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Sgt. Frog: Season 1, Part 2
FUNimation // Unrated // November 24, 2009
List Price: $39.98 [Buy now and save at Amazon]
The Show:
One of the shows that have surprised me the most recently has been Sgt. Frog. It looks like typical kiddie fare, but it's actually an outrageously funny comedy along the lines of Excel Saga. This second set includes 13 more shows that will keep fans laughing. There's more outrageous invasion plans, some unexpected problems for the Keron invasion force, and even a couple of new characters pop up.
Series Background:
The Earth is in danger. A ship full of troops from the planet Keron are in orbit and ready to invade, but first they send down a squad of five frog-like reconnaissance soldiers led by Sgt. Keroro. Unfortunately for the invaders, Keron is an idiot. Soon after landing on Earth he meets up with the Hinata family, mother and manga creator Aki, son Fuyuki, and daughter Natsumi. In the first episode Fuyuki takes Keroro's very powerful control ball and accidently sends a signal to the invasion fleet to flee the planet, leaving Keroro and his comrades behind.
Aki quickly agrees to let Keroro stay at their house, in exchange for some 'light' house work (so she can chronicle his adventures in her manga.) He agrees and basically goes from intergalactic soldier to slave in one quick motion. The frog lives in the spacious basement which sounds like a sweet deal until he discovers that the Hinata's house is built on the ruins of a mental hospital which was built on top of an old cemetery and the basement is haunted by the ghost of a wrongfully committed female patient. There's always something, isn't there?
In addition to Keroro, there's also Private Second Class Tamama who goes along with whatever Keroro says; Corporal Giroro, the group weapons master who is constantly irritated by Keroro's lack of an invasion plan; Sergeant Major Kululu, the intelligence expert who invents various items at the drop of a hat; and Lance Corporal Dororo, who follows the ways of the ninja and has vowed to protect Earth, even from his team mates.
Though he's trapped on Earth (or Pekopon as Keroro calls it) that hasn't stopped the soldier from trying to conquer the planet... his love of Gundam models has. He spends all of his free time building models and recreating famous Gundam battles, and only thinks about destroying humans when he has to.
This volume:
With the main characters all introduced in the first set, this one is free to jump in with the silly stories and not waste any time explaining things. They take full advantage of that with some great episodes. In Lose the Boss! a top secret message from headquarters arrives which relieves Keroro from duty. He's replaced by Tamama (even though he's not the highest ranking officer) and the young Frog quickly lets the power go to his head and starts a dictatorship. Then they all take a break at the beach in Wet Hot Beaches with one wrinkle: Aki can't go so Kululu invents a growth ray that turns Natsumi into an adult so she can chaperone. When Keroro discovers some rare bootleg Gundam models at the beach he freaks out and forces the adult Natsumi to enter a stand-up comedy contest (where the Gundam's are given out as prizes) and uses another one of Kululu's devices to make her swear like a sailor. Of course things don't go quite as planned and mayhem ensues.
The funniest title award goes to The Clone Wars (The Unsucky Version) in which the Keron Ball from the first episode is brought back and accidently starts making clones of Keroro, and it won't stop.
Like the first collection, this is a funny set. The jokes come fast and furious and their over-the-top silly without being stupid. The one character that really stands out as having the best lines doesn't actually appear in the show however: the narrator. He really adds a lot of humor to the show, complaining because he wasn't given a script and hence doesn't know what the episode is about, pointing out plot flaws, and even quitting at one point (though he returns when his bookie threatens to break his legs if doesn't come up with some money soon.)
This show comes with the original Japanese soundtrack in stereo and a DD 5.1 English dub (with optional subtitles). I viewed the show in Japanese and spot checked the dub track and found them to be both fine, if unexceptional, mixes. There are not a lot of effects in the show, but the 2.0 track has some good separation and the 5.1 option does make some good use of the rears in the occasional action sequences. The rare explosions do sound better on the dub track though they aren't as forceful as I would have liked. Whether you prefer watching anime with subs or the dub, you'll be pleased with this set.
Video:
The show was made in 2004 and features a 4:3 image that looks very good. The colors are solid and bright, the lines are tight, and the blacks are deep. There was a bit of aliasing in the background, but nothing too tragic. Overall this is a nice looking show.
Extras:
Not much in the way of extras. The second disc includes a clean opening and closing as well as a text 'Pekopon Invasion Database' which is a gallery of character designs.
Final Thoughts:
I was impressed with the first collection and this set is just as funny. The show has a bizarre sense of humor that really works and there each episode kept me laughing. If you're looking for a light, entertaining anime to start watching, look no further. Highly Recommended.
One of the shows that have surprised me the most recently has been Sgt. Frog. It looks like typical kiddie fare, but it's actually an outrageously funny comedy along the lines of Excel Saga. This second set includes 13 more shows that will keep fans laughing. There's more outrageous invasion plans, some unexpected problems for the Keron invasion force, and even a couple of new characters pop up.
Series Background:
The Earth is in danger. A ship full of troops from the planet Keron are in orbit and ready to invade, but first they send down a squad of five frog-like reconnaissance soldiers led by Sgt. Keroro. Unfortunately for the invaders, Keron is an idiot. Soon after landing on Earth he meets up with the Hinata family, mother and manga creator Aki, son Fuyuki, and daughter Natsumi. In the first episode Fuyuki takes Keroro's very powerful control ball and accidently sends a signal to the invasion fleet to flee the planet, leaving Keroro and his comrades behind.
Aki quickly agrees to let Keroro stay at their house, in exchange for some 'light' house work (so she can chronicle his adventures in her manga.) He agrees and basically goes from intergalactic soldier to slave in one quick motion. The frog lives in the spacious basement which sounds like a sweet deal until he discovers that the Hinata's house is built on the ruins of a mental hospital which was built on top of an old cemetery and the basement is haunted by the ghost of a wrongfully committed female patient. There's always something, isn't there?
In addition to Keroro, there's also Private Second Class Tamama who goes along with whatever Keroro says; Corporal Giroro, the group weapons master who is constantly irritated by Keroro's lack of an invasion plan; Sergeant Major Kululu, the intelligence expert who invents various items at the drop of a hat; and Lance Corporal Dororo, who follows the ways of the ninja and has vowed to protect Earth, even from his team mates.
Though he's trapped on Earth (or Pekopon as Keroro calls it) that hasn't stopped the soldier from trying to conquer the planet... his love of Gundam models has. He spends all of his free time building models and recreating famous Gundam battles, and only thinks about destroying humans when he has to.
This volume:
With the main characters all introduced in the first set, this one is free to jump in with the silly stories and not waste any time explaining things. They take full advantage of that with some great episodes. In Lose the Boss! a top secret message from headquarters arrives which relieves Keroro from duty. He's replaced by Tamama (even though he's not the highest ranking officer) and the young Frog quickly lets the power go to his head and starts a dictatorship. Then they all take a break at the beach in Wet Hot Beaches with one wrinkle: Aki can't go so Kululu invents a growth ray that turns Natsumi into an adult so she can chaperone. When Keroro discovers some rare bootleg Gundam models at the beach he freaks out and forces the adult Natsumi to enter a stand-up comedy contest (where the Gundam's are given out as prizes) and uses another one of Kululu's devices to make her swear like a sailor. Of course things don't go quite as planned and mayhem ensues.
The funniest title award goes to The Clone Wars (The Unsucky Version) in which the Keron Ball from the first episode is brought back and accidently starts making clones of Keroro, and it won't stop.
Like the first collection, this is a funny set. The jokes come fast and furious and their over-the-top silly without being stupid. The one character that really stands out as having the best lines doesn't actually appear in the show however: the narrator. He really adds a lot of humor to the show, complaining because he wasn't given a script and hence doesn't know what the episode is about, pointing out plot flaws, and even quitting at one point (though he returns when his bookie threatens to break his legs if doesn't come up with some money soon.)
The DVD:
This show comes with the original Japanese soundtrack in stereo and a DD 5.1 English dub (with optional subtitles). I viewed the show in Japanese and spot checked the dub track and found them to be both fine, if unexceptional, mixes. There are not a lot of effects in the show, but the 2.0 track has some good separation and the 5.1 option does make some good use of the rears in the occasional action sequences. The rare explosions do sound better on the dub track though they aren't as forceful as I would have liked. Whether you prefer watching anime with subs or the dub, you'll be pleased with this set.
Video:
The show was made in 2004 and features a 4:3 image that looks very good. The colors are solid and bright, the lines are tight, and the blacks are deep. There was a bit of aliasing in the background, but nothing too tragic. Overall this is a nice looking show.
Extras:
Not much in the way of extras. The second disc includes a clean opening and closing as well as a text 'Pekopon Invasion Database' which is a gallery of character designs.
Final Thoughts:
I was impressed with the first collection and this set is just as funny. The show has a bizarre sense of humor that really works and there each episode kept me laughing. If you're looking for a light, entertaining anime to start watching, look no further. Highly Recommended.
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