(Subtitled version) What an odd series. Perhaps off-beat better describes this. I wasn't sure what to expect when reading the back cover of the tape sleeve; I may have to stop reading these things before reviewing a show. The first thing you notice about Kazuya's character is balance -- no, I don't mean that he can walk a straight line, but he's not as painfully hopeless as Kyosuke in KOR, nor is he a ridiculously self-assured egoist like Saotome Ranma. He's a normal college kid, who'll stand up for himself when pushed too far. But that's not the odd part. As first episodes go, this was pretty typical. Introduce the characters quickly, and run them through a pretty typical situation. Not very odd either. Pink eyes? Yeah, that's a bit different, though the whole drawing style is very much a watercolour effect. Nothing truly odd there, either. What is odd is how the whole thing flows, and how you get hooked watching it. Technically, there's nothing that really grabs my attention -- the animation is only fair, and the music is poor. (Sounds like it was done on some cheap consumer-grade synth.) Voice acting is pretty typical, but as with most roles that Seki Toshihiko plays, I find Shinobu annoying. All this aside, the direction is above average, making the show as a whole more interesting than the characters. Odd, isn't it? - AN

(Dubbed version) The story and back-ground music are left intact -- the only thing different is the dialog track. Too bad. I wouldn't mind someone replacing the music track. I don't own any fan-dubbed tapes, but I imagine most of the acting would sound like this. The show centers around Kazuya (Ted Lewis), and unfortunately, he sounds like he's reading from a script (which he obviously is), and overacts at the same time. Shinobu (Charles Rolf) sounds as if he's on life support (someone please pull the plug.) The other voice actors/actresses are marginally acceptable, with the exception of Shun, played by Heather Quick. Her voice suits the character quite well, especially since it's always breaking as if he's/she's going through puberty. While we're on the subject of voices, would someone please tell these folks how to pronounce Japanese names. If that can't be done, then at least have everyone pronounce the names the same way! Avoid this one at all costs. - AN

(Subtitled Version) Koko wa Greenwood is a fun series to watch. If you've ever lived in a res. or dorm., it will speak volumes and remind you of some things... well maybe it's best not to dwell on certain memories. Especially since it does say something of the first days in res.

Interestingly enough, Koko wa Greenwood is not a fantastic piece of work and the music is its weakest point. However, it tends to grow on you much like a fungus, but unlike fungi the more it grows, the more you like it. This first episode has an interesting way of introducing all the characters and takes good advantage of the idea of dorm life. While the overall rating for the episode is nothing fantastic, it is still well worth watching. All in all a fun romp. -JYN

(Dubbed version) Hmm... Well, first off, if you've ever seen the subtitled version of Koko Wa Greenwood, avoid the dub at all costs. Run for your life if you have to or threaten to unwind the tape, but *don't* watch it! The story and the audio tracks are kept intact from the original and the translations are mixed. Sometimes extremely faithful to the original, other times being fairly loose to keep things moving. I'm not sure, but it's almost like the project was rushed through with the voice actors being handed the script at the time of recording and the translations weren't finalised yet. I can't think of any other reason why some translations would have been suitably altered while others were awkwardly literal. The voice acting was nothing less than awful although not quite to the extreme of horrendous. The first voice you hear is Hasukawa Kazuya and he sounds like an absolute wimp! However, if it was only that the show wouldn't have been lost. Unfortunately just about all the voice actors are just *awful* with the possible exception of Shun. The stresses in the actors' dialogue is all wrong for the english language giving the feeling that the actors were reading the script for the first time. Otherwise, I definitely echo Akio's complaint about the name pronunciations. If they can't pronounce them properly at least pronounce it the same! Yeesh! This is definitely not one to watch unless you've been kidnapped and tied up and have no choice! - JYN