Reviews for Kono Minikuku mo Utsukushii Sekai (5.99) p2u1g

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Kono Minikuku mo Utsukushii Sekai, or Konomini for short, attempts to combine a harem ecchi/comedy with a dramatic “End of the World” tragedy. It’s almost impossible to imagine, really. Love Hina combined with Saikano. Blue Gender combined with Tenchi Muyo!. It seems like an inspired idea in theory. In execution, however, it falls short. Very short. Konomini is a train-wreck of an anime, with genres that blend together like oil and water, leaving the viewer confused as to how they’re supposed to feel.

This is not to say that it’s impossible for an anime series with both comedic and dramatic elements to work. However, when those elements are as extreme as they are in Konomini, with random ecchi humor, followed by dire warnings about the possible extinction of the human race, the possibility of those two elements blending harmoniously is less than zero.

One positive aspect of Konomini is it’s not hard on the eyes. Characters are attractively drawn, with believable and fluid movements. The drawing style is reminiscent of Elfen Lied, with both Hikari and Akari looking exactly like Lucy/Nyuu. There is a lot of CGI work, but it blends well with the hand-drawn images. I especially liked the “red butterfly swarm” scene towards the end of the series. The backgrounds are a toss up, with some scenes filled with small details, and others appearing washed out. All in all, animation is Konomini’s strongest attribute.

The opening theme, "Metamorphose", by Youko Takahashi is a pleasant and catchy soft rock song, which reminded me of some of the “I’ve” girls’ work (for all I know, Youko is one of the “I’ve” girls). The ending theme is not on the same level as the opening theme, and is easily skippable. The background music, Seiyuu (voice actors), and sound effects all fall into the same category, getting the job done without drawing attention to themselves, which I consider to be a good thing.

The characters are likable enough, though there are far too many of them for a twelve episode series. Hikari and Akari play as a more naïve version of Mizuho from Onegai Teacher, learning Earth’s customs with wide-eyed enthusiasm. Takeru, the main male lead, is a carbon copy of Tenchi from Tenchi Muyo, a man with psychotically powerful abilities, coupled with a penchant for romantic bungling. Imagine Hugh Grant playing Wolverine from X-Men, and you’ll get the idea.

The rest of the cast is either annoying, superfluous, or both. The two horny friends of Takeru and Ryou play very cliché roles, adding nothing to the series but stale humor. Mari is your typical harem anime cousin, who is madly in love with Takeru, but can’t do anything about it but be jealous. There are quite a few side characters, none of whom are able to worm their way out of their respective cliches.

The story is where everything falls apart. Hikari and Akari come to Earth in a pillar of light, and are met by Takeru and his best friend, Ryou. Before they can exchange proper greetings, a giant monster comes out of the forest to attack them. Takeru changes into a monster-like guy and kills it. How did Takeru change? Who or what are Hikari and Akari? Why did they come to Earth? Don’t expect any answers until the end of the series.

The first 10 episodes are your standard harem/ecchi/comedy. Only problem being, the comedy isn’t funny, and the ecchi is used as arousal-based fanservice rather than for humor. Everything in the first 10 episodes has been done before, and done better.

Then there is the climax, where the “End of the World” angle finally breaks loose. Unfortunately, this angle is built on air. Since the previous episodes are harem/ecchi/comedy, the depressing climax feels terribly out of place.

There really isn’t much else to say about Konomini. The comedy detracts from the tragedy, which detracts from the comedy. That these two elements are weak and cliché on their own is bad enough, but combining them into one anime is a tragic miscalculation on the part of the creators. The overall experience reminded me of Pearl Harbor, with its shameless combining of Saving Private Ryan and Titanic in a transparent attempt to make more money. Pearl Harbor was a failure, and so is Konomini. I suggest avoiding both at all costs.