You really have to approach this show with a very open mind. I mean, rarely does one see an S/M relationship so portrayed.

MM! (called Emu Emu!) tells the story of Taro Sado (the guy) who is a masochist. There is nothing he loves more than to get pummeled into submission by pretty girls. But there is this girl that he wishes to confess his love to (the one with her back to us) and she is too shy to listen to what he has to say. But he wants to be pure for her and rid himself once and for all of this vice. He is told to go to the Second Voluntary Club where the president, Mio Isurugi, says she can cure him (she’s the blonde in the doorway).

Too bad she has a God Complex and when Taro does not respond to her fast enough, proceeds to beat the snot out of him, which only reinforces his masochism. Also a member of this club is Arashiko Yuno (purple hair, dead center), childhood friend, who not only caused Taro’s problem, but has a problem of her own: she has a fear of men, brought on by a middle school incident with a boy she was dating.

In fact, EVERYONE in this show has some kind of perversion or bent.

Michiru Onigawara – The school nurse and club advisor, she has a thing about taking photos of pretty girls in revealing outfits.
Noa Hiiragi – President of the Inventor’s Club, she wants everyone to be perverts, as she is one.
Shizuka Sado – Taro’s sister, she wants nothing more that to marry her brother.
Tomoko Sado – Taro’s mother, she wants nothing more than to marry her son and considers even her daughter a rival.
Yumi Mamiya – A girl who is an heir to a massaging empire, she has Sapphic desires and really knows how to give a massage.
Tatsukichi Hayama – Taro’s friend, his problem is a plot device, but he has one, OK?

The run of the show consists of ways to try and not only get Taro to stop being such a masochist, but to also help Yuno get over her fear of men. It doesn’t work (of course not; if it did work, there would be no show), but we certainly do have a large amount of fan service for this one, as Yuno is rather fleshy and Michiru wears very flirty outfits.

Being a harem comedy of sorts, there are the usual situations and misunderstandings that come with male-female relationship as we try and sort out the feelings, the real feelings, everyone has for one another. As a comedy, there are lots of jumping up and down and yelling and screaming, but you also have to factor in a huge amount of fantasy and disreality. In one show, Noa invents a Pervert Ray Gun, so that everyone becomes a pervert. Rather ambitious on a high school science project.

There is also some degree of violence. Although much of it is comedic, there are a few points when it becomes realistic, which makes it hard to stay balanced: laughing one moment, crying the next. If you are willing to surrender anything that ties you to reality and take it as a goofy show along the lines of “Pani Poni Dash” or “Lucky Star”, you’ll have a better time with the show. Ultimately, this is a real throw-away series, more of a palate cleaner from a really emotional draining series. It’s just something interesting to watch, with no more staying power than a chalk drawing in the rain.

On a scale of 1 to 10:

Artwork           9 (Solid artwork)
Plot                  6 (Gets overworked)
Pacing              8 (Can turn frenetic fast)
Effectiveness    6 (The lack of progress make it drag)
Conclusion       6 (It reaches a ‘save point’, but doesn’t really end)
Fan Service      7 (A similar show would be “UFO Ultramaiden Valkyrie”)

Overall            7 (Less beatings would help)

And remember, it’s first run until you’ve seen it. Do you want to be my dog?