Hetalia: Axis Powers

"Hetalia: Axis Powers" is a anime of history-inspired pandemonium.  That's about it in a nutshell.  Now I'll give you the somewhat lengthy description.  This show takes all of the major nations from World War II and personifies them.  Each person/nation reflects many of the stereotypes about that nation.  France as a person is smooth with women but a terrible fighter, Britain is trustworthy but somewhat dull and everyone thinks his food is bland, and America is tall, loud, and loves his meals super-sized.  What ensues a series of short skits mostly in the limited run-time of 5 minutes per episode.  Many of these little shorts follow actual historical events but put in the context of the Allies and Axis being like clubs or gangs and they're out to get each other.  The violence is severely downplayed, resulting in a show that would be appropriate for all audiences if it weren't for the occasional use of excessive language.  The execution results in a lot of humor mixed with a historical context but the short run-time means you can't really get into anything.

I have some mixed feelings regarding this series.  For what it is, it's a charming and entertaining show; however, that's exactly the issue: what it is.   At first glance, it appears the show tries to entertain while educating the audience a little on foreign history (remember that the show is originally Japanese).  The truth of the matter is that while the show does follow through on tossing a little history and culture your way, it feels mostly secondary to the antics that ensue.  While these antics are for the most part entertaining, it becomes apparent that, aside from the occasional use of profanity, this show would be best suited to children/young teens.  There is no serious plot to be had in this show; any conflict is general portrayed in a very light, comical manner, with no real portrayal of the bloody carnage that actually took place.  While this isn't necessarily a bad thing, it further forwards the notion that it targets the younger demographics.  That being said, the show does a great job of offering a lot of humorous scenes that play off of the common stereotypes held about the many nations and their cultures.  Their interactions do a great job of involving their cultures and beliefs, while keeping things light-hearted and fun.  In short, a series of relatively brief, light-handed humorous skits that manage to entertain but leaves something to be desired for those longing for a serious and more in-depth type of story and characters.  It's not that the series isn't good at what it does, I simply think it could have done more.  The comedy is entertaining and the brief history lessons interesting; however, I felt the end result felt a little too simple-minded with no real feeling of direction overall.

Good:

-An interesting group of personalities that embody the different cultures they represent

-Shorter episodes make the series a relatively quick watch, even with 52 episodes

-Cultural stereotypes clashing tend to provide a lot of comic relief

Bad:

-Characters have little/no real depth or dimension

-Short run time makes the episodes end before you can even get comfortable

-Virtually nothing to please those seeking action or a deeper narrative, only comedy mixed with a little history

Scully Rating: 7 out of 10

Watch "Hetalia: Axis Powers" at: http://www.animefreak.tv/watch/hetalia-axis-powers-english-dubbed-online-free