The seal that confined the evil monster Guruguru for hundreds of years has worn off. A young boy named Nike is chosen (against his will) as the hero. He sets off with Kukuri, a girl who is the lone survivor of a tribe that uses black magic for good, to save the world, RPG style. – ANN
Streaming: Crunchyroll
Episodes: 24
Source: Manga
Episode 1 Summary: After 300 years, the seal on Demon King Giri has worn off, and it’s time for a new hero to go on a journey to defeat him. As a kid, Nike might seem like the least likely choice to deal Giri a smack down, but his parents have been raising him to take up the mantle of hero for his entire life. Despite Nike’s protests, he’s sent off to Magic Granny’s house to obtain a traveling companion. There he meets Kukuri, the last of her line of magic users, and a start-struck 12-year-old to boot. She considers her meeting with Nike her destiny as a magic user, and the two journey to the Anshient Castle to meet with the king. Though there are hundreds of other hero-wannabes already there, Nike demonstrates some elusive inner potential and is sent on his way (along with a modest monetary payment to purchase supplies). They meet their first monster on the road, but due to its bad case of monologuing and Kukuri’s innate talent (luck?) with magic, they’re able to defeat it.
Impressions: Magical Circle Guru Guru is a surprise in both tone and style; in an age when anime (even humorous anime) takes itself very seriously, this show seems to hearken back to a simpler time of rapid-fire gags and outright parody, and is ultimately stronger for it.
The anime reveals itself as a parody of 8-bit style RPG’s right from the get-go with its use of pixel art and dialog boxes straight out of classics like Dragon Quest or the original Final Fantasy. As Nike is thrust into the role of protagonist, the show wastes no time in pointing out the inherent ridiculousness of so many video games in establishing the hero’s role and purpose. Who in their right mind would assume that a tween kid still living with his parents would make a suitable hero. Of course he holds some mysterious unnamed power – all the tropes say that he has to! The way in which the show employs each and every one of those time-worn cliches belies the fact that the creators of the story truly have a lot of love for these kinds of scenarios; many of us geeks of a certain age have a shared experience in playing these types of games, so while we might not exactly what’s “supposed” to happen, seeing it unfold gives us a chuckle and a warm case of the nostalgia fuzzies.
Another nostalgic aspect of the episode is evident right from the get-go; the show channels other classics like Kodomo no Omocha in its way of presenting the story through non-stop visual gags and hyperactive dialog. This barely gives the viewer a chance to take a breath and regroup before tackling the next item on the story agenda, but this is definitely where familiarity with the structure and pacing serves another purpose; when you already know what’s supposed to happen and have already accepted that it will do so without question, it leaves enough time for your brain to latch onto the fact that one of Kukuri’s magic circles is the “laughing man” symbol, or that the home-cooked meal made by Nike’s mother is the perfect visual representation of an RPG world map. It’s a bit like the way in which moé characterization can, in some cases, serve to provide a good character baseline so that additional character development can occur within the relatively protracted time period allowed for in most TV anime these days. It definitely doesn’t occur that way successfully in all cases, but when done right it can help make the most of limited resources.
Speaking of characterization, though, I feel like that might be one area where this episode happens to fall short. It can be easy to underestimate the importance of character development in a comedic setting, especially with a gag-comedy focus. In the end, the most important thing is that most if not all of the jokes were successful in entertaining the audience. I’ve found that a lot of viewers (and some creators) tend to underestimate the potential value added when competent comedy is coupled with sympathetic characters with whom the viewer can form a connection. Jokes that harp on one person’s primary defining trait often grow tiresome, but jokes that escalate as we learn more and more about a character’s inner self make for some of the most transcendent, memorable laughs in anime (one series that does this surprisingly well is Nichijou, which is a must-watch as far as I’m concerned).
My main complaint with this episode in this regard isn’t as much with Nike, who’s kind of your crabby “everykid” hero and seems fairly self-aware, but with Kukuri who stands out to me as being more ill-defined. She’s introduced as a character who’s cute but ineffectual but for her streak of dumb luck. She’s worshipful of Nike, her “hero” who serves some sort of important role in her life as an ideal rather than a friend or equal; it’s this piece of it that grates on me a little bit. Kukuri toes the line between someone who could eventually become aware of her own potential and someone who’s purpose in the narrative is to provide Nike more obstacles to overcome due to her clumsiness and lack of awareness. For now their dynamic is kind of funny, but it’s something to keep my eye on.
I briefly mentioned above how the show utilizes visual parody in addition to other forms of humor, and this is probably one of the more entertaining aspects of the episode. There are several 8-bit overhead view interludes (in 4:3 aspect ratio, no less) that occur when characters travel, or something is occurring that seems particularly ripped-off from any of several classic RPG video games. This breaks up the episode nicely and the technique isn’t overused which lets it keep being funny rather than repetitive and tiresome. There’s also a similarly funny effect that occurs in some instances during character closeups, where they’ll be portrayed as they are in the anime, but highly pixelated in close-up. It’s difficult to describe why it’s so amusing to me; I tend to think that extreme close-up shots of people’s faces are inherently pretty funny for whatever reason, especially if the zoom slowly increases in intensity. The added effect of the pixels only enhances that. Overall these cute additions really serve to emphasize the tie that the show has to a particular era of video-gaming; while I believe that the show is made for younger viewers, this aspect makes it entertaining for those of us who played the first Dragon Quest on cartridge, too.
I have to say, this show really came out of nowhere for me. As a re-make of an older series, it definitely looks pretty unassuming. There wasn’t a lot of energy put into making it flashier for a new generation of viewers, and I think that was the correct decision. Considering that anime comedies tend to be mostly-miss for me, I really didn’t have a lot of reason to pay attention as this was coming down the pipeline. After finding myself highly amused by episode 1, I feel like I might have to add it to my queue. At the very least, it seems like it might be a fun distraction.
Pros: The visual and parody humor work well together. There is judicious use of visual gags like 8-bit style and pixelation.
Cons: The characterization is a bit lacking so far.
Grade: B
