Punch Line | Anime Review | Pinnedupink.com

Punch Line

Everyone labeled Punch line as one of the many ecchi anime that comes out every season; One of those that are dropped in the first few episodes because it is evident that the plot is strange (Japanese strange). But even though I’m not a fan of ecchi, being a MAPPA project, I had to give it a chance and check it out. With mediocre comedy, fanservice scenes everywhere and without any possible logic other than, perhaps, to have an excuse to show Panchira (panty shots) in abundance. Without further ado, let's start with this review.

Yuta Iridatsu is a boy who lives in the Korai apartment complex with four beautiful girls, Mikatan Narugino, Ito Hikiotani, Meika Daihatsu, and Rabura Chichibu. One day after being involved in the hijacking of the bus he was traveling on, Yuta finds that he has been expelled from his body and becomes a spirit.

Guided by Chiranosuke, the spirit of a cat, the young man must now learn to master his newly acquired spiritual powers to regain his body and protect his building mates from a series of mysterious incidents that begin to haunt them and put them in danger, and which have darker undertones than any of them could imagine. This mission will become even more complicated than expected when the boy discovers that a meteor will destroy the earth if he sees the girls' underwear twice in a row.

It's hard to talk much about the plot without spoilers since so much of the series relies on revealing little by little how all the elements presented to you in the early episodes miraculously start to make sense. Perhaps the show's greatest strength is that the viewer can go through the whole premise and discover how the scriptwriter's tremendous "stunt" can make sense at some point.

Punch line is a series that you have to be patient with initially because although its content is very worthwhile, the truth is that the anime takes a while to take off. Most people gave up on it in the first few episodes, and I think that’s totally understandable. Having four or five initial episodes that are a bit slow and maybe even tedious, it seems that the story barely advances until after the fifth episode when the series finally begins to reveal all its virtues, and the main plot is finally revealed.

The plot can be confusing, the jokes bizarre, and the twists and turns of the story sometimes ridiculous. A meteorite destroying the earth if the spirit of Yuuta, the protagonist, sees the girls' underwear in his housing complex is frankly a "what has the writer smoked" of randomness.

Stuff that surely will scare off more than half the people who stumble across this anime. However, the outstanding achievement of this anime, and what several of us were betting on because of the studio producing it, is that it will slowly take all this nonsense and give it a logical reason that makes it incredibly coherent. And yes, the story will take a more and more solid course until it explodes in a climax that is frankly quite well done.

The characters are pretty charismatic, and their development within the events of the series, although somewhat exaggerated at times, in my opinion, is adequate. In the beginning, our protagonist, Yuta Iridatsu, seems like the classic boy with hidden power, disoriented by being suddenly and without explanation in a bizarre situation. Still, as the series progresses, we will discover that the boy is surrounded by more than one mystery, which will be critical points for the plot.

The quartet of girls, from a superheroine idol with an orange juice theme to a NEET expert in video games to a spiritist brunette and a hacker robot, all maintain a constant presence within the series. Although each has a different weight in the plot, including the interaction between them and the protagonist, their friendship, and the strengthening of a relevant element within the story, each one is given her moment to shine.

Visually speaking, Punch Line doesn't miss a beat. What's more, I loved it since the animation is quite good and dynamic, with no significant irregularities. The designs, both of characters and settings (mostly the interiors), are beautiful and are accompanied by a color palette that is eye-catching, striking, and pleasant.

I also think it's worth mentioning the posters that appear before and after where the commercial breaks should be, which show the girls dressed in their sexiest outfits and accompanied by their voices saying as sensually as possible the anime’s title. They just feel right.

Although the ecchi element within the series has a constant presence, it doesn't end up being counterproductive, meaning that it's neither too distracting nor offensive it doesn't fall into bad taste. The constant panty shots are part of the absurd aspect of the anime and, therefore, its personality. They present some utility within the story beyond being mere fanservice, being that the main character only releases his powers after getting excited by this means.

Punch line is an entertaining and visually very striking series. Although it presents more than decent amounts of fanservice, it does it without leaving aside the opportunity to tell a well-done story or show good characters. In short, it is a work that, although it will hardly go down in the ocean of series that come out every year, it is quite recommendable to pass the time. One of the few ecchi anime (maybe the only one along with Kill la Kill) that I can recommend watching.