Nichijou: My Ordinary Life (日常) is a 26 episode gag comedy series based on the manga of the same name by Arawai Keiichi. The series originally aired in Japan in 2011.
A collection of semi-related shorts focusing on a few off color characters in a small town, Nichijou takes classical gag comedy and applies it seamlessly to moe cuteness. The main characters are 3 school girl friends, Yuko, Mai, Mio and their banal yet exceptional exploits. The other main characters are the child genius inventor Professor and her robot caretaker Nano. Beyond these 5 characters is a small cast of recurring secondary ones, mostly from the girls' school. There is little in the way of plot progression in the show, focusing on series' of random shorts. The shorts at times relate to each other or reference prior shorts but show very little progression of time.
Absurd situation comedy mixed with unrealistic character responses at its best, this series is full of oddity, sight gags and bizarre humor. It's like merging Azumanga Daioh with Gyagu Manga Biyori, inspired by Golden Age Loony Tunes. Nonsensical, irrational at times and entirely humorous. The series is at its best when the unexpected takes place, from the random gadgets mysteriously built into Nano, an obsession with daifuku, the scheming principle and the random pacing of a show aimed at toddlers.
Art wise this may very well be Kyoto Animations best piece; the delivery and composition are impeccable and add so much to the over all delivery of the humor. Simplistic, thick outlined characters that move with a fluidity KyoAni does so well. While not having read the original manga, its hard to imagine the impact of the comedy not being so hard hitting with out the animation. Though it wouldn't be as funny as it is with out the source material which rages from mundane inane to surreal psychosis. The series tackles pressing subjects such as a teacher ineffective in her role as a moral leader, the young girls embarrassment in her BL manga obsession and a talking cat who is unable to instill elder respect when needed.
Sadly, the license for North American distribution for My Ordinary Life expired when Bandai pulled out of the market. There has been no word of anyone renewing it and the series' disc releases in Japan did pitifully bad in sales...shame, real damn shame. For those of us that relish gag comedy this is one of the best out there.
A collection of semi-related shorts focusing on a few off color characters in a small town, Nichijou takes classical gag comedy and applies it seamlessly to moe cuteness. The main characters are 3 school girl friends, Yuko, Mai, Mio and their banal yet exceptional exploits. The other main characters are the child genius inventor Professor and her robot caretaker Nano. Beyond these 5 characters is a small cast of recurring secondary ones, mostly from the girls' school. There is little in the way of plot progression in the show, focusing on series' of random shorts. The shorts at times relate to each other or reference prior shorts but show very little progression of time.
Absurd situation comedy mixed with unrealistic character responses at its best, this series is full of oddity, sight gags and bizarre humor. It's like merging Azumanga Daioh with Gyagu Manga Biyori, inspired by Golden Age Loony Tunes. Nonsensical, irrational at times and entirely humorous. The series is at its best when the unexpected takes place, from the random gadgets mysteriously built into Nano, an obsession with daifuku, the scheming principle and the random pacing of a show aimed at toddlers.
Art wise this may very well be Kyoto Animations best piece; the delivery and composition are impeccable and add so much to the over all delivery of the humor. Simplistic, thick outlined characters that move with a fluidity KyoAni does so well. While not having read the original manga, its hard to imagine the impact of the comedy not being so hard hitting with out the animation. Though it wouldn't be as funny as it is with out the source material which rages from mundane inane to surreal psychosis. The series tackles pressing subjects such as a teacher ineffective in her role as a moral leader, the young girls embarrassment in her BL manga obsession and a talking cat who is unable to instill elder respect when needed.
Sadly, the license for North American distribution for My Ordinary Life expired when Bandai pulled out of the market. There has been no word of anyone renewing it and the series' disc releases in Japan did pitifully bad in sales...shame, real damn shame. For those of us that relish gag comedy this is one of the best out there.
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