Back in 2011, Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai was popular, but I didn’t get a chance to see it. With that, I finished watching the first season and really enjoyed it. (Image Source)
The whole premise basically involves a blond-hair 2nd year student named Kodaka Hasegawa who recently transferred to a new school. Because of his hair color, people picture him as a delinquent, thus he can’t make any friends. He meets a girl named Yozora and together, they create a new club called the “Neighbor’s Club” for the sole purpose of making more friends. Soon after, other students join, which consists of mainly girls. Shortly after, they start doing various activities together such as karaoke, playing video games, going to a beach, etc.
As you would expect, the story and comedy is mostly character driven. No matter what, I can’t recall a moment that I didn’t laugh because it was so enjoyable. All the characters except for Kodaka have eccentric personalities, which makes it impossible for any normal people to become friends with them. For instance, you have Rika who fantasies perverted stuff, Yukimura who wants to become manly although she is actually a girl, Sena who plays eroge and Maria, which is probably one of the craziest nuns I ever seen. The leader behind it all is of course, Yozora that always seems to pick fights with Sena at every possible moment and calls her “meat.” Believe it or not, the fighting between the two gets rather hilarious at times. Out of the fights, the Monster Hunter parody is probably the funniest considering that I am a gamer. Of course, there is also a rivalry between Maria and Kodaka’s sister, Kobato who cosplays as a vampire from some show. From the looks of Kobato, she is probably a distant ancestor of Rikka’s delusions since they have very similar personalities.
While the show focuses on various activities to make friends, there is a subtle plot with Kodaka trying to find his best friend that he lost. Believe it or not, it’s surprising to see that it was Yozora all along after she cut her hair short. I think this mostly have to do with her dressed like a boy during her childhood while not revealing her actual gender. She almost did, but chickened out. Even so, it’s obvious that she created this club to get closer with him and make him notice that it’s her (there are other reasons, but I think this is the main one).
Overall, I really enjoyed Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai. Although it had a good amount of fanservice, at least it fit well with the comedy and not stuck there just for the sake of it. Also, there were several references to Otaku Subculture, which is quite fascinating even though it’s a minor part of the show. Most importantly, I thought most of the enjoyment is due to Kodaka being a unique male lead that is strong-willed. Hopefully with the sequel, it will improve on the success seen in this show.
Overall Rating: 8.7/10, B, Very Good
Brief summary: Maria and horny scientist are on my death list. Sena rocks my world, Yozora…exists and so does the crossdresser. Ku.Ku.Ku (imouto-chan) is amusing when she isn’t having brother complex scenes or wearing skimpy bikinis. The male lead is alright. He simply tries hard to survive. Good man.
Let me guess, it’s probably because Rikka is a big yaoi fangirl? Still, it’s a fun harem nevertheless.
Nope. there are several girls who are yaoi fangirls that rock. Rikka on the other hand, is made of pure “Annoy OG with my very existence”. Also, I don’t dislike yaoi, it just isn’t my cup of tea. Take my word that Rikka is a character I don’t like at all.
Yes, she does get a bit annoying at times, but at the same time, somewhat funny though. Overall, just a mixed bag.