Product Description

While there is a decided lack of rumble in School Rumble, there’s more hilarious humdingers than any single dinger can hum… Look that one up! And while there is a truck full of pigs, a giraffe, flying saucers and crazy dream sequences, none of that’s even close to what this show’s about. (Though I would probably watch that show, too!)

Here’s what you need to know: Sophomore cutie Tenma is completely crushed on classmate Karasuma past the point of freakin’ out. Tough guy Harima, with his own delinquent style of freak, has a long-standing crush on Tenma… And Karasuma? Can you say clueless? He’s pretty much all about the curry. Mmm… Curry!

With enough tangled triangles for an entire semester of geometry, just keep in mind… School Rumble – The absolutely funniest show you’ll ever see that’s not about anything that rumbles… Ever!

The Season One Box Set contains episodes 1 - 26 with over 600 minutes of side splitting fun!

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #21647 in DVD
• Brand: Funimation
• Released on: 2008-08-12
• Rating: Unrated
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Animated, Box set, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 5
• Dimensions: 5.00 pounds
• Running time: 610 minutes

Amazon.com
The course of true love seldom runs smoothly, but at Yagami High, where the teen comedy School Rumble (2004) is set,the road to romance is littered with potholes. Perky sophomore Tenma Tsukamoto nurtures a gritty crush on classmate Oji Karasuma. But Karasuma is so oblivious, he wouldn't look up if Tenma set off firecrackers under his desk. Her general klutziness doesn't help the campaign to his win his heart: she leaves a novel-length love letter in his locker, then forgets to sign it. Johnny Depp-esque bad boy Kenji Harima is smitten with Tenma, but he's even more maladroit than she is. Class representative Haruki Hanai ("he's like a walking encyclopedia, only more boring") falls for Tenma's younger sister, Yakumo, the only sane member of the cast. Surveying the situation, one of Tenma's friends presciently observes, "This doesn't bode well for the rest of the school year." The filmmakers keep the characters appealing although they remain terminally clueless teenagers. For all his bad boy posturing,Harima shows talent and discipline as he works to become a manga artist. But when an editor suggests having a friend review his story, Harima sulks, "A delinquent like me doesn't have any friends--not any who can read, anyway!" Director Shinji Takamatsu provides lots of laughs by turning everyday mishaps into outrageous spoofs of Inu-Yasha,Dragon Ball Z, Night on the Galactic Railroad, Close Encounters of the Third Kind,and the Matrix movies.School Rumble was followed by a second broadcast season and the OVA School Rumble: Extra Class. (Rated TV PG: suitable for ages 12 and older: comic violence, risqué humor, nudity, alcohol and tobacco use) --Charles Solomon

(1. Love Letter Mayhem! 2. Tough Test! 3. See and Sketch! 4. Pigs Go Oink! 5. Burning Hot First Love!)

Customer Reviews

One of the Best Anime Out There
School Rumble is a "Romantic Comedy" about a group of girls and boys that go to, you guessed it, school. I contend that it is more comedy than romance, as well as a good portion of "slice of life" in the mix.

The main love triangle of the series is between Tenma Tsukamoto's crush on Oji Karasuma while Kenji Harima loves Tenma. While that may not sound too interesting, trust me when I say that they stretch and test the boundaries of this triangle more than any I have seen in media, but in a very entertaining way.

One other thing I can appreciate is that this series, unlike several different anime shows out there, never gets vulgar to the point where it gets a mature rating. In fact, I'd say it's milder than most prime time shows, but twice as entertaining, and that is something I fully appreciate.

In short, please consider this worthy series to be with the rest of your DVD collections. You do not need to know much of anything about anime or Japanese culture in order to understand the series, as myself and several others have discovered.

Ready to Rumble!!!
"School Rumble" is probably my favorite modern comic from Japan. Equal parts straight comedy, bizarre strangeness and hilarious romance hijinks, it manages to get the mix just right and have me cracking up in a way I haven't done since Love Hina.

The basic premise is nothing unique. Boy likes girl who likes different boy who likes other girl who likes different boy who likes an entirely different girl who is in love with the original boy who liked the original girl. I remember when I first picked up the comic book in Japan, the display had a giant flowchart detailing all the romantic entanglements.

"School Rumble" has a great ensemble cast without any throwaway characters. Tsukamoto Tenma is the naïve cute girl desperately in love with Karasuma Oji. Why she loves Karasuma is a mystery, as he is a stone-faced oddball with no particular interests outside of curry, and who wears a kappa costume whenever it is raining. Tenma is loved by the delinquent Harima Kenji, who tries to balance his wild nature with his feelings for Tenma. Tenma has a supporting cast of girlfriends, Eri (the rich princess), Mikoto (the brawny and busty kenpo athlete) and Akira (the cool calculator) who each have their romantic entanglements.

What is unique is how the series is handled. The first few episodes are pretty straight forward, but then the whole storyline takes a quick turn to left field, almost as if the writer got bored with his original plan. I always tell people looking to check out "School Rumble" that they need to stick with it for a couple of episodes when the pace and quality really pick up. Out of nowhere, Tenma's little sister comes in, with the ability to read the mind of any guy who finds her attractive, which is everyone but Harima Kenji. Kenji suddenly becomes a long-haired fortune teller with the ability to talk to animals. Ichijyo Karen makes an entrance, a small girl with tremendous strength who can lift a piano single-handedly. Slowly, the Harima/Tenma/Karasuma triangle heads backstage, and the crazy fun begins.

The animated series follows the comic almost exactly, with the same story arcs and situations. They did a phenomenal job capturing the look and feel of the comic. Tenma is even cuter here, and Harima is even cooler. The way they handled Tsukamoto Yakuma's (Tenma's sister) ability to read minds was quite clever. The animators obviously knew that the comic worked just as it was, and did a direct translation to screen.

This DVD collection by Funimation is equally fantastic. It has the entire first season, 26 episodes, in four slim cases. I love getting a whole season on DVD that doesn't take up a lot of space on my shelf. I'm not a big fan of dubbing, so I can't comment on that, but the subtitles are excellent and do a great job of capturing the original dialog. There is also a bonus disk with cast interviews that was a nice surprise. Altogether a perfect package for a great series.

Fluff mixed with hilarity
So, I've watched the first 5 episodes of this anime so far and I must say, if you are looking for an anime where the heroine is a silly school girl who isn't too bright and has a major crush on the oblivious sweet guy while she herself has a suitor who's the bad boy in school but is just as silly and not too bright, then this is your anime.

Also, if you love Marmalade Boy, Kare Kano, or Mermaid Melody, you'll enjoy this too.

The fluff is perfectly mixed with the lovely artwork and silly plots. If you don't enjoy fluff and are looking for a more... intense school anime, you should check out an anime like Beck.