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R1 DVD Reviews
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Written by maehara
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Wednesday, 30 November 2005 00:00 |
 It's Doki Doki School Hours, the anime formerly known as Sensei no Ojikan (pay attention in the back!). If you though the girls of Azumanga Daioh
were strange, you haven't met this lot. Mika-sensei's class serve
up four episodes of high-class comedy on this disc, and I challenge you
not to grin like an idiot through all of it.
1 - Here Comes Class 2A of Okitsu High School
Start of a new school year, and time for the Entrance Ceremony for the
new students. Diminutive teacher Mika-sensei isn't having the
best of luck,
though - she's managed to get lost in the crowd & is more than a
bit overwhelmed by all the kids around her - so understandably she's
glad to get back into class. Problem is, it's hard for her
students to
take their sensei seriously when she looks younger than they
do...
Here's your chance to meet Mika-sensei's class of misfits, from "I love
me. who do you love" Seki, through boy-band obsessed Iincho to the
overly-fond-of-her-cleaver Tominaga. Find a normal one, and
you'll have done better than me.
2 - Measuring and Throwing and Hitting
It's physical examination day, and Kobayashi's feeling the stress -
she's eaten a bit too much over the break & it's diet time. Looks
like her official measurements won't be so good this time around...
It's especially frustrating when the rest of the class insists on
eating around her. Mika-sensei has her own problems - she has to take
the exam as well, and that means another reminder about her height...
Later, it's time for the sports festival - Mika-sensei had been looking
forward to doing absolutely nothing during it, but when she's drafted
in as basketball ref when another teacher goes ill, she's in trouble -
while she knew she may have to stand in, she never bothered to learn
the rules. There's also that size problem again...
3 - Swimsuits and Exams! Something Drops!
It's June, so it's time for the students to switch from their winter
uniforms to their summer ones - and for Seki, time to switch from
wearing a guy's uniform to a girl's. ^^; It's also time to swim class
to start (yay! swimsuits!), and for the girls to get back to worrying
about their weight again... The exertion of swimming is too much for
Mika-sensei, though - can you say muscle ache? Later, it's exam time
again, but Mika-sensei's having problems getting her class properly
motivated - "it's just a test, right?" Can she persuade her class to
hit the books, or are they just doomed to failure? Or do they have ulterior motives, for wanting to fail?
4 - Mika-sensei's Summer Story
It's summer, and Mika-sensei should be enjoying her summer break.
Sadly, she's got four losers in her class who are making her give
supplementary lessons. What days she does have off are spent lying
around the house - until the air conditioning packs in, forcing her to
go out in search of ways to cool down - and running in to her students
along the way. Later, it's summer festival time, & Seki in a girl's
yukata is too scary a sight to describe...
I've said it before and I'll say it again - this is one of the best recent series. Doki Doki School Hours takes everything that was good about Azumanga Diaoh,
ratchets the comedy up a level, and leaves you unable to stop the grin
that arrives on your face about 30 seconds into the show. There's
really not much else to say - like Azumanga, there's nothing in
the way of plot to write about, but that's not the point of the show.
Having a fully co-ed cast also pays off, by giving the writers even
more opportunity to make fun of people and circumstances.
The first episode is probably the weakest, if only because it tries to
introduce the whole cast in the space of 22 minutes - with around 10
regular characters, that doesn't give them much time each so the
episode feels a bit rushed. From there, it slips into a more
well-paced one or two "sketches" per episode, and it works really well.
And that's about all I can really say about this batch. If you like Azumanga Daioh, you'll love this - and even if you didn't give Doki Doki School Hours a go anyway. It's a fairly low-profile title that deserves a lot more exposure.
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