Cromartie High School
Publisher
ADV
Director
Hiroaki Sakurai
Production
Kodansha, Production IG, TV Tokyo
Country of origin
Japan
Format
Series
Running time
26 episodes
Year
2003
Cromartie High School Episode 5 Preview
By David Rasmussen
28th Apr 05  Dearest Readers…
Seems as if this series is just going to keep going, and going, and going, and going… like the Energizer Bunny, only with more attitude.
We enter the second month of Cromartie High School episodes and once again we have a brand new episode to look at. And since it seems that there’ll be no Princess Tutu episode review this week this will be the only free show in town (for this week at any rate)!
And this episode actually has something to do with Cromartie High School! Episode 5
Meet Yutaka Takenouchi, age 16. Self styled “Underground Kingpin” of the year one’s of Cromartie.
He is respected and feared, and even the 3rd years of Cromartie gives Yutaka his due.
In the real world he’s a much beloved character by female fans of the series who finds his shaved head and the character’s grandeur (far beyond that of a mere mortal 16 year old) to be quite cute and attractive.
But since I’m a male reviewer I wouldn’t know anything about that, now would I. Though right now, as the episode opens, Yutaka find himself wishing he was on solid ground (despite the fact they’re on a field trip to a place he likes to go to) since he has this one rather major problem.
That problem being that he gets motion sick very easily.
So the entire episode is fun with moving vehicles! Why? Because it’s fun to watch people get sick on moving vehicles, that’s why! The first story, the bus trip to Nikko, pits not so f-r-isk-y Yukata, the Underground Kingpin of Cromartie vs. the visually un-impaired “Daredevil” Kamiyama in a motion sickness laden comedy of errors to the finish! That finish being the end of the trip where only one of them will walk out of the bus under their own power… so it’s time to get on da’ bus and ride to danger and predictable humor with the gang of Cromartie. Second trip on four wheels is on a more compact vehicle, this vehicle being a runaway taxi driven by a clueless man. Why are they on a taxi? Well, it seems that lesser character Maeda has been kidnapped by the gang at Bass (not to be confused with the liqueur company of the same name) and it’s up to the gang of Kamiyama (he who is normal, or at least more normal than the rest of his classmates), Hayashida (he who had that humming problem in Episode 3), the aforementioned Kingpin Yutaka, and “Freddie” to save him. The trip might be the end of Yutaka, especially since it will bring them to a place that most certainly NOT the streets of Tokyo as they become lost… lost, I say! Lost! That’s why the driver’s clueless, by the way. Maybe someone knows the way home, because the episode is ending and I want to break it down… oh, okay that was quick, episode‘s over. Breakdown time. Cromartie High School Breakdown the 5th
What’s Hot?
Yah. It’s an episode that is 1) actually about the gang at Cromartie, 2) something I read in Graphic Novel 1 and 3) not boring or dull (like the humming episode)! Otherwise it’s the same spiel over again.
It’s a good series, and the voice dubbing is solid on this one. Yes, it has hit a few bumps in the reviewing road with the not so sterling Episodes 3 and 4 (Episode 3 being the worst) but that doesn’t make the series any less watchable. Also, UNLIKE the recently reviewed Princess Tutu which takes what was good about the manga and throws it all away for something entirely different, this series is closer to the manga than Tutu’s anime which is a shame… for Princess Tutu that is, this series is right on solid. What’s Not?
Once again the rather theme based pacing of this series, which makes it abit like Azumanga Daioh (in all the wrong ways) is not a good thing. It doesn’t hinder the series any, but I wish the series followed the book more and didn’t jump around storywise. That kind of format worked for Azumanga Daioh, but it doesn’t seem to be working all too well for Cromartie High School, in my opinion. That being most apparent with slow awkward episodes like Episode 3 (and the humming), or Episode 4 which has something to do with some boss guy from Destrade who likes writing humor postcards to radio stations.
Too late to change the format now, and I don’t think this series is going to go four or so seasons like Galaxy Angel so that it could have a chance to change it’s format along the way, but still I wish it was abit different. Moments to Remember?
It’s a better episode, which I haven’t seen since Episodes 1-2, so I like it.
Yes, it’s a little obvious with the overusage of the whole motion sickness parody thing, but it’s still good despite that so I don’t have much complaints, but I do have nice things to say.
It’s a good episode, which makes this series packed with more good than bad episodes (though not much of a lead with the good episodes at 60% at the present)!
Hopefully that paces stays true to form when Episode 6 is reviewed! What to Ignore?
The last two episodes had more “I hear voiceovers” (as the characters talk it out in their heads) than the first three episodes combined (or so it seemed to me)! I don’t know but… hmm… ah, forget I said that. Overall? - Now we’re back to where we belong, and the series is doing better now. And now that the series is entering it’s next phase (from what I could see of it) with Episodes 6-up coming? Things are looking up, unless another sucky episode comes up then they’re doomed. Next time it looks like rich (but rather confused) boyo Hokuto (and his henchman) has their premiere episode… despite the fact the two have already cameoed in Episode 3 they FINALLY has a full episode here in Episode six. Go figure. Of course that is IF it shows next week, especially since no new episode of Princess Tutu has shown.
But, then again, since Princess Tutu wasn’t exactly scoring major points with me maybe it’s for the best that Episode 2 is delayed. I might change my mind about the series… probably not, but who knows!
-- David Rasmussen 28th Apr 05
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