Review - Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai
Welcome to our first review here at the Geek Grotto.
Let me first open with a description of how we review a series. We are firm believers in “The Rule of 3.” Any Series, TV Show, Anime has 3 episodes to hook us. If after three episodes we don’t care about what happens to the characters or where the story is going or basically about anything, then we stop watching. So “Rule of 3” firmly in mind, we sat down to watch Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai.
King Tigre:
I’m a huge fan of the “harem” anime. It’s no secret to those who know me. Ranma ½, Tenchi Muyo, Rosario+Vampire, Hyakka Ryouran Samurai Girls, Ladies vs. Butlers and the list goes on and on. I’m a fan of them all. Despite it’s ridiculously long title, Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai (What a mouthful!) is easily one of the most humorous and cleverly written Anime I’ve had the pleasure of watching recently. It was clear about half way through the first episode that “The Rule of 3” had been rendered useless. I was hooked. And 5 episodes later, I was thirsty for more.
Story:
The premise is pretty simple; “Kodaka Hasegawa is a recent transfer student to St. Chronica's Academy, a Catholic high school. As with every other school he has ever attended, he finds it difficult to make friends there because of his naturally-blond hair (inherited from his deceased English mother) and fierce-looking eyes, which make him look like a dangerous "yankee" to his prejudiced schoolmates.” Thank you Wikipedia.
Kodaka stumbles upon his classmate, the cute, dark haired, withdrawn and generally angry, Yozora Mikazuki having a full fledged conversation with herself and the two of them end up having a discussion about their inability to make friends. Yozora decides that they should start a club. A club which will teach them how to make friends.
The pacing of Boku is great. It kept me engaged. I was often unaware that a half hour had already passed. It was filled with lots of moments that literally made me laugh out loud.
Boku spends that first three episodes building on the relationship of Kodaka, Yozora, and Sena. A rich, lusciously buxom blond who, while constantly being pandered to and pampered by the boys of the school, is really just looking for a girl friend.
Episode 4 picks up the pace and brings in not 1, not 2, not 3, but 4 new members to the club. And the thus, the harem is complete and hilarity ensues. Kodaka’s little sister Kobato is hilarious as she is the Japanese embodiment of what little Twilight Otaku girls here in the states remind me of.
Animation Quality:
Vic said it best to me over the course of watching Boku. “It’s nice to see the quality of animation in TV series’ so high.” He’s right. Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai is beautifully done. The work is clean and crisp (Thank you 720p) and the movement is fluid and smooth. I really like the color work in this series as they steered clear of a simple yellow fill for Kodaka’s hair. You’ll notice it’s actually several shades of yellow blended together to make a more interesting head of blond hair. The girls are of course adorable, sexy and beautiful where needed.
Overall:
If you are even remotely into Harem anime, or just love triangles, then this is without a doubt a great series to check out. I can’t recommend it highly enough and am at this point rushing through the review because I’m fairly certain the next 2 episodes have finished downloading. It’s filled with great Geek Easter eggs. A Playing States Portable (PSP), and Playing States III (PS3) are the gaming devices of choice. While fans of Capcom ::points to self:: will giggle with glee over the blatant homage to Monster Hunter in episode 2.
Let me first open with a description of how we review a series. We are firm believers in “The Rule of 3.” Any Series, TV Show, Anime has 3 episodes to hook us. If after three episodes we don’t care about what happens to the characters or where the story is going or basically about anything, then we stop watching. So “Rule of 3” firmly in mind, we sat down to watch Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai.
King Tigre:
I’m a huge fan of the “harem” anime. It’s no secret to those who know me. Ranma ½, Tenchi Muyo, Rosario+Vampire, Hyakka Ryouran Samurai Girls, Ladies vs. Butlers and the list goes on and on. I’m a fan of them all. Despite it’s ridiculously long title, Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai (What a mouthful!) is easily one of the most humorous and cleverly written Anime I’ve had the pleasure of watching recently. It was clear about half way through the first episode that “The Rule of 3” had been rendered useless. I was hooked. And 5 episodes later, I was thirsty for more.
The premise is pretty simple; “Kodaka Hasegawa is a recent transfer student to St. Chronica's Academy, a Catholic high school. As with every other school he has ever attended, he finds it difficult to make friends there because of his naturally-blond hair (inherited from his deceased English mother) and fierce-looking eyes, which make him look like a dangerous "yankee" to his prejudiced schoolmates.” Thank you Wikipedia.
Kodaka stumbles upon his classmate, the cute, dark haired, withdrawn and generally angry, Yozora Mikazuki having a full fledged conversation with herself and the two of them end up having a discussion about their inability to make friends. Yozora decides that they should start a club. A club which will teach them how to make friends.
The pacing of Boku is great. It kept me engaged. I was often unaware that a half hour had already passed. It was filled with lots of moments that literally made me laugh out loud.
Boku spends that first three episodes building on the relationship of Kodaka, Yozora, and Sena. A rich, lusciously buxom blond who, while constantly being pandered to and pampered by the boys of the school, is really just looking for a girl friend.
Episode 4 picks up the pace and brings in not 1, not 2, not 3, but 4 new members to the club. And the thus, the harem is complete and hilarity ensues. Kodaka’s little sister Kobato is hilarious as she is the Japanese embodiment of what little Twilight Otaku girls here in the states remind me of.
Vic said it best to me over the course of watching Boku. “It’s nice to see the quality of animation in TV series’ so high.” He’s right. Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai is beautifully done. The work is clean and crisp (Thank you 720p) and the movement is fluid and smooth. I really like the color work in this series as they steered clear of a simple yellow fill for Kodaka’s hair. You’ll notice it’s actually several shades of yellow blended together to make a more interesting head of blond hair. The girls are of course adorable, sexy and beautiful where needed.
If you are even remotely into Harem anime, or just love triangles, then this is without a doubt a great series to check out. I can’t recommend it highly enough and am at this point rushing through the review because I’m fairly certain the next 2 episodes have finished downloading. It’s filled with great Geek Easter eggs. A Playing States Portable (PSP), and Playing States III (PS3) are the gaming devices of choice. While fans of Capcom ::points to self:: will giggle with glee over the blatant homage to Monster Hunter in episode 2.
5 out of 5 Geegamons.
There is nothing I can add that wasn't already said. This series beat the "Rule of 3" before episode 1 ended. It's been a while since I've seen an anime that was so much fun to watch. If you have the time, definitely give this show a chance.
