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R1 DVD Reviews
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Written by maehara
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Thursday, 09 August 2007 17:00 |
 The Genshiken are back, and in between torturing Saki with the prospect of cosplay, there's the Student Council, new members, and model building to deal with, while Saki's taken to worrying about her sex life. Perhaps wearing cat ears would help. Either way, "normal" still isn't a word you could use around these parts...
5 - The Boundary Between Rejection and Acceptance Seen in Autonomous Behavior
"As a result of no evident activity it has been determined that the following clubs will be dissolved at the end of December". Not a list you want to be on, but Genshiken's on it, to Saki's delight and the rest of the gang's disbelief. No-one seems to want to tackle the Student Council about their decision, though - except Saki, for reasons she doesn't quite understand herself. The real problem seems to be the Vice-President of the Student Council, Kitagawa, who seems to have it in for the club - but how can they get her to back down?
6 - Subculture and its Circular Relationship to Others Surrounding It
Saki's beginning to despair at the lack of attention she's been getting from Kohsaka - even though every so often he does something to surprise her, most of the time he's too engrossed in watching anime or playing games to even give her a second glance. The time has come for her to maybe be a little more persuasive. Perhaps by entering the world of cosplay to liven up her sex life? Or by learning a video game so she can beat Kohsaka at his own hobby? Meanwhile, the arrival on the scene of Sasahara's little sister gives Madarame and the others some fantasy material - until they meet her. Keiko seems to take an instant liking to Kohsaka, though, which throws Saki's mood even further into the "depressed" zone...
7 - Characteristics of Actions and Decisions in Personal Relationships
A new school year, a new intake of freshmen, and the chance for Genshiken to grow its membership - although not if Saki has anything to do with it, as she thinks it'll be harder for her to haul Kohsaka away from the club if it's growing. Two potentials means her dream looks unlikely, but she's not about to let the newbies join without trying to scare them off first. Meanwhile, the club chairman finally steps down, after The Maker alone knows how many years in charge, leaving Madarame to pick up the reins of power - and he's a bit worried about the new members himself...
8 - Comparative Research of the Mass Production Process
And the topic of the week is... models, with Kanako & Sasahara having been out shopping for mecha model kits, which seem to involve a language all of their own. Much to Saki's annoyance, as ever - and when she starts to make fun of the guys' obsession with such "toys", she soon finds herself on the end of a lecture on the joys on model building. While she tries to figure out what all the fuss is about, Tanaka sets about giving Kanako and Sasahara lessons in how to build the perfect model - but they soon find that Saki's getting in the way. Their activities also draw the attention of the Student Council...
Kujibiki Unbalance 21 - Recap Episode
The gang take time out to look back at the past 20 episodes' worth of Kujibiki contests. Expect swimsuits...
There's a running plot line developing around the club's attempts to get Saki into cosplay gear - no success yet, but they get sooo close in episode 8 that you know it's going to happen soon. The poor girl looks doomed to become an otaku, and personally I can't wait to see it. What can I say, it's my evil streak.
Episode 8 is also the only one to take a look at the hobbyist side of the club & its addictions, with a focus on models this time around. I can't help but think they could have had more fun assembling bishoujo models (how would Saki take seeing Sasahara lovingly painting the panties onto a Hazuki model, perhaps?), but we're stuck with mecha. It's okay as far as it goes, but the humour comes more from Saki's reaction to it all than from the modelling exploits of Sasahara, Kanako and Tanaka.
In fact, the more I see of Genshiken, the more I'm convinced it's really all about Saki, as she gets the lions share of the attention in both episodes 5 (where it falls to her to save the club from closure) and 6 (where her sex life is the problem). That's no bad thing - it's fun seeing her unwilling descent into fandom - but Madarame and co can be good vehicles for comedy as well (witness the Comike episode), and it would be nice to have them feature a little bit more.
Overall, though, another good volume, with plenty of laughs and more than a few moments of embarrasment when you see aspects of your own addiction on screen. Those moments are what makes Genshiken so appealing and enjoyable, so there's very little to criticise here, especially if you've already enjoyed volume 1. The Kujibiki Unbalance episode is weak and probably best glossed over (yes, I'm a heretic), but that's really just an added extra anyway. For the main feature, go get. Now.
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