Sexy Commando Gaiden wasn't the first gag based anime with a non-sensible plot, Ping Pong Club comes to mind. However all the gags in Sexy Commando Gaiden were done with tact and didn't rely on sexual innuendos or references to make them all funny. Many of them relied on doing something to put something in your mind about what was going to happen next and twist it from sexual into something that isn't. This added to the charm without the rampant amount of exposed skin that the former mentioned had.

There was virtually no plot involved with this anime. Apart from introducing a setting, Fujiyama is going to his first classes at a new school and he has a goal, he wants to make 100 friends. As he takes his seat in class he was fated to have the same seat as Masuru, the most ridiculous character I have seen in any anime by far. As they are getting acquainted and eating lunch on the room Masaru gives him a nickname as he does for every character involved with the Sexy Commando club. He graciously accepts the name Fuumin over Geroshabu, which translates to "vomit-sucker." Shortly after this a fight between Masaru and a couple studends starts and the sexy commando is revealed for what it is, an invincible fighting style.

Over the course of the next few episodes both Masaru and Fuumin are gathering club members to keep the karate club going introducing awesome characters like Kyasharin, Afro-kun, Susan and Training Pants Sensei. I'm not sure when the term moe was coined, but the first instance I have seen placed in an anime was when Masaru renamed Tomoe to Moe-moe.

This show didn't try to have any sort of plot at all, I'm sure when the idea of writing this manga popped into its creator's mind they just wanted to create something along the lines of Monty Python's Flying Circus, and they did it flawlessly. Many other anime have tried to follow in these footsteps by being gag based: Pani Poni Dash, Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei, Gyagu Manga Biyori, and as far as I'm concerned Occult Academy. They just didn't seem to pull it off as well as Sexy Commando did, either they used many references that just didn't affect American audiences (Pani Poni Dash,) or they just overloaded the amount insane to incredible heights (Gyagu Manga Biyori.) Not saying that they were necessarily bad, they just didn't seem to keep the charm Sexy Commando had. Take a simple classroom question like asking what "duck" means in Japanese for example.

They also gave funny "tips" for real life at the end of each episode. These things don't take anything away from the show, and reminded me of the ending of G.I. Joe or Sonic the Hedgehog. However they keep the humor at random and maximum leading to tons of laughs and good times.

This is by far my most recommended anime to anyone that asks me what anime they should watch. It doesn't matter who you are, or what your tastes in anime may be you will find many laughs to be had while watching this. The biggest problem with watching it is getting a hold of it, since as far as I know it is not licensed. Every time I had asked at a con if they have it they assumed I was talking about something H related, and pointed me to a section in the corner. This is also the immediate reaction of 90% of the people I recommend it to, and if they aren't my friends I assume the never look it up because they presume its yaoi due to the title.

With that being said I give you a gif to end this blog because a pic would only take it out of context, and make it less funny as he uses sexy commando to escape apprehension.

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Deadman Wonderland (デッドマン・ワンダーランド)

By KATAOKA Jinsei & KONDOU Kazuma

Ganta Igarashi has been convicted of a crime that he hasn't committed, and sent to a new, privately owned and operated prison, where the inmates are the main attraction in a modern day twist to the gladiatorial coliseums of ancient times. Throw in a healthy dose of weird little girl, some new-found super powers, and a little conspiracy theory, and you have Deadman Wonderland.

My Thoughts:
Deadman is one of those rare series that has it all in my opinion. It has a elaborate plot, cool and interesting characters, great settings, and great artwork. It's not overly dark but does deal with some rather disturbing notions. A definite must read in my eyes.

My only complaint at this time would be that Deadman is published in Shounen Ace; which is released monthly. Because of that, one can occasionally fall behind and forget about a series for a while. But hey! if you look on the bright side that means that when you do remember to read it, you get to read it in bulk, right?


------ Manga information --------

Demographic: Shounen

Status in Japan: 8 volumes (ongoing)
Serialized in: Shounen Ace (Kadokawa Shoten)
Manga Details Page: Here
Discussion thread: Here
Preview:

All Images Copyright © 2007 - 2011 KATAOKA Jinsei & KONDOU Kazuma