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Now in Japan
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Thursday, 26 August 2004 00:00 |
 I have a new favourite current show, and here it is: the adventures of ninja girl Shinobu in 2x2=Shinobuden.
1-1 - Shinobu, the Ninja Apprentice, Appears
Shinobu doesn't seem to be the smartest apprentice ninja on the block -
she's no good at concealment, for a start, doesn't carry shiruken as
they're too sharp, and doesn't twig on that something's not quite right
when her mid-term exam is to collect high-school girls' underwear for
her sensei. A meeting with Kaeda (prospective victim of some underwear
theft) soon brightens her day, though...
1-2 - The Master Appears
Shinobu invites Kaede for a visit to the ninja village - Kaede would
quite like to decline, but doesn't really get the chance to... She does
eventually arive in one piece, although that's not thanks to Shinobu's
travelling techniques. Once their, Onsokumaru seems determined to cause
as much trouble for Shinobu & Kaede as possible - but while
Shinobu's naive to his tricks, Kaede's not so easily fooled - until
it's mentioned to her that outsiders can't leave the training village
alive...
2x2=Shinobuden is the new series from UFOTable, the studio responsible for Dokkoida!?,and
like its predecessor, this is a parody show - this time on ninja shows
rather than robot shows. Unlike its predecessor it's based on a manga
(one that seems almost unheard of in the west), but like Dokkoida!? it manages to pull so many comedy strings that you can't help but enjoy it.
"Azumanga Daioh with a ninja" is one description I've seen, but I have to say that's not entirely accurate - AzuDai
was never this ecchi, for a start. As well as the decidedly hentai
antics of Onsokumaru (admittedly a love/hate character), there are some
decidedly yuri undertones between Shinobu & Kaede - so this is not
really a kids show. As with all parody shows, a knowledge of what
they're parodying would certainly help - I'll admit to being lacking in
that department - but the comedy in general is funny enough that it's
not necessary to know what they're poking fun at.
I'll be watching more of this show, and soon. I had been having a
pretty poor weekend before I watched this, but it brightened my day
considerably. Highly recommended, unless you really can't handle ecchi
comedy. Even then, I'd say it's worth trying. |
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