Spotlight Anime: Cromartie High School MAL Anime Information Page: Cromartie High School MAL Score – 8.06 (scored by 8919 users) Ranked - # #360 Popularity - #466 For the next week I would like to have a discussion about the anime that focuses on the key elements that we here on MAL use to critically rate an anime: Animation, Sound, Characters, Story, and Enjoyment. I would like everyone to approach this thread as if you were going to write a review and structure your initial post like this: Animation - insert rating Sound - insert rating Characters - insert rating Story - insert rating Enjoyment - insert rating Animation - discuss any pros and cons of the animation styling used in the series, try to include some specifics. Sound - describe any of the things you liked or didn't care for in regards to the music and sound effects used in the series etc... If you are having trouble writing up a review or coming up with specific pros and cons, please don't worry. Just do the best you can with it and if you can only write two or three sentences about any of the 5 elements then that's OK. Not everyone here is currently at a level which will allow them to articulate their thoughts and opinions. After your initial post is made you can feel free to civilly discuss issues of contention. I am sure there will be many opinions expressed here that some of us will disagree upon and criticize and it is for that reason that this entire club exists. So I hope everyone has fun and I am really looking forward to watching this discussion unfold. RESULTS OF THE YOU DECIDE POLL Cromartie High School was NOT inducted into the club Anime list: 20 Yes - 52.6% 18 No - 47.3% 27 Don't know this anime - 48.2% of the total number polled 1 Abstained - 1.7% of the total number polled Resurrection You Decide results: Cromartie High School (Anime) (10/09/17) - Yes: 14 - No: 7 - I haven't watched this anime: 32 ~ Abstained: 1 ~ Ineligible: Spyren (not listed) Mechazawa was found out! - 67% Cromartie High School (Anime) (7/4/20) - Yes: 16 - No: 5 - Haven't Watched: 24 ~ Abstained: 1 - 76.19% Cromartie High School (Anime) (22/11/20) - Yes: 14 - No: 7 - Haven't Watched: 33 ~ Abstained: 1 - 66.67% |
HiroM_Nov 25, 2020 4:01 AM
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| Personally, I thought that the only amazing episode was the third one. If we could induct separate episodes, that would be the firsе contender. However, considering that everything else wasn't that impressive and some episodes were blatantly unfunny (like the last one; seriously?), this anime will receive a no from me. |
| This is hard. It was not particularly outstanding in Animation, Sound or Story. Even with Characters, they are playing a fixed role that does not have much flexibility. But it doesn't matter. It's a comedy. It makes fun of so many things, I doubt anyone could name them all. As a comedy, I think it fulfilled its role exactly. However, everyone's opinion differs when it comes to comedy. It is a definite yes for me. |
| I dropped it by episode 4. Humor was made for 12-year-olds. |
| Even when I was in crowd, I was always alone |
| Cromartie High School doesn't have much plot, if anything it's sort of slice-of-life with a lot of random shit thrown in. While that might seem a downfall, I think it works for the show because the whole point is to be random, absurd and over-the-top. And Cromartie certainly succeeds at that, with whole episodes dedicated to remembering the name of a particular song from someone humming it; fake purple mohawks; the affects of motion sickness; and being lost in the woods while playing baseball. IMO Gintama owes a lot to Cromartie for paving the way for audiences to enjoy shows whose humour relies heavily on randomness, non-sequiturs and impossible situations. The characters are ridiculous. A robot who nobody, except for the main character, realises is a robot (himself included); an intelligent gorilla whose part time job is to serve sushi at a resaturant; and Freddie Mercury. Yes, Freddie Mercury is a character, and while he doesn't say a single thing throughout the whole series, the simple fact of his inclusion is hilarious in itself. Alongside these crazy characters are a bunch of delinquents with more to them than meets the eye, like surprising weaknesses, and a main character who is constantly wondering how he got himself into this mess and eventually succumbs to the absurdity of it all (think Shinpachi). The art isn't amazing, but the roughness reflects the "macho"ness of the characters and what they are supposed to portray, which makes it funnier when expectations are undermined via plot twist. The animation isn't anything to talk about, and the music didn't do much for me (other than the GAR opening). Overall I think Cromartie is worthy of induction since, for me, it nails comedy perfectly. The only other comedy anime I like more than this is Gintama, which has already been inducted and which I've explained owes a lot to Cromartie as a predecessor of this comedic style. However, not everyone will like this show. The style of humour, I've found, is very hit-or-miss. Considering how difficult it was for Gintama to be inducted, I'm not really expecting a lot of support for Cromartie from this club. But I'm happy it's gone up for nomination and hopefully that means more people will give it a chance. |
| I'd just like to quickly point out that they must be pretty knowledgable 12 year olds to understand humour that is, very often, only funny because they are allusions to manga anime films and other japanese pop culture up to 72 years before it. |
| oh, and it aired at midnight. |
ridojiri said: Is that supposed to be a good thing?I'd just like to quickly point out that they must be pretty knowledgable 12 year olds to understand humour that is, very often, only funny because they are allusions to manga anime films and other japanese pop culture up to 72 years before it. In my opinion, any anime that requires somebody to watch a number of completely unrelated works before it just to "get" the humor cannot truly considered a classic worthy of induction into this club. While it is pretty hard to find a truly timeless comedy, seeing as references, parody and satire play a large role in such anime, it's the job of this club to find the timeless ones and induct them, is it not? While I don't particularly like either anime or their style of humor, I would rather see Irresponsible Captain Tylor inducted than Cromartie, simply because Tylor has a genuinely timeless feel to it, having very few references to pop culture or anything else that would make it irrelevant when humans really are fighting wars against aliens in space, thus making it more "classic". It has already been mentioned that this anime won't appeal to everyone, so that pretty puts the nail in the coffin for me. I'm voting "no". The end. |
Rosa_FOEtidaMay 3, 2011 8:58 AM
Current FAL Ranking + Previous best::  [ |
| You have SZS at 8... But I do not mind. It doesnt work that way. it is a comedy that is about reinterpretation. 'politically correct red riding hood' by 'K. Hopkins' is hilarious. It works in the same way. Because of this, it's more deserving than say, Lucky Star or Working or Azumanga Daioh. While all of those are hilarious in their own right, that don't have much to say. At least Cromartie is a societal commentary in very many ways- and it doesn't completely rely on this either. An idea of the yankee craze through the 70/80's would be general knowledge in Japan, and the off the wall humour is to some point original as well. Having advanced ideas in a comedy is no crime. But do as you wish. |
| Well, I did vote "yes" for SZS at the time, but I didn't really think about what makes a classic worth inducting back then. I just thought it was funnier than most anime at that time, and that wasn't because of the references either. I guess the social commentaries go under what I said too, but it was he hilarious character introductions that really made it for me, hence why Zoku is only rated a 6. As for references, I guess they can still be funny if they end up being so random out-of-context that it would hilarious regardless. Jungle wa Itsumo Hare nochi Guu is the probably best example of this for me, with various pop-culture references which are so random that they are still funny even without knowing the source material orcontext it was meant in. Hare nochi Guu is also my top example for random comedy in general and the one I would vote "yes" for if it ever got a spotlight. I simply didn't find Cromartie funny in that way, and I'm not sure if scenes like the one with the internet troll will still be funny once the internet becomes obsolete, while I know Hare + Guu's references to Di Gi Charat, Dragon Ball and Jurassic Park still will be long after those fade into obscurity, if they ever do. Which brings me to another point. Certain things will still be well-known hundreds of years after they were made, such as Shakespeare novels and, yes, Little Red Riding Hood. So references to the most well-known franchises like Star Wars and Lord of the Rings will probably still be popular enough to be parodied long after they were made, but this only applies to 1% of the material that is parodied. If an anime confines itself to only parody the most popular pop culture, it could still probably be timeless Also, why did you bring up Azumanga? I love (or did love back when it when I first watched it years ago) Azumanga (but dislike Lucy Star and haven't seen Working), but I never mentioned it even once in my post. It has absolutely nothing to do with this particular argument. |
| Current FAL Ranking + Previous best:: [ |
| Are we really recommending "classics"? Wouldn't a classics club be better for that? Aren't we recommending things that are outstanding within their specific genres? Well, Cromartie is outstanding within its specific genre. But Cromartie's genre is such a comedy niche that I can't vote yes. I can't safely recommend it to everyone. For me it was 50/50. I liked it but I also disliked it. Since it has nothing extraordinary or special about it except for some moments of the writing, which are what makes it fun (but still not a bucket of laughter) it's a pretty solid No. It is consistent within itself, it is a good series. But it's not outstanding outside of its niche. Btw, my favourite episode was the noses one. |
 Waratte Oemashou Sore ha Chiisana Inori |
ladyxzeus said: Isn't that the same thing, though? If a series is so outstanding within it's own genre, would it be considered a classic by fans of that genre, thereby making it a cult classic? That's what I meant when I said that. I wasn't talking about out-and-out classics like you thought I was.Are we really recommending "classics"? Wouldn't a classics club be better for that? Aren't we recommending things that are outstanding within their specific genres? |
| Current FAL Ranking + Previous best:: [ |
| It's funny, but not as funny as Sexy Commando Gaiden. |
FOE-tan said: ladyxzeus said: Isn't that the same thing, though? If a series is so outstanding within it's own genre, would it be considered a classic by fans of that genre, thereby making it a cult classic? That's what I meant when I said that. I wasn't talking about out-and-out classics like you thought I was.Are we really recommending "classics"? Wouldn't a classics club be better for that? Aren't we recommending things that are outstanding within their specific genres? Nope. A classic is something that remains intemporal. Something may be outstanding and highly recommendable and not be a classic. For example, Sailor Moon is not an exceptionally good series and it's a classic, because it's a key work of its time. On the other hand Angel's Egg is an extraordinary work and it's not a classic at all (because nobody has hardly heard of it anyway). Inb4 debating if the quoted worths are worth their titles or not, it does not matter it's just an example |
Waratte Oemashou Sore ha Chiisana Inori |
Confucius said: I dropped it by episode 4. Humor was made for 12-year-olds. i also dropped it, around ep 4. and i tried really hard to enjoy it. |
AfterGlow said: It's funny, but not as funny as Sexy Commando Gaiden. Sexy Commando Gaiden was definitely more consistent in quality (although still got a bit old near the end), but I think the highlight of Cromartie (episode 3) is slightly funnier and more memorable than the highlight of Sexy Gaiden. |
whitew123 said: AfterGlow said: It's funny, but not as funny as Sexy Commando Gaiden. Sexy Commando Gaiden was definitely more consistent in quality (although still got a bit old near the end), but I think the highlight of Cromartie (episode 3) is slightly funnier and more memorable than the highlight of Sexy Gaiden. I can't really pick one highlight from SCG, while episode 3 of Cromartie stands at the top of that series, but the rest of the episodes weren't that funny, but I had read the manga so some of the humor was lost on me. The first three episodes of SCG was probably some of the funniest shit I have ever seen from start to finish though, no other anime has made me laugh as much. Martian Successor Nadesico is the only one that comes close. |
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