Incl.

  Bokura wa mucha mo suru kedo,

  Nakitai toki ni wa naichatte alright,

  Konkyo no nai jishin demo,

  Toriaezu ‘coz I’m included in your life

 

If anyone who has seen the anime series, Girl’s High or also known as Joshi Kousei, I’m sure you will definitely and immediately identify with those opening lines. Well, if you’re a fan of that series of course and not just the kind that see-and-forget. This is the ending theme of the series entitled, Incl. (pronounced as, included).

 

  Sonna koto wo dare ka ni,

  Iwareta wake ja nai no ni,

  Jibun de katte ni,

  Dame ni shita

 

Sung by Meg Rock, just like in the singer name herself, this is another one of those lively and upbeat rock songs. The songs starts off with some muffled sound effect and soon the singer singing the opening chorus accompanied with only the drums before the whole song starts to come into play with the heavy funk-like bass.

 

  Atama de wakaru koto ga,

  Kokoro de wa dekitenai,

  Minna to onaji,

  Sokudo ja nai kara

 

Amazingly, somehow I manage to sing this song with great ease and confidence. Considering that the singer has a high-pitched voice which is so suitable for squeaky anime girly characters, I thought that this song would be one of the impossibles. After trying out a few times, I got addicted to it. The verses and bridge are simple enough and don’t require me to go to a much higher pitch. So much so I think I sound close to her! (Yeah right, there I go again dreaming).

 

  Shiawase no mihon to ka,

  Deteru to no imi ni,

  Madowasareteru uchi wa,

  Kitto surechigau

 

The only part which has me needing to go a higher pitch and is just a short little line in the chorus, namely the ‘toriaezu~’ part. At first it was tough, then slowly I started to notice that I can sing it without much difficulty. Albeit not perfect nor consistent, but hey, it’s better than most other songs. Plus, majority of the times when I sing this line, I don’t really face the problem of going off pitch. Not even the sustaining lines at the end of the bridge pose any ‘threat’ to me. Hehehe.

 

  Bokutachi wa ima datte,

  Mada yume no tochuu,

  Akirameta furi wo shite,

  Zutto sagashiteru

 

Other than that, the lyrics of this love song is quite easy to remember and that most of the lines of the repeating chorus are the same. On a trivial note, I saw the original Japanese kanji lyrics and was stumped when the 1st verse lyrics has a line which has ‘x’ in it. I wonder what it meant, so upon closer listening (after many many times), I feel what the word was and meant was ‘dame’. Sheesh. Why didn’t they just put that word in the first place. There isn’t much background vocals either but even so, it’s just a short one in the last lines of the chorus. Plus, if you like wild electric guitar playing, the solo part gives you some treat although it’s just a short one.

 

  Bokura wa mucha mo suru kedo,

  Nakitai toki ni wa naichatte alright,

  Konkyo no nai jishin demo,

  Toriaezu ‘coz you’re included in my life

 

Just for the record, the anime series’ ending animation shows the girl casts of the series doing a jiggling dance of their own. I once tried to copy them. Some are easy while some I still unable to get it right till today. But each time I see them do that, it never ceases to bring a smile to my face. However, I can’t seem to dance and sing this song at the same time. I’d go helter-skelter. Perhaps I should just enjoy singing this and nothing more. Now to go off with a bang, just like how the song ends with its trademark guitar strumming and drum beats, then finally over and out with the sliding of the funky bass line.

 

  Toriaezu ‘coz you’re included in my,

  I’m included in your life…

 

Girl’s High

Hehehe. Here’s another one of my favourite comedy animes. Yup, it’s Girl’s High or also known as Joshi Kousei. In a way this anime reminds me a little bit of Azumanga Daioh. We have 6 high school girls and their adventures during their time there. Only difference is that the girls here seem more prettier and bishoujo as compared to Azumanga Daioh and the duration of the school year which this series is focused on is much shorter.

 

With only 12 episodes worth approximately 30 minutes of air time, this high school teenage comedy cum slice of life is sure to tickle your funny bones. I wouldn’t really say it’s 100% a no-brainer as it isn’t as extreme as Excel Saga, but there are some of those moments in the series. There are also a few ecchi moments but nothing too extreme either.

And every start of each episode, shows the 6 girls on some spoof on a certain theme, which has nothing to do with the current episode, such as Journey To The West, pirates, a rockstar concert, some samurai group, a dating simulation game, and even a parody of Maria-sama Ga Miteru (which is my favourite one). It’s quite amusing and funny to see it.

 

As seen in episode 1, we’re introduced to Eriko Takahashi who is very eager to start the new term as a high school student. But it isn’t a co-ed school as she’s entering an all-girl’s high school. So she and her 2 friends, Yuma Suzuki and Ayano Sato, decides to check out their new school surroundings by sneaking in there a day before their school term officially starts.

 

And during their exploration, to their horror they found out certain ‘unwanted’ things such as used tampoons and shaved pubic hair lying around in the locker room. There goes all the good and innocent perception. They even think that having shorter skirts would look cute on them. So they use a pair of scissors and trim Eriko’s skirt short first. Only thing it’s too short. Yeah, so Eriko decides to take ‘revenge’ and cut Yuma and Ayano’s skirt short as well. Revealing the lower half of their… ahem ahem.

 

While they continue doing their rounds, they bumped into another 3 junior high students who seem to be as eager as them to explore their new school surroundings. They’re Akari Kouda, Kyoko Himeji and Ikue Ogawa. Those 3 even thought that Eriko and her pals were high school students and looked up to them as Eriko decides to play high school student and bluffed them with their high school myths such as that menstruation and period thingy when girls attend high school. And they believed it, especially Kouda.

 

Some warning by Yuma, though but Eriko’s pretty confident that even if they start school tomorrow, they’d probably won’t recognize them or be in a different class. Funny how fate works and be careful of what you say because the next day, we see Kouda, Himeji and Ogawa in the same class as them. And they don’t look too happy, even standing beside them with those eyes during the opening assembly. Grrr… Eriko’s sweating a little.

 

And because of that, during class, Eriko and Kouda locked horns together and argued. Especially those myths part. Seems that Kouda told other girls what Eriko had told her. So it’s gonna be an embarrassing thing for her if they ever find out that it was all untrue. And as their argument heated up, they’re gonna punch each other, but instead hit their homeroom teacher, the dashing Yuuichiro Odagiri. Looks like his pretty face has taken quite a little damage. And as punishment the 2 are sent to clean the storeroom.

 

You might have guessed that the 2 would eventually locked themselves inside it. Even when it’s after school hours, their other friends head back they seemed not to notice Eriko and Kouda missing, not even the school’s security guard (that’s what you get when you pay peanuts. Just kidding). So the 2 instead of fighting need to find a way out soon or else they’ll forever be trapped in there and they’ll die without anyone knowing their whereabouts. But before that, some usual chat here and there as the 2 get to know each other like how Kouda wants to become an actress when she grows up. Since the storeroom’s quite high up, jumping out of the window is out of the question. So the only solution is through the ventilation unit in the ceiling. But it’s rather high up. No choice, they had to stand on each other’s shoulders to do so.

 

By the time it’s nightfall, their other friends seem to notice that those 2 haven’t come back yet and decided to go look for them at school. Meanwhile, Kouda’s standing on Eriko’s shoulders and is trying her best to reach the ventilation door when suddenly Eriko can’t take it anymore causing Kouda to fall. Just then their friends arrived and opened the storeroom door, in shock only to find Eriko and Kouda in a 69 position. Yeah, they got their face in each other’s panties. Haha. No yuri here. But soon, the gang made up and before you know it, they become friends. What a nice way to start things off the new school term.

 

By the way, I need to mention that Odagiri teacher is quite a vain person. Looking himself in the mirror and saying all those vain stuffs to himself. And when Eriko and friends saw these, all their good and favourable perceptions of him went down the drain. Yeah, their hand stood on ends when they saw him doing that. So over the series, they won’t be too fond of him whenever he’s around. Plus, they nicknamed him Idol Odagiri.

 

In episode 2, it’s the physical exams. Uh-huh. I guess most animes need to have this as part of their comedy in their storyline. Well, it seems that there are several tests that one has to take and because of that, the whole school has become somewhat of a designated physical exam centre with the height test in this wing and the eye test in that wing as such.

 

Thus, the girls decide to challenge each other by forming into pairs. The last team to get their physical exams done will have to treat the rest. So it’s on, Eriko and Yuma in the first group, followed by Kouda and Himeji in the second and the final group made out of Ayano and Ogawa. The thing is, all the girls have to wear that loose hospital dress while they take their physical exams. Sexy. You guessed it too, some ecchi viewing moments here and there.

 

Seems that Eriko and Yuma are having a hard time trying to complete their first test because there seems to be a crowd wherever they go and they couldn’t wait in line. Thus, they run here and there, back and forth, only to find the same thing. While the rest are having a hard time as well, failing certain tests like how Ayano failed her eye test and Ogawa failing her height test (obviously, one wears specs and the other too short). And Kouda tries to make her breasts bigger (need I say more about girls wanting to have bigger breasts) but she failed to when she got ‘assaulted’ by the examining nurse with her measuring rope for faking it. Haha.

 

Soon, the physical exam is gonna be over and Eriko and Yuma still have yet to complete their tests. Kouda warns them of a punishment if they fail to do so. What could it be? In short those 2 were the last ones left and has 1 more test to go. They’re gonna take their last test outside the school in some trailer. Then it hit them. Since all of the other students have completed their tests, they realized they’re the only ones being ‘naked’ as the others have dressed back into their school uniforms. Feeling embarrassed and ‘violated’, just like Eriko said, she can’t become a bride now, as everyone who walks by stares at them. Too bad. But don’t worry, you girls have great bodies. Hehehe. And to make matters worse, they have to treat their other 4 friends to some dessert.

 

In episode 3, the girls wants Himeji to get them some guys for their next outing since they know she has a boyfriend. That’s what you get for being in an all-girl’s high school. Desparate case? Anyway, the time comes when Himeji introduces them to a couple of guys. And it looks like Ayano and one of the guys, Takanori Shimotakatani (I’m still having a hard time trying to pronounce and remember his name) fell in love at first sight. So it’s like this throughout the series. Whenever Ayano and Shimotakatani gets into one of their lovey-dovey mode, Eriko, Kouda and Yuma would get annoyed (probably fueled by jealousy) and punch her or subject her to other forms of torture. Poor Ayano. She gets bullied everytime when this happens. But their love is still going strong despite those ‘obstructions’.

 

Here the girls decided to have their dates at some karaoke outlet. Somehow the guys aren’t too amuse of them. Yeah, it seems like it’s just the girls having fun and the guys want out but has no choice but to stay and listen, especially Eriko’s horrible singing. And during that karaoke session, Himeji and her boyfriend slipped out. Then another one of those guys, seems to have ‘bad’ look and intention, is targeting Ogawa as he manages to persuade her to go out somewhere with him.

 

So he took Ogawa to some Love Hotel. But you would’ve guessed it by now since Ogawa’s petite size, she would also have a mentality and characteristic of a child. Being the innocent little girl, she agrees to go inside with that guy, not knowing what his true intentions are. Himeji found out from her boyfriend about what that guy’s gonna do to Ogawa and dumps him. No doubt he needed to have the numbers for the outing, but promising ‘to do as he pleases’ to one of her friends isn’t acceptable. At the same time Eriko and the others realized that Ogawa is missing and decides to go look for her, dragging along those reluctant guys too.

 

The girls arrived at the Love Hotel and decides to book a room next to the room they think Ogawa is in. And while they’re waiting in the next room, they forced the other guys to eavesdrop next door through the wall using a glass (pity them as they got no choice but to oblige) while they ‘experiment’ with Shimotakatani to kill time, tormenting him and as Ayano could only watch in horror. Naughty naughty girls. Too bad, Ayano’s got no choice watching her beloved one ‘suffer’. So pitiful. But so funny lah.

 

Meanwhile, it seems that Ogawa is rather having fun of her own in the room as the guy prepares to ‘do it’. But each time gets into some blooper as each atttempt is being unconsciously thwarted by Ogawa. Finally Himeji arrives to find Ogawa safe and sound and that guy sleeping like a baby. Must be tired from all that. She’s glad Ogawa’s safe and nothing serious has happened to her. At the same time, those guys are still with that glass, eavesdropping the next room (which obviously isn’t the correct room), crying and saying why them. And those girls seem to be quite satisfied with their ‘experiment’. Poor guy. Life’s a living hell from him. Hey, why not access the Jigoku Tsuushin and call Enma Ai for revenge? Yeah, Ayano’s voice actress is Mamiko Noto who also the voice of Enma Ai. Hahaha.

 

It’s the school sports festival in episode 4. I’m getting a feeling that such theme is a must if it involves schooling teenagers. Uh-huh, and Eriko’s panties are sticking out out because her bloomers were too short. Ecchi. But before that, I need to mention that during somewhere in this episode we see some yuri and lovey-dovey moments between Nao Mouri and Sayaka Koshiba. First I thought that one of them’s a guy because of the way she look and sound. Then come to think of it, this is an all-girl’s school and there isn’t possibly a male student. So, they both have to be girls! Oh gawd! Lesbians! And they’re in Eriko’s class too. So most of the time, you’ll see time in that lovey-dovey mode with that lovey-dovey talk before they embraced each other and do stuffs like that. Funny thing is, Eriko and Kouda didn’t punch them away. Maybe they got shivers up their spine and decide it’s best to leave them alone. Yeah, they mentioned and referred to them as some Takarazuka combo. Whatever that means.

 

Also, the introduction of Kouda’s long rival, Mari Saionji. Yeah, Saionji sounds like your typical arrogant and stuck up b**ch, challenging Kouda to almost anything eversince middle school. And it continues here too. But Kouda’s not gonna give up and goes up against her in every sporting event. A lot of hilarious moments as the 2 try to outdo each other. Speaking of which, some of the sporting events are just plain weird. Like throwing as many balls into some high up net (?!). Then there’s one where one has to eat a banana hanging on a string. And the way they show it, seems like Ayano’s gonna… And it looked it… ahem ahem. Simotakatani who’s there to support here gets a large nosebleed. You know what I mean. And what’s with that rolling some giant ball race thingy? And that 3 legged race with a reluctant Eriko pairing up with Odagiri was bloody hilarious when they tripped and Odagiri accidentally pulled down Eriko’s shorts. It’s gonna be one big misunderstanding.

 

But at the same time there’s a pervert on the loose in the school grounds. Snapping away pictures of those high school girls. And when Eriko rushes to tell the teacher that a pervert is loose on the loose, they thought it was Shimotakatani. Yeah, this guy’s taking photos of Ayano only but oh well, wrong place wrong time. But that pervert’s act was halted when he was run over by that carnage of Kouda and Saionji’s giant ball race. And in the end, Eriko’s class lost just by 1 point to Saionji’s class, though Kouda beat Saionji in that giant ball race. Yet so close yet so far. By the way, several of those pictures with the girls in embarrassing ecchi shots that the pervert took, managed to be published in some magazine. "High School Girls Moron Corps" the heading says as the girls dread over it.

 

In the first half of episode 5, we’re introduced to another weird teacher for the girls. It’s their PE teacher, whom the girls call Macho Matsuo. Yeah, this guy seems to like to flex his biceps most of the time and he seems so happy showing it off. Besides that ambigous yuri scene where Yuma is shaving Ayano’s bikini line (yeah, Ayano looked and sounded like she enjoyed it), the girls changed into their swimsuits for a swimming lesson from Macho Matsuo. He’s quite hyped up and energetic for their swimming class, going in a few laps himself first. And the girls were thinking with all that male contact in the water, they’ll get pregnant! Yup, they don’t have the stomach to go into the water.

 

Then Eriko who doesn’t really know how to swim, gets a personal tutoring from Macho Matsuo himself. Eriko must be having an emotional trauma. Who wouldn’t if you felt some guy’s lower anatomy touching both your hips from behind (her imagination must be running really wild) and with all those male hair on his chest, hands and legs. Must be the longest lesson in her life.

 

The second half introduces Yuma’s little sister, Momoka. She may look like an angel on the outside, but bewarned though, she’s actually EVIL! Sorry if I spoiled you readers so early. Who wouldn’t think of her as Yuma’s cute and sweet little innocent sister when Momoka’s acting was damn good, complimenting them with her politeness and such. Yup, so much so the actress-wannabe Kouda can’t even smell a rat. And that Yuma just ran away angrily without saying anything to her friends. Of course lah. If you don’t say anything, those friends of yours wouldn’t know what’s going on between you sisters.

 

So you get to see Momoka’s evil doing as she tries to sabotage Ayano and Shimotakatani’s relationship and at the same time frame Yuma for it. And when Ayano found out that it was ‘Yuma’ who’s behind it, she confronted her and slapped her furiously the next day at school! Oh oh. Cracks in the friendship. But Yuma didn’t hit back or say anything. She just ran away without saying anything. Why don’t his girl try to explain things? Maybe she has something else in mind. Before this episode ends, we see Momoka with her checklist of Yuma’s friends she’s gonna sabotage as she grins and crosses out Ayano’s name. Better beware you girls. Like the saying ‘musuh di bawah selimut‘.

 

And in the slightly-tensed episode 6, you’ll see some flashback of Yuma and Momoka when they’re young and why the latter hates the former and wants to make her life miserable though they both still live under the same roof. Something like Yuma’s always protecting her little sister when she’s being bullied. And because of that Momoka thinks that her sister thinks of her as weak. Thus, in a way, doesn’t approve of her nor wanting her big sis to protect her just because she’s weak. So much so she don’t even want to attend the same high school as her.

 

But Momoka didn’t manage to sabotage Yuma’s other friends on her list as she herself got into some trouble. But it seems that later Momoka’s cornered by some high school girls as well. Yup, they called her and set up some meeting with her at school, then they accused her of trying to hit with one of their boyfriends but Momoka denies and says that it was their boyfriend who’s hitting on her. They didn’t believe Momoka and are gonna teach her a lesson by cutting her hair (?!). But Kouda and Eriko manage to arrive in time. And what’s with that lame (but funny) stand-up comedy between Eriko and Kouda?

 

Yuma then came dashing into the scene and gives her little sister a good slap on the face, much to everyone’s suprise. Yuma says that she’ll punish whatever wrong Momoka has done on their behalf. With that those high school girl bullies said okay and left. Maybe they don’t want to get entangled with such a weird and scary sister. In the end, the 2 sisters had some chat, manage to kiss and make up. Even though the way they talk, it sounded like they’re still not on level terms. But as Ayano said, no matter how much Momoka says she hates her sis, she always calls her ‘onee-chan’. Yeah, a love-hate relationship. It’s that deep down inner love that counts.

 

Before you know it, Momoka became friends with Yuma and her buddies as well and are having their usual outing at a fast food chain. Since Momoka’s true nature is revealed, Momoka didn’t hesitate to mention how bad Kouda an actress she was and that she would have no future to become one, much to Kouda’s annoyance. I felt that this episode was a little boring and there wasn’t much of that ‘craziness’ as I’ve come to expect after watching several episodes of the series. Most probably this episode serves as a little build-up for some character development.

 

Eriko, Yuma and Ayano hit the pool amusement park in episode 7 while Kouda enters a talent contest. At the park, the 3 girls bumped into Odagiri and Macho Matsuo, much to their dismay. And what what comedy ecchi series would be complete without that swimsuit top coming off. That’s what happened to Eriko when she’s sliding down the water slide and she got her boobs in Odagiri’s face after that. Because of that incident, the girls sees this as an opportunity to bully and ‘blackmail’ them. Poor Odagiri, he’s got to oblige, paying for everything.

 

In the later part, Eriko and Yuma uses this blackmail tactic to enter some game show whereby they only allow couples to participate. Uh-huh, Ayano’s got her beloved Shimotakatani while Eriko ended up being paired with Odagiri (again) and Yuma with Macho Matsuo (still flexing his muscles). Looks like Ogawa and Himeji wants to enter too. But since they’re both girls, how did they solve this problem? Yeah, Himeji drew some fake moustache on her face. The person who let them enter must be real blind. But why would they want to participate? Why not, if the winning prize is a plasma screen television.

 

So some really really weird events like carrying the girl over some obstacle. Weird. Eriko and Odagiri along with Yuma and Macho Matsuo managed to enter the final round which involves driving around some weird car that can shoot laser beams at each other. Huh? Anyway, the last couple standing wins. Guess who? It’s Eriko and Odagiri. But first, to win the tv, they have to kiss each other on stage in front of everyone! Oh the horror!

 

Remember Kouda doing her talent contest? Yeah, dressed up in some weird costume, when it’s her turn to perform, she got electrocuted because of her costume filled with lights. Glad and luckily she didn’t die. What an electrifying performance, literally. Hahaha. Anyway, this caused a short circuit and blackout the surrounding area, including the game show area. Eriko and Odagiri took the opportunity to run away. And when the lights came back on, the announcer’s wondering where they’ve been.

 

Though they didn’t win the tv, but at least they’re spared a lifetime of embarrassement and teasing. Yeah, it could be a lot worse if your friends and the entire school finds out about a teacher-student relationship, even if it’s for this purpose and not anything else. So as they all head home that night, Odagiri’s tears because he’s spent quite a lot while he’s ruing the fact that Macho Matsuo didn’t even help contribute though he was in it. Haih, that guy’s still flexing his muscles, smiling all the way.

 

Episode 8 is somewhat of a flashback episode as it sees how some of the girls come to be. The first half is between Eriko and Yuma. At first they didn’t really like each other, always at each other’s throat, like tripping each other in class. Then this is my favourite part. The 2 decides to challenge each other through some eating competition. That’s a really huge bowl of ramen there. Can you girls finish it? Even the chef of the restaurant’s gonna time them.

 

As the competition starts, Yuma is devouring the ramen while Eriko just sat there not touching her bowl a bit. Yuma’s thinking that Eriko’s given up as she continues eating till the last strand. By the end, Yuma claims victory but Eriko doesn’t think so yet. Why? Because the next day at school, it’s the physical exams. And oh the horror it must’ve been for Yuma as she’s weighing herself. Yeah, she’s thinking she must’ve planned all of this along as Yuma drops to her knees as a sign of defeat while Eriko walks away in style, flaunting her perfect body shape. Haha.

 

But the thing which made them friends is just a CD. Yeah, Eriko didn’t have a particular music CD which Yuma had. So the latter lend it to her and the former was overjoyed. Looks like that was all it took to become friends. Fast forward to the current situation, looks like Eriko and Yuma are in some petty squabbling as Yuma accuses Eriko of not returning her CD to her eversince.

 

In the second half, it is Himeji’s turn. She looked so different when she was during her younger days. Why? That’s because she’s fat! Sorry girl, if it sounds insulting. But hey, don’t deny it, you WERE fat and chubby. So how did a fat girl like her suddenly become such a voluptuous sexy maiden? Did she took some slimming courses or weight lost programmes? Well, not really actually.

 

You see, back then, Himeji has a crush on her teacher then who is no other than Odagiri. Yes, that dashing and vain Odagiri. Well, who wouldn’t. He’s quite good looking (though his character still hasn’t change since then) she on the other hand is going through that growing up stage. But Himeji knowing that she’s being fat and all that realized that she wouldn’t have a chance with Odagiri. As she’s crying in the toilet cubicle, the person in the next door cubicle heard her problem and gave some ‘advice’. And because of that Himeji was very determined to slim down in order to win the heart of Odagiri. As we find out that the person in the next cubicle was Eriko and her pals. And they’re just joking about the ‘advice’ they gave Himeji and was just playing around.

 

So during the school holidays, Himeji took some journey cross the mountains through the forest, that kind of stuff and slowly she achieved her beautiful posture that she has got this day. Wow. All you slim-wannabe ladies, maybe you should try what this girl does rather than the ‘easy way out’ of going to the beauty parlour and such. And all her friends were in real shock to see the all new Himeji. Impressive.

 

As Himeji returns and was going to confess to Odagiri, he spots him posing and admiring himself through the mirror, saying to himself all those vain things. Perasan betul. With that, Himeji’s perception of him shatters and realized his true nature. I wonder what’s wrong with that. Bragging how good one looks, is it that bad? Maybe if you love yourself more, you tend to give more attention to yourself rather than any other person, even if she’s your girlfriend. Also, Himeji realized her crush on her teacher was just a schoolgirl crush and she got over it very quickly. What a fast way to get over it. And back at present time, Himeji still thanked that mysterious ‘angel’s’ advice from the next cubicle that if not for them, she wouldn’t have such a pretty body. Eriko and her pals just smiled in acknowledgement. Hmmm… Is this the power of fate?

 

Is Kouda gonna die in episode 9? It seems that she’s suffering from some terminal illness. At least that’s what her friends think. Actually, Kouda’s practicing for an audition to play a role as a nurse. In order for her to ‘get the feel’ of her character, she decides to rehearse her lines in a hospital. So poor Eriko who overheard Kouda’s conversation with the doctor (which is actually a tape recorder), felt devastated and told her friends about it. Of course they too were devastated. Wah. Kouda’s acting must be real good. Her future as an actresses sure good wan.

 

As they find out about Kouda’s illness and they decided to maker her ‘last days’ to be a memorable one. Kouda on the other hand thought her pals were so into it on helping her get the audition part that she don’t mind whatever they’re doing and played along. So over this episode, it was quite hilarious to see Kouda talking one thing and the rest talking another thing. Both have different thoughts and impressions about the other. I was snickering to myself most of the time thinking from the back of my head that what they’re doing are totally off from what the other really meant. Hehe.

 

So on Kouda’s ‘last day’, the gang decides to throw her the most memorable party at Yuma’s place. Even Momoka’s there. She’s also quite sad to see Kouda ‘go’. Well, to Kouda her ‘last day’ means the day before the audition whereas to the rest it’s going over to the next world. See all the funny miscommunications here. Though they’re some serious and dramatic moments, like how the girls hugged Kouda as they’re sad to see her go, I couldn’t help the fact and laugh that it’s all just one big misinterpretation. Yeah, funnily emotional scenes.

 

On the early morning of Kouda’s last day as everyone’s asleep after last nights great party, Kouda got up and prepares to leave for her audition. But not before leaving a ‘farewell note’ to her friends behind. Because of the party, Kouda hasn’t has much sleep as she dozes off in the train. Meanwhile, when her friends have awoken and found the note, they rushed down to the audtion place. Obviously, Kouda has missed her audition.

 

At the audition, the girls were frantically searching for Kouda when she was no where to be found. And in front of the stage and those audition production team, the girls put up some ‘convincing performance’ on Kouda’s demise. Though the audition crew don’t know what’s going on, but they felt that those girl’s acting were good. Haha. So outside, the girls got some letter that they passed the audition, but they looked up to the sky and will always remember Kouda, even if they didn’t know what was happening.

 

I was waiting for the moment where the girls realized the truth and that their efforts were ‘wasted’ and would then bash and pound Kouda up properly. But it didn’t happen. It would have been real funny if that were to be shown. Most probably, I would be laughing like mad and rolling on the ground.

 

But it seems like there isn’t any aftermath effects on Kouda in episode 10. Yeah, she’s back in the group as though as nothing happened. Well, yeah, it was mentioned a little by Eriko saying something like "are you supposed to be dead or something?". I guess it wasn’t that serious. Perhaps they’re glad Kouda’s back and alive, which is the most important of course.

 

But this episode is more on Ayano and Shimotakatani. We see Shimotakatani visiting Ayano’s house and we find Ayano’s one kind family members like her cigarette smoking mom (who just like me, can’t seem to remember and pronounce his name correctly) Taeko, and her unattractive elder sister, Fumino. Because both of them are unlucky in love, they couldn’t believe that Ayano’s got a boyfriend. Yeah, really one kind. You wonder if Ayano’s really part of the family, the way she turned out so different from the 2. Maybe not, as Taeko gave hints (rather didn’t answer back) that Ayano and her sis may be fathered by different dads, much to Ayano’s horror.

 

Some ‘interrogation’ here and there. Eventually, Taeko and Fumino seems to want make Ayano and Shimotakatani ‘do it’ as her mom found out that they’re still virgins. Haih. But Ayano and Shimotakatani ran and sneak out of the house to meet up with Ayano’s friends. Well, either way it’s out of the frying pan and into the fire. You know what I mean. The usual whack from Eriko and Kouda whenever Ayano gets into that lovey-dovey mode.

 

As Kouda tries her ‘acting’ on Shimotakatani to hit on her as a practice so that he could be more proactive with Ayano, Kouda then realized the reason that Shimotakatani’s in love with Ayano is may be because of her glasses. Uh-huh, a glasses obsession person. So funny when Kouda put on and off her fake glasses and Shimotakatani swooning one moment over it and back to normal the next. Then Himeji and Ogawa put on some glasses too. But it seems that Shimotakatani’s trying to hold back his nosebleed.

 

As Shimotakatani tries his best to dismiss that he likes girls with glasses, the other girls told Ayano about Shimotakatani’s obsession and asks her to take off her glasses in front of him as a test. In the end, Ayano, then knew that what Kouda and the rest said earlier on wasn’t true as Shimotakatani still loves Ayano, even though she doesn’t have her glasses on. But looks like that was just a temporary relief.

 

You see, earlier on Eriko and Yuma tried to draw glasses on Ayano’s face with a marker pen but Ayano slipped out which means Eriko accidentally drew lines on Yuma’s face. And as retaliation she drew back some lines on hers, which resembled a pair of glasses and a few badly drawn doodles. And while things for Ayano and Shimotakutani were just about to get better, those 2 arrive and when Shimotakatani saw them, he has that stare over them. Ayano then pushes him away and calls him an idiot, now thinking (and probably convinced) that he’s really a glasses freak. So is it a misunderstanding? Yeah, and those marker lines are really hard to wash and come off too. You both deserve it.

 

In episode 11, there’s this reunion of Eriko’s old school and she’s thinking of attending it because the boy that she has a crush on long ago, Miyazaki, is gonna attend it. But before that a hilarious moment at school when Eriko spots a different hairstyle and puts on a very strong perfume. Yuma smacks her and calls her a traitor. Yup, looks like it’s Eriko’s turn. And just like Ayano said, "let’s be splendid characters who always get bullied". One bad turn deserves another. But Eriko says not to put her in the same boat as Ayano.

 

So of course when they found out the truth, the girls with the help of Momoka, went to great lengths to beautify Eriko.  The reason being that they all think that he’s grown up to be a handsome looking and charming guy and they want Eriko to look her best when she conveys her feelings to him. So at the reunion, Eriko realized she forgot to take along the muffler she knitted for Miyazaki the night before as an extra measure to win his heart. When Eriko rushed back, Momoka said she accidentally threw it away because she doesn’t know what a muffler is. So some hilarious moments as Eriko desparately tries to retrieve her muffler. Meanwhile, I’m not sure what Kouda’s doing with that weird performance to attract Miyazki’s attention. But he seems not to amused by it and thinks they’re a bunch of weirdos as he decides to go home.

 

You know Himeji and Ogawa’s spending too much time being together when one of those guys at the reunion approached Himeji and probably trying to get to know her and hit on her, when suddenly he saw Ogawa and thinks that Himeji’s married and Ogawa’s her child. He then apologizes and walks away, much to Himeji’s disappointment. Hahaha. Big misunderstanding there.

 

When Eriko finally manage to retrieve her muffler and arrived at the reunion in time to meet Miyazaki face to face and confess her feelings, unfortunately, it wasn’t him, though he manage to ‘fit’ into some of Eriko’s assumptions of how he may look like in the future. He’s actually Nakamura from her next class. Instead, the real Miyazaki guy is actually his friend and he looks uglier. Big, fat, thick lips, messy hair, wearing specs and has pimples over his face. Yeah, and that guy’s so happy to hear it from Eriko that she actually liked him and proceeds to take her on a date, much to Eriko’s horror. And he mentions that they’re gonna have fun all night long together. Eriko must be screaming real hard inside her shattered heart. Her life must be flashing before her eyes. Not only you have to be careful for what you wish for, but also be specific and certain of what you wished for. Too bad, her friends could only watch. I suppose would this give rise to some emotional trauma for Eriko?

 

In the final episode 12, it’s the school cultural festival. See, another important element not to be left out if it involves school students. And to end the series with a bang, they even named the title "Baka, Hateshinaku Baka" (Stupidity, Endless Stupidity). Ah… So true.

 

Here the girls are up against Kouda’s rival Saionji as they compete to see who can attract the most customers to their cafe. Like how the girls try various outfits, even suggesting and putting that hospital dress on Ayano as their uniform. What’s this? Kouda dressed as some funny tree outfit? Didn’t get it. And what’s this too? Mouri and Koshiba getting lovey-dovey with each other instead of doing some work? Weird. By now they must’ve been very ‘close’. Yeah, I guess it’s best to leave them alone.

 

Then as a last ditch attempt, the girls then decide to do a massage parlour. Of course, they blackmailed Macho Matsuo to use the pool area. As they get dressed into their swimsuits, they got their first customer, who is no other than Odagiri. Yeah, Eriko did some rubbing here and there with her certain parts. Ahem ahem. And all the perverted males keep streaming in wanting a piece of it too. Of course Odagiri’s a little embarrassed that Eriko’s so ‘forward’ and ‘daring’ but I guess it’s for the competition. And what’s this? Mouri and Koshiba, in their swimsuits, are still lovey-dovey with each other? Are they serious on working? Maybe they have no time for other stuffs than themselves.

 

Saionji realized that Kouda’s class is gaining ground as they try to attract more customers to their cafe. Then, this is the hilarious part. Nakamura comes in and confronts Eriko saying that how he was sorry for the last time things turn out and wanted to be his girlfriend. Of course Eriko was happy and was gonna give the okay signal when suddenly he turned to Kouda and asked her to be his girlfriend. Hahaha. Red faced. Malunya… And I guess Nakamura really loved Kouda’s weird acting from back then, huh? Yeah, looks like he likes weirdos too.

 

And soon Eriko’s class is facing shortage of workers as the disgruntled long line of perverted men becomes restless. Let’s see Kouda, who earlier on said men are useless and all those stuffs decides to go back on her word and go date that guy because she says the most important thing is men. Haih… And Ogawa’s still a little kid as she needs to take her nap time. Yeah, if you don’t grow in size and mind, most likely you won’t grow out of your kiddie characteristics. Shimotakutani doesn’t let Ayano massage anyone but him and Himeji has ran off dating with her new boyfriend while Yuma is slightly injured. All that’s left is Eriko. Can she handle all of this.

 

Then Momoka arrives to save the day. Yeah, some lecturing from that little girl and this is the quote of the series "High school girls are Japan’s number one brand". Wow! Can I consider that to be an eye opener? So how did Momoka solved the problem? She asked all the men to lie down on their stomachs in a row, then Momoka hops and steps on each of their backs like playing hop-scotch or like that story where Sang Kancil crossed the Sang Buaya infested river. And the thing is, all of the men felt good to be stepped over by a little girl. What the? Those losers. Like that also can ah.

 

But in the end Eriko’s class still lost out to Saionji’s and they all got their heads written with some dumb remarks, even Momoka (though she’s thinking what has this got to do with her). What a way to get through the year. And so in the ending we see the start of the next school term, with Momoka now attending the same school as her sister as a freshman. At the same time those 6 ladies are now in their second year and in the same class too. As they gather for a group photo, Kouda removes her top shirt, revealing some weird butterfly outfit, much to the other’s shock. And there’s that writing on the blackboard behind saying ‘Baka Gundan’ (Stupid Army Troops). So true.

 

Overall, I love how funny and hilarious this anime is. Though there are a lot of panty shots (which is being called fan service) but the nudity isn’t extreme so much so that you could clearly see the girl’s breasts. It’s just harmless ecchi fun, that’s all. If you like to watch such animes, doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re a pervert. Okay, maybe a little. But that’s why the series is so funny and silly which makes it quite entertaining to watch (at least to me).

 

The girls here are quite pretty which is consistent with anyone’s expectation of a typical Japanese anime in terms of drawing and art. Though there are several zany and interesting characters, there isn’t much character development. Most probably the series is too short for any long term developments, plus probably because of the wacky antics of the characters made it ‘not worth’ for some real character development. I mean, the main purpose is to laugh and not think so much, isn’t it?

 

The ending theme, Incl, sung by Meg Rock is quite a catchy tune and during the ending credits you can see the girls do some cute little jiggle of their own. And they end it with Macho Matsuo flexing his muscles. Haih… And oh, did you notice that the girls in Eriko’s group, they call each other using their first names but as for those in Kouda’s group they call each other using their surnames. Funny, isn’t it?

 

So what happened to Mouri and Koshiba? Did they get expelled for being too yuri? Though I had several questions that still boggles in my mind, but like I’ve earlier said, don’t think so much. Yeah, if I do that, it’ll take away all the fun. Uh-huh, ignorance is bliss in a way. Hopefully, our girls will go through another school year filled with… lots of ecchi, ‘ambiguous’ situations, cheesy phrases, lines and philosophies and boke antics. Hey, what do you expect? It’s their nature and destiny. Hahaha.