Kashimashi ~Girl Meets Girl~

Title:Kashimashi ~Girl Meets Girl~
Kasimasi
かしまし ~ガール・ミーツ・ガール~ (Japanese)
카시마시 ~걸 미츠 걸~ (Korean)
Overall:Watch
Keywords: , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Notables: Animation - JC Staff
HORIE Yui
Music - FUJIMA Hitoshi
R1 License - Media Blasters
R1 License - Subtitled Only
Hazumu was a shy boy who enjoyed gardening, collecting herbs, and long walks in the mountains. One day he finally worked up the courage to confess his love to Yasuna, but she rejected him. Feeling dejected, he wandered up Mt. Kashimayama to the place where they first met to reconsider his feelings. After getting lost, he wished upon a shooting star which turned out to actually be a crashing alien spaceship. Although he was hit by the falling ship, Hazumu survived the crash thanks to some body reconstruction by the aliens, only they got it a little wrong. Now that he is a she, Hazumu stumbles head-first back into his social life and relationships only to find that the entire landscape has changed. (Summary courtesy of ANN

Hazumu now has to deal with crazy parents, a male best friend that now has the hots for her, a female best friend that also has the hots for her, and Yasuna who turns out was yuri after all. Add in a teacher who hasn't had a boyfriend for 35 years and some aliens and you have this anime.
From the Mangaka of Sorcerer Hunters

13 TV Episodes.
Animtion from JC Staff.
Aired on TV from Jan '06 to March '06.

R1 By Media Blasters
The title "Kashimashi" is derived from the Japanese saying "女三人寄れば姦しい" ("onna san-nin yoreba kashimashii") = "Wherever three women gather it gets noisy/boisterous".
Episode Details 
2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
OverallArtAnimationCharacter Design MusicSeries StoryEpisode StoryReviewer
Watch 8 7 7 6 6 6 Ggultra2764 [series:1302#1552]
This was a bit of a mixed bag. Kashimashi's main selling point was the male lead of the series, Hazumu, becoming a girl after he's nearly killed in a crash from an alien spaceship. But rather than devote much focus on the aliens and the awkward interactions Hazumu has with his friends as a girl, the series quickly transitions into a yuri love triangle as Hazumi finds himself being the romantic interest of two girls, childhood friend Tomari and love interest Yasuna. In terms of the love triangle, it does get a good amount of focus and build-up as you get to know about all three of the girls involved in the triangle, how the two interested in Hazumu connected with him/ her and get to see tensions develop with the three as Hazumu struggles in deciding who she wants to love. Sadly, this aspect of the series does get a cop-out of an ending for its finale episode when one of the girls in the triangle decides to abruptly step down. It's not the only element to the show that was flat for me. Much of the show's efforts at comedy fell flat for me and usually got a bit on the creepy side for me, such as the efforts of Hazumu's father to pull some perverted antics on her like taking a bath with her or having him take pictures of her in some revealing clothes. In addition, the alien element to the storyline felt really out of place once the series shifted over to its yuri love triangle developments as the two mentioned aliens don't have much revealed about them and seem to be only around just to add to the show's subpar efforts at comedy. Overall, I just feel rather indifferent about Kashimashi. While the yuri love triangle story gets some solid focus despite the copout of an ending, the rest of its presentation is rather subpar. If you're in the mood for any worthwhile shoujo-ai/ yuri titles, you're likely to get better offerings out of anything like Simoun, Aoi Hana and Adolescence of Utena.

Last updated Tuesday, May 14 2013. Created Tuesday, May 14 2013.
Watch 8 8 8 7 7 7 Dreamer [series:1302#2279]
Here's another one I watched a while back but failed to comment on. I rewatched it so I can give a proper review.

Art, Animation & Character Designs
The artwork and animation wasn't too bad. Character designs about average. But I must say, some of the character designs were kawaii. It was on par with many other anime out there.

Music
The OP was nothing special. Just your average and typical piece. So was the rest of the music come to think of it.

Series and Episode Story
The plot was different and original but unfortunately, the scenarios and characters were not so different to make it stand out. Nevertheless, I'll give it a little credit since it was still enjoyable and had some laughable moments. Characters for the most part had a little depth but not a lot. The romance aspect was pretty predictable but still interesting to watch.

Overall, the plot had potential had not the basic chacter developments and cliche scenes and moments killed it. Still, it was enjoyable to watch (one time only) and kept be busy.

Last updated Sunday, May 10 2009. Created Sunday, May 10 2009.
Watch 8 8 7 5 6 6 Xenoknight [series:1302#2967]
Review isn't done yet...

A freak accident spirals out of control and drags the characters for a "morally binding" spin...

How many times can one anime use the line, "I have something important to tell you". It's been said several times by multiple people already! I mean like what the hell! The significance of the phrase is obviously losing its meaning.

What is going on here? This title started out with such a powerful bang but has been reduced to a regular boring drama that tries to be funny more often than not! Episode 9 was terribly boring but had a fairly decent ending. I am now forced to decide if this title deserves a buy with the roller-coaster effect. Great in the beginning, crap in the middle, solid finish. Sigh...

The story returns to where it counts in ep 10 from where it left off in ep 6. The middle eps (7-9) had there roles to play in the story but they were just slightly interesting stall eps to me (especially 8 and 9).

Tons of tears in the first (real) ending. Hazumu tells Tomari her final choice and they spend the day together sorting out their feelings and emotions about everything. Hazumu makes it to Yasuna before she could cowardly leave town and tells her she loves her and this cures her bull crap illness and gives the aliens the data they were hoping for. Yawwwwwwwwwn. Don't worry though. I have a bunch of suggestions that all trump this "crap-tastic" title.

All in all, this title was sub-par from episode 7 through 13. Only the first 6 were worth mentioning. I hate to have to bring this title down to size like this but "knocking on the door" isn't good enough for me. In order to be considered, the title in question will have to "attempt to open the door", if you can follow what i'm saying here.

There are gallons of anime titles that all walk a similar path to this title in terms of high-level drama (without the fake yuri crap of course). All of the following titles are better than this one by a long shot in my opinion:

H2O: Footprints in the Sand
Kimi ga Nozomu Eien
School Days (TV)
Gift Eternal Rainbow
Myself; Yourself
Koi Kaze
REC
True Tears
Yoake Mae Yori Ruri Iro Na
Onegai Twins

I think ten titles is more than enough. They all have similar "moral type" love issues (some better then others) but the overall quality of these titles might (will) make you "rue the day" you decided to watch this anime. The first three (my award winners) could (should) blow your mind, put you to tears, and (in a good way) make you sick to your stomach (in that order). LOL

Check out my award list to see some of the best anime titles in the world!

Never forget Xenosaga.

Last updated Thursday, November 13 2008. Created Wednesday, November 12 2008.
Unevaluated Stretch [series:1302#628]
I especially like shows which identify some sort of "impossible" event (like an accidental sex change), and run with them, exploring all sorts of intriguing and fascinating possibilities which then become available. Just such a show is Kashimashi. Hazumu, a boy who against his will has been transferred into the body of a girl, can hardly be blamed for being attracted to girls, even if that makes him/her a de-facto lesbian. He/she was always somewhat effeminate, even before her "accident", so the changeover isn't all that radical. Her childhood female friend Tomari, on the other hand, is so butch that a number of girls find her attractive, much to her chagrin. She seems to have always had a sort of subconscious love for Hazumu, and perhaps assumed he would inevitably be her mate--now she doesn't know exactly what to think. Yasuna has likewise liked Hazumu for a long time but, due to a strange boy-phobia, was afraid to admit it 'til now. But now that Hazumu is a girl, she is free to express her affection. Basically, everyone has a perfect excuse to behave in a yuri manner.

This show has a touch of naughtiness to it, as it addresses topics that would never be mentioned in a show without such a bizarre premise. Early on I had high expectations for hilarious gender-bending comedy but was surprised to find that, though there is a good dose of humor, this series concentrates more on the emotions of the characters. It's still intriguing and fun, and having rewatched it with more accurate expectations I realize what a good job it does of carrying the plot forward in a touching and plausible manner--once you've suspended disbelief regarding the aliens, that is. I think it's fair to say that "originality" is a strong point of this series. Depending on whether I was thinking of Hazumu as a girl or a boy, different thoughts would occur to me regarding what she/he should or shouldn't do. I think I finally settled into thinking of Hazumu as sort of sitting on the fence between being male and being female. Maybe some of the fun of this show comes from not having much idea what to think at all.

Besides this "Girl Triangle", the supporting characters are interesting, too. Aliens Sora Hitoshi and Jan-Puu were humorously naive about Earth customs. Asuta, Hazumu's longtime male friend, finds himself attracted to her now that she's changed sexes. Tomari's friend Ayuki had a lot of depth, which is a welcome bonus considering her relatively minor role. Is she attracted to Hazumu as well, but content to keep it a secret? Hazumu's mother beating up her perverted husband was amusing but got old after awhile. Finally, where would this show be without Namiko-sensei, the pathetically lovesick teacher? She's the one character I most sympathize with, and I hope everything works out OK for her in the end.

Whereas in most anime romance series it's pretty clear from the start which boy and girl will eventually wind up together (and a lot of suspense is therefore killed), right up to the end of Kashimashi I had no idea who, if anyone, Hazumu would eventually choose as a girlfriend.

REVIEW NOT FINISHED YET


Last updated Saturday, March 01 2008. Created Saturday, March 01 2008.
Unevaluated Forbin [series:1302#1573]
Analysis : All R1 episodes watched
  • Drama : Low/Med
  • Comedy : Med/High
  • Action : None
  • SciFi : High
  • Ecchi : Med



Kashimashi, a very interesting story. High Drama, Angst, relationships, perverted people, and tons of Yuri that isn't yuri.

I do feel that it's a shame that Bandai never put out a dub for this. I think people would even enjoy it more if Tomari and Yasuna had English voices attached to it.

Originally slated for 12 episodes. The animators added in a '13th' episode that basically adds in the knowledge that everyone knows about the alien (Which they didn't) and changes the ending DRASTICALLY. Basically the show has 2 endings, #12 (True) and #13 (Gift).

Too bad it doesn't really spend any time with Hazumu and the true things he has to live with as a girl, but it did need to focus on the whole Tomari/Yasuna relationship.

Last updated Sunday, February 03 2008. Created Friday, January 13 2006.

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Japanese (Language) Series Web Site http://www.kasimasi.com/

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