REVIEW FOR MAWARU PENGUINDRUM BOX SET 2

 
Mawaru Penguindrum Box Set 2
Released By: Manga Entertainment
Rating: 18
Running Time: 300 Mins
Audio: English DD 5.1 & Japanese DD 2.0
Release Date: 21/10/2013
Reviewed By: Sandra Scholes

Before I go into this review I just want to mention that though this three disc set has been rated at 12, one disc (the first one) is rated 18 due to material some young adults may find they are sensitive to.

The search is still on for the Penguin Drum, the Takakura family relies on it for sure. Himari is still ill and someone else has come into the family's life and has taken over looking after her for a while, Sanetoshi Watase, the sexy librarian from the Central Library. He seems to be the saviour but if he saves Himari this time it comes at a high price Shoma can't possibly afford.

I don't know of any anime out there that can boast of showing strange objects in its opening animation, a pink diary, a peculiar apple, two falling guys, a penguin hat and three of the strangest penguins you'll ever see. Watase poses as a doctor and promises that Himari will be brought back from death after he gives Shoma tells him about the pink ampules she will need to keep alive. The thing with Watase is that you get the impression that he is helping her for the money, not because he cares. While Shoma and his brother are trying to save their sister and uncover their past, Yuri looks back on her own past with Momoka. How her father tried to dominate her life, manipulating her into believing that no one would love her other than her father, and how friends are nothing more than liars and cheats, just like her mother. As two women fight for the diary, one keeps it while the other tries to steal it, yet both of them have reasons for wanting it.

I found it unusual for the anime to start out from the first series being 12 rated  then turn into an 18 rated one because of one disc in the second series. The fun was there, the comical, if slightly questionable antics of the penguins had me in stitches, but I didn't expect the lesbian scene, although I could understand why it happened as it is relevant to the story. The writer certainly knew how to surprise us with Yuri's sensuality and reasons for what she did. For young children who have invested pocket money in this series though, it is a shame it is rated 18, as they will not be able to buy it and continue watching the series they have come to know and love. I for one have enjoyed watching this series and am sad it has ended.

Bonus Material: Ending 13, 14 and 16, Opening 2, Ending 19 and 20, and Ending 21 and 22.

Verdict: Three penguins and a penguin hat, plus a rival penguin and a penguin drum - it's strange, but it's fun you can't afford to miss!