School-Live!

Some people like going to school, while others loathe it. There are also some people who only attend school to receive an education. What if you happen to be a girl who is madly in love with school?

There isn't really anything wrong with school, when you think about it. Sometimes you should wait until after reading a review before watching an anime, and other times you should skip the summary altogether to avoid spoiling the mind-blowing moments awaiting you. Obviously, you should avoid reading reviews of this series like the plague because it comes with a very peculiar twist. And yes, despite appearances, it's not precisely what it seems to be.

On June 21st, 2014, the television anime series School-Live (Gakkō Gurashi! or "Living at School!") was announced. Norimitsu Kaih, a manga author, wrote the series' scripts, while Haruko Iikuza created the characters under the direction of Masaomi Ando at Lerche. Between July 9th, 2015, and September 24th, 2015, the series aired in Japan and was simultaneously streamed on Crunchyroll. On June 27th, 2017, Sentai Filmworks obtained the rights to the show in North America and released it on Blu-ray and DVD with an English dub. At Comiket 88 on August 14, 2015, a drama CD based on the anime TV show was released.

This lovely, distinctive anime is based on the manga with the same title in Japanese. There are 12 episodes in the anime, and each one lasts 24 minutes. The series was rated R-17+ for violence and profanity, and the genres it fell under were horror, mystery, slice of life, and suspense, while the themes were psychological, school, and survival. The manga series School-Live was created by Sadoru Chiba and Norimitsu Kaihō, which got licensed in English by Yen Press and was published in Houbunsha's Manga Time Kirara Forward magazine from May 2012 to November 2019.

Yuki Takeya is adamant about never leaving her school since she adores it so much! As a third-year high school student and participant in the School Life Club, Yuki likes her easygoing lifestyle at the distinctive and vibrant Megurigaoka High School. Making the most of school life is something that the club, which also includes the active Kurumi Ebisuzawa, the seasoned junior Miki Naoki, the mentor Megumi Sakura, and the club dog Taroumaru, finds satisfying. Yet because Yuki is blind to what is actually going on around her, this illusion of unending joy is only a bubble waiting to burst.

The girls have shut themselves inside the school as the only survivors during the zombie apocalypse, and everything is not as it appears. The true goal of the School Life Club is to hide from this startling and unsettling reality.

The show's storyline is organized in a fairly contentious manner. "School-Live!" uses flashbacks a lot to show how the characters got into the situations they are in now. This is interesting, but it still veers away from fidelity, in my opinion. Changes are made in the first episode, and several characters are introduced much earlier than they should be. Despite pacing concerns, the story's general tone and material flow quite well. Everyone should be able to determine that something could be misleading through rigorous analysis.

The protagonist of the series is, of course, Yuki Takeya. She was a senior at Megurigaoka Private High School before she transferred to another school. She is a member of the School Life Club, where, as the most positive and happy person, she comes up with ideas for club activities and comforts the group no matter what is going on.

Yuki is a very lively girl who always tries to see the best in people and situations, so she can sometimes be too happy and enthusiastic. As the term "loss" is not in her vocabulary, she gives everything she has. One of the key characters in the "Gakkou Gurashi!" series is Kurumi Ebisuzawa. She was once a student at Megurigaoka Private High School, and now she serves as the chief "Zombie Assassin" and strategist for the School Life Club, where her skills are extremely useful.

Kurumi is always willing to help, and she is the most physically capable member of the School Life Club. While she appears innocent, she is really the club's strongest member and has killed several zombies without suffering any injuries, which is why she is frequently sent on missions that involve greater risks. Even though she is good at it, Kurumi does not like hunting zombies, which slows her down sometimes.

Another pupil of Megurigaoka Private High School is Yuuri Wakasa, who serves as the big sister role model and is the president of the School Life Club, where she is more frequently called "Rii (san)". Megumi Sakura is a teacher and the club's adviser, whom her pupils have nicknamed "Megu-nee" out of fondness. When the epidemic started, she was the one who started the club to safeguard the girls. Shiba Inu puppy Tarōmaru was adopted as the mascot of the club after being discovered by Yuki.

Miki Naoki had been living in a mall since the breakout. When the School Life Club went to check out the area, they found Miki and saved her. You'll probably discover that at least one of the characters has a mindset you can relate to because the characters all have quite different personalities and worldviews. Because of what they stand for, the power dynamics and relationships among the females are complex and fascinating.

Megu-nee is a perfect illustration of how she is very similar to that clumsy but endearing substitute teacher you probably once had: she panics, trips over, drops things, and receives far too much disregard from her students when they don't need her. Meanwhile, Yuuri holds an unspoken and uncontested authority over the group as a pre-designated maternal leader.

Kurumi is a hot-headed badass who quickly resorts to violence. Yuki is a psychotic and emotionally manipulative idealist. From this tumultuous mixture of opposing ideologies and character types emerge a number of bonds of friendship forged out of need and erected on the stumbling block of their difficult situation.

The characters' illustrations are incredibly sweet and straightforward, yet you can tell the animators are brilliant artists because of all the subtitles. It shouldn't come as a surprise that the females are made to seem adorable. With a few exceptions, they all wear their standard school uniform.

One opening theme and three closing themes make up the four key pieces of theme music for the show. "Friend Shitai" ("I Wish To Be Friends") by Gakuen Seikatsu-bu serves as the opening theme, as performed by Inori Minase, Ari Ozawa, M.A.O., and Rie Takahashi. For episodes 1-3, 5, and 9, "Harmonize Clover" (Hāmonaizu Kurōbā) by Maon Kurosaki, "We Took Each Other's Hands" (Afutgur) by Kurosaki, and "Afterglow" (Afutāgurō) by Kurosaki serve as the closing themes, respectively.

This series' opening episode is particularly awesome! The introductory video for each episode is subtly (or drastically) changed to include several Easter eggs and little hints of what will come. Following the program week by week as it aired was entertaining because I got to watch the community analyze all the little changes and subtleties that most people would have missed. Depending on how much you relate to the characters, the closing songs may be dull enough to skip or perhaps even cause emotional judgment.

The plot is amazing in every way, following a truly original zombie apocalypse, and it is the overall highlight of the story. In my opinion, that is the anime's strongest suit. I really enjoy that aspect of it. Even for those who are new to anime and for anyone who simply enjoys puzzling stories in the medium, I give this series my highest recommendation.