Historically, the Shinsengumi are some of the most romanticized samurai in Japanese pop culture. They were the protectors of the shogun and enforcers of the peace in Kyoto during the end of the Edo Era, a crucial period when Western tradition was being integrated into the culture and Japanese society was in a massive upheaval. They were the last samurai, the final cultural vanguard that was swept away in the tides of change, and included such legendary figures as the genius swordsman Okita Shoji and the scholarly commander Kondo Isami. But the rich history isn’t part of the anime. The series simply exploits the romance associated with it and transposes names and events willy-nilly.

As far as I can tell, the series takes place around 1872, almost three years after the real world Shinsengumi were shattered. Set in an alternate reality, the transformational event of the 1800’s isn’t the contact with the West, but living, breathing yokai—Japanese monsters— becoming citizens of Japan. Contact with the West is, understandably, a secondary concern.

The series begins with a decent, though uninspiring start.Ryuunosuke, the son of the owner and heir apparent to the "MobileShinsengumi Company, Ltd." has returned from his education abroad inShanghai, and is ready to steer the company out of debt and put it backon the right track. He’s brought along a pink, cat-like yokai who aidshim as a companion, life saver and requisite humor relief. The “Mobile Shinsengumi Company Ltd.” is a private, family-owned company who, presumably for generations, has protected Kyoto from the dangerous yokai. Under the new government, they also have a responsibility to make sure yokai register and become citizens of Kyoto. It’s a small company, though, with only three ladies to take down whatever giant monster threatens to smash Kyoto underfoot this week. They are special ladies—the daughters of the great samurai from the original Shinsengumi, who may or may not have been like the real world Shinsengumi.

This raises all sorts of questions, like if the Shinsengumi Company is related to the Shinsengumi samurai, how is it that the company is generations old when the real world Shinsengumi barely lasted a decade? Unfortunately, Moeyo Ken gives anyone with even a rudimentary knowledge of history a headache. You could fairly say that a series with cat girls, big screen TVs, and cable cars in the same era is hardly concerned with any kind of internal consistency. Subsequently, it’s not the last time the series neglects internal logic.

At least the A-and-B storyline formula that repeats for most of the series is consistent. Story A is the predictable “monster threatens Kyoto,” and Story B has the girls’ “plot of the week” to hook up Ryuunosuke and his romantic interest from the cake shop. None of them are very good or very funny, but it’s a third of the way through the series that things really get worse. Moeyo Ken ends up thoughtlessly spawning more plotlines than its twelve episodes can handle. It even makes up a love triangle or square, though it’s never really clear which it is. One key character is dropped out of the series entirely, like the creators simply discarded her out of boredom.  The final two episodes, which are the corniest parts of the series, leave very little resolved.

The plotting, the characters, the concept, the execution—everything about this series just comes across as lazy. And if the creators of Moeyo Ken don’t care about it, why should we?

Rating: D-
Review by: Brad Meek
Director: Toshikatsu Tokoro
Animation Production: Picture Magic, Trinet Entertainment
Distributed by: FUNimation Entertainment