Machi Gurumi is yet another hentai from PoRO. If you're familiar with them, you probably know that many of their works have two things in common: 1) Incredible "vanilla" sex scenes 2) Really painful plotlines Well, that's Machi Gurumi in a nutshell. It traces out the downward spiral of events for two fairly likable (or at least sympathetic) girls. As such, it might be rather difficult to watch. However, if you can at least tolerate it (as I somehow managed to do, for reasons not entirely clear to me), you'll probably find that Machi Gurumi is hot. Very hot. So very hot that I can't say that itis anything but an excellent hentai. But then again, that's really all it is.

Story (6/10):

Machi Gurumi follows two very unlucky sisters (unlucky in the sense that they ended up in a PoRO title). The older sister (Takagi Atsuko) has just been hired as a teacher at a school, and the younger sister (Takagi Yui) is a student there. Their father also works as a clerk there. At this school, there is also a problem child, Kenji, and he is also the headmaster's dear son. When a brief series of events ends up alienating Kenji, the headmaster gives Atsuko the task of bringing him back, under threat of their entire family being kicked out. Of course, this being hentai, Kenji uses this opportunity to force Atsuko into having sex with him. In addition, a mysterious third-party starts blackmailing her. Caught between a rock and a hard place (pun intended), she has no choice but to soldier on. Unbeknownst to her, Yui is facing similar circumstances...

I kinda like the set-up. It's not brilliant, but it's pretty solid and rather complex for a hentai title. Other than the third-party blackmailing and separate-but-intersecting plotlines, though, it plays out like a typical blackmail hentai. Due to the nature of the blackmailing in this particular show, it gets pretty creepy; if you can't handle incest, stop a few minutes before the end of episode 1 or face the consequences.

There's a lot left unsaid in Machi Gurumi. A fair amount of background info on the family is implied but never stated outright. This certainly makes the show more interesting and even gives it some small sense of subtlety, but the ultimate lack of explanation results in a certain nagging curiosity. This, paired with the unfortunate fate of the heroines, makes the ending rather unsatisfactory. I was really hoping for some justice, but it simply never came (pun intended).

As far as I can tell, there's no deeper meaning to (or theme underlying) Machi Gurumi. It's just a sex-fest, like some alternate-reality, malicious version of Fukubiki! Okay, it's more like Oni Chichi. My point is, the story exists to provide a context and excuse for the sex. So, if you're not in it for the sex, if you can't handle incest, or if you can't handle rape, then Machi Gurumi has absolutely nothing to offer.

Character (3/10):

Machi Gurumi's primary draw is definitely not its characterization. The characters have, at most, a shred of personality.

Headmaster: Creepy jerk.
Dad: Disturbing creep.
Kenji: Creepy loser.
Atsuko: Caring, but naive and powerless.
Yui: Spunky, but powerless.

I find it easy to see how these characters could have been deeper. For example, Kenji could easily have been a sympathetic, socially-awkward character who disrespects others in the same way that they disrespect him. (That was actually my first impression of him.) With this set-up, Atsuko could have gradually helped him learn to interact with others in a positive way. But no, that would be an entirely different show. Machi Gurumi is not nearly that deep or that optimistic.

The greatest accomplishment of the characterization in Machi Gurumi is the strange sense of thoughtfulness that the heroines radiate. As easily as they fall into the common traps of blackmail hentai, they just seem more intelligent and pensive. It's hard for me to pinpoint what makes me think this, but it might have to do with the cinematography (a few lonely, quiet scenes), the sheer amount of internal monologue (a lot), or the fact that they just aren't quite as stupid as many girls in hentai (which doesn't say much). The sisters' trust in and loyalty to each other is also an interesting dynamic, but it is not fleshed out. Having only 2 episodes with a plot like Machi Gurumi's is not very conducive to building subtle relationships.

Art (9/10):

PoRO once again delivers on the visual front. The colors are bright, and the lines are sharp. The background art is actually fairly good, but for the most part irrelevant. The animation is mostly fluid, although it's nothing particularly impressive. Shortcuts like looping and talking-head-syndrome are used unobtrusively. The cinematography is strong, with good use of lighting and camera angles, but there's nothing hugely out of the ordinary. The scene composition is good, even moody at times, and the scene transitions are occasionally notably good.

The character designs are pretty reminiscent of other PoRO works. Suspiciously reminiscent, if you catch my drift. Similarities to other PoRO heroines aside, the girls look quite attractive. Designs are on the cutesy side without being lolirific. Eyes are empty pools of color (typical of recent moe-ish hentai). Proportions are reasonable. The heroines are very distinct in terms of body-type, providing a large amount of variety for only having two girls. In terms of outfits, it's basically just school uniforms and hair ornaments, but they do look good. The main males in this series are pretty diverse in design, but none of them are attractive. There's also a lot less detail given to them, and they don't seem to change their facial expressions very often (most notably the Dad, who has an unwavering blank expression and creepy smile). Interestingly, the men never remove any of their clothes. I think this says something about the one-sided-ness of the sex in Machi Gurumi.

Speaking of the sex in Machi Gurumi, it's all "vanilla," pretty much kink-less. To be honest, the sex is not particularly diverse. We see oral, anal, and vaginal, some inner-thigh action, several of the simpler positions typical to hentai, and a few different settings. Of note, the girls never take the lead.

Machi Gurumi makes up for a lack of diversity with incredibly erotic seximatography, excellent pacing, and a high level of explicitness. Camera angles are daring and dynamic, mixing close-ups with full-body shots. Positions are held for just the right amount of time to prevent stagnation without seeming jumpy or rushed. There is energy in the sex scenes, despite the fact that the girls are not taking any initiative at all. There is a large amount of movement and attention to detail, helping to mask the use of shortcuts like looping. Machi Gurumi is also surprisingly realistic when it comes to the amount of semen released during ejaculation. This means that if you like to see bucketloads of the stuff, Machi Gurumi is not going to do anything for you.

Overall, the sex scenes are very, very, VERY hot, assuming you can get over the fact that it's all rape. I'm not a big fan of rape scenes, but Machi Gurumi somehow doesn't portray rape as overwhelmingly harrowing. It's a welcome break from reality for a title such as this; I like not feeling awful.

Sound (9/10):

Overall I'm quite impressed with the sound. The background music consists almost entirely of synth-strings and piano, which sounds classy. The score also capably supports the mood; the music is hopeful and regretful at its happiest and eerie and menacing at its darkest. The ending theme is different for each episode, although both are fun little piano concerto thingees. The first is rather joyous, while the second is agitated. Both are good, but I wish the first were more appropriate to the mood of the show. By which I mean that I wish the show were happier.

The voice acting is a mixed bag. The girls deliver excellent performances in and out of the sex scenes. They're very expressive during sex, emitting all sorts of cries of pain and pleasure. The men...are passable. Kenji's voice is really breathy, and it sounds very, very creepy. The heroines' Dad kinda sounds like he just took a fistful of valium and is in happy tranquil fun land. Pair that with his permanent smile and somewhat blank expression, and he is on a whole new level of creepiness. He's like an evil, serial-killer version of Mr. Rogers. It's probably all intentional, but still, it's really unpleasant. Anyways, moving right along, the sound effects in Machi Gurumi are super-understated. If squishy sounds are important in your sex scenes, then Machi Gurumi is not going to be your kind of thing.

WHAT I MEAN BY ALL THIS:

I'm not going to kid myself into thinking that Machi Gurumi is good for anything but the sex. That's really all there is to it. It provides a decent set-up, a fairly intriguing story, and pretty good presentation, but these do not drive the show. They merely support the sex. And what sex it is!

It's a painful and creepy story, but the sex scenes flow from it in a way that works fairly well. It's rape, but it doesn't scream "PAIN!!!!" and "ANGUISH!!!!" at you until you feel like a terrible person. The men are ugly, but the cinematography minimizes their role. Machi Gurumi takes a story-type full of unappealing conventions and carefully downplays them in order to reduce them to non-issues. It's a bit surprising how effectively it does that.

As such, it's very possible to enjoy the sex scenes even amidst the horrifying context. And that's the whole point. So, if you want something that's mind-numbingly hot and "vanilla," and if you can deal with rape scenes, then Machi Gurumi is a pretty stellar hentai. Highly recommended for the sex, but not much else.