Title: Gakuen Basara: Samurai High School on Blu-ray
Director: Minoru Ohara
Studio: Brain’s Base
U. S. Distributor: Sentai Filmworks, Section 23
U. S. Release Date: Dec. 10th, 2019
Format: Blu-ray / 12 Episodes / 300 Minutes
Genre: Comedy / Absurdity / Samurai
Age Rating: TV 14
Overall Personal Grade: B
Synopsis:
It is said that power can corrupt and absolute power often corrupts absolutely, so when Principal Nobunaga of the Basara Academy was distracted by duties elsewhere, student council president Toyotomi took advantage of the opportunity to wage a campaign of terror against other rival schools. Toyotomi was subsequently suspended, but the resulting lack of a strong leader has left a vacuum at the Academy’s center, tearing the student body into opposing factions.
Who will show the courage and fortitude required to take the office of council president? Baseball captain Masamune Date? Soccer star Yukimura Sanada? Opposing council members Ieyasu Tokugawa and Mitsunari Ishida? Or any of dozens of other strapping young students? The challenge is on as the best of the best (and a few of the worst) compete to reign supreme!
Commentary:
As with the rest of the Basara franchise Gakuen Basara is just as insane. Crazy, but fun. Nothing about it really makes much sense. Just like in Sengoku Basara you have the Edo period’s heavy hitters but they are in a modern high school. Of course, the crazier it is the better it is. Gakuen Basara just defies logic and is all about the competition.
Overall Grade: B
Going into Gakuen Basara I expected some semblance of plot or structure, but my hopes were dashed quickly and the series turned into a series of strange battles or should I say competitions that never really have clear winners and losers. I see the point of it and figure the only reason to exist it to setup these silly situations that have little to no real outcome.
I did enjoy the imagination it took to weave the historical personas into these high schoolers who have no understanding of composure or decency. The real fun is just sitting back and watching the stupidity wash over you like a strange bath with weird soap and bubbles everywhere.
If you are looking for something that requires no thought and almost no attention span then Gakuen Basara is for you.
