The idea of perfection is something that, I believe, not any piece of media has been able to attain, and that makes sense. Nothing is 'truly perfect' and every piece of media, no matter how great that product actually is, will still have flaws in one way or another and this philosophy also applies when I give tens to shows. When I do so, I don't reward an anime a ten because I believe it is perfect. I reward a ten to an anime that does the most good, or is a shining example of what the medium is capable of. The Tatami Galaxy is one such example of this. A show that perfectly conveys the power of the medium and all of the limitless possibilities it contains, this show, despite the medium's tropes and cliches, still remains an anime unbound by genre convention and is oozing with so much creativity, charm and great writing that it has become my personal favorite anime of all time! A such, I apologise in advance if I sound like I'm being a little too biased throughout this review, but I absolutely adore this show! Everything from the characters to the narrative is handled with such care that it's hard to for me to even articulate properly into words, but, alas, I will god damn try! This, ladies and gentlemen, is The Tatami Galaxy in a 4.5 tatami mat nutshell: (pssst, only those who have seen the show will get the reference!)

The Tatami Galaxy has a rather unconventional narrative structure, which, at first, did put me off from even watching the show. The show stars a nameless protagonist, who attends college for the first time hoping, as he himself puts it, for a rose-coloured campus life. At the end of each episode, the clock goes back once again and essentially resets the whole episode, back to when the main character starts college once again. Each episode pretty much starts out in the same fashion but in every story, the main character joins a brand new club, meets new people and each episode is just a small segment in a much larger picture and narrative. In one episode, the show may begin one story thread which will be connected later on in another episode while, at the same time, systematically resolving older narrative threads established in previous episodes. Now, I'll admit, that it did take me time to accept this fact and structure, but thankfully each episode is vibrant enough and distinct enough to work by itself and the constant juxtaposition of endings and resolutions to each episode felt fresh, original and the entire show has a very addicting and fast paced nature about it. There is always this lingering sense of desire to know what happens next and to fully understand this crazy world we have been pushed into and this is part of the fun of The Tatami Galaxy.

Much of the appeal of this anime is trying to figure everything out as we watch more and more of the show leading up to the most satisfying conclusion I have ever seen in which everything gets brought together in such a neat and tidy way while also making complete sense at the same time. This sense of satisfaction is only enhanced on my repeated viewings of the show. The more and more times I watch The Tatami Galaxy, the more I am able to pick up on small details and thus, I appreciate the ending even more than I did the first time around. Not only that, but the show's pace, as mentioned before, is crazy. If you've ever seen the Bakemonogatari franchise in which its characters speak about five hundred lines a minute, then you already have an idea about the pace at which the Tatami Galaxy goes. The characters speak so fast in this show and dish out so much comedy and wit that it can be hard at times to keep up, but I believe this is one of its strengths. The insane pace and nature of the show mirrors real life too, and, in particular, how fast your college life will zoom by. As someone who has only two weeks of college left myself, this theme in particular, and the way the show is structured, speaks volumes to me personally and is one of my favorite things about this show.

Part of the anime's charm is in its wit, metaphorical line delivery and meaning. The entire script is loaded to the brim with clever jokes, play on words and the character interactions is by far the most entertaining aspect of this show. The internal monologues the main character has are both so funny and relatable to anybody wanting to fit in while attending school, that it's genuninly charming. The comedy is easily the strongest part of this show, and I believe it's a show that gets funnier the more you age and the more cynical you become. It invites you to laugh at the ridiculous situations everyone encounters in their day to day life and all of the clubs the main character joins each bring something new to the table and each have their own unique gags and jokes which never made the show feel as if it were repetitive. Complementing this story is a varied and likeable cast of characters, all of which are unique in terms of designs and personality. My personal favorite being Ozu, the main character's, sort of, friend out of circumstance who seems to be out just to make our protagonist's life a living nightmare. The fact that we never even learn the name of our protagonist just goes to show how well written this anime is since he is still so endearing and entertaining to watch on account of how relatable he is.

Describing The Tatami Galaxy is a rather difficult thing to do considering how experimental everything is and how it combines so many different genres together into one blender; it's a show that's best to be experienced by the viewer on their own. It has elements of being a love story, but not really. At the same time, it is also a coming of age story but presented through surrealism and comedy. What's great about the show is how all of these elements and genre staples never feel forced or intrusive on any other areas of the show. The show combines them all together and presents them in such a colourfully, creative way that it comes across as so charming and lovable while allowing each respective element time to develop. For example, the love story, despite being fragmented due to the nature of the show, has a genuine sense of progression during its run while also never feeling too over bearing or soppy. Adding onto the wacky nature of the show, is one of the most unique and vibrant art styles in the medium. Everything pops out at you and the visuals are wonderful, conveying the emotions of the characters in interesting ways. My favorite being the scenes in which the main character speaks to his penis, who he calls 'Johnny'. 'Johnny' is presented as a cowboy on a horse and this makes for some very creative and very funny comedy, and the whole show is like this! The music is also superb, and I LOVE the ending and opening tracks! Two of my favorite pieces of music in the entire medium. The show has a very distinct art style which is oozing with style, creativity and colour, and much of it feels very much like a pop-art piece of art. The animation and art style is endless imaginative which brings this vibrant world to life; it feels very postmodern and experimental, but, in a good way.

Now, as I said in the opening paragraph, nothing is truly perfect, and this also applies to The Tatami Galaxy. There were a few moments that I felt were kind of weak and some moments that were just straight out boring, in particular episode ten. In addition, watching the show can also be highly tiring due to the fast nature of the show, but these elements were few and far in between and everything I have praised makes up for it. The Tatami Galaxy is a strange show but one brimming with personality, fantastic dialogue and a great cast of characters. It fully shows us what the medium is capable of and is by far, one of the greatest anime out there. It also goes to show that an anime doesn't have to have a complicated narrative or be buried underneath deep and thought provoking themes. If anything, this series plays it rather safe with its themes and narrative thematics. It's a series that, while certainly not everyone will like, anyone can understand after their initial watch of the series. And that, is one of the reasons why I love this show so much. Madhouse proves once again why they're one of the best anime studios out there and I wish them all the luck on future projects in the future. I would highly recommend this show (if it weren't obvious at this point). As a final side note as well, the series has finally been licensed and as such I decided to go ahead and purchase the collector's edition, which has a shit ton of awesome posters, making-of books and title cards. If you're a big fan of the series yourself, I would highly recommend buying this too