Gal To Kyouryuu

Wow, damn. It seemed like forever. Gal To Kyouryuu was one of those few anime series of early 2020 that were already running a handful of episodes when suddenly it had to postpone the rest because of, you guessed it, Corona virus. In fact, when it finally resumed it could be one of the last few shows to do so. Aside Idolish7 Second Beat, this series was unfortunately delayed for 2 seasons! And I was watching half of it when this unfortunate postponement came in. Yeah, I was quite confident that one of the first few shows I decided to watch for the spring 2020 season would not get such treatment since well, it was already halfway running. How wrong I was. You know me and my bad memory. Should I watch it again when it restarted? Oh my. Hectic anime schedule running hectically back as usual. Too busy of an excuse to rewatch. Just carry on where I left off. Oh, what’s this about, you say? Gal so wasted and drunk one night, she brought home a dinosaur! Wow. Now I remember why I needed to check this out.

Episode 1
* Kaede wakes up and sees a dinosaur in her living room! Oh, she remembers. She was drunk last night and brought that thing home. Oh well. Can’t fret about it now. She has to prepare herself for work while Dino just sits there and stare at the wall until it is evening time. Then he decides to just sleep? I guess he frets nothing too. He is awakened by the sound of the kettle. Kaede is back and looks like it’s dinner time. Yay! Dino is most happy. However his dinner is not the cup ramen he thought it would be. This canned tuna?! You gotta be kidding me! Looks like Dino wants your cup ramen. Okay, okay. Kaede Google if dinosaurs can eat ramen. No search results! OMG! But whatever. She lets him eat them. Since Dino eats it professionally, Kaede takes it he has eaten ramen before. Whatever. It tastes good!
* Dino Channel: Dino waits for the cup ramen to boil in exactly 3 minutes. But as the time nears, Kaede calls him to help with something. So I guess he missed the perfect timing to eat it.
* Kaede is free today. Got no plans. What about you, Dino? Do dinosaurs have plans? Let’s go out. Dino’s face lights up! As they head downstairs, they meet the landlady and her cats. So the question is, can Kaede keep a dinosaur pet? Well, as long as her cats aren’t frightened. Yeah, they’re all over Dino. I guess that’s okay. However during all that, Dino was terrified! Wait a minute. Dinosaurs scared of cats? This theory then: Could it be if dinosaurs are scared of cats because we all know how cats drove many species into extinction and hence dinosaurs were extinct because of cats????!!!! MIND BLOWN???!!! Anyway, Kaede hints they need to get Dino some toothbrush and towel. Because he’s staying again at her place tonight, right? Yahoo!
* Dino Channel: Dino waits at the bus stop but the cats come to surround him. He runs away and comes back later when there are no cats. But they are just hiding and waiting for him…
* This segment plays out exactly like the first part. Except now we have an elderly man, Mieharu who brought back Dino in his drunken state last night and everything is live action. But it has come continuity after that. Because they both celebrate Christmas and Mieharu gives him a scarf present. Then the landlady visits to give some of her extra soup. But Mieharu is too busy having fun with Dino to even notice someone at the door so the landlady doesn’t want to bother their fun and leaves the soup at the door. Then Mieharu and Dino have some cheesecake. But Mieharu’s stomach starts to hurt… Oh no…

Episode 2
* Kaede’s friend, Yamada will be coming over. Dino tries to dress up but she doesn’t need him to act out of the ordinary. So when Yamada arrives, she is surprised to see Dino. Is he kinda small for a dinosaur? Kaede thinks it is big enough. Well, considering how crammed this place is, having something as ‘big’ as Dino sure takes up space! While Dino just watches the TV, the gals take and post pictures. Then they join Dino in watching the TV drama until evening. Yamada then leaves and wonders if Dino is Kaede’s partner. Kaede brushes off that joke.
* Dino Channel: We see Dino enjoying his bubble bath.
* While out with Yamada, Kaede receives a call from Shouta. He is her ex-boyfriend so you bet she isn’t going to pick it up. As Dino bums around at home, a doorbell rings. It is Shouta. Dino lets him in because he recognizes his face on Kaede’s picture wall. When Kaede returns, she as a bad feeling seeing Shouta’s scooter parked outside. Upon entering her room, WTF Dino and Shouta playing cards?! Asking why Dino let him in, Dino points out to the picture. Yeah, why keep a photo of your ex if you’re over him? Anyway, he is here to pass some souvenir his mom got from Korea. Okay. Thanks. Now get out. But it can’t end like this, right? Because Shouta thought they should all stay and play cards together. Okay. Just for tonight.
* Dino Channel: Dino playing old maid with Shouta. Dino always wins only because of the fact that Shouta is sitting in front of a mirror!
* We return to that live action piece with Mieharu. It seems the day restarted? This time Dino sees a visual kei punk! However Mieharu can’t see him but the young lad doesn’t blame Dino. It’s not his fault. It seems there is a picture on Mieharu’s wall. A group picture with him and many kids and this lad is one of them. That night as they celebrate Christmas, this time a blackout occurs but it comes back and at the same time the landlady personally hands him her soup. After they drink it, Mieharu has stomach ache. The lad is furious because he thought he had changed the timeline. So he writes in his discount Death Note (Schedule?!) to do it again. This time, making Mieharu and Dino never ever meeting. So Mieharu celebrates Christmas alone. The landlady enters to hand her soup. He drinks it and falls sick. The lad sad again. However it seems the landlady can see the lad and is also in possession of the same Schedule as him. Fast forward a few months, we see Dino living with Kaede. He gives her a Schedule but she throws it away after finding it creepy. Then they go out to eat.

Episode 3
* Time for Kaede to go to work. Since Dino wants to go out too, she hands him a spare key. I suppose Dino watched too much love drama TV because he gives off that smirk thinking when Shouta and Kaede broke up, she has him give her back the spare key. Yeah… Cheesy imagination… Dino goes out but stumbles into the convenience store Kaede works at. Attracted by the smell of oden, Kaede treats him to one and adds a few condiments to go with it. Dino leaves a happy dinosaur as Kaede realizes this took a huge chunk out of a pay. Oh well, as long Dino is happy.
* Dino Channel: We see Dino enjoying his oden but looks like Shouta is at the door so he goes to share it with him.
* Nanami Taguchi also works at the convenience store. Although she is Kaede’s senior, she has this misconception of gals being scary and hence afraid of them. That’s why she finds it hard to tell Kaede not to read a magazine during her shift. But Kaede is reading about dinosaurs? Yeah, she wants to know what Dino eats. So ramen just wasn’t it? Kaede asks Nanami about it but apparently they teach such stuffs in college. However she does have a dinosaur encyclopaedia at home. Kaede is excited to visit her home after work. After meeting her parents and dinner, Kaede goes through the encyclopaedia. Nothing! Yeah, do we even know what kind of dinosaur is Dino?! But in the end, Nanami and Kaede become good friends.
* Dino Channel: We see Dino hanging out at the park. From feeding pigeons to paddling a boat. Then as he naps on the bench, when he wakes up, cats surround him! Horror!
* Kaede and Dino go out on their day off. She gives him a spare key. They ‘teleport’ to the park that is near the sea. As Dino has watched too many horror shark movies, of course he is scared. Kaede knows better that sharks can’t swim in such shallow waters as she assures and teases him at the same time. Later Dino shows off his baseball swings to a few kids. Impressed, they give him a keychain. Doesn’t this design look like Dino?! Is his merchandise already out there?! Then they go shopping at the wet market and then a clothing store in which Dino got himself some trendy cap. Dino swaps out the (lame) spare key’s keychain with the newer one.

Episode 4
* Kaede accidentally steps on Dino’s tail. Well, it’s so big and in the way, right? They brainstorm for ways to not let it happen again. How about Dino wrap the tail around himself? Looks cool until he lets go and the whiplash hits Kaede’s face. How about tying it to his neck? Can’t breathe! How about writing and putting a marker on it? Well, Dino goes to bathe and washes it off. When he comes out, he sees Kaede with a kitchen knife. Gulp. Say, you know how lizards can lose their tail and grow back another one? OH SH*T!!!!!!!!!!! Did this become some horror movie?!
* Dino Channel: Dino trying to put on make-up. Let’s say dinosaurs are not meant for make-up! Because Kaede laughing her ass of…
* It is Christmas Eve so Kaede and Nanami wear Santa outfits as part of management’s orders. Then the usual gang comes in. Apparently Shouta is just drunk and noisy. So you wonder why the bunch is here. To buy foodstuffs for party back at Kaede’s place! You bet Kaede is not happy but upon seeing Dino’s innocent smile, I guess she has to allow it. Oh, she’s going to join in too. And Nanami as well.
* Dino Channel: Dino wakes up in the middle of the night and realizes he has a present. Wow. It’s a glittering rock! So happy and excited until he tires himself out. Merry Christmas.
* I guess another uneventful Christmas as Kaede sleeps in. Dino watches TV and stumbles into this weird naked cowboy dude, Zakoshi. Next thing Dino knows, he wakes up to see Zakoshi bugging him to have fun. And so we see the gang in weird mini stage presentations and there is one which is some subliminal brainwashing message. Just freaky if you ask me. When Kaede returns home, Dino hides Zakoshi in the bathroom. Dino won’t let Kaede enter the bathroom but fails. Kaede sees Zakoshi taking a bath. Awkward stare down before Zakoshi just leaves. Kaede reminds Dino not to just let anybody in! WTF Dino and Zakoshi continue dancing on the roof. Next morning, Dino wakes up. Could it be just a dream? But isn’t that Zakoshi’s hat? Kaede wants to see it but Dino won’t let.

Episode 5
* Kaede and Yamada are singing their hearts out a karaoke joint on New Year’s Eve. Only, it’s quite pricey… Meanwhile Dino learns from the landlady about the plant ornaments she puts out for this event. No, you can’t eat it! After wishing Dino a good year, Dino gets happy and starts, uhm, dancing?! Caught red handed by Kaede! But Dino cheers up after hearing she bought soba noodles for him. Best start to the New Year! As they countdown to midnight, a few seconds before it, Dino opens the windows and jumps out! Just to synchronize with the fireworks! Yeah, it’s going to be an awesome year alright.
* Dino Channel: As Kaede takes a bath, Dino is accidentally locked out the balcony. No choice, he jumps down and gets in by the front door. Initially mad, Kaede then shows the door wasn’t locked in the first place. Oops…
* Dino joins Kaede and Yamada to pray at the shrine. Dino gets scared when Yamada lies about the gods will turn you into a statue if you anger them. Hence we get a live demonstration on how to wash your hands properly at the shrine as Dino follows it step by step. Then as they pray, Dino follows the girls and enters a trippy dream land?! Snap out of it! Next, they take their fortune readings. The girls have good luck but Dino’s is super bad luck! Since he can’t read, Yamada lies to him that he has great luck. Dino so happy…
* Dino Channel: Dino wants to show Kaede the shooting star. However she is glued to her handphone each time one passes. By the time she looks up, the shooting star is gone. This go on for a few more times until Kaede gets tired and goes back in. Dino is mad at the sky and then suddenly the sky is filled with shooting stars! Curses!
* OMG! Dino hiking in somebody’s car to go to the stream to camp! OMG! Do dinosaurs know how to camp?! Maybe he watched those videos but damn, this dinosaur sure knows how to make fire and grill his food! Dino chilling! The best chill as he puts on Zakoshi’s hat. Then a considerable time we see Dino cooking his meat! Yum! Looking at the stars, this reminds him of doing so with Kaede back at her place. After packing some meat, he then takes out… Schedule!!! OMG. What happens next? He burns it as fuel for fire! OMFG! Feeling a lot warmer?

Episode 6
* Kaede takes Dino to the video store and you can see his face lighting up. Too bad he can only pick 1 video and not the entire series! Dino then walks into the adult section… Thank goodness dinosaurs’ taste are different, right? Guess who is there? Shouta! This guy panics upon seeing Kaede and Dino but they don’t really care and leave. In the end, Dino picks a scary movie. She wonders if Dino is okay with it. Back home, they first watch Kaede’s pick. Uhm… Jurassic Parkour???!!! Man, Dino scared of T-Rex!!! When they watch Dino’s horror pick, it’s Kaede’s turn to get scared.
* Dino Channel: Dino tries to watch TV while Kaede is asleep. After picking up the snacks he clumsily drops, the video can’t start. So he just starts eating while staring at the blank screen.
* Shouta is here to share mikan with them. Kaede don’t want to let him in but seeing Dino’s happy face, I guess she has to. Kaede is perplexed that Shouta’s mom still sends her things so Shouta says she is quite fond of her. Then it hit Kaede that Shouta hasn’t told her they have already broken up. Oh dear. But Dino happily enjoying his mikan. The duo then show Dino a floating mikan trick and even teach him how to do it. Dino then tries to show it off to the landlady but she is impressed he eats mikan. Dino sad…
* Dino channel: Dino practises the floating mikan trick when suddenly a mikan actually floats! OMG! For real?! Turns out to be Shouta using a string to make it look like it’s floating.
* What’s a bored Kaede and Dino got to do? Play games! What else?! So they start off with this buzz wire challenge. Kaede fails and you’d think Dino’s clunky hands would be worse. Guess what? Dino transforms into a mini version and scores! He can do that???!!! Then Dino proceeds with some quiz thingy in which Kaede gets all wrong. When Kaede fails to make a joke, Dino transforms to his small version and floats away in balloons? Huh? Then Dino tries origami. Too fat his hands. Can’t fold it. Then they play some mini badminton in which Kaede wins. So what does sulking Dino do? Turn into a small version and ride away on a toy tank. Huh? Is this supposed to be cute? And to answer an earlier quiz question on the special day of April 17, unfortunately it isn’t because it’s my birthday (yes! It’s this day!) but rather it is National Dinosaur Day! At least in Japan.

Episode 7
* Kaede sprained her back. Looks like Dino has to go out on his own. While frolicking at a park, he hears a wandering musician playing his music, Naotaro. He thinks it isn’t much but he hopes his music can make things better. Yup, Dino believes that and brings him home to cheer up Kaede! So strut your stuff already! Yeah, this guy starts screaming like a hard rock punk music! WTF???!!! Not sure if this will make Kaede sicker. Uh huh. She’s in a dilemma to whether laugh or cry. A few months later, Naotaro has made it big and is on TV! Regret didn’t get his autograph then?
* Dino Channel: Dino is sick and stays in bed. He gets up to throw the tissue paper he missed thrown into the paper wastebasket. And then he sneezes. All his snot covers the bed. Oh well. Just go back to sleep.
* Dino goes out to meet Shouta. He is worried if Kaede has brought back any other guys. Other than you, Dino. Of course Dino misinterprets the question so all those delivery guys count too, eh? This makes Shouta jealous so he is going over to make his feelings clear to her. Suddenly Dino understands that a ‘comet is heading straight towards Earth’! Oh sh*t! Meanwhile Yamada is at Kaede’s place. She is asking if she still has feelings for Shouta since she hasn’t dated any other guys. Kaede says it’s normal. Yamada jokes about Shouta will come running here if she calls his name. What do you know? It’s… Dino! And then Shouta. How the heck does a dinosaur run faster than him?! When Shouta says he wants to get back with her, Kaede laughs because of the great timing of Yamada’s question. Anyway they all start eating nabe. But Shouta still wants an answer. Okay. She puts up a picture of him on her wall. Enough? You bet.
* Dino Channel: Not sure what this Dino bopping back and forth means. If this trippy weirdness is some subliminal brainwashing message…
* As Kaede is still out sick, Dino heads out alone. At the laundrette, a couple of girls find it amusing a naked dinosaur is here. But they soon wonder what it is doing here since it has no clothes to wash! Mind boggling! And then Dino brings back a few weird guys just to cheer Kaede up. I swear if this was another dimension, this would actually look like some porn gangbang scene! All the weirdoes do funny sh*t stuff that is just so cringe. In the end, everybody gets excited because it was fun as they all give a big group hug to Dino. And Kaede is so touched that she wants to cry?! Okay, enough of the cringe stuff already!!!

Episode 8
* Nanami’s parents hope she can invite Kaede for dinner. Throughout the day, Nanami has long and deep thoughts on how to invite Kaede. Will she ever get to settle on one? Eventually she sums up her courage to just go ask her. Nice and short. Too bad, because Dino, Shouta and Yamada are also here, they take it that she too invites them. Oh well. Got to ask mom and make more provisions. Yeah, Dino such a happy dino.
* Dino Channel: Dino can’t stop hiccupping no matter what he does. Then a cat comes in and scares the daylights out of him. Will that help? NOPE! The cat also gets ‘infected’ by his hiccups! Double hiccup trouble all night long!
* Kaede and Yamada are talking about horoscopes. They are bummed out thinking Dino doesn’t know his birthday and thus they can’t read his horoscope. WERE DATES EVEN INVENTED BACK THEN???!!! THINK ABOUT IT!!! Sad Dino face… But don’t fret! They’ll just set his birthday. And it’s today! Hooray! Happy Dino face! Time to party! Happier Dino face! When all the friends gather, you wonder how many candles will be on Dino’s birthday cake! OH SH*T! THE ENTIRE BIRTHDAY CAKE IS ON FIRE!!! Yeah, an excuse to use all the unused candles but damn, if they actually used 10 million candles… Dino is afraid of all the fire and quickly blows it out before they even start singing. Then they all give him presents and he is quite satisfied with all of them. What a wonderful day.
* Dino Channel: Dino tries to blow out the candles but it always comes back. Soon they reveal to him those are trick candles. Hence Dino can’t wrap his head around it and starts trying to blow it out till morning. Yeah, the candles still come back on…
* In this live action version, looks like Kaede is bummed out Dino doesn’t know his birthday. Screw that because let’s just make today his birthday and celebrate it! Oh yeah! She also invites her friends, Nae and Mirai. The more the merrier. As they start digging into the food, suddenly an incident! Oh no! Somebody ate Mirai’s egg! While Nae and Dino are more than happy to play detective, Kaede is reluctant to play along because there’s more where that came from. As she takes them to the container at the back, ALL THE EGGS ARE GONE! This is serious! Who could the culprit be? Little do they know as they are deliberating it, some white guy does that Tom Cruise’s Mission Impossible trademark move of hanging down from the ceiling and stealing all the eggs at the main table! OMFG!!! He retreats when the rest return. Now they are shocked to see all the eggs here gone too. More detective play. Everyone then accuse Kaede of being the culprit and as they bug her, the culprit tries to steal some from the container. However he is caught in the act. Whoops. Awkward stare. And before you know it, Dino and the girls start singing and dancing!!! WTF???!!! I HOPE THE FOOD WASN’T LACED WITH METH OR SOME KIND DRUGS???!!! Weird birthday bash…

Episode 9
* The usual thing at home… Until the lights go out! Panic! You can hear and ‘see’ lots of bumping around. Are dinosaurs afraid of the dark? Anyway, Kaede manages to get her handphone to on the flashlight. They play a little shadow puppet before she switches the breaker back on. The culprit being Dino trying to heat the nikuman and with all the appliances in use, this overloaded the circuit. After finishing the nikuman, Dino feels this isn’t enough and heats another one. Poof! Here we go again.
* Dino Channel: Dino sees a big yakisoba and goes to heat it up. But he trips and spills it all over. As not to make it go to waste, he eats it. The 5 second rule doesn’t apply to him, right?
* Dino looks like he is having super good dreams. So he goes back to sleep again and dreams of… Riding unicorns with cats running by his side chasing Shouta?! Next time, Dino turns in early so that he could dream. Kaede and Yamada talk about liking to stay awake for them. Yamada might jinx it wondering if Dino gets a nightmare. Because that night… Oh, the restless twists and turns we see Dino have…
* Dino Channel: Dino makes mochi with rabbits on the moon! Does he have to destroy the rocks just to pound the mochi? Then he chokes on them? This dream turned into a nightmare…
* Kaede haven’t had any dreams lately. So she lists them down and shows it to Dino. Whatever they are, Dino approves. We see Dino dreaming. Feels more like a huge LSD trip!!! As long as Dino is happy eating ramen, it’s a wonderful dream. Then his nightmare of his tail trying to chase and eat him! When Kaede wishes to travel the world and eat nice food, Dino hypnotizes her to another world and gives her tons of cup ramen! WF?! Dino is now a master hypnosis?! Next dream, same thing but she wants trendy shoes. She got loads of geta sandals instead. Finally, she wants a cool part time job. Panning for gold, huh? Hey, nice gold nugget. When she asks what Dino’s dreams are, they return to the ordinary world. This is his dream. This everyday life with her is his dream! Aww! How nice! But first, they have to do something with all the cup ramen and get sandals littered in the room! BUT HOW?! We see Dino trying to grab hold of a cheeky cup ramen that has a mind of its own. It evades capture until Dino tricks it. Now he can enjoy the little cup wonder.

Episode 10
* A guy is sad his pet cockatoo is lost and puts up posters all over. Kaede is willing to help out when she can. Speaking of that bird, it’s at Dino’s place! Dino meets bird. I wonder if Dino has seen such species before. After a little freaking out because it could imitate talks, they become like best friends. Yeah. Bird has water, Dino has coffee. They hang out until it is evening when the bird suddenly says sayonara and flies away! Dramatic heartbreak for Dino! When Kaede returns, she sees Dino crying! OMG. What happened? Next day, the bird has been found but Dino is still sad… :’(.
* Dino Channel: Dino misses cockatoo but when he sees its silhouette outside the room, memories of their fun times flood in. He goes to greet it. Turns out to be a different bird. Nothing to see here…
* Kaede sees an old bag and this brings back memories of her time in the calligraphy club. She still hasn’t lose touch as she tries out. Looks like Dino is raring to go. Hey, can he write?! But he can’t just simply write so Kaede has to be strict with him on posture and etiquette. In the end, they want to frame up his work but Dino folds it and walks all the way to Shouta to give it to him. He thinks it is a letter from Kaede but when he opens up… OMG! It looks like some cursed letter! And that Dino smirk… Did this turn into a horror channel?
* Dino Channel: Dino tries calligraphy but that darn fly keeps buzzing around. He tries to smack it but at the same time causes all the ink to fling everywhere. Dino trips and falls face flat into the paper. Hey, nice artwork. He frames it up to show to Kaede but she’s not amused with the mess made.
* After Kaede goes off to work, Dino realizes he is not home alone. A cat!!! Well, looks like Dino isn’t too scared and tries to be its friend. Trying to feed it ramen? Pudding? Oden? Nope. Nope. Nope! Ah, mackerel. After that, Dino plays with the cat. Yeah, cat lovers are going to love how cute kitty is prancing on the toy. Worthy of cat videos on YouTube! Dino goes so far as to make a cat tower for it and more cat cuteness! Dino plays with it till he tires out. When he wakes up, kitty is gone. Oh, glass door is open. Déjà vu sadness! Kaede returns to see him crying so he explains. Then she shows him a poster of a lost cat. Then she praises him for caring so much about the kitty. All the blues blown away as she takes him out to eat. So he wants mackerel, huh?

Episode 11
* Kaede fears she misplaced her handphone. Hoping that she left it at home, Nanami helps to call. Thankfully it is but can Dino answer? He slaps it?! Oh, it’s actually Shouta on the line. He is feeling lonely and wants to be with Kaede. OMFG!!! THE CRINGE FACE ON DINO IS SO EPIC!!! Shouta thought Kaede is giving him the cold shoulder (MORE EPIC CRINGE DINO FACE!!!) until he realizes it is Dino. Oh sh*t! Forget what I said. I was drunk. Bye. Thank goodness cringe over. But during that period, Nanami’s call was put on hold so they try again and this time Dino picks up. Hmm… Nobody answering. But Kaede can tell it is Dino because he is eating her chips!!! You better not get her handphone all greasy with your fingers!!! Kaede continues to ‘communicate’ with Dino like charging the phone and it so amazes Nanami.
* Dino Channel: Dino wants to go out but it starts raining. He waits patiently but it gets heavier. Ah, screw it! He goes to sleep.
* Dino helps sweep the place and the landlady gives him a thousand yen! No wonder Kaede feeling a bit jealous. He gets paid more than her in under an hour!!! With that, Dino epically bathes, uses the air-cond and hair dryer at full blast to dry himself. Kaede warns him about wasting electricity and water and shows him the bill. Next time you waste, you pay. However Dino wants to pay this and has the cash to splash. I mean, does he have 5 grand? Dino then takes out his hidden stash of thousand yens… OMFG!!! OH… MAH… GAWD!!! Kaede wants to switch jobs! Can she sweep the ground for the landlady while Dino takes her place at the convenience store?! No way! Dino is smart!!!
* Dino Channel: If you want to see Dino animated in various different art styles from frames to polygons, this is quite interesting.
* Kaede wants to go to the amusement park so apparently teleporting is now Dino’s special ability as they jump over there. It’s deserted. I think it’s haunted but they remain positive the whole amusement park is booked just for them! Lucky them. So they have fun with the many rides like Ferris Wheel, merry-go-round and other rides that I don’t know their name. At the end of the day, Kaede wonders how they will go back. WTF?! Why not just teleport like before?! Anyway, they ride the panda cart. So slow… Seriously, did they not think about this teleport thingy?!
* Dino doing a video call with some girl who is just so freaking amused of Dino super imposing himself in various backgrounds. But I’m not sure if this is intended to be spooky because you’ll notice (and the narrator also pointing out just in case we didn’t get the clue) that you can spot ‘ghosts’ of Dino in some whatever old movie costume in the background. But then again, I think it’s not because there’s a panda ghost that isn’t even trying to hide itself. WTF…

Episode 12
* Sorry to interrupt your sleep, Kaede. Yamada calls her just so she could tell she saw Dino hanging out at Starbucks Superbucks. Gonna hang out with him. Because Dino shares his coffee, Yamada notes he is a nice guy. Better than all her asshole colleagues. Wait. What?! Damn, this escalated quickly! Suddenly… Yamada rants and complains about her manager and colleagues! Is Dino equipped to hear all that?! OMFG!!! At the end of the day, Dino listens to all her worries. No problemo. Yamada is a lucky girl because later Kaede also treats her and hears her out. Yeah. No problemo.
* Dino Channel: Dino tries to see if a cicada is dead. After he touches it, it flies all about! Time to panic! Wait. Dinosaurs scared of insects? Maybe in the past they were huge but this one…
* Dino gives Kaede that annoyed look when she fails to break eggs perfectly. Dino demonstrates… He is perfect! Damn he is good! After making scramble eggs, Shouta comes over to join them for lunch. Then they just lie there doing nothing. It’s their off day today and this is how they hang out? They might be wasting time but it’s not like they care about the other stuffs happening around the world, right? Because somewhere… A dinosaur egg hatches?! OMG…
* Dino Channel: OMG. New dinosaur?! Because he is lost and looking for directions on his map. He tries to ask Dino but he is busy chasing a butterfly. When Dino comes to, he tries to help out he can. Yeah, I think Dino must be thinking this guy has some dinosaur features too but drops it when Kaede calls him. In the end, the new dinosaur is still lost.
* A taxi driver (Mieharu?!) drive Dino to the beach. Dino is worried because the taxi fare is piling up! Upon reaching, he remembers Kaede told him to call her if he is in trouble. He gives the note with Kaede’s number to him. In the meantime, he gives Dino his scarf while they wait at the beach. When Kaede arrives, she is furious! Oh sh*t! She scolds Dino for causing others trouble and taking a cab despite knowing he doesn’t have not enough money to pay. But what’s this? Dino gets mad and storms off?! Taxi driver explains Dino already paid! It was the same time he hand in the note. So Dino wanted him to call Kaede so as to join him on the beach. He should’ve called again to tell her but didn’t think so since she is already on her way. Both apologizes as Kaede returns the scarf and goes talk to Dino. Taxi driver suddenly cries. He doesn’t know why but feels it is going to be lonely. Kaede apologizes to Dino and before you know it, they’re friends again. They hang out for a while before Kaede realizes she has a job tonight. Hurry home!

Having A Gall Of A Dino-mite Time!
So that’s it? That’s all we have from Dino and friends? Man, I thought I was enjoying myself pretty well and even so I thought there would be some sort of closure. Heh. Who am I kidding? This kind of show has some sort of ending? Not sure if there would be another season since they trolled us of having another dinosaur. Especially the next episode preview of Dino Channel that reads: I Got Drunk And Brought Home A T-Rex!!! OMFG!!! That would’ve been even more epic!!! That would’ve been T-rrific! T-rex-rrific! What can be cooler than a dinosaur? Why, having 2 or 3 dinosaurs! Oh well. Thanks for the good (trippy) times anyway. Best drugs to get high without using real drugs ;p.

If you are looking for random short skits to watch, this series is it for you. Basically every skit in every episode is so random and not necessarily related so you don’t have to rack your brains about the continuity of the story. Yup, standalone fillers it always feel like and you could even watch it in any order you like with no worries. Lest you forget to keep count of which episode you’re watching. All in all, the absence of any real plot may not sit well to those looking for a deep story but then again, we are here because we want to be entertained light-heartedly by the antics of a certain dinosaur, right? After all, what can a mere dinosaur like Dino do in today’s modern age? A lot actually, as we have seen. So yeah, the fun part is seeing how Dino has fun in his modern everyday life. Beats those dark prehistoric times a million times over, eh?

I suppose that the skits are short enough to be entertaining because I figure these days we all have such a short attention span. Heh. What I am trying to say here is that this series is unique and interesting in its own way because of the various forms they employ in producing those skits per episode. The first half uses the traditional 2D hand drawn animation. In between, the 1.5 minutes short Dino Channel mostly employs claymation techniques. Finally, the second half is actually live action filming. Pretty cool and neat for a series to utilize different forms of animation. However it could have been even more epic if they had a fourth: CGI. Yup. It could have been one step slightly better had they have animation based on 3D rendered models. But I think they did use this too but sparingly in some of the later Dino Channel segments.

One of my favourite segments is the shortest: Find Dino. In this part that lasts only 10 seconds, you are given just that amount of time to spot where Dino is in a picture filled with lots of distracting stuffs. Now, this is actually a fun and easy segment but the only thing that ‘pressures’ you is the gradually increasingly dramatic music. It plays a huge psychological part to make you rush and make mistakes and unable to find Dino since your mind will be unconsciously telling you to hurry up and find Dino as the clock is ticking down! This will in turn try to make you look here and there very quickly. And it is that quick glance that will make you miss where Dino is even if your eyes have already scanned through that area. Damn the pressure! Without the music, I believe the success rate is higher. Hence the key is not to panic, ignore the music and look slowly and closely. For the record and not to brag, of all the dozen hidden Dinos, I managed to pinpoint half correctly! I’m so proud of myself.

I find the live action segments to be the weirdest. Very strange. Sure, in terms of ‘story’, it is somewhat the same like its 2D animation in the first half. Random and fun. Firstly, I am puzzled about the initial episodes that show Dino living with an elderly man, Mieharu. Remember this guy? It was a really bizarre moment when some kei visual punk tried to change things and I’m not sure the back story or the plot for this. But my theory is that because of whatever intervention to whatever fate, Dino never met Mieharu and hence Dino’s existence is now passed over to Kaede. That is how Dino came into Kaede’s life. It would have been interesting to actually explain or continue that story but I guess they just needed some sort of ‘plot’ for this segment. The final episode shows the strange meeting with Dino and the taxi driver but I guess nothing actually changed. It was a bittersweet moment but I guess we don’t want to go there and stir the hornet’s nest. What’s done is done. On with the new life. But the rest of Dino’s fun times with Kaede feel like one huge trippy LSD trip. Some episodes are even weirder even if it is just Dino’s dream. Especially one whereby a few strange (and ugly) men came to cheer a sick Kaede up. I don’t that actually feels like a porn setting!!! SERIOUS!!! I had this peculiar thinking at the back of my mind that these guys are going to gang bang Kaede back to health!!! OMFG!!! I don’t even… Literally, a huge WTF moment.

As for the characters, I guess they’re pretty okay and lovable in their own right. Especially Dino. Of course Dino. Who would actually dislike or hate this character who is basically the main mascot of the series? Forget all logic and even how Dino ended up in modern times. Dino is so lovable because he is so chill and cool (even if his live action version looks clumsy, he is still quite adorable), doing this at his own pace while he clumsily navigates through modern life of humanity while fumbling his way learning things (can I say that at this rate he is no longer afraid of cats? Yeah, he got domesticated good). It’s a good thing seeing that Dino is able to adapt and live a pretty simple and comfortable life. Bugs me how he can really understand Japanese in a short time and also get used to all the daily human rituals. Like as though he was once human but some curse turned him into a mute dinosaur. But I guess the best Dino owning moment is when he secretly makes more money than Kaede! Oh sh*t! Imagine if a dinosaur makes more money than you! And all you suckers go buy those cute Dino merchandises online too! Hehehe…

The more Dino continues to live his modern life, I believe the more skilful he will become as you can see the myriad of skills he has picked up and perfected. Oh damn, this ancient creature that once roamed the planet and now extinct is beating us at our own game! He is making us shameful by doing a lot of simple things that we take for granted! Even if he can’t do it perfectly, at least he can try to make it look like he has done it with style and conviction. You can tell by his smug and confidence look after it. Pretty fun. Pretty funny. Dino, you carry on being you.

So what sound does the dinosaur make? I don’t know but at least he has a few memorable ones during the live action segments. Like that DJ air horn sound effect whenever he is happy or approves. Yeah, this is got to be his trademark sound. Play that sound again! We approve! Then there are some movements that sound like Star Wars’ lightsaber?! Dino the Jedi?! May the force be with you. Weird. And one that I will always associate with one of those sound effects from the retro FPS game, Doom. Otherwise for the 2D animation parts, Dino is pretty much silent and being the simpleton dinosaur he is (like a mime?). You know that his day will be brightened up when you see his always-agape-mouth and incredulous face turns into a bigger always-agape-mouth and happier incredulous face! Yeah, that sure made our day too. When Dino’s happy, we’re also happy.

As for the other human characters, I guess they’re okay and pretty chill to have Dino around. Yeah, everyone doesn’t care about Dino’s background or whatever he is. Dinosaur, monster or alien, it’s fun to have this guy around. Hey, he isn’t any threat, right? Not like he wants to eat you like those mean T-Rex portrayed in Hollywood movies, right? So yeah, I suppose bad evil scientists don’t exist here because I don’t see the government trying to kidnap Dino for their own dark nefarious experiments! Yikes! Don’t want to see that kind of alternate story either. I mean, a blast from the past walking among humans, do you not feel that is the recipe of something worth as a national treasure?! If this was America, Dino might have been sent to Area 51! But thank goodness, the people in this world are so chill to even see an odd dinosaur walking about so they don’t even care. I can see why, since Dino looks like a mascot and in Japanese society where yuru-chara is the norm. Blow that air horn again for approval!

Kaede being a gal, she is trendy but on the other hand is quite a simple person. She’s quite a reasonable person if you can see past her stereotypical gal appearance. Then there is Shouta who is the joker because he still has lingering feelings for Kaede and wants to get back with her. Dino sounds like an excuse and stepping stone for that but I think Dino doesn’t give a hoot about all that. One episode we see Dino’s cringe face in Shouta’s lamest attempt to woo back Kaede! That was so epic and telling. Now I know why Kaede broke up with him in the first place. A strong and independent woman like her doesn’t need a wuss like him! Just Dino will suffice. And maybe her best friend Yamada. Or Nanami.

As I have already touched on the animations style earlier on, I just want to mention Dino’s design. I don’t know, when I first looked at him, I thought he was a cross between Sesame Street’s Cookie Monster and Bloo from Foster’s Home For Imaginary Friends! Yeah, it’s really weird. I mean, do we even know what dinosaur species Dino is? Yeah, what kind of dinosaur could actually teleport?! The overall feel for the 2D animation is colourful and cute and sometimes it feels that this series is also made for kids in terms of visually. This series is jointly done by Kamikaze Douga (Poputepipikku – now you know where all the weirdness comes from, no?) and Space Neko Company.

For the voice acting, Miyuri Shimabukuro helms Kaede (Nagisa in Hanebado). However her live action version is played by 8467 (pronounced as Nana Yashiro). No wonder they sound different. So are the 2D and 3D versions different alternate timelines? Anyway, I guess 8467 being a model, she would look a lot prettier. I don’t know, Miyuri Shimabukuro doesn’t look all that bad herself, IMHO. Unless she can’t act… As for the suit actor playing Dino in the live action, it is Mizuho Iizuka. Hah. And we all thought some male dude was behind this costume! Surprise! Oh damn, the real person looks even prettier! Unless it’s all Photoshop and Instagram effect! Hopefully I’m wrong. What a waste to put that beauty behind a suit but I guess that’s how it went. Not bad seeing how hard it is for one to move about in such a stuffy and bulky stiff mascot suit.

The rest of the voice casts for the animation are Seiichirou Yamashita as Shouta (Kakeru in Orange), Yuuko Natsuyoshi as Yamada (Himeko in Show By Rock!! Mashumairesh) and Youki Kudou as Nanami (Saya in Blood: The Last Vampire). The opening theme, Kyouryuu Agemizawa by Kyouruu Friends (basically the quartet of Kaede, Yamada, Nanami and Shouta) sounds like a lively denpa song and made even trippier with its mishmash combo of weird animations and montages. But I guess as far as this animation is concern, this song fits the series like a glove. The ending theme is Peaceful Days by Ryuuko Takahashi. Somewhat a slow pop. Rather okay. Animation is a claymation feature of Kaede as a cavewoman? I wonder if this is just cosplay because WTF they’re eating cup noodle ramen and taking selfie from her handphone?! Yeah, nothing beats living in modern times, right?!

Overall, this series is light-heart random fun. Simple and entertaining in its own right despite being also weird and bizarre at the same time. You’re not supposed to think too deeply about stuffs or understand what is going on but enjoy the funny and cute moments it has to offer. It might be a bit messy since it packs and spams all sorts of animation types as well as the short segments in between that even include artwork from various other people may be too messy to digest in a short period of time. But like I said, you’re not supposed to sweat all those details if you really want to enjoy this series. After all, what else more can you expect from a chill blue ancient reptile like Dino? More than just a pet. More than just your best friend. Dino is just Dino, that’s all to it. Yeah, the blast from the past having a blast.