Level E

Tokyo-born schoolboy Yukitaka Tsutsui is moving to Yamagata Prefecture for high school on a baseball scholarship. Since he went to the top middle school in Japan for baseball, the townsfolk are very excited about his arrival. However, when he arrives in his apartment, he encounters a strange man nonchalantly reading and wearing his clothes! The stranger claims to be an alien who crash-landed on Earth and has nowhere to go. Revealing himself to be Baka Ki El Dogra, the crown prince of the planet Dogra, he is just one of the hundreds of aliens that have already made Earth their home.

Despite his regal origins, the prince is an infamous intergalactic fool who thinks nothing of inconveniencing others for his own amusement. Whether he is running ridiculous tests on his subordinates, giving strange powers to random children, or just generally being a nuisance, nobody is safe from the idiot prince's antics!

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Ki El Dogra, Baka Main

Namikawa, Daisuke Japanese

Kraft Supporting

Koyasu, Takehito Japanese

Tachibana Supporting

Kinoshita, Sayaka Japanese

Mi Mad Magra, Luna Supporting

Nakagawa, Shoko Japanese

Mayuzumi, Mayo Supporting

Takakura, Yuka Japanese

Demon King Supporting

Yoshida, Seiko Japanese

Moe Supporting

Matsuzaki, Rei Japanese

Ki El Dogra, Mohan Supporting

Hino, Satoshi Japanese

Shimizu, Yoshiki Supporting

Kanada, Aki Japanese

Yokota, Kunimitsu Supporting

Kanaya, Hideyuki Japanese

Cook, Justin Producer

Kajita, Kouji Producer

Hagino, Ken Producer

Katou, Toshiyuki Director, Episode Director, Storyboard

Reviews

Apr 15, 2011

Archaeon

Recommended

Why are aliens so attracted to Earth? It's a question that many fans of science fiction have pondered at one time or another, and there have been a number of different answers - vacations, natural resources, food and water, building a hyperspace by-pass, enslaving the population, experiments and general curiosity (to name a few). Of all the possible explanations though, boredom and baseball are two that probably wouldn't spring to mind.

Togashi Yoshihiro is a name that fans of Yu Yu Hakusho and Hunter x Hunter will recognise, and as popular as those two franchises are, like every mangaka he has a few skeletons buried in ... his closet, one of which is Level E. The original manga was serialized in Weekly Shounen Jump from 1995 to 1997 for a total of sixteen chapters, and in a very weird irony (or maybe it's fate), since 2003 Gintama has also been serialized in the same magazine, and it's a good bet that Sorachi Hideaki found some inspiration from Togashi's earlier work.

The story begins with Tsutsui Yukitaka, a young man who is due to attend Kisaragi High School in Yamagata in order to play baseball. Unbeknownst to him, aliens from across the galaxy have come to live on Earth, and while they are all aware of each other, humanity has little to no knowledge of their presence (thanks to some fancy disguises). Tsutsui's troubles begin when he finds an elegant young man sitting in his new apartment, wearing his clothes, reading his books and drinking his tea. He is Baka Ki El Dogra, an alien who has crash landed on Earth and is now suffering from amnesia.

What follows is a story about the beneficial relationship built up between aliens and humans by bonds of trust, respect, friendship, and all those other nice things.

...

And if you believe that then you probably watched E.T. instead of Level E.

Now at first glance it may seem like the plot is focused on simply telling short stories over the course of thirteen episodes, and to a certain degree this would be a fair assessment. That said, one of the things that is generally overlooked is the overarching theme of the series as it isn't immediately obvious. The reason for this because there is very little in the way of continuity between story arcs, and even with "subtle" reminders viewers will often forget that this tale is really about boredom, and the lengths to which a person will go in order to be "entertained".

There is a serious side to proceedings though. Level E features some dark topics which can sometimes seem at odds with the fact that it's a relatively lighthearted anime, but like Gintama these act as a foil to keep things interesting while offering the viewer some food for thought (the whole thing with the baseball stadium being one example of this). The apparent lack of any real direction to the storyline is also purposeful as it allows for a style of situation comedy that many shows have attempted over the years, but few have actually mastered. The quirky blend of parody, slapstick and satire can sometimes be reminiscent of a good episode of Blackadder or Red Dwarf, and Togashi's distinctive sense of humour has been retained, refined, and on a few occasions, improved upon.

Which rather neatly leads me on to the visuals.

Level E has had quite a face lift from the realistic designs of the mid 1990s, but this is actually an improvement as anyone who has read manga will know that in terms of looks, it hasn't aged well. The characters are particularly noteworthy as rather than completely re-inventing them, Takeda Itsuko has instead decided to retain specific physical traits from the original design, and simply update clothing, facial structures and features, etc. Now offering praise here may seem counter intuitive to some, as the generally accepted rule for adaptations is that aspects like character design aren't that important as much of the work has already been done. The truth is that completely redesigning or simply adapting from a different medium is easy in comparison to making something look fresh and new whilst retaining key elements of the original work, and that applies to almost everything in this anime, from the characters and backgrounds, to the aliens and their spaceships.

One of the more surprising things about Level E is the quality of the animation, especially the sometimes exaggerated actions during comedy sketches. The irony here is that while the characters generally move very well, it's Baka's cartoon-like antics and deadpan delivery that really steal the show. In addition to this quality of the CG is pretty good, but not without fault as there are a few odd moments that do stand out. That said, special attention has been paid to spaceships and visual effects to create some rather imaginative set pieces that add a different dimension to the series.

The opening theme, Cold Finger Girl by Kuriyama Chiaki, features a decidedly pop art styled sequence that, aside from the aliens, has almost nothing to do with the main theme of Level E. In essence the OP is nothing more than a joke on the viewer as it is designed to make you think this is a serious anime, and in that respect it reminded me a little of the trick played by Renkin San-kyuu Magical? Pokan. The ending theme, (Yume) ~Mugennokanata~ by Vivid, features a more traditional sequence that focuses on starry skies, planets, UFO sightings, cattle abductions, and close ups of Baka's face as he looks windswept and interesting.

To be honest, there's so much cheese in the ED that you could easily start a business, yet like the OP one can't help but think that somebody, somewhere, is having a laugh at the viewer's expense.

As for the background music, there are a variety of suitable tracks on offer that remain rather subtle, but add definition to particular scenes. The score and audio effects are well choreographed, but it's the acting that takes pride of place, thanks in part to the lack of background music in many scenes. Namikawa Daisuke hasn't had many lead roles in comedy anime, which makes his portrayal of Baka Ki El Dogra truly surprising as he excels not only in terms of timing, but also delivery. The rest of the cast perform to a very high standard as well, but in a very real sense they're nothing more than the stage upon which Namikawa's Baka frolics, dances, and generally amuses himself.

Now given that this is a comedy series one might still expect a degree of character development, but that isn't actually the case. What Level E does have though, is characterisation, and lots of it. Everyone is clearly defined as an individual from the outset, with all the quirks and foibles that come with being a free thinking individual who is subject to no man or alien overlord.

Except for when they're dealing with a certain blond haired, blue eyed humanoid.

Baka is quite simply the dynamo that drives everything in Level E, and his indefatigable spirit, unbreakable will, and towering intellect are ever present in his constant search for something amusing or interesting. In many respects his entire personality (barring the intelligence), is very similar to Guu's (from Jungle wa Itsumo Hale Nochi Guu), in that both really do care little for the people that get dragged into their schemes, and both really seem to enjoy making their closest companions have a nervous breakdown.

Level E's humourous approach to alien/human relations is something that may initially sound like a straight copy of Gintama, but don't be fooled. While the two bear some similarities, at their core they're as different as chalk and cheese. The irony is that this series actually makes a great introduction for those who want to know how funny Gintama is, but are daunted by 200+ episodes. Then again, maybe it's only natural for their to be some link between the two given the history of the original manga. Suffice to say that anyone who likes comedies about aliens on Earth, or strange little girls who tend to eat, well, everything (and I do mean that), will probably find something appealing in this series.

That said, as enjoyable as this show is, it's unfortunately more of a blip on the radar than a sign of changing trends in the anime industry. Sadly the future looks set to contain more high schools and harems, which is a shame as Level E is a fine example of how good manga, novel or game adaptations could be, especially if the source material is up to standard.

Still, it's better than having Baka in charge, so I suppose we should count our blessings.

Reviewer’s Rating: 8

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Aug 20, 2012

Shaja

Mixed Feelings

Well i just finished watching Level E the other day and after some reflections i have determined it was alright. The series feels episodic for the most part yet there about 2-3 Episode arcs in this short run anime more than once. There was a few episodes i did not enjoy all that much mostly at the very start of the series but the middle and end really had some quality to them. Even though the series uses some slapstick style comedy and pretty cheesy jokes it actually has some intelligence to the plots involved.

The characters of this show are really hard to kinda follow. ... At the start i assumed more people would be main characters but in truth this show is comprised of one main character and a dozen recurring support characters. The shows structure is rather unique this way and it kinda threw me off at first. When i reflect on the characters the 5 color rangers were probably the people i enjoyed most since they hosted a handful of personalty and got some good plots around them. The main character himself was pretty funny but there was not very much depth to him, he just likes causing trouble for the sake of his own enjoyment.

The character designs seemed rather interesting mostly for the faces. The one thing i can really hand to the artists for this show is nobody looks like somebody else and there's a fair amount of detail to most peoples face. There was one or two generic sort of faces but i am pretty sure that was intentional since they were meant to represent a standard in some other genre it parody's. A lot of the show has a very plane sort of background but a few areas really stood out mostly the scenery of space and the winter episodes. Also a lot of devices used in the show and even the ships looked fairly different especially from each other and similar shows in the genre.

The sound was fairly good, i liked the voice actors a lot since each conveyed the personality to the utmost of there ability. In particular Kraft had a very important vocal aspect since he was the only one who really gets completely worked up and emotional over the happenings in the show. another interesting thing is the opening theme, to me the first time i heard it was very different but because of this i remembered it a lot more and it started to grow on me. Overall the audio experience is pleasant and not really negative to the experience.

The thing about Level E that just did not do it for me is i felt there was a lack of energy in the plot. The setups and delivery and even the general pace of the show felt very slow and drawn out to me. It may be just me who feels this way but at times it took me awhile to really get into the show for a extended amount of time. So the show itself is fine nothing to dramatically wrong with it but it just does not have the energy to really raise my excitement towards it. It was somewhat intelligent and well planned but the pace was just dragged at some points i feel that's all.

Based on my viewing experience i give this show a 6 other people who watch this even if they feel it all runs smoothly i don't think will give it much higher than a 7. I would say the show does not really reach a interesting point till episode 4 or 5 so keep that in mind with your viewing. When you meet the color rangers i think is when the show starts getting more active and humorous.

Reviewer’s Rating: 6

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May 8, 2019

detroitmetalcity

Not Recommended

All of the bad parts of shounen in one 12 episode package. Baseball, former delinquents, an annoying MC, tokusatsu hijinks, aliens, boring mystery subplots, references to how much we LOVE! Shounen Jump, and jokes that fall all the way flat. Suffers from Shounen Jump shounen disease where none of the arcs and characters matter when the next arc starts. The main character is absolutely unbearably smug and unpleasant, and even hearing Takehito Koyasu's sexy voice as one of the like, three recurring characters was not worth it. A charmless version of the things that make Shounen Jump shows so accessible and beloved. The entire time ... I watched it, I kept thinking about much it reminded me of Gintama - an infinitely better version of all of the same elements presented in this trainwreck.

Reviewer’s Rating: 3

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