Anime Profile: Happy Lesson

If I were to say this anime was about an orphaned high school boy who now lives with five very attractive women who all want nothing more that to take care of his every need, you might very well think I was giving you the plot to some hentai release, but alas this is the plot to Happy Lesson, a comedy anime television series about Chitose and the five teachers who all desire to take care of the boy since he has nobody else. Raised in an orphanage since he was little, Chitose Hitotose only recently moved out and into the house that his parents left him. But when his teachers witness his delinquent attitude and poor grades, they each decide to unofficially adopt him and all wind up moving in at exactly the same time.

Each of these teachers have their own distinct methods for how to go about improving Chitose, and these methods often conflict and snowball leaving Chitose in all sorts of outlandish situations. Mutsuki Ichimonji is Chitose's homeroom teacher and seems to be the most balanced of the group, if such a thing is possible. She strongly encourages Chitose to study STUDY STUDY! Kisaragi Ninomai is the science teacher who is almost like a mad scientist. She is very technology advanced, creating all sorts of inventions... which often fail, and usually cause Chitose a fair amount of pain. This is the only class he does extremely well in, because as he sees it, failing to pay attention in this class could mean instant death.

Yayoi Sanzenin is the beautiful school nurse who always has a horde of boys outside her office door pleading all sorts of ridiculous excuses for needing to see her. She is also a Shinto priestess and very handy with a sword which she sometimes uses to influence Chitose's attitude. Uzuki Shitenno is the art teacher, who's child-like attitude and petite body could easily cause her to be mistaken for a student. And finally there's Satsuki Gokajo, the gym teacher, who is all about strength, stamina, and exercise. She is the loudest and rashest of the group, often pummeling Chitose without even realizing it.

This show really seems to strike a good balance between the comedic gags, the story, and the characters. Unlike some other anime series I watched recently, this one is really easy to get into and start caring about the characters and wanting to see what's going to happen to them next. Even though pretty much nobody has been in the situation that Chitose is in, it's still very easy to feel for this character and what he's going through.

Note: Each of the teachers last names because with a Japanese number, Ichi (one), Ni (two), San (three), Shi (four), and Go (five).

The box set DVD release of Happy Lesson - Teacher's Pet Collection from The Right Stuf contains three discs, each in its own slimline clamshell DVD case, all packaged neatly into a what feels like a high-quality cardboard case with beautiful artwork on each side. A total of 17 episodes are included, the 14 episodes of Season 1 plus 3 OVA episodes. The OVA episodes were actually created before the TV series, and there were five of them, so hopefully when The Right Stuf releases the next season, Happy Lesson Advance, the release will include the final two OVA episodes.

• Season 1, Episode 1 - Exciting - Mama Teachers
• Season 1, Episode 2 - Be Happy - Let's Study
• Season 1, Episode 3 - Bye-Bye - Adieu, Spirit of Misfortune
• Season 1, Episode 4 - Unsteady - Which Place is Big Brother's
• Season 1, Episode 5 - Freezing - One Night in a Blizzard
• Season 1, Episode 6 - Nervously - Conquer the World
• Season 1, Episode 7 - Exciting - Mina Does Her Best
• Season 1, Episode 8 - Floating - Uzuki is an Angel
• Season 1, Episode 9 - Exhausting - Club Activities
• Season 1, Episode 10 - Dithering - Hazuki Announces Her Retirement
• Season 1, Episode 11 - Dizzying - The Big Transformation of Her Dreams
• Season 1, Episode 12 - Nice and Warm - Alone With Kanna
• Season 1, Episode 13 - Love-Love - Koyomi School Festival
• Season 1, Episode 14 - Teary - Did I See a Secret
• OVA 1 - Exciting - Mama Teachers
• OVA 2 - Exciting - Vacation
• OVA 3 - Unsettling - Happy Mamas