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[ Agepoyo Reviews ] Super Gals!

What is it about?

Set in 90s Shibuya, the series revolves Ran Kotobuki, a self-proclaimed “World’s Greatest Gal.” Determined to live the best gal life, she builds a reputation around Shibuya for herself (and outside Shibuya, at least to other gals.) She is joined by her two best friends, Miyu Yamazaki, and Aya Hoshino; With them on her side, they seek out their best possible life, through romance, and rivalry.

CW: minor discussions of teenage prostitution (compensated dating, along with being almost lured into it.)

Ask any gal familiar with animanga as a whole, and they will most likely direct you to Super Gals! as the best view on gal subculture in any series, as it truly follows what the “gal life” holds for girls (and boys, as there are gyaru-o,) along with no sexualization of the subculture, as many series do in the modern era.

Revolving around the subculture as a whole, the series doesn’t just deal with the common, fun life of a gyaru, daily activities of shopping with friends, reading magazines, and keeping a look out for “hotties.” It also delves into the darker side of the subculture, and young girls in general. It doesn’t shy away from showing the girls falling into dangerous situations, while making sure to not fetishize any bit of it.

The first troublesome situation we see is when top student Aya is a victim to nasty gossip about her engaging in compensated dating, a rumor that ends up being true, as a last resort to make money, due to her parents forcing her to only dedicate her time to studying, not allowing her to get any sort of a part time job.

This is also the first time we see how Ran cares deeply about anyone, especially someone in such a dire situation, with Miyu at her side.

While Aya truly believes she is no longer a person, just a thing, but everything will be alright as long as she doesn’t “sell her heart,” 

After ensuring her that she’s not as controlled by this situation as she believes, she agrees to stop engaging in compensated dating for good, joining their group of friends.

The next struggle we see is only a few episodes more into the series. Miyu has been receiving harassing text messages, threatening to reveal her past self, and the things she did to the entire school.

It’s revealed to us that she used to be the head of a dangerous gang, one surrounded by actual violence. 

Miyu finally confronts a group of boys who formerly represented her rival gang, and after a seemingly dangerous exchange, with the help of Ran, she discovers the culprit of the threatening messages, the former leader of the gang.

This isn’t the only dangerous situation Miyu finds herself in, much later in the series, she becomes very insecure, as her tuition is just barely getting paid, her mother doesn’t want much to do with her, and her current relationship seems rocky. 

She attempts to find a part-time job for herself, gaining independence! Until it’s revealed that the “job” was a setup, a trap to lure young girls like her into becoming prostitutes. Miyu however, uses the independence she’s gained to stop it from going any further.

Probably the best scene in the entire show as far as the serious tone of it all. 

From there on out, we’re mostly just given typical shoujo, slice of life episodes. Rivalry with the “Top Gal of Ikebukuro,” drama with relationships all around, a wish coming true to make Ran and her younger sister Sayo trade places, and other similar scenarios. 

All in all, it’s my number one series to recommend to anyone even interested in the gal culture. The fashion is a great example of gals of the era, with platform boots, large coats, mini skirts,and animal print.

Every so often we’re also given “Gal-Lingo” tips! Translated from “Gal Lingo” to average slang. While they don’t give every bit of gal slang, it’s a great way to learn!

The only real complaint of the series I’ll put out there is the view on the actual tanned characters is... not great. We’re given a group of ganguro that regularly seek out conflict with the untanned gals, as far as I remember, there’s not much bad said against them, but with their larger lips, they definitely resemble blackface, their looks aren’t as extreme as some series, at least.

The worst however is Ran’s boyfriend, Tatsuki, who’s often referred to as the “monkey boy,” and whilst this is supposed to poke fun at his personality (Ran is even teased, being called a monkey girl,) he’s often given monkey features while being teased. Despite this not being their intent, could appear as pretty bad racist stereotype.

On the bright side, he’s an incredibly caring boyfriend to Ran. While being perhaps too wild and carefree, he makes a great pair for her.

With those issues aside, Super Gals is a wonder introduction to the gal life! It goes over nearly every topic related, breaking down harmful stereotypes girls face, while celebrating being a free-spirit. It’s a wonderful series, that even got officially dubbed (and for early 2000s, the dub isn’t bad! It’s silly, but not bad.), and even a great series if you’ve been involved in gal for a long time, but are looking for some gal related shows!