Review by: Jd BanksDirector: Shinichi WatanabeAnimation Production: Nippon AnimationDistributed by: FUNimation EntertainmentThe Wallflower feels like a deranged, no-holds-barred Ouran High School Host Club on perpetual fillers. It’s not an anime about sadness, intelligence, or even weird gimmicks. The Wallflower is about a high school girl who is a wallflower—taken in the most literal sense.Sunako Nakahara is a girl that likes everything that normal people find creepy: skeletons, anatomical models, and banned horror films are her best friends. She’s the epitome of goth, minus the black clothing. Through various circumstances, her wealthy aunt asks her four male housemates to turn her into “a lady” in exchange for rent. Based on the manga by Tomoko Hayakawa, the anime goes in a creepy yet comedic direction. Unfortunately, The Wallflower isn’t for fans looking to view another shojo anime. It is indubitably meant for goth enthusiasts and teenagers needing a mindless laugh. However, boys, if you’re an intellectual type, then The Wallflower is not for you.
The Wallflower seems to be a type of anime for a specified audience, specifically those interested in excessive nosebleeds, creepy scenes, and oddity in every crevice. There is nothing worthwhile this anime has to offer other than its unorthodox comedy. Even calling The Wallflower a dark comedy is futile.
Surrounding the core plot, The Wallflower brings up the need to become “more feminine.” Random segments called The Road to Womanhood are meant to “teach” the viewer and Sunako how to become more “ladylike.” Throughout the anime, the segments are shoe-horned in as a comedic device, showcasing “womanhood” suggestions with how-to instructions on random subjects, such as how to fry an egg and how to wake up in the morning.
Although it’s supposed to be funny, the Road to Womanhood segments and the countless dialogues about being ugly between characters puts a damper on any notion of 21st century womens’ rights. In that sense, The Wallflower is demeaning on a deeper level. Then again, it is a strange anime. Certainly, taking it seriously would turn any fan away.
Everything about The Wallflower rings of Ouran High School Host Club with its characters. Kyohei Takano, a ruffian with a pretty face, reminds of a punk-version of Tamaki Suoh without a trust fund. He’s pretty with throngs of people chasing him. His three other housemates, Yukinojo Toyoma, Takenaga Oda, and Ranmaru Morii, have it hard too. Yuki, who is as cute as Ouran’s Mitsukuni Haninozuka, has a horrible cuteness complexity like Amano Hei from PPOI! A doppelganger to business-minded Kyoyi Ohtori, Takenaga is the voice of reason with a cold demeanor. Ranmaru is the playboy who chases any girl or woman. Each housemate has something ridiculously abnormal about them, and The Wallflower takes no shame in flaunting it just for a laugh.
Honestly, I don’t know how this series went on for twenty-five episodes. It’s obnoxious to watch the incredibly handsome boys try to coax a stubborn girl to change. In formulaic fashion, the boys try coerce Sunako into uncomfortable situations in exchange for rewards more to her tastes. Sure, it’s not healthy to be holed up in a room decorated with jars of organs, but at least Sunako is happy, right? Throughout the entire anime, the boys never get used to Sunako’s creepy and questionable nature. Certainly, living together with someone would mean you get used to their quirks, wouldn’t it? Throw in the the irritating charcters of the Goth-Loli Sisters, who pop up every episode like Team Rocket, and The Wallflower crosses a line of annoyance without any regards to the viewer.
Additionally, the animation breaks every rule in the book about proper animation. The characters are constantly in chibi mode. Every scene looks like it was staged with those stick-figure pedestrians found on road signs. It’s not uncommon for a whole ten minutes to go by with the indistinguishable characters talking in the same stick-figure pedestrian mode. The only significant changes of pace are in the random action scenes involving Kyohei and Sunako. At those moments, The Wallflower becomes more like a cheap version of Street Fighter. For some reason, the action scenes are mostly made up of girls going Super Saiyin over trivial matters. Who knew an anatomical model named Hiroshi was so important that Sunako would be willing to kill for it?
At the end of it all, The Wallflower is definitely tops on the list of odd and mindless anime. Still, if anyone wants to watch an anime about a creepy and awkward girl with beautiful people flanking her, be my guest. Just watch out for the random leaps into absurdity that jumps all types of boundaries.
Rating: D+
