First released a few years ago and still going strong, Osomatsu-San shows no signs of stopping when it comes to providing laughs and parodying literally anything that comes its way. Currently halfway through its third season, Osomatsu-San has a long way to go and fans couldn’t be happier.

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The raunchy comedy about the Matsuno brothers living their NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training) lives was an unexpected hit that struck an unexpected chord with viewers who can’t help but laugh at yet love the focal losers. That said, there’s a lot about this show that most fans may have glossed over.

10 It’s A Sequel Series

Osomatsu

Newcomers who hopped into Osomatsu-San just looking a fun anime sitcom can be forgiven for not realizing that it’s both a revival and sequel. The sextuplets make many references to their childhood days, but these can be overlooked as simple flashbacks and not deliberate callbacks to an older anime.

The original was Osomatsu-Kun, a ‘60s gag anime chronicling the Matsuno brothers’ shenanigans when they were 10-years old. There was a sequel in the ‘80s, though it focused more on the breakout characters Iyami and Chibita. Osomatsu-San (which translates to Mr. Osomatsu) reflects the brothers’ older age and passage of time by aging them to their 20’s.

9 It Was A Massive Sleeper Hit

Cast of Osomatsu San Season 1

Given the long gap of time between the last Osomatsu-Kun episode and Osomatsu-San’s pilot, the Matsunos’ revival was risky, to say the least. Though Osomatsu-Kun was still a beloved nostalgic icon even before its 2015 return, it was basically out of the public consciousness for the longest time. Luckily, Osomatsu-San didn’t just click as it exploded in popularity.

Osomatsu-San shattered all expectations, becoming the most-viewed Fall 2015 anime and 2016’s top-selling Blu-Ray DVD in Japan. Studio Pierrot didn’t expect this, leading to the immediate production of more episodes. This is why Season 2 (aired just a year later) felt rushed and lackluster, and why the ongoing and comparatively better Season 3 took longer to come out.

8 It Has A Movie

Anime Osomatsu San Movie The Matsuno Brothers

Right now, Osomatsu-San is something of an underground favorite in the anime community outside of Japan. It wouldn’t be too surprising to know that these fans didn’t notice that the Matsunos actually got a cinematic adventure in 2019, simply titled Osomatsu-San: The Movie.

Here, the Matsunos suddenly wake up in the past and relieve their senior year in high school. Trying to figure out how their lives turned out the way they did, the Matsunos see if they can change the past to escape a NEETs’ future. The movie can be viewed on Crunchyroll, though its availability depends on regional restrictions and laws. Also, there’s currently no English dub (more on that later).

7 It Has A Mobile Game

Osomatsu San Battle of the NEETS

These days, anime getting a mobile game isn’t that big a deal, even if some titles don’t exactly lend themselves to video games at first glance. This is the case for Ososmatsu-San since beyond its absurd and over-the-top humor, it’s a slice-of-life comedy – so of course, its game would be a tower defense brawler.

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Titled Osomatsu-San Hesokuri Wars: Battle of the NEETS, the game has players selecting 10 different Matsunos (whose abilities are determined by costume) to fight the opposing team comprised of other characters and/or Matsunos. Of course, the Matsunos’ goal is to beat up the other side to get their hidden stash of money. Battle of the NEETs was a hit and scored two million downloads.

6 It Has More Than One Stage Play Musical

Osomatsu San Six Mens Show Time

A mark of an anime’s popularity is the stage musical, which in some ways all but guarantees a live-action movie sometime in the future. Osomatsu-San has become big enough not just to get one, but two stage musicals.

The first is Osomatsu-San on STAGE: SIX MEN’S SHOW TIME which first played in 2016 and also features the brothers’ idol personas, F6. The stage presentation and its sequel sold out, leading to a third part. Their latest play debuted in November 2020 and features the Matsunos plus their side characters, like Totoko and their parents. Of course, the third part is about the sextuplets going to space.

5 It’s (Technically) An Alternate Universe

Osomatsu Kun Grows Up

Officially, Osomatsu-San is a belated sequel to Osomatsu-Kun. But if the latter’s ad campaigns are taken into effect, it would turn Osomatsu-San into an alternate universe. Published in 1993 as a distant finale and beer ad, Osomatsu-Kun Grows Up shows what happened to the brothers when they finally reach adulthood.

Here, Osomatsu becomes a salaryman, Karamatsu runs a grocery, Choromatsu becomes a cop, Ichimatsu becomes a CEO thanks to nepotism/marriage, Jyushimatsu becomes a doctor, and Todomatsu runs a fish market. Obviously, these are far cries from their modernized NEET statuses. Given Osomatsu-San’s loose continuity, their shockingly employed adult lives could be revisited or twisted in future storylines.

4 The Pilot Episode Is Still Banned

Osomatsu San Attack On Titan

Osomatsu-San made quite the first impression when it got itself in hot water from the get-go. The pilot – Osomatsu-kun Returns! – features the Matsuno brothers trying to figure out how to connect with modern audiences. They then parody whatever anime trend is popular, including Yaoi (esp. Boys Over Flowers) and Attack on Titan. Of course, this ends in hilarious failure.

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Japanese networks weren’t so amused, though, since the country’s free use laws differ heavily from its most common interpretation. Long story short, Japanese parodies are under strict moral obligation to not mock or demean their subject; a level of respect must be maintained no matter what. After mounting legal pressure and given how unapologetic the spoofs were, Pierrot pulled the pilot and banned future circulation – including the upcoming English-language DVD.

3 Studio Executives Banned A Dekapan Parody

Osomatsu San Anpanman

Nothing is sacred to Osomatsu-San, including the innocent Anpanman. The latter has a bread-headed superhero who saves kids in cutesy ways, and it was lampooned into Dekapan-man. In the parody, Dekapan saves the day in unintentionally gross ways by yanking stuff from his pants.

Shortly after the episode aired, it was edited to remove any references to Anpanman. According to TY Tokyo head Yuichi Takahashi, some higher-ups were offended that an “important anime for children” like Anpanman was viciously mocked. The bits’ punchlines remained the same, though Dekapan was no longer a blatant Anpanman stand-in.

2 The English Dub Has Been Stuck In Development For Years

Osomatsu-San-VIZ-DVD

Part of the reason why Ososmatsu-San isn’t that big despite its positive buzz is the lack of an English dub. English dubs help boost an anime’s popularity even if it airs a year after the original broadcast, which is why Osomatsu-San – which has been on the air since 2015 – not having one can seem a bit off. Turns out, there is one; it just hasn’t been released yet.

VIZ Media acquired the rights to dub and release Osomatsu-San in 2017 and even announced a complete cast list a year later, but nothing has come of it since then. For whatever reason, VIZ delayed the first season’s dubbed video release, pushing it all the way to March 2021.

1 “Sheeh!” Was A Real Fad

Osomatsu San Sheeh

One of the anime’s running gags has Iyami reminiscing about the glory days, pining about how his signature pose was a cultural fad. Basically, he misses being a popular meme. It’s easy to dismiss this as yet another silly aspect of Iyami’s loser persona, but he’s not exaggerating: there was a time when yelling “Sheeh!” and holding a stiff pose was in vogue.

Osomatsu-Kun was once a really big deal in Japan, and the easiest way to pay homage was by mimicking Iyami. The most famous stars to do this were John Lenon and Godzilla himself, who performed it five times in Great Monster War or Invasion of Astro-Monster. The latter is better known as the “Godzilla Victory Dance,” and the tribute flew over almost everybody’s heads due to their unfamiliarity with Iyami and Osomatsu-Kun in general.

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