Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai

If you have strong feelings about this anime, please don't read any further. I just noticed there was an abnormally large amount of overly positive reviews for this show and thought it would be best if there was a second opinion readily available.

Haganai was not an enjoyable anime for me. I did not find it funny past a certain point. For the first three episodes the show revolves around the mistaken delinquent and the two "heroines" of the series - Yozora and Sena. These episodes for the most part were quite sharp, and as Sena and Yozora's antics grew and grew, Kodaka's role as the ... straight man would be stressed further and further.

So it makes sense when dolloping even more characters into the show would have scary consequences. Kodaka's cosplaying sister, a perverse scientist, a ten year old sister of the church who says poop IN EVERY EPISODE THEREAFTER, a cross-dressing maid (whose original gender I can't even remember) - and you know what? There's a line that is drawn eventually where you're just sitting there watching your Mazui subs on your home computer and go "why do I give a shit about any of these characters?"

Your rhetorical question is not easy to answer. It's a bitter reality, but Haganai is just another generic ecchi harem. Kodaka can do nothing to save the show any more. The craziness gets too out of hand for a single straight man, and amidst the chaos you lose the ability to sympathize with any character. Do I root for Sena? She was just so mean in that last scene! But now Yozora's being illogical! Who am I supposed to side with? Thank goodness the nun got naked! That sure helped alleviate tension!

The characters feel too unbelievable for an anime that tries to deal with an actual issue. It's about a group of freaks trying to become friends, except said group is so eccentric that such personalities could never exist. There is no characterization to any cast member as each is treated as a joke. All other reviewers call Rika the "perverted scientist" because that's what she is; nothing more. She has no feelings, she has no emotions, she just has her gags. There is no insight into any of the characters of the show save Yozora and Sena, and the little that is given into them is so cliche and sparse that it's hard to separate Haganai from the thousands of other ecchi comedies.

Haganai just felt like a jumble of too many ideas, too many characters, and not enough depth anywhere. It is a shallow production laden with offensive language and poop jokes. And not the good kind of poop jokes, just repetition of the word "poop." The show struggles with trying to be realistic whilst adding so many unrealistic elements it just became frustrating.

I do not recommend this anime to anyone. It earns 5/10 (average) and has nothing interesting to offer beyond one or two jokes throughout it's 288 minute run-time.

With Christmas fast approaching, I can safely say one thing: All I want for Christmas is Meat. Delicious, delicious, Meat.

Ahem.

What do you get when an ambitious and rather oddball girl drags an unwilling male into forming a club for whatever reason? You get the "Save the World by Overloading it with Fun (SOS) Haruhi Suzumiya Brigade!" Oh wait, wrong show. You alternatively could get the "Neighbors Club." Yes, that seems about right. This fabulous club is composed of Kodaka and Kobato Hasegawa, Yozora Mikazuki, Sena Kashiwazaki, Rika Shiguma, Maria Takayama and Yukimura Kusunoki. Watch as this rebellious group takes on one of the ... world's most challenging of tasks: making friends!

"Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai" follows the misadventures of our assembled group of social misfits as they chase after the ever elusive rose-colored campus life of "popular" people. And what a daunting task this seems to be. After all, when your club is made up of such interesting people as a misunderstood "Yankee", two girls who assert themselves as goddesses (though only one of them is truly worthy of the title), a gender-confused-full-of-fighting-spirit-samurai and many others, the task of making true friends would seem quite difficult. Unknown to them, however, perhaps they will make friends with the very misfits they set out on this journey with.

Let us quickly get this out of the way. The artwork in "Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai" is flat out awesome. Those familiar with "Denpa Onna to Seishun Otoko" will immediately recognize the similarities, since they were done by the same artist. And how fortunate that is, because depictions of Meat are as glorious as they can be. Backgrounds and characters are very colorful and animations are fluid enough, giving the viewer delicious eye candy. Look at those sultry lips on the females for instance...Check out official arts if you are having doubts.

"Haganai" (which is what I will be calling this show now) gives us the rather touching message that it is not necessarily the number of friends one has, but its about the one friend that is worth a hundred. The de facto leader of the Neighbors Club, Yozora, once wisely proclaimed this as a child, but now has trouble even maintaining normal conversations with other people. She above all wants to make friends, along with the rest of the club. However, most of the show is focused on comedy that usually arises with clashes between Yozora and Sena, and not actually making friends. I mean they try, and by that I mean Kodaka tries, but they usually end up having their share of laughs without establishing that close connection they desire. The club is already in trouble in the beginning, seeing as we have two tsunderes with a liking to the main character, Inde--Maria and Kobato fighting for Kodaka's brotherly affections, and Yukimura and Rika, who are both plain weird. Rika more so.

The sound of "Haganai" is quite enjoyable in its own charming kind of way. The opening theme is "Zannenkei Rinjinbu" by all the female members of the cast, and is an extremely cheesy J-Pop song detailing aspects of friendship. It is upbeat and disgustingly catchy, with a good indication of what the show is about. The ending theme is "My Feelings "by Marina Inoue (voice of Yozora) and fits well enough. It is yet another disgustingly catchy theme accompanied by a very enjoyable sequence of Yozora and Sena interacting in a rock band...The voice acting is excellent, and Marina Inoue's deeper voice for Yozora is quite enjoyable, in particular when she is on one of her many rants and shenanigans concerning Sena and general social values.

"Haganai"s comedy is generally pretty funny. Most of the comedic scenes are the club's fruitless attempts at making friends, such as establishing connections through multiplayer gaming, karaoke, and keeping in touch via cell phones. Of course, these attempts go horribly wrong, such as griefing each other and keeping things too literal....It is a fun and rather cheerful series, but Yozora is usually there to give the brutally sarcastic remarks she characteristically has, giving glimpses of her underlying attitude. I did not dislike her, but I certainly wished that she had tried a bit harder in making friends with the others, rather that step all over Sena and try to get closer to Kodaka. She may even have become much closer friends with Sena if she did not act that way, giving her just one more friend. The last episode just might change your opinion of her however...

There was a slight plot interwoven throughout the episodes, but it does not really leave much of an impact, at least not on me. You will have to be the judge on that. I however, simply watched "Haganai" for my weekly servings of Meat and shenanigans of the "Neighbors Club."

"Haganai" is an entertaining show depicting the doomed attempts of the "Neighbors Club" in making friends and ultimately becoming popular. Even though most of their attempts fail, it gives a rather nice message that friendship can come from the most unexpected of places. It covers basic methods of interacting with others and the hilarity that follows. The comedy is good, and the delicious eye candy may be enough to draw you into the series. Check it out if you ever need an anime guide on how NOT to make friends!

Oh, and to those who have bothered to read this far, I am a Sena fanboy. Sorry, Yozora, move over for the REAL goddess. She, along with a certain brigade leader, will be the only Gods I'll ever worship!

To be honest, I came here looking for just a plain comedy, what I found was a much more. The opening few episodes were genuinely funny. At first the characters don't look particularly fascinating however, as the series progresses they become more and more interesting. Towards the end the anime is set up brilliantly for its next season which would be hard to miss if you completed the first one. An anime to get easily hooked to and one which becomes more interesting as it progresses.
I liked it a lot and overall it is quite nice.

Outstanding-Is one word that can sum up this entire series.

First of all, the story is exceedingly compelling. The underlying complexion of such a minute situation in the premise of today’s society and its impact on people nowadays may seem like trivial matter, but that may not always work out for all of us. Generalizing, many of us laugh/disregard those who are disabled or lack some sort of trait or ability that hinders them from their true potential. Those people, who do make fun of others, are none less than a prick. We fail as humans to understand the feelings of others, and must take into ... deep moderation to understand and to contemplate the situation of before we establish a viewpoint. It makes us see the world in an entirely new perspective, and allows us to be refreshed. As an exemplary, the anime, Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai, is underhandedly one of the benchmark for this improper demeanor bestowed on the less fortunate.

To many of us, making friends, socializing, and talking are an innate ability that most of us possess. However, in Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai, that doesn't seem to be the case--it breeds a whole new example of a small group of people and their take on the world. Under the layers of a utopian world, there are situations that people face in this world, like the main characters of the show. Something so commonly omitted, have a turn to shine to show the world a new view of life. It shows two friends, perusing something out of their league, out of envy, and yet, succeeding at the end. It shows the persistence of the protagonists to build character and to become what they want by working hard, which is something that we should all do.

Such trifling matters in society may be deemed minor in our perspective, but major in others. It shows persistence and forbearance to try to rise up from the grounds of society, and to make a change, even if those steps are subtle. The allegorical symbolism portrayed within the context of the first episode underlines the hardship of others, but disregards those hardships by taking initiative to make a change into oneself. I have to say, Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai, have some real shit up its ass to create such a back layered story to demonstrate that a little work brings you a far. It is meant to show the struggles of others, and how insignificant they are to the context of the world, and to work harder in life, creating clearer path that will allow you to eventually see your way.

The anime is very good.

It has an original theme, "Make Friends".
In most anime in high school, club characters do in the first year, but this anime the characters decide to make the club a second year of high school.

Yozora after talking with friends about Kadoka, discovers it is not the only one who can not make friends, then create a club to make "friends" and put an ad in code, to understand just who may join the club. She and Kodak are the first to join the club.

The anime has the same graph Denpa Onna.
It's a great college comedy and anime.

The manga is also good, ... check it out!

Honestly is amazing anime. I think that this is a new kind of anime in relation to animation ....for me is the anime master piece of the 2011.

1. Each character has an special "humor" (and personality) and the mix of everyone is really cool and funny.

2. The drawings and landscapes are amazing... a master piece of art.

3. The story is creative and interesting, has few bored moments but the mix of "ecchi" and "funny" moments is fantastic.

I was thinking that would be a big mistake add more characters but honestly was a good bet.. Maria, "The maid" and the "Ero Scientific Girl" are great ... characters that gives to this series another sense with their comments.

This anime should be in your list of "great animes"!! :D niku

So once again we have a popular light novel adaptation that tries to defy most senses of competent writing and interesting stories, if you want to fascinated by real plots and unusual set ups, Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai is not for you, but if want the same ole, same ole, then anything would work out, even stuff as boring and singular as this works too.

STORY: YAAAAAAAAAAAAAWN... Here we have a good example of what uninspired and perverted novel writers can come up with by using the official "Same Old Shit" guidebook that many others used for years on end. Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai ... (Which literally translates to "I Don't Have Many Friends"), is that guidebook's best example for the first chapter, "One Boy, Lotsa Girls, Wackiness Insures," because, if it isn't apparent yet, this anime has all the harem trappings you can push into one episode. Our harem bait this time around, Mr. Hasegawa Kodaka, the transfer student, who has no friends (the entire premise of this anime) because of a misunderstanding on his first day at his new school (Which chapter Two of the guidebook, "Misunderstandings Is A Bitch" is covered, which can also be viewed in anime comedy 101) and now, a month later, he is still alone and feared by the student body (I'll leave out the reason because it's just too lazy to even mention).
But fortunately for Kodaka (And unfortunately for everybody else) Haru- I mean Ms. Mikazuki Yozora has no friends as well (Because, well the first episode skipped over that but she drops hints from time to time that has something to do with being betrayed by previous friends or something along those lines, you know, a reason for people to try to get people interested in her character), and it is evident because Kodaka witnesses Yozora talking to thin air, or her air friend choose your pick (And of course in over-dramatic fashion).

And what do these similar friendless outcasts do? They form the SOS- I meant the neighbors club, a club with the sole purpose of making friends (I mean joining other clubs would be a waste of time because people in other clubs are friends by now, as both Yozora and Kodaka spent at least five minutes explaining how pointless it would be, you know, stupid reasons). And only those who can decipher the stupid-but-cute-because-Yozora-make-it poster can join this friends for friendless people club.
But of course a new member joins on up to the club by the end of the episode, and she is the popular, big breasted blonde student, Sena Kashiwazaki (You'll see her earlier in the episode that she has a gaggle of boys drooling at her, an important key point about her). Her reasons for joining? She has no "real" friends. Her actual reason for joining? To get into fights with Yozora about breast sizes (Which comes from a major lesson from both the guidebook and almost all how to do anime comedy books, "The Breasts Feud," when the main female character in a series has about average bodily proportions, the girl that arrives next has to have more than twice the boobage of the other girl, so that they can get into an argument about breast sizes. I mean it's supposed to be funny right? I've never seen that actually happen in real life, but it's got to be funny, so funny that almost every harem anime does this joke to death).

As first impressions go, this one leaves with a feeling of nostalgia, in a bad way, the nostalgic feeling of overused tropes and overused jokes. And with the opening theme song animation suggests, there's going to plenty of girls to try to keep things fresh and to appeal to the many needs and fetishes of the anime community.

And don't worry, the fetishes are quite diverse, a boy who is a maid for no good reason (Only one stupid one), a loli nun, the little sister character, and a perverted girl who spends her days in a science room. If this show really wanted to be a show about outcasts, don't make them all into ecchi tropes, there are plenty of shows with these characters in that genre that are not even shunned by the background characters, there shouldn't be any reason to over-serve that genre other than to pay your bills, and maybe use that otaku money make something, I don't know, better or at least not make another rehash of every ecchi show over and over again.

The show is called, I don't have many friends, but that obviously changes in no time, because all the otaku will be great "friends", they even squander away every bit of money they have for the show, and only "true friends" will do that.

ANIMATION: Usually shows like this have decent animation, but this one looks a bit cheap looking, but the actual purpose of this anime is to sell, sell, sell character goods and other creepy merchandise.
The characters are borderline bland, yet distinctive (The original character designer is the guy who did the character designs for Denpa Onna to Seishun Otoko), but are still just moe enough to sell on their own without a story about them (Their titties will bonce, and the otaku will throw money at them, it's like a more expensive strip tease bar).
However, the ending theme animation is pretty cool though.

SOUND: Just about everything typical harem stockpile music would sound like, with an upbeat opening theme and good enough voice acting to go along with that, you know, good enough to sell more merch.
Opening theme song makes me want to rip my ears off, but is almost forgivable for a pretty cool ending theme song

OVERALL:
The Good:
+ Cool ending theme song.

The Bad:
- Another "Beat off to the girl and fetish you like in this show" kind of anime.
- Pretends to meaningful, but is nothing more than fanservice.
- One of the most thin plots I've ever seen, probably doesn't even count as a plot.
- Unrealistic outcasts and generic stereotypes.

There is one thing this anime has taught me so far: Make new friends, but keep the old. One is silver and the other's gold, but when it comes to anime like this, the old is copper, but copper has it's uses too, ever heard of pennies? Because anime like this are as common as pennies. And of course, it's easy enough to make anime like this to simply stay afloat in the industry, but just how long do companies think they can milk the same thing over and over again before anime fans finally become bored and want something new, or (Disappointingly) maybe they won't? In any case, Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai is as typical as it gets, nothing special and downright boring.

Disclaimer: My normal scoring preconditions go flying out the window. This is my first non-critical review. This show is mainly for humor so I review it as such. So my scores are based more on how much laughter I got out of it and less on critical appeal. See the rest of my body of work for something more critical. If you don't agree with my score, please don't downgrade it just because you think the show is stupid or what not.

Summary: Haganai is another average slice of life anime. It's humorous, kinda realistic, and in a club school setting. I didn't expect much ... and I pretty much got what was predicted. I'll just get right down to the specifics. I don't include the sequel although a lot of what I say in this review applies to the sequel.

Story (5/10): For a slice of life anime, I would say this anime had little story compared to some others i've seen. Basically just play out the strange club scenario with every awkward student in school in one club. They have fun, do weird things, and have a "school" life. Sort of. In any event, it lacked any real substance. The only noteworthy piece of storyline was the revelation between Kodoka and Yozura (I didn't name it to avoid a spoiler). Even that was relatively downplayed seeing as romance in this story takes a back seat to comedy. There isn't anything special about this story and there isn't anything to hate. I wrote a shorter story review because story isn't the main draw for Haganai.

Art (10/10): Girls are very curvy, cute, and Kodoka has weird hair. Alright being serious this art style isn't special but it sure is great to look at. No complaints. The color schemes are vibrant and bright. So everything is right in the world.

Sound (8/10): The opening theme is one of those multi-little girl songs that are really hit or miss. Think Toradora opening theme. I personally find those amusing, but after about 6 episodes the opening wears on my nerves. Other songs generally mirror this style. Dubbed version had little fault in voice quality.

Character (10/10): Before i get down to the nitty gritty, i just want to say one thing... MEAT! Yes if there is one thing I got from this anime, it is Yozora picking on Sena MEAT with lots of MEATy insults. But lets start off with Kodoka. He is the supposed boy delinquent who in reality is a good kid. He takes good care of his sister, he cooks well, and he is courteous. His only poor qualities are his a-hole looks and dirty blonde/brown hair. i really liked Kodoka for really simple reasons: he plays his part really well. He is the only guy in the Neighbors Club and he takes a lot of flak and dishes out a lot of humor without meaning to.He also has that little history with Yozora while his dad has history with the school prez. He had some development, but you have to love him more for his comical antics. Yozura is... an a-hole and a darn good one at that. I'm sorry but she is just on a whole nother level from Kodoka. She is so witty with Sena it's not even fair. I don't remember any of the humor from her being too forced. Sena literally walks in to so many of Yozora's pitfalls. She probably made me laugh the most and she was a great character. Oh and her romance/past with Kodoka is probably her only weak spot. Enjoy the mean Yozora because she is the bomb. Now on to Sena MEAT! Ok I'll stop with the meat but Sena really does have meat for brains. She is perhaps the antithesis of everything a talented girl is supposed to be. Sena is smart, athletic, hot, and... unpopular. Yes she is is the daughter of the most powerful figure in the school and she goes herself to the Neighbors Club to find friends. Now this might just be me, but I find this hilarious. More so is her fighting with Yozora. As I said with Yozora except in complete opposition, Sena is an absolute moron if it isn't school related. Oh, and what isn't hilarious about sex jokes with Sena. I literally died over Sena's embarassment when it came to those dating games. Sena is in my opinion the funniest character here because she is so stupid. Moving on to Kobato. Not much to say. She is an anime freak (haha like us all). She can be funny but mostly is just another character. She plays the little sister role perfectly. Next. Yukimura. Ok I found Yuki to be really frickin weird and before you ask, it has everything to do with his gender identity crisis. Thank god he is anime boy and so his looks don't look as awkward in a maid costume. Again sometimes funny, plays the confidence lacking cross-dresser to the letter. Next. Maria. Ok Maria is a nun... and a brat.I've loved many of these opposite social roles but Maria is second best behind Sena. LOL the 10 year old nun who is advisor of the club and gets smacked around by Yozora. I didn't get many laughs but looking back now this role Maria plays is hilarious. Finally Rika. OMG those comics were hilarious. I never would have thought porn and mecha could be so funny. And Rika makes it so much more funny. She is definitely the least realistic character of all (who heard of albert einstein living in a school lab unbeknownst to the public?). But her sex jokes make her one of the funniest characters here. Also the fact that Rika talks third person actually adds to the amusement (whereas the sisters in Railgun made me want to shoot myself after 2 episodes). There we go, all the main characters. The other side characters added to the amusement, especially the school prez.

Enjoyment (10/10): Meat, sex jokes, awkward characters. A diabolical mixture that made this show hilarious. Personally I found this show way better than Baka and Test (which in my opinion was stupid and not funny at all but thats just me). I think my first line kinda sums up how I felt about the enjoyment. It was a hilarious show. I'll leave it at that.

Overall (8/10): Yes you may be wondering why it stands at an 8. First off, the story was a little too mediocre in my view and while I did say I would grade off humor, story still factors in. Frankly I can't think of how to make the story any better because there was little solid premise besides the Neighbors Club. Second, I did factor sound more because I felt a review like this take into account more of art and sound. And the opening theme wore me down towards the end. But besides that, it was well worth watching these awkward characters get together and do hilarious things. As usual I am always up for debate but I have to leave one parting gift for this review. MEAT FOR ALL!!!

PS: If you enjoyed this version of critique please message me. I like to choose what anime I review and if my audience prefers this form a review, I will base my pieces as such.

A long time ago, I had the idea to write a novel with every otaku trope in it, figuring I could capture the entire otaku market spectrum. Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai (Haganai) beat me to it. Goth loli, fujoshi, tsundere, forgotten childhood friends, natural-blonde-haired male lead ... it's all there in one jumbled mess.

What really got me was the number of face-palm, cringe-worthy moments in this show. After all, Haganai is about awkward kids trying to make friends. If you think watching someone with Asperger's try to hit on chicks would be hilarious, go for it. For me, there were quite a few times ... when I felt like just hitting stop and leaving to do laundry or clean the house.

The character interactions are just reused repeatedly throughout the series and they mostly just interact with the male lead, so you get the feeling that some characters are just there to provide fan service. Haganai copies tropes extensively but not to the point of parody, so it feels like a cheap shot compared to Ore no Imouto (which I enjoyed).

Haganai was animated by the same studio that did Ore no Imouto, so the production was well done. There were some endearing moments and a decent yet entirely predictable ending, so it wasn't a total bust. All in all, it's a short series that has some good parts buried underneath the stereotypes and fan service, and while it's certainly not something I would recommend to most, it might be right for you.

"How does one make friends?" If you were asked that question right now, what would your response be? For many, there is no true answer to this question as it all comes down to how one determines who or who doesn't become their friend. In Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai (or Haganai as some will call it), the main protagonist, and practically all the other side characters, attempt to find one of the many answers to this mystifying question. Surrounding this premise is a countless number of comedic moments, delicious fanservice and a tad bit of romance. All this makes for a surprisingly successful series. ...

Art (8/10)
Coming from the same studio that brought us Ore no Imōto ga Konna ni Kawaii Wake ga Nai, it's no surprise that the art style is similar. For me, I really liked how the characters were drawn. They didn't look to be too complex and yet, also seemed sufficiently detailed. The other designs were also easy on the eyes and were enjoyable to watch. Solid animation overall.

Characters (8/10)
Compared to characters from another genre of anime, there wasn't that much character development in Haganai. However, this doesn't mean there wasn't any. On the contrary, there was more than I expected from a series that is classified as a romantic comedy. In general, the characters from a romantic comedy are developed poorly with lots of random comedy and a rushed romantic ending. But in Haganai, almost all the characters, most notably the male protagonist and the two main heroines, developed from being socially awkward people to being able to communicate and interact smoothly with one another. True, this is generally not too big of a deal but considering the whole story is focused on "making friends", I'd say this is kind of development is noteworthy.

Sound (7/10)
This is the weakest category of the four given that sound aspects in this series were above average at best. A upbeat OP and ED does fit the atmosphere of the show but, musically, they didn't appeal to me. The only bright spot in terms of songs was the insert song in the last episode. The BGM was barely noticeable and for the most part unmemorable. The voice acting was decent with names like Itou Kanae (Sena, Ohana [Hanasaku Iroha], Elsie [The World God Only Knows]), Inoue Marina (Yozora, Laura [Infinite Stratos], Yoko [Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagen]) and Hanazawa Kana (Kobato, Kanade [Angel Beats!], Kuroneko [Ore no Imōto ga Konna ni Kawaii Wake ga Nai]) catching my attention.

Story (8/10)
What got me interested in this series was the idea of a story revolving around loners making friends. It's a new concept for me and, to be honest, I had no idea what to expect. Now that I've finished watching it, I can say that the story was executed decently (I don't really have anything to compare it to). I loved how the backstory of two of the main characters was integrated into the series alongside the main story. Even though the cliché "childhood friend" card was used, the result did not follow the same route. With the series left open-ended, a continuation of what was shown in these 12 episodes is possible. If I were to assume this possibility to be true, then I must say that the episodes so far have definitely set up the story quite well.

Overall (8/10)
I think that Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai has exceeded my expectations. Upon starting the series, I was hoping for a romantic comedy to satisfy my cravings for both those genres. Despite the fanservice in some episodes being slightly more extreme than I prefer, the show as a whole - from the story to the characters - was well done. I would honestly recommend Haganai to anyone who wants something entertaining to watch, as long as they can handle the fanservice. It has been a great ride and I'm really hoping for an announcement regarding a second season sometime soon.

Most of the things I get from harem anime without actually watching them is that as good as everyone is basically the same. From the basic premise, over the characters, the setting and most likely the whole conclusion, mostly everything has been done before. This is one of the reasons I don't usually get my eyes on such anime. Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai is an exception though because a very good friend of mine recommended it. "Might as well give it a try", I thought, "It only has 12 episodes, it's something different from the previous stuff I watched and it's on my HDD ... already".
So I managed to sit through the whole thing in two days even if I had huge prejudices against the show - most of them turned out to be justified.

Let's split up this review into the five categories as usual:

Story (4/10):

Boku wa Tomodachi is what seems to be a basic harem anime. You have the more or less dense main character, in this case an outcast who is seemingly "bullied" because of his foreign appearance. This is most likely referring to his hairstyle because he has blond hair while basically looking like everyone else in this show.
From this point on everything is pretty straight to say the least. Kodaka meets a new member for his "No Friends"-club, everything gets quite ecchi-y and in the end he has a whole harem surrounding him. Oh, while we are at it, how come that attractive young girls have no friends whatsoever? I know it's a harem but hey, every guy is popular now at school? It's mostly the male students having trouble finding friends from my experience.
The only thing notable and standing out was the background Kodaka had with his former best friend who he never got to say goodbye to before switching school as well as the little plot twist in the end which was rather predictable because they more or less gave it away a few episodes beforehand.

Art (6/10):

While the art does not offer lots of variety in terms of character design with everyone looking quite plain, also revealing lots of similarities in their design which is most noticable at the girl’s character designs. Pretty mediocre is also the animation as well as the backgrounds. What I did like a lot were the bright colors. They really gave a comfortable mood and fitted the comedy-ish approaches the show had to offer.

Sound (5/10):

The voice actors did a good job on acting the characters and also the opening and ending theme were quite enjoyable. During the watch I didn't really catch any outstanding pieces of music. Most of the time the ambient music was pretty standard.

Character (3/10):

The main issue I had with the show leaving the story aside was the rather dull characters. Again, I know it's a harem but what's wrong with having some standards? The characters were unpopular for quite no reason. The whole "talking to an imaginary friend"-thing seemed more like a plot device to get Kodaka and Yozora into bumping into each other than a real barrier on trying to establish social ties with class mates.
In general the cast was as generic as it could get with Maria being one of the most annoying characters I got to meet in anime.

Enjoyment (5/10):

Despite the shows obvious flaws in major categories I did enjoy it as a flat-humor ridden anime. I watched it in two days so I'd be lying to myself if I said I didn't enjoy it the least.
For fans of comedy shows and the harem genre there is no way they could not like this.

Verdict (4/10*):

I didn't start Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai with lots of expectations. I didn't expect the new messiah of anime itself but it still had some obvious issues in my two most important categories for me, which would be the story and the characters. It's not like it wasn't enjoyable - as said, I have been through it in two days watching five episodes after each other. Maybe I'm just not made for this kind of genre.
A recommendation to harem-fans everyone else should rethink twice if they are looking for a good story and characters. I personally didn't get lot out of it besides the revelation I don't like harem shows.

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*) Score is not an average

This series is about a school club specifically designed to make friends. However, despite the serious topic of making friends, the plot line is not at all serious. No, the show is flat out comedy from beginning to end, and some of the humor will not appeal to everyone, even if some of the humor does appeal. I am also going to admit, that some of the humor is going to be the type that the viewer may question if it is really a good thing to be laughing at.

I mean, you wonder how the characters can be so stupid at times, yet the ... series makes it very clear that the characters within the show, despite having their dumb moments are for the most part rather intelligent. They are, however, horribly awkward when it comes to social issues and this becomes quickly apparent from their lack of realization that they are making friends with each other.

I found myself coming to like all of the characters. They blend and clash in just all the right places to make the entire series interesting, but you also have characterization that is rather off the wall. However, I can also see the characterization grating on some of the viewers nerves. Not to mention some of the jokes may end up being to much for some people. Still, I was left wanting to know what will happen to this rag tag group.

*Review [After finishing eps 1-7]*

Hmm... Well, all I can say is that there's nothing really spectacular about this new series as it uses the same old jokes and themes. The plot is obviously heading to a love triangle or possibly a harem and it's slowly deteriorating in terms of comedy. As for the characters, I've not seen any developments or whatsoever, they are basically a bunch of static stereotypes. I've also noticed that their faces are very similar (with the exception of Kodaka), they only seem to differ according to their hairstyles. The fanservice is also noticable in this one.

For me, that pretty much ... sums it up and I don't mind watching these kinds of series from time to time lol.

Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai deals with a group of introverted friendless pupils who aim to make friends. This anime is your average dosage of ecchi which does not focus on story but on fanservice and laughter. I have to admit that I really enjoyed watching it. But, there are some points that disappointed me and influenced me to give it a lower rating and I’m going to present you these:

Story (5):

As mentioned above, this anime has just a whiff of a story. The main character Kodaka transferred to a new school. Due to his unusual blonde hair and unintended aggressive behavior his classmates avoid ... him and leave him friendless. One afternoon after class, he goes to his classroom and sees Yozora, his classmate, talking to herself (or rather to say her “air friend”). After discussing this issue, Yozora founds the Neighbors Club in order to make friends. Kodaka is forced to join the club. Shortly after the foundation, another girl named Sena joins the club. She and Yozora often fight and see the other as rival. Furthermore, the club is joined by other girls who I’m going to describe in the character section.
This story seems quite interesting but after seeing the first two episodes one quickly realizes that it just forms the shell of the anime while fanservice and comic elements form the core. Therefore, I cannot give the story a higher rating than a five.

Character (8):

Kodaka is your average reserved boy in every ecchi/harem anime, nothing to add. Okay, he has a small background story which is not worth mentioning. Actually, the two interesting characters are the following: Yozora and Sena. Yozora is the leader of the Neighbors Club. She is a witty and barbed girl who always teases Sena. In addition, she has a background story which this review does not cover due to the fact that it would spoiler (even if it is not a stunning spoiler). Sena is our fanservice. Her big boobs are bouncing in almost every scene. She is popular amongst the boys in her school but she does not have any real friends and loves to play VNs. Her rivalry with Yozora refreshes this anime and makes it enjoyable and worth watching. It is very amusing as they are actually similar in their character traits but do nothing except teasing the other.

The supporting characters are simply disappointing me. Kodaka’s sister Kobato and Maria are annoying (just like their voices). Maria’s affection to Kodaka enrages Kobato which results in a fight between them. Yukimura and Rika are just weird to watch.

Art(7):

The animation is okay, nothing innovative or “epoch making” but seriously, what do you expect of an ecchi anime?

Sound (7):

The opening and ending themes are enjoyable and catchy. I like them although they are somewhat strange and exaggerated.
What I really loved while watching the anime were the piano themes. They fit the situation well and are rememberable. But the problem is: they are overused. The themes are repeated in every episode and although I like them they start to annoy you due to the fact that they have a funny character. Though I have to admit I did not notice it until the last two episodes.

Enjoyment (8):

If you are interested in a serious and intertwining plot, this anime is definitely nothing for you. But if you like humorous scenes and you are interested in a not so exaggerated ecchi anime, then give it a try. The “conflict” between Yozora and Sena is enjoyable and funny. I liked this anime and completed it in two days.

Overall (7):

Summing up one can say that this anime is refreshing and funny to watch though the story does barely develop. The story and the weird supporting characters force me to downrate this anime although I would have given it an eight or maybe even a nine. So now I am going to watch the second season and I am excited to see it.



PS: This is my first review. Contact me for criticism. Thank you very much for taking your time reading this review.

Ever thought on how to make friends? A nice easy way without much hassle? well theres a solution now, the Rinjinbu club! ( The Neighbour's club). A club specifically designed just to make friends or so i thought..., while this club contains some very unique characters from attractive galge gamers, to perverted scientists that has very -cough- "special imaginations/fantasies". They are all very nice people and have amazing relationships between each other, wait scrap that... unique is a better word.

Story 7

The story of Haganai (Short for Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai) is a typical high school comedy, joining a club, going out and having ... fun in their own very special way, whether its rubbing sun scream on your friend with your feet, or playing some really realistic fantasy game. While this is a rather normal story line, there is another one that involves Yozora and Kodaka past, I won't say anymore but if you watched the anime its pretty much obvious what's going on after the 2nd episode basically. But the story is simply a backbone of all the comedy that is to follow, what makes Hannagi great is the comedy not the story.

Art 8

The art in Haganai is quite well done, each character design is very well drawn/animated but i guess thats expected of an anime released in 2011. You can't not love Sena and her "Meat" or Kobato's very epic cosplay, that makes her very kawaii! shes just so god damn adorable. The art plays a big part in the comical scenes, examples include very obscure swim suits or unique natural hair colour plus cross dressers . But one thing i can say is that, its very hard to forget about some of the characters appearances once you have watched it.

Sound 6

The sound is so-so, not the strongest point in this anime, but its not exactly important. The opening of Haganai is one of those weird super high pitched ones, i'm personally not a big fan of those. To be honest even at those point i dont even really remember the OST of Haganai =/

Character 8

Each character personality is the thing that defines this anime and makes it amazing. Yozora, innocent yet rude, sarcastic and quite weird acts as the president leader of Rinjinbu club, she provides plenty of funny and rude comments against the chairman's daughter Sena, who has ridiculously big "meat" and is a female galge gamer that is obsessed with each of the in game characters, their personality are practically the direct opposite of each other, but with 1 thing in common they both feel something for Kodaka. But what i will probably never forgot, is Rika's crazy perverted imagination, it can turn an innocent mecha manga into an ecchi scene, ahhh 'UNIVERSEEEE!!" One of my favourite characters is Kobato, i love her cosplay and her jealously when Maria calls kodaka onii chan, jeez "An chan" just realise just how kawaii your sister is =P.

Enjoyment 9

Ths is one of the few anime where i was basically laughing my head off at literally every episode, with funny nicknames, rude comments, crazy imaginations, it truly is an unforgettable anime with scenes that I can watch over and over again on youtube without getting bored of it. If only I can forget about it and watch it again.. -sigh-

Overall 8

This anime has its good and bad points, bad points being quite average sound, and not much of a story, but the good points heavily out weigh the bad ones. I personally found this anime pretty good overall, and is definitely something everyone should watch as you are pretty much guaranteed to laugh out loud at one point during this anime. Also some of the parodies are quite well made, plus it has characters that you can't help but love in the end. I am looking forward to season 2 in Jan 2013 and hopefully it'll jut be as funny!

This anime talks all about FRIENDS! If you're someone who does not have much friend,this anime is perfect for you.You will learn something from this anime,I can guarentee you,this anime is really exciting.

Storyline:
Alright,the story starts with good story development. The first episode is kinda introduction to the character,of course the main one.How they behave,what kind of guy/girl is she/he , and the root of the story is started from the first episode.
But the first episode does not deliver all the information ,what is going to happens next. After watching ep 3,the main punchline of the story started.The ep 3 will tells you the new route ... of the story.

Art/ Animation:
I think for this anime,the art is quite good,but not as good as some new anime recently released.

Sound/music:
This anime has good music(from my opinion) and has some variation. I will give 8/10 for it.

Character:
Every main character of the story has diffrent abilities,realationship,appearance and behavior. Not much supporting character atm,but soon it will. I'm sure you will like the character.

Overall:
This anime is not just let you learn something,but explain the true meaning of friendship value and bond with your friends. Of course we have a lot of friends but,there must be someone called "Best Friend". This anime reminds me,how I got my first friend.hahaha...

I'd heard about Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai (I Don't Have Many Friends, from here on out, Haganai) all over the internet, seen the characters around, and finally stumbled upon the episodes, watching over half the series in one day. Unfortunately, I fail to see why Haganai was regarded as a popular anime series, as the 12 episodes were rough to tough my way through.

Story - 4/10
Usually I find animes based off of light novels are pretty good and I end up liking them a lot, but this was not the case with Haganai. Your basic outcast main characters is of course faced with the ... "trying task" of being surrounded by beautiful girls all head over heels with him for some reason, the reason at this point being all of them are weird and desperate for friends. The two main girls, those with the least wrong with them, I suppose, are both seriously in love and they set it up so that the anime might turn into one of those 'Who's he gonna pick', except he doesn't pick. Disappointingly, they blow it off in favor of an 'everything's back to normal' ending, therefore offering no good resolution to what seemed like a serious romantic plot. As well, the whole thing can't decide if it wants to be a romantic comedy or a slice of life or straight, suffocating fanservice. I have to wonder if the light novel was any better.

Art - 6/10
The animation is just fine, not the best I've seen, but tolerable. I'm not a fan of when their shirt is sculpted unnaturally to their boobs, and I'm also not a fan of ecchi involving seven year old girls, but I get that some people are so I don't count it as a big deal.

Sound - 6/10
Not a very noticeable soundtrack, and the title sequence was very loud and in-your-face. Just remember to keep your volume down so it doesn't blow any speakers.

Character - 6/10
The characters are made up of your basic tropes for a harem--the sister figure (there are actually like 3), the cold chick, the bubbly, big boobed girl, the pervy one...etc. etc. The main two girls your MC has to pick from are the cold, standoffish Yozora and the bubbly, loud cry-baby Sena. However, Rather than being cold and standoffish, Yozora spends the entire series bullying Sena, and comes off as nothing short of, for lack of a better word, a bitch. Yet, for some reason, our useless MC prefers her to the girl that is actually nice to him, just for the sole purpose of falling in love with the childhood friend. All in all, the endless trope make it tiring, and there is little to no character development anyway.

Enjoyment - 5/10
As for overall enjoyment, the series bored me. As a romantic comedy, it was lack luster and unsatisfying. As a slice of life, it was easily thrown off the deep end by all of the over-the-top character types. As a straight comedy, the jokes were all relationship or sexually based. I was bored. If anything, my enjoyment comes from it being over.

Haganai is not the worst anime I have ever seen, but it certainly doesn't scale very high. If you've been seeing the big-boobed blonde girl around the internet or her weird hair colored guy friend, that's basically all there is to the anime; 12 episodes of girls screaming and fawning over weird hair color guy, and there isn't a very satisfying ending as a reward for braving the series. Good luck.

Friendship comes in many flavors. One type includes gigantic lazer beams from an orange-haired girl in a white dress; another involves interpersonal attraction, the one that involves physical and personality attraction. Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai asks questions based on the latter: “What is a friend? Do good friends exist? If they do, will they add me on Facebook?”

The answer, of course, is, “It’s someone who you ask for money. Yes, they are also known as rich people. And yes, they will.”

Without a doubt, Boku not Pico refuses to acknowledge the true definition of friendship. It is romanticist in its ideals, believing that friends are ... people whom you trust in and can talk to. This is what Boku not Pico is all about: making friends.

And money.

Boku not Pico is made for the sake of fans and money. Even before reading any of the reviews, you should know what you’re getting into. If not, then there is a good chance you will not like this work. Consider this to be one of those animes made for otakus; it takes a special breed of people to enjoy this work to its full potential.

Anyone watching this work who invest a whole lot of emotions on characters will definitely get disappointed. Everyone is unappealing at its core.

The work deliberately uses other archetypes from other works with no manipulation whatsoever: Hasegawa Kodaka has the same personality traits (criminal-looking, antisocial, forgettable) as that male character in Toradora! and the girls are clones of Oreimo’s Kirino and Kuroneko characters. Kobato is a nod to Kuroneko (same seiyuu) as well. There is no interesting twist to the archetypes whatsoever, except for Yozora.

Note the unnaturalness of the cast: Kodaka is stiff and boring; Yozora reminds me of annoying grandmas (and mothers); Sena should be casted for a leading role in 90210. Everyone else in the supporting cast is okay, but they are only used to throw lame jokes into the audience. Shiguma Rika, who has an uncanny resemblance to Ace Attorney’s Ema Skye, can only make perverted jokes. Her distinctive quality melts into the hell known as the obnoxious zone. Kusunoki makes trap jokes; Maria makes kids’ jokes; the list goes on. All of the characters’ art design look displeasing visually; they feel like flattened versions of visual novel character art.

That said, the pandering to Oreimo fans is entertaining. It is no mistake to consider this an Oreimo clone; it’s done by the same studio for Lain’s sake! In Oreimo, the episodes featuring the two rival otakus always had them fighting to prove they have the better taste in anime. Here, it’s almost the same. Yozora and Sena instead fights for pride (and bigger breasts). The studio has finally attained enlightenment: “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Good money comes in; the Oreimo fans and casual viewers are happy. Why stray from the formula of being mindless entertainment?

Because all animes need drama! Right, people?

A romantic love triangle is almost a must-have in romance works, in general. Some of them can be masterful, almost touching my cold and bloodless heart. Other times, it gives me heartburn. People should run up and scream to the screen, “That girl’s in love with you, you nincompoop! Stop dating other girls!” This is no School Days, but it is. Kodaka is even stupider than Itou Makoto of School Days fame. There is a subplot involving both Kodaka and another female character and the studio did a bad job at hiding the mystery. This subplot becomes grueling to the mind. Add in a love triangle subplot that's as romantic and relatable as Mitt Romney and you get yourself a winner!

There is no uniqueness in the soundtrack. Mediocre at best. Nothing is spectacular and some of the tracks are grating to the ears. Boku not Pico’s OP requires listeners to have paid health insurance for auditory damages; it is painful to listen or watch a second of it. Oh, the fanservice! The ED is more interesting to listen, but not too memorable.

With all these ramblings about how much I disliked the work, there is one question that must have popped up into your mind:

Did I enjoy it?

Kinda.

As I said, the Oreimo formula is fun and the way the writers write it can be somewhat creative and unexpected. No one can replace Kirino and Kuroneko in my mind, but Yozora and Sena still has a fun relationship dynamic that bounces up and down like a stock market. Kobato is just plain cute -- Kana Hanazawa, you win this round. The supporting characters can be a blast and the references, if you get it, are clever and witty.

It is obvious who will like this work and who doesn’t. If you enjoyed Oreimo, Toradora!, and slice-of-life works that achieve no sense of cultural purpose, then this is a safe bet to watch. Everyone else will have a hard time watching. I suggest you to turn off your post-Eva brain, insert antidepressants into your nervous system, and have a good laugh.

If you cannot, then give it a 6. Which is what I did. It is hard for me to give this work above a 6. There is a degree of likability, but it is engulfed by the overpowering flaws that will forever haunt this work. What a pity. It could have been a nice guilty pleasure for me, but it failed badly at it.

At first, I believed "Haganai" would have been a series with some quality drama, effective character development and/or deep insight into the meaning friendship but I was sadly mistaken. The atmosphere created from the first couple episodes mislead me to think that the series was going delve deeply into the concept of friendship but rather it quickly began to take the slice of life/comedy/harem route and made use of some cliche themes and characters. For the most part "Haganai" didn't turn out too bad, it offered a great quality of humor and entertainment via parodies, references, sexual innuendos, hilarious conflicts between characters and of ... course for certain viewers, fan service like the usual emphasis on breasts, swimsuits and there are also a couple of episodes where it goes just a bit too far in my opinion but it typically came in fair doses almost every episode.

"Haganai" contains a small and rather eye catching set of characters, most of which are rather cliche and some with exaggerated personalities, but even so, watching characters such as Rika and Kobato and the conflicts between Yozora and Sena provided loads of comedy and kept the show entertaining enough to keep me laughing and tune in every week. The supporting characters were still successful in capturing my attention throughout series because of all the random humor but still remained rather static in terms of character development. Aside from their abilities to entertain me, they didn't really have much else to offer, in fact some of these characters did not really feel like a character at all, they felt like they were there for the sole purpose to tell jokes or acted as eye candy. Moving onto our leads, I felt that Sena never really changed at all and sadly stays as the typical tsundere, and as for the other two, I could only witness a slight bit of growth between Yozora and Kodaka but alas it was mostly during their confrontation at the end of the series meaning there wasn't enough time to conclude whether the two really changed from that at all.

I'm sure no one expected the background artwork in "Haganai" to be anything amazing but there is definitely one thing the animators did exceptionally well on, and that was the detail and coloring on the characters, mostly the facial features. I was able to quickly notice that there was definitely more effort in detailing the redness on the cheeks and they also focused on the lips when the characters are in a bit more focus just like the style used in "Denpa Onna to Seishun Otoko" (and go figure, it's the same character designer). The eyes were also done with great detail on most of the characters, I really enjoyed how they put some thought into the color scheme like how a couple of character's eye color matches their hair nicely, or how Sena's blue eyes matches her blue hair clip, and even Kobato's red and blue contacts made her stand out. I really felt that all of the attention put into detailing the characters really pays off as the end result really makes the characters look much more appealing, in fact some more than the main characters.

Moving right along to the audio, the OP "Zannenkei Rinjinbu (Hoshi Futatsu Han)" and ED "Watashi no Kimochi" were both composed by professional musician/guitarist Tom-H@ck, who also composed all of the opening themes for the popular K-ON! series. Both singles are somewhat fast paced j-pop/rock songs which hold lyrics relevant to the theme of making friends and the songs themselves were fairly decent and not too hard on the ears although I personally enjoyed the ED much more with the low voice of Marina Inoue accompanied by a strong guitar presence. As for the voice acting, the most notable performance in my opinion was from Hanazawa Kana's role as Kobato as she did a splendid job on juggling between speaking in a goth/aristocratic fashion (that's how I like to describe it anyways) and her cute childish voice, nevertheless the rest of the VAs still provided a great a voice for their respective roles, definitely no complaints here.

Finally coming to the story of "Haganai", it carried the simple theme of making friends but soon developed into a bit of an episodic series after all the characters in the club were introduced about a third of the way in, which. For me, it became one of those shows where I just sit back, enjoy and not have to pay too much attention to specifics, but that was also the problem, the amount of random humor in every episode was sadly what the show was mostly comprised of. Although I can't say the show completely strayed away from the theme of making friends after all, the characters in the club did become more acquainted and friendly with one another, but I couldn't help but realize the end felt rather ironic seeing them be together like friends would but yet they deny or don't acknowledge the fact that they are. It was just a shame though, the series could have had more room for a richer story had the focus not been so much on comedy and cliche ideas.

"Haganai" was a bit misdirecting right at the start because of the intriguing insight made into the concept of friendship in episode one but it immediately developed into something less intelligent. I was rather disappointed with this quick change in atmosphere as the show became more of a slice of life/comedy/romance series, but regardless the show contained some effective chemistry between the characters that made it fairly entertaining, hilarious and full of life despite them being cliche or unrealistic. Despite a story really lacking depth, slow progression, and subpar characters, "Haganai" still turned out to provide a decent watching experience for me and is definitely a show for anyone that is looking for some uplifting entertainment with loads of random humor and doesn't mind the typical fan service or cliche themes being tossed around a bit, but don't expect much else.

This is my first encounter with slice of life genre. High school animes I normally watch always have supernatural/sci-fi twist because I assumed without it, it would be just like American TV shows. I'm glad I'm proven wrong because now I have a plethora more anime to watch.

Characters: The male main character,Kodaka is likeable. He appears to be a delinquent but really just want to have friends. He is afraid of change and this fear is the driving force for the main plot.
Pretty much every stereotype of a girl is in this anime. There is the childhood friend Yozora, Koda's Siscon sister, ... Kobato, the Lolicon Maria, the love-interest/Bishōjo Sena, the smart Rika, and the maid/butler Yukimura.

Art: As you expect from a modern Anime. Good looking character model and scenery.

Plot: Mainly watched it for its enjoyment.