StoryAs an eternal optimist, I really wanted to like this show; random
humour and the otaku nod to fans usually have me lapping up any serving
of amusing antics. My kind nature was instead bitch-slapped into
submission by one of the biggest heaps of god-awful unfunny trash I
have seen in a long time. Even before the closing credits of the first
episode rolled, I anticipated a humongous disappointment. It wasn’t
until six episodes in, with no shining moments of redemption, that I
realised quite how bad this show was going to be. Praying for the
finale to finally arrive, I found it an uphill struggle via an
impossible incline to get to the end of Paniponi Dash!. The
episodic nature was hard work, and consistent repetition of mildly
amusing jokes soon killed off any humour that may have lingered.
Parodies only work if you’ve seen the target subject matter, and much
of the show’s shtick is based on bizarre Japanese shows and culture
that only a native or an infatuated weeaboo will recognise. From the
blatantly obvious that may raise a smile (Indiana Jones and Super Mario Brothers)
to the little-known (poking fun at an insurance company called
Aifu..?), nothing is sacred in the eyes of the writers. Some puns are
understandable, and can be funny as a result, but the entertainment was
killed for me as I struggled to keep up with the never ending nuggets
of information about the current joke. I never thought I’d say this,
but it was too fast and too much all at once....
One of the things that really irked me about Paniponi Dash! was a lack of situational background. The adorable Becky just arrives
at the Peach Moon Academy, but there is no build-up or explanation to
how she actually got the job. Seeing an eleven-year-old-girl being
interviewed to be a high school teacher could have been very amusing,
but the script writers chose to ignore this amongst other prime
opportunities. This kind of omission just gives the whole show a
flailing and deficient feel: like running the wrong way up an
escalator, the legs are pumping furiously, but it essentially is going
nowhere, fast.
Maybe it was because I didn’t “get” the obscure Japanese satire used,
or maybe it’s because the entire show feels like recycled trash that
I’ve seen before but in a successfully humorous show. Either way, I am
glad to have finally expunged this woeful offering from my watching
list.AnimationFulfilling their reputation for quality, SHAFT deliver a slightly above
average offering that encompasses multiple visual styles. The cutesy
girls are satisfactorily drawn, but the real outstanding animation
comes from the varied appearance designed to complement the episode
subjects. Switching the setting to a retro computer game, or paying
tribute to Patlabor in one of the opening sketches, the artwork
has some solid moments. Sadly, like many interesting gemstones, there
are a multitude of imperfections; in what I can only describe as visual
rape, there are scenes that need to be paused to read subtitles,
footnotes, and a deluge of extra character information that flashes
past at warp speed.SoundOne of the only things I looked forward to in Paniponi Dash! was
the surprisingly amazing kick-ass soundtrack. Seamlessly blending
together numerous contrasting musical genres, from a swinging sixties
style opening to a tuneful magical girl spoof, the whole audio medley
works extremely well. A polished seiyuu cast also perform admirably,
giving depth to a tender young Becky and an excitable charm to the
hyperactive Himeko.CharactersAlong with the story, I find characters are extremely important in
overall enjoyment of an anime. Consistent with a dreadful script, the
imperfect characters feel as if they are designed to disappoint. Part
of the problem stems from an unrelenting recurrence of stereotyped
jokes for each girl, resulting in the initial humour dying on its ass
before the show’s midpoint. Underage teacher Rebecca is either being a
bolshie tearaway, or an annoyingly tearful brat and her flip-flop
personality results in her being jarring rather than lovable.
The rest of the class consists of a handful of forgettable characters
that will definitely appeal to some, but feel like the result of too
much spoofing for others. The shy moe, an aggressive tsundere...
originality means nothing in Paniponi Dash!,
and I struggled to find anything likable about a translucent supporting
cast. Of the wide-ranging personalities featured in the show, the
relationship between the abused bunny Mesousa and a peculiar god-cat
who lives in a vending machine was bizarrely the most believable. For
something with so much potential, this felt like a complete waste of
what could have been a priceless sister sorority.OverallI know there is a huge section of the anime community who love Paniponi Dash!,
but it just didn’t excite or interest me. A host of two-dimensional
characters and hit-and-miss puns made 26 episodes drag out over 4
weeks, and with no urge to pick it up each time, it quickly became a
visual chore. Someone made an interesting comment that summed up the
entire series for me: this is reverse plagiarism. You feel like you’ve
seen much of the content before in more recent shows, such as Lucky Star or Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei, but the newer offerings do it with certain indulgent aplomb.