Review of Bakuon!!

Ah, Bakuon. Described by the author as a light hearted "High School Girls X Motorcycle Comedy", Bakuon delivers just that in a nice slice of life package. As a motorcycle enthusiast myself, it's refreshing to see an anime genre that I otherwise would have cared nothing about stepping out into some new themes. As far as I know, Bakuon is the first example of an anime about motorcycles- which definitely earns it points for originality. The character archetypes, however, may not be the most original, but the personalities implanted into them give them a lot of life and variance from the typical moe moe SOLdesu offerings rampant every season. Enter Hane, the airhead, idiot character. After getting smoked on her bicycle by a motorcycle on the first day of school, Hane decides that she's going to go out and get a motorcycle. At school, she meets up with fellow enthusiast Onsa, the sensible, gear head who knows all about bikes. After they decide to form a club with the resident Stig Raimu and spoiled, dimwit rich girl Hijiri armed with her butler, the group is set... except for one: Rin.

In every group of motoring enthusiasts, there must always be that purist- an insufferable, near rabid fanatic of one brand, and that brand only. Embracing all the flaws, or a severe case of denial, this lover of all things < insert brand > can be your best friend, or worst enemy. In this case... Rin is the worst enemy of all bikers- an intolerable Suzuki addict.

Each character in the story also represents a different manufacturer and aspect of the typical personalities you find in bike culture, so there's a little something for everyone who cares about such things. We have the veritable bike encyclopedia in Onsa, extreme fangirl in Rin, the noob in Hane, the "money fixes everything" in Hijiri, and the racer in Chisame. If there's one thing Bakuon does really well, it's getting the bike culture feel right- with tons of references and factual, true statements about different machines (and their riders), and a lot of in-jokes for the raiders among the viewing populace. Raimu-senpai is the Stig's Japanese Schoolgirl cousin, and Ducati and Euro-bike riders get mercilessly crapped upon, as they should. No one is safe however, even the 4 major Japanese brands. Kawasakis leak, Hondas don't start cold, Yamaha transmissions break, Suzukis have electrical problems, everyone gets crap!

That said, Bakuon is not for everyone. This show is targeting a very niche audience of motorcycle enthusiasts, and is about the last manga I expected to be picked up for animation. People expecting some kind of lesbian romance or drama will be sorely disappointed. With a handful randomly placed, but rather tasteless sexual humor moments, there's a few nuggets for the fanservice lovers among us, which I didn't enjoy very much. This show is a slice of life in its purest form however: just a group of chicks, their bikes, and the adventures they go on. For me, I laughed all the way through, just as I did with the manga, and an enjoyable romp it was, even if it was just a brief 13 episodes.

Things Bakuon gets right:

- almost perfect adaptation of the manga
- no stupid romance
- informed bike humor, things only people invested in the culture would get
- factual information about the bikes in the show, and other bike culture
- The Stig

Things Bakuon gets wrong:

- unnecessary fanservice
- calling Onsa frizzy (translator error, but this is my place to complain)

Watch if you like motorcycles and bike jokes, otherwise, give it a pass.