Anime: GTO

Review
Great Teacher Onizuka (GTO) is one of those unique shows that no one ever managed to copy since its release. It was a refreshing comedy in the late 90's that was not just about mindless garbage and total pervertion as DNA², Photon, Maze, and others. Sure, these shows were fun, we still had Ranma 1/2 that was fine as well, but these comedies were very carefree, just random episodes that you laughed and then moved on to another show. GTO is not like those. It's not only absurdly funny, but gives the audience something to wait for, a good character development, and a clear and defined objective.

This is the story of Onizuka, a guy who wants to be a teacher. The problem is: he only wants to be surrounded by cute teenagers and he is an ex-gang member. Fate works so this complete jerk finds himself with a terrible class, full of students that challenge their new teacher, are perhaps more rebel than him when young, and don't really want to learn anything. From there on Onizuka takes the challenge of helping the class, slowly getting attached to them and becoming more of a teacher and less of a moron.

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1. Unrealistic, But Awesome Anwyay
   The simple premise makes room for many funny scenes and nice moments. The plot is not only about Onizuka, but about his whole class, showing their routines and problems as they know each other and progress in their relationships. The show is full of impossible jokes, especially in the way Onizuka tries to teach his class. He is not a fan of using textbooks, he will make the class learn by examples, by absurd tasks, and many other ways that always ends up in weird and funny moments. A teacher like Onizuka in real life would be fired in a second, but that's not the matter here, he conquers his class through very different ways of what you would expect. A bully is giving problems? Let's call my ex-gang friends and kick this teenager's ass! A girl is dumb and has big breasts? Let's put her to work in a better way! That's the kind of stuff that happens in the show.
   
   Comedy with Depth
   Surprisingly, unlike most comedy shows back in those years, Onizuka has a clear objective from start and the story progress in a good pace for such end. You'll see those mindless students starting to like Onizuka and slowly learning to act as citizens, while the same happens to the crazy teacher. It's a criticism to the boring and useless classes as most student think, but also a way to show how a teacher can also learn from its daily job. It's a deep subject in fact, making GTO a very rare feat in anime industry.
   
   And the cast helps as well
   Unlike most random comedy shows, GTO is a character-heavy experience. Onizuka and most of his class may seem very exagerated in their bad behavior at first, but they evolve nicely through the show. The events that unfolds in the plot allow for subtle changes in each of the cast personalities, and at the end many will be far more mature stundents and persons. It's not super-power development, but it's very rewarding for a comedy show. GTO also has quite a good balance in giving shinning window for almost all of Onizuka's students.
   
   The old was not good even back then
   Animes in late 90's were not that awesome, only a few shows like Evangelion and Cowboy Bebop were something comparable to today's standard. But even within the messy animation, GTO is nothing good. The visuals are simple, the character models suffer from lack of good proportion in many scenes, sometimes they are absurdly distorted, and their movements is extremely clumsy. What can save the day here are the good backgrounds for that time and the fact the character could do funny faces without being completely cartoonish.
   
   It led the vanguard of openings
   An opening with L'Arc~en~Ciel for a show back in those years was something quite good in fact, giving it a flair very few others shows had. Besides that we have an overall solid sound direction. The remaining openings are fine, background music is nothing memorable but does a fine job, and the voice-acting is nicely done for the genre, with funny and varied voices.
   
   A must-see comedy classic
   GTO was a refresher when released, showing that comedy could be more than just random episodes. Not only that, but even today GTO doesn't have any real competitor. Many comedy shows were released, a lot within the school setting, but none of them had the same approach as GTO and succeeded. An impactful, meaningful, and yet absurdly funny comedy makes GTO one of the must see shows. Sadly the animation and art weren't given a better treatment, but that is passable.
   

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Comments
You want to laugh? Watch GTO. School comedy at the best is what can be found here, with lots of varied and funny scenes, a surprisingly attractive plot behind the scenes and some sort of social criticism. The dull animation can harm the fun sometimes, but as a whole it's one of the best comedy shows ever released. Anyone looking for comedy must see this, especially if the typical ecchi-comedy is not your thing.

GTO is one of those shows that lifted a genre and changed the ways things were done for almost all those that came later. It was a very powerful comedy, not totally perverted as the ecchis of the late 90's, with a good plot device, great characters, a good focus on the support characters, and a protagonist that was completely hilarious. I also see it as a good way to understand the teacher's point of view and learning that those guys behind the desk are also human and full of problems. Those with a teacher in the family will find extra points to enjoy here as well.

The first thing I thought when I watched this series was "ecchi..." I don't know of any other series short of hentai that has the guts to start with an upskirt. To guys: be wary to make sure you're eyes don't follow the camera in GTO in real life...

GTO is a very enjoyable story about a former bike gang leader turned teacher. His struggles and the lessons he teaches his students go beyond that one would normally expect from a teacher, and that is what makes this series good. There is a bit of action and a good deal of humor but the main theme is Onizuka's dynamic relationship with his students.

Animation:
It struck me at first how dated the animation looks but one gets used to after awhile. The characters are drawn differently than what I'm used to, especially Onizuka when he does his crazy monkey-like face.

Sound:
The OP/EDs were fair but didn't catch my attention. The BGM was fair most of the time with three or four themes that were above average (one tips off when something ecchi is going to happen). As for voice acting. There are some notables in the cast including veteran Mitsuishi Kotono and Kawasumi Ayako (Saber anyone?). All the cast did a very good job (especially the vice principal).

Story:
The majority of the series follows Onizuka as he gains the trust of his class, which had previously been psychologically wounded by a former teacher. At first, everyone doesn't trust him and does everything in their power to get rid of him. However, his bike-gang experience and pure guts show that he will do anything to win over his students' trust. Be it family problems or relationships, his teachings go well beyond the textbook.

Character:
There are a lot of characters in GTO with very different personalities, and each one has some story to tell and some conflict to have resolved. Thus expect a lot of character development as Onizuka does his magic. I really liked how they were able to explicate so many characters without the viewer getting lost in it all. The only thing that isn't believable is Onizuka himself and his superman-like ability to survive seemingly any injury, be it jumping off a building or being hit in the head with a bat.

Value:
Despite being quite long, I've re-watched this multiple times, and it's still great. It's a touching story with bits of hilarity and true to life ideas mixed in. I particularly liked the Anko/Nobura arc around episode 40. This series is definitely a good watch and well worth the time.

ANIME EVOLUTION SERIES
Full list of the review series can be found on this page, 3rd post from bottom:
http://anidb.net/perl-bin/animedb.pl?uid=251338&show=userpage&do=blog&blogid=29009&page=0

TEASER: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=887C9HKY5yY

School comedies became a trend after the success of Urusei Yatsura in the mid 80’s. Many others tried to repeat the success but none managed to get to the same heights, mostly because all that followed had less to offer. Less likable characters, less context, less things to ponder about. All that changed when GTO came to be and proved how even a school comedy can be educational and entertaining at the same time. This is the story of Onizuka, an ex-gang member who decides to become a teacher mostly to fulfil his deviant fetish of being constantly surrounded by cute schoolgirls. The plot sets it as if one can become a teacher if he can just cope with a problematic class for a while and Onizuka is more than willing to do anything it takes to succeed.

Before you read further, please try not to rationalize what is going on in the anime. It is still a comedy and despite its various takes on social problems, very few are things are practical in real life. For you see, Onizuka keeps making all sorts of unorthodox acts, such as bullying bullies with his gang and hitting on his female students, or doing really messy experiments, like rockets made of plastic bottles. All that would never pass in a real-life school but in the case of Onizuka, all it takes is for his class to get along and cope with its various problems. As long as you don’t mind this element, then GTO will be a comedy that makes movies like Dangerous Minds to feel boring.

The meat of the show is the crazy antiques of Onizuka as he tries to have fun and teach his students various life lessons. And by “teach” he doesn’t mean the textbooks. They are nothing but mostly useless theories that someone needs to learn by force just so he will get a good score. What Onizuka teaches is things that seem silly or not moral and political correct, but are otherwise far more productive and likable. He is a contrast to all the other teachers, who are nothing but uncaring workers, doing their joyless job just to get paid, full of hypocrisy at how good marks and hard study is all that matters in life.

This is of course an appeal to the target audience, anyone going to junior high or high school who witnesses how boring and not-really-helpful the educational system is. But beyond that, this is a feeling that even adults can identify with, many years after they graduate and figure out how 99% of all the stuff they wasted years to learn are now completely useless and probably forgotten entirely. As unrealistic as the plot may be in this comedy, the messages it tells us are completely true.

The anime is not sticking to just a zany teacher and a few boring co-workers. It is also focusing on various students and the problems they face in a cruel society that treats them as nothing but future workers and consumers. Each one of them has his own issues with his/her family, get bullied, turns to vandalism for fun, finds pleasure in mocking the teachers in any way possible, acts all nihilistic and violent. These are all problems most of us have experienced, personally or while looking at others, and thus the whole atmosphere of the show again feels far more real than any other anime with giant robots or teenagers with superpowers. The show is talking to you directly.

As I said, the anime is not very realistic at how Onizuka deals with such problems. In real life he would have ended up fired and imprisoned for every weak for the rest of his life. The setting of the show is otherwise presenting how laws mean less than an appeal to emotions, and thus all the mischief he performs are constantly forgiven because they have a positive effect on his class. And by the end of the day we are all happy to see the students being happier and the nasty teachers or moral committee members getting all angry and incapable to punish him. It is a situation where you love the bold solution and not if it’s practical. Although it is true that sometimes all it takes to snap someone out of his misery is a simple slap or punch…

Another good thing about this anime is that there is an on-going plot amongst all the craziness. Most comedies are storyless but GTO is a fine example of a show where progress takes place and it’s affecting future events. You clearly see how in the beginning all the students are cruel towards Onizuka and try their best to ridicule him but steadily his improbable behaviour is making them to like him as he seems to care more about having fun and telling them interesting stuff about real life rather than getting paid or being afraid of some committee to sue him for some moral mishap. His supporters increase as the story goes on and eventually he is the king of the hill in his school. There are still problems to deal with and in the finale it seems even his craziness can’t save him indefinitely; thus again proving that even being completely out-there is not panacea.

Other than that, one should really go easy with the production values, as animation and artwork are rather poor, with simplistic drawings and too much jerky motions. Furthermore, the amount of fan service is watered down compared to the manga version, dropping your interest even further. Studio Pierrot is notorious for its quality drops and this is yet another case. The sound part is just fine, as the characters have fitting voices full of hilarious dialogues or teen angst and the music themes are beaty and likable.

To close up, GTO is a cornerstone of good anime comedy. Not only it manages to be funny, but it also speaks directly to you AND packs a plot. A combination very rare to find in recent anime.

And now for some excused scorings.

Great Teacher Onizuka is one of the most brilliant series ever made. Although it suffers from a few things, such as being a toned down version of the manga or being cut midway, it is in fact very entertainind and clearly deserves it's place in my top-10 anime ever made. Even if you have already watched it, I hope this review makes you understand GTO a bit better and make you go watch it.

Animation:
I never found anything to complain about this aspect. The animation is really fluid and doesn't lose to the manga at all. The most important fact, though, is that it brings the characters alive. In retrospect, the animation is astounding for it's time. Sure they cut corners here and there, but it's only natural for an anime. During the opening, you can clearly see the love the creators have for the series.

Sound:
The best part in the whole series is probably the voice acting. Nothing creates Onizuka's character like his voice, and without it, even the manga wouldn't probably be that interesting, and would make this series as awesome to watch as the opening theme song. Hell, it's probably the best j-rock song ever and it's in GTO! How awesome is that? I can't really think of anything bad to say about the sound department, except that the second opening theme is not as good as the first one. Even that's not a big issue, because who can top Driver's High?

Story:
Now here is where the review gets complicated. The story is simple yet exciting. Everyone who has gone to school has had a few or more cases of a shitty teacher who just does it for money and doesn't really want to teach others, so you can't help but to root for Onizuka who is trying to become the greatest teacher ever. What makes it even more entertaining are the various obstacles that he has to overcome while he's doing that. I think this is the main point that got everyone hooked into watching this.



Character Dev:
The interesting story arcs are only colored by the funny and vibrant characters, but first I'd like to talk about the title character, Onizuka. He must be the most badass of normal characters ever seen on TV. But wait, there's more! He's not just one-dimensional punk teacher. He's also pretty stupid, so that makes his actions completely believable. The side characters are pretty original and interesting. The story is based on the development of these characters, so I guess that's obvious. I really think this department isn't as good as it should've been. If you want the 'fully' developed characters, I suggest you read the manga.

Value:
You could watch GTO any number of times if you wanted to, as long as you don't read the manga. After reading the whole 24 volumes of GTO, the series didn't taste as good. I mean, the show has it's own qualities, such as the great opening and voice acting, but reading the manga is much more efficient, and it doesn't have missing pieces like the anime did. It has great value if you haven't read it, though.

Enjoyment:
If you haven't seen it, go watch it right now. How, you say? Any way you can! Go to Youtube if you have to... Wait, what was I talking about? Oh yeah! GTO is a must watch for every maniac out there. Even normal people enjoy it. Must be because it has less of those KAWAII MOE things than most. Onizuka's crazy antics can make anyone drawn to this show. If you have to show a series to your friend who's never heard of anime, this is the one. DON'T SHOW COWBOY BEBOP, it's barely even anime. So, anyway, I enjoyed this title greatly, and if you have any brains, you did too.

Animation
When I saw the first episode of GTO I didn't like the animation.However,my opinion has been changed as I continued with series,then I've realized that I like that kind of style,because of simplicity,there is no fancy exaggeration that I see in recent anime.

Sound
Music is exellent and very suitable for situations in anime.It is some combination of rock,blues and jazz(fusion).After all I started to listen fusion jazz active.Yusuke Honma did the good job for composing this soundtrack.

Story
Story is very interesting and realistic,though at first thought it looks like same old patern,but it's not,especially because of the major character Onizuka.The only thing that I don't like is,maybe that the end is not complete.

Character
Characters are very realistic and complex.Onizuka is original and maybe a little idealistic.I mean where could you find a guy in the world with such fanatic dedication for his students?But that's something cool about him,allthough he's a bit perverted.

Value

Believe me,this anime is worth watching any time!It can always make you laugh.

Enjoyment

I enjoyed very much.It' one of the best I've ever watched.

I would like to put 10 on everything, because, probably this it the best anime i ve ever seen!
But we have to be racional on it, cause we are here to expose our opinions puting the other animes as reference.

Animation:
Today we have many beautifull animations, better than onizuka, but remembering, this anime is old, very old, and the technology was not the same as we have nowadays, so i graded 9 to it. The ultrafunny faces that onizuka makes and all the context we dont see it anymore...
Has quality and sensibility, with computers they cant do it so well.

Sound:
9, only because of lack of musics. Only four musics, but four great musics, so great that i even changed my way to think about japanese music. I listen the first OP almost everyday. The sound effects and all of the sounds, mood tracks, are really good, they deep the feelings on every situation, all of them make sense and where to be funny it funnier and where to be sad is saddier...
Ah! I almost forget, the dub is fabulous, every character has a solid and truly voice acting, maybe this is the better thing about this anime you feel like they are real!

Story:
Its great but could be better. An 8 is the best I can give to it, because it lacks a real end. In my opinion this could never end, hehehehe, but, if has to end, then make it right!
The onizuka's end is so strange, he doesnt "pick up" with the girl "teacher", somethings are missing, and its so irritating... (like that)

Character:
Onizuka is the best, watch it, i have no complaints about any character, all are really special. Every episode has a focus over a group or a specific character. Its spetacular! Really awsome! 10!!!

Value:
I dont know what to say here, watch it, if you liked golden boy, or if you dont.
I saw GTO after Golden Boy, GTO seems to me that is Golden Boy updated version, so Golden Boy will seem like a replay.

Enjoyment:
100% Better anime of all! Funniest, teach you to never give up, its a hope for all pessimists and negative people to fight for your self that you will fufil your dreams and objectives!

Amazing!!!
Everyone needs to see it!
THX (sorry for my bad english, i am from Brasil, I hope you all to feel the same emotions as i felt watching this piece of art!