Lucky Star Volume 3
by Pedro Rodriguez
My team was assigned overtime last weekend, and because it was customary for someone to bring in snacks, I brought in doughnuts. I've started growing custom to eating jelly filled doughnuts, which was strange due to the fact that I hated them as a child. When someone asked me why, I told them that the jelly would always fall out while eating them and land on my shirts. My colleague then told me that they had the same issue when they were kid they would start from the end with the hole in it, believing that doing so would resolve the problem. Another co-worker then came into the conversation and told me he shared a similar problem whenever it came to eating things with a tortilla. The conversation then shifted to me explaining how to properly fold a burrito by showing them pictures of my grandfather's donkey...
So what was the point of that last paragraph? It's basically my first impression of the anime series "Lucky Star", a slice of life comedy that has a tendency to forget to deliver the punch line. The series follows the daily lives of five high school girls in the eleventh grade, Konata Izumi, Tsukasa Hiiragi, Kagami Hiiragi, and Miyuki Takara. It was originally a four panel comic similar to Azumanga Daioh and Pani Poni Dash. After a catchy and upbeat opening sequence, the show started following the traditional formula by having three of the four girls sit around and talk about how to eat tricky foods. At first it was cute watching Konata as she tried to keep the fudge from her choco-coronet from spilling over, but as they went from one kind of food to another, to another, to another, to another (I wish I was kidding), I was beginning to wonder where this was going. The episode begins to pick up the pace in the second half, and the humor is pretty steady going into the next episode, but as they started to talk about cavities, that old feeling was coming back again, and this reviewer was twitching to hit the next button.
This isn't to say that the dvd was entire drag. At the end of the episode, there was segment that was consistent in delivering the goods called "Lucky Channel". The skit was hosted by two "personalities", J-Pop idol Akira Kogami and new comer Minoru Shiraishi. At first it looks like your average Japanese talk show; Akira appears from behind the title, bursting with energy, followed by Minoru looking extremely nervous. About halfway through the skit, something or other happens that causes Akira to snap. It was so funny watching her flip on and off that I just watched all of the "Lucky Channel" segments before grudgingly going back to the main story.
As I stepped away a short break, I started to think about the show's large fan base, which I'm sure will be looking for me with torches and pitchforks. Then I started to honestly think about what was it that drew people in. Generally it has a lot of elements that is the backbone to other titles. The cast has a slew of cute girls for eye candy, and it has a few notable voice actors that have their own fan base. Then there's Konata Izumi's slightly haughty perspective that gives a certain nudge. Add on her rabid obsession with everything otaku, and chances are you'll be saying "Yeah I know someone like her". The show does look like it knows where it wants to go, and you can always tell when the story is trying to get a point across, and chances are you will understand what the point is. Unfortunatley in all the excitment of trying to get from point A to point be it forgets where its going. And even though it does deliver a good punch line from time to time, it's not a step up form its predecessors.
For those of you who are still die hard fans that still insist on buying the DVD, it does come fully loaded even without taking into consideration all the goodies in the special edition box. The English dub does alright in playing the roles. Although I have issues with how lines are delivered from time to time, it actually tries harder in preserving the original ideas. Wendee Lee has also returned to play Aya Hirano's counter part. This of course seems to be more than a coincidence, since Bandai also released the Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, and given that the show has already made several references to said show, well you get the idea. Surprisingly the endless chatter is more tolerable than the Japanese, and it's probably because I'm far more familiar with English. The extras also include two slide shows from one of the staff members, a promo clip from Japan, and a live journal of voice actor Minoru Shiraishi (Lucky Channel). Then there is the opening credits... As my last bone to pick for the review I will say that given that the song is already translated during the regular episodes, it would've been nice if they had at least once written the bloody thing in Roumaji.
At this point in the game people have fallen into one of three camps. One, you love the series, you bought the Special Box edition, you're wearing the t-shirt, and you have "Motteke! Sailor Fuku" in everything from your PC to your I-fill-in-the-blank. For the sake of being fair if are a fan and wondering if it's a better investment than getting it by... other means, you will find that it's a good buy. The animation is clean, and they packed more into the DVD most titles put into thier collectors box. If you are in the second camp and hate the series, and 'nuff said. For the third camp that hasn't made up their mind to them I leave them this advice, if you really want to know what the hype is all about, then go to your local anime con and watch it - trust me they'll have it. If you love it, then love it, no hair off my chest. If you hate it try not to tell too many people unless you want to spend you time at an anime con avoiding the other camp.