Story:
A sophomore in high school, Tenma has fallen in love with the class weirdo, Kurasuma. The only problem is that he doesn’t know it and Tenma is too clueless to figure out how to tell him. Compound that with the fact that the class delinquent and thug, Harima, has fallen for Tenma and things start to get a bit complicated. Assuming complicated means over-the-top comedy and some good ol’ fashioned insanity.
Violence:
All the violence in this show is comic violence, so there is very little blood and no death. Although, there is plenty of slap-stick style humor so punches are pulled and people fly through the air quite often.
Language:
This show has a decent amount of language for a PG-rated show. No f-bombs go off, but a few b-words are flung out in addition to the common “crap” and “damns.”
Nudity:
No out right nudity is ever shown in this series, although some scenes comically imply there might be. In one episode a character is walked in on while not wearing clothing, but nothing explicit is shown. Also, there are quite a few jokes about measurements and such. Again, nothing explicit is ever mentioned outright, but these jokes are defiantly not PG-rated.
Theology/Mythology:
A kappa, from Japanese mythology, is mentioned and one character works at a church, but like so many other aspects of the show, these elements exist only to add to the humor and don’t imply deeper meanings.
Personal Impression:
Because it is more of a comedy than a romance, those looking for specific characters to “get together” may end up frustrated. The goal of the show is outrageous comedy, thus romance often takes the back-burner. This show is more than willing to poke fun at anything from genres and stereotypes to its own ridiculous plot and characters. Even so, this show does have a few surprises as far as characters go. For while characters like Tenma easily play up to the innocent and cute girl stereotypes, later episodes reveal other, less common, yet realistic, traits like prejudice and unjust resentment. School Rumble may play to character types, but it is by no means restricted to them. So if you love crazy humor that covers anything from cultural jokes on kappas to love letter deliveries turning into crime fighting expeditions, with some occasional character insights, this might be the show for you! Just don’t expect any heart-pounding romance anytime soon.
Personal Rating: Young Adult
Episodes: 26
Languages: Subtitles and Dubbed
Official rating: TV-PG
Genre(s): Comedy, Romance
Website: http://www.funimation.com/school-rumble
Legal streaming: Subbed only via FUNimation’s website or YouTube channel
Screen shots:
What's In My Anime? 