• Title: Hyakko
• Studio: Nippon Animation
• Genre: Slice of Life / Comedy

Ratings (out of 5):

• Story: ♥♥♥½
• Animation: ♥♥♥♥
• Characters: ♥♥♥½
• OP/ED Themes: ♥♥♥½
• Overall: ♥♥♥½

Thoughts:
Ayumi starts her first day at a swanky private school, but gets separated from her classmates and then lost on the enormous campus. She manages to find another one of her classmates, Tatsuki– who may be a liiittle stuck-up –but it turns out that she, too, is lost, even though she’s been going to the same school for ten years (it’s a middle school as well as a high school). Then the two are jumped, literally, by the feisty Torako and the silent but strong Suzume. They search high and low for their classroom, and are barely able to find it by the end of the school day, let alone before the next class begins.

So, yes, the entire first episode is a search for the classroom. Don’t worry, though: getting to know these characters is more than enough to keep you amused. There’s nothing particularly new about any of them, but the interactions are strong. I don’t think this is going to be the next Azumanga Daioh though, even setting aside that it isn’t a gag series like AzuDai. The humor is healthy but not unpredictable or impressively-timed.

But I’d like to note that it’s nice to see Aya Hirano constantly earning roles that are different– in this case, she plays the shy, cute Ayumi, who sounds completely different from the fierce Haruhi, or the quietly confident Chiko (in Nijuu Mensou no Musume). That said, I had to remind myself when the show was over that she was in the show: Hirano doesn’t make her stand out. But her character isn’t really supposed to stand out, so no worries there. The other seiyuu are solid, including Fumiko Orikasa (Bleach’s Rukia) as the ferocious Torako– you’ll barely recognize her.

The visuals are solid, and the OP and ED are catchy (though neither really grabbed my attention). All in all it’s a pretty enjoyable slice-of-life comedy and I’d definitely be interested in watching the rest.