After that coincidental discovery of this ‘little gem’ last year, it was without any doubt that I was looking forward to watch its sequel, Ani Ni Tsukeru Kusuri Wa Nai S2. You know, the Chinese manhua about a brother so idiotic that his sister always had to beat him up all the time? Yeah. That one. It is more or less the same thing this time but I guess it must be popular enough that they doubled the number of episodes for this second season. Maybe some of us just cannot get enough of idiots being beaten up to a pulp. But they still rebound and continue to be idiots.

Episode 1
Military training! Because Shi Fen starts off on the wrong foot, he earns the ire and the wrath of his instructor. He is closely being watched. The instructor is not impressed with his lack of stamina as compared to his sister. But one morning, he is impressed with the perfect way to futon is folded. Shockingly it is from Shi Fen. This makes him wonder if Shi Mao is all on a different level. But Shi Fen explains how much a gorilla his sister is and hence cannot do delicate work. Here comes Shi Mao disproving all that as she gives the usual pain to her brother and folds him into a perfect futon!

Episode 2
With their allowances dwindling, looks like they need to get a job. But Shi Mao is not impressed that her brother is looking for a job for her. They also try auctioning their stuffs but there are no takers. Later Shi Mao takes a look at the stuffs her brother puts up for sale. To her horror, they are all her stuffs! One of them includes her prized lion plushie from Kai Xin! Meanwhile Shi Fen convinces Kai Xin to bid on the plushie. Don’t worry, he doesn’t need to pay. So when Shi Mao sees this, she won’t let the bidder bid her and outbids him. This results in a bidding war that drives the bid up to 500 Yen! Desperate Shi Mao then makes the ultimate bid: 10,000 Yen! Better stop playing. Shi Fen thought their expenses woes are over but learns the other bidder is his sister. Uhm so is she going to pay? This knuckle sandwich to his face is worth 10,000 Yen!

Episode 3
Kai Xin is quite the idol in the eyes of some girls during basketball practice. So when they go to give him their snacks and drinks, Shi Fen confiscates them. An excuse they can’t give such poison to their star player and hence he will dispose of them. Yeah, he is eating them all instead. With the girls mad and Shi Mao embarrassed by her brother’s shamelessness, a telepathic warning to go out there and show them what he’s got or else. So Shi Fen goes on court thinking he can impress Shi Mao. But when he throws the ball at Kai Xin, he accidentally throws it at Shi Mao’s face! You know what’s coming. No, not a big hug. But a big suplex!

Episode 4
Kai Xin notices Shi Fen chewing on a large candy in class. When the teacher calls him to read, how will he get out? He swallows it! This makes Kai Xin take up the challenge as he eats some fries. Shi Fen notices this and is amazed how using saliva to change its shape also makes sense. Now Shi Fen eats some very oily and greasy stuff that will surely attract the teacher. How does he get out? He uses the grease for his hair! The teacher backs off not wanting to get grease all over him. Banzai wants in so he makes instant noodles and eats it in front of the teacher. Busted.

Episode 5
Banzai almost gives away to his friends that he is rich as he suggests a backyard pool. Poor people don’t have that, right? He manages to distract them with a food stall selling dumplings. Despite its less than hygienic preparations and seeing how disgusting his friends chow them down, Banzai would not want to eat it but since it will put his commoner status in danger, he reluctantly does so. After all, he has the best doctors on standby should anything happen to him. The moment he east it, he loves it! Hence he is now addicted to it and Shi Fen thinks he must be poor. So addicted that Banzai now wants to buy the whole stall!

Episode 6
Shi Fen invites Banzai to hang out at his room. However it is hell since the air-cond is spoiled and somehow Banzai becomes his servant? But seeing he keeps the onyx stone makes him believe he still values their friendship. I guess the real test comes when Shi Fen wants Banzai to steal the fan in Shi Mao’s room. An argument ensues and Banzai is forced to do it or else he will be blamed for whatever sweat Shi Fen has. WTF. Banzai thinks Shi Mao was out (she just got back) and when he opens the door, he sees her lifting her skirt to be cooled by the fan. Heaven this isn’t because she throws the fan at him. Shi Fen’s consolation is a hot cup of instant noodles? Oh, the onyx stone? That’s such a convenient lid weight. Hell indeed.

Episode 7
Shi Fen warns Banzai that Shi Mao has now set her sights on him. There is no escape. Hence Banzai fears of seeing Shi Mao. Too bad that jinxed it because now that Shi Mao spots him, she is chasing after him like a Terminator! You can’t run or hide! Just when Banzai is cornered and pleading for his life, Shi Mao suddenly apologizes for hitting him. Here are some cookies to make up for that. Wow. She looks so angelic. But Shi Fen is still suspicious if his sister has actually made up with him. Could it be that her grudge runs deep because when Banzai eats the cookies, he almost died!

Episode 8
Well, Banzai is still alive as Shi Fen teases how lethal Shi Mao’s cooking is. However, he is left to wonder if this is the effect of her cookies because Banzai has shrunk into a kid! Actually he is Wan Xing and is Banzai’s little brother who is a new transfer student in Shi Mao’s class. Wan Xing tells Shi Mao that his brother happily ate her cookies. Yup. He repeated does so and Wan Xing noticed the happiness in his face when he ‘dies’. Shi Fen is confused when Banzai is back to normal. Then he sees Wan Xing and comes to a conclusion that the cookies must have split Banzai into two! As the brothers continue to stare at each other in a showdown, Shi Fen is still outrageous with this but messes up when he thinks Shi Mao’s cookies made her own boobs shrunk. Here it comes…

Episode 9
Shi Mao sees Kai Xin eating at the cafeteria and decides to join him. Such bliss. Then Banzai sees Shi Mao there and he too decides to join in. Such bliss. Yeah, Kai Xin blissfully eating like there’s no tomorrow. But all that bliss is interrupted when Shi Fen bugs them for a meal card since his is out of money. Noticing his sister is not taking the violent approach, he thinks he knows what is going on. First he borrows her meal card (in which she easily gives it to him), then he takes Kai Xin to go buy more food (despite Kai Xin still has a lot on his plate). Shi Fen signals to Shi Mao but it looks like he got the wrong idea thinking Shi Mao wants to be with Banzai! The bliss only continues for Banzai.

Episode 10
When Shi Mao passes buying a lipstick, Miao Miao chastises her for having dry lips. Imagine if she tries to kiss a guy she likes and her lips are dry… Can’t argue with that. Meanwhile, Kai Xin has problems. He was taking a nap during basketball practice when he realizes a girls tried to steal a kiss! Yeah, Shi Fen punching him. Jealousy? Kai Xin continues how his fans are getting more dangerous by the day. From planting wiretaps and stealing belongings, there will be time when they will steal his first kiss! Oh, what shall he do?! Don’t worry. Shi Fen has a solution. HE KISSES KAI XIN!!! There. His first kiss is forever lost. And Banzai thinks this is such a beautiful friendship. Sure being gay didn’t cross his mind? Meanwhile Shi Mao experiences a bad omen as her lipstick breaks. But she continues to put them on and fantasizes…

Episode 11
Banzai has to adhere to his strict schedule. At night, his mom calls all the way from her vacation in Dubai. She thinks he is not enjoying himself because of the commoner school he is going. In that case, she’ll buy out the school and kick all the poor people out, turning it into a first class hotel! Banzai doesn’t like that one bit because has made friends. Those fools? Mama can get him better friends! If buying out won’t do, he’ll have to quit. Even if that was a joke, Banzai has stormed out. Wan Xing tells mom that Banzai is doing this to get invaluable experience to be a greater man. Hence he is watching him and his friends. Mom entrusts the role to him. In school, Shi Fen and Kai Xin hate it so much they wish somebody would blow it up. But here comes Banzai as chirpy as a bird, loving and praising school so much.

Episode 12
As part of the infiltration mission, Wan Xing accompanies Banzai to Shi Fen’s house. Mom approved it as long as he doesn’t eat any commoner food. Wan Xing observes Banzai in the same idiocy mode as Shi Fen, eating spicy ramen and then dying from all the heat. He is then tasked to get the fan from Shi Mao’s room. Déjà vu because he sees her lifting her skirt. Luckily he is able to dodge the fan throw and block demon Shi Mao’s hard hitting punches. However Wan Xing soon passes out. Did the heat get to him? When he wakes up, Shi Fen gives him spicy ramen! But with assurance from Banzai he’ll be okay, Wan Xing takes a bite and loves it! When he reports to mama, she is shocked to see him eating ramen. Addicted, eh? His excuse: This is part of his research.

Episode 13
Kai Xin dozes off in class that he didn’t pay attention. So he knows he is in trouble when the teacher calls him to answer a question. However luck is on his side as he picks the correct answer. So thank this Sam dude? However in the next class he is not so lucky. Why did he answer Sam?! Then in the next class, Shi Fen dreams of this weird space sci-fi action scene whereby Sam sacrifices himself to kill the alien monster and let Shi Fen escape alone. Oh, such drama! So much so Shi Fen screams Sam’s name in his sleep and teacher is not amused. Too bad Kai Xin and Banzai also scream Sam’s name.

Episode 14
Shi Fen sees food left on Kai Xin and Banzai’s table from girls. Jealous, he eats them all! So what’s this about the thought that counts? Then he starts ranting about their popularity. Why isn’t he as popular as them? Yeah, he thinks he is good looking too. Reality check: Because all the girls hate him! Shi Fen is left to ponder if it is really true. More bad news when the class rep tells him he failed a test and must retake it tomorrow. However Shi Fen gets incensed knowing she is avoiding looking at him. He tries to force her to do so but she continues averting her eyes. Is it time for Shi Mao to pound some sense into him? But then she notices something. Did the class rep just blushed? Oh dear… But Shi Fen is left worried. Is he really that hated?

Episode 15
Shi Mao tells Kai Xin that the class rep definitely likes Shi Fen. She can tell a girl’s face in love. Kai Xin wonders if she is talking from experience and this sends her blushing. She continues saying how men are dense and I believe she isn’t referring to just her brother. Kai Xin and Banzai bug Shi Fen about the class rep liking him but he doesn’t think that serious girl would even like him. Even though the duo admit they won’t make a good pair, they are interested to see what happens. They want him to ascertain her eyes behind those glasses. Doing the test, the class rep invigilates him. It is hard to see those eyes behind those thick glasses but an opportunity came up when the wind blew something in her eyes and she took them off. Next day when his friends bug him, he tells them it wasn’t anything worthwhile.

Episode 16
Kai Xin talks to the class rep to have her tutor Shi Fen! And there they are at the library. You bet the rest are spying from across. Isn’t this exciting? At first Shi Fen is suspicious of her being nice to him. Then she tries to tease her that she is bored tutoring him. Then the cliché moment of dropping an eraser and their hands touch while trying to pick it up at the same time. Shi Fen now goes into charming mode. He knows she likes him and was avoiding looking him in the eyes that day. Just be honest with your feelings. Class rep then makes her confession… She didn’t want to say it then… But he had a nose hair sticking out no matter where she looked. Sorry. As the class rep tries to hide her laughter, Shi Fen feels dead inside. He opens the window and jumps from the third floor! SHI FEN!!! NOOOOOO!!!! DON’T DO IT!!!!!

Episode 17
Our ‘spies’ are now discussing the trauma Shi Fen is facing. Yeah, he is holing up in his room trying to forget that embarrassing incident. It is understandable that he doesn’t want to see her face again. But fate is cruel as soon Shi Fen meets up with the class rep. Yeah, she has his number. It seems she will not give up on him failing another exam and hence she is going to tutor him. Another mental trauma? Out of the frying pan and into the fire? With that, his pals are now starting to tease him again. However, Shi Fen doesn’t want to be disturbed and wants to study! Am I dreaming?! Bumping into the class rep again, this time he tries to avoid looking at her but she won’t allow it! After that, more teasing from his friends as they try to be good to him and give their snacks.

Episode 18
Kai Xin’s mom is not pleased her son is practising basketball at 3am in their house! Can’t sleep? Go and study! You know he can’t do that… Safe to say that he sleeps in class and only when it is over, he is fully awake because it is basketball time. To solve this problem Shi Fen has a solution. They should hear this maths lesson recording. Yeah, it is so boring that they fell asleep instantly! That night as Kai Xin’s mom wonder why her son isn’t up to his usual ruckus, she sees him asleep and listening to this maths lesson. She is so touched that her son is finally putting an effort to study. She decides it is enough for the night and stops the player. Instantly Kai Xin gets up for basketball time! Oh well, it’s still the same idiotic son.

Episode 19
Kai Xin accidentally hits Shi Fen. He offers to be hit back in which he did. However he felt that it was 10 times more than its worth. Hence they try to get back at each other with at even more ridiculous rates. Yeah, they’re really fighting now. So when Banzai tells this to Shi Mao, she believes that because they are such good friends, this is why they fight. Huh? I’m sure rich kid who has never fought before would understand. Next day, Banzai observes they have gotten back on track. So when Shi Fen accidentally spills his food on Banzai’s shirt, Banzai does the same back. The retaliation continues until Shi Fen blows his top that he really wants to fight. But Banzai is happy. He thinks this is what it means to be friends!

Episode 20
Oh sh*t! There are rumours that Shi Fen and Kai Xin are dating!!! Fujoshi mode unlocked! So Shi Fen seeks the class rep’s advice? She explains Kai Xin has lots of fan girls but he isn’t interested in them and only hangs out with him. Can you see where this is going? Plus, didn’t the other day Shi Fen kissed Kai Xin? Damn! Looks like class rep is also a fujoshi! Because of that, Shi Fen is now very conscious of Kai Xin’s proximity. Too close, buddy! And he’s saying very ambiguous stuffs like playing together (basketball of course!). One day, Kai Xin sees ketchup on Shi Fen’s face. Shi Fen pushes him away but at a certain angle it looked like they kiss! And with this picture circulating, why is Banzai so upset? But here comes Shi Mao’s beat down. Situation gets worse with Kai Xin getting all clingy and ambiguous with Shi Fen. Could this be true?! And then the class rep walks by. A satisfied smile…

Episode 21
As Banzai walks home alone, he sees Shi Mao and thinks it is a good chance to talk to her. However he can’t make it obvious like a stalker. Maybe try walking in front of her? Too preoccupied with her handphone. Shi Mao meets a few guys who claims Shi Fen borrowed money from them. They want it back or else. Too bad they make the mistake of touching her and she beats them up. Banzai tries to help but rushing in but Shi Mao mistakes him to be one of the gang and gets beaten up. So this is the only time he could somehow normally talk to her? Back home, Shi Mao is very sorry for the mix up. Even it’s no big deal, she still wants to help patch him up. Yeah, his whole face is bandaged. But underneath it is one happy guy.

Episode 22
Shi Mao feels happy. At least she got to eat with Kai Xin albeit they didn’t even talk. Miao Miao suggests writing a letter to convey her feelings. She did that but before she can give it to Kai Xin, Shi Fen is somehow always in the way! Oh, don’t jump to the solution of killing him! One day, Shi Mao decides to put it in Kai Xin’s desk. But wait. Did she put it in the wrong desk because it is Shi Fen’s! Apparently Kai Xin hung his bag on the wrong desk! So doomed! With Shi Fen picking up this love letter, he later reads it and is distraught to see it is addressed to Kai Xin. But before he could see who it is from, Shi Mao whacks him from the back and wants him to forget everything! Yeah, he didn’t even know what hit him nor what he did wrong…

Episode 23
Shi Fen notices his sister’s birthday coming up so he tells his friends they should throw a party for her because nobody ever did. Wow. Suddenly such a loving brother? So touched that his friends agree. But the real issue is, what do girls like as present? Shi Fen asks Miao Miao but all her ‘ordinary’ suggestions are rejected. Meanwhile Kai Xin observes what girls want and even has his own flashback of what his mom wants of him as a son. That’s it! Girls want other people’s stuff! WTF?! But Shi Fen likes this idea and goes along with it. So when they pull off the birthday surprise, Shi Fen hands her a box filled with presents. All second hand and used items! Not appreciated! When she scoffs off at this used lunchbox, Kai Xin says it is his. Now she loves it! My, so confusing. So girls like other people’s stuff or not?

Episode 24
No money. It sucks. Because Shi Fen spent it all on ice cream and comics. There’s your beat down. Since they only have flour, Shi Fen might have made good looking foods with it but it’s still not the party they want. There’s your beat down part 2. Luckily Kai Xin and Banzai save the day as they bring vegetables and protein respectively. By the time Miao Miao arrives, the siblings are already expecting. I guess a watermelon’s fine too. Then they throw everything inside to make one hell of a hot dish! In this hot room with the air-cond still broken! I’m surprised they are all still alive. Thank the watermelon for that. Probably Shi Mao having the best night since Kai Xin fed her. Then everyone takes a long walk. So long that they reached school. Shi Mao feeling nostalgic and grateful for this school. She wouldn’t have met everyone had she not come here.

Our Idiots In Love
And just like that, the fun is over. I guess that happens a lot when you binge watch very short anime series. Time literally flies. Until the next time when they get more silly ideas for Shi Mao to beat up Shi Fen. But I don’t think that will be hard because it isn’t very difficult for idiots to get back to their own silly ways. Anything they do is worthy of a beat down. After all, they never learn. Even when you have gorilla girl Shi Mao as the executioner. Oops. Did I say gorilla girl?!

With double the number of episodes this second, there are a lot more antics to be played out. They still retain the same trademark silliness that made the first season loveable and enjoyable. Having said that, I feel this season tries to play up the love triangle more often, especially in the later half of the season. Yeah, tis the season of love for our lovable idiots. It was shocking as it was trolling to see that Shi Fen had a girl taking an interest in him. Of course even if it was just trolling us, we are still left to wonder if the class rep really does have a crush on Shi Fen at all. Then again, she may be trolling us once more and she is only into him because of that gay thingy with Kai Xin. Man, that would have been the ultimate amusement had this fujoshi played out for another few episodes. Maybe not. It might get tiring since girls who like Kai Xin now will start to like Kai Xin-Shi Fen and where’s the fun in turning the entire fan girl base into sick twisted fujoshi? Yeah, and Kai Xin will always only be in love with basketball and hang around Shi Fen. Why aren’t there secret doujin of Kai Xin and Shi Fen already?

Like in many other anime series, such love triangles don’t get resolved and remain status quo because that would be the end of the story and the fun. Hence it is expected that Shi Mao is still trying to win the heart of Kai Xin and is still at the starting point. Ironically a powerful demon when it comes to beating up her brother, she is just so weak in the face of love. Ah, love. Her ultimate weakness. Shi Mao still beats up her brother from time to time but I feel it is less this season. Is it because of more episodes and hence the beatings are now spread out? After all, it will also get a bit tiring after a while if we have to see Shi Fen getting beaten up in every episode. Even if it is the punch line. This might be the staple of what the series is supposed to be but I guess they have to also show at times that the siblings care for each other. But this is not often and as rare as a four leaf clover. Like Shi Fen thinking about Shi Mao’s birthday. Like, really? This is Shi Fen? You’d expect some sort of ulterior motive but the punch line comes in another different form anyway.

Then there is also Banzai who continues to have a crush on Shi Mao and like Shi Mao’s case for Kai Xin, we don’t expect to see this guy get anywhere closer. At least in his mind he thinks he is so but you know it is all just a misunderstanding. After a while, you would think that this guy would have some sort of idea on what being a commoner is. But as you can see that he just can’t simply understand them. I’ll give him credit for trying, though. It is just too bad that he chose the wrong idiotic crowd to mix with and now he is part of the idiotic trio and if they go on a worldwide comedy tour, they can be the new Three Stooges of the new era. Yeah…

Wan Xing is a new character introduced this season but I feel he is so lacking and is more of a side character. I thought he would play some sort of a pivotal role but he just feels forgettable. It may be that he doesn’t have enough episodes to flash out his character enough. It’s like they needed to introduce a new character for the sake of introducing a new character for this season. So what about him trying to keep a tabs on his brother as he would be the one to inherit the family? I thought if Banzai failed to make the cut, Wan Xing would use his authority to drag him out of the commoner school and back to high society. But it looks like the idiocy force is strong in this series and from the looks of it, Wan Xing is now considered an idiot. No matter how much of a genius you are, it only takes a second of idiocy to drag you down to that level and you’re stuck there forever.

Art and animation maintain its quality like last season and you can tell it is still using the Flash animation style. But unlike many animations using this dreaded technique, this one seems smooth and in acceptable quality that you won’t even noticed or be irked it is using done Flash animation. At least personally I was quite entertained with all the tomfoolery and silliness that I don’t even make me notice that this is Flash based. For example, anime series like JK Meshi and Bishoujo Yuugi Unit Crane Game Girls used Flash but their animation is so comical and one kind, you are inclined to say this is so Flash for most of the time. Even with this series having its exaggerated and comical moments (especially to show us Shi Mao beating up Shi Fen or Shi Fen extending his idiocy), it is done in a smooth and seamless manner that you won’t really bother about this.

I am not sure if there is going to be a third season but if there will be, you know very well my answer. For those who don’t, OF COURSE I’M GOING TO WATCH IT!!!! What else, baka!!! Overall, I enjoyed this season as much as I enjoyed the first one. Double the episodes, double the fun, double the idiocy. Yeah, maybe I am one of those idiots now. Uh huh. It takes an idiot to understand and appreciate all this kind of idiotic stuffs, huh? It feels like a line from Hotel California, you can check out any time you like, but you can never leave! You think you’ve stepped away from it only to realize you’ve come back to its roots. So stop your futile attempts and come join the dark force of idiocy! Hey, even the title of this series says there is no cure for idiocy! At least idiocy for brothers.

Ani Ni Tsukeru Kusuri Wa Nai

September 28, 2018

Imagine if you have someone so irritating and always doing such idiotic stuffs that you want to beat him up to your heart’s content. You can never get rid of that person ever and even more so that person is your brother. Folks, welcome to the world of Ani Ni Tsukeru Kusuri Wa Nai. Her brother is so idiotic to a point that it makes her want to explode, she would use violence on him. Every time. And he never learns. See people, violence is proof that it is never a way to solve things. But it sure makes you feel good when taking out those exploding frustrations.

Episode 1
Shi Mao and Shi Fen are at the sausage stand. It looks delicious and she wants to buy it. However he refuses claiming there are leftovers in the fridge. It is that nikujaga dish she loves so much. Indeed. If it was 6 days ago. But he kept adding weird stuffs in it that it is no longer a nikujaga dish. It’s some mysterious dark thing now! She blames him for always eating snacks and hence they have no money for food. But thankfully today she can buy a sausage with her own pocket money. After doing so, she sees his cursing face. At this rate it won’t taste so good. So she offers him to take a bite. That guy swallowed the whole thing in a single bite! No prizes to guess she beats the crap out of him. Oh, did I mention that Shi Mao is good in martial arts while her brother is just a useless guy. No specialty, no girlfriend, no knowledge, no guts. No kidding, I’m sure.

Episode 2
Shi Mao sees a group of guys taking her brother away. It seems they want him to pay back the money they loaned or else you know what these baseball bats will do, right? He can’t pay back. Before they can start, Shi Mao gets in between and asks. She whacks Shi Fen when he tries to act cool like protecting her. The guys feel odd as the sister harasses the cowardly brother on what’s going on. Then they take Shi Mao as hostage. Bring the money or else. Shi Fen agrees to do so and has them wait while he goes get it. But Shi Mao knows better. He is not coming back and has run away. She is going to show them how to deal with this idiot. She chases after him and beats the hell out of him! Those guys must be so scared they call the police after witnessing this brutality!

Episode 3
Shi Fen sees a little brother protecting his little sister from crows. He believes this is how it should be as he reflects on his not so perfect circumstances. Yeah, who always gets beaten up? So when Shi Mao scraped her knee from a hurdle practice, he decides to show off how cool he is by carrying her to the infirmary. Only problem is, he has no strength to even lift her! She’s waiting… After a while, he decides to carry her on his back. No strength to even stand up. This is taking too long. She then threatens to kill him if he doesn’t get his ass moving… Somebody is going to get more than just injured.

Episode 4
Shi Fen forgot to bring his meal card so Shi Mao reluctantly lends hers. However he goes to show it off to his friend, Kai Xin who has forgotten his. He makes his friend go buy some food with the card. Meanwhile Shi Mao’s friend, Miao Miao lends her card to her. However it has no more credit! With no cash, the cafeteria lady is breathing down her neck! Thankfully here comes her prince charming. Kai Xin offers to pay for her portion. Grateful Shi Mao will pay him back but he thinks that since this is Shi Fen’s card, he says no need. Shi Mao is so in love with this guy now. Later Shi Fen realizes he forgot to give her back the card when he hears her chasing him. When she beats him up, he finds she has this weird expression on her face. Like as though a girl in love…

Episode 5
Shi Mao is still daydreaming of Kai Xin. She is sad he isn’t at the cafeteria and can’t repay him. But she can still fantasize about him… What’s a girl in love got to do? But later as she leaves, she bumps into him outside. Flustered, she tries to pay him back but he says that card was from his friend. He will bring him here for her to personally thank him. Kai Xin tells Shi Fen that a cute girl wants to see her. That guy immediately gets up and has the cheek to tell his friend not to come because the girl only wants to see her! Imagine the shock when both siblings see each other? It’s no surprise she beats him up. As they are still unaware of each other’s intention and they won’t say, they keep waiting there until night time… Nobody else is showing up…

Episode 6
There is a buffet at half price but only for couples. Shi Fen wants Shi Mao to masquerade as one but it seems she has her pride and won’t do it. Hence he calls Kai Xin to be his couple! OMG! Gay???!!! Yeah, food more important than pride! After taking an odd couple photo, they pig out at the buffet table. They realize there is a penalty to pay if they waste food. Realizing they have taken too much and cannot finish, Shi Fen hits a devilish idea. When the waiter cleans up, he notices the cups oddly stacked. They hide the excess food in there! And under the plates too! In the aftermath, a photo of them is placed outside and a notice that they are banned from the premise. Shi Mao sees this and sees her prince charming. She is confused why he is with her stupid brother. Even more disturbing, are they gay?

Episode 7
Shi Fen finds it odd that Shi Mao asked him to accompany her to the festival. He wonders if there is a guy she would have asked out. This makes her fluster as Kai Xin’s face pops up. She is very curious to ask him but her obviously flustered face will only make it obvious. Shi Fen offers to shoot some prizes for her. He missed all his shots. Blaming the gun, huh? Until the bullets somehow ricochet and hit Shi Mao, she beats him up and takes over. All her shots hit. Yeah, she might ruin the stall. For the last shot to get a perfect game, she has to shoot a lion plushie that has an uncanny resemblance to Kai Xin. She panics and misses. On the way back, she blames him for taking her to this shooting gallery and beats him up. Poor guy didn’t even know what he did.

Episode 8
Banzai is a rich kid and he insists he wants to go to a normal high school. Those group of punks are already surrounding him for money but luckily his butler beats them up and hopes he would rethink his decision. Banzai claims that being born into a wealthy family, tall and having good looks made him very popular with girls. That is not true love. He wants to lead a normal life and believes this high school is it. Because there is ‘ordinary’ in its name. After introducing himself in class, as usually the girls swoon over him. He sits next to Kai Xin and Shi Fen and thinks they are normal people. Until Kai Xin asks if he is rich. How does he know? The school badge on the uniform he is wearing. Yeah, Shi Fen is already asking for money! Banzai lies that he is poor and only got in because of his good grades. So when the exam results come out, Banzai actually fared worse than the duo! And they didn’t even pass! This makes them think they can actually enter that high class school after scoring higher than the ‘genius’!

Episode 9
Still thinking about Kai Xin, Shi Mao? Oh, somebody’s ringing at the door. It’s Banzai. And Kai Xin. The moment she sees him, she slams the door. Got the wrong house? They are here to celebrate Shi Fen’s birthday. Banzai gives him a rare onyx stone as present but looks like this idiot doesn’t know how to appreciate it. Kai Xin has a hideous drawing instead. The oddest part is how Shi Mao acts like an overly cute sister to celebrate with them. Like a totally different person. Creepy? From her acting, Shi Fen deduces she is in love. But which guy? He tries to think from her perspective and thinks it is Banzai. Yeah, he almost pass off that flirting face to that rich guy. Creepy? Shi Mao sees Kai Xin’s drawing and finally learns his name.

Episode 10
Shi Fen calls Banzai to meet. Then he punches him! He explains that Shi Mao is in love with him. But how can he tell if he never ascertained it with her? Easy. If he was a girl, he would fall in love with him! Creepy! After school, Shi Fen confronts Shi Mao. He hints he knows her feelings she is hiding and is giving her permission. At first she flusters thinking he has discovered the truth. Then he introduces her to Banzai and hopes they could be a good couple. To Shi Mao’s horror, she sees her dumb brother and Kai Xin applauding them. Kai Xin even congratulates her! She reaches boiling point and beats up Banzai. Shi Fen knows what is going to happen next and runs! Too bad she catches him and beats him up big time! Man, it’s a miracle if he survives all that. Kai Xin is so confused that he thinks a girl’s heart is complicated. Yes indeed…

Episode 11
Shi Mao is depressed ever since. So much so Shi Fen could coolly walk over and steal her food with no repercussions! Of course Shi Fen is upset because she has not used violence on him ever since! He tells his friends her dream was to take up arts but made a mistake and took up martial arts. Every day has been hell for him since. So he is lonely now without that? Is he a masochist? Hence Kai Xin goes to talk to Shi Mao directly about Shi Fen. It made her feel a little better and this gives her the courage to say that she is not in love with Banzai. Kai Xin will tell it to him. In the aftermath as Shi Fen waltzes in to steal her food, she defends it perfectly and beats him up! We can see her happy face while doing so and also his happy face while receiving it. Ah, all is well and fine.

Episode 12
I forgive you if you mistake those pretty sounds of the fireworks. It’s not. It’s Shi Mao incessantly slapping her brother for drinking her milk tea without permission!!! After forcing him to buy a new one for her, she wants him to buy fireworks. He is so broken today. Financially and perhaps physically. Morally too maybe. Since he has no money, they watch a father and son play fireworks. I guess the latter duo got a bit shy and let them have their leftovers. Shi Mao manages to find a lighter on the street as they try to light it up. Finally it does and they have their own mini spectacle. Until Shi Fen accidentally kicks and spills her milk tea. Oh boy. Here we go again. She has to tone down the violence since their friends are here but that doesn’t stop her of still wanting to get him.

Our Idiot Brother
Oh great. Good news. Apparently there was a second season of it. And double the number of episodes too! The irony is that while I was browsing on what animes to check out for the particular season, I stumbled upon this series. Hold on a second. A series with a second season in which a first season that I have not heard of? Maybe I did but it was so obscure that I completely forgot all about it as there were other ‘hot’ anime series to be put on my priority watch list then. Besides, the first season came out in mid-2017 and the sequel around a year later. So thank goodness for this coincidental stumbling? Definitely.

With only 3 minutes per episode, there isn’t much going on and hence everything has to be nonsensical and in fast paced. I’m not saying that everything zooms by in a flash that leaves you scratching your heads but the main purpose of this short comedy is to make you laugh and it sure did hit the mark. The plot might not be really exciting and original since it is generally as the daily lives of a pair of siblings who are often at odds with each other. Perhaps the formula works because cartoonish violence is used? Is this why watching old Warner Bros cartoons like Bugs Bunny and that Road Runner Show, we can never get tired of their silly antics? Yup, it feels the same here. Because the violence is in cartoonish style, we are more inclined to think that it is okay and that it is all for comical effect. Which is exactly what it is intended for. But in this sense some may argue the comedy is childish and definitely not for mature audiences as it could easily border annoying. But since it works for me, I give it a thumbs up!

The series is made funnier with the characters who are just oddballs themselves. Especially Shi Fen who acts like he is cool but his imagination is stronger than what he is in reality. Hence the comical effect that he shows off like an idiot, only to fail and fall flat in the end. For this kind of joke to be a running joke of the series, hence I figure that Shi Fen’s idiocy is the kind that makes him sort of like Superman. You know, it goes all the way back to Urusei Yatsura with the main character being an idiotic pervert. No matter how many times you pound or whack that Ataru jerk, he never gets injured and keeps coming back without learning anything. The same can be said for Shi Fen. He is able to withstand all the beating and bone breaking moves that his sister does on him that normally a normal person would have easily died or end up in coma. Because of that, Shi Fen doesn’t learn and continues to torment and be tormented. Yikes, like as though he is a masochist. Which one of the episode almost definitely confirms it. Yeah, he feels like home whenever Shi Mao beats him up. So used to it, eh? Ah, that is what you call family. I think.

In this age where such excessive violence (even if it is comical) is used on one particular character, I can’t help to think what happened if the genders were reversed. Uh huh. See where I am going with this? It’s sad that I have come up with this thought despite I don’t feel offended in anyway. Because this makes me wonder if all this is really acceptable had Shi Fen being the one who beats up Shi Mao who is then portrayed as a stupid character. No siree. We will not stand for any form of violence against women, you misogynist chauvinist pig. Sure, there are very idiotic female characters but I don’t remember they get the abuse to this extend. Even if they do, the bully would most likely be female.

Anyway, it is understandable why Shi Mao often takes it out on her brother since he is a total jerk and idiot. He is like her personal punching bag but only for almost all the time. Besides, I think she takes it out on him not only because he pisses her off but also out of pity. Remember what she said about Shi Fen having nothing? No this, no that. Nothing to his name. So I guess with him being a punching bag, it gives him some sort of assurance and existence. Yeah, twisted logic but hey, every family is dysfunctional if you find flaws in everything. Shi Mao tries to be nice to her brother but he usually blows it. Ah well, you can choose your friends but not your family. In her case, her brother.

The rest of the other characters are rather okay but they don’t distract us too much from the siblings. Like Kai Xin who is basically the same idiot as Shi Fen but just slightly to a lesser degree. Probably he lives up to the meaning of his name by being happy. Always having that happy look. He exists to give that little plot of misunderstanding for Shi Mao to fall in love. Funny how misunderstandings could make Shi Mao fall for this dude. Oh, if she only knew the truth. But I guess that is love and love really makes you blind. I wonder how devastating it would be for her had she known the entire truth. Even more devastating for Shi Fen because no prizes to guess what will happen to this poor chap. Banzai is introduced late but I feel that his character as introduced is only to serve as this mini love triangle complication. Other than that, rich kid wants to be a normie… Pfft. Why is the grass always greener on the other side? Miao Miao feels like an extra background character even though she is Shi Mao’s best friend. But she is so lacking in appearance or role that she might as well be a nameless character. Hopefully the next season would bring in more character development even if it’s just a little bit.

The art and animation style looks like it is done using Flash. Yup, it’s that one kind animation but it doesn’t feel so bad as the characters look a bit cartoonish as well. After all, this series was released on the web so I suppose it must be the way to animate things. Perhaps one reason why this series was obscure is because it was based on a Chinese manhua. Yup, you should have noticed the very Chinese-like name and some Chinese influenced elements. Hence the cartoonish looks of the series somewhat hides both the Chinese style and Japanese anime style of art. Plus, this series was jointly produced by Imagineer and Fanworks who did Flash based shorts such as Gakkatsu and Aggressive Retsuko.

Yuuichi Nakamura as recognizable as Shi Fen as his somewhat angsty voice here reminds me of some of his trademark similar sounding characters like Gray in Fairy Tail, Tomoya in Clannad and Kyousuke of OreImo. The other casts are Sora Amamiya as Shi Mao (Aqua in Kono Subarashii Sekai Ni Shukufuku Wo), Kensho Ono as Kai Xin (titular character in Tanaka-kun Wa Itsumo Kedaruge), Natsuki Hanae as Banzai (Sieg in Fate/Apocrypha) and Chitose Morinaga as Miao Miao (Umiko in New Game). The opening theme, Sunny Side Up by Brian The Sun is quite a lively and catchy rock piece that certainly suits the theme of this series. Hmm… Maybe the reason why it sounds good is because it sounds strangely similar to the other anime song they sang: Heroes of Boku No Hero Academia (the first season’s ending theme).

Overall, this is quite a funny and entertaining short comical piece. I am hoping to catch the second season. If it gets subbed anyway. Heck, I think that is the reason why I missed this series entire in the first place too. It was not completely subbed when it came out and only by chance after I stumbled upon this series, I noticed that it only had complete subtitles for all its episodes in early 2018. But this show is definitely not a role model for those with intense sibling rivalry. Misunderstandings aplenty, sure. But turning into a fighting game character and pulling off vicious combos? Leave that to the animated realm. Like they say, violence never solves anything but it sure makes you feel good when you hit something. And hence the vicious cycle of violence continues…