Seitokai no Ichizon is masturbation in every sense of the word except the literal one. It’s as meta as meta can be, as counterproductive and pointless as a dating-sim parody of Comic Party. I don’t expect there to be anything original in Seitokai; I don’t expect it to be occasionally heartwarming like Lucky Star or occasionally bittersweet like Genshiken. You’d have to search high and low to find something that has less of a plot.
And yet, I’m writing this post with nothing but praise in mind. Does that say something about me as a fan? Technically, yes – but don’t forget that there’s more to entertainment than objective quality.
I honestly don’t think Seitokai should be treated as an anime. Frankly, it hardly qualifies as a work of fiction. Seitokai no Ichizon is about nothing, and I don’t think that fact will change.
But is that necessarily a bad thing? Remember, you’re not really watching anime for the 24 minutes a week you spend on the show: you’re reading a meta blog post about the random goings-on of the internet. When you click on your Seitokai video file instead of Railgun or Nyankoi, you’re not choosing one anime over the other: you’re taking a short break to check your Twitter feed and IRC log.
In essence, I believe Seitokai is all about mindset. If you approach it as a comedy filled with cheap references and shallow characters, then you might not totally hate it… but if you approach it as a commentary on fandom, a detour from the norm, then you might actually like it.
And I loved it.
You see, the show isn’t inherently unfunny. Some might say that it is, but I think it’s an issue of quantity vs quality: and Seitokai is filled with the former. Some of the jokes are dumb, I admit. Some are only deserving of a smirk, and some fly by like an outdated OVER 9000. The thing is, when the jokes are fired off in such rapid succession, chances are you’ll laugh at a few, even if it’s only an immediate reaction. It’s not a very quotable comedy, certainly not the kind of thing you’d rewatch in the years to come, but since when did comedy need wit and sarcasm to be good?
The beauty of Seitokai is that it’s neither wit nor slapstick. It’s pure meta. It’s like having a chat with your otaku friends, except less predictable and with cuter girls (though the internet avatars can solve that problem). It extracts the core intrigue of shows like Genshiken and Ouran, throws out the story, and presents us with the kind of idle chatter we know to be plausible. It doesn’t just break the 4th wall and assault us with cheesy jokes; it knows its jokes are cheesy, but it keeps on going, because for God’s sake, the show is about a male otaku and his harem!
- – -
At the end of the day, I don’t think there’s anything I can say to convince you to watch a show like Seitokai. Moreover, it’s not the kind of thing that needs convincing: if you dislike it at first sight, then it probably won’t grow on you.
That said, for the kind of fans who like a little circle jerk now and again – the kind who don’t mind that a timeslot is being taken up on a show that only works on them – Seitokai is pure genius. It will never be appreciated by the masses, but it couldn’t care less, because it knows that its sole purpose is to provide a fun time for the crazed fan out there who isn’t afraid of a little masturbation.
Figuratively.
~ ETERNAL
つづく
Seitokai no Ichizon is like the chat log you accidentally saved
Seitokai no Ichizon is masturbation in every sense of the word except the literal one. It’s as meta as meta can be, as counterproductive and pointless as a dating-sim parody of Comic Party. I don’t expect there to be anything original in Seitokai; I don’t expect it to be occasionally heartwarming like Lucky Star or occasionally bittersweet like Genshiken. You’d have to search high and low to find something that has less of a plot.
And yet, I’m writing this post with nothing but praise in mind. Does that say something about me as a fan? Technically, yes – but don’t forget that there’s more to entertainment than objective quality.
I honestly don’t think Seitokai should be treated as an anime. Frankly, it hardly qualifies as a work of fiction. Seitokai no Ichizon is about nothing, and I don’t think that fact will change.
But is that necessarily a bad thing? Remember, you’re not really watching anime for the 24 minutes a week you spend on the show: you’re reading a meta blog post about the random goings-on of the internet. When you click on your Seitokai video file instead of Railgun or Nyankoi, you’re not choosing one anime over the other: you’re taking a short break to check your Twitter feed and IRC log.
In essence, I believe Seitokai is all about mindset. If you approach it as a comedy filled with cheap references and shallow characters, then you might not totally hate it… but if you approach it as a commentary on fandom, a detour from the norm, then you might actually like it.
And I loved it.
You see, the show isn’t inherently unfunny. Some might say that it is, but I think it’s an issue of quantity vs quality: and Seitokai is filled with the former. Some of the jokes are dumb, I admit. Some are only deserving of a smirk, and some fly by like an outdated OVER 9000. The thing is, when the jokes are fired off in such rapid succession, chances are you’ll laugh at a few, even if it’s only an immediate reaction. It’s not a very quotable comedy, certainly not the kind of thing you’d rewatch in the years to come, but since when did comedy need wit and sarcasm to be good?
The beauty of Seitokai is that it’s neither wit nor slapstick. It’s pure meta. It’s like having a chat with your otaku friends, except less predictable and with cuter girls (though the internet avatars can solve that problem). It extracts the core intrigue of shows like Genshiken and Ouran, throws out the story, and presents us with the kind of idle chatter we know to be plausible. It doesn’t just break the 4th wall and assault us with cheesy jokes; it knows its jokes are cheesy, but it keeps on going, because for God’s sake, the show is about a male otaku and his harem!
- – -
At the end of the day, I don’t think there’s anything I can say to convince you to watch a show like Seitokai. Moreover, it’s not the kind of thing that needs convincing: if you dislike it at first sight, then it probably won’t grow on you.
That said, for the kind of fans who like a little circle jerk now and again – the kind who don’t mind that a timeslot is being taken up on a show that only works on them – Seitokai is pure genius. It will never be appreciated by the masses, but it couldn’t care less, because it knows that its sole purpose is to provide a fun time for the crazed fan out there who isn’t afraid of a little masturbation.
Figuratively.
~ ETERNAL
つづく