Subculture Anime Blog

OP: “Hizamazuku Made 5 Byo Dake!” by Miyuki Hashimoto – The song itself is kind of catchy, but the animation bothers me somehow. It does go through all of the characters and shows us what this series will be about though.

Summary:

A boy named Uesugi Ren goes into a girl’s room to wake her. This girl’s name is Kuonji Shinra, Ren’s master. Ren has been put through vigorous training in order to properly serve Shinra as her butler. While on the train with her in the present time, Ren wonders to his older sister Mihato if their father is searching for them. Mihato does not believe this is possible, so Ren insists that they be happy together as siblings. When the two finally reach the city, they split up to search for work. Ren visits various workplaces, but none of them offer suitable jobs for him. Ren is impressed when he sees Shinra preforming an orchestra on the screen outside, and he imagines that such a life would be nice. Mihato is approached by a punk while waiting outside that night, but Ren quickly appears to scare him off. After a visit to the bath, the two siblings set up a camp outside. Ren wakes from a nightmare dealing with memories of his father that night. Looking to his sleeping sister’s face, he promises that they will live a happy life. While continuing his search the next day, Ren sees a very showy girl named Kuonji Miyu. He offers his aid when she starts getting dizzy from the heat, and gets introduced to the machine accompanying her named de Niro. Mihato appears shortly afterwards, so the two siblings take Miyu to her household. Ren is amazed when he finds that Miyu actually lives in a mansion, but Mihato sees this as a work opportunity.

Ren and Mihato are treated to dinner that night, being introduced to some of the servants of the household. Ren gets into an argument with the maid Benisu after disagreements about the food’s quality, causing the older butler to blow Ren out of the window. Ren is amazed when he sees Shinra standing above him outside, but she insists that he call her master. This encounter is interrupted with more conflict with the older butler, causing Ren to lose his strength. Mihato reveals her and Ren’s situation to the mansion’s inhabitants afterwards. When Ren opens his eyes, he learns that he and her sister will be working for Shinra from now on. Ren wonders if it is ok for this to be decided so easily, but the current servants do not believe it is so simple. Proper introductions are then done. Shinra reveals that she enjoys cute things, like her younger sister Miyu that Ren and Mihato have already met. There is then Yume, who tries without avail to get attention. Benisu introduces herself again next, while the siblings have trouble taking her seriously. Ren is glad when he meets the seemingly normal boy Natose, but Benisu quickly proves that he is anything but normal. There is then Chiharu, a boy who looks more cute than he should. Finally, there is the older butler Taisa. As Ren and Mihato express their gladness, Shinra believes that they will soon be in for something interesting.

ED: “Butler Switch On! (Butler スイッチ オーン！)” by Yuko Goto – I liked the ED a lot more than the OP. It’s uniquely done, and it’s nice to hear something from Yuko Goto.

Preview: The typical servant and mansion antics start.

Impression:

Heh, this has love comedy written all over it. I got Hayate no Gotoku vibes as soon as the episode started. Or if you really want to, you could say it was more like HIMM or Hanaukyo. The story is pretty simple, and it was set up right off the bat. I kind of rolled my eyes at all the obvious fanservice, but it certainly wasn’t as bad as a certain other show airing this season. One thing that stood out a lot about this series was the seiyu. Most were easily noticable, especially from Goto Yuko, Itou Shizuka, and Seki Tomokazu. I definitely feel like I could enjoy this show, and I did laugh a few times. I’ve already got Kimikiss and Zetsubou Sensei on Saturdays, but I could easily push this off to Sunday or something. I’ll sort everything out by the end of the week, but don’t be surprised if I don’t pick up everything I’m interested in.