Sabagebu! is an extremely funny Shoujo comedy that accomplishes it's primary goal: to make you laugh and it doesn't try to do much else. There aren't any "deep" themes or complex messages that the crew of Sabagebu! are trying to make you consider. While it may not be doing anything outstanding enough to be remembered decades in the future, Sabagebu! is still an excellent experience for anyone who simply wants to relax and have a few laughs. It doesn't bombard the viewer with melodrama or degrade its characters through fanservice, but instead focuses on being as funny as possible. And that's good enough for me to give it a wholehearted two-thumbs up and recommendation.
Story: B-
The story is centered around transfer student, Momoka, being roped into joining one of the strangest school clubs of all-time, the Survival Game Club! A episodic Shoujo comedy, that follows Momoka’s various escapades with the other members of the survival game club.
So basically, it's your typical slice of life comedy anime, just with a lot more guns involved.
There’s never a dull moment in Sabagebu, and it’s this fast pace and over-the-top comedy that keeps the anime rolling along. The writer’s also do a great job of varying up all the different sketches that each of the 12 episodes are composed of, so the jokes don’t become stale and over-used. They do a good job with references and playing up certain things for comedic effect. There’s a Yakuza movie parody sketch that’s absolutely hilarious and they do a great job of shifting the focus on different characters and character dynamics with each different sketch so that you’re getting something new out of everyone.
It reminded me a lot of the other great anime comedies I’ve seen in the past like Gintama and Beelzebub, so if you enjoyed those shows, then you’ll more than likely enjoy this one as well.
Characters: B
The entire cast plays their roles extremely well, and they all provide a bundle of laughs. I’m not sure if it’s because I haven’t watched much Shoujo yet, but all of the characters seemed fun and several them had fairly distinct personalities I hadn’t very many times in anime.
Sonokawa, Momoka might be one of my favorite main characters to come out of 2014. Whereas the trend seems to be going towards protagonist who are built up to be perfect in every way, selfless and the Moral Compass of their respective series, righting every wrong and defeating every villain, Momoka goes in the completely other direction. She has a two-sided personality, She initially kept an appearance of a polite and kind schoolgirl but is actually sharp-tongued, merciless, and easily angered. She is prone to taking revenge, often disproportionately. She’s a vengeful, spiteful, jealous, petty, ruthless, and selfish person who has no problem betraying her fellow club members or allies, and has no qualms about pointing and shooting down anyone that gets her way. Cute little children, elderly people, cute animals, Cat-Aliens, her Mom, or even her own conscious! There’s no one she won’t turn her gun on in order to win or get what she wants, and this sort of ruthlessness is played upon to great comedic effect. It’s absolutely hilarious when someone’s tries to play upon her mercy or how cute and harmless they are, and then she puts a bullet right through their brain. It’s this sort of flawed character that makes her more relatable, and in the case of this comedy, the star of its humor. Her antics provide for tons of laughs.
Of course, she’s not necessarily that vicious, since they’re just paintballs, but she has no problem using others as a human shield, leaving people behind so she can get away, or any other dirty underhanded trick. She does have her tender moments though, that show she’s not so bad, but those usually come around to bite her in the ass at one point or another and at least once an episode she gets what’s coming to her for underhanded schemes and tricks. Seeing her get one upped by the other characters is always very funny to see and it sort of balances everything out for her rude behavior throughout the rest of the series. Well the other members of the cast are solid characters that provide for many, many hilarious moments, Momoka is definitely the high point in the character department and it's from playing off her brilliant characterization that the other characters are able to be so outlandish and funny.
Animation: C
The weakest aspect in the entire anime. There’s nothing animation or character design wise that really wows you at all, and well the fight scenes are well done every now and then, there’s nothing else that stands out at all. The art style is pretty standard, and doesn’t really make the characters pop at all. It’s pretty much average in this department, but that’s alright since this show isn’t about gorgeous animation or character designs and the way shots are presented and the use of quick cuts throughout the show are able to translate the humor from the pages of the script and through the screen well.
Sound: B-
The voice acting in this is absolutely phenomenal. All of the voice actors do a great job of showcasing the character’s spectrum of emotions and can change the tone of their voice at the drop of a hat and showcase they’re range in spectacular fashion. Everyone fits they’re character’s personalities perfectly as well. A special shout-out has to go out to Urara’s VA, who can go from high-pitched cutesy voice to dangerously low and ominous voice extremely quickly.
Both the opening and ending are extremely catchy and fit the mood of the show perfectly. It probably helps that both are performed by the voice actors of the characters in the show, and it really gets you ready and excited for each episode when you hear them.
The only problem in the sound of the anime was the fairly limited and repetitive tracks that played in the show. There didn’t seem to be a large selection to pick from, and while everything fit what was happening in the show, none of it was great and made you want to go listen to it on your own.
Personal Enjoyment: B+ grade.
I had a blast watching this show and every episode kept me in good-spirits and laughing throughout the entire 20 minutes. I never left an episode without a smile on my face, and the show did its primary job of keeping me entertained and giving me a fun half-hour every time I turned it on. By far one of the best comedies I watched in 2014, and it’s made me more interested in the Shoujo genre as a whole.
