The Human Crazy University ヒューマンバグ大学
Synopsis
Human Bug Daigaku the story follows Satake Hirofumi is a prisoner on death row for murdering his fiancée. He’s also an “Undeadman” who has survived many desperate situations. For this, he has earned the interest of a research institution called “Human Crazy University,” which studies real-life miraculous phenomena and the people who become entangled in them.
Now a subject of their research, Satake relates to them his memories of his immortal, yet unhappy, life. Why did he kill his fiancée? Soon enough, the truth sheds light on a much bigger conspiracy…
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Review
If you think anime shows are about beautiful or flashy visuals, then do not try to watch Human Bug Daigaku. However, it is not always about visuals. I have always disagreed with people that put animation over anything else; actually, I think what makes an anime good is “that something”. Human Bug Daigaku has many “somethings”. It is a show with plain art and almost non-existent animation, that does not take itself seriously when that is not needed. But it knows how to entertain its audience very well and includes comedy – which I find hilarious – combined with a well-built, intriguing mystery. Also, it is an educational anime since there’s brief random trivia analysis in every episode, usually mixed with comedic scenes.
Some may not know that Human Bug Daigaku is an anime adaptation of a YouTube web manga series of the same name. The web manga is long, and includes many stories – one of them is the story of Satake Hirofumi. Surprisingly for non-Japanese audiences, it has millions of views and is very popular in Japan. That’s another point to be made when I explain why Human Bug Daigaku is such an unjustly unpopular anime show, and it deserves more attention despite its poor animation quality; it makes it clear that it’s not just a random anime. Now, let’s go to the story.
Satake Hirofumi is accused of murdering his wife and sentenced to death. Surprisingly, despite being hung, he gets out alive. We learn that he is generally the luckiest man in the world, and that’s how the mysterious story starts. We do not know the truth, we get to meet many suspicious individuals, as we start to like and root for a, now amnesiac, Hirofumi. A man who sets on dangerous adventures and – somehow – always survives. Something very strong in this anime is how most of the characters Satake meets are interesting and easy to remember, as they all have their unique character, backstories, and relationship with him. In addition, the show takes place in many cities and even different countries, which makes the experience more amusing. But what’s most amusing and memorable about it is how it keeps its light-heartedness from beginning to end, and even when things get dangerous, there is always love and optimism.
The comedy might not be for all audiences, but it includes a unique, goofy sense of humour, it is well-combined with the story progression, there are many inside jokes created as the show progresses and is faithful to what it is. On the other hand, even if we know that the main character is invincible in a way, the mystery is always there, and week by week I was agonizing over what may happen next. There is ingenious plot progression, and you never know how things will turn out.
As much as I love the writing of Human Bug Daigaku, I also love its voice acting cast. Tomokazu Sugita performs splendidly once again as the main character, but there are many other great performers to be mentioned: Hidenari Ugaki as the crazy Professor, Takehito Koyasu as the torturer Shigeo, and more.
Opening and Ending songs are both pluses for the anime. The OP is a typical nano anisong, and nano is usually loved by anime fans. The ED is a totally different thing, though. Catchy as hell, retro-ish and playful, Bad City/Bug Human by Lowland Jazz is a great fit for the show’s vibes.
To conclude, I only want to say that I wrote this review to make more people watch Human Bug Daigaku, and to express my approval of animated series with plain animation. I did not put much effort, but I hope it is enough to persuade some of you to give anime like this a chance. Because Human Bug Daigaku is a fun show to watch when you’re happy, when you’re sad, when you’re bored, when you’re eating, when you’re trying to sleep, or when you want to give a hard laugh with your friends. Basically a successful show, as far as I’m concerned.
