Di Gi Charat

skrotkanon Apr 1, 2010

7

Adding more than a overall score to Digi Charat would be making it a disfavour. Nothing is really especially good about Digi Charat but nonethless I like it a lot. I'll break it down into the various scores anyway but as I said I won't be giving out any numbers, it just doesn't work that way with Digi Charat.Story:Digi Charat tells the story of Dejiko, Puchiko and Gemma who crashlands in Akihabara in Tokyo. Digiko wants to become a huge star and as a stepping stone gets a job at a geek store. There they meet various other characters and do stuff together.And really that's all there ever will be to Digi Charat, it never tries to be anything more than a episodic show about nothing special. But neither is it slice of life since nothing they do is especially normal.The show is in essence extremely highstrung and is based around surreal situations and bad puns, whether you like this or not is only based on taste. I for one laugh, giggle and go "awwwww" repeatedly during the show but I know of people who loathe the thing since they simply doesn't find the characters cute or the humor fun.Anim ation:Simply not very good but fits the show like a glove. Everything is very basic, especially the backgrounds can be incredibly ugly from a artistic viewpoint but for me just adds to the already weird mood. The character designs is another mixed bag. Random bystanders are shaped like fingers and just wiggles around talking nonsense and Gema is a yellow ball that a five year old could draw. The main point is of course whether you like the designs of Dejiko, Puchiko and Rabi en Rose. I for one adore Puchiko as much as Kimura (mr Longhair) does and wouldn't trade the visual style for anything. A example would be how much worse Digi Charat Nyo is. It's better drawn, has actual stories and longer episodes. And it's so damn boring! So in short, whether you like Digi Charats visuals is also highly a question of taste.Sound:The only thing I could write about here would be the characters penchant for ending their sentences with weird words. Dejiko uses nyo, Puchiko nyu and Gema says gema. The first episode with Kimura is about him going mad over the fact that everyone in the store butchers the japanese language. I would reckon some other people can't stand the way they talk in this anime but as with everything else about Digi Charat it's a matter of taste.Characters:Despite what one might believe the characters in Digi Charat all have distinct personalitys and quirks. While not especially deep considering the entire show ends after 48 minutes it's still well enough. Puchiko is for example extremely mature for her age (she's five) and her biggest dream is to own property. She's also a bit shy but like other kids wants to do things on her own. She also has sort of complex over the fact that her eyebeam isn't nearly as impressive as Dejikos and occasionally goes out to train.As I said, not terribly impressive but the characters all work well and feels unique.Overall:While I feel compelled to give it a 9 or 10 it simply isn't that good. Nonethless I recommend seeing it irrespective of what you otherwise might like. I swear that 48 minutes is worth it no matter what you might feel about it and if you do like it there's a few hours more worth of material to watch in the various Summer/Winter/Hanami-specials.Finally I would like to say that there are few things in this show that I do not find immensely funny. Like the fact that the official movie is 20 minutes long or the little yellow bear with the very odd facial expression that they for some reason get completely terrified of or Puchikos cat Hokkemirin that always walks sideways on its hindlegs. Nothing in Digi Charat makes sense and that's the charm of it, it has a truly unique vibe that has to be seen to understand. The point of this review would be to make people at least curious about the thing and maybe get a few to check it out. It's well worth the time.

Grach Jan 26, 2014

6.7

Randomness! Random-y randomness. That is the best way to describe the plot, antics, and characters for Di Gi Charat - complete randomness. Essentially, it all begins one day when Dejiko, Gema, and Puchiko land via space shuttle in Akibahara, Tokyo. While they have no money for an apartment, but with the kind heart of a local store manager, their problem is solved by working for him. .....and that's it, really, for the "plot" of sorts. The rest is as was said before - random. You have everything from a giant lizard attack (a.k.a Godzilla) to lazer eyebeams, to plenty of...fart jokes and bad puns. That's essentially it. The anime doesn't try to be anything more or less; it's just meant to be a random, episodic comedy. Pretty much you either enjoy it or not. For animation, it shows its age, but it fits the series well. It is a nice amount of chibi and abstract that allows it to have that extra effect. Overall, the colors are whitewashed in some way, shape, or form. Sounds for the series were alright as well, but were also dated. Overall, it's a random comedy for rainy days, killing time/boredom, or when you're looking for a happy series.