A completely unlikeable bitch torments an obnoxious "moe" blob of a character while a chalkboard proudly displays Fermat's last theorem or Schrodinger's equation in the background as if declaring: "look how bloody clever I am! This is truly a show for intellectuals!"
(insert math formula here)
Yeah, I can copy/paste too you bastards!
Haruhi director be not proud, though some have called you brilliant and visionary, for thou art not so!
Spoilers!
Story: 4/10
The story is that God, the creator of the universe, is an awful high school brat that must be kept entertained or else she will destroy the universe. Many people come from across time and space to entertain this most grating of protagonists in order to save existence. It is possible to have an absurdist, nihilistic plot and make it entertaining and clever. For better examples look at Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Hell, look at any of the Disgaea games, those are WAY better than Haruhi! The plot isn't that clever, entertaining, or rewarding for the viewer. It is self indulgent trash that wishes to join the ranks of the titans of absurdism. It is like something Samuel Beckett would write after having a lobotomy!
Characters: 2/10
I HATE the characters in this show. I hate Haruhi! I hate Kyon! I hate them all! The characters don't really amount to anything besides tired anime cliches and at no point do they allow the viewer to empathize with them or care about them. The show does attempt some character development, but I really don't think it does very well in that regard. The worst part about the characters is how unbelievably obnoxious they all are! I have seen a lot of annoying anime characters, but this was a complete overload that left me so angry I couldn't see straight.
Art: 8/10
The art is actually quite good. That is the best part of the show honestly. Of course, the show did have a huge budget, so you would expect the production value to be decent.
Sound: 2/10
Haruhi has my least favorite opening in all of anime! Even the Love Hina opening isn't as infuriatingly stupid and sickening as this one. The rest of the soundtrack is also rage inducingly awful. The composer once wrote the Rocket Knight Adventures OST for the Sega Genesis! What the HELL happened! Did she sell her musical talent to the devil in order to pay off her student loans?! The Devil paid the loans, but replaced her talent with a new type of musical talent that could only make music to please him and praise the name of Lucifer!
Enjoyment: 1/10
Watching this series is enjoyable in the way that repeatedly punching yourself in the scrotum is enjoyable.
Overall: 4/10
As much as I absolutely HATE this series, it would be unfair to give it below a 4. Why? The art is actually quite good, and the director at least tried to create an absurdist masterpiece and had ambition, even though it failed horribly in my opinion. The show is deeply flawed, but at least it represented one man's vision and not a team of marketers trying to cash in on the latest craze. At least it wasn't about a bishounen hero that slays zombies in an MMORPG world while dating a harem of G cup women! I also gave it an extra point from the fact that I am no doubt bias against the series due to my strong hatred of its fandom. In other words, my feelings towards zealous fans should not color my review of the work itself, and therefore to protect objectivity I felt an extra point was warranted.
