Though technically a comedy, Genshiken would be more accurately described as a humorous documentary about otaku culture. Viewers who have had experience with anime/manga/cosplay clubs will undoubtedly find the first few episodes hitting very close to home, while those who have not (including yours truly) should find it to be an intriguing look into such groups and the fans who populate them. It is a loving, nonjudgmental portrayal clearly made by people who have lived this life themselves. It is also as realistic and nontraditional as humorous anime get, for it uses few of the exaggerated reactions and none of the impossible physical moves commonly seen in anime comedies. Instead, the series simply shows what goes on and draws its entertainment from the fact that the behavior and passions of otaku and the people involved with them are, at times, inherently amusing.

“Passion” is the correct word here, too, for as Genshiken makes clear, it is the love of the hobby and enthusiasm towards it which drives otaku, regardless of what their individual focus may be. All of the major types are on display here: Ohno, the girl who regards cosplaying as a vitalizing experience; Tanaka, who loves to make cosplay costumes; Kosaka, the outgoing gamer geek and the otaku you wouldn't recognize as one just to look at him; Madarame, the militant, articulate otaku so devoted to his hobby that he won't let something as trivial as a fractured hand stop him from making the rounds of a major convention; Sasahara, the shy newcomer who gradually grows into his own as he learns the true Ways of the Otaku; Kugayama, the lovable oaf with the speech impediment who would probably be a social reject anywhere else; and the club president who doesn't do much but seems to have been in charge forever. On the outside looking in is Saki, whose love for Kosaka unwillingly draws her into the club circles as she tries to puzzle out the nature and motivations of the individuals in the club. Each character is also drawn as a distinctly different physical archetype, but as scenes at one convention show, the archetypes they represent are common ones for their hobby. (Especially telling is one scene in episode 3 where Kugayama sits down beside a whole row of fellow fans with very similar body styles.)

While there isn't much plot to the first volume of Genshiken, neither is it exactly episodic. These are simply the lives of ordinary otaku, ranging from a sort of hazing to visits to doujinshi shops in Akihabara to a visit to Comic Fest to activities at a school festival. Sasahara's development as a fan and Saki's efforts to sort things out and get Kosaka's attention are two of the binding threads through these four episodes. The other is the club's interest in Kujibiki Unbalance, which appears in video clips throughout both the episodes and closers and in one form or another is a recurring theme throughout these episodes. (See below for more on Kujibiki.)

The background artistry for Genshiken opts for a realistic style loaded with an impressive amount of detail, especially in the contents of the shelves of the Genshiken meeting room. Character designs are also mostly realistic, with bodies drawn proportionately and with normal-sized eyes. Though a moderately bright color scheme is used, it's muted enough that the artistry doesn't have the glossy look or the obviously digital feel common in recent anime series (in fact, the only obvious CG effects are the fighting game scenes, which are taken from actual Guilty Gear footage). Animation is very good, with background characters sometimes being animated, minimal use of still or panning shots, and characters often shown actually blinking. Movements generally look natural when walking or running, except in one case with Madarame which was clearly intended to be funny.

The heavily acoustic guitar-based musical scoring for this volume offers a nice, light compliment to the action but is not especially remarkable. The opening number is a lively, catchy rock number well worthy of a spot in any anime music collection, however, and the more sedate closer is a pleasant, likeable number easily tolerable for repeat viewings (the opener for the first episode is actually the one for Kujibiki Unbalance, while the opener for the remaining episodes is well representative of the series, art-wise). The closing artistry and animation changes slightly from episode to episode, reflecting events which took place in the episode, so it's always worth playing through. Sound is, unfortunately, only available in 2.0 tracks for both English and Japanese.

Casting for the English casting for the roles is generally quite appropriate, though how well they match with the original seiyuu varies from character to character; Kugayama is dead-on, while both Saki and Kosaka are a little deeper in English (in Kosaka's case, this is because he was actually voiced by a prominent female seiyuu in Japanese, but is voiced by a male VA in English). Performances are mostly well-delivered, with Kugayama's stutter actually sounding more natural in English than in Japanese, but the deliveries of several characters have occasional stiffness as the English VAs struggle to match up the voices/lip flap timing. The English script also strays more from the subtitles than it needs to, which creates minor discrepancies in meaning in a few places. This isn't a major problem, and overall it's a respectable dub that will probably be fine for most dub-favoring fans, but coupled with the delivery issues it's enough for me to rate the English dub down a little.

Aside from company previews on the DVD and adverts in the liner, the first volume contains a solid collection of extras. They include a clean opener, a complete set of clean closers, a set of (untranslated) promotional videos, and two video clips. One, titled “Character Show 2004,” contains footage from a convention interview with the seiyuu for two of the key roles in Kujibiki Unbalance anime and audio drama, while the other, titled “Under 17 Live,” is a clip of a live performance (from the same convention) by Under 17, the duo who performs the self-titled opening theme for Kujibiki Unbalance with great energy. The biggest extra, though, is the full-length bonus episode of Kujibiki Unbalance, which has its own separate menu set-up that, amusingly, lists Genshiken as its “bonus episode.” Viewers should also keep an eye out for the episode epilogues sandwiched between the closer and Next Episode previews on episodes 1, 3, and 4, which are all significant. Those who shell out the extra few dollars for the art box (it only cost me $4 more on sale) will find nice wrap-around artwork but no other frills.

While watching Genshiken, I couldn't help but be struck by some similarities to “Trekkies,” a documentary about Star Trek fans made in the U.S. and released in the late '90s. Genshiken reflects the same kind of passion, humor, and commitment towards anime and manga as “Trekkies” does towards Star Trek. Most importantly, it emphasizes two of the key points of “Trekkies:” that people who are members of such groups generally don't regard themselves as being strange despite any social stigmas, and that, for them, the sense of belonging in a group of like-minded individuals is almost as important as the fandom itself. That's really what Genshiken is about at its heart: finding a place where one feels like he or she belongs. That the first volume of Genshiken has accomplished this in such a clever way, by integrating in elements that most anime or manga fans are likely to be familiar with from first-hand experience, is why it's so entertaining. It is a well-made and lightly-humorous gem which should be on the shelf of any true anime fan.

	Kujibiki Unbalance:
	This is the anime series which many of the Genshiken members are hooked on during the first volume. The first episode of the three-episode OVA spinoff is included in volume one of Genshiken, with the later two episodes presumably appearing in volumes two and three. The prologue and opener for the first episode of Genshiken are, in fact, actually the first few minutes of Kujibiki Unbalance, and clips of it can be seen playing in the background throughout the volume. In a dramatic contrast to Genshiken, Kujibiki Unbalance's artistry is so bright and heavily steeped in anime stylization that it's almost over the top. These are your huge-eyed, gimmicky character designs with odd traits, such as one character who always carries a sword around in school and another (the class president) who wears a helmet over flowing blond hair and a long skirt which seems to be permanently flared out by some kind of breeze. The behavior of the characters is also much more oddball and extreme, such as Tokino, the girl insanely obsessed with mushrooms, or Renko, the egotistical genius insanely obsessed with getting back at Tokino for a past slight. The first episode's fast-moving plot mainly centers around the introduction of cast members and a cooking competition pitting Tokino's team (which Chihiro is on) against Renko's team, with the student council president (Chihiro's childhood love) as the judge. The quality of the background artistry in Kujibiki is sharp, though it has a more obvious CG influence than Genshiken. Character design is decidedly less appealing, however, and the gimmicky animation isn't quite as good, despite some obvious CG enhancements. The writing is much simpler and the humor more oriented towards slapstick and exaggerated reactions. The English script and dub have the same problems as those for Genshiken (which is to be expected, since it's the same cast), though they aren't as severe and there is one stand-out performance—Veronica Taylor's turn as Tokino is perfect. The musical scoring and closer are unremarkable, but the opener is a lively and catchy J-Pop number which a viewer could easily find themselves humming days later. I would certainly buy an album which has both it and the Genshiken opener on it. Kujibiki Unbalance might make a worthwhile anime on its own, but it's too soon to tell.
	Kujibiki Grade:
	Overall (dub): B- Overall (sub): B- Story: C+ Animation: B- Art: B Music B-