2. Hayate no Gotoku

Yes, Hayate no Gotoku is still airing. The show seems to have fallen off most people’s radar, but it never fell off mine. Ever since it first started airing this past April, I’ve been looking forward to new episodes on a weekly basis. It’s truly the first long running series to grab me in a good while.

Of course, the show’s long broadcast run may be one reason so few people watch it. Today’s anime fans have short attention spans. And when it comes to Hayate no Gotoku, short attention spans need not apply. After all, the show is utterly pointless. I mean, completely, totally, absolutely devoid of any point whatsoever. Yet, it teases you. It promises plot and character development, only to deliver a Norio Wakamoto monologue and a Gundam joke. You never know what the show will do next, and if you think you know… well, you’re probably wrong. And Mr. Wakamoto will be sure to remind you of such.

And that’s why I love the show so damn much. It’s unpredictable in a way that teeters on the edge of absurdity. Sometimes, the show has two feet planted firmly on the ground. Other times, it’s throwing itself off the edge of the world. And it does all of this within the span of a single scene. Or within a single stretch of dialogue. Hell, I’ve even seen it manage both at the same exact time. The show is positively schizophrenic.

It also makes me feel a little nostalgic. The constant references to anime series long forgotten may have something to do with that, but I think Hayate no Gotoku differs from a lot of today’s comedy anime in that it doesn’t rely so much on wit and clever direction for laughs as it does play things straight. Yes, it’s goofy as all get out at times, but the jokes and gags are almost always instantly recognizable. And when those jokes and gags start coming in quick succession, the show can get very funny, very fast. Very few comedy anime series anymore get me laughing so hard that I’m reaching for the pause button just so I can collect myself and catch my breath. Hayate no Gotoku, however, has done so more than once.

So why doesn’t the show enjoy greater popularity? The manga was relatively well-known prior to the anime adaptation’s premiere, so it’s not as if it’s a dark horse or anything. And I would think the show’s particular brand of comedy would be right up many an anime fan’s alley. Yet, aside from those friends who watch the show as religiously as I do, I don’t know many people who kept up with it past the first ten episodes or so. It’s very odd. It’s also a real shame.

After all, the only reason Hayate no Gotoku didn’t get my top spot this year is because the coin came up heads instead of tails.