I’m a bit late for this so will have to cram two episodes into one review.

Why can't every day be Neko-mimi day? :(

Beginning in this Spring 2010 season is JC Staff’s newest romantic comedy Kaichou wa Maid-sama! As one of the best makers of well-made comedies – especially of the romance type – J.C. Staff has long been one of my favorite studios in all of anime and their shows long on my list of favorite shows of the year. Combining two of my favorite genres in anime – high school (and especially STUDENT COUNCIL) hijinks and maid cafes (if there were more around me, I’d go every day!), and based on the eponymous manga by Hiro Fujiwara, Kaichou wa tells the story of Seika High School’s man-hating student council president Misaki Ayuzawa who also secretly works as a waitress in a maid cafe to help her poor family in her off time, and the hilarious antics that ensue.

Summary:

Hey you, drop that breakfast burrito!

The first episode begins with showing off Misaki’s heavy-handedness in running the student council and enforcing the rules of her school, Seika High School. After continuously telling off the male students of the school, we learn that Misaki is the student council president of what was until recently an all boy’s school. Eventually we run into Takumi Usui, the super popular guy in school that all the guys want to be and all the girls want to be with. As he turns down yet another girl wanting his lobu-lobu, Misaki tells him off for hurting yet another girl’s feelings.

After school, Misaki returns home and we learn that that in fact she’s actually quite poor. With holes in the floor of her house and her mother working multiple jobs, it seems that her father left the family with nothing just a few years ago, fueling Misaki’s hate for all men.

Send in the maids!!

Pretty soon it’s time for her after-school job, and we learn that Misaki is actually a maid at a maid cafe. While taking out the trash, she coincidentally runs into Usui who’s in the area. Devastated by this, Misaki runs back into the cafe only to find Usui waiting outside when her shift is over. Taking him aside, she explains that she only works in the maid cafe because it pays well and is easy (damn and I thought she liked the Moeeee~~~~~~) and that anything harder would be bad for her grades, especially as the student council president (incidentally when I was in high school, my student council president in my last year was one of the dumbest kids in school). Three days past and Usui still hasn’t told anyone about Misaki’s secret job, and that afternoon he shows up as a customer at the cafe. The next day Misaki learns that Usui is also the #1 student in school to her #2.

Too bad Sawako never dressed like that...

Later that day at work, Misaki randomly encounters three thuggy schoolmates whom she yelled at as the president earlier, while she is taking out the trash at work and they corner her, but Usui is there to save her. After passing out from exhaustion, she thanks him the next day and asks if there’s anything he wants to which he replies… to be his maid for a day!

I'm not sure if the Armstrong siblings could take Misaki down!

It’s time for the school festival as episode two begins. Trying to create a more female-friendly environment (and mostly to decrease the amount of guys at the school) Misaki vows to make this year’s festival into a big recruiting drive for girls and enforces strict rules about what each class should do. While Usui’s mostly male class wants to do guy stuff, Misaki only likes the idea of the three girls in the class who want to run a cafe.

That afternoon at work, it’s cat ear day, as Misaki encounters Usui yet again, and the three thugs from the previous episode who are now her biggest fans/customers. At work she also learns her boss’ passion for her cafe, in that she loves to see her customers happy.

Dude's the classic 'I don't care' male lead with blonde hair to boot

With the festival approaching, Usui’s male classmates are intent on doing their own secret thing, and as the festival begins, they turn the cafe that the girls started into a Men’s Battle Cosplay Cafe, complete with battle uniforms. Not standing for such a thing, Misaki kicks them all out, but after seeing the girls working hard she dons an apron to help out as well. As she accidentally calls one of customers goshujin-sama, Usui steps in to cover for her.

And here I thought he was a pilot... but Navy admiral? ehh?

As the other guys return to help out, the cafe ends up being a success and Misaki learns that having everyone be happy even if it’s not the idea that she wanted is fine. The episode ends with Misaki learning to finally start listening to other people’s viewpoints, but not before yet another semi-romantic encounter between Usui and Misaki in the trees after the festival is over.

Reaction:

I really enjoyed the first two episodes of this show. As stated, I really love high school anime, and I’m also a big fan of maid cafes, so this is a dream combination in a way. I remember the first time I went to Japan alone 5 years ago, when I went to a maid cafe (Cos-cha cafe in Akihabara) when these things were just taking off, and I thought to myself that my waitress must have been the cutest thing ever, even if I had absolutely no idea what she was saying nor did she know what I was saying either. It was only after that I realized that this may have been an act, but who cares!

Either way, I quite like Misaki as she’s the classic Tsundere with a cute side and the voice acting for her is superb. This show also benefits from the AYAKO DOCTRINE with Kawasumi-san playing a bit part (at least according to ANN).

I was actually not that enthused with the first episode initially which is probably why my review is so late, but the second episode really got me going as it was pretty funny and had some laugh out loud moments as well and on second viewing the first episode has gotten better.

As for Usui, I’m still not sure what to make of this guy. On one hand he’s a total goof, on the other he’s totally the stereotype blondy male lead.

As for the music, I enjoyed the OP/ED even if they are pretty forgettable, and the BGM is pleasant as well. The OP does imply some sort of romantic involvement between Usui and Misaki so it’ll be nice to see where that ends up.

I’m really looking forward to the next episode and I hope you will enjoy it as much as I do!