Anime Review:
Majikoi Oh! Samurai Girls Episode 1
What this is about: Watching all of the anime shows so you don’t have to! For more information about me and my reviews, click here for details on what I am reviewing.
Series Premise: Majikoi Oh! Samurai Girls, or “Maji de Watashi ni Koishinasai!” (a.k.a. “Do Love Me Seriously”) is a weekly televised anime series starting in October 2011, based on an adult video game. The series follows Yamato and his close-knit group of buddies at Kawakami High School, which is renowned for its samurai heritage and fighting spirit.
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Spoiler-free set-up: It’s time for the great Kawakami War, and outdoor battle with non-lethal weapons involving two rival classes at Kawakami High School, where the students are known for their fighting spirit based on centuries-old heritage from the region. In a grand melee involving hundreds of students, including Yamato and his close group of friends. The battle wages back and forth, involving all sorts of tactics and strategies with various people showcasing their fighting talents. One side wins. The end.
My Impressions: Ugh. Potentially the worst show of the season (still too early to earn that award, though, since I still have a few stinkers left on my list to endure). I suppose the first hint at its terribleness was the phrase “adapted from an adult visual novel” — when has there ever been a show worth watching that had its origins in a wanking video game?
This was just an endless onslaught of high school students fighting each other in a big battle, some winning, some losing, and after the first few minutes I lost track of who was who, who was on which side, and what the whole point of it was. There’s apparently a main character named Yamato, although I cannot recall whether he was even on the screen during the battles or not, he has such an unimpressive presence (based on the episode summary in Wikipedia, he was the loser guy who was confessing his love to some girl in flashbacks and getting turned down). He apparently has seven close friends, although it was all just a blur of boobs and hair and swords and arrows and all that shit, and I don’t think I could name a single one.
I’m not sure if there’s any plot involved, and frankly I don’t think it matters. This is not the sort of show that you watch for the deep dialogue or complex twists.
To put it bluntly, Crappy Harem Fighting Anime is Crappy. While not as blatantly “echhi” as, say, Ikki Tousen or Queen’s Blade or other such anime offal (in fact, downright tame in comparison), it’s certainly in the same “fine” tradition. I would question why they persist in making this sort of bottom-of-the-barrel drek, but I know better: It is because there is an endless parade of horny teenage otaku out there who are more interested in seeing two girls fighting each other and then jerking off in front of their computer screen rather than engage in a decent story.
The verdict: 
- Preview trailer on Youtube.
- Info resources:
- If you like this, you might also like: Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu or Hyakka Ryouran Samurai Girls.
Sampling of Online Reviews:
- “I really have no clue what this show is about. The entire first episode, all 20 mins of it, is devoted to two classes fighting much like armies did during the warring states period. Apparently this is to resolve some sort of dispute, although we never hear why, and has high school (?) students running around with swords and other “non-lethal” weapons…Occasionally the action will be broken up by small flashbacks between two of the students but what point this sever eluded me. This feels like the last episode of a very dull show. Grade: 1/5.” – The Otaku Kitten
- “Bwahahahahahahahaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa. What is this? I don’t even. I’m pretty sure that this shouldn’t have made me laugh at all but it did.” – Metanorn
- “While I never shy away from excessive fanservice, Majikoi’s “moderated” approach is by far the most viewer-friendly. Literally, that slice of fanservice that Majikoi dishes out seems to be at the right dosage. Not too much to make you disgusted and not too little for you to not want to buy the bluray.” – Rabbit Poets
- “If it was meant as an introduction to this gigantic cast, I guess it worked. It felt like some combination of Dog Days, BakaTest, and Sengoku Basara, which is interesting to say the least. Grade: 7/10.” – Astrialite
- “But, then again… it was a lot like Dog Days. Dog Days had a great first episode, with an adrenaline-filled battle just like this one. Then it proceeded to completely fall apart. I could easily see Majikoi doing the same thing. The battle was fun, but I doubt the inevitable school life segments will be quite as exhilarating.” – Draggle’s Anime Blog
- “The show did get back in some parts, especially the end where the graphics came well and there’s a bit of storyline advancement. Some parts were a bit obvious, though it did make up for it by making through humor. Of course it had epic moments indeed but we really can’t look away from the fanservice now, can we? Grade: 5/10.” – MixMatched
- “To be perfectly honest, this episode was outright chaotic and silly. It was very over-the-top with it’s dialogue and characters, but that’s exactly what made it surprisingly amusing. All the characters were fluidly introduced without too much exposition, and used them all quite well to create a nice slapstick-comedy atmosphere. The battles also made for some fun little bits of silly dialogue. Grade: 8/10.” – Emory Anime Club
- “I am not quite sure where to start with this one. Reading the plot synopsis this sounds like a harem show, but with what we were shown in the first episode this would not seem like the case, at least at first. Grade: 3/5.” – Janai Blog
- “Now, talk about epic. This show looks awesome. It’s badass, the character design is sweet, it’s funny, the OST is epic, it looks like just the awesome and unexpected show that would be one of the best this season.” – Angry Anime Bitches
- “The first episode is a jaw-dropper in how bizarre it is, but I can only watch so many minutes of poorly animated stock designs bulldozing each other. And there’s nothing else supporting the show. The designs are ugly, the choreography is non-existent, and the characters are about as interesting as cardboard and less animated to boot. Plus, they made a glorious, big-boobed warrior redhead look ugly, and that is a sin.” – Sekijitsu
- “I mean, it’s nothing deep and all, but at least it’s not terrible in any way, and I actually see potential for this to remain fun for a full 13 episodes, rather than it becoming boring after just a few episodes. Potential: 75%.” – Star Crossed Anime Blog
ROUND ONE RESULTS FOR THE FALL 2011 SHOWS:
Thumbs-up for Round One: Un-Go, Chibi Devi, Working Season 2, Bakuman Season 2, Mirai Nikki, Shinryaku Ika Musume Season 2, Ben-To, Chihayafuru, Guilty Crown, Phi-Brain, Last Exile: Fam the Silver Wing, Fate Zero
Thumbs-down for Round One: Morita-san wa Mukuchi Season 2, Kimi to Boku, C3: CubexCursedxCurious, Mobile Suit Gundam AGE, Horizon in the Middle of Nowhere, Majikoi Oh! Samurai Girls
Coming up next: Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai, Shakugan no Shana III, Hunter x Hunter, Mashiro-iro Symphony, Tamayura Hitotose, Persona 4, Maken-ki, Cross Fight Bedaman, Digimon Xros Wars II
This Euphoria! 
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