Koko wa Greenwood (1991)
a.k.a. Here is Greenwood

How do they continue to come up with these things?  Those wacky Japanese!   Kazuya Hasukawa, also called Suka, is the most unlucky high school student in Japan.  He's fallen in love with the beautiful Sumire, but there's just one problem- she's the fiancé of his older brother, Kazuhiro!  When Kazuhiro and Sumire get married, he can't bring himself to live at home anymore, so he packs his bags and heads for Ryokurin Hall, an all-male dormitory also known as Greenwood.

That is, not until after suffering a stress-induced ulcer that causes him to miss the first month of school.  When he arrives at Greenwood, everyone else has already settled in.  There's Mitsuru, the dorm president and every girl's dream, who derives much pleasure in making life hard for Kazuya (including making him the next dorm president!).  Interestingly enough, any cut to his face will heal in under a minute (although we don't get to see that proved in the series!).  There's also Shinobu, the cool and collected student council president, who is Mitsuru's roommate.  Then there's Shun, Kazuya's new roommate, who happens to look just like a girl.  To top things off, Kazuya's brother has decided to settle down after marrying and now works as the school nurse.

Strange enough yet?  Meeting the cast of characters pretty much covers the first episode of this six part series.  In the second episode, Shinobu's sister and arch-enemy Nagisa arrives in town to wreak havoc.  This was a rather sadistic episode, and I didn't think that some of the themes, including the kidnapping of a young girl/boy was very appropriate, regardless of the humor of the situation.  Luckily, things lighten up considerably in the third episode when the residents of Greenwood decide to film a movie for the school festival.  The movie provides the basis for a tongue-in-cheek satire of manga and anime that really brings the house down (I saw these episodes in one night, with a big crowd).  In the fourth episode, the ghost of a junior high school student, Misako, relentlessly haunts Mitsuru and, ultimately, all of Greenwood.  This episode's best moment comes when Misako reveals the one task she must accomplish before passing on to the afterlife- kissing Mitsuru!  But who will Misako possess so she can perform the physical act?  Watch and find out.

The final two episodes focus back on Kazuya, as he struggles to express his feelings for a new love, Miya.  But Miya is on the run from a rival gang, and it is only a matter of time before a final confrontation and showdown occurs.  Can Kazuya uncover Miya's true spirit beneath the facade of a gang leader and find true love?  Not if Kazuya's trademark bad luck has anything to do with it.  These episodes provide a more serious, if not touching, conclusion to the series.

I enjoyed the series- to my own surprise.  It was so strange I didn't know what to think.  But the appeal lies in the "strangeness" and the unique personalities of the main characters.  The animation is nothing particularly special but it does the job in putting expression into the characters.   What you've got are quirky characters and quirky events that ultimately kept me captivated for the entire three hours.

Posted: 9-18-1998

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