Azumanga Daioh #2:
Festivals!

125 minutes
English/Japanese
English Subtitles
Released: 06/08/2004
Reviewed: 05/02/2006

There is basically nothing from the country of Japan that I find funny. I've said it a million times, and I'll stand by my claims.

But I say that basically any time I watch something funny (or "funny") coming from that singular cluster of islands in the middle of the Pacific. We've mostly discussed the scarcity of any humor that doesn't involve the holy trinity of robot-maid-nurse, but it's not like there isn't a whole scad of other things to pick on. What about recent heart stopper Elfen Lied, who considers the pinnacle of humor to revolve around naked autistic teenagers wetting themselves in the living room and oh-so-clever situations of mistaken intentions where could be girlfriends (who are also your cousin) walk in on you while you're changing the naked autistic teenager into something more respectable between pee breaks. Hilarity ensues. I am so not even kidding here. It's beautiful. For reals. And let's not talk about that lynchpin of anime comedy: the pratfall. In its wild form you might recognize it as "slipped over a board, fell into your titties."

Azumanga Daioh contains nothing of the sort. Or, perhaps it would be better to say that it contains nothing that aspires to the same level of comedy that 'traditional' anime humor might. In this slew of episodes there are two standout breast jokes. Far from misogynistic or even lame, they are halfway witty. Instead of brazen and boisterous, they are soft and subtle. Sakaki, the most physically mature of all the girls in the class, wins a race thanks to her larger mammaries. They don't do any of the wiggle-jiggle, they don't play any classic 'womp-womp-womp-waaaaa' trumpet to signify to the audience that the joke has arrived(!!) No, they just show her breaking the tape at the finish line with her breasts. Survival of the fittest, or maybe the result of a diet laden with fatty McDonalds food.

And that is the height of perversion extremes to which Azumanga Daioh goes. The show is noticeably low key, and any other jokes related to private parts are purposely used at the expense of the character making the joke. The fact that one show in Japan has something where an old man who lusts after young girls is actually treated like pervert fills my heart with joy. I'd be happier if the pedophilic Mr. Kimura didn't exist, but as far as things go... this is the best I'm gonna get when it comes to perverts.

Now, if only we could get the rest of anime to follow this show's lead.

The humor in Azumanga Daioh is simple, innocent, and fun. As Joel and I discussed in the podcast, a scene where the lovable, but overly energetic Tomoe mistakes a suggestion box for a donation box was almost enough to bring me to tears I was laughing so hard. It sounds silly when I refer the story to you, but I guess it's really something that needs to be experienced firsthand. What I find even more charming is that the show manages to be legitimately funny to me in its original language. There must be something there, then, either some heroically strong writing or there's some truth to what sub-fans always say about being able to understand inflection on the Japanese language track. Am I being converted in my old age?

Probably not, but Azumanga in Japanese is still pretty hilarious.

I was decidedly against watching this show when I was first given the opportunity. I mean, come on, five high school aged girls in high school doing high school things in JAPAN?! That's a recipe for disaster. It sounds like the opening plot for Kurumi Kurumi Magical Sewing Adventure IV: Obliteration!! Death to You, Teacher-Sama! and we all know that was the weakest link in the series. Conversely, this show uses its simple roots to make simple plots that are deceptively funny. Like guerilla commandos of jokes, you don't realize that the show has taken hold until it has toppled the flag in that state capital of your brain's humor center. Azumanga is funny for the exact reason that everything else in Japan isn't. The show actually takes its time to make a joke instead of spewing out a million words like 'cow udder' and 'Tits McGee' at once and hoping one of them sticks. And what do you know, the Azu way actually works!