#d-frag

D-Frag! Opening

Today's anime cat of the day is:

Eh, it’s already almost been two weeks? Yikes. Last week was finals.

Someone tell me why I’m so invested in a ship in a comedy/gag manga ;~; Especially one chock full of curveballs? Ahhh, I feel like I’m setting myself up for disappointment, but whatever—I enjoy the humor all the same.

Anyway, wasn’t planning on this being my next post, but the day after I finished my last final, I found out the newest chapter of this manga had been translated (just in time: good de-stresser), and since I don’t really have anyone to talk about it with, I needed a way to get it out of my system while I wait for the next chapter. Been meaning to do something for D-Frag! for the longest time, so why not some very condensed manga panel “sketches”? Well, pretty clean sketches, ‘cause I for some reason felt like being a perfectionist when I intended not to be -.-

1. Good Luck Girl (Binbougami Ga)

My biggest complaint with the majority of comedic anime out there is that there’s either no story, the schtick gets old after a few episodes, or there’s only one or two characters that are worth anything and the rest are just there to fill out a classroom. Binbougami Ga has always been that one comedy show that is just plain unforgettable, one of my favorite funny anime. Great characters, great narrative, an abundance of feel-good, and right alongside all that is some of the most side-splitting gags and hilarity you’ll ever see, each one as fresh as the one before it. I have to call Binbougami Ga a must-watch, it’s as good as they get. 

2. Konosuba (Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Shukufuku wo!) 

And that’s a tall, tall order when put next to this band of merry misfits that I am enamored with. I can’t even describe how funny this show is, especially if you have ever been an RPG game nerd (they embody common in-game stereotypes that make the chemistry between them that much more ironic, but you don’t have to “get” that dynamic to totally love this show). The personalities are too perfect, the cynicism and snark are honed to a discernable edge. Konosuba is one of my all-time favorite titles period, in any genre. So much pure, top-tier shenanigans throughout. 

3. My Bride is a Mermaid (Seto no Hanayome) 

Man, they just do not make them like this anymore. Sebastian left out a lot when he was singing about what goes on under the sea - mermaid mafias, transforming sharks, Terminator dads, loyal chimp sidekicks, and non-stop wackiness that will have you squirting whatever you’re drinking out through your nose with regularity. If you’re looking for a good time, you can’t ask for much more than Sun and Nagasumi and everyone that comes along with them. 

4. Amagi Brilliant Park 

There is a lot more going on in AmaBri than just hijinks - there is character progression. There is plot. There is linearity. You’re going to fall in love with several of these characters, because they’re worth falling for. But you’re going to LOL quite often, as well. Every single one of these cute and fuzzy little people (or fairies, to be... fair?) is a horribly flawed and hateful piece of work who loves nothing more than torturing one another for sport. Of course, they all come together and everybody lives happily ever after in the end and anime happens just like you expect it to, but getting there is too much fun. 

5. The Devil is a Part-Timer ( Hataraku Maou-sama!)

We have once again come to one of my all-time favorites, a show I will hold out with both arms over Pride Rock for the whole herd to see is in the world. It’s not just my favorite tsundere that has ever tsunded, it's not just the cavalcade of Sasaki’s facial expressions that make you laugh so hard you have to rewind a few seconds to catch missed dialogue, and it isn’t just the ridiculousness of it all that makes you wonder how off-kilter the person who thought it up in the first place has to be. Devil is a very good, very complete story. It’s such a very well done, very polished, start-to-finish anime. But yes, one that also happens to be insanely funny. 

6. Aho-Girl

You want as much pointless, plotless, slapstick gutter humor as can be crammed into a 12-minute timeframe? Here ya go. Stupidity at near sonic nonstop speeds, but the characters are so much fun it’s easy to binge episode after episode. 

7. Nichijou (Nichijou - My Ordinary Life)

Speaking of random, zany, and all around wtfedness humor, you will never see everyday happenings exploited and pushed to the edge of where a joke can go more than these six girls (and one cat) do. I think of Nichijou like Indian food or that single-malt that your dad really loves but you’ve never seen in a store - a lot of the show is acquired taste imo. But, if you’ve acquired it? Oye. So much bonkers going on in here! 

8. Gintama

Gintama is a show I can only take in small doses - the constant pundits and so-stupid-you-laugh moments wear on me after a while. Still, anybody who puts out a list of comedy anime and does not include Gintama is just asking to be discredited on the spot. Even people who don’t watch anime seem to understand that Gintama is one of the funniest shows out there, and even from someone who isn’t a huge fan, there are moments that I still remember years later and crack up.  

9. D-Frag

The OP song alone is just a random mishmosh of words that shouldn’t go together. Kazama Kenji shouts almost all his lines through the first few episodes. Some of the jokes are so far left of left field that the absurdity alone is what makes you bust up. And then, just about the time you catch your bearings and start to snuggle up to the constant silly of these little wierdos, you realize the same thing the characters do as the show goes on - all this is actually a ton of fun. Very nutty, very funny anime. Such a good time. 

10. Hyakko 

Originally watched this one because the artwork was so unique to me, stayed for the giggle fits I couldn’t tame. The mix of personalities of all these girls is great, and the timing between Torako and Tatsuki especially is fantastic. The last 3-4 episodes unfortunately are pretty much filler and feel a bit more canned than the rest, but for a title that I never really see people talking about, Hyakko delivers the howls in spades. 

11. Strange+ 

Ever watch an anime and wonder how in the world they came up with the title? Yeah, this isn’t one of them. Strange+ is definitely strange in an outlandishly wonderful way. Short episodes with exactly no progression, no plot, and most of the time not even a point except to be ludicrous and farcical nonstop. Truly one of the most unique shorts I’ve ever seen, and one of the laugh-out-loudest, as well. 

12.  Moyashimon

If Strange+ wasn’t worthy enough of its title, it would have been a perfect fit for Moyashimon, because “quirky” doesn’t even scratch the surface. There are plenty of laughs on their own, but the climate of the whole thing from start to finish is just awkward enough that even the times when it tries to be serious and salient it’s freaking hilarious. Mostly, though, I have had three (yes, THREE) Covid tests in the past month and keep thinking how awesome it would be if I had a Sawaki Tadayasu in my life to just ask instead of being repeatedly stabbed in the brain with a q-tip (he can see microorganisms, btw - and most of the time they’re a riot). I think of this whole list, Moyashimon is likely the most niche humor of them all, but I’ve always loved the wildly creative originality and the outside-the-lines, twisted sense of humor of these three college cohorts with ginormous personalities. If you can find both seasons somewhere to stream, definitely worth checking out. Just a marvelous time. 

13. Ranma 1/2