Original Run: July 3, 2010 - September 26, 2010 Number of Episodes: 13 Genre: Comedy, Slice of Life Based on the Series Created By: Ujiie Tozen
***Warning, the following may contain spoilers for Seitokai Yakuindomo. Reader discretion is advised.***
Series Synopsis
Osai Academy was once an all-girls high school. In an attempt to reverse Japan’s declining birthrate, it has recently converted into a co-ed institution.
On his first day, Takatoshi Tsuda (voiced by Shintaro Asanuma) meets the president of the student council, Shino Amakusa (voiced by Yoko Hikasa). Wanting to give the newly established male demographic representation on the council, Shino offers Takatoshi the position of vice-president. Also on the council are Secretary Aria Shichijo (voiced by Satomi Sato) and Treasurer Suzu Hagimura (voiced by Sayuri Yahagi).
Takatoshi is calm and level-headed. As the de facto straight-man of the council, he finds himself at the center of every lewd comment made by his female classmates. Takatoshi grows so accustomed to this bizarre behavior that normalcy becomes the oddity.
Shino is a model student and is at the top of her class. She is popular, beautiful, hardworking, and serious. As president, she genuinely cares about the welfare of her peers and has their best interest at heart. However, her thoughts and mannerisms are often perverse and immature.
Aria, Shino’s best friend, is equally perverted — if not more so. Plus, she is a total airhead. She sometimes forgets to wear underwear, expects doors to open by themselves, and waits at the bottom of escalators because she is unaware that they are, in fact, stairs.
Suzu has studied overseas, is fluent in English, and is quick to point out her 180 IQ and ability to perform ten-digit calculations in her head. She is also extremely self-conscious about her height and lashes out whenever people mistake her to be in elementary school.
Series Positives
The Comedy
This show was funny. It’s as simple as that.
Seitokai Yakuindomo‘s comedy was the behavior of the student council. Their childishness was in direct contrast with their efficiency, high academic proficiency, and strong standing among the student body.
This series was hilarious thanks to the constant amount of innuendos and double meanings. The council’s comments and actions were quite crude and usually contained not-so-subtle sexual undertones. Seitokai Yakuindomo wasn’t afraid to go for the joke. This openness allowed for some truly outstanding moments.
Although the comedy was sexually charged, things never crossed the line of being offensive just for the sake of being offensive. This was the kind of humor that comes about when you hang out with your closest friends.
This show invoked the immaturity in all of us.
The Characters
Complementing Seitokai‘s comedy were the characters. This cast brought the necessary charm a series like this needed to function.
That being said, the three main female characters, Shino, Aria, and Suzu, were not all that unique. You can find variations of their personalities in plenty of other anime. These three were the tools needed to build up this show. Just like any tool, if misused, the entire project could come crashing down.
Thankfully, this series knew what it was doing.
The person who made Seitokai really stand out, though, was Takatoshi.
In most other anime I have encountered, male characters are often over-expressive and hyper-sensitive to the types of situations Takatoshi found himself in constantly. Again, this is not a bad thing, and many shows have done this well. What made Takatoshi special was his calmness. He, more or less, accepted the absurd nature of his fellow council members.
Takatoshi was a necessary anchor that kept this series grounded.
Series Negatives
Like I said, this show was hilarious.
Be that as it may, there was a noticeable lack of laugh-out-loud moments. There were few stand-alone instances to think back on and start chuckling all over again.
When describing this series to a friend, I’m confident you can explain why this show is funny. However, I doubt you will be able to recall an example of this series’ hilarity to help illustrate your point.
Final Thoughts
If you need an anime to pick your spirits up, I highly recommend Seitokai Yakuindomo. It was funny, it was charming, and it wasn’t afraid to be what it was.
Although it may not last with you as long as other shows, I cannot deny this series had me laughing. It was a shame that Seitokai Yakuindomo ended too quickly. I think there is a lot more this show can offer. It has only scratched the surface of its potential.
But these are just my thoughts. What are yours? Have you seen this show? What would be your advice concerning Seitokai Yakuindomo? Leave a comment down below because I would love to hear what you have to say.
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For Anime Hajime, I’m LofZOdyssey, and I’ll see you next time.
