TCC Spotlight: Urusei Yatsura

Ever wonder where my name comes from? I mean, in normal life, calamity most certainly does NOT ensue constantly. Well folks, as I found nothing of interest to really talk about re: anime news over the last few days, I want to spotlight my favorite show ever: Urusei Yatsura.  I know, I know, you are shocked to hear that it's not Gundam.

Urusei Yatsura originated as a manga by superstar Rumiko Takahashi. It tells the tale of a lecherous idiot named Ataru Moroboshi and his wife-thru-a-complete-misunderstanding, Lum. The show lasted 5 years, 195 episodes, 6 movies, and a ton of OAVs.

Though it starts much like many anime series, with a boy becoming betrothed to a magical / robot / alien / superhuman woman, calamity quickly ensues, as Lum's friends and family come to Earth, spirits start haunting Ataru, and classrooms turn into battlegrounds. It's a very "fish out of water" show, with Lum being the fish, but rather than have to come to terms with living on a primitive planet like Earth, she simply pulls the item of the week out of her bra. Almost every episode starts off normal, with Ataru going to school or the gang hanging out, but soon SOMETHING happens and everything goes to Hell.

There's the one where the gang are attacked by killer potatoes. Or how about the one where aliens sell everyone personality-switching earmuffs? Hell, who can forget the one where the entire class eats "performance mushrooms" and spend the entire episode performing on stage?

Classic.

The show, of course, looks terrible. It is an early 80s anime, and the production team worked nonstop for five years on new episodes. So yes, the visuals suffer a bit, but the humor, the timing, the overly dramatic flair, all courtesy of Mamoru Oshii of Ghost in the Shell fame and Kazuo Yamazaki, make it a great, timeless comedy.

I wish my high school experience was like this!

For more information on the best show in the galaxy, head over to Tomobiki-Cho, which is hands down the best, most complete website for Urusei Yatsura.