sschamberger - 2013-05-18 10:39:36

"Aiii Maiii Miiii Strawberry Egg" is undoubtably, unashamedly aimed at those otakus that spend a lot of their time fantasising about unlikely, perverted romances. It doesn't bother trying to disguise this fact. The premises is a total farce: a newly qualified school teacher Hibiki Amawa wants to work at Seito Santomiya school, but there's just one problem: the school only hire female teachers because of the principal's dislike for men... and Hibiki is a man. So, in order to prove a point, Hibiki dresses up as a woman and is successfully recruited into the school. One of the female students Fuko Kuzuha soon falls in love with him despite Hibiki's appearance as a female teacher... and yeah, things gets messy from there on. With more fan service and hackneyed breaking of taboos to shake a stick at, I really ought to have loathed this show with a passion.

But I don't. Despite all its shortcomings, "Strawberry Egg" actually exhibits a charm that is typified by the warm, sunshine opening theme (something that reminds me a little of "Fruits Basket"). But with the exception of a couple of episodes, this series is mostly predictable trash. And even in the episodes that are not pure trash, only a few moments truly shines out amidst the absurdity. The best example is probably the parents visit episode, when Hibiki, being a PE teacher, gets the parents to go on a run with their kids. The whole activity is hilariously bad - PE seemed like the only lesson of the day, as though there was nothing else to do; the runners were not told the route; people could just quit and go back whenever they felt like it; not to mention the idea that someone who's incredibly unathletic could just go and outlast the rest of the class through determination alone is totally unbelievable. It was clear that the whole thing is just a contrived set up for the scene at the end of the run. But when that scene came, I couldn't help but feel moved by it, even though everything leading up to it was so poorly thought through. There was another scene in the last episode, where Fuka gives a speech. Though the speech itself is terrible and the reactions predictable, again, I was touched by it.

Perhaps the secret is in the two characters, Hibiki and Fuka, that the anime revolves around. Being the anime that it is, there is no shortage of thinly veiled excuse for fanservice moments and lecherous characters and their dubious activities, but through it all, Hibiki and Fuka both managed to pull off their roles rather well. It feels as if Hibiki genuinely has the welfare of the students in mind (unlike his lecherous flatmates), and Fuka also comes off as the sweet, caring individual that she's meant to be, perhaps due to some rather skillful voice acting. The only facet of her character that feels too cliched is the whole clumsy, constantly tripping routine, which is way too exaggerated and has been done far, far too many times already.

Even though "Strawberry Egg" does have some subtle redeemable qualities, I really hesitate to recommend this as a genuinely good watch because, let's face it, it's not. It's a mostly manipulative show with a story progression that, more often than not, feels forced and shallow (something that's exemplified by the big "twist" at the end that made no sense). But it must have done something right, otherwise I would be treating it with a lot more distain that I am now. It may not offer anything intelligent to chew on, but it does provide some aesthetic pleasures.