Well guys, it’s here! A show that I’ve been waiting for, ever since I first heard it’s announcement back in March. A show who’s manga has brought me all sorts of merriment & delight, not to mention some particularly delicious fan service. I’ll eventually review the full show when it’s fully released, but for now I’ll just give you a sample. So let’s not waste more time, and take a look at the first episode of Monster Musume, also known as Everyday Life with a Lamia. Let the review begin!
Basic Story
Taken from Wikipedia:
General Background (Whole Series)
“For years, the Japanese government has kept a secret: mythical creatures like centaurs, harpies, and lamias are real. Three years before the start of this story, the government published the existence of these creatures and passed a legal bill, the "Interspecies Cultural Exchange Act". Since then, the "liminals" have become a part of human society, living with ordinary families like foreign exchange students and au-pair visitors, but with other duties and restrictions (the main one being that liminals are forbidden from harming humans and vice versa).
Kimihito Kurusu did not volunteer for the exchange program, but when Ms. Smith delivered the very scared and embarrassed Miia to his door by mistake, he did not have the heart to send her away and they started living together. As the story continues, Kimihito meets and gives shelter to other female liminals, each of a different species. Some arrive more or less by accident, some are forced upon him by Ms. Smith—or force themselves in, and it does not take long for him to find himself in a hectic environment where he struggles to live in harmony with his new housemates while dealing with both their constant advances and the dramas of helping them get along in the human world. The situation takes on a whole new twist after he is told that because of expected changes in the law dealing with human-liminal relationships, it is hoped that he will marry one of the girls.”
Part 1 (Episode 1)
“Kimihito wakes up to find Miia crushing him in her sleep. After escaping, he draws a bath for her to warm up and goes to make breakfast. In the kitchen he is surprised by Smith, who has come to make sure he isn't engaging in any prohibited activities with Miia, such as sex. After Smith leaves, Miia tries to seduce him, only to accidentally dislocate his shoulder.”
Part 2 (Episode 1)
“The two go on a field trip, including a visit to an all-species lingerie shop. Afterwards, they run into a racist couple who harass Miia, and Kimihito has to jump in the way when she tries to strike them with her tail, to keep her from breaking the law. Trying to escape from a curious crowd, they hide in a love hotel, where they are ambushed by the Interspecies Exchange Security Squad. However, Smith recognizes them and fixes the situation. Leaving the hotel, they encounter the couple, and when they begin harassing Miia again Kimihito punches them. At home, Miia resumes her advances on Kimihito, only for them to be interrupted by Smith.”
So this pretty much covers the basic premise of the episode. Two separate but clear stories, and the characters within are fleshed out nicely. The episode also goes into why Miia & other monster girls show up, and talks about their side of the story a little. Nice!
Overall Mood
As you could tell by the beginning of the episode, Everyday Life with a Lamia, and all of Monster Musume in general, is a goofy & silly fan-service show, with girls that are a bit atypical. It’s incredibly lighthearted, and Darling & Miia make for a ridiculously cute couple. However, there is a moment or two where things are a little more serious, with my personal favorite beings Miia’s explanation as to why she was so nervous meeting Darling for the first time. Luckily, the show knows how to go back to it’s funnier & dirtier atmosphere. A nice balance, if I say so myself!
Characters
Only 3 characters really have any presence in this first episode. There’s Kimihito Kurusu, Ms. Smith, and Miia. There are also 2 bullies that appear in the second half of the episode, but they aren’t seen again until episode 4. Each of the 3 characters in question are distinct from one another in terms of personality, so let’s go over them separately.
Kimihito, a.k.a. Darling, is a strange character. On the one hand, he kind, gentle, and surprisingly sweet. Despite the predicament he’s been put into, regardlessly he attempts to help Miia adjust to modern human society. He constantly keeps a happy disposition, but sometimes Miia (and later the other girls) can drive him to the edge. On the other hand, he has moments where he can get quite angry, and unleash a fist of fury. The bullies in question found out the hard way that no-one messes with darling!
Miia is next, and I absolutely adore the hell out of her! The one thing that Monster Musume (Both the anime & manga) does well is it gives the girls their own personality & set of traits. Miia is perhaps one of the simplistic: she’s a girl that loves darling because of his kindness, and does everything in per power to get close to him.....and into his pants. Ironically, Miia calls out Darling for being a pervert when he sees her in the bath, or when he accidentally grabs her panties. Pretty simple if you ask me!
Last up is Ms. Smith, the coordinator that brought Miia to the house. Smith is something of a bipolar character: on the one hand, you want to smack her! She’s a mooch, she basically over-complicated Darling’s life, and really does whatever she can to avoid work or not do as much of said work. On the other hand, she does have some legitimate good moments. She has something of a heart, does have the best interests of Miia & the other girls, and actually has a strange charm to her. Certainly one of the harder character to grab a hold of & understand.
Despite having just 3 characters, they’re established, given backgrounds, and they’re all incredibly likable. As the show goes on, more & more background, not to mention personality, is added onto them, and thus they become more fleshed out. Nice job episode 1!
Animation
The animation in this first episode, and indeed the entire show, is pretty damn good! The environments are detailed, and the characters look fantastic. It’s interesting to see Miia animated, and she moves around like you’d expect, but I have 1 issue. Considering that her lower half is a snake tail, you’d think it would be pretty tricky to see her move around, and for the most part you’re right. You see her in plenty of scenes where she’s sitting down & using her tail to grab things, but there’s only 1 or 2 moments where you see her physically move. As the series goes on, there’s a couple more scenes where you see her move, but she’s very still in a lot of places.
Final Opinion & Rating
Everyday Life with a Lamia is a great episode to start off a series! I said in my episode review of the first episode of Seven Deadly Sins that it was a nice way to start off, but Monster Musume’s first episode practically knocks that down the mountain. This series certainly isn’t for everyone: the fan-service, harem schlock, not to mention how different the girls are, it certainly might spark a nerve. For me, I’m going to enjoy the hell out of this show, and it’s all thanks to this first episode. If you want a harem series with a twist, then give Everyday Life with a Lamia a chance!
Everyday Life with a Lamia gets a 9 out of 10
See you for the album review, when I’ll be looking at a highly acclaimed & relatively recent album!
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If you’re interested in watch the first episode, click the link below:
http://www.crunchyroll.com/monster-musume-everyday-life-with-monster-girls/episode-1-everyday-life-with-a-lamia-682321
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