The Disastrous Life of Saiki K.
Life can be so trying at times, so much so that now and then, you wonder if everything is purposely there to either oppose you or annoy you. We had watched very happy and bright shows when we were younger, and in each of those shows, we usually see that one glum character who is so done with life. “Ha! I’ll never be a boring adult-like that!” we thought, but now we can relate to those characters so much more.
Life is full of trials and hurdles we need to overcome, and many anime emphasize these. A series that showcases just how disastrous it can be while sporting great comedy is a welcome gift indeed!
“Saiki Kusuo no Psi Nan,” also known as “The Disastrous Life of Saiki K.” is a popular anime featuring the genres of Comedy, School, Shounen, Slice of Life, and Supernatural. This is a TV anime series that spanned a total of 120 episodes. It aired from the 4th of July until the 26th of December, as a Summer 2016 title.
The anime is produced by TV Tokyo, Shogakukan-Shueisha Productions, Pony Canyon, Nippon Columbia, KlockWorx, Asmik Ace, Bandai Namco Entertainment, Shueisha, Toy's Factory, and Dear Stage inc., licensed by Funimation and brought to life by Studios J.C.Staff and Egg Firm. The primary staff included Sakurai Hiroak as Director, Hanae Natsuki on Theme Song performance, Kanesugi Hiroko on Script, and Dempagumi.inc on Theme Song performance. The series received a rating of PG-13 for teenagers 13 years or older.
The anime series is adapted from the Manga series “Saiki Kusuo no Ψ-nan” (The Disaster of PSI Kusuo Saiki, Chounouryokusha Saiki Kusuo no Sainan, Omaenchi, Obake Yashiki, Gekidan! Improvisation, Terrace House Dust or Seishounen Yuugai Kankyou Kiseihou), which is a 26 Volume series that ran from the 14th of May 2012 until the 26th of July 2018 by Author and Artist Asou Shuuichi and serialized in Shounen Jump (Weekly).
For the anime series, a single episode ONA titled “Saiki Kusuo no Ψ-nan” was released on the 4th of August 2013. Season 2 was released under the title “Saiki Kusuo no Ψ-nan 2” from the 17th of January until the 27th of June, in Winter 2018. This 24 episode sequel received a single Special episode finale titled “Saiki Kusuo no Ψ-nan: Kanketsu-hen” (The Disastrous Life of Saiki K. Final Arc) in December 2018.
From the perspective of an average person, the possession of psychic abilities could be seen as a mighty blessing. But this isn’t the case for Protagonist Kusuo Saiki, who, unfortunately, experiences disasters due to his abnormal prowess.
He is gifted with a wide array of supernatural abilities that range from simple telepathy to x-ray vision. Yet, he finds his “gifts,” or so-called blessings, to be nothing more than a terrible curse. His abilities tend to cause him many minor and major inconveniences, resulting in more significant problems. All the ever-special Kusuo hopes to achieve is an entirely ordinary life, with minimal hassle, and where his life motto can simply be “ignorance is bliss.”
Unfortunately for him, though, such a life is far out of his reach, as the life of a psychic of his caliber is far from being quiet and uneventful. Kusuo tries his best to stay far away from the spotlight by keeping his powers hidden from his peers.
But his attempts bear no fruit as he simply ends up inadvertently attracting all the attention of many odd people to himself. Included in this roster are people like the empty-headed Riki Nendou and the delusional Shun Kaidou.
Our protagonist is left with no choice but to deal with all the craziness and chaos of the people surrounding him and comes to learn the hard way that the ordinary life he so actively seeks and strives for is a lot more challenging to grasp than he had ever expected.
The Disastrous Life of Saiki K is an absolutely hilarious and low-energy gag comedy series. Within a time slot as small as 5 minutes, it utilizes high-speed incantation dialogues to deliver a climax and cliff-hanger all at once. As weird and straightforward as it may seem from the surface, this anime is well worth the watch, and you won’t even feel the time pass.
The best aspects of the series are its non-cliché jokes and low-energy protagonist, no doubt. Saiki is overpowered to the point that it’s funny. The story follows the everyday life of this superior being as he tries to deal with ordinary people. He is very sarcastic and does a comical internal commentary about the bothersome events that happen around him.
There is no grandiose end goal, and the pacing is fast, as it continuously throws jokes at the viewers. That’s all there is to the “story” aspect, and the comedy is a masterpiece on its own.
This anime has a hilarious cast of pretty unique characters. They are incredibly diverse; a Nendou, a dramatic narcissistic “perfect” girl (the type that attracts all the boys, except Saiki), an average girl, a guy stuck with severe chuunibyou, a thug, a tsundere Oldman, a workaholic, annoying kids, bad magicians and so many more. One may not expect it, but the main characters are well written and attain sufficient development.
The Art and Animation aren’t the best in this anime. The Art is quite plain, and the Animation is choppy, but these are of little consequence. The simple art style actually helps the series at its core. It's all about the comedy, and the Art is only there for Visual effect, so just ignore these aspects and focus more on the jokes. Overall, it does not serve to weaken this series at all.
The Sounds and Music of Saiki K. are just spot on! The Opening themes are "Seishun wa Zankoku ja nai" by Natsuki Hanae and "Sai Ψ Sai Kouchou" by Dempagumi.inc, both of which are great and memorable.
The Ending themes are "Ψ desu I LIKE YOU" by Dempagumi.inc and "Kokoro" by Natsuki Hanae. The OSTs are unique, fitting, and catchy. The sound effects were on point, too; they enhanced the comedy and are noteworthy too.
The voice acting was perfect, each of the diverse character personalities was portrayed brilliantly. Overall, these aspects will be a significant part of the entertainment and are not disappointing in the least.
As a final verdict, The Disastrous Life of Saiki K. is entertaining! Viewers can easily watch this series until the end while discovering new scenarios alongside Saiki.
This series is highly recommended if you enjoy gag anime or the Comedy genre as a whole, with a bit of Slice Of Life and High School Life. It will quickly become one of the best comedies you've ever watched in no time.
You are guaranteed to laugh, and the non-complex, short-skit-based plot will draw you in. So do not hesitate to watch this fantastic series filled to the brim with great humor and highly recommended!
