"Kampfer" review: A school battle anime with charming characters and unexpected developments

Kampfer - Kampfer - Reviews and Recommendations

■ Public Media

TV anime series

■ Original Media

Light novel

■ Broadcast period

October 1, 2009 - January 1, 1970
TBS TV October 2, 2009 to December 18, 2009 (Episodes 1 to 12) Every Friday 1:29 to 1:59 (Thursday late night)
Chubu Nippon Broadcasting October 9, 2009 to January 8, 2010 (Episodes 1 to 12) Every Friday 2:30 to 3:00 (Thursday late night)
Sun TV October 12, 2009 to December 28, 2009 (Episodes 1 to 12) Every Monday 1:30 to 2:00 (Sunday late night)
BS-TBS November 1, 2009 to January 24, 2010 (Episodes 1 to 12) Every Sunday 0:30 to 1:00 (Saturday night)
Teletama July 2, 2010 to September 17, 2010 (Episodes 1 to 12) Every Friday 0:30 to 1:00 (Thursday late night)
AT-X July 5, 2010 to September 20, 2010 (Episodes 1 to 12) Every Monday 9:00 to 9:30

■Broadcasting station

TBS Television Network, BS-TBS, AT-X

■Frequencies

half an hour

■ Number of Episodes

Episode 12

■Original Story

Toshihiko Tsukiji (Media Factory MF Bunko J)

■ Director

Yasuhiro Kuroda

■ Production

・Animation Production: NOMAD
Production cooperation: King Records, McCray, Media Factory, Lantis, Dax Production, NOMAD
Produced by: Zoubutsu Animal Company, TBS

■Works

©Toshihiko Tsukiji, Media Factory/Zomono Animal Company

■ Story

Seno Natsuru, an ordinary high school boy, wakes up one morning to find himself transformed into an incredibly beautiful girl!
Furthermore, the stuffed animal suddenly begins speaking and tells him that he has been chosen to be a "Kampfer," a being dedicated to fighting.
Plus, he has to become a woman to fight the other Kampfers?!

One after another, the beautiful Kampfer girls attack Natsuru!
And with Natsuru having infiltrated the girls' division, a battle of love ensues! Will Natsuru's peaceful days ever return?

■Explanation

Loaded with beautiful girls! Loaded with battle action!
The highly popular high-tension school romantic comedy originally written by Tsukiji Toshihiko has finally been made into a TV animation!

■Cast

・Natsuru Seno/Marina Inoue・Akune Mishima/Yui Horie・Shizuku Misato/Kaori Nazuka・Miikoto Kondo/Kana Asumi・Kaede Sakura/Ai Nakajima・Harakiritora/Michiko Nomura・Sepuku Kuro Usagi/Yukari Tamura・Kanden Wildcat/Nana Mizuki・Chissokuno Raine/Mamiko Noto・Hiaburion/Kenji Utsumi・Hitomi Minagawa/Junko Minagawa・Suzuka Yamakawa/Kotomi Yamakawa・Sayaka Nakao/Eri Nakao・Rika Ueda/Kana Ueda・Masumi Nishino/Shiori Mikami・Chairman/Yuki Kobayashi・Vice-Chairman/Yuko Goto・Treasurer/Kazusa Aranami・Mikihito Higashida/Yoshihisa Kawahara・Homeroom Teacher/Rei Nakagawa

■ Main staff

・Planning: Hitoshi Murakami, Atsushi Moriyama, Taiji Misaka, Shunji Inoue, Tatsuya Ono ・Original story: Toshihiko Tsukiji (Media Factory MF Bunko J)
・Series composition/Fudeyasu Kazuyuki・Character concept/Senmu・Character design/Fujita Mariko・Art director/Hirose Yoshinori・Color design/Umezaki Hiroko・Director of photography/Yoshida Hiroshi・Editor/Takemiya Mutsumi・Music/Kato Tatsuya・Music producer/Ito Yoshiyuki・A&R/Sekine Yoichi・Music production/Lantis・Sound director/Ebina Yasunori・Sound effects/Yamatani Naoto・Mixer/Yamaki Daiki・Sound assistants/Gun Kazumasa, Yoshihara Hiromi, Akashi Takaren・Recording studios/studio DonJuan, STUDIO T&T, Tabak・Sound production/Ducks Production・Sound production staff/Hirata Satoshi, Omuro Masakatsu・Publicity, sales promotion/Yamazato Noriko・Publicity/Tanaka Mizuho・Planning cooperation/Higashiyama Atsushi, Takahashi Masatoshi・Serialization/Monthly Comic Alive (illustrations/Tachibana Yuu)
Official website design: Akiko Noguchi Video editing desk: Masaaki Okamoto Producers: Go Tanaka, Akihiro Kurita, Katsumi Koike, Yuji Takae Promotional producer: Misato Kaneko Director: Yasuhiro Kuroda Animation production: NOMAD
Production cooperation: King Records, McCray, Media Factory, Lantis, Dax Production, NOMAD
Produced by: Zoubutsu Animal Company, TBS

■ Main Characters

・Natsuru Senou
He is a self-proclaimed average high school boy, with average grades, average athletic ability, and average looks, but one day he is suddenly chosen to be the "Blue" Kampfer and is forced to fight the rival "Red" Kampfer. When he becomes a Kampfer, he somehow transforms into an extremely beautiful girl. His attack type is magic (Zauber), which allows him to create fireballs to attack. After transforming, he becomes a very beautiful girl, tall and with a fairly large chest. He instantly becomes the center of attention, not only among the male students, but also the female students. He has had a crush on Sakura Kaede since he was in middle school.
・Akane Mishima
A Kampfer from "Blue". A library committee member, her attack type is a gun (Gewehr). Normally, she is a timid girl with glasses, just like Natsuru, but she is actually quite good-looking and has cute mannerisms. She loves anime and books, and knows a lot about late-night anime. She has feelings for Natsuru, but he never notices, and she is always frustrated and disappointed by Natsuru's obsession with Kaede. After transforming, she becomes extremely bullish, belligerent, and violent in her attitude and tone.
・Shizuku Misato
She is the Student Council President of Seitetsu Academy and a third year student in Natsuru's senior year. She is a flawless, top-notch student, and a beautiful woman with outstanding looks and style. She is well-liked by students and teachers alike. She is one of the "two great beauties of Seitetsu Academy," and a charismatic figure among the male students. She is also the Kampfer of the red bracelet, which is the rival of the blue bracelet, and her attack type is two daggers (Schweat) attached to a chain. After transforming, the inside of her hair turns platinum blonde.
・Mikoto Kondo
A childhood friend of Natsuru's, one year younger than him. Active and innocent. Due to his adventurous nature, he sometimes shows incredible initiative. He seems to have had feelings for Natsuru for some time. He is eager to reveal the true identity of the female Natsuru, who is the subject of rumors at school. His red Kampfer uses an attack-type Japanese sword (Schwert).
・Kaede Sakura
She is an idol-like beauty at Seitetsu Academy, and is one of the two great beauties of Seitetsu Academy along with Shizuku. She was classmates with Natsuru since middle school and was good friends with him, but she fell in love at first sight with Natsuru when he became a girl, and after she believed Shizuku's lie that "Natsuru (♀) likes Natsuru (♂)", she unilaterally declared herself a rival to Natsuru (♂). She is a huge fan of the "Viscera Animal Series" and loves it very much.
・Harakiri Torana is Natsuru's messenger. A stuffed tiger with its innards sticking out, it has a foul mouth. Its charm point is its eye patch. It is good friends with Seppuku Kuro Usagi.
Seppuku Kuro Usagi is Akane's messenger. He is a stuffed black rabbit with its innards sticking out, and is very foul-mouthed. His charm point is his bloodshot eyes. He is good friends with Harakiri Tora.
・Kanden Wildcat Shizuku's messenger, a stuffed cat with its innards spilling out. It speaks politely and elegantly, but is still foul-mouthed. Its bristling fur is its charm point.
・Chissokuno Raiinu A stuffed dog with its innards protruding, who is Mizukin's messenger. It is timid and speaks in a low voice, but is still foul-mouthed. Its charm point is the rope wrapped around its neck.
A curious girl who is a member of various clubs, including the newspaper club. She is close to Akane and Mizukoto, and with her natural drive, she may be able to uncover the secrets of Kampfer...
-Chairman Natsuru calls him the chairman because he wears glasses and looks like a chairman.
Vice-chairman: He's the only one left, so he's called vice-chairman, I guess.... He's the most hedonistic of the three.
- Accountant: He is strict with money and always carries a calculator with him, so Natsuru calls him the accountant.
・Mikihito Higashida Classmate of Natsuru (male). He is the president of the illegal club, the Beautiful Girls Research Club, and only thinks about girls. He often gets involved with Natsuru, who has connections with beautiful girls, but he is often ignored.

■Subtitle

・#1/Schicksal ~The Chosen One~(2009/10/02)
・#2/Gl?hen ~The start of a deadly battle~ (2009/10/09)
・#3/Lilie ~The Secret Garden~(2009/10/16)
・#4/Kriegserkl?rung ~Fighting Maidens~(2009/10/23)
・#5/Kom?die ~First Kiss~(2009/10/30)
・#6/Heimkehr ~Friend or Foe~(2009/11/06)
・#7/Einladen ~Uninvited Guests~(2009/11/13)
・#8/Liebste ~First Date~(2009/11/20)
・#9/Hochsommer ~Tropical cyclone of love~(2009/11/27)
・#10/Falle ~A Summer Experience~(2009/12/04)
・#11/W?hlen ~Ode to Joy~(2009/12/11)
・#12/Weihnachten ~The Miracle of the Entrails~ (2009/12/18)

■ Related works

Kampfer for the Liebe
・Kampfer Bonus Video ・Kampfer: The Amazing Adventures of Elephant Moths!
・Kampfer Viscera Friend Park

■ Theme songs and music

・OP1
・Anrial? Paradise ・Lyrics/Minami Kuribayashi ・Composition/Minami Kuribayashi ・Arrangement/Masaaki Iizuka ・Singer/Minami Kuribayashi

・ED1
・One Way Mutual Love・Lyrics/Kodama Saori・Music/Tashiro Tomokazu・Arrangement/Ando Takahiro・Singer/Senou Natsuru, Sakura Kaede (Inoue Marina, Nakajima Megumi)

・IN1
・Falling in Love with My True Face・Lyrics/Saori Kodama・Composition/Yoko Minami・Arrangement/BY-P
・Singer: Sakura Kaede (Nakajima Megumi)

・IN2
・Darling Darling・Lyrics/Kodama Saori・Music/Minami Yoko・Arrangement/Miura Seiji・Singer/Mishima Akane (Horie Yui)

・IN3
・Experiment
Lyrics: Saori Kodama; Composition: Yukari Hashimoto; Arrangement: Yukari Hashimoto; Singer: Shizuku Misato (Kaori Nazuka)

Kampfer - Kampfer - Review

"Kampfer" is a TV anime series based on the light novel by Toshihiko Tsuji, and was broadcast from October to December 2009. This work gained popularity as a high-tension school love comedy filled with beautiful girls and battle action. Below, we will explain in detail the appeal and features of "Kampfer", as well as the recommended points.

The appeal of the story

The story of "Kampfer" is about an ordinary high school boy, Seno Natsuru, who suddenly transforms into a beautiful girl and fights as a warrior called a "Kampfer." This setting itself is very unique and draws the interest of the viewer. The scenes where Natsuru transforms into a beautiful girl and the battle scenes with other Kampfers are visually very enjoyable. In addition, the development where Natsuru infiltrates the girls' club and the battle of love begins also adds to the interest of the school romantic comedy.

Natsuru's reasons for fighting as a Kampfer and the backgrounds of the other Kampfers are gradually revealed, adding depth to the story. In particular, Natsuru's relationship with Sakura Kaede, whom he has had a crush on since middle school, his friendship with childhood friend Kondo Mikino, and his complicated relationships with Mishima Akane and Misato Shizuku add excitement to the story. As these intertwined human relationships intertwine, viewers will empathize with Natsuru's growth and struggles, drawing him into the story.

Character Appeal

Each character in "Kampfer" is unique and leaves a strong impression on viewers. The protagonist, Seno Natsuru, is an interesting character who transforms from an ordinary high school boy into a beautiful girl, and the contrast between his appearance before and after the transformation is fascinating. Natsuru's beautiful version after transformation also attracts attention visually, being tall and busty. Additionally, Natsuru's relationship with Sakura Kaede, whom he has had a crush on since they were in middle school, also captures the hearts of viewers.

Mishima Akane is usually a plain and shy girl with glasses, but when she transforms into a Kampfer, she becomes assertive and belligerent, which is a fascinating contrast. She loves anime and books, and is well-versed in late-night anime, which makes her character even more three-dimensional. Misato Shizuku is the student council president of Seitetsu Academy, and is an impeccable, top-student who is also fascinating. Her beauty and charisma leave a strong impression on not only the male students, but also the viewers.

Kondo Mikino is a childhood friend of Natsuru, and is charming for her lively and innocent personality. Her adventurous nature and feelings for Natsuru add depth to the story. Sakura Kaede is an idol at Seitetsu Academy, and her single-minded love for Natsuru will touch the hearts of viewers. Her love for the "Viscera Animal Series" also brings out the character's individuality.

In addition, stuffed animal characters such as Harakiritora and Seppuku Kuro Usagi also add humor and personality to the story, making it more exciting. The relationships these characters weave together and the battles they go through as Kampfers add to the appeal of "Kampfer."

Visuals and performance

The visuals of "Kampfer" are particularly impressive, especially in the design of the beautiful girl characters and the production of the battle scenes. The beautiful girl characters, created by character designer Mariko Fujita, are visually very attractive and catch the viewer's eye. In addition, in the battle scenes, attack types such as magic, guns, and daggers are realistically depicted, making for a visually impressive performance.

The technical capabilities of NOMAD, the animation production company, are also highly acclaimed. In particular, the scene where Natsuru transforms into a beautiful girl and the battle scene between the Kampfers are rich in movement and color, making them a visual treat. Additionally, the background art by art director Yoshinori Hirose also adds to the atmosphere of the story.

In terms of sound, "Kampfer" also shows excellent direction. Thanks to the skills of sound director Yasunori Ebina and sound effects specialist Naoto Yamatani, the power of the battle scenes and the emotions of the characters are conveyed realistically. In addition, the background music by Tatsuya Kato, who was in charge of the music, is used effectively in accordance with the development of the story, enhancing the emotions of the viewer.

Theme songs and insert songs

The theme songs and insert songs of "Kampfer" are also important elements that enhance the appeal of the work. The opening theme "Anriru Paradise" features Minami Kuribayashi's powerful singing voice and Masaaki Iizuka's dynamic arrangement, creating a high-tension atmosphere for the story. The ending theme "One Way Mutual Love" is a duet by Natsuru Senou and Kaede Sakura, and features a gentle melody that symbolizes the relationship between the two characters.

The inserted songs also bring out the individuality of each character. "Sugao de Fallin' Love" is sung by Sakura Kaede and expresses her pure feelings. "Darling Darling" is sung by Mishima Akane and is a powerful song that reflects her assertive personality. "Experiment" is sung by Misato Shizuku and is a song that matches her cool image. These songs have the effect of making the characters' emotions and the development of the story feel even deeper.

Recommended points

"Kampfer" is a high-tension school love comedy filled with beautiful girls and action-packed battle scenes that many viewers will enjoy. It is especially recommended for the following viewers:

• People who like beautiful girl characters
• People who like action battles
• People who like school love comedies
• People who like humor and unique characters
• People who are particular about visuals and performances
• People who are particular about theme songs and insert songs

"Kampfer" is a work that can be enjoyed visually and aurally, and you will be able to fully appreciate the charm of the story and characters. Please give it a watch.

Related works and their appeal

"Kampfer" has the following related works. These works will allow you to further enjoy the world view and characters of "Kampfer".

• Kämpfer for the Liebe
• Kampfer Bonus Video
• Kampfer: The Amazing World of Elephants!
• Kampfer Organ Friend Park

"Kampfer f?r die Liebe" is a sequel depicting the new adventures of Natsuru and friends, and allows you to enjoy an even deeper story and character growth. "Kampfer Bonus Footage" and "Kampfer: The Amazing Adventures of Zombies!" are humorous bonus footage that show new sides to the characters. "Kampfer: Zombie Friend Park" is a work depicting the adventures of stuffed animal characters, allowing you to enjoy even more humor and individuality. These related works are also important elements that further enhance the appeal of "Kampfer".

Conclusion

"Kampfer" is a high-tension school love comedy filled with beautiful girls and battle action, and is enjoyed by many viewers. It has been highly praised for a variety of elements, including the appeal of the story and characters, the visuals and direction, and the quality of the theme songs and insert songs. Please give it a watch. Also, by enjoying related works, you can gain a deeper understanding of the world view and characters of "Kampfer".