I'm a sucker for anime shows like this: novel and totally fresh. Who's ever heard of a show, not about cheerleaders but, cheer boys'! I mean, talk about stepping outside the box; yes I know that cheerleading is a sport, which means that there's nothing really new about another sport themed anime, but cheerleading is a sport that for a very long time now (until recently), has been solely associated with females. With all sports, cheerleading in particular, stereotypes both positive and negative often emerge. One predominant stereotype of cheerleaders that persisted in the media was that they were superficial, frivolous, and lightweight girls. Fortunately things are different now. Of course cheerleading is a sport not for the faint of heart. It requires a multitude of physical attributes such as: strength, endurance, flexibility, balance, coordination, you name it. Anyway, back to Cheer Danshi!! The show presumably deals with numerous real-life issues and follows college students, and childhood friends (because it wouldn't be a sport themed anime otherwise) Haruki Bandou and Kazuma Hashimoto, and their attempts to form a men's only cheerleading team.

By the end of this episode Bandou and Hashimoto successfully recruit another member to join (the 7th member) the team, but have to overcome some hurdles in order to accomplish this, such as learning to perform a perfect (or near perfect) round-off back handspring. The three members who struggle the most with this include Bandou, Mizoguchi and Kouji who end up, not only being able to complete the move, but who also end up strengthening their friendships with one another. This becomes even more apparent when Mizoguchi starts sobbing once Kouji (one of the bigger statured guys) does the flip, which is both funny and heart-rending (at this point, I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry).

Overall, I would definitely say that this is the go-to anime for anyone who likes shows that fall under the slice of life or sports category. I give this episode, and the show so far, a thumbs up.

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Cheer Danshi!! E.03 Official Website

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