Common Name: Aho Girl
Alternative Names: AHO-GIRL, Clueless Girl
Score: 7/10, 5/5
Length: 12 Episodes
Genre: Comedy, Short-form
Summary: Ever since he was a child Akutsu Akuru, aka A-kun, has been tormented by the idiotic Hanabatake Yoshiko--a girl so dumb that she get's straight 0's on every test and would rather play every day than better herself. While having to put up with Yoshiko over the years has made A-kun strong in a mental and physical sense, he has lost the ability to get along with people normally. The way things are going though, either his crippling loneliness is going to make him succumb to Yoshiko's advances or he'll finally succeed in his efforts to get rid of the moron once and for all.
Review: Y'know, for a show I hate with a burning passion, Aho Girl is pretty good. Heck, in a way it's practically a masterpiece in it's own right. To elaborate, in the case of most shows the best experience you can expect to get is an action title that keeps you on the edge of your seat or a heartstring-plucking drama that'll bring tears to your eyes. These titles are meant to engage and entertain you during the few moments of freedom you have in your life. In Aho Girl's case, however, that engagement is taken to another level. At times, I felt like I really understood the plight of Akutsu Akuru. At the show's best moments I was A-kun because the show itself became my Yoshiko--meaning I wanted to beat it within an inch of it's life and leave it bleed out on the cold hard ground.
The only difference between us being the fact that I was raised to respect women and never, ever hit them.
Here's the weird thing though: I'm pretty sure that was the point behind this show's obnoxious and crude brand of comedy. In much the same way that A-kun begrudgingly puts up with Yoshiko's constant barrage of nonsense and sexual harassment, the audience is meant to always be on the verge of punching the show in its stupid face. I assume that's the intention behind this show because the show's brand of comedy isn't really comedic so much as it is absurd, much like it's titular Aho Girl's personality. Rather than setting up funny scenarios or dialogues, Aho Girl doles out nothing but pure shock value--crass, crude, and absurdist situations that can only be considered funny because of how bizarre they are in that sudden moment. So, in a way, its humor is about as stupid as the main character--too dumb for actual comedy but energetic enough to make horrible attempts at humor. Yet, at the same time, it also captures the fact that Yoshiko is also a generally likable and charismatic person, so long as you're not A-kun. Whenever she, and by extension the show itself, isn't trying to be humorous, it's honestly kind of endearing and relatable in that it appeals to every person's desire to relax and just have fun every now and then. Once has deescalated any pent up rage through these lighter segments, however, it dives right back into throwing absurdity in your face just like Yoshiko constantly abuses A-kun's tolerance.
In a way, the bizarre humor of this show reminds me of Jojo. But in this show the absurdist humor
takes up the majority of the runtime rather than it being a way to break up the action.
So, again, in one way, this show is actually something of a masterpiece in it's own right. Through it's bizzare and upsetting brand of humor, it makes the audience as frustrated with it in the same way A-kun get's sick of Yoshiko. At the same time though, that brand of humor perfectly reflects who Yoshiko is as a character--obnoxious and antagonistic at her worst but also caring and charismatic during her less annoying moments. While I certainly can't make an argument that this formula necessarily makes for a good watching experience--since being a kettle constantly on the verge of boiling over is never a good feeling--it does make for an interesting and masterfully executed concept. It's that concept and its execution, in fact, that makes me inclined to honestly recommend this title. I mean, you'll likely want to punch someone or something in the face while you do so, but it's not a show entirely without merit, just none of the ones I typically lean on to distinguish a good show.