Heppoko jikken animêshon excel saga

Right from the start this series sets itself into a league of it's own. The intro music is every bit as catchy as the show itself. Excel's uber-cute look in the first few minutes is so dang... well, cute! And the constant switching between normal and super deformed characters is a hilarious staple of insane comedy anime.

The jokes in this show are just plain outrageously funny. You name it, they've done it. The director of the anime and the author of the manga are featured in just about every episode doing the most ridiculous things you can think of. Every episode carries an "experimental" theme they try out, from sports to horror, which greatly helps to keep things fresh.

What really keeps this series going for 26 episodes isn't just the over the top insane humor, it's the wonderful characters and story that keeps you watching and wanting to know what happens next. I particularly love the ending episodes where things get serious and wrap up well. It's one of them series where once you finish it, it will seem like you've known it forever.

• Rirath_com

After watching Dragon Half, Elf Princess Rane, and Kodomo no Omocha, one would think the Japanese couldn't possibly produce something crazier than those series. Excel Saga not only proved me wrong, but proved just how completely inadequate words can be when you're trying to describe an animated feature.

From the opening credits (a rather odd spoof of Japanese pop videos that includes the two main characters lipsynching to the opening song while in strange backdrops (like men's communal baths) to the ending song, where Menchi the dog sings (with a human interpreter in a little square in the corner) while various condiments are sprinkled over her, this series lampoons just about anything and everything.

While it's not always coherent, it's energetic and funny, and there's nothing like watching a series that tries to off its own creator (in this case the original comic writer) at least twice an episode. (And the main character dies at least twice as often as that!) If maybe not quite as creative as FLCL, it certainly pulls everything off a lot cleaner.

Excel Saga is an anime beyond words ... a "Weird Anime" indeed.

I have to say this is the weirdest animation I've ever witness from anime world. From the very first episode the world weird comes in five minutes where the character Excel dies about 3 times from the very start of the program. Then again later in the show. It's all about her being an across agency trying to take over the world but her love for Master Iraparatzo is out of control. He doesn't love her obviously. Then a girl comes from outer space called Hyatt who has to have breathing problems because she coughs up blood. Damn. Even more weird is that the show becomes more on nudity at the end of the series 1 and scares me a bit. On the whole it is entertaining and funny but the explicit nature of it is a reason why cartoons are not always for kids.

I bought the first Excel Saga DVD based on the rather humorous description on the back of the package ("Contents may be hazardous to your sanity"). What I discovered was the first five episodes of the most insane, most hilarious, and most enjoyable anime series of all time! A wonderful parody of all things anime and a good number of Western movies, everybody and everything is a satire of something.

This is the story of Excel, the typical over-exuberant, love-sick teenage girl who is employed by Ilpalazzo, the typical enigmatic, white-haired villain and the object of Excel's affection. Together they are the secret ideological organization ACROSS, bent on taking over the world, but starting in the place where global takeovers always do in anime: urban Japan. They are soon joined by Hyatt, the typical overly-feminine, overly-frail, beautiful anime girl, always falling over from some ailment or another.

Other characters include Excel's neighbors (three jobless, lecherous ronin), Nabeshin (the everpresent action hero with a wicked afro), Pedro (a dead immigrant worker who keeps seeing visions of his family), the puuchuu (dangerously cute aliens intent on taking over the galaxy with futon beaters), and Menchi, Excel's dog/emergency food supply.

Excel Saga has a madcap, anarchic energy that is sure to cause vast amounts of head-scratching and laughter, usually at the same time. Multiple viewing is recommended to catch all the gags, especially since on the Reigon 1 DVDs, you can enable a "pop-up video" type of commentary that explains jokes specific to the Japanese dialogue.

Excel Saga is not for everyone, however. Casual anime viewers (i. e., those who aren't die-hard fanboys) won't get many of the jokes, and many people have expressed dismay over Menchi, who is in a constant state of being THIS CLOSE to being eaten by the ever-hungry Excel. In fact, the closing theme (which is one of the funniest parts of the series), features Menchi singing a mournful ballad in dog speak (translated by a woman in the corner), begging Excel not to eat him even as she sprinkles spices on him.

However, if you don't mind being subjected to what may be the funniest anime series of all time, I STRONGLY recommend that you watch this show!

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!! I love it!!!!! Satire for the anime freak. And as comedy in a broader aspect, it Rocks! I love the characters, especially Nabeshin(Whats your hobby? The afro...) and Illpalazzo(evil overlord with a good intent!). They all crack me up! And I never get tiered of them. But for safety reasons i only watch 1 episode a day, otherwist I suspect my brain would melt from the Crasy wierdness that is EXCEL SAGA. Puchuuu?..

Have now watched all 26 ep. And I have to say that the only bad thing about this anime is that it ended. The music is chatchy, and the characters realy grew on me, I love them *^_^*. I raised the points for animation as I realised for the style and form it is trying to put thru, its just excelent...(pun) Average 10(10)