The appeal and evaluation of the Christmas special video of "Baka and Test - Summon the Beasts"

Baka and Test: Summon the Beasts Christmas Special Video - Detailed Review and Recommendation

Overview

"Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu Christmas Special Video" is an OVA released on June 25, 2010, and was created as a special video that delves deeper into the world of the light novel "Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu." This work is included as a video bonus in the packaged version of the third volume of "Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu" released by Media Factory. Although it is only four minutes long, it is something that fans cannot miss.

■ Story

Fumitzuki Gakuen is an advanced preparatory school where students are strictly divided into classes based on their results in the promotion test. While Class A is filled with gifted students and has excellent facilities, Class F is a poor environment with only worn-out tables and rotten tatami mats. Yoshii Akihisa, a student of Class F, challenges the "Exam Summoning War", a class battle using a system developed by the school, for Himeji Mizuki, a talented girl in his class. Will Class F be able to win against the powerful classes at the top?

■Explanation

"Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu" is a popular work that won first place in the work category of Takarajimasha's "This Light Novel is Amazing! 2010". The hugely popular light novel from Famitsu Bunko has been made into a TV anime, which fans have been waiting for, and released simultaneously on Blu-ray and DVD. This is a work that the strongest tag team of genius director Shin Oonuma and series composer Katsuhiko Takayama is serious about, and aims to be a comedy that surpasses their breakthrough work "Pani Poni Dash!" The unique characters are very popular, and the popularity of characters such as "Kinoshita Hideyoshi", who has been ranked first in the male character category of "This Light Novel is Amazing!" for two consecutive years, and the cute summoned beasts are also explosive. Each volume comes with a luxurious bonus that will make you smarter (?), and the first bonus is a double-sided newly drawn digipack specification with a BAKA desu NOTE (special booklet) enclosed. In addition, each volume comes with a lot of video and audio bonuses, such as new anime footage, live-action footage of the cast, and audio commentary. Fans should definitely watch the cast's extracurricular lessons, as they may even have the hope that they'll end up becoming smarter!

■Cast

・Akihisa Yoshii: Hiro Shimono・Mizuki Himeji: Hitomi Harada・Minami Shimada: Kaori Mizuhashi・Yuji Sakamoto: Tatsuhisa Suzuki・Hideyoshi Kinoshita: Emiri Kato・Kota Tsuchiya: Yuki Miyata・Shoko Kirishima: Tomomi Isomura・Yuko Kinoshita: Emiri Kato・Aiko Kudo: Yoshino Nanjo・Toshimitsu Kubo: Takuma Terashima・Miharu Shimizu: Ayana Taketatsu・Hazuki Shimada, Miho Sato: Mana Hirata・Kyoji Nemoto: Hiromu Miyazaki・Ryo Sugawa: Kei Goto Assistant, Hiraga Genji: Okamoto Nobuhiko, Koyama Yuka: Igarashi Hiromi, Nakabayashi Hiromi: Takayama Yuko, Mikami Yoshiko: Manaka Keiko, Nishimura Soichi, Command voice, narration: Otsuka Akio, Fukuhara Shin, Narration: Tsuda Kenjiro, Takahashi Yoko: Kakazu Yumi, Todo Kaoru: Nakamura Kaori, Hasegawa Sensei: Kageura Daisuke, Takeuchi Sensei: Manaka Keiko, Takenaka Sensei: Takahashi Shinya, Costume: Goto Keisuke

■ Main staff

・Original Story: Kenji Inoue (Baka and Test: Summon the Beasts series, Famitsu Bunko/Enterbrain)
・Planning: Atsushi Iwasaki, Isamu Shibata, Shunji Inoue, Yoshiyuki Matsunaga, Hayato Kaneko ・Series Composition: Katsuhiko Takayama ・Character Original Concept: Yui Haga ・Character Design: Miwa Oshima ・Color Design: Miyuki Kobata ・Art Director: Koji Azuma ・Director of Photography: Kosuke Nakanishi ・Editing: Jun Taguma ・Music: Nijine ・Music Producer: Shigeru Saito ・Music Production: Lantis ・3D CGI Director: Takeshi Sanada ・Digital Works: D-station (Ayumi Kamo, Yasuyo Yaegashi, Misaki Horiuchi, Eri Otsuka, Kazu Sato)
・Title logo design: Kosuke Nakanishi ・Plug-in cooperation: Kengo Watanabe ・Font cooperation: Fontworks ・Sound effects: Takahisa Ishino (Sound Ring)
・Adjustment: Toru Kumakura ・Sound Production: Kei Mayama ・Recording Studio: OP Requiem Studio ・Sound Production: Omnibus Promotion ・Editing: Takuma Editing Office ・Video Works: Q-Tech (Takashi Kubota, Katsuhiro Kimura)
・Program Promotion: Yosuke Aoki (TV Tokyo)
・Publicity and PR: Shinya Tsuruoka, Jun Kasai, Jun Ota, Haruo Sako ・Publicity cooperation: Tokyo Animator Academy ・Program manager: Yoshikazu Benitani (TV Tokyo), Tomomi Kyotani (TV Tokyo)
Planning cooperation: Enterbrain Famitsu Bunko Editorial Department (Keiko Kasai, Takuya Kawasaki, Keisuke Nagashima), Kadokawa Shoten Monthly Shonen Ace Editorial Department (Yoshinori Mino, Yoshihito Utsumi)
・Music production cooperation: TV Tokyo Music ・Production desk: Yoshimasa Fujii ・Literary: Ayumi Sekine ・Settings progress: Takayoshi Morimiya ・Producers: Tatsuhiro Nitta, Takashi Tachizaki, Yoshiyuki Ito, Yosuke Wada ・Assistant producer: Sachi Kawamoto ・Animation producer: Hayato Kaneko ・Director: Shin Onuma ・Animation production: SILVER LINK.
Produced by Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu Production Committee (Media Factory, TO Entertainment, Lantis, COSPA, Silver Link)

■ Main Characters

Akihisa Yoshii is a second-year student in class F at Fumitzuki Gakuen High School. He is a designated observer, a name synonymous with the King of Idiots. Although he has a simple, impulsive, and insensitive personality, he has a warm heart and will do his best for his friends and the weak.
Himeji Mizuki is a second-year student in class F at Fumitzuki Gakuen High School. She has excellent grades, good behavior, is beautiful, and even has a great figure. She is overflowing with feminine charm in every way, but her cooking skills are the only thing she is hopeless at.
Minami Shimada is a second-year student in class F at Fumitzuki Gakuen High School. She is a returnee who grew up in Germany and is not good at reading and writing Japanese. She has a competitive and aggressive personality, and most of her fangs are directed at Akihisa, but she sometimes shows her feminine side.
Kinoshita Hideyoshi is a second-year student in class F at Fumitzuki Academy. He is a proper man, but due to his cute appearance, he is often not seen that way (or rather, almost always). He is a member of the drama club and is good at acting. He is also good at voice imitations.
Yuji Sakamoto is a second-year student in class F at Fumitzuki Gakuen High School. He is a bad friend of Akihisa and the class representative of class F. He was called a prodigy when he was young. He is generally lazy, but when he gets serious, he uses his innate quick thinking to get things done by any means necessary.
・Kota Tsuchiya A second-year student in class F at Fuzuki Gakuen High School. A perverted man nicknamed "Mutsulini (the silent sexual expert)." He has a small, toned build and good athletic ability, but he tries to keep a low profile in order to satisfy his sexual curiosity.
Shoko Kirishima is a second-year student in class A at Fumitzuki Gakuen High School. She is the class representative and the top of her grade. She is a perfect superhuman, excelling in both academics and sports and looking good. She usually has a quiet demeanor and even exudes a godlike quality, but she has had a single-minded love for a certain person since she was a child.

■ Related works

・Baka and Test: Summon the Beasts ・Baka and Test: Summon the Beasts video bonus ・Watch Baka and Test: Summon the Beasts in the audiovisual room!
・Baka and Test: Summon the Beasts Mission:Impossible:Baka
・Baka and Test: Summon the Beasts Festival ・Baka and Test: Summon the Beasts Ni!
・Baka and Test: Summon the Beasts 2! Preparation Edition ・Baka and Test: Summon the Beasts SPINOUT! That's Our Daily Life. On an Expedition

■Detailed evaluation

Although the "Baka and Test: Summon the Beasts Christmas Special Video" is only four minutes long, it is a very valuable work for fans. This special video is included as a video bonus in the packaged version of the third volume of "Baka and Test: Summon the Beasts" released by Media Factory, and is something that fans cannot miss.

The story revolves around the "Exam Summoning War," a battle for the class of Fumitzuki Academy. It depicts Akihisa Yoshii of Class F struggling for Mizuki Himeji, a talented girl in his class. As Akihisa's passionate heart and his bond with his classmates are put to the test, the tension of whether Class F will be able to defeat the powerful classes above them adds to the overall appeal of the work.

The appeal of this work lies above all in its unique characters. Each character brings out their own unique personality and adds excitement to the story, such as Yoshii Akihisa's simple and straightforward personality, Himeji Mizuki's flawless charm, Shimada Minami's headstrong side, Kinoshita Hideyoshi's pretty appearance and acting ability, Sakamoto Yuji's quick mind, Tsuchiya Kota's perverted personality, and Kirishima Shoko's perfect superhuman presence. The comedy and drama woven by these characters is an element that fans cannot miss.

Additionally, the meticulous direction and story development by director Onuma Shin and series composer Takayama Katsuhiko are also superb. Director Onuma Shin draws viewers in with his meticulous direction, while Takayama Katsuhiko, known for his work on "Ga-Rei: Zero" and "ef," adds excitement to the series with his skillful story composition. This collaboration between them gives fans a sense of satisfaction that exceeds their expectations.

Additionally, the beautiful visuals by character designer Miwa Oshima are not to be missed. The designs bring out the individuality of each character to the fullest, greatly enhancing the visual appeal. Additionally, the beautiful colors by color designer Miyuki Kobata also enhance the atmosphere of the entire work.

Music is also an important element. The music by Nijine not only enhances the atmosphere of the work, but also plays an important role in expressing the emotions of the characters. The music production by Lantis is also one of the factors that improve the quality of the work.

The sound effects are also superb. The sound effects by Ishino Takahisa enhance the realism of the work and draw the viewer into the story. The performances of the cast are also superb, with the passionate performances of the voice actors who play each character, including Shimono Hiro, Harada Hitomi, Mizuhashi Kaori, Suzuki Tatsuhisa, Kato Emiri, Miyata Yuki, and Isomura Tomomi, adding excitement to the work.

■Recommendation

"Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu Christmas Special Video" is a must-see for fans. Although it is only 4 minutes long, it is packed with the charm of the unique characters, meticulous direction, beautiful visuals, and wonderful music and sound effects. In particular, it is a must-see for those who like characters such as Akihisa Yoshii, Mizuki Himeji, Minami Shimada, Hideyoshi Kinoshita, Yuji Sakamoto, Kota Tsuchiya, and Shoko Kirishima. It is also recommended for fans of Director Shin Onuma and Katsuhiko Takayama. In addition, it is a must-see for fans of each staff member, such as character designer Miwa Oshima, color designer Miyuki Kobata, music composer Nijine, and sound effects designer Takahisa Ishino.

This work is included as a video bonus in the packaged version of the third volume of "Baka and Test: Summon the Beasts" released by Media Factory, so be sure to get it. In addition, the entire "Baka and Test: Summon the Beasts" series is also recommended as a related work. In particular, "Baka and Test: Summon the Beasts", "Baka and Test: Summon the Beasts Video Bonus", "Baka and Test: Summon the Beasts Watch in the Audiovisual Room!", "Baka and Test: Summon the Beasts Mission: Impossible: Baka", "Baka and Test: Summon the Beasts Festival", "Baka and Test: Summon the Beasts Ni!", "Baka and Test: Summon the Beasts Ni! Preparation Edition", "Baka and Test: Summon the Beasts SPINOUT! That's Our Daily Life. On Expedition" and other works are not to be missed by fans.

"Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu Christmas Special Video" is a very valuable work for fans and is a must-see. Please enjoy this work filled with the charm of unique characters, meticulous direction, beautiful visuals, and wonderful music and sound effects.