Genshiken (2004– )

The misadventures of the close-knit members of a small anime/manga club on a college campus.

Stars:

Michael Perreca, Bill Timoney, Kenneth Robert Marlo

Cast

Series cast summary:
Michael Perreca	...	Sasahara Kanji (12 episodes, 2004)
Bill Timoney	...	Madarame Harunobu (12 episodes, 2004)
Kenneth Robert Marlo	...	Kosaka Makoto (12 episodes, 2004)
Bill Rogers	...	Tanaka Soichiro (12 episodes, 2004)
Rome Elliot	...	Kugayana Mitsunori (12 episodes, 2004)
Carol Jacobanis	...	Saki Kasukabe (12 episodes, 2004)
Takanori Ohyama	...	Kanji Sasahara (11 episodes, 2004)
Mitsuki Saiga	...	Makoto Kosaka (11 episodes, 2004)
Satsuki Yukino	...	Saki Kasukabe (11 episodes, 2004)
Nobuyuki Hiyama	...	Harunobu Madarame (11 episodes, 2004)
Tomokazu Seki	...	Soichiro Tanaka (11 episodes, 2004)
Kenji Nomura	...	Mitsunori Kugayama (11 episodes, 2004)

Storyline

The Society for the Study of Modern Visual Culture is not like ordinary student organizations found on a college campus. Rather than focus on a specific activity or hobby, the club encompasses tastes in anime, manga, video games, cosplay, and model building, and generally performs no organized activities outside of of gathering in their office to play video games or discuss the latest episode of the series Kujibiki Unbalance. Their membership includes a shy, stuttering sketch artist that lacks the drive to take his work further, an overzealous, motor-mouthed maniac that argues for the passion in all things otaku, and the club's creepily quiet founding president that has been in charge since 1987. What keeps a group with members as eccentric as these together? A shared love for anime, manga, and all forms of visual culture that they inspire.

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Plot Keywords:

anime | otaku | school club

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Taglines:

Calling All Scruffy Nerd-Herders!

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Genres:

Animation | Comedy

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Certificate:

PG-13

Details

Country:

Japan

Language:

Japanese English

Release Date:

22 October 2004 (Japan)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Genshiken Kenkyukai

Technical Specs

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

The DVD release contains full-length episodes of "Kujibiki Unbalance," the fictional series that the main characters ritually watch.

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Quotes

Chairman of Genshiken: But how about officially joining Genshiken, huh Katsukabe?
Saki Kasukabe: Not a chance!
Chairman of Genshiken: Mmm, well that was quick.
Madarame Harunobu: Mr. Chairman, there is no way she'll ever join the club, is there?
Chairman of Genshiken: Hmm... no, and it certainly seems like such a pity to lose you. You so enjoy using this room when we're gone.
Saki Kasukabe: [gasp]
Madarame Harunobu, Kugayana Mitsunori: Huh?
Chairman of Genshiken: You seem so..."at home" in our office.
Saki Kasukabe: [blushing] What do you mean?
Chairman of Genshiken: You've been having...
[...]

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Crazy Credits

The end credits for each episode are played over a shot of the club's office and its inhabitants that reflects a joke from that specific episode or the state that the office was left in at the end.

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Connections

Spin-off Kujibiki Unbalance (2006)

User Reviews

Anime Version of Freaks & Geeks?

I rarely like Anime, so the fact that I like this show so much, makes it a real gem for me. I was thrilled to find out recently that there will be a second season released in late 2006.

Unlike most anime, this show is extremely realistic. It focuses on the members of a student activity club at a University in the outskirts of Tokyo. The club is a group of slackers whose sole activity is appreciating anime, manga, hentai, cosplay and other pastimes normally associated with nerds (sometimes called "otaku" in Japanese).

Each episode in the first season more or less describes some new aspect of nerd culture. One episode shows the group getting obsessed about building Gundam models, another one shows the group going to Akihabara to buy erotic manga.

The dramatic tension of the show is created through the character of Saki. She is the girlfriend of one of the club members. She is in love with the guy, but finds all the "otaku" stuff kind of weird and many of the episodes feature her struggling to come to terms with her love of Kohsaka, but her dislike of his hobbies.

The show has very good character progression and many of the characters are allowed a depth to their characters not normal for Anime shows.

In a medium that is too often plagued with clichés and repetitive plot lines, Genshiken is a breath of fresh air that should be viewed by both anime fans and non-fans alike.