Monster Musume

Episodes 1-2

Monster Musume is a shamelessly trashy series that revels in finding convenient excuses to display its female cast in various states of undress. It's reprehensible from nose to tail, and decent folk should avoid it like the plague. I say these things with a heavy heart, because I have to admit that I thoroughly enjoyed this first pair of episodes. Against all odds, this show is a horrifying amount of fun.

The half-human chaos starts when hapless everyman Kimihito is mistakenly assigned to be the “host family” for Miia, a cultural exchange student with a snake tail where her legs should be. Miia is a lamia, one of a multitude of partially human species that are slowly integrating into society. Despite the mix-up, she takes an immediate liking to Kimihito and decides to move in with him. Miia is pretty open about wanting to get it on with her new housemate, but the law states that any inter-species rumpus will result in the human going to jail and the non-human getting deported. A bird-winged harpy and a sword-slinging centaur join the family in the second episode, sending the sexual tension (and the risk of fatal injuries) through the roof. Here's hoping Kimihito has good health insurance.

On paper, the whole “monster girl” gimmick seems like the kind of shark-jumping premise that should send a show completely off the rails. In practice, it actually allows Monster Musume to avoid some of the genre's most annoying pitfalls. Most harem comedies have to jump through a laughably elaborate set of hoops in order to convince us that it's somehow super inconvenient for the main character to be surrounded by a bunch of girls who want to drag him into bed. In this case, it's not difficult to make that argument. Over the course of two episodes, Kimihito nearly suffocates several times, dislocates his shoulder, falls out of a tree, gets lacerated by bird talons, and gets stabbed with a sword. When all the girls are capable of accidentally killing the main character, many of the most worn-out harem jokes get a new lease on life. For once, I can't blame the poor guy for sprinting away from whatever suggestive situation he finds himself in.

That mix of horror and sexual tension is the engine that drives Monster Musume's most entertaining scenes. Half of Miia is a buxom anime girl who makes up adorable songs about going on dates, and half of her is a slithering anaconda that can crush her crush to death in a karaoke booth. That contrast is put to good comedic use, helped by some genuinely impressive production values. Between the detailed animation and well-integrated sound effects, the monster girls move smoothly enough to sell the illusion. Every time Miia's tail slithers into frame to drag Kimihito into her clutches, the visual elicits both an involuntary shudder and a burst of laughter.

In case it isn't already obvious, Monster Musume is definitely not for everyone. If the offbeat humor and perpetually chipper characters don't click, then the whole thing falls apart. The show also runs inevitably close to the line of good taste on a regular basis. Miia's “look how defenseless I am” speech may set off some alarm bells, as will the fact that Papi the harpy looks and acts too young to be in a series this racy. (Yes, I know she's supposedly older than she looks.) As much as the show's harem antics are delivered with a wink and a nudge, it's still a boob show at heart. Thankfully, it's at least honest about it. The series makes no attempt to disguise itself as something more wholesome, and it doesn't look down on its characters for wanting to act on their instincts. Monster Musume is the rare show that's perfectly happy to focus exclusively on being a raunchy sex comedy.

There's a fine balancing act going on here, and there's no way to guarantee that Monster Musume won't implode without warning somewhere down the line. If you feel the urge to wash your eyes out with dish soap halfway through the first episode, then it's perfectly reasonable to walk away and never look back. If, on the other hand, you find yourself laughing constantly without being able to explain why, welcome to the club. At the very least, it'll be an interesting season.

Rating: B

Monster Musume is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

Paul Jensen is a freelance writer and editor. You can follow more of his anime-related ramblings on Twitter.