Highschool of the Dead is an entertaining TV anime, with 9 out of the 12 episodes being good, and an OVA worth watching (multiple times). It’s a show with gripping moments and hilarious characters, but it’s not all sunshines and rainbows. By that I mean that there are some negatives as well. And if you thought I meant something else when I titled the article “biggest problems”, you’ll have to wait, you dirty-minded minx. I’ll get around to greating a list featuring some plot. But not this day. Today, I give you the top 10 biggest problems with Highschool of the Dead!
10. Saya Takagi’s Mother and Father Are Dull Characters.
Listen, if you’re going to spend 3 episodes at the Takagi mansion, focusing on the badass father and the hot mother, then you better make them interesting. They are not. If anything, they are are mid characters, who do far too little for me as a viewer to care, and that’s disappointing. In an anime with an already weak main storyline, you must make the characters great. While they succeeded with most of them, they failed miserably with Souichiro Takagi and Yuriko Takagi.
9. The OVA Didn’t Do Much – Did Not Further the Story.
I’m fully aware that an OVA doesn’t have to move the story forward, as when they accompany a 12-episode TV anime, they are a just a way of giving something to the fans that is light-hearted and entertaining. With this OVA, titled Drifters of the Dead, what we got was just that – a funny, extremely sexy, extra episode that was easy to digest. In turn, it served it’s purpose. However, I felt like it was out of place, as it didn’t do anything interesting with the characters or the story. It’s kind of like a “one off” episode, that throws everything out of the window, for some hot and sexy moments – which are the focus of this OVA.
What would I have liked to see in Drifters of the Dead? Well, I would’ve loved to see at least one of the many unfinished sideplots to be resolved. Like, what happened to many of their parents? What happened to Rika and Saya Takagi’s parents? Does Hirano score with any girl? Who does Takashi choose to be with? What was behind the zombie apocalypse? What started it? I mean, take your pick. There are plenty of things left unresolved, and I would’ve loved to see some of it resolved. End of story.
8. Why Give Koichi Shidou So Much Screentime?
This weird, off-putting, slimy bastard is given quite a bit of screentime, yet nothing comes of it. I wonder why? He’s introduced to us as a pervy teacher, with a god complex, who’s constantly thirsting over his students. This disturbing SOB does a lot to get us viewers angry at him, but it doesn’t lead to anything. I mean, a guy like him should’ve definitely have been chopped up. But what Koichi gets is just a threat from Rei Miyamoto, who lets him live. He drives the schoolbus full of kids and crashes. That’s the end of his saga? Maybe. Maybe not. It’s just sad that a villain like him didn’t do more and didn’t get his comeuppance.
7. Alice Should Not Have Been In Highschool of the Dead.
Let’s be honest, shall we? Alice is the youngest character in Highschool of the Dead, and while I can understand her inclusion, she’s an ill-fit for the themes of the show and the group dynamic. We’re talking about a bloody violent ecchi zombie anime, packed to the brim with fan-service. I mean, Alice just doesn’t fit in, you know? Sure, some of her scenes are awesome, and I loved the episode where they save her, but she should’ve been ditched (safely) by the group. It just feels so weird having her be a part of the group, but maybe that’s just me?
6. Saeko Busujima Loving and Getting Off On Killing People Doesn’t Get Explored.
In episode 9, we get a bombshell explanation to Saeko’s cold and collected demeanor. While it isn’t necessarily a facade, it’s just not who she truly is, as she’s afraid to reveal her true nature. I mean, she essentially has a thing for violence, and hurting/killing people gets her off. Like, you know, it arouses her. So, it’s not something I, as the viewer, can easily forget, now can I? Sadly, it’s never once mentioned or explored again. Not in episode 10, 11, 12 or the OVA. It’s forgotten about, and that’s a damn shame! Think of the possibilites!
5. Saya Takagi Gets Treated Like Trash, But Why?
First and foremost, I think that we can all agree when I say that Saya Takagi is a rich brat, who makes snarky remarks and treats others terribly. It’s clear as day. I’m not refuting any of it. But why does she get treated so badly, especially in the last few episodes? I mean, Takashi literally lifts her up by her shirt and shakes her around, simply because she’s expressing herself? It was not a big deal. She was just being vulnerable about how much pressure she’s been under from her “perfect” parents. So why are you trying to threaten her like that, Takashi? Not only that, but she even gets slapped. Multiple times. It’s just weird, isn’t it?
Listen, I understand that she’s a b**ch and should get her comeuppance, but there’s a way to do it, you know? Making Takashi treat her like trash just makes him look like he’s overreacting. He was. Not doubt about it. Considering how much the rest of them complain and do weird stuff, I could say that you could manhandle most of them. But it’s not the right way to go about it, now is it? It’s just a bad way of putting a person in their place.
4. We Don’t Find Out What Happened to the Families of Kouta, Takashi, Saeko and Rei?
From the very start, it was made clear that many characters were worried about their families, and wanted to see if they were alive. While we did in fact find out about Saya Takagi’s family, who were doing mighty fine before the last episode of the anime, but how about the others? I mean, how were Kouta and Takashi’s families doing? Saeko and Rei? Like, it’s understandable that you can’t cover the families of every person in a 12-episode anime, but we needed more information. And what we got was Takagi’s rich family, with a badass dad and a hot mom. I’m not complaining, but we needed to more conclusive info about what had happened to the parents of the other characters as well!
3. The Last 3 Episodes (ep.10, ep.11 & ep.12) Are Bad.
Throughout the story, there are many things that are building up towards a climax, and I’m not referring to the characters themselves, obviously. They had their fun, I know. I’m talking about side-plots and storylines that the show was building up, episode after episode. Like, which girl will Komuro Takashi end up with? Will Hirano get close to Saya? Who is Shizuka’s friend, Rika Minami? What or who is behind the zombie breakout? How did it start? What about the world? The explosions? Well, we don’t get answers to any of these questions, and instead the last two episodes spend time on twisting things even further, making the conclusion to things hard to even predict.
Sure, they were gearing up for a second season, but it never came. In turn, the show just feels so unfinished, which is something I will be talking about further down the list.
2. Kouta Hirano Never Getting Close to Any Girls.
Let’s be honest, shall we? Hirano deserved to get some action, and considering how he was the “pervy one”, it’s weird that he never got more involved with Saya Takagi or the other girls. Sure, he got kissed by Shizuka Marikawa, but what about all the build up with him and Saya Takagi? Why not pull the trigger there and do something more with him? He just ended up with his gun and that’s it? Even in the OVA he was riding a broom, instead of… well, you know? Ayways, he’s a character that deserved better.
1. Unfinished. No Second Season.
Many problems in Highschool of the Dead could’ve been fixed if there was a second season for the anime, as was initially planned. It’s even mentioned in the OVA, where the Alice says, and I quote: “Don’t miss the next season.” In turn, there were obviously plans to move forward with a second season, and considering the success of the show, it’s not suprising. However, when the mangaka, Daisuke Satou, died in 2017, Kawanakajima (Triage X editor) and Shouji Satou (HOTD artist/illustrator) agreed that the anime should pass with him. After all, Daisuke Satou was the mangaka who created Highschool of the Dead.
While it’s understandable, it’s still sad to see an anime as popular as Highschool of the Dead not get a proper ending. It just doesn’t feel right, you know? It reminds me of what happened to the anime titled Gangsta. I even wrote about the lackluster ending, and the need for a season 2, and that opinion piece can be found here. In it, I explain how studio Manglobe‘s banktruptcy was to blame for the anime’s shortcomings. While it’s a different situation with HOTD, the fate is the same – an unfinished popular anime that people yearned a second season for but never got.
Highschool of the Dead – Zombies, Fan-Service, Badassery, Nudity, Action, Love, Comedy.
Highschool of the Dead will go down in anime history as one of the best zombie and ecchi, fan-service, TV anime ever created. With a great mix of action scenes, daring comedy and lewdity, it caught the eyes of millions, and it’s still doing so til’ this day. It had a crazy impact, one that is worth praise and applause. While it’s incomplete, being at best an 8 out of 10 TV anime, it’s a great ride, featuring some colorful characters and unforgettably iconic scenes. So while I must say that the last few episodes, and the story, are quite bad, in its totality HOTD is a show worth watching!