Hall of Fame Special Induction: Dog Days

The "Special Inductions" of my Anime Hall of Fame highlight series that I enjoyed a lot, yet I understand will not appeal to many who look to my Hall of Fame series for recommendations. Nevertheless, I present a case for them for anyone who thinks they might like the show. Take a look below and see if the show might be to your tastes.

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Dog Days

Who let these dogs out? (Official art)

Show Information

Based on: Anime original

Airdates & Lengths:
- Season 1: Spring 2011, 13 episodes
- Season 2: Summer 2012, 13 episodes
- A sequel is currently in production.
Rating: TV-14, for lost clothing and nudity-fanservice

Studio: Seven Arcs

Available for streaming: Crunchyroll

Home video license: None yet

About the Show

The dog-people of the Republic of Biscotti are under attack from the cat people of the Kingdom of Galette. Facing a dire situation, Biscotti princess Millhiore performs an advanced summoning tactic to summon a hero to fight for them... and ends up summoning Shinku Izumi, an Earthling and very athletic middle-schooler. As he finds out, though, the "war" between Biscotti and Galette is basically one massive, organized athletic competition, one where no one actually dies and those that are "defeated" simply turn into powerless furballs. Here, Shinku finds a world that is full of fun and excitement as he throws himself wholeheartedly into the war games... without even thinking about if he can even get back to his own world at all.

Is it worth watching?: There are lots of reasons for experiencing fiction. Sometimes, it's to get emotionally involved in a heart-wrenching story, or to explore the human condition in an expertly-crafted character work. And sometimes, all you want is a fun, entertaining story where you can be transported into a new world and enjoy every moment of it.

It's this last one that Dog Days excels at. The "harmless war" aspect of the games might make for a poor storytelling platform, but for entertainment and pure "immerse yourself in another world" factor, it's great. The show is dedicated to having fun, and the war games, the concert interludes, and the various side stories all help support this. (There is one more serious story arc in the first season, which admittedly feels a bit out of place, but everything else is for fun.) Add in a massive cast of cute girls (plus some pretty cool guys) and you have a nice, enjoyable, non-serious show.

That said, it's not going to be to everyone's tastes. It's very much steeped in the moé aesthetic, with little to appease those who are not a fan of that aesthetic. There's definitely a decent amount of fanservice (particularly of the clothing damage variety), and the show overall is about as deep as a kiddie pool. If this doesn't bother you too much and you are looking for a fun fantasy show with plenty of action, this show is worth checking out.