Audience reviews
20 · Sample from the first available page, separate from the total number of ratings.
uptoolate
To be honest, I almost gave up on this anime around episode 5, as at that point despite the good vibes of the show in general, none of the jokes had really landed. I'm glad I stuck it out, and really when the episodes are as short as these it wasn't any real struggle.
The strongest point, for me, was how visually interesting this anime ended up being, despite how few setting changes there are. I really enjoyed the styling of the various booksellers and employees. I also tend to like episodic structure, and that was no different for this anime.
The main sticking point for me ends up being the content itself. I just wasn't particularly entertained, overall. I didn't find the stories that interesting, and I didn't find the jokes that funny. As the story and comedy are the backbone of this a…
Read at the sourcenessaniwa
This was a really feel good anime. You get to see the behind-the-scenes of being in a bookstore. As a book lover who always frequents the bookstores myself, I find it enlightening to see the point of view of the workers. Being in a bookstore as a customer is fun, but it's also nice to see how the employees view their customers. After watching, I really got tempted to work in a bookstore myself!
It was also nice that an episode is around 10 to 12 minutes long, it didn't get dragging. It's a must watch if you want to get lighthearted laughs!
Thanks for this!
Read at the sourceSexyComando22
Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san is an episodic comedy with some autobiographic tones where the author presents a satire of himself at the time he was working in a bookstore while writing this manga.
In the story he depicts himself as Honda-san, A timid Skeleton bookseller who is in charge of the American comics and Foreign comic book section of the bookstore.
The Nucleus of the show is based on Honda san, and his equaly colorfulf co-workers trying to manage all the stressful and inconvenient aspects of working in a bookstore as best as they can and keep the store afloat, while trying to mantain a good morale.
Why would you watch this? because its fun,its funny, its surprisingly light and easy to digest and the short episodes makes it hard for you to get tired of it, the art can seem a bit we…
Read at the sourceChrismas95
Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san succeeds in being both very funny and very informative about how bookstores are run behind the scenes, the latter of which surprised me. It achieves this by having every episode be based around some aspect of being a part of bookstore staff, whether it be dealing with certain kinds of customers or ordering and organizing books, then having the poor cast of fun characters try to handle them. It's always played for laughs and never feels like actual complaining, yet you still understand that it's not easy work.
The "lazy" animation style didn't bother me too much because it doesn't take away from anything. The characters still express themselves amazingly, and the anime's theme doesn't NEED fluid animation because it's all about the writing.
How short Gaikotsu S…
Read at the sourcefelixlovesanime
My only complaint is this: Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san should have been 24-minute long. Why? Because it is such a rare specimen, we don't know when something like this can come up again.
Judging from the premise alone (a skull-faced bookseller working in a, well, bookstore), it is reasonable when the first concern that pops in mind is: "Would it be just as same as an infomercial or after-school special or something?" but somehow, the boney Honda-san manages to whip up a narrative that is both informative and entertaining while the good people of DLE Studio managed to whip up such a quirky and stylish adaptation. Honda-san and the gang never sugarcoat their work as booksellers but they always deliver a valuable lesson: even when our job is a pain in the ass, it is the pain of our own choos…
Read at the sourcescottishrob13
This was a wonderful surprise. I'm sliding it up there with my all-time favourites, not necessarily because I think it compares in a vacuum but because it accomplishes what it was trying to do so well that I ended up loving every precious minute of it. I don't typically seek out these slice of life kinds of shows, but hot damn did Honda-san entertain and educate me. So, taking into account the unexpectedly positive response I had to it, I would have to wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone who's interested in the mundane. I would also feel comfortable recommending it to people, like me, for whom this typically falls outside of our comfort zone.
Read at the sourceBigDamnHero
It's a short where you're learning about the book-selling industry in Japan with really wacky comedy. So, if you're into anime/manga this might be good to watch if you're curious about the industry stuff and what book sellers have to navigate in Japan. Good art, great timing, basically the little show that could.
I just want to take a moment to gush at how good the voice acting in this show is, particularly the main character Honda-san. You can tell even with the language barrier that he's an extremely funny, talented voice actor and is able to carry the show on his own.
Overall, there's no reason not to see it. Definitely watch it.
Read at the sourceCaio0202
Very underrated. The art can be intimidating to people who don't know what it's about, and keep them from watching the anime.
The theme is something I never thought I'd enjoy (it's about working on a bookstore?) but the way it is presented is great. Although initially the art made me a little anxious, in the end I believe it was a plus, and also made it very easy to associate the characters. The comedy transmitted through a spooky skeleton was also much more smooth than I would have otherwise thought.
It is very interesting and funny, and also kinda informative. The 140 or so minutes are very much worth it.
Read at the sourceForgedusk
Skull-face Bookseller Honda-san is a wonderful slice-of-life anime short series. It follows the real life of a bookseller and manga artist, Honda-san. As with most great relaxed slice-of-life series, it aims to capture the comedy and magic in everyday experiences. We meet Honda-san's quirky co-workers working in the same bookstore as well the rest of the supply chain: wholesalers, publishers, and customers.
As mentioned by other reviewers, Honda-san is a very likeable character #husbando2018. He's awkward, but he's also earnest about his job. He tries his hardest to give the best experience to customers, and often helps out his co-workers. That's why the struggles the series tackles are never frustrating to watch (because the audience trusts Honda-san is competent and a good person). So,…
Read at the sourceAshiya-chan
It's so nice to see something different once in a while. It's not about people faces of voices. It's about people's personality and qualities, and this is why the artist didn't just draw bishoujo or ikemen. ♡´･ᴗ･`♡
That being said, I won't start explaining the details about the characters or the plot. This anime is just too...ONE OF A KIND to get into this. (｡♥‿♥｡)
Every otaku has to watch something out of the ordinary, and this is a must.
Unique comedy, strange but incredible art.
You kinda feel sympathy for the employees and think how otakus can be weird. But you are one of them, and you laugh it off (=^.^=)
I became a better person after watching the agony of Honda-san, haha ( ´艸｀)
Read at the sourcePeruraitoAkoya
"You there, who wanted to work at a bookstore after seeing episode 1...Thanks, but reconsider!"
In the twelve 11 minute episodes that Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san has to get its point across, it does so with comedy and style that I haven't seen rivaled by any other anime I've watched. While there isn't a super complex story present, Honda-san's daily life working at a bookstore captures your attention straight away with joke and reference after joke and reference. Anyone who has worked in retail can relate to what Honda goes through each episode and the different types of customers he deals with. Whether Honda is helping an old man find his daughter a BL book, or helping a group of yaoi fangirls, I honestly couldn't stop laughing.
The animation is presented in a rather stiff manner, alt…
Read at the sourceNagisayano
Seriously, who watched this anime before Mother's Basement talked about it. I'm glad he did because over 12 10 minute, 30 second shows, I got about as many laughs out of it as I did from The Disastrous Life of Saiki K. (and that was a lot).
The story took a backseat when it came to an over-arching narrative. That wasn't the point though. This manga's creator was a bookseller who wanted to recount his experiences. It didn't need cohesion.
The art is amazing. It may have a mediocre and dead look at first, but it becomes amazing when comedic, extreme emotions (Assassination Classroom style btw) come into play. Combine that with great sound, and you get A-tier comedy.
The characters (I'm mostly concerning Honda-San and his co-workers) are great, getting development on a personal level through…
Read at the sourceYosarian
If you've ever worked retail, you will totally relate to this one. The animation is choppy, and other than the characters, the art is super basic. The humor is spot on, although if you've never worked retail, it might not hit so hard. Being set in a manga store all the show to have work and otaku humor meet, which is fun.
Keep in mind, these are humorous vignettes that do not tell an over arching story. I binged it one afternoon, and the jokes start flattening out after a bit. Since there's no pressing need to see what happens next, I'd recommend watching the no more that 2-3 episodes at a time. Keeps the humor fresh.
Read at the sourcemr_sandman
Honda-san is an adorable, simple, and heartwarming anime short series that is an absolute joy to sit through without taking up much of your day. The short-and-sweet beauty of the show makes it an easy watch that holds your attention, since it doesn't even really need that much of your attention to begin with. As somebody who has trouble with staying interested in a show, Honda-san's mini plots really helped me breeze by without losing the want to keep watching.
The characters, especially Honda, are so beyond lovable and all play their own little role to keep the silly, colorful nature the show strives for and does so well. Not to mention the art style, which tends to stay on the more basic side with a SPLENDID color scheme.
Honda-san is great for binge watching, watching in between other…
Read at the sourceIts-Maki-kun
If you don't know yet, I love reading books especially when I went home from working or anything with train and thus developing a skill of reading books while standing up in a moving train. And I am not talking about e-books, I am talking about real physical books which you acquire from a bookstore. Bookstore is probably a place I love so much that I could spent my day off there if I don't have anything else to do. Being surrounded by books feels like a heaven for me. But how about people who works there? People who have their everyday life surrounded by books? Skullface Bookseller Honsa-san gave us an insight of how the bookstore works and how is it like to work on such place. Not just that, this anime gave us a working place jokes those are funny because of how relatable the jokes to our…
Read at the sourceEoussama
When something hits, it hits hard. That was my take on Gaikotsu Honda-san. When you first look at it, there is the cover art, then the synopsis, and the genre, three of the arbitrary deciding factors that might give you a primary opinion on a said show, and for me, it was one boney boy and no idea on the plot whatsoever, and probably that's what appealing about the Slice of Life genre, you know it's following someone's daily life, you know it's going to be either hilariously on point or sadly relatable, probably both.
After watching Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san, I might just add an exception to that factor.
Story (7/10):
When it comes to its fundamental core, it's just another Slice of Life show, the kind of shows that are worth the watch after a long tire-y day of work, and probably that'…
Read at the sourceLegendAqua
Have you ever wondered the life of a bookstore owner?...
Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san is an anime short about a skeleton bookseller by the name of Honda-san voiced by Souma Saitou and his misadventures of daily life as a bookstore owner.
Now this kind of premise at first looks mundane but this being an anime adaptation of a web manga written and drawn by the author's own caricature who was a bookseller in Japan named...Honda, it gives us an insight to the life, trials and tribulations of a bookseller for comedic effect with his co-workers. From keeping book shelves tidy and organized to talking to foreign customers, otaku culture and how it affects sales and popularity of books themselves and how booksellers work with exporting and importing goods.
Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san's cast is f…
Read at the sourceflcii
'Skull-face bookseller Honda-san' is without a doubt one of the best short shows of 2018, and perhaps even the best comedy I've ever watched. Seriously.
It revolves around our main character, a skeleton called Honda, as we watch him work through his job as a bookstore employee; within the bookstore, we meet his fellow co-workers, who each have very expressive personalities, and the daily shoppers who visit the store. This whole entire show is comedy gold - especially if you get the references - filled with BL jokes and western tourists along with the relatable struggles at work that Honda and his co-workers go through that just make you laugh; this all makes for an absolute one of a kind experience. It's astonishing how they humanised these characters with the expressive voice acting and…
Read at the sourceKipo0007
Selling manga that customer wants , without being overwhelmed by the strange turns, that is the task of a Comic Bookstore. - Honda 2018
This anime series is a Hidden gem in the fall season. A short 15 minute per episode series but packed with a lot of comedy plus actual daily life of a book store employee problems and antics mixed.
The series is basically depicted on the daily work life of a skeleton guy ,yea he is literally a skeleton wearing normal clothes and not only that there are other weird looking characters/employees example, a mummy girl a pumpkin head etc. which will make it quite weird for the viewers at the start but as the anime progresses you just not only to get used to it actually start to delve and enjoy how the anime is presented with its comical antics and humor.
Not…
Read at the sourceKANLen09
"No sorry we don't have that it's...uh...SPECIAL YAOI BOOK!" - Honda-san
I'm gonna give this an outstanding score just because. Can I (or we) call this the SOTY (Short of the Year) for 2018? Because this short-form 10 minute series, as simple as its premise goes, drives home perfectly about more than just being a fun and educational series. Heck, anime like this really are once-in-a-blue-moon novelty! And...this is brought to you by director (not Shouto) Todoroki Owl (his very first directorial work). (Aw, Shouto almost had his own anime...)
Originally a Pixiv web comic, Gaikotsu Shotenin Honda-san is an accurate depiction of Japan's culture of bookstore staff handling day-to-day bookstore work measures. For the sake of adaptation, the writer himself Honda-san phased himself as a (not s…
Read at the source