I was told that Lucky Star is the anime to watch as the discerning otaku. This was pretty early on in my search for anime, so to get myself up to speed, I began watching different shows left and right, and it turns out, this indeed is THE SHOW to watch as the discerning otaku.
That said, if you've only watched about 4 or 5 animes in your lifetime, it's probably safe to say that there's a good ...
I was told that Lucky Star is the anime to watch as the discerning otaku. This was pretty early on in my search for anime, so to get myself up to speed, I began watching different shows left and right, and it turns out, this indeed is THE SHOW to watch as the discerning otaku.
That said, if you've only watched about 4 or 5 animes in your lifetime, it's probably safe to say that there's a good portion of this show that you won't properly enjoy. Watch some more anime shows, specifically the popular ones, and come back and watch this show.
Plot: It's a slice of life anime, focused on four high school girls; the hardcore otaku Konata Izumi, the Hiiragi twins Kagami and Tsukasa, and the natural airhead Miyuki Takara. The plot is just as a normal cartoon would portray; just the main characters in random scenarios having random conversations. While I prefer a strong storyline, I really didn't mind for Lucky Star, the reason simply being that the nature of the anime would be ruined if it had a defined plot.
Characters: There's a moe-type, a tsundere, an otaku, and another airhead. Sounds like a pretty generic cast, doesn't it? No, that statement would be wrong. These characters are not generic, they're stereotypical. Considering the fact that Lucky Star pokes fun at daily life, otakus, and does so in a sort of deadpan method, it only makes sense that these characters would be developed this way. The same could be said about the supporting cast, most notably Akira Hogami and Minoru Shiraishi. While Shiraishi is basically a supporting character to Akira, the angry Japanese idol that never seems to be satisfied, Shiraishi, as a supporting character, is one of those you'd enjoy watching because of the vast amounts of misfortune brought about in his life. Shiraishi's really all the proof you need to convince you that all the characters in this series are lovable in their own way, if you simply can't get over the fact that you still think the characters are generic. There's a lot of thought that goes into these characters, I know that's a fact.
Content: The subtle, deadpan humor of the series doesn't contract big laughs from people like me who do have a hard time laughing, but you'll find yourself smiling the whole way through. While certain elements of Lucky Star would technically be more suited for a mature audience, it definitely doesn't rely on fan service, which is a very good thing. As I mentioned before, if you have only watched a couple of animes in the past, maybe 4 or 5 or so, it's practically impossible to pick up all the references here; these references range from items within the frame or background to actual spoken and mentioned references. I did mention that references are half of the show's focus, so if you don't pick them up, you won't enjoy the show as much as you should be (and here's a hint; broaden your horizon past One Piece, Naruto, and Bleach, because those animes are hardly referenced, if not none at all).
Miscellaneous: The music is one of my favorite things about this anime. I love the background music because it always complements the strange conversations the characters have, and at times when the topic changes into something "unfavorable", the music slows down and eventually sours, something similar to a record simply stopping, except with more comedic value.
Aside from the music, the everyday antics of the cast are easy to enjoy, one reason is the way they relate to you as the viewer. There will be times when you'll watch, and you'll simply be telling yourself, "Oh wow, I do that too!" Excuse this tiny spoiler, but have you ever cooked top ramen and waited too long, and the noodles get soggy? Konata has that problem, and I sometimes have that problem too. That should give you a grip of what I'm trying to explain.
Overall: If this anime doesn't grow on you, there's a chance you won't like it. I decided to keep watching after episode 4 and the anime still hasn't grown on me, so walking into 5 and 6 was really a drag for me. It wasn't until episode 8 that I began appreciating the anime for what it was, and after that, watching wasn't a chore. I also watched the first six episodes again, and it was a much different result from the first time I saw it. It was funnier, and I found myself laughing to scenes where I hardly smiled.
That said, whether you like it or not, Lucky Star is one anime that every otaku should have seen at least once in their lifetime. Don't force it to grow on you, as I tried to do that during the first episodes and it only made it more difficult. Allow it to sink in, and when it does, you too will find yourself having more fun watching this than you previously thought.
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