there are lots more mumbo-jumbo about quantum expansion, waves and particles… Not really understanding all that. What is this thing that it is us who are hiding her neck? Because it is like each time we try to see it, it goes into hiding? Huh? He also thinks her flame is some fluctuation in space since her emotions change with its flames. This makes Machi interested in knowing more about the dullahan. Due to ethics, not anybody can just make her an experiment subject. Maybe she’ll become a researcher herself to do more research on dullahans. Because the world is just more than solving answers to questions. It is beyond that. Things that could change the world.

Episode 11
The demi girls are hyped for Takahashi to draw up a plan for their summer break. Thus Satake quips he is the only one they can talk to about their bodies. However this has the vice principal wanting Takahashi to not be too hard working as it could cause problems. What is he saying? Because he focuses too much on the demi girls, he neglects other normal students. Because of that they rely only on him when they should be interacting with others to help resolve their problems. So please show some restraint. Can’t argue with that. So Satake and his friends discuss among themselves that despite Takahashi is doing a great job, it is also true that they are relying too much on him. Besides, the question is if they should treat demi as humans. If so, that is like discrimination. Although human, but they aren’t so to treat them equal like normal humans, isn’t that discrimination? Mind blown? Also, how much to they know about demi? Nothing. When the demi girls go to see Takahashi, they know something is wrong from the way he claims he can’t entertain them because he is too busy. As Hikari tries to find Sakie, she stumbles into Satake and co and is told what happened. She understands and will find a solution. While Takahashi is depressing over this issue and what should be the proper approach, he gets a video email from Hikari. The demi girls have done a thank you email for him. From nervous Yuki to eloquent Machi and textbook Sakie, well, Hikari ‘cheated’ and didn’t record her own. Before Takahashi can cry, here comes Hikari to deliver her own speech in person. Honest happy so Hikari-like. It’s hard trying to hold those tears. When Takahashi tries to talk to the vice principal the next day, it seems the vice principal apologizes for his lecture and wants his idea to be put on hold. After seeing Satake and co interacting well with the demi girls, he believes Takahashi should continue as he is. As long as there are students motivated by his actions, rejecting his efforts would be wrong. Oh Takahashi, you feel like crying again?

Episode 12
Because Hikari’s eyes reflect in the dark while a photo is taken, Takahashi deduces she might have eyes like nocturnal animals. Hikari then convinces Takahashi to act out in a play to attack like a vampire. WTF. Takahashi seeks Himari’s permission for Hikari to use the school’s pool during the hot summer. Surprisingly she gives her approval. Sakie thought Takahashi has finally asked her out when he asks if she is free weekend. Yeah, it’s to help watch the demi girls use the pool. So the teachers talk and Sakie almost let her guard down and let her pheromones get to her by almost confessing she likes him. Trying to cover it up, she then shows her swimsuit. Takahashi must really have strong tolerance level not to go berserk. Takahashi then talks to Machi about dullahan legends like they are known as the harbingers of death and cannot cross flowing streams of water. Because Machi has never been underwater, they agree to help her do so. Machi takes a deep breath as she opens her eyes into a new world underwater. Later Hikari is seen resting in the shade and Takahashi knows she has got sunburn. Even though it was Hikari’s idea for this outdoor pool, it could have been easier if they booked an indoor pool as everyone might have seen through her and the next time they play, the would have gone out of their way. When Hikari returns to school on a normal school day, she is reminding Takahashi of all the good times and everything. But you can’t fool him. Because she tells him to sign the form for being late. No excuses about Himari not wanting to fix your hair either. Takahashi feels he hasn’t nearly know much about these girls although there have been some progress. That’s why he wants to interview them a lot more.

Episode 13
Summer vacation is here. Only Takahashi and Sakie are patrolling the school. She is thinking of asking him out to drink and do some adult stuffs but he prompts her first by asking if she is free tomorrow. Tomorrow is the fireworks festival and he thought of asking her to patrol with him to keep students out of trouble. Is she supposed to be happy or disappointed? Of course the festival is nothing but trauma for her as people often have indecent stares (she calls it aphrodisiac terrorism) at her. Thus she is in a dilemma whether to wear her yukata and show it before Takahashi. Hikari joins her friends at the festival. They have lots of fun especially Yuki dominating the water balloon scooping. Takahashi sees Ugaki here. He is here to help patrol. Kurtz is causing his own trouble, a long line at the takoyaki since he is hogging it by giving his long ass opinion on how good it is. Takahashi is surprised to see Sakie in a bear mascot. She borrowed it from a worker for an hour. As she cannot see clearly, she hopes he would guide her. Though it doesn’t have any aphrodisiac effect on him, he looks weird holding hands with a bear. Everyone is staring… Hikari and co decide to check out a small shrine before the fireworks start. Similarly, Himari and her friends are also here but being cajoled to join Satake for a kimodameshi at the shrine. Himari is obviously scared despite trying to put up a (failed) brave front. Sakie is now in her yukata and meets up with Takahashi at the shrine. Himari thought she saw some lights behind and screams. Hikari heard a scream and as they go check out, they accidentally leave Yuki behind. On Himari’s side, they start to feel the air getting cold and heard a girl crying. As they try to check out, they see some face (Hikari) and get freak out. Time to run. Unfortunately Hikari got handphone lights flashed in her face (they were returning to get Yuki). The trio then continue but encounter a ‘monster’. They start throwing water balloons till they realize it is Takahashi. Everyone converges at the hilltop as the fireworks start. Back in Takahashi’s office, he is interviewing an invisible girl. She claims she is totally naked and not embarrassed. She knows how she looks and has a portrait. However Takahashi wants to ‘look’ at her face by touching it. He can tell how she looks like from the contours. This embarrasses her as she runs out while calling him a pervert. So being naked is not as embarrassing as touching your face?

Being Human And Humane…
Well, I can’t say that I am impressed. Sadly it was almost borderline boring for me. Didn’t fall asleep but almost. Yeah, what was I expecting? Slapstick comedy where they bring the roof down? An action packed series of a group of young demi detectives going all out to solve crime in their area? Horrific conspiracy theories in which secret organizations are trying to kidnap the girls to do inhumane experiments or sell them on the black market? A monster harem anime that is less scary than Monster Musume and much cuter because it involves cute high school girls? Oh yeah. If it were part of all of that, I think it would have lost that little dramatic and amusing charm that we have come to see for the past dozen episodes.

So if you are hoping to learn more and much deeper on what you know about vampires, dullahans, snow women and succubus, this is not the anime. Can’t blame you if you get misled by the title and thinking this would be an anime totally about talking and interviewing with the said creatures. If it was in such format, I think it would be as boring as hell. Imagine dedicating an episode talking all about vampires. Is this some sort of afternoon variety programme where the host interviews a celebrity or filed expert? Why not watch a real show in that case. So as you have come to expect, this series usually focuses more on the bonding and friendship of a very small pool of ‘unique’ humans in a certain school. I mean, it could have been something else, say aliens. It would still be the same thing and format. Just dished out to us in a different manner.

So it is curious as well as mind boggling to learn that these demi girls are so because of a gene mutation. We have always thought such creatures were born as part of that species. Because gene mutations only cause conditions like Down Syndrome. Stop putting ideas in my head that errors in the genetic level will turn you into some sort of folklore freak. Worse, a superhero with super powers. Having said that, therefore the oddest thing about Takahashi interviewing them isn’t so much about them being a vampire, dullahan, snow woman or succubus. Because from this they are pretty much just like any other humans. Because take a look at Hikari. Not really a vampire, right? Thus the interviews are mostly to see their characteristics and behaviours and observe how different it is from any ordinary humans. It might be a premature question and I know it’s silly but I can’t help ask why the demi people are only female? Yeah it’s dumb. There are only 4 demi people featured so far in this anime. Well… No werewolf or zombie demi girl yet… Yeah, I think these ones would look scarier.

I really do love the point that was brought up about equality for these demi people. Are we discriminating against them if we treat them like humans because they aren’t actually? Or would we be really discriminating if we treat them differently because they are different? A question on the level of the chicken or the egg. This is an interesting question that got me thinking. On what level do we accept them as different and same? Because with all the gender, racial, religious and political correctness of today’s standards, this one would become a bone to contend with. So should we treat these demi girls like how we treat other normal human beings? Everyone just be yourself. Case solved. However be noted that the setting mostly takes place inside school and although there are reports of other demi people over the world and normal people have begun to slowly accept them, it might still be a different case where society as a whole is concerned.

As usual, the main draw of the series would be the characters. If you are really not into such character development, you would find them boring. Besides, what are you doing here watching this anime in the first place? Oh. Maybe if the vampire, dullahan, snow woman and succubus would go on a rampage in school? It is up to our single teacher who has a history of understanding the thinking of such creatures to rein them in and bring them to their senses. Sorry. Not that kind of anime. Take a look at the anime title again. Also, not to be associated whatsoever with that Hollywood film in the 90’s by Tom Cruise, Interview With The Vampire. Damn. I should have made a pun out of this somewhere…

As we have come to expect of the characters, each of the demi girls have their own problems and issues to deal with like Sakie being too conscious about her seduction powers and going to very far lengths to avoid any such awakening in males. Machi had fears of not being able to interact with others because how weird would it be to be talking to others while holding your own head? Hey, my eyes are down here. There’s a joke I want to make about that regarding to tits but it is just slipping off my fingers… Yuki had to deal with being ostracized by certain groups also partly because of her initial fear that her powers would harm others (debunked by Takahashi later on). Finally Hikari. Uhm. She looks pretty normal and okay. Heck, she is the furthest away from the rest in displaying her creature traits. Prefers tomato juice, loves garlic, can see her own reflection, not afraid of sunlight (at least doesn’t turn into dust), stakes and crosses don’t scare the daylights out of her, on occasion perhaps likes to nibble others and frequently argues with her sister. So normal. You wouldn’t even think she is a vampire for a second and believe she is just some energetic brat with vampire chuunibyou.

Last but not least, Takahashi as a great teacher taking great strides to understand the demi girls and help them fit in. Sometimes it too begs the question if he is helping them too much since they are relying on him like forever. It is a good thing here that everybody understands Takahashi is passionate in doing his job to understand the demi phenomenon in more detail. Otherwise he might look like some sort of pervert with high school girl fetish. Which is even better than him being some sort of a demi maniac to a point he would conduct physical experiments and tortures on them. Yikes! What was this anime’s name again? The only thing I am interested to know about him is his threshold/limit until he gives in to his sexual desires. Only gays can withstand such immense amount of sexual attractive pheromones, right? So if you need somebody with strong tolerance for sexual desires and need to run through a minefield of sexy babes in bikinis, this is the guy for the job. And he will make it look like a walk in a park.

Drawing and art looks simple. Seeing the kind of genre this anime is, exquisite details aren’t really necessary. Plus, you don’t want to really freak out if they drew a real scary vampire, dullahan, snow woman and succubus, do you? And perhaps that is why there aren’t any werewolf or zombie demi girls as I mentioned before. Too scary to be humanized? I’m sure anime would have animated them in their cute form anyway. Animated by A-1 Pictures who did Fairy Tail, Sword Art Online, Senjou No Valkyria, Ao No Exorcist, Kuroshitsuji, Nanatsu No Taizai, OreImo, the Uta No Prince-sama series and Saenai Heroine No Sodatekata.

Voice acting is pretty okay with me identifying Junichi Suwabe being as cool as a cat as Takahashi, Kenjiro Tsuda as Ugaki and Youko Hikasa as Sakie. Other casts include Kaede Hondo as Hikari (Kon in Urara Meirochou), Minami Shinoda as Machi (Makoto in Flying Witch), Shiina Natsukawa as Yuki (Nonoka in Sora No Method), Lynn as Himari (titular character in Fuuka), Sora Amamiya as Kurtz (Elizabeth in Nanatsu No Taizai) and Natsuki Hanae as Souma (Kousei in Shigatsu Wa Kimi No Uso). The opening theme is Original by TrySail. Lively generic anime pop. Nothing that special. Fairy Tale by Sangatsu No Phantasia is the ending theme. A bit slower but still anime pop nevertheless.

Overall, this series is enjoyable with its light-hearted and funny bits. If you love monsters but don’t love them so much as to have them as a harem (looking at you Monster Musume), this should be a more suitable and appropriate show even for the family. Should we treat such creatures with the same equality or not is still up to debate. But we can all agree on that whatever you identify yourself as, please respect all life. Be it an ordinary human or monster, all lives matter. Right? Thankfully supernatural creatures don’t exist outside of our heads or else we’ll never hear the end of this new category either: “Don’t assume my species!”…

One Room

VR is the rage these days. But the accessories are too expensive and perhaps too inconvenient for certain things. It is still at an experimental stage and while it looks potential for gaming, it is still a question mark for dating simulation. That’s right. If you’re a loner and desperately in need of a girlfriend from a first person perspective but you can’t afford those VR stuffs, then have this cheaper 2D version. A short anime named One Room. This anime features mainly from the views of viewers as we interact with our potential love interest before our eyes and usually occurs in a room, our room. Hence the name of this anime. Only, we can’t control our actions as we watch how we interact with her from our viewpoint. I guess it is better than dreaming and making out with your pillow.

Yui Hanasaka Arc

Episode 1
Yui Hanasaka just moved in next door as she gives us a souvenir as greeting. We ask about her school uniform and she tells us she wants to go to a university in Tokyo. As we bump to her in the streets that evening, we are such a gentleman that we help carry her stuffs home. Because of that later she comes to us looking nervous and shy. She wants us to help her study. Damn, and here I thought we are going to have a first episode confession and things escalating quickly.

Episode 2
We let her in to study. It’s getting a little late and she is feeling a little tired. She asks if we can keep doing this. The study. Sure, why not. No reason to turn down the only girl who wants to come to our place. Next day she has to come by again not because for studies but her water is out. We would have loved to let her use ours and lead to some hentai scene but looks like the place is having water outage. So we go to the public bath instead. I hope those views of watching her bath isn’t us peeping… We walk home together and she thanks us for everything. At first she was nervous when she came here but now feels okay.

Episode 3
To thank us for helping her study, Yui is going to cook for us. Mmm… Nice ass, I mean apron. Of course anything made by a cute girl would be delicious. She picks a rice from our face but gets embarrassed when she realizes it. When she tries to put away a book, a naughty magazine falls off. She flusters but ‘understands’ that we are guys. Later Yui is seen sad. Looks like she didn’t do well in her mock exams and will not be going to her first choice university. She doesn’t want to go to her second choice. So how? No, we’re not going to make love to soothe her grieving heart. Instead we go study more! Can’t give up now, right?! Damn it we’re nerds!!! She studies until she falls asleep at the table so we’re kind enough to put a blanket over her. She wakes up and notices this and wants to stay this way a bit longer. Hey girl, the bed’s a lot warmer. Wanna lie there?

Episode 4
Before Yui leaves for her second test, we give her a charm. We know what the results are. Heck, she doesn’t even need to say it. It’s all there in her big smile. As we walk with her through the sakura trees, she tells us why she wanted to go to this university. That is where her parents met so she thought of finding somebody wonderful too (you mean it’s not to study? Sorry, sarcasm). However she has already found someone wonderful. Guess who? She hopes we could do things together and stay with us forever. Yes! YES! Oh YEEEEEEEEEEEES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Natsuki Momohara Arc

Episode 5
Our bratty little sister, Natsuki Momohara visits us. After ringing the door umpteenth time. Wait. We have a sister?! Oh, we might have forgotten how she looks like. Tee-hee! So she’ll be staying here for a while and yet she complains how hot it is. Yeah, we want to save energy that’s why we didn’t turn on the air-cond. And perhaps we love to see how sexy you are sweating. Oops! What is she, our mother to come check on us to see if we’re taking care of ourselves properly? Oh, the fridge is empty. I mean, it really has nothing! So she buys some stuffs and cooks for us. She wants to help wake us up for tomorrow but she herself got up late. We already left… When we come home from work, she is really concerned we really look worn out. She becomes a tsundere about being worried for us. And so she sets her rules for us on how to live properly…

Episode 6
What is she now?! Our wife?! Would like to have dinner, bath or her first? Sorry. No response. We’re not into loli types. She tries to be considerate by massaging our tired bodies like old times. We tease her if she has a boyfriend. Obviously not. She shoots back if she has one, he’ll have to be better than us! Natsuki must be bored staying at home in Tokyo. We even fight over which channel to watch. When she finishes cooking, she wonders why we aren’t at the table. Because the fireworks outside is so beautiful! She thanks us for working hard.

Episode 7
What is she now?! A slave driver?! Because she won’t let us sleep in on our day off and has her help clean the place. Then she stumbles into our naughty magazine, gets embarrassed and calls us the worst. Told you we’re not into loli types. When she is bathing and the shampoo runs out, she keeps bugging us to bring another one. And when we do, she calls us a pervert for looking at her naked body. So young so feminism already?! Sorry, we’re not into incest. And yes, those tits are small. She thought she could get back by us by burning away that magazine but then she realizes we have come home reek in alcohol. She panics but does enough to take care of us. Try not to worry her so much. Natsuki decides to stay a little longer despite mom nagging her to come home. But we drop the biggest shock bomb because we tell her to go home.

Episode 8
It’s heart breaking to see a sad loli’s face. However the reason we said that is because we blame ourselves for being pathetic. Natsuki argues we aren’t because we always worked so hard. So after we have a little chat, we go out to eat for a change of pace. She asks us why we don’t have a girlfriend (what a rhetorical question). Aren’t there girls in our workplace? No chance to meet? Whatever. She has hopes we will find one. I guess this settles Natsuki isn’t the kind to marry her big brother. Natsuki decides to head home the next day as we accompany her home via train. She’ll come visit her again. We go back and her rules so far she made as she stayed thank goodness only have 4 of them. The last one being to keep in touch with her once in a while.

Moka Aoshima Arc

Episode 9
Moka Aoshima is playing her keyboard at the park as we come to pick her up. She feels sad as a failed musician and is happy that we are treating her like a girl. What? She is glad we haven’t changed especially our dreams from young are still the same. There is only a reason why a girl would invite us back to her room as thanks. She likes us. Or she could be our childhood friend. Or both. So she goes through her old album and talks about how we moved away after graduation. She was afraid we had forgotten about her. We used to sing at a park and made a promise. If she became a musician, we would become a writer and made her to heroine. Too bad we’re both not doing well as we can see. The dream is still far. Moka won’t give up yet and will still do her best.

Episode 10
Moka meets up in our room to celebrate our success for entering the next competition round. Food, video games and Moka getting a little bit drunk after a few beer cans, complaining about other people ‘complaining’ she lacks sexiness. Really. She tries to feed us to prove otherwise but realizes maybe she needs to be flirtier. Then I guess it just goes downhill from here. Moka can’t hide her depression anymore. She wrote a new song but was rejected. She regrets being a downer at our party. But she is going to try again to sell her new song. And if that still doesn’t work out, she’ll quit. Don’t look at us with such sad eyes!!! Please!

Episode 11
Moka is playing in the park (with nobody around) when it starts raining so we have to pick her up. So back home she takes a shower as we see a rejected letter. Moka is trying real hard not to be gloomy but it is too obvious to hide. She feels sad like as though the world is rejecting her. It’s like she really wants sympathy from us because she’s telling us we don’t have to be nice to her too since we’re gunning to be a novelist. WTF logic? Next day, we learn she has come down with a cold. We are so kind to go visit her. Yeah, being next to her makes her feel so calming that she admits the reason why she relies on us. We stay by her side till we fall asleep. Next morning she feels a lot better. She has decided to give up and return home. Thanks for everything.

Episode 12
We hear Moka singing her song amidst the gloomy montage of her forlorn face, her younger days and the train trip back to her countryside hometown. So sad… She is surprised to see us here with her. She is sad she has no right to be with us because she gave up and that will only ruin us both. Then we hand her our novel manuscript. One of the lines read, “I didn’t run away. I was just resting a while”. With more ‘motivated’ lines like that, you can say it touched her soul. Oh sh*t! Don’t cry on and ruin my manuscript with your tears, baby!!! And of course we’ll wait for her as long as it takes. But it won’t be long because by spring, here she is back at our doorstep. Welcome home?

OVA
Swimsuit episode! For obvious reasons… Somehow, Yui greets us at our doorstep to give us a present. In a swimsuit. Yes, yes… Look at all her delicious parts… What’s this? She says this is her school uniform?! I WANT TO ENROL IN THAT SCHOOL OF HERS! Natsuki decides to help clean our room. In a swimsuit. She tries to open a stuck closet and when she finally does, a porn magazine drops out. She takes a look at it and flusters like hell before turning into the ultimate moral police we know. We visit Moka in her room. She is somehow in her swimsuit. Here is another one of those women logic whereby we are allowed to watch her in a swimsuit but she gets embarrassed when she notices us looking at her lingerie hung behind. I’m not sure if the swimsuit is going to distract us from Moka talking about the good ol’ days and promise we made. Please don’t start this depression thing again… Luckily she decides to motivate herself to do better.

Room For More Love
Well, it certainly feels a bit different but yet a bit weird. At least to a person who has never played a dating simulation game before. Okay, so I have played a dating simulation before. That was some free game online and many years ago (yes, that cheesy Love Hina and Galaxy Angels one). Therefore as far as I know, this is the only anime whereby the entirety (or a big part of it) of its view is from the perspective of the viewers instead of other angles. The whole series also feels odd because it is like watching the girls talking to themselves (although they are supposed to be talking to us) as they are the only ones with dialogue for their particular arc. Perhaps this is nothing new for viewers who have been listening to character drama CDs for a long time. But to me, this sounds pretty new and since I’m not used to it, it feels a bit awkward.

However the stories itself aren’t really something unique and feel pretty bland. After all, a story through the eyes of the protagonist, how much variety of a plot can one put in? I know there is porn but that is entirely out of context for this blog… Anyway the stories for the 3 girls I am not saying that they are uninteresting but they are hardly exciting either that it would make me want to have more of such ‘conversations’ and ‘views’ with them. Because Yui’s story is like a slow boring love drama unfolding. Natsuki feels like the brat and finally Moka’s arc is just filled with depression and gloominess, which isn’t really a great way to end the series.

Seeing that each episode lasts only 4 minutes, there is hardly any solid development to be expected from the girls. From first looks, they are pretty generic seeing that you have your generic classmate, your generic bratty little sister and your generic childhood friend. I am sure these are overused tropes in romance drama genres. Each of them has their own issues to deal with and in their own ways are of course supposed to love us as the silent protagonist who is seemingly a very decent, considerate and nice guy. Imagine a big majority of the drama developing in our room. Yeah, such a hotbed for relationship development… But somehow it never ended in sex because we’re too nice a jerk :'(.

Going back to the first person perspective, I did say that the first person view is not always 100% from our eyes. I have a feeling that it sometimes shows certain angles where if you think about it, would have put us in a very awkward position. For example that shower scene Moka was in. Don’t tell me we peeped at her bathing?! My best guess is that such awkward first person view angles are for some fanservice scenes because there are close-ups on the girl’s butt, thighs and boobs at times. So you’re telling me that we are this close to her and watching those prized assets, huh? Can’t be because the girl would have got embarrassed and screamed her head off. Remember, we are the nice guy. Overall, the artwork seems pretty decent. As long as the girls look cute, it overwrites everything. Well okay. Sometimes. At least the background sceneries are quite good especially the sakura petals scattering and all. Animated by Typhoon Graphics in which this is their first animation production.

An anime series having one of the smallest casts ever with Mao Ichimichi as Yui (Renge in Sekai Seifuku: Bouryaku No Zvezda), Rie Murakawa as Natsuki (Ageha in Kyoukai No Rinne) and Suzuko Mimori as Moka (Sherlock in Tantei Opera Milky Holmes series). It goes without saying that the ending themes are different and sung by the heroine of that arc. I thought it would be tailored to suit their character but it doesn’t sound because Harumachi Clover (by Yui), Aozora Yell (Natsuki) and Kibou Refrain (Moka) all sound like lively anime pop rock music. They aren’t bad to listen, though.

Overall, this is one of those animes that is cute but awkward at the same time. Well, there is still room for more development. Mind the pun. I hardly doubt that this would be turned into a full-fledged anime series with the usual 24 minutes of running time. That would be just unbearable. Imagine looking at a girl who is talking to you in a monologue for almost half an hour! Per episode! I think it would turn guys off. But oddly we can watch the same scene if it was porn for hours and then still come back for more.