The Anime Review

Blazing Transfer Student

I'm a fan of big-ticket anime just like everyone else. It always thrills me when I can cover a big event film like Metropolis, Spirited Away, or Perfect Blue. However, there's one thing I like more than finally seeing the huge spectacles--I love the little perfect shows that virtually nobody's ever seen. I love being able to find a hidden treasure and singing its praises. Blazing Transfer Student is one of them. Possibly the funniest parody show I've ever seen, this two-episode farce is hard to find but well worth the effort.

Takisawa thought he'd simply be transferring schools...but from the moment he arrives on campus, he finds out that he's in for a wild ride. Before he even gets in the door, he gets into a duel with Koichi, the hall monitor who takes his job a little too seriously. Not a few moments after reaching homeroom, Takisawa gets himself into another fracas with Ibuki, the class boxing champion. It seems that every argument at this school is resolved with a huge match after school...and then, to make matters even worse, Takisawa falls for the girl both Koichi and Ibuki are after. Pummeling ensues.

Although Blazing Transfer Student appears first and foremost to be a direct spoof of the boxing classic Ashita No Joe, there are tons of goofy references to a variety of superhero and sports shows. Ultimately, this title might appear a little bizarre to an anime newcomer, but it is hysterical to anyone who's been interested in the genre for much time at all. I've seen this show many times over the last eight years or so, and each time I'm laughing so hard I nearly start crying. In fact, upon my last viewing of it a few days ago, I decided to really try and distance myself from the show and see if it really worked. Even though I knew where the laughs were coming, I still found myself moving from small chuckles to loud guffaws within just a few minutes.

This show was associated with Gainax back when it was released in 1991, at least from what I can tell from the credits. It's quite a surprise, since the studio has become so popular, that this program has fallen off everybody's radar screens. Perhaps it's because the artistic style references back to the 70s, and perhaps it's because the shows it makes fun of aren't exactly popular in the West. Nevertheless, you can start to see the insanity that made its way into another Gainax show from roughly the same time period, Otaku No Video. And despite the old reference, many of the clichés Blazing Transfer Student smacks around still exist in the new, "hip" shows available at the local Suncoast Video.

I don't know how easy it will be for the average anime fan to find a copy of this show, but I recommend it highly, particularly for comedy fans. Those who treasure finding something out of the ordinary will find pure gold in this one.