Ranked #318

Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu Ni!

What happens if you combine PaniPoniDash! with FinalFantasy Tactics and the visual style from the Scott Pilgrim movie/comic ??? I think the result would be Baka To Test, the funniest anime I have seen in a long time !

It is directed by Shin Oonuma and is based on an idea by Kenj Inoue. The plot is fairly simple, it resolves around students at the Fumizuki Academy fighting for better grades and better school rooms. Which is funny, because the protagonists from Class F have the worst school room at the whole academy (completed by an inquisition club ! XD ). But the thing is, every fight in this anime is shown as a Summoner Test War: Once you get the permission from a teacher, the student is able to summon his own chibi beast and in most cases he fights against students from different and higher classes. If you loose, you have to suffer through the aftermath classes from the teacher Ironman :)

Now the characters are all somewhat stereotypical, you have the idiotic shonen hero (Akihisa Yoshi), the misunderstood genius (Yuji), the German exchange student and flat-chested tsundere girl (Minami), the shy dojiko girl (Himeji) the pervert with the camera (Muttsurini), a shemale (Hideyoshi) and so on and so on. The character chemistry in every scene is just funny as hell ! Especially because you see most situations from Akihisa`s perspective and as a true idiot, he misunderstands pretty much everything ! For example in one scene Minami says in broken Japanese "Watashi ......" while Akihisa understands "What a shit !", making Minami only more aggressive.

The humour from Baka To Test relies heavily on running gags. But don`t get me wrong, it is not annoying ! Most jokes are pretty smart in their own way because each joke slightly alters over the time and things are going to happen you never expected in your whole life. There are also some parodies from more popular anime. But unlike PaniPoniDash! the parodies aren`t that "in your face", they are more like easter-eggs you can discover if you want to. I can remember that CodeGeass, NeonGenesisEvangelion, Hatsune Miku and Izaya Kanra from Durarara!! were parodied.

What I also love about Baka To Test is the pure versatility: Some episodes are more about the summon beast battles, while other episodes show us how the boys from Class F deal with the girls (or teachers ^^) from the academy. Heck, there is even some card playing and cross-dressing involved ! The only episode I disliked was the beach episode ...... Seriously, beach episodes in general are boring and contribute nothing to the plot-development ! That`s the only thing I dislike about modern anime, but that`s me.

The character-design from Yui Haga is great ! My favourite characters are the green-haired Aiko Kudou, Minami`s sister Hazuki, Himeji and of course, Muttsurini. I don`t know, this guy is just moe in his own way and the way he interacts with his camera is just funny. I also like his bored facial expression and his random ninja clothes. He kinda reminds me on an old school-mate from my old secondary school. He wasn`t that perverted as Muttsurini, but they resemble each-other a lot :)

But I digress. The music is great as well ! Of course it is not progressive music with oddtime signatures, complex chords and whatnot, but it is indeed pretty catchy and just likeable. The only thing I can criticize is the lack of a real character introduction. In the first episodes you just got thrown in the bizarre world of Baka To Test and it`s up to you to learn more about the characters. Maybe that`s why some people oversaw or even disliked this comedy gem ???

I don`t know and to be honest I give a fuck.

Although being a completely different genre, LegendOfTheGalacticHeroes suffered from the same problem IMO. Why don`t you explain each character's background at the beginning from the show and not later in the second season ?

Whatever.

So yeah, here I am writing and praising about Baka To Test. My high rating is of course subjective, but to be honest you have to be very nitpicking for disliking this comedy gem (I never understood how average if not boring shows like LuckyStar, School Rumble or Zero no Tsukaima are getting so high ratings while all of my favourite shows are ........ Oh nevermind XD )

Just sit down, watch it and enjoy the show. I highly recommend this anime !


Suggestion-list for similar anime:

- AngelBeats (Really, the graphics are pretty much the same !)
- Scott Pilgrim ( Not Japanese, but I find the whole videogame aesthetic very similar to each-other)
- Mitsudomoe (Akihisa's voice actor appears in both anime as the IDIOT ! )
- Seto no Hanayome (Both of them are genius and insane entertainment !)


PS: Rewatch-value is pretty high ! read more

Updated up to the Final Episode!

Baka to Test to Shokanjuu Ni! where to start... Haha. After I saw the first season when it came out I was left wanting more. What with the unique battle system they have in the series and the amazingly hilarious cast of characters, I totally wanted another season, and here my prayers were answered with another season of Baka!

Story:
Not really sure how to describe the story, there is a story behind it all, its just overshadowed by the fact that the anime is hilarious at every turn. Its not the main drive for the anime, the characters interactions and hilarity drive the show. This season actually did have more story elements in it than the last though, and it was pretty well written, becoming quite emotional at some points as we learn about how Minami falls for Aki and how Shouko fell for Yuuji.

Art:
I love the character designs in Baka, especially since they are able to make a wonderful mix of amazingly cute chibis to MEGA SERIOUS FACE transitions superbly. The chibis are used during discussions between the characters at some points and of course during summon battles where their summons are actually the characters themselves chibi-fied and armored. This season also threw in one last artistic win with the final two episodes changing the summons into a Halloween-esc theme, with the summons ranging from headless to vampires to brick walls!

Sound:
I didn't really like the Opening and Ending for this one. Compared to Season 1 and the OVA Opening and Endings this was subpar at best. They aren't catchy or memorable like the others and you can't really say, "Oh my god, another musical ear worm from Baka!". Though as the season went on the OP and ED did become an earworm to be honest. I guess it was the kind of music you had to listen over and over to to become addicted, not sure if its a good or bad thing. The soundtracks in the background were also fantastic, especially in the episode about Minami's past.

Character:
I love the characters. They have a little bit of everything in this anime! Aki is the idiot that all animes need (He might just be a little to idiotic sometimes). But when push comes to shove he always come through like a true anime idiot does! Yuuji is the total badarse of the anime, with the epic character design and attitude to go with him. Mutsurini... I love Mutsurini, he is an idol to all men everywhere, he's a ninja, photographer and somehow he's a pervert that girls don't hate. I want him to teach me his ways. Hideyoshi the trap... He never gets old, right from the get go they still won't let him be a boy, and honestly, it never gets old. Then the girls themselves are amazing as well. Minami is amazing with her tough attitude and abuse of Aki. Himeji is the shy girl that turns into an evil demon when things go wrong (evidence = end of episode one). Shoko.... She terrifies me with how she abuses Yuuji, honestly, I think she could kill us all. I love it.

Enjoyment:
Well if it isn't obvious yet I love Baka to Test to Shokanjuu Ni!. The second season is everything I wanted it to be, with its hilarity, serious moments, cross dressing, and idiocy! What more could I ask for? (Maybe some moar Mutsurini awesomeness... The show might implode if we get too much though. I thought it was going to implode, freaking assassination's he pulled this season were epic!)

Overall, I'm sittin' here waiting for more episodes because honestly, nothing will stop me from watching this amazingly hilarious anime that is Baka to Test! read more