So here's yet another review. Don't worry, the pain will soon be over and I'll do more random stuff. Will Denpa Onna to Seishun Otoko be another unique classic to add to Shaft Animation Studio's already hefty list? Let's see...
Before we go into this, I want to mention that I have a rather heavy partiality for Shaft studios and the series that they make; you would be too, if you've seen the likes of Bakemonogatari, Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei, Puella Magi Madoka Magica, and Maria†Holic. Their excellent sense of wit, great and greatly varied graphic styles, and nice choice of music makes them a formidable force in the industry. Plus, the strange-ass stories/LNs they choose to work with are often high quality, either in terms of just pure satisfaction or plot density. Because of this, I will probably be making a lot of connections to prior studio creations or setting a pretty high standard for Denpa Onna. However, from the looks of it, it seems as if this series will pass these hurdles relatively easily. Now that the digression is aside, let's move on.
Some of the characters in the popular series Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei.
Graphics: The graphics of Denpa Onna is very nicely and cleanly made. The normal characters are normal, it doesn't look like an oldie (bonus points in my book unless they're specifically going for nostalgia/parody), the cute characters look cute, and so forth. The exact style is most like that of the style of Bakemonogatari, although the major factor is the plethora of soft lines that make up the drawings of any Shaft series. Quite honestly, I think after Zetsubou Sensei that the artists at Shaft Studios are able to make any drawing style seem cute, but I digress. Because of the graphics, the obligatory fanservice and cute smiles/episode conclusions/harem girls serve as pretty good eye candy.
Sound: They didn't exactly call in the Supercell folks, but I think they're (again) trying to go for something silly à la Zetsubou Sensei. The songs themselves do fit the mood/story very well, don't get me wrong - it's just that it doesn't contain much substance and the tunes are a bit off the deep end. Maybe it'll grow on me later, but as for right now I don't get the feeling that this is going to be another Kimi no Shiranai Monogatari.
Plot & Characters: I really really like this series so far. Although it seemingly doesn't have much, the queer characters and their snappy, sarcastic interactions are again reminiscent of Bakemonogatari and make me feel as if they could interact in the real world without being singled out for a personality disorder. And the plot is not the same, in the sense that the harem opens up ez and the unknowing guy gets into trouble time and time again. The interaction between Makoto (the protagonist) and his cousin Erio (the main heroine) is less of a nice-guy/tsundere relationship as it is a sort of patient therapist/John Nash relationship - and the fact that she believes that she's an alien doesn't help. But the premise that Makoto has to reintroduce Erio into society after her bout of amnesia is a very interesting one, and I can't wait to see it unfold.
That is one hell of a first greeting.
The other characters are pretty interesting too, and pulling out the deep talk from the beginning instead of just pouting and trying to grab the main's attention has me hooked. There's the brown-haired girl Ryuuko that offers the nice standard lovey-dovey classmate shipping - in addition to catching on quite nicely to what Makoto is actually talking about, she has the personality of Minori Kushieda in Toradora!. There's the other OTHER weird girl Maekawa that's more quiet and does weirder crap - it's going to be interesting to see her interactions later. Jesus, even Erio's MOTHER looks really good in the series and says some interesting stuff that could constitute a rather awkward coupling. What kind of series is it when the mothers can act nice AND add to the plot nicely instead of being a complete fucking dumb tard? Haven't seen that since....what, Clannad?
Ooh, putting the pictures together like this makes it look like a Nintendo DS. That doesn't make this scene any less silly though. Also, this might be just me but I don't think the name is the problem here.
The character introductions are actually relatively quick, but for some reason the developments seem completely natural. It's like Shaft studios worked with the LN writer to smooth out any dumbassery with regards to character interactions before the episode was drawn. This is completely unlike, say, the beginning of Yosuga no Sora, where everyone pops in during the first episode to say hi AND get a word in edgewise about how hot Haru's dick is; bonus points if you shake his hand. The number of times different girls stuttered and blushed even though it was the FIRST DAMN EPISODE and the FIRST TIME THEY SAW HIM (for some) was too ridiculous for me to suspend my disbelief.
When Haru's thanking you you better goddamn blush in order to advance through the galge.
I mean, I'm fine with having completely messed up backgrounds and plot situations. For all I care, Lucky Star could have been on Mars and it would not have affected my ratings. However, don't fuck around with the character interactions. I want them either realistic or obviously a parody. If you have to stretch a character or make them do ridiculous, contradictory shit in order to advance the plot, you don't deserve to have a highly rated series. But with regards to this, I think Denpa Onna is doing just fine.
In conclusion, I looked down upon watching Denpa Onna at first, but it has really come to grow on me. I think it will be an excellent series to watch as it unfolds its unique slice-of-life character developments. I highly recommend this series to anyone who has time.
Fanservice without the facepalm. Tsundere without the ghey. I can't WAIT.
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