This is my first review and I plan to write more in the future, so I hope I can explain well why I hate this show so damn much.
First things first: The story.
There is none.
Umaru, while being popular at school and great in every subject, just turns into a lazy otaku at home, doing nothing but gaming, watching anime, reading Manga and having her older brother she lives with do even the smallest things for her.
That's it.
There is no plot progression - aside from some season-related episodes - there is no character development, which would be rather necessary to get something out of the main character.
"But it's just a comedy", you might say, "It only has to be fun, what do you expect."
Of course giving a show that bad a score only based on the fact that it has little to no story wouldn't be fair. Instead, I should focus on the humor, it's a comedy after all.
And the humor the show has... is so, so terrible. It always happens at the expense of the wrong characters, and the most unlikeable characters end up coming out on top - I can't find the humor in that.
I will admit that there were a few moments that felt kinda genuine, but whenever the show tried to have emotional moments otherwise, it got immediately ruined afterwards for the sake of some bad and predictable joke. [1/10]
This is, naturally, directly tied to the cast of the show, which has to be one of the most unlikeable casts I have ever seen in a comedy.
Umaru is manipulative and lazy, almost sociopathic in the way she treats her older brother and there is no motivation for her to change her manners completely when she goes outside. She doesn't work as a character, because her "outside" and true personality don't fit together at all. There is no way someone could live like that - only hanging around at home, eating snacks and playing games, but still being perfectly healthy, slim, fantastic at sports and great at school without learning or training or doing anything at all. Also she has some kind of chibi form whenever she's in lazy mode and despite only having other clothing, no one aside from her brother ever recognizes her.
Her Brother Taihei, while being pushed around constantly, tries to change his sister for the better, but always ends up cleaning after her, buying stuff for her and feeling bad because he gets fed up with her more than one time. He goes to work yet still manages the household all on his own, and he's so much into his adorable little sister it gets annoying really fast.
Ebina, Umaru's friend, has even less personality than that, she likes to hang out with Umaru, is shy, dumb, in love with Taihei and has big boobs.
Kirie, another friend, is also shy, but really violent with her older brother.
But it's absolutely okay, because her brother, who is a friend of Taihei's, is perverted and stupid. Nothing is wrong with girls constantly hitting guys for whatever reason, right? Isn't it just fun?
Then there's Sylphyn, who's competitive with Umaru, a foreigner who speaks very politely and always a bit hyper.
And I'm supposed to find all of this funny somehow? I can't.
A character-based comedy is supposed to get the fun out of character interactions, reactions and the situations they find themselves in, but when the whole cast is either bland or horribly unlikeable, the humor doesn't work.[1/10]
As for art and animation, they are okay, but not great.
The anime shines with really nice colors and some good, but mostly bland character designs. [5/10]
The sound is also mixed. The show has a rather catchy opening, forgettable ending and boring, bland insert music.
The only thing remarkable here is Umaru's Seiyuu. In my opinion, she does a great job in trying to give anything likeable to her role and I hope she gets parts in much better Anime in the future. [5/10]
As for my overall enjoyment... the show had some nice, relaxing parts in it, which is why I kept watching until the end, but after episode 12, I wondered why I bothered at all. [4/10]
Total score (NOT calculated mathematically): 1/10
So there you have it. What could have been a nice comedy focused on otaku culture turned into some really unlikeable characters I don't care about having fun. And also created one of my most hated anime characters of all time.
Hopefully at least Umaru's Seiyuu will benefit from having been a part of this.
