Genre: Romantic Comedy
Length: 26 episodes
Score: Good
On a holiday to the Seto Inland Sea, Nagasumi nearly drowns – but is rescued by a mermaid. Unfortunately, mermaids have rules that mean death to anybody who knows their secret – and they’re good at enforcing the rules because mermaids are, in fact, all Yakuza. The only solution that doesn’t involve Nagasumi’s death is for him and San to get married, but that obviously brings problems of its own.
The premise is typical of harem comedies, but after a few episodes the premise no longer matters because it just has fun. Nagasumi is completely out of depth among a cast of characters that includes a perpetually angry father, a shark posing as a gym teacher, a four-inch-high assassin, an pop idol whose voice can kill, a prince with such strong agoraphobia that he has to wear a space suit to school, the daughter of the police chief (who is of course the sworn enemy of Yakuza) and a Terminator clone (complete with the Engrish “I Shall Return” catchphrase).
I lost track of the number of times his house had to be rebuilt during the course of the series – but as he remarks, the bathroom seems to get more luxurious every time.