Prior to watching the show, the context in which I understood Azumanga Daioh was as a notable entry in the slice-of-life genre, source of a few famous early internet memes, and most relevant to me, a point of comparison to one of my favorite amines, Nichijou. I'm something of a fanboy of that show. Within the small Nichijou fanbase, Azumanga seems to be something of an inspiration, a pregenitor and even something of a rival to Nichijou due to their similarities. Naturally this has made me curious to give it the ol' looksie myself and see just how much the two compare, and moreso see what this show that dominated early forum posts was about.

Having seen the show now, I can say that I can certainly understand the comparisons but I think they're quite different. Both shows feature large casts, esoteric humor, and of course, center around the lives of high school students, but beyond these things I find Azumanga to be a lot more grounded than Nichijou. There isn't the same kind of surrealism or over the top reactions you'd find in the latter that's present in the former. Moreover I feel as though Azumanga is a lot better at keeping a focused continuous narrative; which seems impossible in a slice of life anime, but I guess what I mean is that Nichijou often feels like a sketch comedy whereas Azumanga feels more like a situational comedy. Something I actually kind of liked is that Azumanga makes the unique choice of following the characters from their first days in school to their graduation, even though having them exist in a a never-ending purgatorial state of education is more realistic to my experience. I suspect that Azumanga's real claim is that it came out a decade prior to Nichijou, that it laid the groundwork not only for _Nichijou _but many other SLO shows after it, and that I can totally see. It seems to have had a a hand in establsihing character archetypes and genre norms that would go onto influence Nichijou heavily. You can definitely see that in some of the characters. The show not being like the anime I like isn't a bad thing; and in fact makes it easier to judge by it's own merits.

The first thing that jumped at me when watching Azumanga was it's very early 2000's aesthetic. Some of that was definitely a nostalgia for those 2007 AMVs that had all their music replaced by 009 Sound System DreamScape, but also that kind of animation style that was especially prevalent at the time. You know the one, the "the web bubble just burst so we're on a budget but we also have this cool new tech" so the animation and art looks really impressive at some points but at others you're looking at actual stick figures? I think it's one of those, "know it when you see it" kind of things.

I think when it comes to shows within the Slice of Life genre, or genres that are light on plot, the lack of story has to be compensated for by, the ability to have interesting character dynamics or fun situations is critical to being entertaining, and Azumanga does a great job at that. I don't mind when a show just wants to be about cute people doing cute things, but I certainly like it more when it has a focus on comedy, and the show is gunning for it. The show has a lot of characters, and most of them are pretty fleshed out and likeable, and there are enough that even if you don't care for one, there are plenty of others to glom onto.

I like that Chiyo is this innocent and perfect prodigy who, while still the ostensible protagonist and moral core of the group, also ends up as perpetual punching bag for the crime of looking like a marketable plushie. Osaka is, of course, the classic "no thoughts, head empty", who really started to grow on me the more she started to devolve.

Sakaki is probably my favourite; her being stoic and cool is great, but I especially like that not only she had a weak spot for animals, but said animals all hate her. It's a kind of cruel irony that's both funny and makes you feel bad for her at the same time. It makes her arc concluding with finding an an animal that loves her feel really sweet.

I think the relationship between Kurosawa and Yukari is a lot of fun; Yukari's one-sided competitiveness and insecurity is pretty goofy and shows a marked contrast between a humble "ideal" teacher and someone who is definitely doing one of the jobs of all time. Kimura as a character gives me mixed feelings...I don't really appreciate the "haha creepy teacher" gags, but I do kind of like how oddly complex his character is? Like the fact that Kimura has a wife and is implied to be a standup guy outside of his perversion makes me want to learn more about the guy. Perhaps not in a comedy and more in a thriller, but still.

I felt like Yomi made for a good straightman, I liked that Kagura wasn't introduced immediately and initially seemed like she was going to be another Sakaki but turned out to be a Tomo, and Tomo herself....well, she was there.

I suppose at this point I would talk about any major themes or artistic ideas I noticed or was thinking about when watching this show, but nothing really stuck out to me. Perhaps that's because slice of life shows all cover similar concepts of coming of youth, friendship, the value of simple moments, the romanticization of high school even though it really sucks, etc. Though, as I stated, a show like this doesn't really necessitate grandiose themes either. It was fun, and funny, and I enjoyed my time with these characters. That's good enough for me. The most important thing I think I learned from watching this show is that good writing doesn't just involve developing compelling scenarios but also creating engaging characters who can effectively bounce off each other to make even the most banal of moments fun to watch.

I can critique Azumanga, but I don't think I could really bring up anything that would be anything more than petty grievances. As the plot follows the characters through their entire high school tenure, they repeat a few plots for each year, i.e. there are three episodes dedicated to each year's respective sports festival. Each episode is different, but I guess you could call the scenario writing lazy. There's also the aforementioned issues with Kirumin and some unnecessary bits of fanservice or gags, but really, it's fine.

I get why people consider it iconic, a classic even. I recommend it.
I give Azumanga Diaoh an OH MY GAH/10. __
img220

If you're still reading this, it's time for everyone's favourite game!
SPOT. THOSE. PARENTS!
This is the game where we try to find the parents in a slice of life anime!

Kaori: Mom appears in Episode 8

Chiyo: "Dad" appears multiple times. Parents referenced in Episode 12.

Kurosawa: Talks with her mom on the phone in Episode 19.

Sakaki: Parents referenced several times; mother specifically known to be allergic to cats.