Larger Than Life: Fat Girls' Club
~by Chiriko

From time to time, there are works of a specific genre that are so incredible they become the exemplary standard for the genre itself. Star Wars. Lord of the Rings. And now... Fat Girls' Club. Fat Girls' Club, a new release from Studio Debu, is a little-known show and a true gem. So far, no American company has licensed it and I doubt any of them ever will. But I assure you, find this show and you will be delighted! I was pleased once I got the torrent to work. (Note: because a lot of the names rely on really weird-ass readings and puns, I'll be putting certain things in Japanese, on the offchance I get the joke. :P)

Fat Girls' Club aired in late 2003 at a 3 a.m. timeslot in Japan. The title is somewhat grammatically incorrect, but it seems like the mangaka was beating around the bush (going for more 'wide' than 'fat') a little bit... at any rate, the English title is "Fat Girl's Club," which makes it grammatically incorrect in both English and Japanese. Who knows; maybe the author was playing off the fact that he set it at an American University in Tokyo? Who the fuck knows...

Let me get down to brass tacks about it: Fat Girls' Club is a harem anime in the tradition of stupid crap like Tenchi Muyo or Love Hina, but it's generally far more perverted, funnier, and, um, as you may have gleamed from the title... all the girls are plus-sized. The great thing about this show is that it's genuinely funny and weird, and unlike the other pretty lame shows in this genre, it doesn't take itself seriously and doesn't stop at the boundaries of fan-service.

The first episode (titled "This Dorm is For Fat Girls Only!") opens with a scene in which three average-looking Japanese guys are hanging out in front of a college campus. The sign at the gate of the college informs us (in English) that this school is "International University the Tokyo." Two of the guys are talking about how desperately they need to get laid and commenting on cute girls as they walk by. Then the two of them rib Junichi, the third guy, telling him he's too shy and should lose his virginity already. Junichi replies that he's been waiting for that special girl his entire life, when suddenly he stops mid-sentence, his eyes fixated on something. The other guys notice he's staring at a group of girls, and the camera cuts to various "service" shots of the hot girls Junichi seems to be staring at. They agree with him on one hot girl they'd like to get 'closer to' in particular, but Junichi isn't paying attention (and they poke him and go "moshi moshi?" very typically). We hear a soliloquy in which he asks himself "Could that be her? The one I've been waiting for?" And, as it's love at first sight, the camera pans in on... THIS:

And so begins the greatest harem anime ever, one that is genuinely funny and enjoyable enough to non-otaku that I would recommend it here. The story centers around 23 year-old Junichi Mori (森純一), who (as I mentioned before) is still a virgin, having never found a girl he clicked with. After the theme song (titled "koi no FRUITS" / 恋のフルーツ), Junichi freaks out and realizes he's late for something, and rushes off. (The guys comment on how he needs to get laid.) He runs across the campus and we're introduced to him in voice-over format. He mentions that he's attending International University the Tokyo (keep in mind that every time it's said in the show they say the entire long phrase in terrible English) with his 18 year old sister, Junko (純子). "The other guys say I need to get a girl, but seeing my sister's smiling face is all I need." Okay, so he's your typical harem-anime doormat. And he's kind of creepy.

The next scene is a comically timed weird face paired with a whiny "but I was only five minutes late!" from our protagonist. A rather old-looking man from behind an official-looking desk (the placard on which reads: MR. WHITENEE XD) apologizes and tells Junichi that due to his unusual 'situation' (more on that later) he had been personally guaranteed a job and a place for him and his sister to live and work at the University; however, the other students have already come and chosen positions in every one of the dormitories. Then he gets a twitchy look on his face and gives our hero the "but there is one more building available..." shtick. There's Taihei (太平) Hall, a building designed by the university for girls that are... well, fat. He keeps talking along a bullshit "although it'll be a huge imposition for you, it's the one choice you have," speech, not noticing that Junichi's eyes are filling up with tears of joy. Junichi leaps to his feet and bows to Mr. Whitenee, screaming a multitude of extremely-polite thank-yous while sobbing. The old dean laughs and tells him he's inspired by Junichi's fine spirit and -- I swear, he says this -- "American work ethic." Junichi thanks him and excuses himself before jumping for joy in the hallway. It's here that we learn that Junichi has a fat girl fetish -- a secret only his (extremely skinny) sister knows.

This is one of the tamer moments in the show, at the end of the first episode. Despite the screenshot, it's actually a sweet moment.

So, he breaks the news to Junko, who throws herself on him and tells him she knew she could count on him, to which he nosebleeds and turns bright red. They move into the dorm, and we're introduced to the heavy-set girls he'll be in charge of: Ayumi Kasugai (鎹あゆみ；「チーズ」), a ditzy girl with black hair, nicknamed "Cheese" because she loves cheese; Momoko Shiina (椎名桃子；「ム」), a short pink-haired hyperactive Okinawan psychopath who's always scheming, nicknamed "Mu" because she loves milk; Yoko Sendou (仙道よう子), a quiet, tall girl with black hair who always seems depressed; Hiroko Kimura (木村広子), a girl with green hair and glasses who invents things, and Maru Sagawa (狭川マル；〇ちゃん), a gigantic, blue-haired girl who is kind and soft-spoken, radiates warmth, all that other stereotypical anime-fantasy girl-crap... yup, that's right, it's the girl from earlier. Junichi's dream girl. The first episode ends with Junichi accidentally (and formulaically) walking in on Maru in the bath and then falling asleep with his sister next to him (and she's rolling over on her futon in her sleep). Get used to seeing hijinx like this at least once an episode! The second episode is a general sort of "settling in" episode in which we see other aspects of Junichi's college life with his sister. We also learn that apparently the segregation of fat people is something the American university staff came up with "for the benefit of the feelings of those students who do not fit the popular ideal," which I basically translate to bullshit mangaka for "I have a fat girl fetish." Okay, so the series sounds pretty bad so far, right? Well, remember, sometimes you have to let them build some momentum, and this show is definitely one of those; things start getting really good at right about...

Sydney in action, boomeranging poor Junichi.

Episode three! With the arrival of a mysterious plus-sized exchange student, the characters' momentums and reactions ascend to the level of comic genius. The exchange student is a heavy blonde girl from Australia named Sydney Koala (コアラ・シードニ－) who speaks perfect Japanese mixed with terribly-pronounced and totally random English words thrown in. She has two pets, a bird named "Cake" (ケーキ) and a Koala named "Cream" (クリーム) who serve as the mascots of the show. She's a dynamo character but is a bit more violent than Mu, but both are extremely reactive; they play off each other well. And yes, she does bust out the boomerangs in traditional stereotypical form to keep Junichi's "perversion" (his typical 'accidental mishaps') in line. The most interesting part of the show is how Sydney and Junko team up against Junichi in a number of really funny discussions. It basically goes through phases of reaction-based comedy that have effective timing, clever puns, and random zany humor the quality of which you wouldn't normally find in a harem anime; I would say with confidence that the reaction-based and slapstick levels not only surpass that of Rumiko Takahashi but are also much more fresh and clever.

The story is better than most of Takahashi's work, too, especially as the serious side of the show unfolds. In the fifth episode, when Maru and Junichi get seperated from the group and lost on what started out as a really funny ghost-hunting episode, they have their first tender moment in which Junichi reveals his tragic past; his parents died when he was in high school, leaving him to care for Junko. Although his family's finances, carefully budgeted, could take care of them through college, Junichi had to use it to pay for an eye operation for Junko, and that's why he had to take the job at Taihei Hall. A weird love triangle develops between Hiroko, Maru, and Junichi, which results in a number of mishaps including Hiroko inventing a zany key to Maru's diary, but almost getting caught and dropping it in reach of Junichi, who thinks Maru intentionally left it there so he'd read it. In another episode, Hiroko challenges Maru to a bake-off to prove who is more feminine and they make something like 5000 anpan each (and Junichi has to decide the winner!). Another arc involves the ever-growing friendship between Junko and Sydney that actually results in them confronting lesbian feelings for each other (and in a total nose-thumbing at stupid fanboy anime, it's done tastefully without any fanservice at all, focusing on the dramatic and emotional content), and yet another story towards the end involves Yoko being potentially suicidal because she comes from a family of professional figure skaters but isn't graceful like they are. (Junichi cheers her up by telling her that she's beautiful and graceful, even if she can't skate very well, and then she skates (in a skimpy skating outfit >.<) really well for the winter matsuri skating show! The only characters who aren't too deep are the comic-relief shenanigans of Cheese and Mu, and they more than make up for it with their constant meddling in everyone's affairs; they also have their own very zany subplots and tend to keep the 'adventure' side of the show moving (example: They're the ones who demand -- er, organize the ghost hunt in ep. 5). And of course, in that ghastly tradition of things, there's a hot springs episode. -.-; And zany mishaps. -.-;;;

All in all, I initially downloaded this show looking for something really awful to top terrible fanboy fodder like Hanaukyo Maids, but instead I got a show I really enjoyed. Not only is it an atypical "harem" situation, but the girls act like real people, they aren't fetishized to the degree you'd expect (especially from one trying to cater to such a niche audience) -- essentially, the message of the show might even be as deep as "fanboys, it's time to settle; fat girls are every bit as wonderful as skinny girls, just like you're every bit as wonderful as skinny guys." Actually, after the first episode setup, hardly anyone even bothers to mention that they're overweight. They're just a diverse and interesting group of characters.

The saving graces of this show -- an excellent cast, superbly timed humor and delivery, wacky subplots, and general self-mockery are what make me able to get past the fact that it's a formula for otaku-lechery and disaster and actually enjoy it as a piece of entertainment. And for that, I give kudos to the Fat Girls' Club. Now, I'm not going to spoil the ending for you (although I do plan on making a shrine devoted to this show), but let's just say that Junichi gets a whole lotta love. ;) And for once, I'm not repulsed by a loser anime guy getting the girl.