So I finally got the time to catch a break and decided to finish re-watching one of my all time favorite shows from my early days of watching anime, Seto no Hanayome (My Bride is Mermaid). I am sure I talked a bit about this show when I made a post on how I became an anime fan that can be found here.
I still don’t know if I would be able to uphold my promise of posting at least once a week because I have to juggle work, watching, playing and writing. I wouldn’t be able to write anything anyway if I don’t get to finish a show that amazed me or surprised me in a way, so the prerequisite for me to write is a bit a hard to meet (I know that I am just being picky but I would rather write about shows that I like than those that I hate). Well that dragged this introduction to quite a lengthy whining so I would end it here and start the article proper. Let’s roll!
Seto no Hanayome (My Bride is a Mermaid)
Genres: Comedy, Parody, Romance, School, Shounen
Studio: Gonzo
How can you say that a comedy show is good? I am pretty sure that there won’t be a clear cut answer to that since as what many people claim, comedy is subjective. That is, some people will laugh at a joke that others classifies as “corny” or the other way around. However, if I were to answer that based on my own “taste” then I think a comedy show is good or effective when it made me laugh for a minute or two… after the episode has already ended or when I would have to stop the video, laugh like a mad man and disturb the people around me and catch my breath, then repeat that process for numerous times in the entirety of a single 23 minute episode. I guess that sums up my experience with this show. I am in no way saying that this is the best comedy show out there but it is definitely among the best, at least for me.
Now let’s talk about the show and what made it a hit for me. Well I will be starting with a major spoiler - there are mermaids in the show. That might come as a surprise, no? Seto no Hanayome is a show about a boy named Nagasumi Michishio that, (un)fortunately almost drowned during his vacation and ultimately got saved by a mermaid named San Seto or San for short but of course everything will not end with just that since we won’t have any story to tell otherwise. As a catch, due to mermaid rules and laws Nagasumi should marry San otherwise one of them should die. Long story short go drown yourself and you will be living the life of an anime protagonist, that or you will be fish food. I am just kidding please don’t try anything fishy guys * ba dum tss *.
I wouldn’t like to dwell on the plot too much since like most anime shows that falls on the same category, the plot is just there to bring something unique and something that would facilitate the introduction of more characters but other than that we can forget about it and still have a decent show that punches you in the guts with its humor. So let’s go and talk about its real meat - characters, parodies and references and 4th wall breaking (my cup of tea everyone).
I don’t know how many times have I already mentioned my bias towards rom-com shows but I will state it here again just in case. This show fits the mold of rom-rom shows to a T, there are numerous arrows of love flying around creating interesting love dramas and funny rivalries, there is also a large cast that are given distinct and mandatory roles for the genre like a childhood friend, a bespectacled girl that is secretly a beautiful girl without the glasses, an idol, a comical sidekick and many other cliche roles but the mix that show came up with, definitely is the right one for me.
Characters
There are at least around 10 characters that I could expand but that would be too long and as things stand for me that would be too much as I am only able to slip writing on my schedule for now so I will limit it to the ones that played the notable roles.
First up is the main guy Nagasumi Michishio that accidentally drowned during his summer vacation in the Seto island and bagged a waifu in the process. He is the very definition of a normal boy, until, of course that fateful encounter. Throughout the series he grew a lot.
Well he grew literally on one episode but what I mean is that he grew from a boy to a man that can stand on the same stage as San and her family. He also has a lot of funny and badass moments but his moments during the final episode would put a lot of shounen MCs in the dust.
Next up is the main heroine San Seto, the mermaid that saved Nagasumi and the daughter of a prominent under the sea Yakuza. She is an airhead by default but becomes a completely different person once she wields a sword. She is without a doubt one of the most likeable character in the series because of her strong conviction and her catchphrase “The alternate way of reading ninkyou (chivalrous spirit) is Ningyo! (mermaid)”, that although gets repeated a lot of times in the series doesn’t get in the nerves, compared to the one with the girl that says “Ie senpai” every start of a battle anyway. Not to mention that her accent (I think it is Kansai which I find cute and unique) is kind of an additional charm to her.
Then there is the girl that spiced up the romance section of the series midway, the idol and also a mermaid childhood friend of San, Lunar Edomae. When I first watched this series, she was actually my favorite (maybe because I have a tendency to side on the losing side) but on this re-watch I switched to San because of Lunar’s switching personality that I didn’t mind when I was younger, but I do now. As an idol she has a persona that makes her appear as a cheerful and bubbly girl but her real self, a savage, proud and sadistic girl shows whenever she’s around people that knows her personally. Though her unrequited love for Nagasumi is quite a cute contrast to her character, that was unfortunately not expanded much further on the second half.
As I said earlier there are a lot of the characters that I could talk about but that would be too long so I will just make a quick pass at the other characters with long screen time real fast. Gozaborou Seto, San’s father and the leader of of Seto Gumi. He loves San too much that it makes him mad when he thinks that San is going to marry Nagasumi so he often tries to remove him out of the picture… in any way possible.
Masa, the dandy afro guy that stole Nagasumi’s first kiss that makes his appearance in a scene and Nagasumi’s reaction towards him a running gag (no homo though… maybe?).
Ren Seto, San’s mother and the one that acts as a counter force for her husband and his plots. She also has a habit of teasing Nagasumi. Giggity!
Let’s skip Nagasumi’s parents, they’re negligible lol
Then there’s the Seto Gumi’s fierce assassin, Spiral shell Maki. She is San’s friend that doubles as her bodyguard as well. She serves under the direct order of Gozaborou and tried to kill Nagasumi in numerous circumstances.
Mawari Zenigata aka Omawari (policeman), a childhood friend (you know the drill guys, offer your prayers to the ever losing childhood friend trope) of Nagasumi and the daughter of the Superintendent General hence the nickname. She is the school disciplinary committee president and is supported by majority of the girls in their school (this information is relevant during the “Sun vs. Lunar faction war”.
We have a lot of girls in the series but we also got ourselves a rival for San’s attention with the introduction of Kai Mikawa, the son of the largest conglomerate in Japan and an old friend of San (RIP). He is rich, good looking and strong that ordinary girls fell for him in an instant however he has a trauma of open areas making it another running gag in the series.
Next is Hideyoshi Sarutobi or Saru (monkey) because why not? He is Nagasumi’s friend but later on defected to Kai Mikawa and served as his right hand man and best friend (top 10 anime betrayals candidate right there).
Akeno Shiranui, a mermaid that facilitates the examination to determine the ability of other merfolks to blend into the society and judges them whether they would stay or if they would have to return to the sea. She is aloof and strict that make others hesitant on approaching her. She has the largest bust among the school girls by the way ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°).
Finally, my second favorite character that sadly was treated like John Cena throughout the series, Iinchou (Class President). Yes, she was not even named after 26 episodes, 2 OVAs and a whole episode dedicated for her. I guess that’s for the better since I would have been torn on who to root for if she was developed further because she is earnest and loyal to her feelings just like San so that would have been quite a problem for me who supports the ones that puts the effort like Marika Tachibana of Nisekoi and Miuna Shiodome of Nagi no Asukara.
Arnold Schwarzenegger also made an appearance in the show and played the role of the terminator. Just kidding, that's Lunar's father that was also not named throughout the series so people in the series refers to him as Lunar Papa or Edomae.
Guess that’s it for the characters, though I left some out I think I already highlighted the noteworthy ones.
Humor
This is where this series shines the brightest. Its humor consists primarily of exaggerated and varied expressions accompanied by masterful voice acting (this is one of the reasons why I usually watch Japanese dubbed anime), parodies and references, 4th wall breaking and other absurd moments that will have you gasping for air. I am not sure if I can explain what is going on with this series with my words alone so I will just put some images and I will let you be the judge of it.
The many faces of Nagasumi
Guess the reference
Breaking through the 4th wall
Things that will make you say “WTF?”
These are things that other shows in the genre made use of as well, but the way this show utilized them just brought these tropes to a higher degree of comedy and made them funnier than most of their contenders in the field of comedy.
Romance
It is a rom-com show for a reason so it is a given that there will be at least some cheesy moments from time to time though the comedy is still the more prevalent ingredient in the mix. The romance part was strong during the middle when a love triangle popped but it is the ending that completed this series for me as real rom-com series.
Though Nagasumi and San are basically a couple already from the first few episodes, they were almost never developed further aside from living in the same house. Their relationship was put into test by Lunar’s emerging feelings during the middle of the series but as one would expect, that matter only served to strengthen the bond between the two. The final part however made more impact because it was Nagasumi that stepped up and proved his worth as the guy that will stand beside San forever, he was so dashing at the moment that even Gouzaburou acknowledged his spirit. Nagasumi is a normal boy in the story but he slowly grew as one of the strongest character in the series, not only physically but also spiritually and emotionally. The last moments of the final episode made it clear how well San and Nagasumi as a pair is and it made it clear that there is no other way around it.
Final Thoughts
What else can I say? If you are just looking for some good laugh then you’ve got a deal. Though the series is a bit old now (It aired on 2007) the animation isn’t something that will cause a problem to your enjoyment. It also has one seriously catchy opening song and it was especially effective to me since I can still remember watching this show on free tv in my country around 7 - 8 years ago (If my memory serves me right) making the song more nostalgic than catchy for me.
This is a show that has one of the biggest contribution to how I became a fan of anime so it would always have a soft spot in my heart and I won’t be ashamed to say that I consider this as one of the greatest shows I have seen on the span of my short/ long time as a fan of anime.
One downside though, I read the manga 2 years ago but I hit a dead end since I can no longer find translated chapters after around chapter 70+, what I am trying to tell is that even if, by chance, you also get to love this series, you may not be able to get to the real end of the series. I am hoping that some group will pick it up someday, but at this point I can only wait. Well the ending of the anime is a solid one in its own right, stuffing it with comedy, action, romance, more comedy and warm heartfelt goodbye that made me feel sad, happy, nostalgic and made other types of emotions to burst at the same time. Truly a piece that I will keep coming back to.
PS. I highly recommend to watch the OVAs too, not just for the additional laugh but also for the thriller part on the second OVA, that is some real good one and goes to show how great the series and its creator is because of how well the show can make the viewers experience complete opposite emotions in a single episode.
I will be ending this here, got too absorbed and wrote a novel but totally worth it since it is for one of my original starter series. See you again next week(?)
Ciao~
All images are from the series. All rights belong to their respective owners.