Today is the last day of 2007, and time I make my fashionably late entrance. Just like Guchuko.
Story
1. Moeblobs pop out of fridge
2. Moeblobs cause shenanigans
3. ???
4. Profit!
No, seriously. That’s what happens. Potemayo and Guchuko are presumably some sort of inter-dimensional being hell bent on taking over our world, and they come here through the Moriyama family’s fridge. Having arrived, they realise that they are in fact incredibly cute and instead of trying to take over the world they decide to do cute stuff for food and shelter and boundless affection. Because being loved is so much better than being feared, not that I don’t fear Guchuko’s cute little scythe and laser shooting croissant hair accessories/death dispensers.
Why you should watch this show
I wonder how many people dismissed it initially because of its childish stylings? If you’re one of those people, go watch it NOW. It’s great, for a large number of reasons.
This is most definitely one of them
1) It’s got two literal moeblobs.
2) One of those moeblobs shoots lasers. Pew pew pew!
3) The other moeblob has cat ears.
4) It’s got what is possibly the most annoying voice ever. Also has Kawasumi Ayako and Kugimiya Rie doing not one but TWO loli roles.
4.5) One of which is a reverse trap.
5) Hana Kanazawa. Honi honi pan nya!
6) Whole animal corpses.
Here’s some more substantial reason (i.e. the serious fluff that I write because I think I have to and that you don’t really want to read). Apart from being cute and funny, it’s also really touching at times, and the quantity of each is so perfectly balanced that it never feels too heavy. This is perfectly reflected in what is possibly the best pair of OP/ED this year. The art and character designs are simple but nice, and the animation maintains consistently high quality. Don’t be fooled by its styling that is reminiscent of a lot of children’s anime, its appeal is broad enough to be enjoyed by the entire family, or by a fully grown man watching anime by himself in a dimly lit room (i.e. you).
It’s not a show that’s easy to explain in words, so you should just go watch it.
I really can’t think of anything else to say about this show. Which is just fine, because it’s fluff at its finest. In fact, I feel that it represents 2007 very well – there are a lot of laughs, some wonderful moments, sometimes tear-jerkingly touching, but overall it’s just fluff. A lot like this post, too.
Finally, to really pad out this post, I’m going to give away some “Best of 2007″ awards.
Best “Serious show”: Baccano!, Aniplex
Runner-ups: Seirei no Moribito, P.I.G.; Dennou Coil (barring the inter-chin-etary warfare episode), Madhouse
Best “Comedy”: Potemayo, J.C. Staff
Runner-ups: Minami-ke, Daume; Sayonara Zetsubo Sensei, Shaft
Best “OMFG DID I JUST SEE THAT”: Gurren Lagann, GAINAX
Runner-ups: Gurren Lagann pierces through all its competition with its GIGA DORIRU BUREKA
Best “Trainwreck i.e. it’s too painful but I can’t pull my eyes away”: Code Geass: C.C. of the Pizza Hut, Sunrise
Runner-ups: I managed to pulled my eyes away from other potential trainwrecks, so no runner-ups here.
Best “Meme that No One Will Remember in Six Months”: NICE BOAT, School Days
Runner-ups: Futae no Kiwami, Nico Nico Douga; OMG ODEX SUCKS GIMME MY ANIME, Singapore
Best “Dorama”: Madness? THIS. IS. SINGAPOOOOOOOOOORE (aka Odex), Singapore/Odex
Runner-ups: Darkmirage vs Nyoron subs, Community; OH NOES ANIME IS DYING THE SKY IS FALLING THE WOLF IS COMING, Community.
Best “Shit that Nobody Cares About”: This Award, THAT Animeblog
Runner-ups: I don’t care enough to think of any
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13 Comments
Potemayo is as good or even better than J.C. Staff’s other legendary 4Koma adaption which is none other than Azumanga Daioh (2002). I just don’t see why people don’t want to watch Azumanga Daioh version 2. Or maybe some of us just don’t bother that much about animation studios.
I only found out about Potemayo recently after reading a similar blog post by another anime blogger (can’t remember who) and you hit all the right spots with your comments about it here
I think I rushed through all 12 episodes (and the special episodes) in 2 days (which is quite a big thing for me, since I hardly ever do anime marathons). Best comedy of 2007, much agreed!
potemayo is one of the best anime of 2007.
Natsu mikan in this show voiced by kawasumi ayako,
is identical to Yoshida Kazumi on Shakugan no Shana.
And true, the most charming point is guuchuko and her child
btw, watch the Potemayo and shana cross over at:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=xDuLq9G6Lfg&feature=related
I love Potemayo!!
…though it’s a shame that I’ve only read the manga and still haven’t watched the anime .___.
Hmmmmmmmmmmmm. Not so sure about Baccano. I mean it was fun, but its insanely convoluted story was a bit much. Denno Coil had its good moments, but mostly a sludge through overt seriousness. Seirei no Moribito as well. All well made, but felt a bit slow to me. And funny enough, I thought the interplanetary episode of Denno Coil was one of its best. I guess Seirei no Moribito was the best made ’serious animu’ though.
And Geass was a trainwreck? For being a fun little romp of silly politics and insane egos? I never get the reason why people criticize Geass so seriously or think it wasn’t made to be ridiculous. I had so much fun watching, I couldn’t be bothered to grumble about the anime-plothole-that-is-in-every-mecha-ever.
As for comedy goes. I see that Seto no Hanayome will always be forgotten… That and Oh Edo Rocket too.
But for Potemayo, I agree 100%. Even beyond straightshooting slice of life shows like Sketchbook and Minami-ke, Potemayo just had a really strange feel to it going on. It’s like zen of complete moeblob anarchy and touchy, heart warming moments.
Potemayo does a job (moe, funny, touching), and it does it well.
i love potemayo XP Hani hani hanyo fuwaaaaaaaa
agree on denno coil and minamike
i like umisho for comedy too
genshiken and Sketchbook is pretty good to me too
Baccano is interesting though i thought the ending was abit mm weird LOL..
but its better than darker than black for sure
and darker than black is better than code geass for me
Mecha warfare is just so not for me ( except for vandread, kiddy grade and galaxy angels LOL)
To everyone who commented: thank you, and Happy New Year! Hope 2008 will be much better than 2007 for all of you =D
dKiWi: I think in terms of simple hilarity, it’s not as good as Azumanga Daioh. But Potemayo’s touching moments are done much better. I wouldn’t rate Potemayo as highly as Azumanga as a comedy, but as a show overall it’s probably very close (with Azumanga still a bit ahead).
Chu Yeow: Yeah it’s absolutely fantastic. I’ve already watched it twice =D
Akito: I’d understand the video if it wasn’t in Japanese ^_^;
Usagi: YOU SIMPLY MUST WATCH IT! It’s one of the best shows this year.
Shippoyasha: Haha, Baccano’s story is nothing compared to my two favourite humongous fantasy epics, the Wheel of Time and A Song of Ice and Fire. I really enjoy that kind of complex stories with a lot of characters, which is why I considered it the best ’serious show’ this year.
Neko79: Honi honi pan! XD
I don’t like moe, and despise moeblob, although I have soft spot for mochi-mochi babies. I really enjoy Potemayo for the various sexual innuendos which are somehow many times funnier given the unfitting children anime atmosphere. Given this, I really really don’t think that Potemayo is a show you could enjoy with the entire family if your family has small kids, the manga is “seinen” for a reason ^_^.
Yay for Baccano up there. I love its hectic pacing.
Why does everyone like Guchiko more than Pote-chan! POTEMAYO FTW! This was definitely one of the best and underrated shows of 2007.
P-kun: Despite the numerous off-colour jokes, Potemayo can just as easily be enjoyed by children, because most of the penis jokes are very subtle (or maybe it’s less subtle in Japanese, who knows).
Totali: Because Guchuko is Tsundere. =P
Well, Lupus, it’s not that I was exactly praising Baccano’s story as it was more of a jumble and supposedly only covered a segment of the whole novel story. But it was alright, though a tad bit pretentious IMO.
Though the pretentious anime of the year award goes to Darker than Black. Now THAT was a trainwreck!
Yes I agree, I just discovered Potemayo recently and compiled all the potemayo episodes online for easy reference.
It’s a shame that it’s not available in North America.