Minami-ke

Funny doesn't even begin to cover it. I laugh out loud every episode. This show just really cracks me up. It's just so absurd and lively and hilarious.

Story: There's no real continuous plot. It really is slice of life in that Seinfeldian "show about nothing" sort of way. Despite the fact that there's no real story line, it manages to find such absurdity and humor in what should be the simplest, most mundane human interactions and relationships.

Art: Even the art is funny. The characters' expressions and body language just adds to the unexpected humor of every situation, ... whether it's their over-the-top enthusiastic poses or the random adult glares they give each other once in a while. The art is also consistent and despite the fact that the background characters all look similar, I find that they're all easy to distinguish from each other and that they are consistent through the series, which I like.

Sound: Okay, if you've ever seen any of my other reviews or anything -- I normally do not pay any attention to openings and endings, except to generically note that I don't like them. I *LOVE* this show's opening and ending for some reason. It's bouncy and bubbly and absolutely perfect for the show. The opening is one of those cheerful running openings (like Gokusen) and it just hits the nail right on the head in terms of attitude and atmosphere of the show.

And the actors who do the voices of the three sisters do such a great job, especially the two younger sisters -- Chiaki is so deadpan and dry and Kana is so mindlessly enthusiastic. Perfect. =)

Character: I don't know if I've ever seen just a compilation of silly, hilarious characters in one show before. And it's really amazing that the show manages to balance all these ridiculous personalities together to work at making such a funny show without going too far and tiring out the audience. Even the supporting characters you see for one or two episodes, like the various classmates of the girls, are charmingly wacky and endearing. And don't forget the main characters! These girls are each so individual and carefully created that you can almost guess how they'd react in conversations they've never had in the show. They do a great job of subtly filling out all the details of their unique personalities that you get a very strong feeling that they're real and you know them, from the serene and nurturing Haruka to Kana's crazy, pedal to the metal perspective on life and the fact that little Chiaki makes you wonder if a dry, jaded old man somehow got stuck in an elementary school girl's body.

Enjoyment: I love this show. I've already rewatched episodes and it still cracks me up on repeat viewings. And I think other people love this show too, but this is just my guess. ;) Go watch this show!!

Okay well considering there are 7 reviews about minami ke when i finished watching this. So How am i going to get this review noticed? Easy and in one sentence too.
95% like Ichigo Mashimaro
But what do you expect from the same production company? (Domu)

Now with that said. Everything about this screams Ichigo Mashimaro. Sure theres only "3 main characters" as opposed to 5 main characters. Three would be the bare minimum for a slice of life comedy about a plain depiction of the days of the lives of the Minami sisters. Even before the show starts it says don't expect to much. What they ... say is 100% truth considering its practically Ichigo-M sequel. Now it is up to the viewer to figure out if that is a good thing or bad thing. And in my opinion its a VERY good thing.

Two of the main characters are complete polar opposites.Kana is they energetic outgoing idiot, whereas Chiakiis the quiet conservative genius. The third sister, Haruka is only there as an easy medium to balance out the Minami-ke formula. Haruka is such a perfect "in-between" character that i love her the most of the three. She can be cool headed, hot headed, smart, AND dumb and still make it all believable. What also helps the characters out is such a STRONG Seiyu cast. Allthough it does feel like they did a little type-casting. Like Marina Inoue does the voice of Kana, she also did the voice for Yoko (Gurren Lagann) and Mina (Getsumento). And Minori Chihara (of Yuki Nagato and Minami Iwasaki fame) doing the voice as the usually quiet Haruka. A good thing about typecasting though is that you know that you're getting a perfect voice for that character and these girls are perfect for their roles. But one can't help that the characters are cookie cutter replicas of Miu and Chika (Kana and Chiaki)in manner attitude and habits.

Artwork is pretty standard fare coming from Domu, all pastel colors. It all works just fine to promote a warm cozy enviroment. Never any harsh, quick action moving, visuals. There are a few high kicks thrown in for laughs but overall the humor and comedy keeps the visuals from being too much of a distraction. Everything might be in pastel, but everything is accounted for. Laundry hanging on the balcony, to the different ingredients of their snacks and dinners. The enviroment looks very plain but lets not forget this is a story about 3 girls. So everything is usually going to be very clean and organized and you will notice that right away. Literally the only settings that are shown for this show is going to be the girls apartment and the classroom. Each episode will have a different location to keep things fresh but things are usually kept in those two locations. Another nice art twist is how they do the shadowy face and the teardrop mouth. They're good choices to keep the animations a little more unique.

The strongest part of the show is the comedy and if you know anything about Domu is that this is where they shine the best. No matter what setting they have, just as long as they have girls in the story they can make the funniest situations out of NOTHING. They can make drinking a bottle of water or sitting a table hilarious. And thats what most people will love about this show. Theres no story (comon its a sitcom) don't bother trying to find one. They tell at the start of every episode there is no story, just funny situations. There is not enough props for Domu for making some of the best sitcom anime in the industry ^_^ Whats so great about their story telling is that it feels so fresh and more hilarious with every new episode. You can watch any episode and will still be funny to you 10 years from now.

Well I'm sure I've beaten the cookie cutter aspect of the show to a pulp by now but one thing that isnt the same as Ichigo-M is that its not as infected with cuteness as its predecessor. And thats why I will score this higher than Ichigo-M. Me being american, sitcoms will always have a place in my life. Of course sitcom anime isn't for some people. If you don't like sitcoms or too analytical for a sitcom then please dont watch this. If you want to watch funny things unfold for random characters then this show is just for you! Regardless this is another hit made by Doumu.

Story (8/10)

Minami-ke is a slice of life comedy centring on the three Minami sisters (no mention of any other family except a distant relative) and their friends as they go about their lives – usually with hilarious consequences. Each episode is portrayed in short segments spread throughout, much like azumanga diaoh with each segment having its own theme, but usually fitting round a general episodic storyline. The vast majority of the story takes place at the girls various schools (each sister attends a grade school) and at home, giving a wide scope for hilarity to ensue, with most of the comedy coming from the younger ... sisters Chiaki and Kana.

Although there may not be a storyline moving towards a dramatic ending, as the genre’s nature is, each episode is well written to bring a smile to the face. The way the story is portrayed with the characters and the styling, make this one of the most fun and enjoyable series that you’ll watch – its just good fun.

Art (9/10)

The art in Minami-ke is commonly called soft art, whatever they call it, it fits in with the story and the characters brilliantly. The character designs are some of the best I have seen, every aspect of the characters is well animated, and I love the facial animations – especially the tear drop mouth. The backgrounds are all nicely done, and the schools and Minami home are all animated well.

My only complaint with the animation is the tendency to switch styles when the girls are being serious to a more hardened styling. The first time it happens it’s quite a shock, usually involving facial close ups, with additional details added to the eyes and nose detail – it just seems out of place with the rest of the animation being so soft, and they could probably have had the same effect without resorting to a different animation style. This is a small complaint though and the rest of the artwork is beautiful.

Sound. (9/10)

The OP isn’t to my tastes but is lively, happy and catchy, generally a good mood setter for the series, the ED is again lively and if anything catchier than the OP. The voice acting is of a high standard throughout the anime, everything sounding right, from Kana’s relentlessly enthusiastic voice to Chiaki’s slightly deeper (not in a bad way!) dead pan voice work really well with the characters.

The background music involved reminds me of the background music from azumanga diaoh - it sets the pace of the segments where it is used, and is normally timed for comedic effect and adds in that extra little bit of fun to the anime.

Characters (10/10)

This show works because of its strong range of characters and supporting characters throughout the series, with most of the supporting characters getting better development than main characters from other animes.

The Minami sisters work brilliantly well, with Kana’s abundance of energy and lack of common sense being offset by Chiaki’s superior wit and intolerance for idiots. That said it’s up to Haruka to keep the peace, although this is not easy as both siblings vie for Haruka’s affection at every turn.

The supporting cast is very strong, with a few strong recurring characters, each of them likeable, my only complaint was about the gender bending Makoto/Mako, while his initial cross dressing was hilarious, the more often ‘Mako’ turned up the less I liked the character, however this was somewhat offset with the introduction of Touma (not really a gender bender, as had it forced upon her) later in the series, which seemed to give Makoto a counter balance which I felt was needed.

What makes this show such a success is the way the characters combine, and would not have been half as funny if the extensive range of characters were not involved. The continual battle of wits between Chiaki and Kana is brilliant to watch, and the way they both manipulate their friends into their schemes is highly amusing.

Enjoyability (10/10)

This is one of the most enjoyable series I have seen, the characters are wonderfully developed and animated and the scripting for the episodes is brilliant – you’ll get at least on good laugh out of every episode, which is basically what this type of series is about, putting a smile of the viewers face.

Overall (9/10)

Miname-ke sets a high standard across the board for it portrayal of brilliant characters, fantastic animation and brilliant use of music. Each storyline brings something new, and you never know what to expect except that its going to be hilarious. I had been looking for a while for something that could compete for laughs with azumanga diaoh’s slapstick comedy and in Miname-ke I found it – in fact its probably the best anime of its type out there at the moment.

Minami-ke is a Slice of Lice, Comedy about the ordinary lives of 3 ordinary sisters. You can’t get more ordinary than this, yet the mild mannered comedy is a sure win.

This short series is a typical slice of life, portraying the usual daily lives of 3 sisters. The story is basically structured by going from one random short story/event to the next with not much liking these events together. There’s nothing complex about story as the events are just the usual things we all experience in life: eat, go to school, hang out with friends, study and sleep. The only thing that makes this ... slice of life interesting is the comedy side of things. There’s quite a lot of light-hearted humour scattered around, with a lot of it being some kind of pun or just making fun typical clichés. But the comedy wouldn’t be as good, if it weren’t for the likable characters.

The three Minami sisters are the main characters that make the series so enjoyable. First we have Haruka the well-mannered and responsible older sister, Kana the idiotic and eccentric middle sister and finally we have Chiaki the cute, cold-hearted little sister. The way they interact with one another is hilarious and the supporting characters are enjoyable to watch as well (Hosaka).

At first glance the animation looks as ordinary as the series with no need to flesh it out, on parodies and such. The change in their facial expressions adds to the hilarity of the series and overall it is also fairly fluid. The music is okay for this slice of life but it doesn’t add or take away anything from the viewing experience, as it feels more like a neutral element.

Overall Minami-ke is a great light-hearted comedy, showing the ordinary lives of ordinary girls however the level of comedy can seem pretty stale for some but the rest of us will enjoy it. I particularly enjoyed the “Sensei and Ninomiya-kun” moments that randomly popped up throughout the series. So if you tired of watching the same old shounen anime or just want more of the same thing from other similar comedies, then this is worth checking out.

^_^

I just recently finished watching Minami-ke, and now, among other watchers, I'm sure, waiting to see the second series because I just enjoyed it that much.

Minami-ke's story is simple: 3 sisters living on their own living their daily lives. The pacing is slow, but since the genre is slice-of-life, it doesn't need to go any faster. No romance can be found here (though there are the slight moments of infatuation and sexual references).

Each episode had something about it that usually would make one laugh out loud. There is just something about the girls' personalities and their relationship with one another that makes it so ... funny- especially with Kana and Chiaki.

I loved all the characters, personal favorite being Kana, the densest of this sisters and also the craziest. Chiaki, the youngest sister, doesn't take crap from anybody, yet she shows a gentle side around her older sister at times. The older sister is Haruka, the domestic sister who plays the role of the mother (where are the parents, anyway?!). All the characters are so silly and likeable- including every supporting one as well.

The opening and ending theme work well; I liked the upbeat and wacky feeling to the opening theme. I also really liked the music in the background, each track fit in with what was going on with the scene. The voice actors were perfect- especially with Chiaki, deadpan, arrogant, and with a no-nonsense tone.

To the bored, to the comedic anime-deprived, to anyone at all, Minami-ke is a perfect choice to brighten a day with its antics.

I couldn't have finished it if they wouldn't have justified the boredom with the intro sentence explaining that this is just a story about 3 girls and nothing special. To be frank, this series is absolutely boring. I do have a broad taste in humor an also often laugh about things most people wouldn't even take as a joke - in short - i don't hesistate when there's something remotely funny. But in this show the only real funny thing was the running gag about the drama tv show the three sisters are following. "sensei!" ... "ninomya-kun!" ... "sensei!"

That got me giggle every now and ... then, but the rest was plain mediocre. At some point i was hoping that they would turn it into a love triangle rom-com. Then at least something interesting would be going on.

But, i don't wanna bash this show. In all fairness they at least apologize before each episode so i can't be too hard on them. It was alright, but do take the intro sentence seriously! They mean it. It is ordinary and may be overlooked without regrets.

When I first heard about this "comedy/slice of life" anime, it seems like all I ever heard was how much this title is like another anime called Ichigo Mashimaro. I have to say that they were indeed right, it is a lot like it! In fact just watching this anime, feels more along the lines of an actual "anime sitcom."

Story: 7/10
Since this is a "slice of life" anime it has to be rated on its episode by episode plots. Her we find ourselves partaking in the daily lives of the three Minami sisters, who live alone in an apartment. The story will range from one ... of the supporting male members trying to confess their love for one of them, to the girls having problematic trouble at school. One odd thing that caught my eye was the fact that more than 80% of the actual anime takes place either in the three sister’s living room, or at school. One important aspect that this title makes sure to do with its story, is keeping the audience entertained. This is especially true with "the slice of life genera." And I am happy to say that Minami-ke does it very well. The situations that occur can be down right funny at times. Kana is probably the funniest of the anime, she is so random and says things that might fly over the viewer’s head, its the kind of humor that is intentionally not suppose to make sense though. (especially since her sisters don’t get half of them either) Now its not all left up to this one character to keep the episodes funny, as Miname-ke is also complimented with a very funny supporting cast. One of the best ones is a guy named "Makoto, " he is not welcomed into the sisters apartment, (one of them isn’t too fond of him for her own reasons) so he decides to dress up as a girl in order to visit them when he wants to, which many female jokes are played off of. I can’t say that all the episodes are winners, as some were definitely better than others, but it overall came together. Unsurprisingly there isn’t any real end to this season, (there are two others, one of which will air next year) as you could pretty much place the final episode anywhere in the count and it wouldn’t matter.

Miname-ke doesn’t push any envelopes with its content, but does include some "female style jokes" that may raise an eyebrow with children, nothing over a PG rating though.

Artwork: 8/10
Its pretty good, it certainly won’t win any awards in the art department, as its suppose to come off more as a soft style anime, and that is how it can be best described as..."soft art." For some reason the characters mouths seemed to stand out for me, because of their more triangular shapes, they almost would remind me of rabbits...or perhaps fish. (maybe its just my own imagination) One thing I found to be kind of creepy, was when ever on of the sisters would get into a more serious mood, they drew them like evil eyed adults. Not sure why they did this, it seemed a bit out of place and unnecessary, and felt a tad over used in the end.

Soundtrack: 7/10
Both closing and opening themes are port-raid in a happy up beat song, it kind of makes you feel like you can do anything once you watch them both. (kind of gun-ho style of songs) The background music is pretty sparse as expected, many scenes occur with no tracks at all, trying again to appeal to a more relaxed feel. When it does play some it comes in the form of a soft "piano style" melody, I really liked it! The best part though is the character voices, all of them fit well with one another and I couldn’t find one out of place with the character.

Characters: 8/10
In any slice of life anime the characters are a crucial part of the series, you can’t enjoy it unless you like them. Thankfully these three sisters each have their own likable personalities; which range from out going (Kana), to very discrete (Chiaki), to some where in the middle. (Haruka the eldest) Some people may be turned off some what by Kana, since she tends to like doing things her own way, and does seem to interfere with situations at time, but nothing major. The only real bad thing I can think of regarding the characters, is that since this is a comedy title-- many of them (the supporting cast) tend to act like one another, and some of them we never really get to know who they are. To help with this though, the more unique supporting characters do get pretty good spotlight time, as the anime will tend to shift to their situations at times. Which was nice, and won’t make you feel like you’re just watching the three sisters all the time.

Bottom Line: 8/10
Minami-ke is a nice title if you’re in the mood for a more realistic sense of humor. The characters aren’t particularly deep, but the humor in this is what makes the anime a winner! The three sisters are a likable and funny bunch, and should capture your hearts when it's over. It's by no means a perfect anime, but regardless...this is still one "slice of life" anime, that is worth sampling a piece of.

Minami-ke is hilarious. I cried from laughing, even the second time I watched it. The characters are wonderful; it's not one of those comedies that feels like random gags, but slice-of-life where the humor is more integrated in day-to-day happenings (even though there isn't much in the way of story progression).

The artwork is very well done, but it's made for the humor, not necessarily to be pretty. Especially Kana's expressions crack me up. And her "I AM BOSS" t-shirt makes me laugh every time I think about it. Actually pretty much everything about Kana cracks me up. The voice ... acting is also excellent, and really strengthens the characters.

It seemed really awkward that they'd change animation styles when the animators were trying to poke fun at the characters being serious, but instead of becoming less detailed in animation (like normal humor), it became more detailed. Sometimes it was funny, but usually it was just weird.

Minami-ke is about 3 sisters living a very simple and random life ~ DONT you dare to think thats cliche! Because Minami-ke is something different.

Its a very random anime indeed. Every epidose is something different but the lines,the character designs,voice actings are just amazing.

The most attaractive thing on this anime is the "reactions". You must watch it! I loved it because it so simple.. yet so funny.. and thats a hard thing to do ~

1st Impression:
Silly, but genius. It's not your everyday-wacky-ultra-exaggerated comedy anime, This is a good example of comedy anime honestly.

Selling Point(s):
Character's charm, Light but yet silly enough hillarious moments, nice directing for the pace of the anime

Reason Of Liking the anime:
This anime almost killed me. From start to the end, i was forced to laugh out loud, even i 've tried as hard as possible not to. Mysteriously, with the 3 sisters , Haruka (gentle and kind), Kana (silly + idiotic) , and Chiaki (Moe(?) + arrogant), they have formed such great chemical mixture of charm, which cant stop the people from loving them. If ... you think those 3 sisters are enough, you better off check out the side characters .. though you might end out having stroke for laughing too much.

The story - well, pretty much common slice of life, but with the nice directing skill applied to anime, every momments is the classic, packed with tons of light humor. What's great is that, this anime doesn't even need to be shoved in fan services just to make a fan laugh! A definitely a must watch for those who look for true comedy genre anime.

a 10 for this classic comedy anime.

What I Dislike:
None

Advice(s):
1) For all ages, a must watch if you want to laugh your misery away.
2) Beware of traps.
3) No, you don't have to join a volleyball club.

Judging from the intro, I assumed this was going to be a pretty bland slice of life anime. The characters seemed okay, the plot was basic, but then I found a whole new level of enjoyment within the characters themselves as soon as I heard them talk.

Right off the bat, we are given an anime where we have a smartass elementary girl whom still has lots of innocence, a bratty, yet surprisingly intelligent at times, middle schooler and a somewhat slutty in a few areas, yet very responsible high school girl; and the experiences they each deliver are cutting edge comedy.

It has been forever since ... I have seen a slice of life that is as enjoyable as Minami-ke. Every character they introduce is lovable or at least unforgettable in some way. The plot is not too thick, but the comedy is much more! Its delivery of jokes never fail to amuse me, the scenery of their apartment and schools are very bright, colorful and detailed and lastly, even if you do not like slice of life comedies, you would still feel above neutral when watching this one. That is, unless you have an idiosyncrasy for tsundere characters, which one of the characters does and does not fit into due to the confusing nature of her personality.

In most of my recent anime reviews, I have normally had a nitpicking about the negative part right after this as most have not given me much to remember, but I actually have none for this one. It does well on what it delivers and you would only be offended if you were expecting something else. But, the very essence of this anime is pure comedy and God foreboded no serious elements to ever befall it.

I would go on about the characters, but I have made this review to be in a way where you can only see the good in this anime without knowing everything that there is to come of it yet. If you want full enjoyment out of this anime, you must figure out the characters on your own, but as I said before, you will barely find a moment where you will be bored of this anime. It is very energetic; and yet, it can also be very calming at the same time sometimes due to the genre it is in. I can not recommend it enough as it renewed my faith in anime comedies after finding so many lackluster ones over the past several months, with a few notable exceptions here and there.

So, if you haven't already, give it a chance. If you have, give it ANOTHER chance. Perhaps, you judged it too soon and quit watching. I did this once with a different comedy and when I came back to it, I regretted not watching it sooner.

(TLDR Review at the bottom, as always, thanks for reading)

"This review is one that lightly describes the ordinary daily lives of the three Minami sisters. Please don't expect too much from it. Also, read in a bright room, and stay 3 meters away from your device while reading." — NextUniverse after getting some help from the Minami sisters.

Minami-ke is an anime that reminds me quite a lot of the days when I would sit down in front of a TV and watch whatever the hell Cartoon Network and other channels had. As much as I was an action-loving guy long ago, I did like the ... comedy that appeared so much. Countless funny shows going from "Chowder", "Foster's Home of Imaginary Friends", "Ed, Edd n Eddy", you name it, man I can even go as far as "Oggy and the Cockroaches". They were good times to live in, and Minami-ke only enforces the blessing of what may be considered an old-school comedy. It can be looked at as a reminder of what the past held in the comedy genre. The glory days of just simple laughs and giggles.


Narrative:
Minami-ke's story is like most s.o.l anime, even of the present, it develops as like how you would expect the family to develop, with funny encounters or relations resolving in unions of different characters for the series to share funny moments with. That is it, really. The other point of the narrative is that it is episodic, another thing s.o.l comedy anime is fond of using, but by no means it is performed in an awful way. I suppose the narrative of the anime isn't its strongest selling point, though considering the background of this just being normal humans doing funny human things, it isn't surprising, I am not trying to make this look bad but at the same time, it is nothing special. Only so much can happen in a "nichijou" themed anime. Everything just comes down to enjoyment on this end.

With characters, the chemistry is finer than wine. The realism is something to not be underestimated with these characters. Idiotic sister Kana + sharp mouthed Chiaki = ton of trouble between the two, with Chiaki constantly using physical force against Kana, and Kana lying to Chiaki about children beliefs and legends, like your average family with constant sibling feud every day on no end. Respectable hard-working sister Haruka acts as a successful role model for Chiaki, maybe on the more optimistic side of an average family but isn't one trope that is not realistic. Idiotic Kana and Haruka's teaching to make her into less of an idiot. The general family better one another for their own good. It is effectively your everyday family, but the simpleness is joyous to watch anyway. Maybe you can relate, maybe you can't, but I would imagine most people watching this understands why each character interacts with others as they do. Side characters are very enjoyable here as well, every side character who has had the spotlight isn't in the least bit forgettable. Hosaka, Makoto, Touma and the Minami brothers, to some extent Fujioka as well. Each of these individuals has their own quirk to make them stand out from the rest of the cast. Not all side characters are like the individuals I have pointed out, most of the time they are just there as background noise, but they don't contribute to a lot anyways. In any case, the characters are utilized well for a s.o.l of its kind.


Audiovisuals:
At first, with episode 1, the visuals really get you hooked, I remember it being wacky when needed to just make the atmosphere as silly as possible, camera movements helped enforce that. It works well, but it doesn't hold out for long. It is a little treat the team may have spent too much money on. I am not sure why such fluid and zany animation was used in the first 1 or 2 episodes and never again, but it just was. In the majority of things, however, the animation is livable to sit through, feel like your average mid-2000s, with the character design being in the same quality band. Though, for the funny scenes, character faces would improve in detail on a zoom up. Not a bad effect, reminded me like it was something out of Jojo. Maybe the character design was where all the money went.

Audio-wise and I have to say were rather creative. For some odd reason, it felt like, if 50s Disney and your favourite childhood comedy cartoon had their teams come together for a collab on the OST. Makes it more memorable to take along with, and even if you come out not remembering any sound, an imitation of what I had just described would probably be easy to do. In other words, this will stick. The OP and the ED are really catchy too, I just really want to point out however the ever so faltered end if the OP that gets me every time, just a few seconds longer to end it would have been well. But aside from that minuscule complaint, it is a decent listen. The seiyuus were good with conveying their characters, too bad there was no real moment to go all out. However, there were two odd scenes when a character started screeching. That was very well done and a highlight of the voice acting the show has to offer.


Enjoyment:
As always, comedy is a hit or miss. You may like it, you may not. Minami-ke isn't something that oversteps the boundaries, it prefers to stay in its mainstream techniques of a shell instead. That is not to say that the anime is so mediocre you would get bored of it. Most anime like Minami-ke are usually quite enjoyable to sit through regardless of how they try to make the audience laugh. In saying this, however, a few of the jokes in the anime are executed too slowly sometimes. It is like a bomb reaching zero and then actually exploding three seconds after. I am not sure if it is because the anime is old, maybe that was where the fault lied, but it takes a little perseverance to enjoy what should have been a well-timed joke. I did laugh here and there a lot though during this. The same may be true for yourself if you decide to watch this. All in all, the funny moments here and there are usually unspecial things you constantly get, but that doesn't stop this anime from having its own few original moments to share.


Overall - 6.4 (6)
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TLDR Review:
Story - 6: General funny situations of a "nichijou" type anime
Audio - 6: Like 50s Disney and your fav childhood comedy came together. Plus some good voice acting.
Visuals - 6: Standard 2000s animation and design, a few good animated parts to it
Character - 7: Great chemistry with the sisters. Like a real family from this world. Side characters are also memorable.
Enjoyment - 7: The laughs you can expect from your general s.o.l comedy

Overall - 6.4 (6)

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Well, I just picked this up one day for no special reason, was just looking for a change with all the seasonals about. This series seems like it won't be anything great with its sequels considering scores and structure. Though it is a series I would recommend anyway, general anime like Minami-ke are sometimes very underrated and just going over one like so for no special reason is something that may either push you to watch randomly more or simply enjoy simple things from the past, as the glory days were.

Now if you will excuse me, I have to go watch "Sensei and Ninomiya-kun" series finale.

Review from Zagrom, Otaku-Unlimited.net

This is a slice of life, comedy series based around the life of three sisters.

Minami Haruka, the eldest sister, the sweet and motherly sister. She is also the most reliable of the three sisters but is lazy when left alone. Although the oldest she is still a second year of high school. And in junior high through several misunderstandings obtained the nickname Banchō (or badass, used to refer to a leader of delinquents, etc, etc)

Minami Kana (my favorite) the family retard, or baka if I may. The middle sister, second year junior high. The type of girl that nearly always acts ... before thinking, does poorly in school (she misreads kanji a lot) she tends to find excuses to make things more interesting.

Minami Chiaki, they youngest sister in elementary (I estimate 5th year, perhaps sixth?) She is made out to be highly intelligent by her friends but it seems that she thinks of things in a rather simple way. She things VERY highly of Haruka and is very formal with her, but uses the term bakayarō (a more strict form of baka) with Kana often.

Episodes: 13

Story: 9/10
I cant really explain much being a slice of life series, there is no real plot. There are plenty of "love triangles" but I use that term losely as really there is no proper shape to give it, the love goes all over the place and really does keep things about as funny as it gets. All in all the story all fits together, is easy to get, and is overall funny, A+

Characters: 10/10
Great job on this, alto only 13 episodes you seem to get plenty of time to see almost all the characters grow and change in the series and really get to get a hold of there personality's, and all of them have there on style and stories, no copy paste at all.

Music: 9/10
Liked all the back ground music, and OP and ED, not mush else to say, I watched every OP (normally just do it on first and last episode) Love that OP song ^^

Art: 9/10
Art was clean and interesting, there were really two styles, which is sort of hard to explain unless you watch it, there is the main style (like the image above) and a more serious one that comes up from time to time, mostly between the three Minami sisters when they become more serious between one another, whicch I found weird the first few times but it became normal and then sorta grew on me.

Overall: 9/10
Has become me second favorite series behind Lucky Star with ease, that should say enough (for me anyway). Highly recommended and one with a high rewatching value in my opinion, also note it has a second season Minami-ke Okawari


(Note that this was my first MAL review, hope you enjoyed)

an anime about the daily lives of the three minami sisters. there's no really story plot, just some random day to day activities of the three.

this anime is really fun to watch, even though it doesn't have a storyline, its really good. this anime is very funny and enjoying. the characters have different personalities but they blend so well with each other.

a family-oriented, slice of life, with a tad bit of romance anime~ be sure to watch this ☆ :D

Minami-ke isn't just another slice-of-life comedy that revolves around some main characters. Well, it does do that, but there is a mystical energy that comes from it that makes it not only funny, but pretty addictive to watch.

The whole story revolves around 3 sisters who have distinct personalities. There's Haruka, the eldest who is the most responsible of the three. She maintains the household, manages their bills, cooks the food and keeps everything in order in the house. There's Kana, the middle sister who has an energy that can't be beat. Although she's lazy and very gullible by her younger sister, she still shows her ... creativity in some of her plans in the series. And finally there's Chiaki, the youngest who is the straight man who has the most negative attitude towards Kana and yet is kindest towards Haruka. Chiaki loves to mess with Kana as to misinterpret her love letters from a classmate of Kana's and keeps calling her dumbass. But it drives the story onwards.

Speaking of which, there practically isn't a story here. It is practically a Seinfeld of anime. There are many scenes in their home, scenes in their school and just daily observations and creative ideas that are bounced around in each episode. What makes it stand out is during some scenes, the attitude in the moment changes to a more serious attitude with a widescreen look and a more detailed view of each of the sister's faces. Funny at certain times, but can get kind of annoying at some moments.

The content in this anime is pretty unique. Some of the episodes have them not doing anything and just hanging out around in their house where Kana and Chiaki are watching a funny soap opera titled "Sensei and Ninomiya-kun" where those words are all that they say. The elements of comedy in it are pretty original as well as some subjects could possibly be what bored girls could be talking about if they were to get together and talk about random stuff.

All in all, this was very enjoyable. I laughed a lot, quoted a lot of scenes with my friends and made me think a little at some points. Minami-ke has an addictive quality that made me impatient for the next episode. If you liked Azumanga Daioh and the like, you'll like Minami-ke.

Minami-Ke is a bit of an oddball show, even for the slice-of-life genre. The character designs are more realistic than the far more popular Azumanga Daioh and Lucky Star (and it took be a bit to get used to the whole tear shaped mouth thing), and the plot is somewhat sporatic, bouncing form episodic to continuity at random (all animes do this, of course, but in the same episode?). These aren't complaints, however, just the facts. Really I can't think of anything bad to say about the series except that the pacing's a bit slow at first. Stick with it, though, and a taste for ... Minami-Ke's unique style should develop. The characters manage to define themselves in the viewer's mind, even when they go several episodes without reappearing. The reaccuring elements are delightful, as are the more singular stories told (the later experiences several peaks, but hardly any lows from what I recall). Despite the potential for such, fanservice plays a very small part in the show, appearing here and there, but never making its presence known until the last couple of episodes. The whole thing is over before you know it, but fortunately, the show makes it clear that a second season is on the way. While this is a show that requires a bit of a gear sift to get into, the overall effort one makes is totally worth the end result, as Minami-Ke is probably one of the best anime of its kind.

Title: Minami-ke

Genre: Slice of Life, School Life, Comedy etc.

Story: 7
Although it is a light, comedy genre, which I personally like to watch, the story in itself does not seem to continue from the previous episodes even though there are some evident connections in "Ocean" episode. Critically just looking at the story line, I personally cannot give more than 7 because the storyline doesn't exist at all (I mean metaphorically)

Art: 10
The art to me is perfect, one of the styles that I like (pity for me when this changed in the second season). It's soft drawing fits well with the genre and the intention of the ... Anime, which consequently enhances the quality of the Anime as a whole.

Sound: 9
I have to admit that the sound is in fact exceptional, but in some cases it just doesn't seem to quite fit well with the atmosphere. Otherwise, the voice, BGM and the OP and ED fits well with Anime. Specifically talking of OP and ED, it is a enjoyable, fast and light music that goes quite well with characters and the "storyline".

Character: 10
The characters are perfect and the voice acting is just outstanding. The relationship between main and supporting characters adds up to the overall comedy and humour of the Anime, and the voice actors are really focused on the character and carries out their emotions effectively (especially Chiaki whose voices should be just like how Chihara-san has acted on my personal opinion). Good organization with the characters and their coherence is sound.

Enjoyment: 9
As one of the first Animes I have watched, it is a enjoyable Anime with bits of humours and comedy (although some are just for "Japanese-apt" people) and it gets you laugh and laugh all the way to the end, and you will realize that the Anime has actually finished too early. Some points are lost for the "Japanese only jokes"

Overall: 10
I would strongly recommend this Anime to anyone who is interested in Slice of life and when you get depressed and all that; watch this and you'll get over it. It is just full of joy and comedy that you can't miss out really. In my view, it is one of the masterpieces of small Anime-production company (It was horrible when the big guys took it over).

Going into this show, I had no real expectations for it. From the get go, Minami-ke looked like your typical slice of life/comedy anime. However, after watching all 13 episodes in one sitting, I realized something. I realized that Minami-ke does what many other similar titles don't; and that is having characters that aren't one dimensional or are there just to fulfill a trope or stereotype.

Minami-ke is about the life of three sisters, Chiaki, Kana and Haruka, and their daily activities as they grow up. Chiaki is the youngest of the three sisters, being in elementary school. Despite being the youngest of the three, she ... has surprisingly high intelligence, which she uses to her advantage to make fun of or tease Kana.

Kana, being the middle sister, is a rather lazy and noisy girl who prefers doing as little work as possible. Kana loves food, but she is a terrible cook so she relies on her sisters to do the cooking.

Haruka is the eldest of the three sisters, and arguably the most mature. She acts like a mother for Kana and Chiaki, since their parents are overseas. When she is by herself, she becomes unbelievably lazy, even more so than Kana.

What makes Minami-ke work so well is the combination of a charming cast of characters and a laid back atmosphere. The show is rather slow paced, which might be a negative for some people, but in my opinion it adds to the overall nature of the show. There are times where a scene drags on for just a little bit too long and you get bored, but in general there are enough different things happening throughout each episode to keep you interested.

Minami-ke's art is simple, yet effective for setting the mood. I will say that the character designs do change between seasons, but since this is a review for the first season, I won't go into detail about it.

-Pros-

- Likeable cast of characters
- Art style fits this kind of show
- Interesting character interactions
- Very funny and engaging

-Cons-

- A bit too slow paced at times
- As per usual in comedies, some people may not find the jokes funny

Overall, Minami-ke is a must-watch if you're into comedy/slice of life anime. It is very engaging, and I enjoyed almost every minute of it.

This anime just as the beginnng sequence says it is. It's about what happens in three ordinary sister's everyday lives. Don't expect too much.

Story: There isn't really much of a plot to this. It's about three sister that have very different personalities and what they go through in school, at home, with guys, things of that nature. It's the very definition of slice of life. You really shouldn't go into this anme expecting anything more than comedy. There's not much in the terms of drama, romance, or anything of that sort.

Art: The animation quality is by far not top notch. I mean, its not utterly ... unbearable. The character designs match perfectly with their personality. The problem is that there's not enough detail in the backgrounds, but since it's just an anime for laughs, it doesn't really matter too much.

Sound: The opening and ending fit perfectly with the series. Very catchy and leading into what you are about to watch. The voices sound exatly like their personalities show it should. Kana's voice is very sarcastic and naive when it comes to tricks. Chiaka's voice is dead-panned just like the comments are suppose to be. And Haruka has the very sweet caring voice.

Character: The characters were quite unique. The sisters are all drastically different from one another, but so are the rest of the characters. Watching them interact is priceless. There's sweet ones, mean ones, brainless ones, perverted ones, love struck ones. They're all different, but they're all strange.

Enjoyment: I've never seen an anime like this. I thought a few of the scenes were just pointless, but they were suppose to be because it's jst s pointless its funny, but to me it's not. It's one of the best comedies I've seen. It's entertaining to watch how some simple misunderstandings turn into such outrageous things.

Overall, I think that if you enjoy comedy anime or anime with no real story to tell, you'll probably like this one.

Minami-ke is a slice of life comedy, and stars the three sisters Haruka, Kana and Chiaki.

Story
Since this is a slice of life, it’s a bit obvious how the story goes. We see the daily lives of the sisters and their friends, with a different focus in each episode. Nothing special happens really. Still I really liked how the story was presented, and many characters were involved in various ways, and lead to a lot of hilarious moments. The writers (probably the mangaka as well) made great use of the huge amount of side-characters, without it feeling unnatural. That’s what I loved the most. Each episode ... was unique, and about different persons each time. I also had trouble thinking what would happen next, in other words it was a very unpredictable show. And of course, and most importantly, it’s funny.

Art
Overall I’d say this show is very good looking. The colours used are great, and the show has a very soft feeling. Character designs are great too. The only thing I didn’t like, was that in some shots the characters’ noses looked a bit weird. They disappeared and it looked ridiculous. Thankfully it didn’t happen too often. Otherwise the animation is very consistent, and it maintains the calm atmosphere of the plot in a nice manner.

Sound
Good background music, quite good opening and ending, sound effects in place, and good voicing. What else is there to say?

Character
The three main characters, the sisters, are just great. They compliment each other in a really nice way, and they are hilarious. That aside, what I think is the best about this show, are all the supporting characters. There are so many, each of them unique, and they all get enough screen time to shine. The character designers must be geniuses (props to the mangaka as well, for making such great characters). The characters are the best thing about this show, in my opinion (I mean, Hosaka and Mako-chan are remarkable characters, they alone are almost enough to justify a 10 for characters!).

Enjoyment
Of course I enjoyed it, it was funny as hell. The episodes were all enjoyable, and I think I’m gonna rewatch this, as my first series. But still Minami-ke lacked something for me to give it top grade in this category.

Overall
All in all a very funny show, totally unpredictable and one of the better shows of 2007. Just go watch it.

Guess I’m gonna watch Okawari soon…