sixty reasons to watch umisho
Categories: anime, fanservice, general review, moe, umisho
Tagged: umisho
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Shut up, just shut up. You had me at “hello”. You had me at “hello”…
Man, I was disappointed that Umisho basically tried to cram a whole arc into the final two minutes of the series. It does lower my expectations for a sequel as that would have been prime– PRIME I TELL YOU– material for a sequel. But, alas, I’m resigned to give Umisho the Muteki Kanban Musume Memorial Award for “Why the fuck does this only get 13 episodes but Da Capo gets 78?!?”
Anyway to help explain my madness for this series, I have not one, not two, not three, not ten, but sixty reasons why you should watch Umisho.
It’s a perfect setup for a fanservice anime: a swim team. Perfectly legit excuse to show all the characters prance around in swimsuits. Genius. Pure genius. Best setting for a harem anime since the Hinata Hot Springs.
Not only is a swim team and a pool a marvelous fanservice setting, Umisho doesn’t shy away from fanservice. It throws it down the middle like a fastball.
The red head is Nanako Maaya. She’s the childhood friend type. She’s also the primary source of DFC. She’s also the least emotionally stable and most likely to be holding a sharp object by episode 21. Oh wait.
(What? There’s only 13 episodes? OTL.)
Umisho understands that one size does not fit all and varies from DFC…
… to delicous melonpan.
This is Mirei Shizuoka. A few factoids of interest: She’s a closest exhibitionist. She’s a closest pervert. She’s put into a lot of situations Mikuru would be familiar with. She’s voiced by Yukari Fukui (Yukarin), who is also Nia’s seiyuu. It was very fun going back and forth between Umisho and Gurren Lagann just because pre-time-slip Nia and Shizuoka were so very different.
(And she would be more involved in the second season if we ever got one. Sigh.)
(And 13 episodes of Umisho, 26 episodes of Gurren Lagann, and 78 episodes of Da Capo. Double sigh.)
The animation studio for Umisho, Artland, is non-horrible. As per my opening complaint, they did rush this series (and a few plot lines were sadly rushed IMHO), but they did cram the first major story arc into a measly 13 episodes (and then the second one into two minutes… wait… let me finish punching a wall… ahh… much better).
Umisho‘s not all about crazy girls and melonpan. It has other assets.
Catchy and appropriate OP/ED. Dolphin Jet is a great mood setter, and Splash Blue is a good chaser. It’s hard to get an impression other than “major fanservice harem comedy” after watching them.
The purple haired girl is Momoko Orizuka. She’s the de facto leader of Umisho swim team. She’s an unexpecting and sometimes unwilling fanservice machine. She’s an USDA recommended source of emo facial distortions. She’s voiced by Hitomi Nabatame, who so excellently voiced Miki Onimaru. Yes, whenever Orizuka pulls out her shark teeth, I get a little excited.
The dirty blonde? She’s Sanae Kise. A tease and minor character. Why even bother mentioning her? She’s knows Orizuka’s “secret” that Orizuka doesn’t want to get married. Why… ?
I don’t know why.
The green haired girl putting Shizuoka into Mikuru-type situations is Amuro Ninagawa. She’s an insane swimmer. She’s insanely positive and optimistic and puts poor Kafuka to shame. She’s an insane fanservice machine. She’s also just plain insane. She’s like a non-evil Haruhi Suzumiya after fifteen Red Bulls.
If you haven’t gotten the hint by now, service service service.
Many genuinely funny moments. That’s what puts Umisho at the head of the class for fanservice anime (admittedly, not an honors curriculum). There’s a lot of anime that does fanservice, but Umisho interweaves humor very well. Many good chuckles and laughs every episode.
What really sets Umisho apart is that it’s a sports anime inside a fanservice, comedy, and harem anime. Buried in there is a central plot of a ragtag swim team trying to reach the Inter Highs (its version of Koeshien). It has all the central elements of a good sports anime: hard working but down on its luck team (check). Weird quirk from each team member that eventually enables everyone to win (check). A new student or two who aims to turn it around (check). Memorable villains (check). Rocky-like chill scenes that provide the sports-fueled drama (check).
(If we can sub out the typical harem loser Kaname for anyone else as the manager/coach, I’d be ecstatic. He’s a solid 20 on the Shinji-Kamina manliness scale for not jumping Amuro or Shizuoka when he had ample chances.)
I will give Kaname some credit for his shameless fantasies. He only has slightly fewer meido in his dreams than me.
Male bonding.
Have I mentioned Shizuoka already? I will again.
Have I mentioned Amuro already? I will again.
25 Responses to “sixty reasons to watch umisho”
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far too little Umisho in the world, and far too much Da Capo and Gundam Seed.
lol @ reason 36
Shizuoka is the whole reason I watched the show. In the world of harem staple girls, we has too much tsundere, too much uguu, too much END GIRL (voiced by Horie), but not enough closet perverts and closet exhibitionnists.
And Amuro is a walkin… err… swimming bouncing ball of fun.
#8 seemed so wrong, what would have been if it was Itsuki and Kyon instead?
Well, that was nice. Could I have 60 more?
you guys would love the manga…though I suppose that goes without saying, however, should you feel so inclined, mangatraders has it and is easily accessible.
btw, Momoko Orizuka ftw…. and i vote for more #26 >.>
I still got my finger crossed for the season 2… they did have that whole epilogue montage thing which I’m praying is actually a spoiler-filled lazy season 2 teaser.
But yeah… I enjoyed the show for, I’ll admit it, the QUALITY fanservice.
Convincing arguments… urge to watch Umisho rising…
Also, I do hope that the police in #24 is yelling something like “PROCEED with your hot yuri loving NOW!”
While my alignment with the DFC side of the force is well-documented, I picked up Umisho after Jason ranked it over Potemayo in his summer thin slicing and found myself watching every episode and enjoying it.
There’s something appealing about Umisho outside of the epic fanservice. There’s a cheerful optimism about everything that just makes me want to stand up and cheer at times. In the words of another reader, “It just gives such a good summer feeling!”
Number 32 is the only reason you need.
What a great image!
That kinda looks like Maria from the back in #24.
I thought Umisho was horribly boring. The only thing that got me to watch up to episode 3 was Shizuoka and her lace garters. But ep 3 didn’t have enough of anything to maintain my interest and the main character virtually made me destroy my computer.
I tried watching this series. Honestly, I did.
But the animation quality sometimes just dipped a bit too low, and no amount of fanservice can bring me back when I’m tired (and look how much I missed out on!)
And no more scans make me sad, sad, sad -_-
lol, thx for the hardwork, Jason
When i saw the last two minutes, I’ve never prayed as hard to god/gods/deities as before that it was just a trailer and there’s a season 2 in the works.
FYI theres nudity in the manga…
Why couldn’t my swim team have been like this? Then I might have stayed for more than one season. (Granted, we did suck at the finals, but still…)
Artland also did Mushishi didn’t they? I don’t understand the difference in quality.
Hurray, more of SKM scale! (No, not the telecom!)
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Also, heartily agreed. :)
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The moment when I knew this show was going to be epic was at the end of episode 2, when Kaname was thinking what an clean, upstanding girl Shizuoka is, and then a random gust of wind gives him an eyeful of lacy garter panchira. xD
Maaya was annoying as hell and the least pretty, so there really wasnt any DFC to comend. Still, highly enjoyable anime, and some of the captain’s comedy was gold.
I rank it as a
1. Comedy
2. Sports anime
3. fanservice
4. Harem
I never really saw the harem aspect because only two of the girls was interested in Kaname, Amuro and Maya…. So it doesn’t qualify for me there and I would say he is more of a 30 on the shinji Kamina scale…. He got pretty friendly there at the end with the hugs in public and swimming and what not. Like i think if a girl gave him a really blatant ok, he would jumo on her. Can’t say the same for other main characters >;(
Love the OTL for episode 21 though….. I think Maya would freak in about episode 15 if in 14 she witnessed a good scene….
Is it just me or was Kaname’s mom just the best mom ever? ” Sure some mysterious girl can stay here, why not have her sleep with you in your room! Enjoy!”
The DFC looks like Azuma from Yakitate! Japan.
If #42 is the scene I think it is… I just had no words, only ecstatic laughter.
what raito (mai hime) on the Shinji-Kamina scale?
“The red head is Nanako Maaya. She’s the childhood friend type. She’s also the primary source of DFC.”
Sorry, but Maaya’s not so D and only comparatively F. She’s horribly annoying, and her looks aren’t much better than her personality. If you want some real DFC, Makio’s got more than enough (so to speak). She’s also cute, genki, and considerably more entertaining.
And speaking of entertaining, shouldn’t the pic for #49 be two reasons? Come to think of it, that’s not the only pic I could say that about…
“She’s an USDA recommended source of emo facial distortions.”
It took me several tries reading this sentence to figure out, “Oh, right, the USDA” — I had been reading it as a typo for USO DA.