Azumanga Daioh

Azumanga Daioh is a 26 episode slice of school life comedy about the misadventures of a group of female high school students though their 3 years of school. It is based on a manga by the same name. The series aired on TV around the turn of the century and spawned 2 short OAV’s. Each episode is comprised of a number of small vignettes that are either stand alone or part of a larger plot arc.

   The series follows a small group of friends who are in the same class together. Arguably the main character, if not the most memorable, is Chiyo-chan. Chiyo is a prodigal genius who has tested into high school at the age of 10. While she is young and inexperienced she tries her hardest to keep up with her classmates on a social level. Her intellect inspires awe and her friends continuously try to see what she is capable of accomplishing. At the opposite end of the mental spectrum is the 'Idiot Trio', comprised of Tomo, Osaka and Kagura. The three band together under the proud banner of idiocy and revel in their lack of wits. Tomo; loud, obnoxious, rude, crass and childish, is the most rambunctious of the friends. Osaka, named so due to her city of origin, is best described as being a space cadet with an lively and active imagination. While she is slow of wit she more than makes up for it in imagination. Kagura, who joins the class during the second year, is an athletic tom boy who doesn’t really comprehend much beyond her scope of reality. Tomo's childhood friend, Yomi, is the most mature and serious of the friends. She attempted to get away from Tomo by enrolling in a school that was known for its high academics but Tomo studied her brains out trying to get in. Stuck with her for another 3 years she has become resigned and hopeless. The other mature character in the group is the tall and silent Sakaki. She does not interact with others much and keeps to her self, favoring the company of cats. The problem with this is all cats, for some unexplained reason, hate Sakaki and either run or attack her on sight. The final member of the group is Kaorin, who ends up leaving the class during the 2^nd year. Kaorin is more of a sideline character but is still a part of the group. She is an average student but is completely obsessed, sexually, with Sakaki.

    The other main characters of the series are; Ms. Yukari, the classes homeroom teacher; lazy, childish, jealous and demeaning. Yukari’s best friend, Ms. Kurosawa, is also a teacher at the school and does her best to protect the group of friends from too much damage at Yukari’s hands. The final faculty member that plays a role in the story is the creepy and misunderstood literature teacher, Kimura. He is bizarre and perverted, continuously wanting to teach gym class when it is swimming season and fawns over Kaorin.

    The story follows no set goal or plot line. The only continuity with the series is the progression of time as they go from being 1^st year students, to 2^nd year students, to 3^rd year students and then graduation, at which point the series ends. The series shows the cast of characters living their carefree student lives as they enjoy their time with each other. They develop rituals, such as spending time at Chioyo-chans ocean front cabin during the summer, a tradition Yukari and Kurosawa also take part in. The story continues at an easy pace and never gets too serious.

    This is one of my all time favorite series. I use it as the benchmark for other similar anime; endearing comedies about the misadventures of female school friends. The series is funny and entertaining, odd-ball and goofy. One of the most bizarre examples of the oddity is with Chiyo-chan’s imaginary father, dreamed up by Osaka. This imaginary parent is a bizarre, amoeba like cat-shaped creature that dispenses skewed wisdom and changes color like a mood ring. The animation is fun and bubbly, with thick outlines and a comfortable palette of colors. The music is playful and goofy, with the opening theme song being one of the catchiest in existence. Aside from it slowing down a bit in the second half, most notably during their class trip, I can’t find a fault for the series. As with all school series, Azumanga follows the same patterns of the school festival, sports festival, summer vacation, winter vacation, class trip, etc, etc. While these events tend to be laborious episodes to trudge through due to over exposure and repeated themes in most other series’, they never wear thin in this one. The episodes I looked forward to the most were the ones showing them going to Chiyo-chan’s cabin during the summer. The end of the series, their graduation, was bitter sweet and I was almost in tears, not because the characters were, but because I didn’t want to say good bye to them. If you have not seen this and you enjoy fun easy going comedies, this is one of the finest out there, you will not be disappointed until it ends, leaving you wanting more time with all of the lovable personalities.