A long time ago, in Feudal Japan, there were travelers who could manipulate the four elements. They helped the government and common people with many things like construction work. They were seen very highly by Japan, but were kept a secret from everyone else. Then, the Portuguese arrived in the 1500s. The travelers expressed concern that their way of life would be disrupted, especially if the Europeans found out about them. Most of the country was then shut off from foreigners in 1633.
The supernatural travelers were safe until 1853, when Japan was forcibly opened to trade. In an emergency, Mitsuki Oyama, a resident of the town of Nakayama, created the Oyama Concealment Agency to hide the travelers from public view and continue their lives as normal people. Use of their powers was heavily punished at this time.
During World War II, the Oyama Concealment Agency was heavily made over. The name was shortened to Oyama. Its purpose was changed from one dedicated to concealing the supernaturals to using them for war. Officials abducted people known or suspected to be able to manipulate the elements and trained them to fight in war. However, by the time training was done, Japan surrendered in 1945.
These events lead to the beginning of The Story of Hiroko Yoshida (吉田ひろこの物語, Yoshida Hiroko no Monogatari), officially shortened to Hirokono, a 12-episode animated series by Mikuru Fan.
In the present day, Tasuku Kasahara is a young agent assigned to investigate strange events surrounding Nakayama. He travels to the town, but his organization will not provide formal shelter. He lives in a tent ad tries to gather intelligence. Hiroko Yoshida, a student at the local high school, finds him. Figuring that Tasuku was homeless, she takes him to a shelter. Tasuku is enrolled in her school.
Hiroko gets the idea to create a school club from a show she watched. She drags the hapless Tasuku along, as well as Keiko Fukunaka and Aya Tsumura whom she caught loitering in the hallway.
While Tasuku and Tsumura stay at a park, they are attacked by a water cannon from Takiji Miyake. Tsumura creates a fire and fights Miyake. The two fight as Tasuku watches in horror. Hiroko, who returned to get her bag, also looks on in horror. Miyake calls Tsumura a traitor and warns her that Oyama is growing and becoming more aggressive before leaving. Tsumura reveals that she used to be an agent for Oyama and she used to know Miyake. She explains that Oyama is a terrorist organization that wants to overthrow the Japanese government. Later, when Tasuku and Tsumura are alone, she explains further that Hiroko has dormant abilities even greater than those of all the members of Oyama and that they want to use her power.
The show often switches from this plot to anime jokes, parodies of several harem and shōnen anime clichés and other storytelling devices while making numerous Shout Outs, then back to the story numerous times.
These are examprus, sancue!
- Absurdly Cool City: Saikyo. Its first appearance is at night in a busy shopping street.
- Accidental Pervert: Parodied in the spinoff, It's Not Me, It's My Hands!
- Action Girl: Keiko and Tsumura.
- Adaptation Decay: Hirokono, The Anime of the Game of the manga of the trading card game of the schoolyard game of the woodblock print.
- All Men Are Perverts: Played for Laughs. Every male that appears in this story are overly open with their sexuality.
- Animeland: Averted, an average Japanese small town lifestyle is presented. Adrianna, an American exchange student, does think this.
- Arcadia: Nakayama. Sometimes this enters Town with a Dark Secret territory due to Oyama's activities, but is generally peaceful.
- Artificial Riverbank: Episode 10 has Kawashima and Miyake tearing one up in a fight.
- Asian Speekee Engrish: Averted for the most part as everyone speaks normal English. The occasional broken English pops up occasionally. See Gratuitous English.
- Author Appeal: Trains and train-related jokes appear a lot.
- Beach Episode: Episode 5, titled "The Halt of All Plot in Favor of a Beach Party".
- Belligerent Sexual Tension: Between Hiroko and Tasuku, though it's ultimately subverted as they decide to go out with different people.
- Bilingual Bonus:
- Haru says to Tasuku, "I have only one word for you. Deaaaath." Death and desu are pronounced the same way, adding indications of Yandere in the line.
- Cerebus Rollercoaster: Switches from the serious story, to jokes, then back to the story at the drop of a hat.
- Color-Coded Elements: The person's element is identified by the color of the stripe on the upper left arm. Tsumura has a red stripe, Miyake has a blue stripe, Kawashima has a brown stripe, and Narita has a green stripe. Keiko has a purple stripe.
- Color Failure: Hiroko does this in reaction to seeing Tsumura and Miyake's battle.
- Designated Girl Fight: With the same number of Action Girls and Dark Action Girls, this is expected. However, it's averted as both the male heroes and villains Would Hit a Girl.
- Double Standard: Abuse, Female on Male
- Elemental Powers: Everyone possesses dormant powers to control either the elements of Air, Earth, Fire, and Water. Whether magic can count as an Elemental Power is debated.
- Esperanto, the Universal Language: Titles and lyrics of background music are in Esperanto.
- Expy
- Hiroko is Haruhi and Kyon.
- Tasuku is Honey from Ouran High School Host Club.
- Tsumura is a Rei Ayanami Expy.
- Naho is one of Ryoga from Ranma ½.
- Everyone Is Bi
- Eyecatch: The unintentional side effect of killing the drama of a Commercial Break Cliffhanger is parodied.
- Fanservice: Parodied.
- Scenes are shown, but heavily censored. Which goes so far as to block the subject's eyes.
- Hiroko notices how they inexplicably expose themselves at times, so she makes a game out of it. Every time it happens, they put a coin into a jar. In the end, Keiko wins, with Hashimoto coming in second.
- "Dammit viewers! She's only 14!"
- Finale Credits: Tasuku visiting all the places he visited during his stay at Nakayama in order, set to the Solemn Ending Theme Sayonara Minna.
- Foreign Language Theme: Almost all the themes, including the opening theme, are in Japanese. Episode 3's ending theme is in Engrish mixed with Gratuitous Japanese. Episode 10's ending theme is in Spanish.
- Full-Contact Magic: The power to control the elements and perform magic generally requires large gestures.
- Gratuitous English: Parodied.
- In one scene, a girl is seen holding a sign that says, "Sometimes I'm like to write in ENGLISH."
- I'm okeh, sancue!
- ONE, TWO, LET'S LIVING!
- Gratuitous Japanese: All text is in Japanese if it's not a parody of Gratuitous English.
- Parodied as well. Adrianna, an American exchange student, talks to the students in fangirl Japanese. She uses phrases like, "Sugoi kawaii kawaii Adrianna-chan baka ne?" Ironically, the most Japanese we hear in the show is not from any of the Japanese people, but Adrianna.
- Idiosyncratic Episode Naming: Takes the "The X of Y" format, where Y is of any length.
- Instant Awesome: Just Add Mecha!: Oyama admits that they own mecha just for the hell of it.
- Istanbul (Not Constantinople): Saikyo is the old name of Kyoto. The city design is also based on Kyoto.
- Lampshade Hanging: There are occasional reminders that the show is made in the West.
- Large Ham: Yamura tends to do this, especially when talking about Keiko. Hiroko even lampshades this.Hiroko: It's like he's giving a speech all the time.
- Like Brother and Sister: Hiroko and Tasuku becomes like this in the later episodes.
- Lost in Translation: With all of the English language puns and jokes, the show would probably make even less sense in Japanese.
- Love Dodecahedron: Whoever a character ends up with, it's going to upset someone in the fanbase.
- Luminescent Blush: Tasuku gets one every time Keiko flashes him.
- Hiroko is also seen blushing whenever Hashimoto talks to her.
- Mind Screw
- Mukokuseki: Parodied. A Japanese student, one of the few people who actually look Japanese, goes out with Keiko. Everyone thinks that a Japanese boy is going out with a white girl. Later in the episode, Keiko goes out with a German exchange student, and now everyone thinks that a white boy is going out with a Japanese girl. Tasuku asks them if they really think Keiko changed races in between.
- Ninja Pirate Zombie Robot: In Tsumura's story. It has the heroes riding on flying alien vampire stingrays above Venus, dropping robot zombie heads on a Tyrannosaurus rex with four panda heads that breathe fire. Hiroko fails to say anything about it.
- No Communities Were Harmed: Saikyo is based on Kyoto.
- No Ending: To resemble an anime that was Cut Short.
- Officially Shortened Title: Hirokono, derived from the four hiragana characters in the middle of the full Japanese title.
- Ominous Esperanto Chanting: Most of the background music is made up of this.
- Personality Powers: Subverted. Tsumura, who controls fire, is the most quiet character in the main cast. Many other characters do have powers that match their personalities.
- Red Armband of Leadership: Tsumura has a red stripe on her upper left arm and she used to be the leader of her division. Hiroko even says that it looks a little like an armband.
- Savvy Guy, Energetic Girl: Tasuku and Haru.
- School Clubs Are Serious Business: Keiko asks Hiroko what use a school club that just plays games will be for her future.
- Scunthorpe Problem: Haru is said to be from [BLEEP]amachi.
- Sexy Coat Flashing: Keiko does this to Tasuku. Lampshaded in episode 11:Tasuku: Do you even wear anything under that coat?!
- Shameless Fanservice Girl
- Keiko has no problems with Tasuku seeing her in the nude.
- Hashimoto is a Shameless Fanservice Boy, who often takes off his shirt for no reason.
- Shirtless Scene: See above.
- Shout-Out: Has its own page.
- Shown Their Work: There's a great amount of detail given to the show's portrayal of everyday Japanese life, cultural norms, and even the town's layout.
- Sliding Scale of Silliness vs. Seriousness: The comedic parts are very silly, but the drama parts heavily lean toward serious.
- Solemn Ending Theme: Episode 10's ending theme, Una Noche en Salamancha, a quiet guitar theme played over Tasuku beating up his enemies in Salamanca. The finale's ending theme, Sayonara Minna, plays this straight with Tasuku walking through town, seeing all the places he visited in Nakayama.
- Stalker with a Crush: Haru to Tasuku. Yamura can be this to Keiko.
- Stylistic Suck
- Sword and Sorcerer: Tasuku is skilled in weapons that hit while Keiko uses magic. Both work together in the same organization.
- Take That!: This show is not kind to harem anime. Just look:
- Keiko decides that she wants some quick way to make money. She considers writing a harem anime, then decides against it, saying, "No, that's too low."
- Hiroko runs a charity by having people donate their old DVD's. They are put in a box that looks like a barrel. The harem anime are put in first. The harem anime are the bottom of the barrel.
- Take That, Audience!: The audience is called out for lusting after 14-year-old characters.
- Tareme Eyes: Tasuku and Tsumura.
- The X of Y: The show title and the titles of every episode.
- This Loser Is You: Otaku are portrayed as deranged losers, yet they are the target audience for the show.
- Those Two Guys: Ichi and Ni.
- Tomboy: Every female character except Tsumura and Haru.
- Too Long; Didn't Dub: Inverted.Hiroko: Idiot!Translator's note: Idiot means baka.
- Town with a Dark Secret: Nakayama, occasionally. Oyama's activities in the town have this effect, but the town is generally peaceful.
- Translation Convention: Everyone is supposed to be speaking Japanese. It is made to look like a dub.
- Transformation Sequence: Keiko is capable of one.
- Its first appearance is an Overly Long Gag that was lampshaded when she says that she likes dancing during the part where she's naked.
- Later appearances play this straight, though it lasts only 10 seconds.
- Tsurime Eyes: Hiroko, Keiko, and Hashimoto.
- 12-Episode Anime
- 20 Minutes into the Future
- X Meets Y:
- The main story part is basically The Legend of Korra and Haruhi Suzumiya put together.
- The execution is a mix of Haruhi Suzumiya and Puella Magi Madoka Magica before episode 3.
