Here it is, my all time favorite anime (next to Gintama). Take a good long look at it, because this is what peak performance looks like. I don’t just admire it for spearheading my love for the medium as a whole back when I first stumbled upon clips of it on youtube not long after it aired, but because this show (and its manga) are utterly timeless. I cannot fathom being as engrossed as I am, into anime without this show managing to throw me into hysterics upon my initial, and every subsequent, viewing. Despite having quite the history with this anime, what about it makes it crack my number one spot of all anime?
Comedy is subjective, and I’m not here to tell you to laugh at something you don’t find funny. As with any show, I think it’s important that you watch the show, so you can experience it yourself and form your own opinion. And that these write ups are merely my personal reflections that may or may not influence your desire to subjugate yourself to a certain series. But this rings true for comedic anime in particular more than any other genre. Personally, it just so happens that this type of humor and the situations the characters find themselves in tick all my boxes. And it’s not just the humor the show nails, it’s everything else it does.
It may be a weird place to start, but something that stuck out to me during a rewatch was the music/audio. It goes without saying that the OP and ED are killer, and they also rank as my favorite OP/ED combination of all time. But intros and outros aside, the background music is surprisingly well varied. If it’s a high paced silly gag, then the music encapsulates the vibe of the joke. In the case of the classic scene of the boys trying on Tadakuni’s sister’s panties, the music is upbeat, funky, and surprisingly catchy. If the joke is taking place by the riverbank or is a bit more subdued, then you can expect a smooth track. Not only are the songs used in the background of gags perfectly executed, but so are the tracks used for the transitions. I was just so surprised that the sound was as good as it was, since it could’ve just used stock background music and the punchlines still would’ve landed. But this comedy anime presents a surprisingly good soundtrack.
Speaking of surprisingly good things about this show, the visuals. The animation itself is more than serviceable, there’s no choppy bits of animation or is there any case of animation being reused. Though there are moments, namely scenes involving action, that go beyond the usual quality of animation. For example, if a girl punches a boy then the show does a remarkable job communicating the weight of the girl’s punch to the viewer. But more impressive than the animation was the show’s visual style and character design. The characters themselves all look distinct from one another and it helps that their designs are rather cute. Not in the typical “moe” brand of cuteness, but rather if it weren’t for the school’s attire, it might be hard to distinguish a male from a female character on the face alone. All the characters, even if they’re eyeless, all appear impish as well. In short, the characters all look cute and I surprisingly prefer how they look in the anime over the manga which isn’t commonplace in my thoughts.
Next up on the visuals are the backgrounds. The locations the scenes take place in are tried and true. The two main settings being the typical Japanese highschool and a nice and small, yet beautiful scenic town. This anime excels in making the backgrounds and setting pleasant to look at. The nice and calm weather creates a funny juxtaposition with the hijinks the characters usually find themselves in. It takes a setting that we see all the time in anime, and uses it to its comedic advantage. Usually to turn a cliche on its head, possibly most infamously in the gags with Yassan (aka the literary girl).
Yassan is one of the biggest joys this anime brings to the table. Due in part to the amazing voice talent behind her, this also rings true for the rest of the cast. I think the voice acting is crucial in making a joke land. Because some jokes might not be able to reach their full potential with people outside Japan due to being lost in translation or because of cultural references we outside Japan aren’t familiar with. But I’m a strong believer in that the delivery of a line has the ability to break this barrier, and this goes beyond jokes. And I’m proud to say that every seiyuu for this show is having a blast and in turn, so am I. The voice acting in this show is so fun to listen to. You can hear just how much fun they were having while recording. Even characters with hardly any lines like Yassan emote so much, not only visually, but through the grunts and sounds she produces.
With the voice actors having this much fun, it’s inevitable that there’d be not only improvisation by the seiyuu’s, but also anime original content as well. I’m not here to state my opinions on whether the manga or anime is the better way to experience this, but all the anime original content and additions make this experience much more complete and hilarious. Not only do these bits enhance the comedy (like the intro in episode one for example), but also help the flow of the show’s narrative. Not that it needed to have a concrete narrative structure being the type of show that it is. But it’s not a cut and dry episodic gag show in the vein of Azumanga or Lucky star. Each episode follows a sequence of events for the most part.
But how are those events? Are they actually funny? Well if you’re still reading this then it’s abundantly clear that I find this anime to be the funniest one of all time. But in case you were looking for a slightly more nuanced answer than here it is. Danshi Kōkōsei no Nichijou has a unique brand of comedy that teeters the line between not taking itself seriously in the slightest, but also having situations that are painfully relatable. Making the reactions the characters have in these situations feel all too familiar. The same probably goes for anyone who had a trusty group of dumb friends growing up where the only goal was to make each other laugh and make the most out of your time together. And though this is a spoiler free review, I will say that it’s with those memories in mind, the ending almost had me in tears because it felt like I was moving on from my childhood friends all over again. Though I’m glad that it was nothing more than a gag. But it just goes to show you that something as silly and innocent as this show can still manage to pull the ‘feels’ rug from right under you when you least expect it.
Well there it is, my all time favorite anime (next to Gintama). I implore you to take a good long look at it, because this is what peak comedy looks like. My admiration towards it comes not only from my history with it, but because I can pull up any clip or chapter from the series and it can manage to brighten my day no matter how many times I’ve seen it. But what about it makes it my favorite anime? Simply put, it's funny and timeless. And it’s made with a burning love that can be felt throughout watching it. Hopefully I’ve convinced you to invest some time into watching this anime, or even read the manga for that matter as there’s nothing quite like it.
