 | | ▪ | RELEASED BY: | | FUNIMATION ENTERTAINMENT | | | ▪ | ASPECT RATIO: | | 4:3 FULL SCREEN | | | ▪ | AUDIO: | | ENGLISH AND JAPANESE DD 2.0 | | | ▪ | RUNNING TIME: | | 300 MIN | | | ▪ | RATING: | | TV MA | | | ▪ | RELEASE DATE: | | 05/13/2008 | | | ▪ | REVIEW DATE: | | 05/20//2008 | | | ▪ | REVIEWED BY: | | SCOTT CAMPBELL |
He's rude. He's crass. He's unbelievably obnoxious and he likes showing his ass (it’s true). He's Shin and he's the star of this train wreck. From superhero sell-outs, hotties, and half-tards - to bunny abuse and dirty old men, Shin-chan gives unwholesome family fun a whole new spin... Silicone enhanced! Shin-chan’s packed with sweet dead piggy goodness so sweet it would make an anorexic want to eat (and no, this show is NOT politically correct, so if you’re looking for something of that nature, best look elsewhere). Learn the fate of Whitey, poke fun at Mitzi's chest, or follow along on Ench-Man's quests - it's your choice! Wanna play a game of hide and drink? Falling off the wagon is always better with company! Shin-chan: The show with very little adventure but plenty of action! Oh, and it also co-stars mister elephant and his incredible thigh slapping trunk attack. Yeah… so Shin-chan is NOT your run-of-the-mill anime, or run-of-the-mill piece of entertainment either. It’s out there in the strangest of ways, but is sure to entertain none the less. If it were to be compared to anything, I suppose the closest thing would be to call it a Japanese South Park, but really it’s a unique show that very much does its own thing. If you like crude humour that just says what it wants to say and doesn’t beat around the bush, Shin-chan will be right up your ally without a doubt. Now, as for a plot summary, that’s pretty impossible to do. See, Shin-chan is this little boy who’s about eight years old, and he goes to school and hangs out with his friends (and enemies), and does all the things little boys do. Once you grasp the reality of that, you can basically just sit back and be amazed at all the other completely nonsensical things that happen all around him. Shin-chan is a show without too much “plot” per say – each episode contains a handful of different situations that aren’t terribly connected. Someone could really just start watching from the middle of the series if they wanted to, and they would still get a lot of good out of it because each story pretty much stands on its own. Some of those situations/stories include Shin-chan being on strike from peeing (like, he refuses to pee until his mom gives him an allowance… what a threat, I know), a rich girl bothering his father to get him to make Shin-chan marry her, and Shin-chan mistaking his friend’s anger for love and thinking that the young boy is trying to enter into a homoerotic relationship with him... amongst other things. It really is very funny in its weird little way, and it’s incredibly easy to get into really quickly also! The animation itself is so strange at times, that you almost have to remind yourself that it is Japanese. It does NOT look like your typical anime – there are no wide-eyed characters or weird hair colours going on here. It has this wonderful lack of proficiency that makes it unique, and it actually works. It’s like how South park still works even though it’s cut out paper moving around on the screen – people still love it because the content has that certain little “buzz” thing that just works and it’s a hit. Shin-chan is like that – it gets away with looking a bit silly because it is a very silly show (and that’s the understatement of the year if I don’t say so myself). Shin-chan is quirky and colorful though – it is always fun to look at. Bright colors and lots of craziness go a long way, and Shin-chan’s animation style is something you just have to see to understand really. If you’ve got an open mind and you’re looking for something new, Shin-chan is your ticket to Weirdsville. The DVD feature 13 of the first season's 26 episodes, with each episode being comprised of a variety of different little situations, and big situations alike. The episodes are spread over two discs; extras include lively commentary on Episode 4 ("Get Your Hands Off My Happy Cake!") with line producer Laura Bailey, who also voices Shin Chan, along with director Zach Bolton and recording engineer Peter Hawksworth. Series fans will undoubtedly be delighted by "From the Bowels of the Booth," which offers a battery of exceptionally crude alternate line readings from various episodes, as well as an episode with its original Japanese language track (subtitles are included). Vocal talent auditions and trailers for Funinmation's other anime DVD releases, including Witchblade, One Piece and Full Metal Panic round out the supplemental features.
EXTRAS:
The disc extras include: From the Bowels of the Booth, Episode Four Commentary, Cast Auditions, Original Storyboards, and Original Japanese Episode “Battle: Encho-man!”
IN SUMMARY:
Shin-chan is unique, and sometimes you just can’t beat seeing something new and different. With a sense of humour so off the wall, this anime should entertain anyone with a mind open enough to enjoy some crude laughs - and we all need that now and again! |
