On DVD: The Wallflower Volume One: Lesson One, My Fair Bishonen

Directed By: Shinichi Watanabe

Imagine what you’d get if Queer Eye for the Straight Guy begrudgingly met Japanese anime. That’s The Wallflower. The tag line on the front of the DVD case reads, “4 beautiful boys vs. the goth chick from hell. In the ultimate hostile makeover!” Can four bishonens make a creepy girl pretty and proper? You will have to take a look see at this campy anime that is sure to make you squee and chuckle.

The Series

Four beautiful guys live in a mansion owned by a gorgeous rich woman known simply as the Aunt. Beauty has gotten these boys through life pretty easily and cost free until the Aunt tells them that they must pay rent unless they can make her niece Sunako into a lady “of the respectable kind.” Seems like an easy enough feat, but this girl is much worse than the girl in She’s All That. Sure, this isn’t a logical comparison (anime to teen movie), but the tenor of this anime reminds me of a quirky, over-the-top teen drama (which I have no qualms with because I actually like visual codeine).

Sunako is a challenge to say the least. She keeps her forehead covered with long bangs to cover what she considers an ugly face. The stays shut in her room mostly, until the boys barge in. Turns out though Sunako has an aversion to Kyohei’s (the prettiest and blondest) beauty. She pukes in his face when she becomes upset at how amazingly gorgeous he is. However, the boys are up to the challenge in order to get free rent. Besides these challenges, there are outside forces that put pressure on things throughout the episodes, so the storyline has some adventure to it.

I must honestly admit that this is the first anime I’ve actually sat through, so I cannot offer any insight via comparison to other anime. That leaves me to consider this series outside of its context and as it stands on its own.

As it stands by itself, The Wallflower is nicely drawn. Interestingly, the characters manifestations are often changed as per their emotion. Notably, the blonde guy looks young adult and pretty at times. Then he morphs into a cherubic boyish figure at times. Then there are times when all the guys appear as white, demonic ghostly figures. I’m not sure if other anime characters have varying appearances, but the exaggeration adds value to the visual drama of animation.

The bishonen characters remain quite flat, plastic pretty boys for the most part. Kyohei, though self involved as any pretty boy should be, has caring moments for Sunako. He actually tries to work on her self-esteem and her ability to believe in her own beauty. Sunako’s character though remains the most complex. At one moment she’s the mysterious girl with blemishes and facial problems. She’s timid and shy. But, when Kyohei is kidnapped, she is able to go the rescue dressed in a beautiful kimono and in full makeup to look. She proves herself to be a beautiful woman.

Besides the pretty boys, the anime itself is pretty throughout. For example, the opener is as elegant as it is charged with fun feeling. There is a scene of the four boys nude beneath luminous moon beams. Grabbing and spectacular to behold as the nude scene is, the opener has a comedic side too. The prettiest boy of them all sits spread eagle with only a milk carton covering his janglies. Also of note, the opening theme “Slow” by Kiyoharu sets the tone with its rockabilly mode.

The campy quality of this anime makes it worth watching if you like overwrought and exaggeration. The levity too makes it funny. Plus, if you like nicely drawn pretty boys, then you shouldn’t be disappointed.

7/10

The Video

The video quality is solid throughout. The colors are vibrant and the picture is sharp.

7/10

The Audio

The audio is good. There are no major balance issues and I could hear the dialogue clearly.

7/10

The Packaging and Bonus Features

The DVD comes in a standard aramay case with beautiful artwork from the series on the front. The view of the DVD is rather enticing.

There are no bonus features to speak of other than you can watch the opener of the 13 part series as it aired on TV.

7/10

Overall (Not an Average) 8/10