Azumanga Daioh

12 reviews - 57.0 total score (Explanation of the rating system)
avg. score: (4.8)

12. Iodine

A cat-lover hated by all cats, a pigtailed child genius, a triumphant underachiever, and the inexplicable Osaka are only a few of the girls to be found in Class 3, taught by the hot-tempered Yukari-sensei.  Girls in high school anime have been many things, but probably never as hysterical as the cast of Azumanga Daioh.  It's incredible how much fun it is to watch Chiyo, Yomi, Tomo, Sasaki, and all their friends simply go to school and live the lives of normal kids.  Well, perhaps not entirely normal. Normal kids probably don't have the ability to detach their pigtails, see adults as giant cats, or survive Yukari-sensei's driving.  Each episode can be broken up into several little character-driven shorts, following the format of their source manga, so the weekly plots are mostly just random scenes of schoolday madness, often focusing on special events or trips.  Friendship is the central theme, and the writers bother with few outside complications as the girls move through high school.  There isn't even any romantic trouble, aside from one teacher's questionable fixations. 

In a comedy the animation is not so important as the direction and design, which are both terrific here. At times the humor can be a little too subtle or strange, and it's absolutely vital to ignore all logic and common sense, but the material pays off more often than not.  The writing manages to develop the girls and their teachers, bit by bit, though there really is no central story aside from the normal schoolday ebb and flow. The opening and ending themes are both very sweet and very bizarre, and consequently very fitting.

11. Chris

If Cowboy Bebop’s American equivalent is Batman, then Azumanga would be Animaniacs. It is the most Japanese show I’ve seen, but at the same time, many of the jokes and situations really transcend the cultural boundary and hit home. Truly, this is one of the greatest shows I’ve ever seen.

Animation: Nothing spectacular, but it does capture the feel of the original comic strip (which I managed to find at Borders Books! Cool!) perfectly. In fact, all the odd animation really works well in this cute show. It is quite cartoonish in its look and feel, and that’s what the series is all about.

Sound: Great voice acting by all (Especially Osaka!!!) and a good intro and extro. Most of the music during the show is simple, and it’s not something you’d listen to in your car, but it does fit the feel of the show nicely.

Story: What story? Some girls go to high school. Actually, the individual mini-stories are mostly very fun (except for a few truly odd episodes that I cannot quite figure out *cough* dream episode *cough*) and if you check the original comic that the series is based on, you can see that it is 98% identical to the original comic. Very impressive. A truly fun story.

Overall: If you want something a bit different, and like goofy characters and situational comedy, this could be your bag. I’d recommend it to everybody who is interested in comedy anime.

10. Tyrenol

It's like "Seinfeld" meeting "Friends" at high school; a Japanese high school. Or a famous US comic strip "Luann" if it was done in anime. A show about the quirkiness of a set of teenage girls and their homeroom teachers. None of them are saving the world, hiding any magical powers (although Tomo wishes she does), nor being part of some plot in a hentai series. A show about nothing? Unlikely. There's also a lot of cultural jokes; with Osaka's random info and what-not. The pacing may be slow, it's mainly based on each of the four-panel comic strips. But this is the show to watch if you're just into the comedic reactions of each character's traits.

9. bluemist

Azumanga Daioh is an anime that is radically different with all the typical anime shows out there. I describe it as a weird comedy with a shoujo flavor. You got a slew of school girls and teachers, each with her unique characteristics, interacting with each other in a school setting. Basically, they are having fun of each other's 'natural weirdness'. Sometimes in real life you see people much like Chiyo-chan who seems like a perfect model student, but sometimes makes mistakes and changes moods. That's what I meant by 'natural weirdness'. Because of this Azumanga Daioh succeeds in presenting realistic characters that act naturally in real situations. While most of the events that are happening are typical in Japanese high-school life, the characters themselves make them somewhat unreal. They make seemingly normal and boring events interestingly funny and unique. It's the primary beauty of the show, a beauty rarely seen in anime or in other entertainment genres as a whole. If a show like Azumanga Daioh is able to affect you by reflecting a lighter image of your real life, then it is a show that would truly entertain you. So go watch it.

8. h8er13

This is one of those rare anime series that I enjoyed every single minute of. There are many reviews on this series and my review is merely to emphasize the point that this is good and highly recommended. There are several characters, all girls in high school, each with unique personalities. With exception to the last episode, there are no "real" serious or dramatic scenes. This anime entertains with its humorous situations and highly enjoyable characters. In fact, it was impossible for me to NOT like any of the characters.

Because of the many Japanese cultural allusions, and a brief understanding of Japanese culture may make one appreciate the series a bit more. Still, Azumanga Daioh is a wonderful anime series.

7. SAGO

I first encountered this as a four panel comic strip. The last thing on my mind was this being an anime. Fast forward a year or so, an Azumanga Daioh anime.

I won't dwell too much on the plot because it's almost non-existent. It's just the story of a bunch of eccentric high school girls and their equally eccentric teachers going through their lives until graduation.

What got me into this anime is its likable characters and its own brand of humor. The everyday situations that most people would not care or give a second thought about are elaborated and are made into stupidly funny circumstances. It's amazing how the directors made the anime come to life, considering the manga does not have the privelage of having motion that added humor to the anime. It's the funniest anime of all time in a strange sort of way according to my book. I highly recommend it to anyone.

Be a bit wary because it has that occassional cute-shoujo-ish scenes that may turn-off the guys. Fortunately they're not so many and are usually thrown off course with something funny or stupid happening.

A minor not-so spoiler to the readers: the last episode was emotional especially for the ones that graduated high school already. Expect to feel a little nostalgia. Then again; it's completely ripped apart by the Azumanga Daioh humor.

6. Neko Tsukimi

I avoided this show for the longest and I'm really glad I actually watched it. I fell in love. It's a simple story about several girls going to high school. Sure there are tons of stories like that, but this one is special. The story is not all there. It's pretty linear for the most part, but the plot really isn't there. However, the characters are bold! They're just like normal girls. There's your slow idiot (Osaka), child genius (Chiyo-chan), loud tomboy (Tomo), more mature girl (Yomi), big girl with big breasts who looks scary but has a weakness for cats (Sakaki-san), sporty girl (Kagura), and little lesbian girl (Kaorin). Alone, they wouldn't more a show anywhere. But together, they make an exquisite blend. Their interaction provides for tons of comedy and periods of nonstop laughter. It was very sad to see it end, but I knew it had to since all good things must come to an end.

5. Yogi

This show has virtually no plot, characters that never change, and a normal atmosphere. It is a slice of life anime about high school girls. No Evil Monster to Defeat, no Oodles and Doodles of Angst, not even Romantic Problems. It tells of their friendships, their every day events, what goes on in their heads (or lack thereof) and utterly normal things. At times, it can be very slow, at others one is falling out of their chair in laughter. While the show has no plot, it doesn’t need one. You watch it for the experience, and for the laughs. Watch it, now.

4. Cross Scars

Azumanga Daioh is a very simple anime but one which is highly effective. There might not be any plot and the characters might be fairly flat but in a series like this that's not a problem. If anything such points actually help Azumanga to be as amusing as it is. It takes its stereotypical characters and merely exaggerates them so that they become larger than life and it greatly helps to make them even funnier. It's pretty obvious that every time Osaka is on screen that she's going to end up saying or doing something stupid and Azumanga plays up to that expectation. Admittedly one or two of the jokes get a bit repetitive and haven't transferred over from the 4-panel comic that successfully (such as the sketches with Sakaki and cats) but those are odd exceptions and for the rest of the time Azumanga is hilarious to watch. After Excel Saga this easily ranks as my favourite comic series.

3. Konoha

Sometimes, it's nice just to turn your brain off and watch a show. I found this to be the case with Azumanga. With no true plot to speak of, it follows the lives of a few high school girls and some of their teachers as they make their way through the three years of a Japanese highschool. Sometimes whimsical, sometimes funny or touching, it just gives you a good feeling to watch. A bonus for Sakaki-san - it's nice to see a tall girl who likes cute things (^^;)

2. Tempy

Based on a popular 4-panel manga by Azuma Kiyohiko and serialized in the magazine Dengeki Daioh (hence the title), Azumanga Daioh is a very enjoyable and rather unique anime series. Each episode consists of 5 smaller segments depicting the lives of a group of high school girls and their teachers. The segments can be very cute, crazy, hilariously funny, or more leisurely paced, where the characters go out to enjoy themselves. The series span 3 years of their lives with recurring events like the school cultural festival day, sports day, and summer vacation. At the end things even get a bit more melancholic, when the girls anticipate entrance exams, ponder their futures, and reflect on past times. Though riddled with cultural references, Azumanga Daioh is a very character driven show, and fortunately for us all the characters are quite memorable and bound to put a smile on your face. Due to its sketch-like format, Azumanga Daioh is also excellent for rewatching multiple times. It'll make you smile, it'll make you laugh, and it might even make you shed a tear or two, and if a show can do that, it belongs to my favorites. It's too bad we never see the girls show any interest in boys, there's lots of potential for humor there, but I guess you can't have em all. Props go out to the music which exists out of many many lively and catchy tunes.

1. Prep_Styles

Based on Azuma Kiyohiko’s comic strip of the same name, Azumanga Daioh showcases the lives of half a dozen young girls through out there high school careers, as well as three of there more entertaining teachers. Each of the 26 episodes is divided into five roughly five minute scenes. The story having no “action” in the conventional anime sense relies primarily on slight variations of reoccurring gags for development; it’s within these slight variations and the characters they involve where we see this titles brilliance.

Azumanga’s plot is entirely character driven; the situations themselves are simple everyday occurrences that under normal circumstances would probably fail to gain an audience’s interest. What makes the events in this title so hilarious is the way the characters participate in them or more specifically how the characters interact with one another within a given situation. By playing on the idiosyncrasies of the characters themselves the story achieves its purpose brilliantly. At many times I found myself knowing full well what the outcome of a situation would be, however I was delighted with the anticipation of waiting for likable characters to react exactly the way I thought they would.

Given that this show contains a great wealth of Japanese Cultural references it may not be for the more casual anime fan, however at its heart Azumanga Daioh is well written comedy at its best.