I don’t know how in god’s green earth that my home country is still standing, but standing it is. Today marks my look at number 2 of my top 5 albums from 2020, and in that year the return of King Diamond was in full effect! Before we get to the spooks & spirits, we got something a little more cute to cover. An anime that aired right at the beginning of that plague-ridden year, and was a perfect counter to all of the death & disease once that came in. A series that honestly should have come over to the states in the over half-decade that’s been out, along with the Manga & other material. So, get into your school uniform, make sure the dinosaur teachers don’t step on you, and look at my review for Seton Academy: Join The Pack. Let’s begin!
Story/Setup
Taken from Wikipedia:
“Due to a population decline, there are fewer humans than there are humanoid animals. Jin Mazama is a human boy who attends Seton Academy where the majority of students are animals. Jin hates animals, but as luck would have it, a female human named Hitomi Hino catches his eye. Unfortunately, Jin finds himself grabbing the attention of other animals such as Ranka Okami, a young wolf girl who is the only member of her pack, and has a huge crush on him.”
“In the world of Seton Academy, all the male students and staff have the appearance of their species, while the females all appear as various forms of moe girls with kemonomimi, and other features such as tails and/or horns.”
Taken from Crunchyroll:
“Seton Academy, a school where animals of all species gather to live and learn together.
A sacred garden of learning, where students hone their primal instincts and the laws are of the jungle. Where species pit against species in a daily struggle for survival...
Now enter the animal-hating human Jin Mazama, and the lonely wolf Ranka Okami.
When man meets wolf in an encounter for the ages, this food chain is about to be shook.
“Species shmecies! If we’ve shared face-licks, you’re a friend to me! Welcome to the pack!””
Let me state this right now: Seton Academy does not have a complex story. There is a surprise or two, but it’s not deep by any means. It doesn’t try to be philosophical, have complex messaging, or is pretentiously artistic. This anime is a lighthearted romp, filled with plenty of slapstick humor, and just a tiny touch of fan-service. Emphasis on tiny.
(Now, I know that a Manga for Seton Academy exists, and I believe there is a novel series on it as well. I do not know how the show follows the Manga, since it never got released here in the states alongside the novel series, though my understanding is that more does go on in both.)
Animation
The best way to describe Seton Academy’s animation quality is in one word: cute. Join The Pack is incredibly colorful, with nary anything even remotely dark when it comes to it’s visuals. The various backgrounds are simple, but they look nice, and the various character models definitely show off their animalistic elements well (Outside of the humans, of course). The movement of the various characters all looks nice, but it’s also as simple as the background at the same time. You’re not getting anything artistic at all, but again the anime is going for bright, simple, and cute.
Voice Acting
As of right now, Seton Academy has not be dubbed in English, or any other languages as far as I know. Just over 5 years later, the series still only has a Japanese dub with English subs over on Crunchyroll, and it’s good. All of the voice actors for the primary & secondary cast seem to be giving it their all, and it only makes me curious as to how they would all sound with an English dub behind them.
Characters
As with the story, the characters of Seton Academy aren’t very deep. They’re all pretty simplistic, but almost everybody has at least a moment where things are a little more meaty than you’d expect. Everybody all fits into the stereotypical personalities of a harem//harem-like show, but what makes things a little different from something like Monster Musume or Monster Girl Doctor is the animal traits that the group embodies. The sloth girl for example, is slow & lethargic (But is cute oddly enough). Meanwhile, the wolf girl Ranka is very personable, and has a strong will. As for Jin, he’s definitely in over his head, and while he’s not fond of animals, he isn’t malicious towards any of the anime girls or guys he runs into.
Availability & Pricing
As I’m typing this, Seton Academy is still not currently available here in the United States. There are Japanese Blu-Ray box set copies on Amazon, but they are astronomically expensive. Depending on which box set, the prices will range from $110 to $130 (As I first typed this), and that’s excluding shipping, tax, and import cost. Given that our DVD players can’t view anything from Japan (As far as I know), a potential buyer from my home country would only get a copy for pure collecting purposes.
Overall Impression & Rating
Seton Academy: Join The Pack is a perfect example of a nice & marshmallowy anime. The story isn’t that deep, the characters aren’t massively complex, and the visuals & animation is all bright and cute. Sure, it might be too simple in many aspects, and it’s not readily available here in the states, but you will be entertained from beginning to end. If you need to go somewhere, but you got some time before you leave & need a quick anime fix, then an episode of Seton Academy is perfect for that. Awooooooo!
Seton Academy: Join The Pack gets a 7.5 out of 10.
And that was my review for Seton Academy: Join The Pack. Definitely not the deepest anime, but one that’s just perfect when you’re in the mood for something fluffy & sweet. If you’ve had a stressful day, then an episode or two of this series is a perfect cure. So with that said, I’ll see you all around the middle of the month, when I’ll take a look at the beginning of the rise of metal’s scariest king. See you then!
***
One other thing: the opener & closer are bangers. Click on the links below, and enjoy:
Seton Academy: Join the Pack! - Opening (Gakuen Soukan Zoo)
Seton Academy: Join the Pack! - Ending (Okami Blues)
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