Joshi Kausei – Series Review

Series Positives

It’s Animation Studio Seven again, and you would think I would have learned my lesson after having just endured the mistake that was Nobunaga-sensei no Osanazuma.

Well, you see, the thing is: I didn’t, and I never will.

With that said, Joshi Kausei, how was it? Well, in a word – fine. It was completely and utterly fine. I’ll even dare to say, “I rather enjoyed it.”

The gimmick of this series was – and believe me, it was a gimmick – none of the characters talked. No, this wasn’t a silent anime; there were sounds, and people did make the occasional noise. There was just no dialogue. In its own way, this series made that concept work. But remember I said that because there is a difference between getting something to work and getting something to work without cheating.

Gimmick or not, Joshi Kausei did take on a challenge. This series had to find ways to get its point across without the use of dialogue. I’ll always respect a show that is willing to make that sort of effort since its not the easiest thing to do. After all, when a character can’t speak, a story suddenly has to rely on (gasp) a character’s personality.

Joshi Kausei did precisely that.

Granted, perhaps don’t go into this series expecting deep, well-rounded individuals. The show did rely on three tried-and-true character types. Momoko was a clutz, Shibumi was stern, and Mayumi was as innocent as can be. Try to imagine what sort of situations those kinds of personalities can get into and odds are it happened in this show.

Although neither Momoko, Shibumi, or Mayumi were particularly memorable – the same can be said for Joshi Kausei itself – they got the job they needed to do done. Remember, this was a three-and-a-half-minutes-an-episode anime that won’t want to make you bash your head against the wall. At least, I didn’t feel that urge. You really shouldn’t expect the world from a show like this.

Get in, get out, and maybe along the way you’ll get an unexpected laugh.

If it sounds like I’m wrapping up this section already, it’s because I am. I don’t have that much to say about this series. But come on, give me a break.

There wasn’t a story. The animation wasn’t spectacular. The characters, as I said, were merely serviceable. The amount of energy it would take to unlock the subtle “nuances” of Joshi Kausei would be a wasted effort. Every one of us knows this show won’t be making any top ten lists.

All I’m doing is letting you know that if you need to kill forty-five minutes, Joshi Kausei wouldn’t be a bad option.

Series Negatives

As I said, Joshi Kausei found a way to have a silent anime work. If you think that sounds impressive, let me set up a scenario.

I’m given the challenge to fit a square peg into a round hole. The only tools I can use are whatever I happen to have on hand. That includes my shoes, my shirt, my watch, and, wait, what’s this? Why it’s just my handy-dandy filer to shave down those pesky straight edges. A little bing, bang, boom, and presto. I can get the peg through the hole.

Honestly tell me, does that sound like an accomplishment to you?

On multiple occasions, Joshi Kausei had its characters indicate something was being express by either:

• Extensive writing
• Through thought bubbles that showed the item in question
• Had the characters’ mouths move with no voices coming

Oh, don’t be lame show.

If you’re going to claim to be a no-dialogue anime, then don’t be satisfied with just being technically correct.

To give Joshi Kausei some credit, it tried more often than not to have its characters use their body movements, gestures, and the general situation to convey what was going on. And, shocker, those were some of the best moments of the show.

I’ll admit, those little cheap tricks didn’t prevent this series from being a masterpiece. It was never close to that point. All I’m getting at is, this was the ideal environment to just go for something different.

What was there to be afraid of?