The twentieth day of the challenge has us trying to pick out our favorite cast of characters that are attending high school. Considering that the majority of shows these days are of this arena, this is a difficult choice when you get down to it because you have so many different things to choose from. So we’ll try to shake it up a little bit by breaking it down into a few different categories so we can talk about more than just a single one, since we have certain favorite preferences that do tend to overwhelm at times with this challenge as some of my most favorite shows cross so many different things.
Best Romantic Comedy High School Cast
This one was the easiest one to choose from because of what it is as Kimagure Orange Road has long been my barometer for a good high school romantic comedy. The show rarely goes over the top and comes across as a rather restrained show that deals with the usual kinds of sitcom misunderstands that occur, but it uses the romantic triangle aspect with a mixture of psychic powers that cause things to go a little bit more out of control than usual. What makes it work though is that if you take out the psychic elements, it’s still a great deal of fun. Though people can get polarized with the characters within it, I’ve always found each of them having very distinct and important things about them to draw you to each character. The important thing is that the show would not succeed without all three involved as they are.
Best Comedy High School Cast
Straight out comedy series in a high school setting are a dime a dozen but it’s finding one that really clicks and connects because of what it brings to the table that makes it unique. That’s why I had to go with School Rumble for this one. While there are a lot of comedies that make me laugh, this one knows how to go over the top just right, bring in a variety of surprisingly good situations that are outside of the school arena, and deals with several classes of kids across different grades to produce wonderful results. It has so many characters that I find fun to watch that even the ones that I’m not a fan of have plenty to offer in how they play off the rest. This is an easy show to just pop on, take in a couple of episodes, and walk away with a huge grin.
Best Slice Of Life High School Cast
This one really proved to be a hard one to choose from as there are many good ones, and I almost went with Lucky Star on it, but I keep finding myself drawn back to Azumanga Daioh. With a large sized cast to it that all gets the right kind of attention, it blends slice of life situations with sweet moments, sweet humor and laugh out loud moments as well. The cast here doesn’t have anything out of the ordinary about them, and though they do dream big, they contend with everyday things in a way that just makes you smile. With it being one of the few shows that I’ve watched several times over the last few years, it continues to bring me a lot of joy each time I see it, especially as we see the kids go through several years of school and actually grow up.
Best Supernatural Themed High School Cast
If only Jubei-chan was not in junior high! That said, Tokyo Majin is a series that quickly rises to the top of the list as it’s a very serious work that has a great sense of style about it with really interesting characters that take some time to come together to deal with the threat at hand. Most supernatural series tend to deal with junior high students, ala Yu Yu Hakusho which would have rivaled for this as well, but Tokyo Majin gives us a work that spends quite a bit of time with the high school students who find themselves caught up in some big events. The school side is weak, which is a point removed in their favor, but that we get some strongly defined characters with confidence about them and a resolve to do what needs to be done, it helps separate them from the junior high crowd who often struggles with the need to get things done. This gang has a lot going for them and they go through a great deal of suffering which helps to highlight just how strong their personalities are.
Best High School Sports Cast
With so many shows focusing on sports, few of which make it over here, this can be a really tough category as well. The more serious ones have a lot to offer such as Cross Game and Big Windup and you can really get behind them. The cast that continually wins me over as a whole though is Princess Nine. Whereas the other series focus on just a couple of characters, this one deals with the majority of the team throughout and it has a great deal to offer as they work to get their team going while coping with all of the challenges. It is, sadly, one of the few shows I have not had an opportunity to re-watch over the years and really need to do so with.
