Story & Characters
Note: Do not confuse Touka Gettan with Kao no Nai Tsuki. Touka Gettan may be a spinoff to Moonlight Lady -or Kao no Nai
Tsuki, as most of us know- but these are two very different series.
The story potrays the Land of Kamitsumihara, which traces of magic and certain legends could be found. If I am not
mistaken, this land of Kamitsumihara has been protected by our main protagonist's family, the Kamiazuma clan, since it
has been founded. Touka Kamiazuma is just too lucky to encounter Momoka Kawakabe, a klutz, glutton-ish female. Somehow,
our not-so-normal boy meeting with this not-so-normal-girl is setting off a bout of strange events within Kamitsumihara.
When I firstly began to watch Touka Gettan, I would have thought that this was the usual shoujo series which would end
with the male and female protagonist going off into their "happily ever after" at the end of episode 26, but
as the show progressed on, you will find yourself delved in certain mysterious nefarious plots that brings a certain
legend regarding the three Goddess to life.
Character development is good, but it doesn't make much of a vast difference than when the show start airing, but they
do play their own parts. I am glad to speak differently from the storyline however. As each episode continues on, new
possibilities are open to us, and we start to see various structures plotted behind a light and flirtatious appearance.
It's not a case of good-guys discovering the baddies and turning them over to a new leaf nor eliminating the bad apples-
it's a matter of unraveling the past and discovering the effects it brings towards the present time. Lack of motive, but
it appeals.
Rating: 6
Art
Ah, one of the two factors that makes Touka Gettan a worthy view despite its twists and turns. Unlike other animes,
Touka Gettan never fails to deliver the best artistic quality deserve of much drooling to us viewers, and THAT, is a
sight for sore eyes. Characters are well defined, almost to a point I would call it impressive, but the facial
expressions are a bit bland in certain episodes, and often repeated. Touka and Yumiko's presentation was very well done
despite so- the latter, to my abrupt shock, was transformed from a sweet, sultry, almost innocent-like mother to a snake
of venom. Touka's expression is often shown to be flat and expressionless throughout the series; he's blunt and short
spoken, but Studio Deen pays a great deal attention to his seething faces. I can't say the same for the rest of the
cast, even for the main female protagonist, Momoka and the rest of the side-kicks. Thrown in a bit of squealing, the
same flatness that Touka shows throughout 26 episodes and slight ero. Expect a bit more skin-showing in this show; hey,
there's a reason why this was rated 16+!
Background details are done fairly well, but it doesn't exactly pique my interest- to be fair, it's good, but not great.
I have been made to think that the simple background is to make the characters stand out, but oh, well.There's nothing
fantastic, but one has to drool over how well the colors seems to fit in place, evident by how much attention the
producers pays towards the clothing of each characters, specifically the traditional wear. Studio Deen does seems to
have a slight fondness for eerie details, proven by a major episode where axes were unsheathed and blood was splattered.
It's somewhat Higurashi like, but if you were expecting for gore and blood, then I will have to say that your hopes
would be seriously dashed.
Rating: 8
Sound
The BGM of Touka Gettan is majestic- not the very best I have ever heard throughout my years of watching anime, but
magnificent. The combination of traditional music with pop for certain scenes which is surprisingly good, and there's a
certain sultry-tone throughout the 26 episodes. There's also a sentimentality that overrides those suggestive scenes and
makes your heart wrenches. Touka Gettan's OP theme, Yume Oboro, is performed by Eri Kitamura along with the hero and
heroine's seiyuu, Mariya Ise and Saori Hayami. Yume Oboro has a catchy tune to it- but the ED is completely the
opposite. Kono Sekai ga Itsuka wa by Saori Hayami is soft and surprisingly low-pitched, because Momoka is portrayed to
be a hyper-female with her voice deafeningly high.
The seiyuus, despite being not that well known, they certainly did their job well, with their avid display of emotions.
Touka (Mariya Ise) has that certain boyish-roguish quality to his voice, and Momoka (Saori Hayami) is just a plan bundle
of sweetness and fluff. Kikyo (Satomi Yamagata), the notorious student-council president who is more than what she
seems, displays an awful level of maturity within her voice that doesn't seem suitable for her almost child-like
appearance. But each seiyuu seems appropriate and well suited to their own roles, and that's that.
Rating: 9
Presentation
Touka Gettan is somewhat between the border of good and average, but it doesn't go beyond that, nor does it belong to
the "it's-so-bad-why-did-I-ever-watch-this" category, unless you're more conservative than the average person
and you can't stand slight exposure. Touka Gettan is a mixture of harem-ism, humor, romance, but it particularly focuses
on the supernatural happenings within the land of Kamitsumihara and it's connection to each characters. It rather digs
into depth, but not to a point where you will find yourself immersed in suspense. Touka Gettan has various arcs that
surprisingly connects, leading to the end. The fillers episodes also contains fragments and hints that pushes us towards
guessing the possible incidents that may happened. However, even when you have reached the final episode (which is ep.1
anyway; Touka Gettan is aired backwards chronologically . Confusing, but suck it up). Touka Gettan doesn't really quite
reaches it's point until the final five episodes, but it was too be expected.
As a light watch, one might find this entertaining, but Touka Gettan pales in comparison to other animes if you are
looking for hardcore watch. Overall, Touka Gettan has that little attractiveness to it that makes it good, but there are
certainly eye-catching scenes that makes you think otherwise.
Rating: 6
Final Verdict
6.83 (above average)
Reviewed by Lariel, May 23, 2008
