School Rumble 2nd Semester Media DVD Region 1 Genre Romantic Comedy Publisher FUNimation Entertainment, Ltd. MSRP $69.98 Running Time 610 mins. Aspect Ratio 4:3 Release Date 09/01/09 Age Rating 13+ Website School Rumble Discuss this title in the Forums Submit your own Review View all Media January 26, 2010 by: Adam Beck Can the second season capture the smiles of the first? Hardware Used: Samsung T200HD Touch of Color 22” flat-panel widescreen display; Windows Media Player 11 running on Windows 7; Microsoft LifeChat LX-3000 headset. Disc description: We still have no idea what’s really going on with this show, beyond the fact that the weirdness is piling up! Curry-fiend Karasama remains oblivious to Tenma’s crush, and Harima still hasn’t confessed his true feelings to Tenma. But hey, the thug’s got an excuse since he’s caught up with his comic career and knee-deep in a blizzard of deadlines! Meanwhile, the love triangles are ever-shifting thanks to wannabe cupids and runaway brides. Even when you throw in a bit of cyborg love, a shipwreck, and a fugitive red panda – seriously, that ain’t even scratching the surface. You are encouraged to scratch the pig, though. He likes it! And something rumbles in the next to last episode, no matter what I say next. School Rumble - The absolutely funniest show you’ll ever see that’s NOT about anything that rumbles… ever! Disc Features Approx 610 minutes uncut footage 2.0 Stereo (Japanese/English) English Subtitles Interview with the Creator Interview with Tenma’s Japanese voice Actress Textless Songs Trailers Slim DVD Set Disc Review Content: (This section may contain spoilers) Okay, let’s face it: there are too many high school romantic comedies in the anime industry. So what is one more in this already-overcrowded genre? Well thankfully, School Rumble is one of the best romantic comedies out there because the comedy portion of the anime overshadows the romance significantly. I say there is a ninety-ten split in favor of the comedy portion – maybe even a wider margin. It’s actually hard to classify this as a romance at all considering most of the story really isn’t all that much about one character confessing to another; it is the act of trying to tell that one person, but unsuccessful through hundreds and hundreds of attempts. To be honest, School Rumble isn’t exactly heavy on its story. Of the 26 episodes in the second semester, there are only four significant plot points that last more than one episode. The rest of the story is taken over by random funny, and not so funny, events. These consist of Mai’s Sailor Moon style fantasy, class 2-C being shipwrecked in the middle of the Pacific, and a few others. These are pretty lackluster, so I will be focusing mainly on major story elements which are both entertaining and offer a deeper reach into specific characters. Sadly, the first major scenario of the second semester is mostly garbage and overly dramatic on purpose. Some may find this funny, but I found it rather boring. The scenario here is that there are two-plus factions fighting for what class 2-C will be participating in at the upcoming cultural festival. It is down to a café or school play, and both have accumulated equal votes; this only leaves one option: a school shootout. As I mentioned, this scenario is purposely dramatic in a funny way, but at the same time comes off a bit awkward. The emphasis on a fallen comrade is taken way too far, although I did forget I was watching a bunch of kids with BB-guns and pictured it was a real war – considering the amount of blood and death. Still, this is the weakest of the events in the second semester, opening the season off with no desire to go on. Thankfully, the cultural festival itself is entertaining. The whole overly dramatic gun battle in the school is completely unnecessary as 2-C ends up doing both the café and a school play. Both are well done, but I definitely enjoy the play a lot more. It’s just that the café is only shown a couple times, luring men in with their seductive women, and then it goes to the men who try to find out why another class is stealing business. It is a short portion of the cultural festival that is purely forgettable. The play is all comedy, with a bit of a cat fight near the end as Yakumo and Eri go head to head, maybe a bit unintentionally. I had a good laugh through this as it doesn’t seem like this play was rehearsed all that much. It seems as if most characters are just winging it, hoping their actions are correct and the outcome will help the play move forward. The whole Harima and Yakumo fiasco is rather interesting; having the ever so innocent Yakumo butt heads with Eri’s hotheaded teenage attitude turns out to be a big surprise – even though the two really haven’t got along in the past when Harima is involved. In the end, the play is a smashing success and will bring a smile across your face. Akira always packed and ready! The third major story put forth focuses primarily on Eri as she is in an uprising over her engagement ceremony. Another rather generic twist in a romantic comedy: forced engagements. I suppose this is a bit different considering Eri does have some sort of say – even if her father will be upset in the end – but this a more common scenario seen in plenty of graphic novels. In any case, I think it is well done as it doesn’t focus too highly on the rebellion side of Eri; instead Harima comes into the picture and helps her overcome fears and concerns about life, inspiring her to face things head on. This isn’t exactly a comical scenario (even though the ending is pretty funny), nor does it take things too seriously; it is more sweet and heartwarming, offering deeper looks into both Harima and Eri’s personal feelings. I’ve never been a big fan of Eri, but after this story, I found a new form of respect for her as she is willing to adapt to other opinions easier than I thought. The final major conflict in the story focuses around three characters: Harima, Tenma and Yakumo. Because this is far from the conclusion of the School Rumble series, you know nothing too dramatic will occur in the season finale, but the last two episodes do an absolutely astonishing job in engrossing you into the fiction of the story. These are far from comedic events; sure, the mixture of Tenma as Harima’s assistant always puts up a good laugh (especially when she comes knocking on the door for the first time), but the only reason I’m talking about this scenario in particular is because of Yakumo’s flashback. This series rarely gives character background, but this one is done so perfectly that I wish there were more. I’m not quite sure of Tenma and Yakumo’s past all that much, mainly their parents and how they live, but Tenma’s carefree lifestyle had a significant effect on Yakumo’s life even when she was a kid. This is a sad and almost tear jerking moment in School Rumble, even if the child version of Yakumo and Tenma have giant heads. The screw ups of Tenma really got Yakumo to a point where it looked like Yakumo would never look her older sister in her eyes again. It is a sweet change of pace and concludes the second semester absolutely perfectly with having you care for the characters even more. Moving to English dub, I suppose it’s very hard to translate Japanese jokes into English, and a good example of this is the first episode’s turtle joke which turns out absolutely atrocious. In the English version, Tenma starts off with word association and spans off into random words, whereas the original Japanese script Tenma plays Shiritori, which is a Japanese game that takes the last kana of the previous word and uses it to start the next. It’s hard to translate such a difficult understanding into English, and in the end it was made a mess of. That said, the English script isn’t all bad; much of the English dub made the story even funnier. It is mainly the more random parts outside the (little) story that have been changed. While the English dialogue does reap some of the comical Japanese jokes and antics, I think newer ones were put in others spots, creating a strong balance and a different experience based on which version you’re watching. Sadly, some characters are completely awkward at times. Someone like Harima has some of the best dialogue in the English adaption while Akira has some of the dullest – even with two or three memorable one-lines. The overall adaptation into English is a lot more localized with a bit more modern phrases such as “you got faced!” or “Eri must be tripping, yo.” In the end, it is a solid dub worth checking out. The overall presentation value, even though this is in 4:3 standard aspect and has no surround sound option, is still very well done. The colors are vibrant and the animation and artwork are beautifully drawn – or at least in a comical sense. As I mentioned, both of the English and Japanese voice tracks are well done, and the soundtrack is more than memorable, offering various tones that set the atmosphere in each scene perfectly. As for extras, sadly there aren’t too many. But don’t be disappointed as I am completely blown away how FUNimation was able to fit 26 episodes onto four discs and compact it so perfectly. I suppose because this is a standard 4:3 picture instead of widescreen, and there is no surround sound option, it does make a little more sense, but fitting up to seven episodes onto a disc is just praiseworthy on its own, when you see DVD sets with more than four. In any case, as for extras, we are treated to the traditional textless openings and endings and some trailers, but also included is a long and rather comical interview with the creator of School Rumble, Jin Kobayashi and an interview with Tenma’s Japanese voice actress, Ami Koshimizu. The Bottom Line: I can’t stress my love for School Rumble as it is a series I can watch over and over again, and never get bored. I’m actually surprised how great of a job FUNimation has done in localizing this with a sleek exterior and a laugh-out-loud interior. Sure, there are some awkward moments and a lot of forgettable events, but the overall execution of the second semester is more than worthy of your attention. If you’re a fan of comedies and don’t mind some rather generic stories done right, then it’s impossible to not recommend this. Tenma is ready for anything!

Content Funny in both languages; this is one comedy that will have you wrapped around its fingers. 8.5 Video While it’s only a 4:3 picture, the colors and artwork are done superbly. 7.5 Audio The lack of surround sound is disappointing considering how magical the voice acting and soundtrack are. 9.0 Extras Sleek packaging and two long and comical interviews are a plus. 7.0 Dialog Some awkward lines here and there, but both the English and Japanese dialogue will be different enough to get two comical experiences from. 8.0 Verdict If you love to laugh, buy School Rumble. The second semester is an absolute blast from start to finish, offering a fun and entertaining storyline for all ages. With a solid soundtrack and voice acting, not to mention a laugh-out-loud storyline, I’ve never been so excited for a semester of school. 8.5 [not an average] + Laugh-out-loud comedy. + Great English adaptation. + Fantastic soundtrack. - Some awkward events. - No surround sound or widescreen aspect.

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