School Days: Magical Heart Kokoro-chan Review

story 5/10

Okay, I must admit that after suffering through the pure atrocity of Valentine Days, I had enormously low expectations for an OVA titled Magical Heart Kokoro Chan.  In fact, I started thinking about how I was going to bash it before I even watched it.  Fortunately, however, while the OVA is pretty standard crap, it is actually mildly amusing, and even makes a point to mock the overblown hype School Days received just for having a disturbing ending.  Perhaps the only reason something of this quality was even produced was to pacify some fringe fanservice crazed fanboys in Japan, as it's littered with tons of T&A shots (hey, we even get nipple shots in this one) from start to finish.

To illustrate this point, consider the premise: the local shopping district has come under attack by an "evil" villain whose plan is to turn all the men into molesting zombies; to call this horrendously lame would be an enormous compliment.  Even so, the parody does prove entertaining for the twenty minutes or so that it lasts, and thus does possess some form of potential intrigue.  Don't get me wrong, I'm never touching this again, but it is sufficiently amusing to merit a once-through.

animation 6/10

The animation is, to say the least, pitiful.  In fact, at one point, one of the characters comments that more breast shots are needed because they cut down on animation costs and the OVA was already pushing its budget.  Personally I didn't find the fanservice endearing in the slightest, but the fact that the producers seem to openly acknowledge this fallacy and purposefully take jabs at their own work does make it more tolerable.  Just don't expect any form of eye candy and you shouldn't have a problem stomaching it - the dialogue is what's most amusing, not the visuals.

sound 6/10

To be honest, I didn't pay any attention to the music - what little I remember is typical magical girl stuff.  As with Valentine Days, the voice acting was a bunch of yelling so it didn't really leave any memorable impression.

characters 5/10

Though the characters bear no relation to their School Days counterparts in any way aside from appearance, their comedic shells actually proved entertaining for a brief while.  Ultimately there's very little to talk about regarding them, as every personality is crafted for a one-shot deal in the OVA.

overall 5.5/10

Surprise, surprise!  I actually recommend this one to anybody who has seen School Days and is looking for a few laughs.  Yeah, at best it's mediocre, but that doesn't change the fact that it does end up being entertaining for its duration.  It's one of those OVAs that you watch once, laugh your way through, then forget about five minutes later.  It won't be the funniest OVA you'll watch by far, but it won't bore you out of your mind either.  For those who have yet to see the series, though, I don't think it will prove that amusing - a lot of humor plays on exaggerated material taken directly from School Days.  For those who have, if you're looking for a quick way to burn twenty minutes give it a whirl - you could be watching much worse things in that free time (such as the Valentine Days OVA!), after all.