Happy Lesson

[Last Exile]

Here's something I've watched lately:

Happy Lesson - In the tradition of Love Hina, Ai Yori Aoshi and Tenchi Muyo, again a teen guy ends up surrounded by females. This one has a bit of novelty though, thankfully, and enough wit and humour to keep this theme from going stale. This time, the teen guy is living with five females - all adults, and they're all his teachers as well! And they're all attractive and over-the-top!

Chitose, our male protagonist, has recently been orphaned and is now the owner of his parents' house. Mutsuki, the school Japanese literature teacher, is so taken in by his plight that she's compelled to be his new 'mother'. Not only that, she even convinces four of her fellow colelagues to play the 'mother' role as well! Life is never sane for poor old Chitose again. If you thought Keitaro had it tough in Love Hina, I think Chitose would give him a run for his money any day.

A quick rundown of his five 'mamas':

Uzuki - blonde art teacher, very lively and enthusiastic, loves to cosplay, always at loggerheads with Satsuki
Yayoi - school nurse/shrine maiden, every male student wants her 'treatment' at lunch, tries to keep the peace at home
Mutsuki - very warm and caring, Japanese literature teacher, loves gardening, dresses up as a maid at home
Satsuki - P.E. teacher, very energetic, can work her students TOO hard very easily, very masculine personality but very feminine body, will regularly get Choitose in the "Death Bosom Hold", at loggerheads with Uzuki
Misuragi - Scince teacher (chemistry expert), regularly blows up classrooms and things at home with her wacky experiments and inventions, quiet personality but can easily steal the show

The plot is that the five teachers try to straighten up Chitose's messed up life. And there's a few surpirses along the way. The female class represntative has the hots for Chitose but he's completley oblivious. Chitose has a little sister and a big sister, who happens to be a big music star in the making. There's a weird mad scientist girl that wants Chitose bad as well. So life's very hectic for Chitose, putting up with abductions and attempted home takeovers and avalanches on holidays and the like. But it proves to be a fairly potent combo, despite how many times this theme of one guy and many women has been done. It's been held back from release for quite a while, but it hit US shelves in January this year.

Animation wise, it ain't that spectacular in terms of drawing but it's still good. The soundtrack is alright, and that karaoke ending is quite funny with the matching ending clip. It's another one of those storyline driven-little plot animes, but at least you know very early on, which is a relief, unlike some recent breakers of that rule such as Gunsligner Girl. Chitose is a bit of a jerk really and can annoy you with his sheer stupidity at times, but the teachers and relatives more than make up for that flaw with their wackiness. Happy Lesson may suffer from doing a theme that's been done many times over, but it's one of the better ones of that theme out there. Not as good as Love Hina (and I still ahven't seen Ai Yori Aoshi yet), but stillw orth watching.

I'd rate it about an 8.3 out of 10. It's fun to watch.

[Razola]

How does a guy surrounded by five "over-the-top attractive" females have a messed up life?

Either, this kind of is becoming a cliche amongst animes. Are animation studios sexually frustrated or what?

[Dark-San]

Yupz and poor Chitose- san hav to called all those Teachers 'Mums' =x I've watched the whole anime and rates it at 7.5/10.

After watching Happy Lesson, try watching Happy Lesson Advanced! This time round in the serial, they added a new character. A China girl who calls Mutsuki her mom.

Lots of fun and surprises too in the serial. The serial is still better IMO at a rating of 8/10. The story plot is for me to know and for you to find out ;P...

[EVme15]

I've seen the first episode via Newtype promo DVD. I'd really like to see more of the series. As long as they don't really have to dissect those little birds. ;-; They don't, do they?!

Oh, yeah, "Tokyo Life" is one of the cutest songs I've heard! Either that or I need to listen to it again. It's right up there with "Let Me be with You".

[Animelee]

I watched the first episode at my friend's house, and it was okay. I didn't really get into at at first, but then when the P.E. teacher started talking, and she ended up having the same voice as Satoshi (Ash) from Pokémon, I kept watching. Rica Matsumoto is my favourite Japanese voice actor, and she's a good singer, too.

Chikorita, does Happy Lesson end up being clichéd throughout the whole series, or does it differ from the rest of the harem-type shows? If it does, then I'll watch the rest at my friend's house over March Break, since he didn't watch the rest yet, either.

[Last Exile]

Well, no one's gotten hitched or anything from the episodes I've watched, and I watched Series 1 in full. I still haven't seen Happy Lesson Advance though.

And as I said, it's not about the guy getting up the girl. It's about fixing peoples' lives, accepting who you are and treasuring it, and the fun that exists in live.

Raz, it's stressful for Chitose because he prefers to be a loner, Misaragi's inventions are wacky and almost lethal, Mutsuki is very persistent with her ways of getting CHitose's educations tandards better, and Satsuki is VERY physical/ tough! Belive me, the "Death Bosom Hold" is something you don't want to end up in!

And as I did say, it is a theme that is being worn a bit thin, but Happy Lesson sets out to do something else instead of the usual guy and girl get hitched thing. That's why it's worth watching.

[Roarkiller]

@Dkyouth: this doenst happen to be among the random eps u burned when u lent me OT does it? Cuz i remember one anime where one of the girls is a teacher, but is also an, uh, alien? There was a spacecraft, and she had to go home in a wedding gown.

If thats the one, ill pass. I think ive had enough of senseless romance anime. DDD at least has a good storyline (and ending theme, lol).

[Last Exile]

No, it wasn't Roarkiller. There are no aliens in Happy Lesson.

[Dark Scizor]

Originally posted by Roarkiller
@Dkyouth: this doenst happen to be among the random eps u burned when u lent me OT does it? Cuz i remember one anime where one of the girls is a teacher, but is also an, uh, alien? There was a spacecraft, and she had to go home in a wedding gown.

No, but i think your thinking about Please Teacher, or something like that, where the main character (i forget his name) was in a three year coma and has an alien teacher lolol

I saw the first episode of Happy Lesson with my Newtype, an i think its alright but i can't really say much on one episode that i watched once because i sometimes end up liking things later on.

[Roarkiller]

Originally posted by Dark Scizor
No, but i think your thinking about Please Teacher, or something like that, where the main character (i forget his name) was in a three year coma and has an alien teacher lolol

No its not, but now that uve mentioned it, it is somehow the same, except this was only in one ep, and the gang (except the alien in wedding gown) were in a submarine. And oh, the animation SUX. Everyone looked like some doujinshi fan drew them, so stereotypically anime.

Anyway, im now trying to look for "less romantical" anime to watch. Like somebody said in another topic, its like all the animators have gotten sexually frustated

[Dark-San]

Thats a silly episode from Happy Lesson Advanced. Basically you hav to watch the first series before you can actually understand that episode~