is a three-episode original video animation spin-off of the Genshiken manga and anime series, as well as a series of three light novels by Genshiken anime collaborator Michiko Yokote. However, within the world of Genshiken, Kujibiki Unbalance has a 26-episode anime adaptation discussed by the main characters. The same characters also purchase associated products and adult-oriented based on the series, which constitute the motivation for some of the "club activities" held by the Genshiken. Genshiken characters who are fans of Kujibiki Unbalance tend to refer to it by the shorthand name of .
In essence, Kujibiki Unbalance is a compilation of many of the standard themes found in certain kinds of anime and manga series: childhood promises as the source of relationship drama, the influential yet shadowy Student Council, somewhat contrived scenarios designed to push the plot forward, mid-series "recaps" to remind viewers of previous events, and a sudden crisis that threatens to alienate the main characters and harms the outcome of the series. Kujibiki Unbalance is meant to be a stereotypical anime series, serving as both an homage to and a parody of the kinds of series that the otaku of Genshiken would enjoy.
The series was originally shown both as short "excerpts" within the Genshiken manga, as well as three full OVA episodes (labeled as episodes 1, 21, and 25 of an assumed 26-episode TV series) released to DVD with Genshiken in Japan. At Comiket 69, Media Factory announced the release of the second season of Genshiken, which was later clarified as being a 12-episode season of Kujibiki♥Unbalance. In a reversal of its OVA release alongside Genshiken, the DVD release of Kujibiki Unbalance included a total of three Genshiken OVA episodes, introducing the character Ogiue and continuing the plot of the manga from where the TV series left off.
Characters Tokino's Team
Chihiro is the main male character of Kujibiki Unbalance. He is a good-natured person who is nicknamed "Happy Fortune" by his friend Mugio. His parents died when he was ten years old, and since then, Chihiro has been living with his seemingly irresponsible older sister. Having fended for himself for quite some time, he is excellent at cooking and cleaning.
Tokino is a cheerful second-year student at Rikkyoin High who is the group's "President", thus being a candidate to be next year's Student Council President. She loves mushrooms to the point of obsession. Her knowledge of mushrooms is encyclopedic, as she knows them by sight and has an insatiable appetite for them. Tokino is often seen carrying around a book titled Mushrooms of the World.
A quiet and thoughtful girl, Komaki seems to be the sole caretaker for her younger triplet brothers and a frail younger sister called Koyuki. She is intelligent and does all chores to keep the house running well for the Asagiri siblings.=
Izumi is a tough and unsentimental girl who is often seen playing high-stakes games of Mahjong. She does her best to make her own living through gambling and shuns offers of outside help.
Renko's Team
Ranko is an overachieving girl who considers Tokino her arch-enemy. Their dynamic goes back to their days in kindergarten: it is revealed that Tokino once took so long in the bathroom that Renko, unable to wait any longer, wet herself. Ever since that time, Renko has made it her personal mission to somehow embarrass and humiliate Tokino in return. Renko has the unusual ability to read an entire book in under a minute—but unfortunately, she can only remember the information she has read for three minutes afterward.
Kaoruko is a member of Renko's team who primarily tries to keep her calm, but often fails.
Current Student Council
Ritsuko is a half-German girl who is current President of the Student Council and Chihiro's childhood friend.
The vice-president and possibly secretary of the current student council. Like Izumi, Kasumi comes from a yakuza family, and lost her parents as a child. She always carries a sword. She is cold and reserved, a ferocious fighter, and she seems to have only allowed one person—Ritsuko—to be truly close to her. She also has a habit of speaking her mind, which at time frightens Risa.
Lisa is an American girl who knows how to speak in Kansai dialect.
Minor characters
Shinobu is Chihiro's elder sister who is a math teacher at Rikkyoin. She is sometimes clumsy, often falling down sets of stairs and seems to really like sake.
Chihiro's good friend who is not competitive as his team lost early on, so he never got a chance to face-off against Chihiro's team. Alex Alex is a gun-wielding assassin who appears in episode 21. According to Genshiken, he showed up in earlier episodes, and is in the opening, so he could be more of an important character than he seems.
Media Note: Only episodes 1, 21, and 25 have actually been produced. The rest of the episode titles are those revealed in the next-episode previews of the produced episodes, or listed in Genshiken chapter 22, on page 89 of volume 4. The titles for episodes 13–18 are obscured by panel and word-balloon boundaries, though the titles for episodes 14 and 16 are given in Genshiken volume 5.
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