Monday, December 4, 2017

Panty and Stocking with Garterbelt Part 1 Episodes 1-3



Meet the Anarchy Sisters: Panty and Stocking.  Believe it or not, theyre Angels…in name only.  Because Panty loves her sex and Stocking loves her sweets and both are foul mouthed, party hardy hethens, both have been kicked out of heaven.  Now they’re stuck in the purgatory town of Daten City, under the watch of a fallen priest named Garterbelt.  To get back into heaven, Panty and Stocking will have to put their powers towards demon hunting.  Considering these two love destruction amongst their other vices, should be an easy gig, right?  Clearly, you haven’t met Panty and Stocking.

Hooo boy.  I chose a fun one to end 2017 on.  I mean, I might think it’s fun but Panty and Stocking with Garterbelt is going to be my biggest challenge yet.  Reviewing this will be one thing.  Reviewing it while trying to keep things to PG13 when describing hard R, if not Rated X, material is going to be something else.

Cudos to Studio Gainax.  These guys know how to cut loose and have fun with the most absurd premises for a series.  Based on the description I typed above, PSG would seem like a decent setup for an action series.  But it goes beyond that, far beyond.  While there is plenty of stylish and fun action to be seen, the name of the game here is humor.  And it’s not just any humor.  It’s the most foul, over the top, I cant believe this is actually in a mainstream Anime series kind of twisted.  There’s literal “toilet humor” in the first episode alone.  That right there should tell you what kind of series you’re in for with Panty and Stocking.  This show isn’t for the faint of heart and if you cant handle the first half of the first episode, it might be best to steer clear.  An afterschool special this show is not.  This is unapologetic and unrelenting jabs at every topic and taboo known to man.

If you are planning to stick around, the first three episodes are pretty good.  The series is structured like an American Variety Cartoon Show, with each episode consisting of two 15 minute stories.  Besides the general set up of the show, each tale is pretty much unrelated from one to the other.  Occassional new elements and characters are added to the mix.  But PSG turns out to be a show you can jump into almost at any point in the first three episodes and not really miss out on anything.  It keeps things tight and the stories usually run through pretty quickly. It makes for good binging and keeps in step with the relentless pace of the jokes and gross out moments.

And who is leading the charge of this unconventional Anime?  Well the story may say theyre Angels but Panty and Stocking are the furthest from the title.  It boggles my mind why these two would even want back into Heaven given their respective vices.  Panty is the Paris Hilton style sex addict who loves fame as much as she loves the men she takes to bed.  Stocking will munch on sweets until the apocalypse and still look like the cute Goth that she is.  They trade verbal spars with the world around them, as well as each other.  It’s not hard to pick a memorable quote between both girls, it’s just usually something I’ll probably never type on this blog.  And yes, their undergarments can transform into their weapons of choice, courtesy of a sexy transformation sequence that is clearly making fun of Sailor Moon and what everyone assumed the sparkles of that transformation were covering up.

Rounding out the rest of the cast if Garterbelt, Chuck and Brief.  Garter is…well if Samuel L. Jackson ever needed to voice another Anime character other than Afro Samurai, this would be the guy.  He’s a preacher with a fiery temper and the biggest of Afros.  He also favors a particular kind of lover…and ill just let your imagination run with that (if you’ve already figured out how far this show is going with taboos, it’s easy to guess).  Brief is a ghost hunting enthusiast who becomes quickly smitten with Panty, though he is often either ignored or forgotten by both sisters.  Finally there’s Chuck.  Think Gir from Invader Sim minus (most of) the cuteness and intelligence and you’ve got him.  He’s mostly there to be everyones lighting rod or punching bag…poor guy.

You’ve gotta give Gainax further cudos for how creative they’re getting with the monsters that Panty and Stocking are forced to battle.  These demons come in all shapes, sizes and topical vices.  From demons from the sewers (again gotta keep it PG13), to bees, to a red riding hood and big bad wolf duo, to a race car demon capable of merging with any vehicle it chooses, the imaginations are running wild.  Probably my favorite features is the destruction of each demon being done in a Power Rangers style explosion of a live action model, +10 Charm points.

Wont lie, I was grossed out a couple of times by the no nonsense or warnings given world that Panty and Stocking inhabit.  But this show has got jokes and good ones too, especially if youre up on your pop culture and social media humor.  It’s one of the most different Anime I have ever seen and a title I think this blog isn’t really ready for but one im gonna go ahead and review anyway.  If anything, this will end up becoming a guilty pleasure series.  If you ever wanted to see an Anime push boundaries without crossing into full on “hentai”, then Panty and Stocking with Garterbelt might be your show…and yes, just typing that title with that statement feels ironic.  Catch ya next week as we descend down this bizzare little rabbit hole.

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