This is review number one hudred and seventy three. This is part of the Spring 2012 lineup. It’s almost a year and I can’t seem to finish the lineup I started out with. Anyways, I’ll be reviewing a short one. After 120 episodes of different long anime, my brain just gave up. I once dreamt of a cool fight scene between Makishima and Light Yagami with a mecha and Godzilla fighting in the background but I was sweating cold sweat because I know I had to review it afterwards. I wake up at the dead of the night unable to sleep afterwards. What do you call that? Anime overdose or something.

For my sanity’s sake, I’ll be reviewing a short one. It’s a short anime called Shiba Inuko-san. It’s a dog that wears a school uniform but everyone thinks she is a normal girl. This is probably not the best show to watch with my current brain mushy as mash potato. Eh, if I dream of a talking dog tonight then I might have to take a break for a month. Anyways, Shiba Inuko-san. Twenty six episodes, less than a minute show that is pretty enjoyable. Let’s read on.

Story

The anime about three group of friends and their everyday school life. They are all normal girls except one of them is a walking talking Shiba dog. No one seems to mind though except one of her friends, Chako Ishibashi. The anime is mostly about Shiba Inuko and her extra ordinary existence.

Taking the Pants Off

This is an anime about a dog that talks and goes to school. The idea is pretty solid but it is also pretty stupid. The anime runs for only one minute and forty seconds. Half of that is dedicated to a theme song sung by the main character so there is very little to work with. Each episode would just contain one or maybe two gags and the idea is very simple. Most four panel anime has the same limitation so this isn’t anything new to me. The show mostly centers around the school life of three friends where one is a dog and only the other friend notices it. No one else is concerned that she looks like a dog. Rather, no one is concerned that she IS a dog.

Within the short amount of time, I guess there is something accomplished. The setup of the episodes is simple and the jokes are simple as well. The execution within that limited opportunity wasn’t wasted though. There is something to be admired in this show. I admire its precise execution but others admire its plain stupidity.

Let’s face it. The show is pretty retarded and the anime takes advantage of it. The jokes in the anime aren’t smartly conceived. It just stems from the fact that a Shiba dog is talking and no one gives a f*ck. Throughout the anime, the jokes just simply consist of absolutely retarded things. Some episodes include Shiba acting like a dog but no one notices it except one of friends. Some episodes involve the only person that thinks Shiba Inuko is a dog controlling herself when something retarded happens. I actually like the way her eyes just look dead whenever something stupid happens. Deep down, I think I can relate. The rest are just conversations about dogs and humans and how Shiba Inuko is sorta kind of in between that.

Like most Comedy, it depends entirely on whether the viewers would find it funny or not. Some people just can’t over the premise and the absolute weirdness of the episodes. I don’t blame them. Other people see the appeal in a talking dog that acts like a human though and enjoys the fact that whatever she does is cute. Other people simply enjoy the stupid nature of the show and embrace the sheer absurdity of it all. It entirely depends on you. For me, the show does wonders. It’s a good way to turn you brain off and just watch something without an overcomplicated setup. After all, it’s a dog wearing a school uniform. What’s more to tell?

The characters are generic characters. You can’t really expect great characters from a one minute and forty second show. The show relies on the archetype of the characters and then just focuses on the School and Comedy theme it has. There are just three characters anyways so it’s pretty east to follow the setup. There is the loud character, the level headed character and the timid girl that happens to be a dog. There are side characters but they don’t add much to the show. They’re generic as well and their only interesting quality is their genericness.

This show is pretty interesting despite the stupid premise. The execution of the jokes are great, the joke themselves are easy to take in and the premise is pretty inspired. I’ve seen some six hundred anime so something as weird as a talking dog attending school like a normal middle school girl is nothing to me. As long as the show has something meaningful to offer then I don’t really mind and this show does indeed have something that I think everyone should try.

Sight and Sound

The character design is pretty simple. It’s the kind of simple that is nice to look at though. The big headed bug eyed characters but their cuteness persists and no overcomplicated design made them easy on the eyes. They characters are mostly fourteen year old girls so the simplicity works nice for them. The design on the school uniform is plain and nothing really striking. The design of the hairstyle and the faces are simple as well. They’re cute, and that’s about it. As for Shiba Inuko, she looks like a dog. There is really nothing more to talk about here. She does have nice proportions. She looks like a Shiba dog standing up which looks weird yet oddly nice to stare at. The design on her is simple as well but you can’t deny her cuteness when she rocks on her school uniform.

The animation is pretty simple. It doesn’t really stand out and most of the time you can see that only the mouth moves in the characters. The animation was good enough for a one minute and forty second show, I guess. Nothing was made half assed though and there was nothing blatantly short cut so to make the animation look cheap. The quality remains consistent so that’s a pretty great thing for something so short.

The anime has no ED. There are two OP songs though. The first one is “Shiba Inuko-san no Uta” by Shiba Inuko-san (Mikoi Sasaki). This is a really catchy song that I really hate to admit that I really like. It’s just a simple song where Mikoi does a cute voice while singing this song about Shiba Inuko. It’s sugary sweet at first but as you listen to it again and again, you’ll appreciate the clarity in Mikoi’s voice and the cute style she is conveying. The second OP is “Shiba Inu Ondo” by Paprika feat. Shiba Inuko-san. I don’t really understand why the decided to make another OP but it’s something we’ll never understand. Again, it’s a cute song about the dog and the singer has a really nice voice. This one is actually more impressive because the singer has a nice range and an even cuter voice. Mikoi does a few lines like blurting out “Choco Pudding” at the end of the song. The songs are easily the best part of the anime though so I really like that.

Overall Score

5/10 “It’s a decent show despite the limited amount of time.”

The premise is weird and stupid but the overall appeal of the show is really nice. I really like it and I love how it manages to pull off some decent jokes in the limited time it has. If you like simple anime that is easy to follow and jokes that aren’t complicated then you’ll love this show. If you enjoy being weirded out by Japanese anime then I think this show will do it.