Yoshinaga-sanchi no Gargoyle

I've noticed that there is a trend amongst anime fans to automatically hate shows with no real plot, or where the plot takes a long time to develop. It's a shame that this is the case as there are a number of gems out there that have been misnomered by one fan or another, and have thus failed to gain any sort of popularity or commendation.

Take Yoshinaga-san`chi no Gargoyle for example. The show is about young Yoshinaga Futaba and her family (mum, dad, older brother), and the strange statue that she wins in a lotttery at the local shopping district. This statue is Gargoyle - ... a talking statue that moves (just not how you expect), flies, and shoots beams from it's eyes. Gargoyle is alive, and in the tradition of gargoyles, he has taken it upon himself to protect the yoshinaga's and their home from such menaces as the paperboy, the mailman, people walking down the street, etc. There's more to the story than just that, but it all gets a little surreal from the get-go.

The animation in Yoshinaga-san`chi no Gargoyle isn't anything special. The creators weren't trying to break any new ground either visuals or sound. The score is reasonable, yet forgettable. The animation is sometimes jerky whilst the backgrounds are okay at best. The one big plus point the show had for me, in terms of sound that is, was the fact that Gargoyle is voiced by the stupendous Wakamoto Norio.

The characters were, again, nothing special. Futaba is a typical tomboy, while her brother has his girlish tendencies. Mother likes wrestling, and will punish the kids and hubby by using a suplex or similar. Father is just plain forgettable. The only really memorable character in the show is Gargoyle-kun.

Given all of the "flaws" of the show, you're probably wondering why I gave it a score of 8. I'll explain....

If I were to classify Yoshinaga-san`chi no Gargoyle, I would have to place it firmly under the heading of "no-brain" entertainment. It has no real plot, the characters get little to no development, the animation is okay at best, and the music an sound effects are reasonable enough.

HOWEVER, Yoshinaga-san`chi no Gargoyle is no-brain entertainment of the best kind. It is a surrealistic, oddball comedy, and barring a few blips, doesn't really pretend to be anything else. That's one of the beauties of a show like this. The fact that they aren't concerned with great animation, sound, music, plot, etc, as all they really want to do is make you laugh. And I did. A lot :D

If you're terminally addicted to shows where there has to be a plot, then you probably won't like Yoshinaga-san`chi no Gargoyle. Likewise if you can't live without seeing strong character development, great animation, excellent music and effects, etc, then you probably should avoid this show. It's unfortunate that there's a lot of people out there who fit into those categories, but that's by-the-by.

If you're after something that is entertaining (without the need to engage higher brain functions), will make you laugh (a lot), and basically does exactly what it says on the tin, then give Yoshinaga-san`chi no Gargoyle a try.

And for all those addicts I referred to above - why not give this, or another show (Seto no Hanayome or Inukami), a try. You never know. You may find you enjoy them...

Why you should watch this: The main character doesn't actually visibly move. He just sort of...teleports from scene to scene. If you're the type who likes to have a firm logical grip on reality this is really not for you. A lot of things don't exactly make sense, but overall it's really not supposed to, and in fact I think it kind of makes fun of itself in a way.

Very episode-to-episode style, but the relationships between the characters do develop in a satisfying way. This would be a good animé as a sort of intro for kids. It's definitely lighthearted in general, though it's still ... got some points serious enough to make it not totally silly by any means.

If you've got a bit of a silly sense of humour or you like something vaguely, but not totally mindless, I think this animé is worth watching. Uber-serious watchers are best advised not to approach.