Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san

"No sorry we don't have that it's...uh...SPECIAL YAOI BOOK!" - Honda-san

I'm gonna give this an outstanding score just because. Can I (or we) call this the SOTY (Short of the Year) for 2018? Because this short-form 10 minute series, as simple as its premise goes, drives home perfectly about more than just being a fun and educational series. Heck, anime like this really are once-in-a-blue-moon novelty! And...this is brought to you by director (not Shouto) Todoroki Owl (his very first directorial work). (Aw, Shouto almost had his own anime...)

Originally a Pixiv web comic, Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san is an accurate depiction of Japan's culture of bookstore ... staff handling day-to-day bookstore work measures. For the sake of adaptation, the writer himself Honda-san phased himself as a (not so Ainz-sama like) skeleton which is voiced by the ever popular Soma Saito, and honestly, he fits the role of the skeletonized human Honda-san very well. So now, imagine with me on this. If you decide to journey to Japan one day, enter into a random bookstore to see how and the behind-the-scenes look alike, and of course, after watching this series, more often than not, I'd bet that you will have a more appreciative sense of both the bookstore as well as the staff themselves, which is the selling point of the series.

Not to mention, while MC (Momonga) Honda-san constantly wrestles with his own thoughts and opinions against the people in the bookstore, ranging from young to old people with perfectly normal to obscenely random choices of purchase (e.g. erotic, BL etc.) , he does not just go alone. Together with his other staff like Okitsune, Kamibukuro, Gas Mask, Section Chiefs Pestmask and Armour whom deals different sections and catalogues of books of which are handled by the ever-so-flctuating involvement of media companies like Shueisha and even Kadokawa themselves (since Kadokawa censors out popular and obscure titles for research, and is always laughing puns), and even these companies themselves, negotiating for usual stuff like shipping, packaging and receiving stock. Even more so, being a SoL comedic series, I find myself sympathizing with Honda-san and his colleagues for the insane random situations they face, and of course, the laughs, there is always the endless randomizing customer-staff expressional bickering that is worth many damn chockful of laughs. So if you want to upgrade your list of anime memes and endless references, this is the go-to source.

Being a primarily kids-centric studio, DLE's simple art aesthetics are really just for show, and do deliver on the depictions of how Honda-san's actions and expressions are laid out, and that is transferred onto Azarashi-san, which is Honda-san's writer for this series. And for what it is, it showcases greatly and fondly.

But to me, the music is what drives my love for this show sky-high.

"Do you know us? We are natural born “Best Book-Beller”!
どんな時だって、Yeah
Yes! We want to look for your want, that’s precious for you!
此処にあれば…So good!"

Technoboys Pulcraft Green-Fund, which did the OST composition, which features Honda-san for the fun, creepy yet bombastic head-banging OP and indie artist Hiroshi Takano for the calm and happy ED. If you haven't heard the full OST, I'd recommend you to take a good listen coz it'll serve you good that this is music of substance that's worth an endless repeat.

What a handsome old man!" - Honda-san

If there's any takeaway of substance, I would recommend this short wholeheartedly. I mean, come on, take at least 2 hours off your time to binge-watch this series (which is definitely the way to go), and you'd have a very hard time putting this one down. I almost regretted leaving this series to dust before its end, and I'm very glad and happy to pick this underrated gem up again that is fun, educational, hilarious, and a blast to watch.

I'm gonna miss this short with my whole heart, so memorable!

Anime this great only appears like once a year. This is a series about a skellington dude who is working at a manga store. The entire things centers around his job and interactions with coworkers and customers. To say that this series is a meme would be an understatement.

The comedy is totally badass. We have colorful bunch of all sort of weirdos from mom person who comes to buy manga for her son whom she proceeds to call a nerd for reading manga out of all things, to a an adult man who is looking for homoerotic Gintama tentacle porn doujinshis asking like waddup hope ... these haven't been sold out yet.

Honda-san is quite hotshit in terms of accuracy when it comes to physical manga releases, popular new series and the more obscure and demanding readers who would never even look at the mainstream shit-tier stuff (just to quote the series). It doesn't save anyone from its jokes be it the more casual newcomer readers or hardcore yaoi fangirls -- and especially the bookstore staff -- everyone will get their fair share of mocking. As a person who doesn't get offended over harmless humor, I have been having a blast with this one.

Honda-san himself is a great character because the downsides of his work really match with his thoughts. Be it some over-weighted NEET wanting to buy ALL the manga or some crazy tourist bringing 50 copies of boylove manga to the cashier, he always finds his way of complaining these things without them really sounding like complain at all, rather witty remarks regarding the customers and how it will affect his work day.

In terms of art, this isn't exactly Inferno Cop tier stuff, but we are close. The animation is purposely oversimplified for comedic reasons, the character design is also done similarly to create stereotype customers and make the staff in the store seem absurd as possible. Sounds-wise, Honda's seiyuu delivers and that's the most important part.

This series is truly doing its job. It is fun to watch, accurate, educational and almost made me want to buy some manga, which I guess is one of the reasons why this was made. Highly recommended.

'Skull-face bookseller Honda-san' is without a doubt one of the best short shows of 2018, and perhaps even the best comedy I've ever watched. Seriously.

It revolves around our main character, a skeleton called Honda, as we watch him work through his job as a bookstore employee; within the bookstore, we meet his fellow co-workers, who each have very expressive personalities, and the daily shoppers who visit the store. This whole entire show is comedy gold - especially if you get the references - filled with BL jokes and western tourists along with the relatable struggles at work that Honda and his co-workers go through that ... just make you laugh; this all makes for an absolute one of a kind experience. It's astonishing how they humanised these characters with the expressive voice acting and dialogue despite the fact that all the bookstore employee's don't even have faces; in Honda-san's short run time of 2 hours, I've come to love these characters and care for them. The art style is minimalistic, there's not a lot of animation most of the time but it doesn't really matter at all (in fact the lack of animation and minimalistic style is perfect for this show) - it's the story and characters that really keep you watching.

This show puts you at ease: I'll never forget the amazing cast and how the episode's used to just fade into the ending song, and me just sitting there in awe after each episode. If you ever have time to spare, I seriously recommend you to binge-watch this show, sit back and just have an absolute blast watching it.

9/10

That's the kind of series in which your knowledge about Japan's culture becomes crucial. Gaikotsu is a collection of chronicles told by a Japanese bookstore's staff. Those bookstores are really, really peculiar and that is why I think many people will not be able to connect with the comedy in this series. I live in Japan, so I could comprehend the troubles those guys are passing by and I found it's hilarious! It's a pity that some people will just skip Gaikotsu for not getting the message behind the story, but I'll be here supporting this series that is brilliantly produced, has beautiful visuals, really ... nice timing, and music! It's unbelievable that this is the first manga of the original author! The guy is a genius! Also, since it has such short episodes, it is easy to consume anywhere and even if you are a busy person as I am :)

Selling manga that customer wants , without being overwhelmed by the strange turns, that is the task of a Comic Bookstore. - Honda 2018

This anime series is a Hidden gem in the fall season. A short 15 minute per episode series but packed with a lot of comedy plus actual daily life of a book store employee problems and antics mixed.
The series is basically depicted on the daily work life of a skeleton guy ,yea he is literally a skeleton wearing normal clothes and not only that there are other weird looking characters/employees example, a mummy girl a pumpkin head etc. which will ... make it quite weird for the viewers at the start but as the anime progresses you just not only to get used to it actually start to delve and enjoy how the anime is presented with its comical antics and humor.

Not only you get to enjoy the comedy aspect but also learn a lot of stuff about how a book store is operated on a daily basis, the hectic life of employees and also how they have to survive the pressure of handling both the customers and the sales representatives while keeping tabs on inventory and sales of manga, comics, novels etc. Also how the relationship of the bookstore employees with other customers, publishing companies, distributors and managers, basically the entire world of anime,manga industry and how the connection between them works is well presented in a really humorous but in a hidden beautiful manner.

Also there are so many known Anime references,which are thrown into the mix which you will recognize, enjoy and the comedy included with learning how the relation of a bookstore and book company/ the industry works from promotion, to delivery and sales. This show has it all.

Honda's Seiyuu/VA Saito Souma did a amazing job, where he actually brings the character and personality making him really enjoyable and entertaining to watch.

Animation i wouldn't say is top notch but really well done because mostly i think most of the characters and background is made to make it more stereotype and to present the characters in a bit weird manner, but honestly it really doesn't matter because the show will captivate you with its plot and humor , bit of real life emotions and lessons and finally not to forget Honda's antics with other employees and customers.
A really Highly Recommended Watch for sure. Enjoy. :)

This was a really feel good anime. You get to see the behind-the-scenes of being in a bookstore. As a book lover who always frequents the bookstores myself, I find it enlightening to see the point of view of the workers. Being in a bookstore as a customer is fun, but it's also nice to see how the employees view their customers. After watching, I really got tempted to work in a bookstore myself!

It was also nice that an episode is around 10 to 12 minutes long, it didn't get dragging. It's a must watch if you want to get lighthearted laughs!

Thanks for this!

Have you ever wondered the life of a bookstore owner?...

Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san is an anime short about a skeleton bookseller by the name of Honda-san voiced by Souma Saitou and his misadventures of daily life as a bookstore owner.

Now this kind of premise at first looks mundane but this being an anime adaptation of a web manga written and drawn by the author's own caricature who was a bookseller in Japan named...Honda, it gives us an insight to the life, trials and tribulations of a bookseller for comedic effect with his co-workers. From keeping book shelves tidy and organized to talking to foreign customers, otaku ... culture and how it affects sales and popularity of books themselves and how booksellers work with exporting and importing goods.

Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san's cast is fairly decent with our titular Honda-san having most of the focus but we also get to see his co-workers who like Honda are also caricatures of the real life Honda's co-workers but given stuff put on their heads to disclosure for obvious reasons. Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san's interactions and their own hang ups and comforts of working in a book shop also plays a hand in the anime short and is probably used for the best comedic effect especially with the character reactions as a result. LA's favourite character would have to be Okitsune voiced by Shizuka Ito and Houtai voiced by Eri Kitamura because of their personalities and their comedy bouncing well off Honda, especially from Okitsune as how much of a clashing of personalities Honda and Okitsune have yet works well anyways.

Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san's other interesting thing about it is well actually two things, one is the Engrish used and how it's used with it;s comedy but not in a way that it doesn't disrespects the foreign customers but to have fun with the situation Honda-san goes through (being in charge of foreign comics and all) and the situations Honda has with them are pretty funny especially with his reactions and how he handles each of those situations but the other interesting thing about Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san is how many references Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san does have and because they have the entire "change the name of that popular franchise name" or censor popular well known characters from both anime and Western media, it's nice when LA gets the reference and how that reference impacts the book shop as a result of it.

Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san's animation done by DLE was ok, this being an anime short and all but the animation is intentionally stiff with the characters actions at times but this being mostly a talking anime but nonetheless as stiff as the animation is it has this paper puppet-ting effect to it that gives it it's own charm as minimal of animation it gives itself of, though Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san dabbles in the over the top reactions from the characters faces as stiff as it was and the reactions are priceless but nonetheless the character designs are simplistic yet strikingly bizarre and the backgrounding is minimal but expected. DLE's animation is sparse but fair in this regard.

Voice work, well there is a decent large cast but again LA will bring up Shizuka Ito and Eri Kitamura again but also Souma Saitou as Honda was pretty well done giving him some inflection and giving Honda some great reaction as much of a character with skull for a head he has, still works!. Nonetheless from Yoko Hiakasa, Akemi Okamura, Ayumu Murase and Yuuko Sanpei, the voice cast was great and made the character reactions all the more better.

Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san was probably LA's favorite anime short for Fall 2018, for such a simple premise of the daily life of owning and managing a bookstore, it shown off all the intrinsic, trials and tribulations and heck STRESS it takes to own and manage one all the while making it comedic all throughout it's run time. Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san is a great anime short and LA will give it LA's mark of approval to watch it, mundane yes, but watchable and funny?, HELL YES.

*NO SPOILERS*
*The review is only for the 6 first episodes*
*I plan to do another full review after the end of the anime*

[Story 7/10]
It's based on a true story by a guy who worked at a bookshop.
It's not that big of a story, but it's pretty enjoyable as a story because you start to relate to the protagonist despite having other serving jobs.
It's executed well and very realistic as a story.

[Art 7/10]
... Unique doesn't mean good. It's just different, I don't have to say anything about it.

[Sound 8/10]
The sound is great. Even though the characters are designed as skeletons, knights, pumpkins etc they really seem mature and realistic as voices.

[Character 8/10]
The characters are the best part of the anime. They really are as I mentioned earlier, humans with masks, they look boring, but they're not, at all.
Each one of them is interesting and unique, and in general are pretty lovable, plus being reminded that they're based off real people.

[Enjoyment 7/10]
Definitely not for everyone. Not everyone likes that kind of art style, not everyone likes that kind of humor, and not everyone likes that kind of setting, but if you remove the uniqueness of these categories, what if left of Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san.

[Overall 7.5/10]
A good sunday seasonal anime. It's peaceful and relaxing. The humor is mildly funny and the characters are enjoyable.

To be honest, I almost gave up on this anime around episode 5, as at that point despite the good vibes of the show in general, none of the jokes had really landed. I'm glad I stuck it out, and really when the episodes are as short as these it wasn't any real struggle.

The strongest point, for me, was how visually interesting this anime ended up being, despite how few setting changes there are. I really enjoyed the styling of the various booksellers and employees. I also tend to like episodic structure, and that was no different for this anime.

The main sticking point for me ... ends up being the content itself. I just wasn't particularly entertained, overall. I didn't find the stories that interesting, and I didn't find the jokes that funny. As the story and comedy are the backbone of this anime, the art can't really make up for the fact that I found this anime to be a pretty bland experience. I don't think this anime is bad, there's really no harm in giving this show a shot, watching an episode or two to see if the jokes land with you. If they do, you will certainly find enjoyment in it. If they don't, you've only invested 10-20 minutes into finding out.

One further note on an aspect of the lens of this anime, which I genuinely appreciated: there is a refusal to outright make fun of the customer characters, regardless of what they were in the bookstore shopping for. Too often, I see jokes made at others' expense when the only thing the butt of the joke ever did was genuinely appreciate and be passionate about something. I was nervous when I realized the setting that I was headed for tasteless jokes about fujoshi/fudanshi or mocking of foreign manga readers or any other combination of a joke that consisted of "Hey, that person likes something ... let's make fun of them for it!". I am truly glad to report that, while there are good-natured jokes related to both the various genres of books for sale and to their varied readership, none of them, in my opinion, even approach the line of mean-spirited. I suspect this is due in large part to the actual lived experience the author drew on in order to write the original manga. I just wanted to highlight that. While the humor didn't exactly land with me, the respectful attitude behind telling these day-in-the-life vignettes did.

If you don't know yet, I love reading books especially when I went home from working or anything with train and thus developing a skill of reading books while standing up in a moving train. And I am not talking about e-books, I am talking about real physical books which you acquire from a bookstore. Bookstore is probably a place I love so much that I could spent my day off there if I don't have anything else to do. Being surrounded by books feels like a heaven for me. But how about people who works there? People who have their everyday life surrounded by ... books? Skullface Bookseller Honsa-san gave us an insight of how the bookstore works and how is it like to work on such place. Not just that, this anime gave us a working place jokes those are funny because of how relatable the jokes to our working life and so many reference jokes here and there.

What I really like about this anime is how they present some mechanism within the bookstore that might applied to the nearest bookstore. I love to get new knowledge of something I never know before and this anime presented the information with funny presentations of author's own depiction inside his head. And because this anime revolved around bookstore that specializes in manga and comic, there ought to be many reference jokes. I love this anime's reference jokes as they all well placed and played as a huge punch line for what happening in a certain scene. From censoring book publisher names to a very must be there JoJo reference, if you love reference jokes as I do, you will love this anime so much. Not just that, Honda-san everyday life as a bookstore employee is a relatable one for anyone who works as a regular employee in some retail shop. It is shown very deeply that the author must have been working there for real to manage to express those feelings to us.

While the animation is really limited, the atmosphere of this anime gave out that the animation is intentionally doing that to further make this anime interesting. I really love the character designs for this anime though. Since the author seemed want to make everyone anonymous, he depicted them by stuff that really out of my head. I think the move is very creative as it makes diversity among the characters while make the characters anonymous at the same time. Section Chief Armor's character design might be the one I love most. Since, it originates from the manga, I think it is a huge kudos for Honda-san.

Overall, this anime is a very interesting anime to watch as a quickie because one episode of this anime only span for ten minutes. And because of the short span, I think that's why Skullface Bookseller Honda-san could live up its humor as it is not overstaying its humor and comedy. Sometimes we just need short sketches to make us laugh in between our busy times, right?

When something hits, it hits hard. That was my take on Gaikotsu Honda-san. When you first look at it, there is the cover art, then the synopsis, and the genre, three of the arbitrary deciding factors that might give you a primary opinion on a said show, and for me, it was one boney boy and no idea on the plot whatsoever, and probably that's what appealing about the Slice of Life genre, you know it's following someone's daily life, you know it's going to be either hilariously on point or sadly relatable, probably both.
After watching Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san, I might just add an exception ... to that factor.

Story (7/10):
When it comes to its fundamental core, it's just another Slice of Life show, the kind of shows that are worth the watch after a long tire-y day of work, and probably that's what justifies its relatively short episodes (about 10 minutes each). Not only does it blend well with the relaxation after a hard day scenario, but the show itself also dives into the idea of hard working and doing the best in your job, for your job.
The setup is pretty simple and familiar, one busy bookstore, specialized in selling Manga and Light novels, I guess similar merchandise as well?
Honda-san is one skull-faced ambitious clerk that strives to genuinely provide the most ideal customer service with the help of his equally enthusiastic co-workers. No literally, the part about the skull face couldn't be more literal. Filled with other famous Manga and Anime references and with a tremendous amount of fourth-wall breaking jokes, it really made for the perfect parody of the Otaku community, something that think is semi-important to get most of the jokes.

Art (7/10):
Not too shabby, and not with the rest of average works either.
As serious as the show is, the animation, in my opinion, couldn't be any more complimentary. There is something about it, very clean and abstract that makes it stand out for the other shows, it really does have that special charm of its own that makes it distinguishable in a great way.
And don't mix it up, when I talk animation, I talk art style, because you know, for a series that doesn't rely on action and fast-paced scenes, smooth animation wouldn't do it any favor.
The character designs are truly remarkable, for instance, the main cast is put in such a noticeable perspective you'd almost see a spotlight on top of them all the time. Obviously, the show makes references to the real world, it presents the character as normal everyday life people; with no superpowers or out of the world capabilities but a blessing that gives you a genuine smile, which is more of a naturable rare ability,n especially in this day and age.
A skeleton as a clerk and his gang of weirdly masked people, at first they give you the impression of goofiness, but they, those are the manifestation of their personalities, also that outlining look only helps to highlight them from the rest of the crowd on the screen. Most of the shows could settle by giving the main character an explicit hairstyle or a special hair color, but Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san goes all out and parodies even those who fall short on delivery.

Sound (7.5/10):
A big part of this was the voice acting, and you know, in a comedy show, a special kind of voice acting is needed, something that's really hard to nail.
I wouldn't have recommended a better mashup of good voice actors that can blend this well in a show of this production value.
I feel as though I should talk in a more general way when it comes to this part, but I can't help but direct all my focus on Honda-san (Saitou Souma).
He's presented with such tone of voice that alone screams of comedy, all of the nervous cuts and Engrish overdosing was worth it on the run.
I can't really speak much of the opening and ending theme songs, I know I enjoyed the opening theme song to some degree, however, I never got the single from the latter. As for the soundtracks, I don't think I've been able to notice them all that much, probably because of how involving the content was to me, you just keep on focusing on the context you almost get drawn onto to screen and blend with the rest of the characters for how painfully relatable it was.

Characters (8/10):
I've been eager to talk about the characters ever since the first episode.
I've said a lot in the “Art” section already, but I feel that was only what concerned the character design. And now, let's hit their terminology.
Honda-san, an individual that's been presented to us as the typical bookstore clerk we all know, the dead in the face stereotype that really seems all that boring on the surface, probably that's what they were aiming for with his skeletal design. But once we get put in the clerks' perspective, we get to see more on how “they” view the business, what goes in their minds when they are serving a customer, are they genuinely doing it for the good, or just as a means of survival?
It turns out some people are just born that nice, but can't express it correctly, probably that's what stops a lot of relationships. You never have to judge people by appearances, one thug looking fella might become your closest friend open the expense of a “Good morning”, you might never know. And that doesn't concern only Honda-san, it seems all of his co-workers relate to the same treats one way or another, they all have to deal with different costumes every day, and we know, people come in all different types.
“sticks and stones may break my bones but a difficult costumer might draw me into depression, and a cheerful might even cure my cancer”, that's what it was like for the cast all along.

Enjoyment (8/10):
And even beyond. 8 out of 10 sounds like a disappointment for a show of this status, I forgot how long was it since I last enjoyed a comedy slice of life before deciding it's one shallow try-hard series. For me, Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san was a bit too fast-paced, you have characters talking way too fast I found myself replaying some bits more occasionally so that I could get the meaning behind the references they were making, one could say it's part of the experience, however, I would have enjoyed it more if it hadn't had to tone down to that. I'm willing to give it another rewatch and pick up on the jokes I've missed out on, and would even consider rewatching it dubbed if we ever got a decent one soon.

Overall (7.5/10):
Everything must come to an end, at least, I can say I've watched a great series from the bottom of my heart, as much as unbiased I tried to make this review, I was hesitant to submit to this somewhat low score for such a charming series, I know for a fact this is going on the top of my list of comedy slice if life recommendations. Not only that but as strong as it stands out as a rewatch heavy material, this should become more familiar as I'm willing to rewatch the heck out of it with friends and family, all of the BL jokes can never get old.
I do think however that most of the enjoyment comes at the expense of being familiar with the Otaku community, or else, most of the jokes would only get passed the typical viewer without a sent.

Honda-san is an adorable, simple, and heartwarming anime short series that is an absolute joy to sit through without taking up much of your day. The short-and-sweet beauty of the show makes it an easy watch that holds your attention, since it doesn't even really need that much of your attention to begin with. As somebody who has trouble with staying interested in a show, Honda-san's mini plots really helped me breeze by without losing the want to keep watching.

The characters, especially Honda, are so beyond lovable and all play their own little role to keep the silly, colorful nature the show strives for and ... does so well. Not to mention the art style, which tends to stay on the more basic side with a SPLENDID color scheme.

Honda-san is great for binge watching, watching in between other shows, or just when you have a spare 15 minutes, and I would recommend for those who enjoy silly slice of life.

Also, guaranteed will make you wish you worked at a Japanese book store.

Very underrated. The art can be intimidating to people who don't know what it's about, and keep them from watching the anime.
The theme is something I never thought I'd enjoy (it's about working on a bookstore?) but the way it is presented is great. Although initially the art made me a little anxious, in the end I believe it was a plus, and also made it very easy to associate the characters. The comedy transmitted through a spooky skeleton was also much more smooth than I would have otherwise thought.

It is very interesting and funny, and also kinda informative. The 140 or so minutes are ... very much worth it.

It's so nice to see something different once in a while. It's not about people faces of voices. It's about people's personality and qualities, and this is why the artist didn't just draw bishoujo or ikemen. ♡´･ᴗ･`♡
That being said, I won't start explaining the details about the characters or the plot. This anime is just too...ONE OF A KIND to get into this. (｡♥‿♥｡)
Every otaku has to watch something out of the ordinary, and this is a must.
Unique comedy, strange but incredible art.
You kinda feel sympathy for the ... employees and think how otakus can be weird. But you are one of them, and you laugh it off (=^.^=)

I became a better person after watching the agony of Honda-san, haha ( ´艸｀)

Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san succeeds in being both very funny and very informative about how bookstores are run behind the scenes, the latter of which surprised me. It achieves this by having every episode be based around some aspect of being a part of bookstore staff, whether it be dealing with certain kinds of customers or ordering and organizing books, then having the poor cast of fun characters try to handle them. It's always played for laughs and never feels like actual complaining, yet you still understand that it's not easy work.

The "lazy" animation style didn't bother me too much because it doesn't take away from ... anything. The characters still express themselves amazingly, and the anime's theme doesn't NEED fluid animation because it's all about the writing.

How short Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san is is both a blessing and a curse. It being a couple of hours makes it easy to just put on and marathon, easy to recommend since it's not a huge commitment, and means it doesn't overstay its welcome. But as you can probably imagine, it's so good that only having so little of it is a little bittersweet.

Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san is a just a good time. Pop it on! Maybe you'll be like me and actually want to work at a bookstore, or at least go to one, as a result!

Seriously, who watched this anime before Mother's Basement talked about it. I'm glad he did because over 12 10 minute, 30 second shows, I got about as many laughs out of it as I did from The Disastrous Life of Saiki K. (and that was a lot).
The story took a backseat when it came to an over-arching narrative. That wasn't the point though. This manga's creator was a bookseller who wanted to recount his experiences. It didn't need cohesion.
The art is amazing. It may have a mediocre and dead look ... at first, but it becomes amazing when comedic, extreme emotions (Assassination Classroom style btw) come into play. Combine that with great sound, and you get A-tier comedy.
The characters (I'm mostly concerning Honda-San and his co-workers) are great, getting development on a personal level through their behavior at work. Some may seem like comedic punching bags, but they feel real. The only thing that takes away from the real-ness was the masks used to protect the characters' identities.
I mentioned how this anime is hilarious, so you could tell I enjoyed it. I've mentioned it before, so I have no more to cover.
This anime is great, easily making my top 5 (Alongside Death Note, JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, Mob Psycho 100, and the perfection that is Assassination Classroom), and I'm sad to have to see it go as I finished it just hours a go. I have also found a calling to work at a bookstore. To end this as I started, thank you Mother's Basement for spotlighting this anime.

P.S. This is my first real critique, so thank you for reading it. I couldn't find many cons, but I will do this again when I have more time.

If you've ever worked retail, you will totally relate to this one. The animation is choppy, and other than the characters, the art is super basic. The humor is spot on, although if you've never worked retail, it might not hit so hard. Being set in a manga store all the show to have work and otaku humor meet, which is fun.

Keep in mind, these are humorous vignettes that do not tell an over arching story. I binged it one afternoon, and the jokes start flattening out after a bit. Since there's no pressing need to see what happens next, I'd recommend watching ... the no more that 2-3 episodes at a time. Keeps the humor fresh.

My only complaint is this: Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san should have been 24-minute long. Why? Because it is such a rare specimen, we don't know when something like this can come up again.

Judging from the premise alone (a skull-faced bookseller working in a, well, bookstore), it is reasonable when the first concern that pops in mind is: "Would it be just as same as an infomercial or after-school special or something?" but somehow, the boney Honda-san manages to whip up a narrative that is both informative and entertaining while the good people of DLE Studio managed to whip up such a quirky and stylish adaptation. Honda-san ... and the gang never sugarcoat their work as booksellers but they always deliver a valuable lesson: even when our job is a pain in the ass, it is the pain of our own choosing and with that, there comes the pleasure. As an audience, when you start wishing you'd be there with these whimsical booksellers and share their joy and pain, a 10-minute worth of episode is just far from irresistible.

As a personal note, I binge-watched Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san when I was dealing with a job of my own. Just like these guys' job, mine was a pain in the ass and as expected, this anime helps me cope and move forward. After all, both Honda-san and I got books to sell tomorrow, as well.

#felixlovesanime

Skull-face Bookseller Honda-san is a wonderful slice-of-life anime short series. It follows the real life of a bookseller and manga artist, Honda-san. As with most great relaxed slice-of-life series, it aims to capture the comedy and magic in everyday experiences. We meet Honda-san's quirky co-workers working in the same bookstore as well the rest of the supply chain: wholesalers, publishers, and customers.

As mentioned by other reviewers, Honda-san is a very likeable character #husbando2018. He's awkward, but he's also earnest about his job. He tries his hardest to give the best experience to customers, and often helps out his co-workers. That's why the struggles the ... series tackles are never frustrating to watch (because the audience trusts Honda-san is competent and a good person). So, even when a lot of us have no idea about publishing and bookstores, we immediately want to understand Honda-san's situation. It's charming and funny to watch Honda-san try to deal with eccentric customers despite not being very slick, or having to attend compulsory service training workshops. The detail in the situations and realism of Honda-san's reactions makes this show #relatable.

I also really enjoy the art style. All the main and supporting characters are given non-human features. Honda-san has a skull for a head, his co-workers wear a variety of masks and helmets to cover their faces, and other characters have slips of paper stuck to their foreheads. It's a clever inversion of an anime trope where artists don't bother drawing human faces for background characters and only give main character distinguishable features. This choice also really helps highlight the subtle strangeness of Honda-san's day-to-day interactions, and the colourful personalities of the characters.

One aspect that I don't think has been mentioned that I really enjoy is how the show depicts a globalised world. Hear me out: I think a lot of anime is very weird about foreigners. People who come from other races or other countries have their differences exaggerated, and sometimes, fetishised. This series is unique in the way that it doesn't ignore those differences, but it realistically depicts them in a positive light. The tourists who come to Honda-san's bookstore are just like any other. They just want to buy manga (and maybe come from countries where it isn't as popular). Honda-san never gets stuck on the simple fact that they are foreigners. Instead, the show focuses on the processes of understanding and helping them. It shows Honda-san trying to speak English, trying to recommend books that he thinks they'll enjoy, and there's a scene where he explains why Japanese manga is in black and white, and not coloured. In other words, the protagonist is never put off by the fact that his customers are all different, and he tries his best to meet them where they are at. It also does a good job at showing the wide diversity of the non-Japanese people that come to Honda-san's store. I think that really shows how far anime has come when, in the past, the introduction of a single non-Japanese person was made a huge spectacle in most mainstream series.

Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san is an episodic comedy with some autobiographic tones where the author presents a satire of himself at the time he was working in a bookstore while writing this manga.
In the story he depicts himself as Honda-san, A timid Skeleton bookseller who is in charge of the American comics and Foreign comic book section of the bookstore.
The Nucleus of the show is based on Honda san, and his equaly colorfulf co-workers trying to manage all the stressful and inconvenient aspects of working in a bookstore as best as they can and keep the store afloat, while trying to mantain a good morale.


Why would ... you watch this? because its fun,its funny, its surprisingly light and easy to digest and the short episodes makes it hard for you to get tired of it, the art can seem a bit weird , maybe foreign at first, but it grew quickly on me to a point where it felt natural and the characters feel likeable and work well with each other.
it is not the kind of anime that has been done a million times, on the contrary, I would say this is quite original and yet, it feels like they knew very well what they were doing and managed to deliver a heck of series, Great watch,and I recomend it to any pair eyes that may happen to stroll around this humble review.

Score: 8/10 ★★★★★★★★☆☆