Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-Kun Review

Full Review

Pro: Great characters, Great Story, Great Ending, Great Animation,

Con: We need more of it!

Final Thoughts: If you are looking for a four panel manga series done right in animated form this is for you. Basically, for those who are unaware, four panel manga comics are much like the newspaper comics we get here in America. Much like Charlie Brown each panel is made to tell a specific short joke or instance for humor. It is not a deep moving story where you have to keep track of complicated plot elements to understand the story and characters. In many ways that is the major pro of getting into an anime like this. Much like the early holiday animated specials for Charlie Brown what you remember will be characters and maybe a good setup for a laugh out loud joke or two that satires some common instances in life or in this case if you are a manga artist. Yes jokes in this become 10 times funnier if you know the anime/manga business in general from light novels to anime figures. It commonly pokes fun at shoujo manga. Even so what really pulls the comedy through are its characters, each with their hilarious quirks. In particular Mikorin (as he is nicknamed) is possibly one of the funniest anime characters to come out in a long time.

Story: And yes this anime does like to make fun at the anime/manga setup, but like every good parody it recognizes why it is what it is and praises as much as it bashes it, in a very subtle way. Not gonna lie, I was a little scared to see how this show was going to wrap up in episode 12. Luckily they succeeded without having to use filler or last minute un-fufilling drama. Instead the show brought us all the way back where we started in episode one and forward by showing us the meaning behind Sakura's feelings toward Nozaki and almost vice versa. In others words it was really fricken good if not better than most anime endings I have seen in a long time. So don't be afraid of the 12 episode mark because by the end you'll be checking to see when the dvds for this go on sale.I also feel the need to compare this a little to a previous work by the same studio known as Engaged to the Unidentified. Like this it was based on a four panel comic strip and was mainly a romantic comedy. However unlike Engaged to the Unidentified, Gekkan has much more to work with in terms of comedy. After watching both series, Gekkan is much much more tolerable. In Engaged some characters came across more annoying than funny. However in Gekkan the characters are more funny than annoying. In other words: Engaged<GekkanStory cont.: To clarify, the plot is pretty much nonexistent here. It takes a lot of creativity and imagination to make a plot work the way they are trying to tell it. In doing so, It pretty much sticks to the tone of the source material which is always a good thing. It’s hard to make a series like this entertaining for a whole 24+episodes not boring (like how K-ON! was a good chunk of the time) but this one manages to keep your interest because of its well established characters. (Unlike K-On! Which is also a four panel manga translated in an anime) By the end you will happy either way to have seen at least one episode of this. This show proves that you don't need a major plot, dark back-stories, villains, mushy romances, or a large developed cast of characters to entertain us in an anime. All you need is to understand your target audience, limitations and how to execute to the best of your ability while betraying some of our expectations. In that regard, I say that this anime succeeds.

Characters: Unfortunately there are moments when characters are treated a little too mean spirited particularly in Sakura's relationship with Nozaki. Despite all the turn offs this girl gets she still finds Nozaki irresistible which is refreshing to say the least. It helps the audience identify with her since I'm sure everyone has had a secret crush who never showed any particular interest in you, leaving you in your imaginary relationship dimension. (aka my life T_T) You will find yourself rooting for every character by the end of the show especially Sakura.

Art and Sound: The animation and sound are good overall and the opening is very enjoyable for its uniqueness. It isn't some chipmunk sounding girl singing about how much she loves love (even though that is kind of what the ending is) instead it’s a guy with a rough voice singing not a pop song. So props for that.

Final Score: 4 stars

Recommendations: Engaged to the Unidentified/Ranma 1/2/Ouran High School Host Club

#gekkanshoujonozakikun #nozaki #monthlyshoujonozakikun #review #4stars #summer #2014