School Rumble

I just finished the first season and I absolutely loved it!!! Of the "slice of life" really light series this is the one I've liked the most.

I never thought I would like it this much.. At first I found animation a little different.. and found the characters, specially kenji like someone I would never like... I really didn't think it was going to be this good.... up till the first five minutes of the first chapter!! When I gave it a couple of minutes, I realized it was the funniest series I had ever seen.

Everything is so silly and many times stuff just doesn't make any sense, but believe me.. its great.. You must watch it. Also, in between the really silly stuff, there is a pretty interesting romantic story.. You get really fond of most the characters.. the girls are really really cute and Kenji is really... unlucky...

In the technical stuff the series is also good... Although animation is a bit strange, I ended up liking it a lot!! Opening and ending are great.. they tend to stick in your head... like those songs you just cant get out of your mind.. they are so cool and fun.. I guess what I liked the most is that I felt like a little kid while watching it... they make fun of the Power Rangers and a bunch of other animes... its so so so fun!!! Well.

I guess the main thing I wanted to say is that this is a top notch series.. and you should definitely watch it.

Im about to start the second term.. I hope to find it just as good.

As a moderate American anime watcher, I have to say that "School Rumble" is a fantastic series. I mean, I was honestly shocked by how good it was. If you think this is just another school romance anime, you're wrong. This is actually a very comedic show. Yeah, it has teenagers in love, but the humor totally trumps it. Usually each episode is split into three small stories and the format worked for me. The humor in "School Rumble" is appealing because a good amount of it is funny no matter what language you speak. Apart from the usual Japanese pun jokes one finds in anime - which aren't even that funny when it's explained - "School Rumble" has gags which can be appreciated by anyone. The female lead, Tenma, is the most cartoon-like and off-the-wall of all the characters. I was really impressed by whoever did her voice. Usually I don't care much about the delivery of the Japanese voices since I don't know the language, but Tenma's actress really brought energy to the character. It kind of transcended the language barrier, I guess. The male lead, Harima, is totally different than most leading guys because he's a hulking biker brute who looks 20-something, but he's only 17. You don't see a character like that take the lead in a genre like "School Rumble" but it works and it's really funny.

What's great is how the supporting characters give life to the series. As the season progresses, more time is focused on them and they contribute greatly for more stories. Yeah, you have the typical girl-obsessed pervert, the tomboy, the rich blonde girl...but you also have the turtle-loving loner, the quiet girl who may be an international assassin during summer vacation, the shy girl who for some reason has hulk-like strength, and the kid who dreams of being the top bully at the school but is too much of a wimp/has too much bad luck to actually do it. And those are just a few characters out of many. Having a huge cast of varied characters is what made "The Simpsons" popular, and it works for "School Rumble." The best part? There is another series ("School Rumble: 2nd Semester") after this one. That's a little over 50 episodes of hilarious goodness. Even if you're not a hardcore anime lover, give "School Rumble" a try.

Lots of funny moments happen in School Rumble, like: 1. When Tenma leaved Tennoji, Harima came to Tennoji to entertain him but finally Harima punch him 2. On school's trip, Harima threw away from veteran's bus to truck which contains of pigs, to train 3. When Tenma hug Mikoto, but she complained about Mikoto's breast which too big 4. In English test, when Harima warn Tenma if she forgot to write her name, he mouthing some words. 5. School's physical measurement canceled because both Harima & Tenma disguise as doctor & nurse until both of them surprised each other. 6. When Tenma decided go to school by bike and she hoped she can go together with Karasuma, her dream missed until both Karasuma, Tenma, and Harima chased each other until overtake train and car

I can't place my finger on it. I like it. It has its moments. But, at the same time, I find it to be incredibly annoying. I want to keep watching it and see what will happen next, but I also have to step away from it at times to be able to bring myself to watch more of it. For some reason, the comedy doesn't seem to land for me. It always feels off just ever so slightly. It's not bad, but it's like the timing is just not there. Or the timing is off. Either way, I find myself wanting to skip past certain segments because I can see exactly where it's going without needing to even see it. That said. I like the style. It looks good in part because it is an older series and therefore has that older look both to the animation and the art style. I've always appreciated the older style of animation because it can lend itself to some funny moments that newer animation doesn't always have. In all, I'm just really confused by the show. I like it, but I often find myself wanting more from it. I want it to push itself more than it ever actually does.

When I found this series on Funimation's YouTube channel I though it might be similar to Azumanga Daioh which I really enjoyed. There are a few similarities; they are both set in a Japanese high school and have a similar style of animation but that is about it. Instead of being subtle with no romance this is all about romance and is as subtle as a kick in the head... it is funny though, very funny.

The story follows the lives and loves of Class 2-C, the problem for the students is that everybody seems to be in love with somebody that doesn't love them back and few of them can find the courage to tell the objects of their desires how they feel anyway. The main characters are Tenma who is besotted with otherworldly Karasuma and tough guy Kenji Harima who only returned to school because he is obsessed with Tenma. There is quite a large cast of secondary characters but they are drawn in a way that makes it easy to remember who is who. While these may be secondary characters many of them appear in most episodes so they don't feel like lesser characters; they are all lots of fun.

While nobody is saying how they feel about each other everybody is jumping to conclusions about who likes who and almost always being wrong leading to a few amusing confrontations. While somewhat exaggerated most of their activities are believable although a few are pushing the boundaries of believability.

I'm not totally sure whether this is aimed at boys or girls, many of the romantic elements seem aimed at girls but the girls do appear in their bikinis in a couple of episodes and these look as they are meant to appeal to the male viewers... don't worry that is the limit of female flesh on show. I guess it might appeal to both equally. I'd certainly recommend it to anybody who likes madcap anime, it does for the school genre what Excel Saga does for the action genre.

These comments are based on watching the English dub of the series, I normally prefer my anime subbed but it was unavailable. I still thought the English voice artists did a good job though.