Review of Akikan!

A guy drinks a soda and it suddenly turns into a hot girl! Add in the fact that the guy is a perverted high schooler and throw in a bunch of other akikans and you've got a comedic harem. Sadly, despite my strong initial interest in the great potential that the series could have become, the series takes a very apathetic plot sequence and doesn't do justice to either the characters or the overall theme. There are plenty of large plot holes and things that should have been explained that the production studio decided to just leave as is. The nature of the show is a combinationof comedy, romance, ecchi, and action, with an emphasis on the comedic/ecchi aspect. The storyline can be understood by a 5 year old and the linear progression is quite appalling.

There are much better harems/mysteriously-appearing girlfriend series out there. Unless there is absolutely nothing else to watch, I'd avoid this one.

Animation:
The animation is fairly average for a series in its time. It is apparent that some scenes received much more attention than others. While the overall series is colored nicely, the battle sequences were fairly basic and didn't contribute much to the overall feel of the series. There is also an abundance of fan service shots.

Characters are drawn fairly well overall but it ended up looking a bit childish (minus the overflow of ecchi shots).

Sound:
The OPs/EDs were fair but nothing that great. I liked the first OP more than the second OP but they weren't great. The ED changes a bit every episode but it's sort of electro-rap? BGMs weren't very memorable but at least the VAs were good.

Music: 2/5, VAs: 4/5

Story:
Akikan had a lot of potential early on. The theme of a can turning into a girl is quite unique but the concept was explored in as great of detail as I had hoped.

There is this tournament between steel and aluminum cans (no plastic/glass bottles apparently) to determine which will be the can of choice in the nation. Apparently the cans have special powers and are very physically strong and, obviously, there is tension between steel and aluminum akikans.

The majority of the show focuses on the slice of life daily routine of Daichi Kakeru as he teaches Melon about the world and school life, and the occasion not-so-ordinary fights with other akikan.

The plot is very simple and there aren't really any serious complications till the final few episodes in which a somewhat tense but otherwise pathetic climax is reached. The overall climax and resolution are pretty pitiful as it didn't really have to do at all with the series before the final few episodes.

They could have done so much better but it felt as if they just made this a secondary show as Gonzo did with Kaze no Stigma... quite disappointing.

Character:
Daichi Kakeru, Melon, and the other main characters had fairly unique and interesting personalities, but much about the characters' pasts and relations were barely explored.

The largest issue is that the characters just suddenly have strong bonds between the akikan and the "owners". Likewise, steel and aluminum akikans suddenly work together near the end. The development of the characters sometimes didn't match up with the plot sequences and thus the overall series just felt disorganized.

Value:
This is a light, ecchi harem. Don't expect any deep philosophizing or a well-developed plot line. Though some parts of the show were fairly humorous, the lack-luster story and childish character development really made this show fall short of its initial potential.