Yojôhan shinwa taikei

The characters are great, have some Curious music, and really interesting way to tell the story

I loved a lot of things in this series but I felt confused some times.

I would recommend it to everyone who is interested in something unique.

Well this is my first review...... here goes...

A brief synopsis: Freshman Watashi(literally 'I' in Japanese) finds himself repeating his first 2 years in college with disastrous consequences over and over again, never seemingly realizing that he's repeating life making the same mistakes over and over.

Based on a novel of the same name, "Yojōhan Shinwa Taikei", or literally "4½ Tatami Mythological Chronicles" is perhaps the most innovative anime series I have ever seen..... the Groundhog Day of anime if you will. Masaaki Yuasa's (of Cat Soup and Mind Game fame, and if you haven't seen them go see it NOW!) Tatami Galaxy is one of a kind.

The character designs are pretty distinct from standard anime conventions, and what caught my eye in the first place. I'm surprised more people don't know about this series, because it's a true GEM in covering what many people go through trying to fit into campus life. The humor is light hearted and genuine.... and the characters avoid falling into stereotypes, instead they turn out to be incredibly engrossing and believable.

What's remarkable is how all the stories come together at the end, for a satisfying conclusion. Something which most anime end up trying to do unsuccessfully..... 11 episodes seem like too short a time spent in dealing with Watashi's life...but as the end makes it clear There's no point in continuing a story which has been resolved... a lesson which a few anime out there should realize by now...

P.S. There are 3 7-min specials which were also released with the DVD, watch out for them too!

My rating: An excellent series from start to finish, keep an eye out for small details in between the series. EVERYTHING ties up at the end :)

This anime series is centred on an unnamed college student in Kyoto who feels that he has wasted his time there; he has no girlfriend and he has made only two friends' Ozo, who has no redeemable features, and first year student Ms. Akashi. One night he meets a god who tells him that Akashi will end up with either Ozo or our protagonist. He just has to grab the opportunity dangling in front of him. Our protagonist finds himself reliving the previous two years; each time making different choices, such as joining different clubs.

If you think all anime look the same then this will disprove that idea. The character designs and backgrounds are unlike any other series I recall watching, and I've watched quite a few. The story might sound repetitive but, while there are recurring events, each episode has more differences... and the similar moments prove humorous for the most part. There is a fairly small main cast but they are fun characters; our protagonist is the closest to a normal person. Ozo is strange, both in actions and appearance, he also provides much of the amusement. This series won't be for everybody but I'd certainly recommend it to anime fans looking for something different.

These comments are based on watching the series in Japanese with English subtitles.

To a common viewer, the anime might be found a bit weird in the first glance, firstly due to the quick narration of the protagonist character 'Watashi', and the unique and liberal art style.

The story might seem to have a lot of repeating scenes in the initial episodes for the viewer, but then again the story basically follows the concept of parallel universes to support it.

I can assure you the story builds up pretty intense and captivating in the later episodes. The ending is very justified to personal opinion, and worth the time of viewing the 11 episodes to the end.

Genres include - psychological, slice of life and romance.

For an anime like The Tatami Galaxy, I would've given a review of 8, or 9 at best. Factors like - witty and unique direction, the unexpected flow of the storyline, working the anime in a lower budget (due to numerous real-video scenes), and good anime opening/ending have earned it a 10 from self.

It wouldn't be hard for anime enthusiasts to complete the 11 episodes.

For common viewers, do give this show a scrutiny till the end. Assurance that the conclusions are to the worth.

The Tatami Galaxy is really unlike any anime you've seen. Not necessarily in it's premise, but in the way it's executed.

The Tatami Galaxy follows the story of an unnamed protagonist who meets a demi-god of love and matchmaking at a strange ramen restaurant. Over the course of many tries, the protagonist relives the same two years over and over again, trying to find the "rose tinted college life" he dreams of. He tries out different clubs, has to deal with his only friend Ozu who is basically the worst person alive, always attempting and chickening out to ask out the same girl he has a crush on. You know, college life.

Although it's somewhat episodic, the show cleverly wraps all the episodes up into a cool storyline that makes every episode relevant and unique. We learn more about characters that you originally believe were background characters, and learn that the characters we see on screen have a lot more to them than what meets the eye.

If I were to really talk about what makes this show so special, that would actually end up spoiling it. So you just have to trust me on this one. This show is incredible and it's not that long so give it a try. You won't be disappointed.