Haganai is not talked about nearly as much as it should be given that it’s a new, witty, fucking hilarious show that everyone should be watching. Like, real talk, WHERE IS THE HAGANAI FANDOM?!
Haganai: I Don’t Have Many Friends is a relatively knew series of manga based off a series of light novels that weren’t released in America at this point. An anime adaption was also made and just concluded its second season in the English dub. Volume 8 of the manga was just released in America a couple of days ago.
What is Haganai? Well, I’m shit at explaining shit, so here’s a summary stolen from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haganai
“Kodaka Hasegawa, a transfer student to St. Chronica’s Academy, has found it difficult to make friends because of his mix of brown-blond hair[1] (inherited from his deceased English mother) and fierce-looking eyes that make him look like a delinquent. One day, he accidentally comes across the equally solitary and very abrasive Yozora Mikazuki as she converses with "Tomo”, her imaginary friend. Realizing that they lack social lives and skills, they decide that the best way to improve their situation is to form the Neighbors Club (隣人部 Rinjin-bu?), “an after-school club for people with no friends like themselves”.[1] Other students with various backgrounds join the club: Sena Kashiwazaki is an attractive but arrogant idol, who has no female friends, and the men around her act as slaves; Yukimura Kusunoki is a feminine underclassman who idolizes Kodaka and strives to become manly like him; Rika Shiguma is a perverted genius scientist; and Kodaka’s little sister Kobato thinks she is a vampire.[1]“
Okay, this description is a little odd and doesn’t do the series justice, but it is so good I promise.
As far as genre, Haganai is mostly straight up comedy ((better yet, a mix of many styles of comedy)), but in the second season and parts of the first season some drama is peppered in. Thankfully, though, the drama never takes itself too seriously and will stick more with being straight up funny.
I’m hardcore into this series for many reasons:
1. IT’S FUCKING HILARIOUS. I have not audibly laughed at an anime since School Rumble, when I watched it like five years ago. Haganai is hilarious. It’s a strange sort of humor that switches between slapstick, irony, anecdotal, blue humor, screwball, parodic, and even occasionally satirical! With so much going on in the humor department, there’s bound to be something you can find hilarious ((personally I found it all hilarious)).
2. The characters. The cast of characters are so strange and outlandish for a slice of life anime, and it works surprisingly well. The main trio are shockingly realistic ((for the most part)) compared to the four supporting members of the neighbors club, so there’s plenty to identify with while also just being able to appreciate the zany characters. The bio from wiki gives a good 5-second description of the members of the neighbors club ((though for some reason leaves out Maria, the club advisor)). The main trio, so to speak, are Kodaka ((the protagonist)), Yozora, and Sena. They, of course, are the most "Real” of the Neighbors’ club, and bring a lot that you can identify with, especially in the second season. I particularly like Yozora, even though she does act like a total bitch. In fact, most of the girls in this show act batshit out of their minds most of the time. AND IT’S AWESOME. They’re just so all over the place and hilarious. Yukimura is the only consistently calm one ((Along with Kodaka, more or less)), which gives a subtle juxtaposition amidst the madness of it all.
3. The antics. I love the characters, and seeing them interact is A+. Yozora and Sena’s hatred for each other is one of the highlights of the series, but also seeing everyone else handle each other is top knotch. Basically, stick a bunch of social misfits with no friends in a room and see what happens.
Yes, it’s technically a harem anime, but they never lean towards romance that much at all, honestly. As the title would suggest, the series focuses much more on friendship! Of course, the obvious irony is that the members of the Neighbors club technically become friends, but they all consider themselves being friendless with other friendless people. Most of their club activities are preparing for when they’ll have social lives, and performing warped versions of things friends do together ((go to karaoke, take a vacation, compare exam answers, play games, etc.)). They just try so hard that they get it all wrong and it’s perfect. I just cannot love on this series enough.
HOWEVER.
Every rose has it’s thorns, and there are a few precautions I gotta run by you guys, since Haganai can be hella problematic at some points. Here’s the things that you should know before watching:
1. Fan service. FAN SERVICE OUT THE WAZU. Although it’s not a drawback for me because it fits with the over the top environment of the show in my opinion, one problem some people may have is two of the characters are 13 and 10, so seeing fanservice of them can be a bit uncomfortable. Thankfully, what you see of them is very limited and they are usually left out of the sexual humor. Usually.
2. Mention of rape. This is the biggie. For the most part they stay away from this, but there are two episodes in particular where this is rampant. The episode where Rika is introduced ((Kodaka finds her passed out and she later goes on about how he could have taken advantage of her body in such a state and banters about this throughout the episode)) and the episode where they tell a round-robin story ((Yozora’s part of the story has Sena being publicly raped. Ech. I know. That caught me by surprise on my first viewing of the anime.)) Though honestly, the Rika episode is mostly tame ((but still triggering)), and you can skip the round robin episode without missing any plot whatsoever ((it’s just a filler chapter/episode)). Those are the two that stick out in my mind, and there may be a mention here or there but I think I’d remember if there were…
3. Yukimura. Yukimura is ambiguously a boy? Or a girl? He’s the center of a lot of transphobic content in the show. Yukimura identifies as male and acts as such despite looking very feminine and having a feminine voice. Yozora forces him into a maid outfit when they’re at the clubroom throughout the series, and many remarks are made that he looks like a girl and doesn’t act like a boy. As a trans guy this was a little awkward to watch at first, but I didn’t mind it that much until a certain episode in season 2 where it is confirmed that Yukimura does have a vagina ((meaning he is a trans man)). Hell yeah for a trans character, but hell no that after this, the other members of the club start calling him with she pronouns sometimes. This whole character trait is kind of a mess and poorly handled, but not bad enough to detract from the rest of the series, in my opinion.
Those are the big three, but they only show up hear and there, and aren’t too destracting. In fact, as with the round robin episode, the episode where Yukimura’s birth assignment is revealed can be skipped altogether without losing any plot, leaving you 22 good episodes to enjoy!
So there’s the gist of it. The best and worst of Haganai, hopefully without spoiling too much, and convincing you to give it a shot! ;u;
