Little Miss Thinker:Otona Ni Nuts and Fanservice

If you can recall the far flung past of last Wednesday and my questionable review on Otano Ni Nuts I commented on the weird amount of fan service.If this was a Shonen, I wouldn't bat an eye, it's par for the course there.However this was a shojo manga and one of the covers looked like this:

I understanding wanting to broaden your demographic but this is just shameful. Yes,some girl manga put a changing scene or the like just to get  some male readers but it usually flows with the story. Nuts decided that half of volume two should be about putting our lead in loads of revealing swimwear.It just bizarre and is fairly creepy when you remember that this girl is in the fifth grade.

I actually thought the Tokyo Pop covers were pretty clever and were wasted on this series. I'd describe them but I'd rather show you so here one is:

 It takes the needlessly risque cover and turns it into something nice that would not make me think this is boring tripe.Not the most exciting cover in the world but still not bad.It looks like the publisher was trying instead of "hey boobs". I don't mean to come of as a prude,I'm defiantly not.I'm all for go go action sexy,but it doesn't need to pervade everything.

Might as well  I make some comments on fan service in general.I'm okay with it for the most part.Yes,it can ruin pretty ok shows like last year's Sword Art Online,but used in moderation I don't mind it. Fan serivce can use it to great effect when done right to make great sex comedies like the hilarious  "My Balls". It works there because the book goes whole hog on it and is not trying to be serious. Same thing with High School Of The Dead, the fan service fit the very sleazy zombie movie feel the show was aiming for. Shojo tends to be more subtle about it's fan service for the female gaze,letting it occur naturally.It can be gratuitous Ala Absolute Boyfriend but usually stays on the believable side.

In the end do I think fan service is bad:yes,it can cheapen a great show,cripple an alright show but if used the right way it's perfectly fine.
 
Also as a challenge to the five people who read this blog, go check out Otana Ni Nuts' first volume and tell it wouldn't be a decent one shot before that stupid doctor shows up. Till next time: Stay Positive.