Miku Sawai -- Gomen ne, Ii Ko Ja Irarenai （ごめんね、いいコじゃいられない）

The most WHACKED-OUT anime that I have seen...EVER...is "KILL LA KILL". My friend told me, before he revved up the computer to show me Episode 1, that this was A COMPLETELY NUTS SHOW and that was all he said. After watching said episode, I told him he had been rather understated. IMAGINE Michael Bay, Quentin Tarentino and Warner Brothers getting together to create their own nihilistic cartoon. It would still not approach THE EPIC AND GLORIOUS INSANITY that Kazuki Nakashima （中島かずき）and Hiroyuki Imaishi （今石洋之）unleashed during fall and winter of the past year. Propagandists for the fallen Soviet Union would have mewled, "WE ARE NOT WORTHY!!!"

Yes, well....now that I got that out of the way....

Let it be said that my friend and I enjoyed wayward student/warrior Ryuko Matoi and her school battlemates, the fey leader of freedom (from clothing) fighting group Nudist Beach along with the sky-high over-the-top action sequences....and of course, Ryuko's best buddy, Mako Mankanshoku who could give Seth MacFarlane's version of William Shatner on "Family Guy" a run for his money. Boy, would I love to see some enterprising YouTuber create a video with those two having a conversation.

There have been some fine anime theme songs over the past several months as well from shows like "Space Dandy" and "Uchoten Kazoku", and I would also have to add the show's first ending theme, "Gomen ne, Ii Ko Ja Irarenai" (Sorry, I'm Done Being A Good Kid) by singer-songwriter Miku Sawai（沢井美空）. Reminding me of some of Nanase Aikawa's （相川七瀬）early work in the mid-90s especially with that guitar, I thought that the keyboard with Sawai's high and delicate vocals also conveyed some of the innocence that may still reside in the hardened Ryuko, something the original ending credits illustrated as well. The above link will not only take you to the full version of the song but the "MV" symbol will then show you a brief excerpt of the official video.

"Gomen ne" was released as Sawai's 5th single in November 2013 going as high up as No. 37 on Oricon. The 20-year-old Osaka native got her spark into her future career from elementary school when she wrote up a collection of poetry for a teacher who was being transferred to another school. Then, inspired by singer YUI in junior high school, she made up her mind to go into songwriting. In 2011, she made her debut with "Atashi, Kyo, Shitsuren Shimashita"（あたし、今日、失恋しました...I, Today, Got My Heart Broken）.

(cover version)

For the final several episodes of the series, there was another ending theme "Shin Sekai Kōkyōgaku"（新世界交響楽...New World Symphony） by Sayonara Ponytail. However, the full version of "Gomen ne" returned to wrap up the whole thing, and I thought the way the music matched the actions of the three main human characters in a new and improved world was just right. I am definitely looking forward to seeing that special OAV epilogue in September.

And now I leave you with the sage words of the one and only Mako Mankanshoku. Please do not watch under the influence.