After a year of being neglected (left on hold), I finally decided to rewatch and finish Arakawa Under The Bridge, and to say the least... It was one of the best decisions I've made!
Story
To better understand the story, we need to know the Ichinomiya family motto, that being "never be indebted to anyone".
Ichinomiya Ko is the protagonist of our story; a rich guy, soon to be heir of his father's company. He's always tried following the family motto, but one day, he was put into a situation in which he had to break said "rule".
One day, as Ko was walking on this bridge, he was jumped by a group of delinquent kids. Did they steal his money? No... Did they steal any valuable items? No... So, what transpired? Well, what actually happened was that they forcefully took his pants away and put them on one of the bridge's pillers to make it harder for him to grab. After all of this occurred, a mysterious blonde girl; fishing, asked him if he needed any help getting them back, but since his family's motto is to never owe anyone anything, he denied her help and climed the piller himself. But unfortunately for him, the bridge was currently under construction, and the piller where his pants were, was poorly put there, so he (alongside the piller), fell on to the riverbank under them causing him to almost drown. But alas, someone came to help him, and it was none other than the blonde girl.
Since she saved him, he is now indebted to her, so he asks her what she wants him to do, and it turns out, she wants a lover...
Now, he is forced to date this mysterious girl who lives under a bridge and claims to be an alien from venus (venusian). But thanks to this, he slowly figures out what love is whilst also learning more about Nino (venusian girl and his new girlfriend) and himself. And not only that, but we get to see them reinforce their love; seeing them prove that their love, is infact real.
Spoiler, click to viewclick to hide
Family motto is to not owe anyone anything. Kids steal dudes pants and puts them in a high place. Girl offers help, but the dude denies (cuz motto). The piller where his pants were, was poorly placed and he ended up falling on a riverbank under the bridge. Because of this, he almost drowned but was saves by alien girl. Since he broke family motto, he owes her a favor, and what she wants is for him to become her lover.
Many things happen after that of course, but you'll have to see for yourself to know...Characters
The characters in this anime are by far, some of the most unique characters you'll ever see. You have a failed singer who wears a star mask, the chief of Arakawa who claims to be a kappa who is 600 years old, a military obsessed "sister" (nun), a sadistic woman, and many more bizarre personalities...
Them being this bizarre may be a turn off for some people. Maybe you think they'll be annoying, but you're completely wrong if you asume that. They are by far, some of the most fun/funny characters in anime I've ever seen; there is no single bad character in the series.
Spoiler, click to viewclick to hide
Bizarre characters but they're amazing (amazing cast).My Final Thoughts On Arakawa Under The Bridge
Arakawa Under The Bridge to me was an absolute masterpiece of an anime. In every single aspect, I found this anime to be amazing, and what I loved most was it's consistently great comedy whilst maintaining a great balance of romance.
I absolutely loved watching this anime, I loved the cast and everything about it. I PERSONALLY thought this anime was literal perfection; a masterpiece. Thus, I will rate this a 10/10.
If you're looking for a funny romance anime, you should definitely check Arakawa Under The Bridge, you will not regret it.
PS
I already watched season two (Arakawa Under The Bridge x Bridge) and it was just as good as the first one, if not better. Unfortunately, the series is not complete and I heavily doubt it'll get a third season. So if you're interested to see how it ends, you'll have to read the manga.
Feedback
This is only my second review. If you don't like something about it, or disagree with something, let me know, maybe we can have a discussion.
All criticism will be accepted, wether good or bad.