Doujin Work is one of seemingly plenty anime now that are based on 4-panel comic strips. True to title, it’s an anime that deals with the messy world of doujinshi – and this series doesn’t shy away from the dirtier (yes, in that sense) aspects of it as well.

Defining aspects include:
- The awesomely named main heroine Osana Najimi (put it together and you have Japanese for ‘childhood friend’), who like many people has a fixation on getting rich quick.
- More interestingly named side casts, like Justice and his…maid-loli-esque-thing Sola/Sora.
- A typical 4-panel animation style with background people being faceless blobs.
- Short, 15 minute episodes – supposedly because the other half of the episode is live-action stuff, similar to the first few episodes of Da Capo.
- Dirty jokes and doujin.

Thoughts and bets after the jump.

In case you’re not familiar with doujinshi, it’s basically the Japanese equivalent, I suppose, of fan comics. Doujins are material that Doujin Work is one of seemingly plenty anime now that are based on 4-panel comic strips. True to title, it’s an anime that deals with the messy world of doujinshi – and this series doesn’t shy away from the dirtier (yes, in that sense) aspects of it as well.

So of course, an official anime that deals with unofficial manga based on anime is quite interesting. Being a 4-panel it’s pretty light and funny stuff, although the material may seem a bit awkward to some. But as long as you’re not too offended by dirty stuff, then this isn’t too bad. It’s all implied anyway, and a good test of the purity of your mind.

The humor is also hilariously ironic in a sense as well, in that a high school girl (which I’m spotting the age of Tsuyuri, Osana’s friend) is drawing hentai doujinshi about…schoolgirls. (The title’s “Bloomers Mandatory”)

Osana’s also an amusing but probably ill-fated character who I can sympathize with in her need to get rich quick. Being a school student in search of a job in order to make anime fanboying ends meet, I can probably say that Osana will suffer the usual fate of being perhaps a little too desparate for money – while I haven’t quite gone to the extreme of selling doujins, I can say that yeah, maybe not every job is worth taking. It will be interesting to see, as the second episode screencaps show, just how Osana gets…acquaintated with the material.

And from there there’s not too much else to say about 4-panel anime, as they really have no sense of direction usually, focusing mainly on quick gags and episode-long (if that) stories.

Coherent Plot – 5:1 odds on ‘Yes’
But I’d still bank towards this story having at least something stringing it together. Osana’s quest for money through doujinshi looks to evolve over the course of the series, and her past ties with Justice look like something that could be explored upon, in addition to the discovery of just who the freaking heck is Sola. Of course the plot isn’t going to get too serious or anything silly like that, but there probably will be a bit of direction to this anime.

Osana’s Success – 4:1 odds on ‘No way in hell’
As for the plot itself, Osana’s adventure is shaped to be rather ill-fated, as would be for any person who charges foolishly into action. Maybe it’s a bit too sitcom-ish but this is screaming “hey, let’s learn life lessons” in a comical manner.

Relevancy of the OP – 3:1 odds on ‘Appears in doujins’
Maybe it’s just me but I’m interested in seeing some of the scenes from the intro expanded on, such as Giant Justice with Eyebeeeeemus. That would make for some entertaining episodes, if some of the doujins were shown in animated format. Or at the least, the still frame manga format shown at the end of episode 1.

Tsuyuri’s State of Mind – 5:1 odds on ‘Relatively sane’
It’s just the eroge anime background of mine that wants to see Tsuyuri have some hidden background. Like, her perverted doujins are representative of a dirty past of hers (hello, Tsukihime) or a sexual outlet for her (”why can’t I ever be raped by tentacle monsters in my P.E. outfit in the gym room while the class watches”). But as usual this ends up in a ‘yeah…but no.’ situation. Tsuyuri probably just has weird tastes, like white guys like me who really like watching shoujo stuff like Cardcaptor Sakura.

That Weird Animated Underwear – 4:1 odds on ‘Never explained’
Seriously. Am I the only one that noticed that weird thing on Tsuyuri’s beret thing and in the ED sequence? It’s disturbing. But it’s seems to be your usual ‘random thing that’s alive that shouldn’t be that is just there to add cute value’…or something. Although, maybe I’m not the only one not into dancing pantsu.

Maybe, Tsuyuri’s being mind controlled by Magical Pantsu. PLOT GET.

OP Sequence Music – 2:1 odds on ‘Awesome guitar-ness’
Well, it is. The animation itself is a bit ordinary and plain, with a few neat sequences (Epic Pencil Grab, Giant Justice, etc) but I really think the music’s not too bad. It’s a bit disconnected, the vocals could be better but the guitar is pretty nifty, especially in the next episode preview thing.

Amusing Perverted Joke Count Over/Under – 9000, Over
lol I so funny. But really, I wouldn’t mind if they keep up the gags like the Tsuyuri’s conversation on the train (a bit predictable, but Osana’s “YURI JA NAI!” at the end really clinched it) and the overall awkwardness of “What the hell are you drawing, Tsuyuri”. I’d prefer it a bit on the subtle side (not like ‘hay look sex jokes lol’), but the way it’s going is good.

Halo Character – 3:1 odds on Tsuyuri
Tsuyuri really looks to carry the show, much like how many people think Konata does for Lucky Star. She looks strange doing what she does, but she’s passionate in what she does (the shiny scenes border on amusing and adorable). Her field of study is also amusingly awkward for…well…a high-school girl (as noted above). And Tsuyuri tilts a bit toward the quiet girl side. Even if they talk quietly, I suppose it counts, because I like it. So my vote’s on Tsuyuri for awesome. Justice has potential as well, though. (male meganekko? so be it…)

-CCY