Papuwa · review
Before I start I will say that you should watch this Dubbed. The Japanese voice actors are good enough, but I feel that you only get the energy that the comedy requires from the American ones. It might also seem silly that I would rate this show a 10 out of 10 too and you would probably be right, because this show doesn't look good, it doesn't have a deep and interesting story, and to be honest the jokes probably wouldn't even be funny half the time if it weren't for the dub. Yet I not only enjoy Papuwa, but I adore it, I adoreit enough to put this on my favorites list, and not because the show is as flashy and stylish as something like Sayonara Zetsubo Sensei or Bakemonogatari, not because its as deep as Cowboy Bebop or Serial Experiments Lane, but because it makes me feel good.
This anime is fun to watch, and that is what makes this a 10. For starters the characters are all very strange. Not only is the main villain (or what could pass as the main villain as they're isn't really a central villain) a man who's anxiety is so extreme that he practices his lines to a wooden posing doll, but one of the goals of the main character is to become the most beautiful boy in the world. Then there is the variety and admittedly large cast of side characters that each get an ample amount of screen time to give you an idea of what they are like, or at the very least what their gimmick is but that in itself gives them some personality where other anime have characters that have no personality despite their gimmick. Then the large cast of sort-of villains have their own unique quirks that get built upon and give them personality as well.
Now before I get too carried away, I will briefly explain the plot: The main character Kotaro suddenly awakens from a deep slumber some time after the events of the first series, and yes it is a sequel series but you don't need to read the first manga series (there is a show but as far as I know it hasn't been subbed at all) to know what has gone on as the show explains at the beginning that Kotaro destroyed the first Papuwa island (where the events of the first series took place) and now through the magic of a blue and red orb a new island was born where the second series takes place. Kotaro then escapes the place where he was being kept and through a series of events lands on the second Papuwa island where he meets Papuwa, a boy who become his best friend and Liquid the man maid, who looks after him. After that the series is fairly episodic and needs to be seen to be believed.
Sure, maybe this isn't going to be someone's 10/10, maybe you'll even hate it, but I've watched this series several times over, and I still feel the same about it as when I first saw it. It's a comedy at heart, so the show is only as good as you believe the comedy is, and no amount of explaining is going to help you laugh at them. I've probably talked too much too, and the only reason I unloaded everything like this was because no one saw this, no one, and that's a shame.
For those who just skim towards the bottom: It's not deep, it's not beautiful, it may not even be funny to some people, but it has heart, and so does the manga its based on, so watch it please, and read the manga obviously.