Anime REVIEW: Haiyore! Nyaruko-san W

Calling upon H.P. Lovercraft's Cthulian mythos and injecting anime girl sexiness and multimedia references into it once again, Xebec have returned with a second season of light novel series Haiyore! Nyaruko-san! Continuing the story for a further 13 episodes, this season is entitled Haiyore! Nyaruko-san W, a sneaky parody/homage of Kamen Rider W while also making clear its position as a sequel series.

Life has become rather different for ordinary high-schooler Mahiro Yasaka since the arrival of his three new Cthulian alien deity lodgers - Nyaruko, Kuuko and Hasuta. When he isn't rejecting the constant romantic advances of Nyaruko, he's rejecting them from Hasuta or witnessing firsthand Kuuko's rather obsessive nature when it comes to Nyaruko. With all three aliens now working for the Space Defence Agency, they protect the planet from crimes of an extraterrestrial nature.

This season sees the gang visit the largest library in the universe, Nyaruko's pet Shantak-kun experience some unusual changes and Kuuko's cousin Kuune come knocking...leading Kuuko to have to pretend to be engaged to Mahiro, much to Nyaruko's dismay!

Old characters!

Not that much seems to have changed since the first season of Haiyore! Nyaruko-san. Nyaruko is still determined to live happily ever after with Mahiro (often to annoying levels), Mahiro is still surprisingly tolerant of the alien antics but prone to bursts of rage and Hatsuta still feels like the third (or fourth I guess) wheel that nobody really cares all that much about. While it's true any drastic change might break the series, here it feels like the characters are just working their way through stock anime plots being rather mundane for 13 episodes. That's not to say all 13 episodes are boring (the library episodes and the one where Nyaruko gets a cold are gems)  but it doesn't quite hold the same excitement the first season did.

New characters!

However that isn't to say there aren't any changes, and without a doubt the biggest one comes from Kuuko, who is in some ways the real focus of this season. When her cousin Kuune rolls into town with the intentions of marrying her (so much infatuation going on in this show), Kuuko is forced into the horribly repetitive anime trope story line of pretending to be engaged to Mahiro. While the episodes themselves aren't really a lot to write home about, it does emerge that Kuuko in fact has growing feels for Mahiro AS WELL as her insatiable lust for our title character. It's even hinted that maybe Mahiro himself has some underlying feelings for the fiery deity. What follows does sadly tone down the crazy obsession Kuuko has with Nyaruko (something particularly enjoyable about the first season), but also extends the love-shape-thing (its a love triangle, but BIGGER) even further.

Oddly familiar characters!

I've already mentioned the one new recurring character of any importance in the show (Kuune), but this second season also opens up so we see a lot more of some other side characters. Mahiro's mother Yoriko and his classmate Tamao show up quite regularly, something accompanying the foursome on their various adventures and hi-jinks. Neither of them really get anything in the form of development, but at the very least its nice to see some other faces now and again.

Shabbadoobie!

Of course, there's going to be a portion of the audience that only watches Nyaruko for one thing - the references. Even with the show's (arguably) dwindling plot, these stay as strong and enjoyable as ever. The Kamen Rider ones are just a blatant and funny as ever, referencing series right up to the currently airing Kamen Rider Wizard. Following that there's all kinds of other references and parodies going on, from anime series like Gundam and Macross to Western films such as Men in Black. Nyaruko may have its own unique plot (well, somewhat anyway), but it's hard to deny the massive draw of this element of the show when it's both so important to the appeal and plays such a huge part on an episode-to-episode basis.

So many references, so little time

Haiyore Nyaruko-san W is noticeably weaker than its predecessor, but still very much more of the same and a reasonably enjoyable series nonetheless. The change in character for some might seem ill-fitting, but provides just enough interest in development for the show to hold its head above the "average" threshold. A fairly opening ended last episode always leaves the potential for more adventures (an OVA is probably more than likely at the very least), but it's going to take more than just constant referencing to bring Nyaruko back to its former glory.

First Impressions: Haiyore! Nyaruko-san W

It's the beginning of a new anime season and so thus comes a new wave of first impressions of the series I'll be watching for the next 12 or so weeks. This time I'm going second season crazy, as both the animes I'll be following (I've cut down a little due to Garo and Akibaranger airing at this time too) will be follow ups to shows I've previously watched and enjoyed. First up is a second dose of HP Lovecraft gone moe and tokusatsu references galore, as the Crawling Chaos herself Nyaruko returns for a second season in Haiyore Nyaruko-san W.

If you're unfamiliar with the first season of the show (which didn't have the "W" in the title), there isn't a whole lot you need to know to get into the show. Ordinary high schooler Mahiro has had his life turned upside down by the arrival of three space aliens (all of which were turned into deities in Lovecraft's various works).Vying for his affections is Nyaruko, an otaku shapeshifter who'll stop at nothing to win his love. Meanwhile the fiery Kuuko (based on Cthulu) is head over heels for Nyaruko, and shy boy Hasuta (based on Hastur) also has a thing for Mahiro. His everyday life is filled with space aliens, adventure, craziness, and a slew of pop culture references.

The episode itself is fairly self-contained, with some highschool mishaps followed by an obligatory visit to a maid cafe concluding with a few minutes set up for the next episode. The opening eases new viewers into the show quickly, outlining the premise pretty well without letting up on its own sexually-charged brand of comedy. Xebec haven't skimped on the budget either, with the characters and backdrops as colourful and well-animated as ever.

As for the homages and references, they'll just as plentiful as ever. Kamen Rider fans will be especially pleased as this episode alone features a huge number of homages, from the original series all the way up to the most recent Kamen Rider Wizard...the first few showing up before the episode even hits the five minute mark! There's also plenty of other references, including Lucky Star, Men in Black and probably a whole load of others I didn't catch on first glance.

If this episode is anything to go by Haiyore Nyaruko-san W will be more of the same, but if it ain't broke don't fix it. The plot will most likely be fairly light, but making up for this will be great comedy, fun characters and a ridiculous amount of references/homages/parodies. If you're tempted to give this a try, you'll certainly be in for a fun ride.

Anime REVIEW: Haiyore! Nyaruko-san

An anime that's H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythos as you've never seen it before, Haiyore! Nyaruko-san is a 2012 anime series based on the light novels of the same name. Before this full-length 12 episode series, Nyaruko has seen life in animation once before in two short flash series (one an OVA, the other a television series) titled Haiyori! Nyaruani and Haiyori! Nyaruani: Remember my Mr Lovecraft respectively.

One night ordinary high school boy Mahiro Yasaka is attacked by a gruesome black alien, when a silver haired girl comes to his rescue. She identifies herself as Nyaruko, also known as the Crawling Chaos Nyarlathotep in Lovecraft's works (which she reveals are actually alien races). Sent to Earth by the Space Defence Agency, Nyaruko has been assigned with protecting Mahiro from being kidnapped from an alien trafficker.

The Crawling Chaos

As Mahiro becomes caught up in a world of aliens obsessed with Earth gaming and otaku culture, he also meets two other Cthulian aliens - the fiery Kuuko (Cthugha) and Hasuta (Hastur), who has power over air. The three become freeloaders at Mahiro's house, and Mahiro has to fend off the romantic advances of both Nyaruko and Hastur, while Nyaruko fends off her own pursuer in the form of Kuuko!

Mahiro, our (unlucky?) protagonist

Mahiro is the sensible one of the bunch, longing for the ordinary life he had become all these aliens came crashing down on him. Nyaruko is like a force of nature - loud, constantly over the top and fanatically devoted to Mahiro in every way imaginable. Kuuko seems like a quieter and more reserved character, but is just as perverted (if not more so) as Nyaruko, taking every situation she can to try and get in her pants. So to round off the obsessive Nyaruko and the raging lesbian Kuuko there's Hasuta - the trap. Yup, despite appearances, Hastur is actually a guy. Equally as infatuated with Mahiro as Nyaruko is, he takes the "cute young boy" approach to winning his affection. Its all a bit bizarre and constantly OTT, but it's never a dull moment around any of them. There are also plenty of side characters, both from the human world and outer space, to flesh out the cast.

Kuuko: fiery lesbian deity

Not content with simply playing on Cthulhu, Nyaruko-san full to the brim with references and homages to other media. From various anime and manga to gaming and tokusatsu (each episode has at least one Kamen Rider reference), chances are you'll recognise something the series is either referencing or parodying. While some are blatent, others are cleverly hidden or blink-and-you'll-miss-it instances, so chances are you probably won't catch them all on a first viewing.

Hasuta, who is actually a guy.

The animation isn't anything out of the ordinary, but is still worth mentioning for its fluidity and character design. No two characters are similar, each one has their own very distinctive look to go with their distinctive personalities. The fact the characters change clothes episode to episode is also a plus. The personalities of the characters are also well conveyed in the voice acting, with special mention to Kana Asumi (Dog Days, Black Rock Shooter)'s performance as Nyaruko.

"Scanning Charge!"

While it's plot may be pretty standard fare for romance/comedy anime, it's unique spin on things and cast of very likeable (if a little too sex-obsessed) characters make Haiyore! Nyaruko-san a show that is both highly enjoyable and recommendable as light-hearted entertainment. If you have little interest in the amount of references that have been put into the show it may only strike you as only slightly above average, but if you enjoy this element than it really adds to the enjoyment of the show and makes it worthy of something it possibly wouldn't be without it - repeated viewings.