Azumanga daiô

Azumanga Daioh (Hiroshi NISHIKIORI, 2002) (based on Kiyohiko AZUMA's comic strip of the same name)

Take the fundamental sweetness of the best of the "Peanuts" TV specials, mix it with the whacked out humor of "Calvin and Hobbes", add in some stylistic homages to Isao Takahata's films (the memory scenes of "Only Yesterday" and his neglected 1999 masterpiece "Our Neighbors the Yamadas") -- and you have anything but a routine anime series. (It also reminds me a bit of the quirky short-lived TV series "Square Pegs" from many years ago). The show follows the lives of seven girls (including one 10 year old genius who skipped middle school) and three teachers (two highly dysfunctional, one _mostly_ sane) through all three years of high school (that's how the system works in Japan). This is mostly side-splittingly funny, though it managed to evoke a few furtive tears before it ended. The characters are everything in this virtually plotless traversal of three years of school (and vacations). Although this series runs for 26 episodes, it ends all too quickly -- I was far from weary of the charming and loveable characters portrayed here. (The best term to describve the show is, of course, Japanese -- "kawai" which means not only ultra-cute but very loveable). This show was immensely popular in Japan, and has recently been licensed for release in the USA (thank you ADV).

I saw a trailer for Azumanga daioh and thought it was going to be childish nonsense. Admitedly the trailer only showed a modified version of the show's introduction sequence, rather than real footage from the show. Shame on the makers of the trailer, I say! Then I watched an episode of the show and was instantly hooked. This is probably one of the best comedy animes I've seen so far. While shows like Abenobashi or Excel Saga are funny in a zany way, Azumanga is funny in a more realistic way. As other reviewers have noted, there is no plot as such - it's more like a sitcom.

The characters seem very likable and all have their own characteristics. Some of the teachers also feature, and I think this gives the show an interesting perspective as you see that they just as quirky as the kids. (OK, perhaps MORE quirky than some of the kids).

One of the reasons this show has hooked me is that it is consistently funny. Some other shows I've seen have had a few episodes that were hilarious and a few that barely raised a smile. I think every episode of Azumanga has had me laughing out loud.

If you haven't seen this show because the trailer put you off, don't panic! Yes, there's a certain amount of cuteness (especially Chiyo), but the show is a lot of fun. But the Muppets demonstrated that cuteness doesn't mean it's only for kids.

Azumanga may not be suitable for young children because of some cuss words and slightly teenage/adult content (although children see that on TV before the watershed these days). Teenagers aren't likely to be too worried by any of that though.

This 37-year-old male gives Azumanga daioh 5 stars out of 5!

See, there can be a situation comedy basically about nothing but doesn't harp on dating relationships and sex! It's so uproariously funny in many places I got both the manga and the 5 DVD anime.

No one save the lecherous Kimura has a significant other. There's too many American TV shows depicting singles whether there be teen or adult as being perpetually seeking love. In the course of this too short series none of the girl students date. There's only one episode in this series that deals with teachers dating--These characters present us with other concerns to laugh about--Pet Obsessions, hero worship, who is the smarter teacher, petty jealousy, catching a cold, etc. "Daioh" stands out even among it's anime fellow no magical quests, no titanic battles of universal good versus universal evil. The only universal elements is the day to day progress of life and for those who can find humor it's in the characters' a tickling the funny bone.

I could not possibly have the power of words to describe the levels of cute this precious series soars to. I've watched the entire series in fansubs, and when I see it, I smile, and smile, and smile.

Azumanga Daioh covers the lives of six (or seven, if you count Kaorin) girls and three of their teachers as they make their way through high school in modern Japan. Originally adapted from a four-panel comic strip, the series runs for 26 episodes and spans the entire three years for the students.

Possibly made from the sweetest mix of Pixie Stix sugar, the series was made to be kawaii-cute, and it knows it, but it never quite divulges in it (well, the Chiyo-chan penguin skit maybe), rather taking it as just another fact of the series and building deep characters around its premise. There's Chiyo, a privileged girl who entered high school at ten years old and is therefore insanely small comparitively, but is the cutest character from the series. There's Osaka, who is not really named Osaka but came *from* Osaka, and so was named that way; she's a little slow, but charming nonetheless. There's Sakaki, the tall, reticent girl who is fantastic at sports but wants nothing else than to be surrounded by fuzzy kittens all day (but has horrible luck with a homicidal cat), Kaorin, the girl who has an enormous crush on Sakaki but is instead stalked by the creepy Kimura-sensei, the classics teacher with roaming eyes and a continuously slacked jaw, and Kagura, the insanely competitive rival-but-friend of Sakaki and perhaps the most outspokenly athletic one of the group. There's Yomi, sensible and calm but self-conscious about her weight, and Tomo, the overambitious girl who has gone to school with Yomi all her life. And then there are Yukari-sensei and Minami-sensei, the two old schoolmates-turned teachers who lead (or sometimes just provoke) the group.

The episodes mainly just delight in exploring the characters' personalities and seeing what happens. It's very Seinfeld-esque in the way that the show never quite focuses on one theme or storyline as its central plot device; rather, we just catch snippets of the years and watch the girls grow up. I was very sad that there were only 26 episodes... I even found myself getting a little teary-eyed near the end of the last episode. I wish there were more shows like this.

This anime is a very significant and unique show. In other words, cool. I loved it. It featured a bunch of laughable and lovable school girls (and a few teachers) and with an anime with school girls, you'd expect romance, drama, and even that magical girl stuff from Sailormoon. Well. This one doesn't have any of those which is a good thing. That's what makes it great. Even though the episodes were kinda of short, it was so great and funny, that you'd want to see it over and over again. Recommended for anime fans, non-anime fans, and for those who are sick of Magical girl or harem shounen anime. Watch it. You know you wannna. I like that Chiyo and Sakaki and even that reckless yet cool driving Yukari-sensei.