Category: Finished Series: Comedy

Chio-chan… well… doesn’t go well this week. Not necessary because of the reappearance of crash fanservice gags – which for now I pretty much roll with, but because it’s a replication of Chio-chan’s previous (and better) segments. It adds up with the fact that both segments this week feel longer than they needed be. Take the first half, the Kabaddi captain reappears, training herself in a nearby park to “revenge”. There are some amusing bits here and there: Madoka realizes her ultimate technique is just basically embrace her own desire to the next level, the story of her homeless sensei is so off-putting and dark it’s actually clever the way Chio-chan sold this, the constant betrayals of both Chio and Manana are certainly a joy to watch. But then again this part A is pretty much about the joy of grabbing butts, so yeah it’s pretty much for an “acquired” taste.

Although I said that I’m okay to put the issues aside, I still don’t like Madoka much as a character. Unlike Andou who we see him in various out-there situations, with Madoka we pretty much associate her with kabaddi and her yuri urge. The way Chio-chan portrays the latter, however, leaves much to be desired. Drooling; the long, intimating tongue, the white eyes with no iris – this “oni” approach threatens to overwhelm her as a character. As for the story, it drags out for way too long. We don’t need all the flashbacks because we don’t need a reminder of a character who just appeared once before. Condensing the exchanges between Madoka, Manana and her sensei, for example, would benefit this segment better. Finally, I love to see Hosokawa back in action but her scene is just so minimal and she’s vastly underused by now.

The latter half plays like a variation of the premiere episode, where our Chio stuck in game-mode, thus bring all the troubles upon herself. The bit where we get into the first person shoot-them-up POV is particularly well-done. I find that scene most amusing where she’d scan the “hallway”, but completely misses the Mother and Son right behind her (they boy seems to be impressed). As for the latter part, again it drags out a bit too long. Chio and Manana come to the point where their chemistry become too solid that they can carry the segment themselves, but the show has been relied too much on these two. Their meanie to each other hints for the fact that they understand one another all too well, and the way the ended up working together (together with Mananacchio dance) means that they can really watch other’s back when the situation calls for it. This is not a bad Chio-chan episode, it just feels all familiar, and for a comedy show, “familiar” ain’t good enough. Shake things up a bit by adding new characters would benefit Chio-chan much, much better.

You know, watching Chio-chan I have feeling just like watching a brilliant kid playing around. It’s consistently funny from start to finish; it’s very, very relatable, but sometimes you can’t help but feel a bit nervous when the show resorts to fan-service tendency. To be fair, there’s nothing inherently wrong with having some fan-services in a show. Many shows depend entirely on the low-brow humors, but we all know Chio-chan can be just as hilarious without relying on those fanservices. Chio-chan this week has plenty of panty-shots, and toilet humor – or put it better, all the humors happening in the toilet, but I could argue that the show has some context behind it so somehow it gets away with it. We starts off with our Chio having the need to find a nearby toilet (oh so relatable), and things escalate from here as she goes to the men’s toilet and is unable to get out. It’s the basic formula to ensue hilarity.

First off, everything involving Chio’s decisions work well for me. The way she would do anything but walking out of the front door is just so consistent with her never-embarrass-herself policy. The overly complicated but somehow-it-works plan that runs like a domino effect is so absurdist in concept it’s actually funny to see if it works out. Her tactic involves distracting the cat with the toilet ball she uses, that in turns distracting the two school girl then as a consequences distracting the businessmen for looking at girls’ panties. There’s an awful lot of coincidences requirements here but I don’t mind one bit of that. Yep, I was talking about fanservice earlier and here we have juggling ass out from the toilet window, and goddamnit why the animation is so smooth and addictive? Heck, this might be one of the rare time that I can’t help but keep staring at that butt. I also love the exaggerated sound effect of the person who used the toilet next to her, and cute little George. Well, this segment is a winner for me.

The second segment, however, not that much. Mostly because of the new addition, Momo, who doesn’t really stand out except for playing straight against Chio and Manana’s antics. As she witnesses the duo keeps being awful to each other without remorse, she can’t turn her eyes away anymore and declares those two are bad influences to each other. While the setup is dime a dozen and in truth I think Chio and Manana’s dynamic doesn’t need this kind of reassurance, it produces what might be two of my favorite moments this week. The first of them is a total crash and embarrassing Mananacchio dance which basically how 5 year old kids would do when they imitate cats (cats appear to be the MVP here) and second, one of this sharpest line: “when people find out the relationship between teacher and student, all the blames will go to the teacher, so just try your best”.Goddamn Manana, listen to her advice and heads certainly will roll. Chio-chan and her way to school still have plenty fun to offer.

Like Hinamatsuri last season, I wouldn’t have expected that Chio-chan having an “arc” for their side-characters; the “supporting casts start to grow whereas the lead stays the same” bit. This is the third week in a row we encounter Andou, each time he’s in different position (not to mention that Chio is the very core behind his life-changing events). What I like most about his character is how in these three appearances, we see him get sucked in three very different scenarios. While the first two display him as a badass gangster, this episode shows a more vulnerable side of him. I mean, trying to act cool as soon as he sees Chio? Boy, he’s like a teenager. Despite knowing the truth about Chio faking her badass persona, he grows even more fond to the girl. Is there, as Manana suspects, a romance going on between this former biker and Chio? I suspect Chio-chan will flirt with the idea in upcoming events.

One thing about Chio-chan that I don’t expect when I saw the PV though, that it’s much more slice of life and mundane than flat out over-the-top hijinks. These events that Chio face on her commute to school are something we could experience ourselves (well, if you walk to school that is). The whole delivering newspaper affair, for example, is something you might do if you sure is amusing. The jokes about people making a big fuss out of delivering papers late hit home for me. In particular, “I already knew that on TV news”. I find the part where Chio ninja-jumping up the stair a bit over the top, but overall it’s a fun ride from start to finish. The most important thing is that Chio’s enthusiasm once again changes Andou’s mind about keeping up with the job. It might be simple like what she said: even if the job isn’t for you, if you’re really into it you might find a joy for the job.

Another strength of Chio-chan is the dynamic of Chio and Manana, which they have a natural forth-and-back that these exchanges themselves can carry the show along. Their banters about “what they want to do once in their life” are just so relatable and progress so naturally (regarding Chio’s: well, smoking don’t make you look cool but returning the litter sure is). You can see right off the bat these girls act their age with their social awkwardness, as well as their bratty attitude. Another “man of the moment” is the teacher/ security guard, who is sharp at one moment and oblivious the next. It’s a good characteraction from him, as he stands out in a good way. As a whole, Chio-chan’s adventures on her way to school is not as crazy as I thought it would be, but it’s hella more relatable. Chio-chan might think she’s an below-average girl, but she’s one of the more vivid portrayal of high school girl I’ve seen in awhile. I’m happy to follow he aroundr, hopefully the cast will expand more in later weeks. As the last note, Hey girls, is there any other method of greeting tour friends that don’t involve one rolling down the ground in public?

I have a feeling that Chio-chan is trying to test me. “You said you like me, huh? This is the real me, see if you can take it”. Well, I think what happened in the second half is bound to happen anytime. After all, we had the OP that pretty much setting up for this. Bouncing boobs, some panty shots, it’s written by a hentai artist himself (I “researched” his hentai works and apparently this guy has a thing for loli). You know which scene I’m talking about right? Yep, it’s the scene where Madoka, the kabaddi’s captain, gropes on another girl and refuses to let her hand off. The groping as playing for laugh is a NO NO in any situation, same sex or not, yet part of me still think Chio-chan gets away with it. Now, I’m torn, because I find it hilarious from start to finish. It’s unexpected the way things turn out and that is precisely why this show brings so much fresh air. Kabaddi…Kabaddi…Kabbadi

Take the first segment for example, it’s a continuation of Bloody Butterfly affair last week, now Chio just comes across Andou who is visibly shaken by his encounter with Chio, and tells the rest of his gang how fearsome she was. Now, normally comedy show would milk the misunderstanding aspect, like having Chio bluffs her way out again in a spectacular level. Here we have Chio telling Andou the truth about the incident. The whole joke here is the way Andou and the gang repeat that lame name “bloody butterfly” in a straight face numerous times, and it takes a toll towards Chio’s below-average philosophy. The confession, in turns, both impresses and shames the reformed yakuza even more. And he can’t go back to his words anymore, so he actually keeps the game going by going over the top. I didn’t expect that Andou would become a regular cast member, but now he shares such a nice chemistry with Chio and I can’t wait to see how their relationship will eventually turns out.

I swear the whole thing revolving around Kabaddi is just flat-out hilarious. Chio might regards herself as below-average, but this segment in particular suggests that it might not be the case. If she tries hard enough she can be amazing. I don’t know about you but now I’m sure interested in Kabaddi now. But what I found interesting is the way the issue escalate in seemingly random fashion. At first, we have Chio performs some random assassin moves she learns in her games (haha, this girl!), then it quickly turns into she’s hyper and just doing some random moves while chanting Kabaddi (obviously have no idea about the sports), then the ACTUAL kabaddi captain shows up and forces them to play tag kabaddi with her and Yuki. There’s just loads of Jojo references here, and the way Chio corporates this game into her gaming mode is priceless. Chio’s OP as heck, but to a degree that just make the game more awesome. I’m still not sure how I’m supposed to regard Madoka’s character. It’s meant to be the way to turn her character upside down, that despite she always says she loves the sports, the true reason comes from the more perverted side of her. Sure, I have no qualms with yuri tone, and I found the way Chio did all that was refreshing. But groping….

So,back to first question. Can I take the show for what it is? Alright, I give in, for now. Just don’t go overboard with it, Chio-chan.

The misadventures of Chio-chan on her way to school continues with some extra flavour. As of now, Chio-chan splits its segments neatly in two halves, the first deals with Chio encounters the absurd events on her way to school, and the latter details her relationship with her friends. One highlights the adventure spirits of this title, the other provides more heart and depth. I don’t mind at all with this formula, since it’s done right so far, but I figure Chio-chan will eventually mix things up a bit in future episodes. The key that ties both segment together, is Chio herself. So far, she’s super relatable character, both due to her commitment to do her best not to stand out, but always find herself standing out in more ways than one, and due to her social anxiety that makes her both charming and real. The best weapon is her monologue, helped by her wild imagination (I say games help her much in that department), and it’s fun to see her stream of thought runs in free form and how she eventually makes her head-stretching decision. Being said that, the bit that I have mixed feeling about is Chio-chan’s OP, which play up the fan-service I normally avoid: jiggling boobs for one, long tongue for another, even nudist!!?

In the first segment, our Chio finds herself in a bind, quite literally, between herself, the blonde yakuza dude (he’s voiced by the seiyuu who voiced Nitta last season. Coincidence? I think not), his motorbike and a random bald salaryman. This is the motorbiker with an unzip pant in the OP (he zipped this time, I checked), but from the bike alone you can pretty tell that… he’s a delightfully weird dude. Pink motorcycle? And that weird seat? The situation where that salaryman and Chio have to walk quietly on the side is both hilarious and relatable, but there’s one nippick regarding that. Chio-chan gave an accurate explanation of the exhaust pipe, but it leaves more than a mark and a scream out of it. I’ve experienced it before and I’m pretty sure kids growing up in a motorbike culture experienced at least one in their lives. It’s second-degree burn for Christ sake so having Chio acts like nothing happened with her leg afterward is a huge slip of reality.

If I would point out a theme for this segment, it’s that these characters carry the persona that don’t match their appearances. That “salaryman” turns out just a guy who is about to interview for part-time job (haha), and Chio, especially, embraces her “Bloody Butterfly” persona so effectively she fools the blonde biker. That persona might be a fake, but her reasons are strangely convincing (it has to do with the games she plays, but well…). While yes, it’s hilarious all the way to see how she manages to change the yakuza’s mind and STILL manages to stand out in front of her peers despite trying best to be “a normal high school girl”, I feel that the way she does it isn’t that convincing. Like, does she knock the guy out of consciousness by that swing? It might be a part of the absurdist but I’d love for a more crazy version than this.

The second half though is where Chio-chan totally grabs me again. If there’s a variation of supporting characters that I enjoy, it’s a normal girl who use her meanie acts as a mean to justify her own frustration AKA a true brat (last season we have Mami from Hinamatsuri, this season we have the entire cast in Asobe Asobase). Manana fits this bill like a glove. The mutual understanding between her and Chio (that they consider each other a trash, yet they deserve each other) is surprisingly solid. And throughout this episode we can see how (small-minded) devilish this girl can become to step up her social ladder. We see her spreading rumors behind people’s back, we see her snipping around spying on people, we see her telling lies to get other’s approval… this is delicious, I tell ya. Especially when her own efforts to get close to Hosokawa fallen into pieces when it turns out the guy she was just bad-mouthing is Hosokawa’s running buddy, and a president if some company to boost. Right then, she feels the distance between her and Hosokawa just like the distance she leaves Chio behind.

My favorite part of the whole episode, however, is when Chio and Manana spy on Hosokawa in hope for witnessing something lewd, but it backfires and they find themselves near-kiss each other instead (or is it officially their first kiss? They denied so, though). Both their reactions are pitch perfect (Manana ‘s blush, slowly touches her lip – Chio: snap out of that yuri-tone, Manana). It’s those off kilter moments like this that makes following Chio and her friends around such an amusing watch. They are equally mean, in addition, to point out that the guy’s a fake in front of Hosokawa. But it doesn’t matter, since the love for running is there. Based on the OP I would say that Hosokawa will have something more than her “perfect girl” status later on. Being both absurd and grounded, Chio-chan so far is going strong.

Note: I’m using Chio when I refer to the character and Chio-chan when I refer to the show. Hope you can recognize the distinction.