Kampfer Anime Review: Gender-Bending Action Comedy Falls Flat

Kämpfer

“Gender-Bending Action Comedy Falls Flat”

Gender swaps are nothing new in anime; after all, there once was an infamous story in which a gentleman named Bullet, a professional thief and rogue, attempted to make the heist of his lifetime. He made his way into a particular mansion, and, through a series of events that involved a total gender swap, Bullet found himself, now herself, in the service of a young lady, a fate she could never escape.

Another story tells the tale of a frustrated man, Tachibana, who yearns to change into a lovely girl with enticing allure. A goddess unexpectedly appears in front of Jinguuji (his friend) and Tachibana and, as if the gods were paying attention, transports them to another world where they will face the Demon Lord and fulfill Tachibana's request.

Due to her growing beauty, Tachibana, who now appears to be a perfect lady, has caught Jinguuji's eye. Tachibana also discovers Jinguuji's stunning attractiveness and understands why he is so well-known. Before anything else, the duo must complete their assignment; otherwise, they risk becoming prisoners to their desires forever.

And yet another anime follows Natsuru Senō, a high school student dragged into a conflict he did not ask to be a part of. The catch is that he must transform into a girl to harness his incredible power. The other catch is that his best friend, whom he crushes on, is into girls. Cue the Yuri. Kampfer might be the Riddle Story of Devil you always wanted if Akuma no Riddle were a comedy. But before I make assumptions, let’s dig deeper.

Kämpfer is a 12-episode anime series that aired on TBS from October 2009 to December 2009 and concluded in 2011 with "Kämpfer für die Liebe." The series' blend of action, comedy, and romance revolves around the struggles and battles of the protagonist, Natsuru Senō, as he navigates his life as a boy and a Kämpfer.

Yasuhiro Kuroda directed it, and Kazuyuki Fudeyasu handled the series composition. Tatsuya Kato composed the music, Minami Kuribayashi performed the opening theme, "Unreal Paradise," and Marina Inoue and Megumi Nakajima performed the closing theme, "One Way Ry Omoi." Nomad Animation Studio created the series. The anime is based on the Toshihiko Tsukiji and Senmu light novel series. From 2006 to 2010, Media Factory released 15 volumes of light novels under their MF Bunko J imprint.

From 2008 to 2013, Monthly Comic Alive magazine serialized a manga adaptation that Toshihiko Tsukiji and Yu Tachibana wrote and illustrated. Kämpfer, a captivating blend of action, comedy, romance, harem, ecchi, and magical girl genres, is rated PG-13 for teens 13 and older. The series is readily accessible and can be streamed on Hidive. Additionally, it is available for digital purchase on Amazon Video, offering a flexible viewing experience. But you know that, right? Because Amazon sells everything.

Although the animation studio Nomad may only be widely known if you're a Rozen Maiden fan, director Yasuhiro Kuroda and series composer Kazuyuki Fudeyasu have a track record of delivering engaging anime series with gender-bending themes. Their previous works, such as Masou Gakuen HxH (directed by Kuroda in 2016), Kanokon (2008), and Seikon no Qwaser (2010), all bear their unique creative stamp. They may be worth exploring for those who prefer anime heavy on the ecchi and light on the thought.

Imagine waking up one morning to find out you're not in your own body. That's precisely what happens to Natsuru Senō, the protagonist of Kämpfer. One day, he sleeps as a male, only to wake up as a girl—and not just any girl—but one who could rival his school's two most attractive girls. As far as anime guys go, Natsuru is supposedly easy on the eyes, but if you compare his female self to his male self, you would probably need glasses. What I’m getting at is that his female self is the hotter of the two and the object of most of the attention, but let's pause there because that’s not how we meet our hero/heroine.

When Kampfer, which means fight in German, opens, we see our soon-to-be blue-haired heroine being chased by a redhead, whom we’re initially led to believe must be the antagonist, but not so. The short intro wets our palettes for action and ends abruptly, only to awaken the desire for more. Jokes on me, though I’ll have to wait a few moments for Natsuru to figure out what’s happening. Thank God for entrail animal exposition.

What’s an “Entrail Animal,” you ask? It’s an animal whose guts—and I mean guts—are on the outside. “They’re like stuffed animal versions of Garbage Pale Kids.” His dear friend Kaede Sakura owns stock in these things and loves to give them to her friends. His animal is a stuffed tiger named Harakiri Tora, who comes to life and informs him that he has been chosen as a Kämpfer, a female fighter assigned to battle other Kämpfers.

So his stuffed tiger tells him that all Kämpfers are female; they wear either a red or blue bracelet, and the red and blue Kämpfers fight each other for reasons unknown. Okay, that sounds good. We, the viewers, will follow along as the story rolls on, and it will all make sense in the end. Just keep the action coming, and all will be fine.

Oh! The Nievete of Youth, but don’t worry, as you age, the power of the cynic will eventually rear its ugly head. So, the action does come along with the genre stew. Besides the action mentioned earlier, Kämpfer mixes comedy, ecchi, harem, magical sex shift, romance, and school into a palatable stew that I would argue mixes reasonably well. It's a tasteful flavor for roughly the first six episodes, so you must be careful when using the three-episode rule. Looks can be deceiving, even more so when it's three scriptwriters handling a show.

You know how I feel about that. Too many cooks can ruin the stew, and in this case, we get Hiroko Fukuda (episodes 3, 6-7, 12), Kazuyuki Fudeyasu (episodes 1-2, 8, 11), and Takashi Aoshima (episodes 4-5, 9-10). For most of us, their names mean little outside of the anime they are associated with, if that, as most of us only remember the Akira Toriyama’s and Hideki Anno’s of the industry. Their names and associated anime do, however, explain the feels I get as I’ve watched Kämpfer, and without digging too deep, I’ll just say that in the listed order, Hayate the Combat Butler, Mirage of Blaze, and Ah! My Goddess are strong with these three.

So Natsuru Senō is a boy stuck between worlds and apparently between classes. He is a second-year student at Seitetsu Gakuin High School, a segregated co-ed school. You know where the trope is going with this. Interestingly enough, though the school is divided, the library seems to be in neutral territory. This is good because it helps with putting all the pieces together.

So Kämpfer is the case of Natsuru crushing hard on Kaede Sakura, Kaede crushing hard on female Natsuru, and the love polygon that ensues. The action diminishes, the comedy increases, and somewhere in the middle, I shrug my shoulders and say, Hey, all in all, this isn’t a bad anime.

This anime's saving grace definitely isn't the plot; I'll tell you that much. It had a good premise that could sway my love for Akuma no Riddle, but it didn't pan out like that. They turned what could've been visceral into a love polygon and a comedy.

Don't get me wrong, the comedy is alright. It holds this whole thing together, including the voice actors and characters. I wasn't expecting much in character development, and I didn't get much, but what I did get was enough to keep me invested, you know?

Speaking of investing, let's talk about the three-episode rule. Usually, that's my cutoff point—I'm out if an anime can't hook me by then. But with Kämpfer, it took me six episodes to decide if I wanted to keep watching. And since I was already halfway through, I figured I might as well go all the way, right? In for a penny, in for a pound, and all that.

So what kept me vested? The additional players in the love polygon are as follows: Mikoto Kondō, maker of all things curry and resident glode trotter who keeps us up to date on all things geographic; Akane Mishima, a member of the library committee, additional love and interest; and lastly, Shizuku Sangō. These girls each feed some type of anime trope, from the spunky girl to the shy girl to the perfect school president that all the boys and girls admire but could never get close to, who suddenly likes a loser dude.

Before I continue, here are a few words about the plot, including a minor spoiler. As mentioned earlier, Kämpfer's are categorized into two main color lines: red and blue. Their respective irremovable bracelets distinguish them. All Kämpfer are female, and it is unclear why our male lead was chosen other than the obvious options. The unknown Moderators choose Kämpfers, and each Kämpfer has their own sentient entrail animal. The anime does not make it clear why the Moderators have them fight, so when Shizuku becomes involved, a truce ensues between the Kämpfer as she wants to investigate the reasons for their fighting.

Kämpfer generally have multiple martial art styles, but several weapons or abilities are divided between them, such as Zauber or magic powers, such as casting fireballs (Natsuru). The Red Kämpfers Shizuku and Mikoto use Schwert-type weapons, typically knives or swords. Lastly, Akane, a blue Kämpfer, uses a Gewehr or, in her case, a handgun. During their transformations, it’s observed that specific changes occur, with Natsuru becoming exceptionally attractive and Akane becoming a foul-mouthed redhead with a short temper.

This is the opposite of the girl who demonstrates the personality traits of someone with low self-esteem. Surprisingly, Natsuru is in the same situation, though his slightly higher regard for Kaede indicates that he is doing better. His one-sided interest remains regardless of form, much to the dismay of the others. Kaede’s romantic interest also adds to the excellent dynamic, which, outside of the colorful comedy, has a darker overtone, especially when she seduces male Natsuru into taking advantage of Shizuku.

Unfortunately for Natsuru, he didn’t know women like Shizuku are a trope and include strong women like Kill La Kill’s Satsuki Kiryūin and Busou Shoujo Machiavellianism’s Kirukiru Amou. While they may vary in personality and strength, their resolve is generally immeasurable, and these ladies are not to be trifled with unless you're down for a good-ass kicking.

Something else about these dark-haired ladies is that they usually have personalities with a depth of character, some with somber backstories. Shizuku is no exception; she provides the only measure of character development in this anime. She is the only one concerned with the Moderators and how they connect to the Kämpfers. She outclasses the female competition for her ability to seduce and charm Natsuru, taking many of his firsts. She is a woman amongst girls, and were this a different type of anime, she would have probably taken a few more of Akane’s firsts as well.

Shizuku was enjoyable to watch on screen because of Kaori Nazuka's voice. She was given such prominence that she sometimes outshined the female Natsuru (sorry, Marina Inoue), who became fan service fodder, never growing or maturing in either form. It would be nice for him to contemplate, at least, why he was so hell-bent on pursuing Kaede, especially since each of his other options was better.

But that's me responding as someone who has been through a few relationships to know better, so forgive my projection. Nevertheless, the light novel does pair him with Akane and the manga with Shizuku, so there's that.

All in all, Kämpfer isn't going to win any awards, but it's not the worst thing I've ever seen. The art and animation weren't bad, though some episodes looked better than others. The fight scenes in episode one before the intro, the library scene in episode two, and the fight scene during the same episode pitting female Natsuru and Akane against Shizuku were good.

The cultural festival arc, episodes 4 through 6, was also on point. I especially want to acknowledge the nods to Code Geass, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, and Revolutionary Girl Utena, to name a few.

So, is the fan service good? The short answer is yes, with the Christmas episode being the magnum opus. As a warning, it will probably not make much sense, so there are two points. First, the short story is that it's Kaede’s punishment for being wrapped up over a girl and failing in her mission. If you missed that tidbit, it’s because it's in the subtext.

Second, this episode doesn’t follow logical continuity, as Christmas specials don't have to. I also believe the episode was a segue into a Season 2 that failed to happen. And with that, I’m done... I do plan on reviewing the OVA at some point.

Kämpfer is a hot mess of an anime. It has some potential glimmers but fails to do anything meaningful with its premise and instead relies on tired tropes and cheap titillation. The characters are flat, the pacing is a joke, and the gender politics are questionable at best.

But even with all that said, I'd be lying if I said I didn't find some enjoyment in the absurdity of it all. The comedy has its moments, and the voice acting is solid. Additionally, there are instances when one desires to deactivate their cognitive processes and engage in some trivial, fanservice-oriented entertainment. Kämpfer delivers on that front.

So, while it is not a masterpiece, it may provide some entertainment value if one approaches it with the appropriate expectations. Just expect nothing groundbreaking or remotely progressive. Kämpfer is here to pander, not to make you think.

But hey, we could enjoy some amusement and lovely visuals, right? Silver linings, my friend. Silver linings. If you're looking for a deep, meaningful plot, look elsewhere. But if you want some decent comedy and some top-notch voice acting, give it a shot. Just don't expect too much, and you'll be alright.