Let's talk about Majisuka Gakuen part 1 of the Majisuka Gakuen Series. Now before we start I have a few notes below and you can just skim through it if you want. I emphasized the important parts so your peripheral could see.
This blog contains SPOILERS regarding the show, could not help myself sorry.
If you want to know basic information like who directed it, duration, genre, etc., I suggest you just check the wiki because it’s accurate there.
I’d say this isn’t my first time if my experience in blogging in other social sites are counted but to post in WordPress, then yes, it’s a first. Anyway, let’s start!
Majisuka Gakuen 1
The show has a total of 12 episodes wherein the Japanese Idol girl group known as AKB48 are the cast members of the said drama. For those who are unaware, a Japanese Idol is kinda like a singer star of some sort. Okay so we get to think that ‘oh okay, so singers are acting together in one show, sounds cool’. Yeah it does but before each episode you will see a warning that the actors are “inexperienced” and that we should watch the show with open hearts because if you’re gonna criticize every actor’s acting then you’d just end up dropping it.
Now I’m not going to judge their acting but I am going to commend some that I find really good. At least we are clear on that.
The story is about a girl named Maeda Atsuko (also if you are unaware of who the actors are, then you won’t get the naming sense done in this show xD. Some characters here uses their real names in the show) transferred to an all-girls school called Majisuka Jyogakuen or MajiJo for short. Other than her, another character named Daruma also transferred to the school. Basically the two are our main characters.
Now the theme is about yankees (term for Japanese delinquent I think). All students in the school are all about groups and fighting and who’s strong and who’s on top. You could already guess where this is going, right? New girl will beat the crap out of the hierarchy and be on top. That’s the show is on the outside and will probably not be interesting if you’re not into girls punching and kicking each other for the sake of being on top.
So let’s check out the characters. Usually them characters is what gets our attention.
Characters
Our main character is Maeda Atsuko (refer to image above). No offense to her fans that are reading this but I just dislike the fact that she’s very OP in the show (or that’s just how it goes). She’s emotionless in a way, or maybe just nonchalant. She refrains from making friends due to an incident in the past regarding her deceased friend in a previous school. So when Daruma kept on bugging her about being a disciple/friend, she does not accept the friend request until later in the future episodes that is.
She is skilled in combat so that kind of environment wasn’t troubling for her. Although she doesn’t want to fight anymore and she’s pursuing to be a nurse so she’s still hesitant to raise her fists unless necessary.
Skipping to future events, she will be a threat to Rappapa (the top team in the school) so as you all have predicted, one by one the members of the team will try to beat her but fail miserably.
When she meets with Yuko Oshima, things got slightly interesting because both characters are unaware of who each other was. Yuko was the strongest and leader of Rappapa and Atsuko was the threat that Rappapa was dealing with. How the what? How can they not know each other? You’ll see later. So Atsuko meets Yuko and learns a thing or two from Yuko whenever she talks and there was this thought in my head that ‘oh maybe Atsuko will get character development’ but nah. As the series came to an end, the only change I noticed was Atsuko accepting the friend request of Daruma and the others.
But of course, I won’t argue if you think otherwise.
Next I want to discuss is Yuko Oshima. As I said earlier, she’s the leader of Rappapa. She has an illness in the present timeline that’s why she was at the hospital while school was ongoing. And since Atsuko wants to be a nurse, they met at the hospital.
What I like about Yuko is that she’s not an average leader that sits in her couch, crosses her arms, smirks and orders her goons to deal with the threat or the kind of leader that tramples on the weak. She’s very cheerful, laughs and smiles all the time and you won’t even suspect she’s a leader of rebellious group of students and that’s not because she’s sick. (Quick ranting, I really think her smile is cute. The charms must be from her smile xD).
In flashbacks, Yuko would be seen walking in the center or walking from behind her five top fighters. They say she’s so strong that she can beat 30 students from Yabakune (another school) alone and that she’d laugh as she did that. Going back, whenever Yuko appears in an episode, she’d be playing or happily talking with fellow patients and just being a cheerful young lady. She looks forward to graduation too.
She and Atsuko never had a one-on-one battle but that one scene where the two spent together outside the hospital was enough to make up for it.
Her character was already perfect as it is. I just feel bad that I didn’t see her interact more with her Four Heavenly Queens (some kind of top 4 strongest members) other than Sado (VP of the team) who always pays her a visit to report. Yuko was like the pillar of character development to basically majority of the characters there.
And according to a blog I’ve read, Yuko Oshima had experience in acting before that’s why her acting here was solid and far better than the rest. (No I do not have a confirmation on this.)
This is Daruma. No offense to her fans but her character was beyond annoying and the reason why she’s important there is because she’s the one always sticking up for Atsuko and being her friend. Okay yes maybe she’s there for comical relief purposes but it’s just not working well for me. The probably only thing I like about her is the part that she introduced to Atsuko the chicken of victory. Whenever they win a battle she’d magically take out a chicken from her bag and start eating. One time she gave one to Atsuko and another time she gave to Gakuran and the Kabuki Sisters when they won the fight aganst Black (Four Heavenly Queen member).
Whenever a new enemy comes, she’s also one of the people that gossips or talks about rumors/stories regarding who’s who. Background and additional information for other characters but other than that I just have nothing else to say.
[From left to right Gekikara (black jacket), Shibuya (small one beside Gekikara), Sado (peace sign), Black (black and white jacket), Torigoya (far right) and Yuko is the one in the wheelchair)
The image above is the Four Heavenly Queens plus the VP. Let’s start with the ones I can discuss less about. Shibuya. SPOILER ALERT! So Shibuya is kind of bad and would disobey orders which is a hint to what she will be in the next part of the series. She is threatened by Atsuko so she sent some goons to beat her and gets scolded later.
I have nothing notable to say other than she attempted to beat Atsuko and gets beaten instead. She was the first to be beaten among the Four Heavenly Queens. Next up is Torigoya. There are only two people in the series who has special abilities (unless I am unaware of the others) and one of them is Torigoya. She has the ability to see memories of people and the jacket she wears is red. She was the last Heavenly Queen to be defeated because her power is dangerous when awakened. Other than that I have nothing to say.
Next up is Black. Black is the one wearing the black and white jacket. She is the second person with super powers in the show. She has the ability of super speed so it was quite hard to beat her. But it’s actually fun to watch that it wasn’t the OP Atsuko who defeated her because there is honestly no thrill when you can predict it, especially that fighting scenes aren’t all… well… perfectly done or convincing. The only reason I separated her was because I am familiar with her actress.
So then we have Gekikara. If you’re familiar with the name, heard it before or so, well that’s because Gekikara is one of the main reasons why I was hooked up in the show and why it was worth watching. She didn’t appear in half the series or so because she was in an institution of some sort because of being too violent. Yes, she’s the most violent character there and the episode where she finally appears (episode 8) is the bloodiest as well. Gekikara is plainly insane. Kinda like what you watch in anime. She doesn’t care if she wins or loses a fight. She just wants to be violent. What more is that she does not only enjoy hitting but it seems like being hit by others is also not a problem with her.
Other than that, there’s something else about her that’s memorable. Her laugh. That maniacal freaky scary laugh she does and it echoes throughout your ears. If you hear that, you’ll know she’s freaking coming!
There’s more about her in the next part of the series so I’ll stop here.
And lastly, we have Sado. Sado is the VP and the closest one to Yuko (I think). Among the four heavenly queens, the only thing I noticed about their interaction with Yuko is that they respect her. Even the insane Gekikara respects her, yes.
So Sado is just there to update Yuko of everything that happens in MajiJo while Yuko is gone and scolds Shibuya and shows a frowning face whenever Atsuko beats someone. Oh right, another thing is that she saved Atsuko once then after that they bid goodbye but hinted that they’ll be facing each other on a one-on-one next time, which honestly I don’t get the point of it at all. I could already predict that Sado was gonna lose because hello! that was Atsuko, the MC! Anyway, that’s it.
This is Gakuran. She only showed up in a couple of eps. Yeah, she’s a she. When she first appeared, they made it seem like she has a thing for Atsuko but in the end it was actually Daruma she likes. “A fetish for big face” as Team Hormone said. I only added her here because she’ll be appearing again in part 2.
She helped Daruma and the Kabuki Sisters win the fight against Black and was later beaten brutally by Gekikara as well as the others who defeated Black.
This is Nezumi. She appeared in a few eps but she’s important. She’s a crafty freshman (I think she’s a freshman or a sophomore, I get confused) and likes to stir up fights to amuse herself. Or at least that’s her reason according to what I observe. We’ll talk more about her in the next season.
Before we end the Character introductions, I’d like to special mention three more.
(From Top to Bottom Team Hormone – group eating Team Fondue – group with yellow jackets Team Under – group in black)
I just want to give notice to these groups. Because other than the scenes with the major/minor characters I mentioned already, these groups are supporting roles that gives life and takes a break from the other clips from the MCs. They are as I describe the weakest, dumbest but reliable team. Especially Team Hormone.
Team Hormone will be often or always seen eating entrails while chatting with each other, depends on the trend. And Daruma would be getting information from them since they knew who the students are in the school. While Team Fondue would be eating the one with the cheese or something. They’d also be chatting. While Team Under is the one you see from time to time. I actually just notice them because the one with the shades was easy to remember.
I special-mentioned them because of the next series.
IS IT WORTH WATCHING?
Well, it is worth watching depending on your standards. Here’s something to take note of before you watch it. This is the bad part.
· Acting skills are low but hey if you wanna see them do something they’re good at search for any album or solo done by AKB48 and watch them sing and dance.
· MC that is OP or very strong that she empowers everyone, kinda like One Punch Man so you lose the thrill.
· Predictable. You can predict who wins in fight scenes and predict how characters will move/react unless you stop anticipating and just watch.
· Fighting scenes. You get the whole, good guy gets beaten up, seems like losing but later she stands and beat the crap out of the bad guy. Mostly happens to the MC.
· Fighting scenes again. If you’re someone who likes perfected fight scenes then you might get tortured. Yes it has its flaws but they’re trying. But for me I’m just bored because I already know who will win.
· Slow-mo. I don’t know how long it takes but probably 1-2 minutes of the characters being slow-mo to talk and prepare their fighting stance and shout and run towards each other to fight. I can skip a minute and come back and they’re not done yet. The show consists of 28mins or less and maybe you can say about 5-10mins is done by slow-mo, depends how many fight scenes per eps.
· Dialogue. In anime shows usually we get to learn or want to quote stuff from the characters right? They’re trying. But for me it’s just corny. But hey, this is only my opinion.
· Common yankee trope. You’ll see the… – Weak character gets beaten then MC comes to save/avenge them – Character stands, falls, stands, memory memory scene, wins
Now let’s go to the good part.
· If you’re into the plot and my summary is convincing enough for you, then this is for you. Especially if you’re a writer/fanfic writer and you think there’s potential to this story, then check it out and twist it in your own way, make it better.
· Just want to watch something? It’s got fights, it’s got family scenes and about friendship, kinda like your anime in live action version.
· Love AKB48? Well go find your favorite AKB48 member and watch them!
· Want to find a reason to watch it? Try finding interest in one of the characters. If at least one or two characters pique your interest or gets your attention, use them as motivation. It’s like the feeling of reading Isayama Hajime’s Shingeki no Kyojin manga because you want to know what happens to Annie Leonhardt (or that’s just me). But you get the idea, right?
· Yankees and Friendship. So if you’ve seen Gokusen, then this is kinda like it. Except that they’re girls and not boys.
· Curious type? As you noticed, I discussed some stuff about the characters in the show. If you’re curious of their fate, how they are when you watch them, see them in action, etc, etc, then try checking it out.
· If you’re not an AKB48 fan/not familiar with them, it doesn’t stop you from watching this, you just gotta bear with the bad parts I mentioned earlier.
· If you’re familiar with AKB48 but not a fan, it also doesn’t forbid you to watch this. You just gotta bear the bad parts I mentioned earlier.
· Why is it important to be an AKB48 fan or aware of them anyway? Because there are information/inside joke of some sort that you won’t get like the naming sense done in the series. Also, it will be hard for you to determine who the heck is who since they kinda look a lot like each other if it wasn’t for their unique traits/clothing that makes them stand out from the rest. I literally can’t tell who is Bungee from Team Hormone is, I just know them as Team hormone.
EPISODES TO START/SKIP?
I would tell you to literally just skip until Episode 8 (because that’s where Gekikara comes) but I’m not sure how well you will understand it so here’s a short summary per episode instead.
Episode 1: In this world, there is nothing but seriousness! Introduction of the school, Maeda Atsuko and Daruma.
Episode 2: Kabuki Sisters Introduction of Kabuki Sisters. You know the drill, they fight the MC then they…
Episode 3: My “seriousness” is there only for you The “seriousness” is kinda like a terminology to them. Kinda like ‘you’re my one true friend, that’s a promise’ speech. More Daruma reaching out to Atsuko.
Episode 4: Sanshou Sisters Shibuya hires the Sashou Sisters to beat Atsuko. Yuko appears here yey!
Episode 5: Choukoku and Nezumi Introduces Choukoku and Nezumi. I don’t remember anything memorable.
Episode 6: Shitennou Shibuya, Appearing! Shibuya fights the MC.
Episode 7: Shitennou Black, Participating! Black makes her move. Ah I think this is the part that Atsuko and Yuko spent time together. If that’s the case then I definitely recommend this episode as well!
Episode 8: The Most Evil Shitennou Gekikara, Laughing! Gekikara shows up at last! Yep you should definitely check it out.
Episode 9: he Last Shitennou Torigoya, The Most Foul Ever! I got bored here, but this is about Torigoya VS Atsuko. I don’t remember what else happened but Sado will report to Yuko about awakening Torigoya’s powers.
Episode 10: For The Sake of Minami, For The Sake of Yuko More flashbacks. Atsuko about her deceased friend and Sado about Yuko.
Episode 11: Maeda, serious! Sado…, cries. Atsuko and Sado fights. I don’t remember anything memorable but I think this is where Atsuko finally finds out who Yuko was.
Episode 12: All Majisuka students’ gathering, the tearful graduation ceremony Last episode. There is nothing to say because you WILL watch this.
OTHER SIMILAR SERIES?
Gokuen 1-3 Yankumi is the heir to a yakuza group but she wants to be a teacher. So she applies to a school and she will be assigned always to the worse section. The worse section is where all the yankees are placed and it’s up to her to straighten them out so they could all graduate. Three seasons, they’re all good but nothing beats season 1 for me. There is Gokusen anime but I haven’t checked it out.
Majisuka Gakuen 2 Is the continuation of Majisuka Gakuen 1. The story continues after episode 12 of the first season. There are new and old characters altogether. This time it’s MajiJo versus another school,Y Yabakune.
Kill La Kill An anime about Ryuko Matoi who is in search for her father’s murderer. She is led to Honnouji Academy where she meets Satsuki Kiryuin (her rival) who seems to know about her father’s murder. But Satsuki is the strongest in the school and standing at the top, looking down on Ryuko. Ryuko must fight her way to the top. WARNING: ECCHI type of anime!
Majisuka Gakuen 3 The scenario isn’t a school but it’s still about girls fighting each other for the top. The characters are still casted by AKB48, this time they are in Majisuka Prison. The MC was taken there because she killed someone. Did she really?
Crow’s Blood Is a mini series (6 eps) that is again starred by AKB48 members. It’s about a student named Maki Togawa who transferred to Kaoru’s school. She’s very odd and she has a secret. Her goal is to spread some sort of infection to the world, starting with her classmates. It’s up to Kaoru to figure it out and stop her.
Thanks for reading!
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