In the words of Team America, “America! F**k Yeah!” This seems to have been the starting point for Gainax’s latest anime salvo Panty and Stocking with Garterbelt. The wonderfully anarchic new offering from the veteran studio plays out like a Japanese tribute to all that is crazy and wonderful about America. From the visual style to the ridiculous content, the show is a riot of American-style animation with an anime coating.

The 13 episode series, directed by Hiroyuki Imaishi with a soundtrack by Taku Takahashi has been one of the stand out hits of the recent anime crop. Anyone who has been to a convention recently will be able to attest to the huge popularity of the series in the cosplay and fanart communities, its unique style being a breath of fresh air for many.

The premise of Panty and Stocking is simple yet effective. The series follows the fortunes of two angels who have been kicked out of heaven for their rowdy behaviour. The two sisters: Panty, a fiery tempered blonde, and Stocking, a gluttonous gothic lolita are sent to Daten City, a place suspended between Heaven and Hell. Here they must defeat enough monsters known as “Ghosts” to be allowed to return to heaven. Under the command of their mentor Reverend Garterbelt and their zipper-dog Chuck the two slice, shoot and smash their way across the city (and into the viewers’ hearts).

When comparing Panty and Stocking to other animation, the most significant thing is that it’s visual equals lie not in the realm of anime but in the world of Cartoon Network-style animation. One glaring similarity is that of the Powerpuff Girls, with similar combination of strong lineart, block colours and cutesy Japanese stylings.

Other interesting comparisons can be made to series such as Invader Zim (indeed Chuck seems to be a parody of GIR from the series). In terms of content, the show takes its cues from late-night Adult Swim cartoons, all gross-out humor and over the top violence. Even the great bastions of western animation (South Park, Family Guy) aren’t a million miles away from the madness of Daten City. Needless to say, this makes for an incredibly unique feel to Panty and Stocking, it’s undeniably Japanese but has all the self-awareness and crudeness usually associated with it’s Western counterparts.

One major appeal of Panty and Stocking is the huge variety in character designs. Gainax seem to have worked overtime to create a cast of genuine variety and exuberance. From the glamorous blonde Panty, to the immaculately afro’d Garterbelt, through to the Harajuku sensibilities of Stocking – no two cast members ever blend into each other. The strength of the character designs has no doubt been a factor in the popularity of the series amongst Cosplayers. The huge variety of styles for the sisters to model (Police, Casino, Zombie) has caused the series to become a familiar site in convention centers throughout the globe.

As with almost all of Gainax’s arsenal, a huge amount of attention to detail was given to the soundtrack. The show benefits from constantly inventive and interesting music which goes hand in hand with the style of the show. From bubblegum pop to trance to jpop to synth punk the soundtrack is incredibly strong in its own right. The series is also very keen to drop plenty of references to Western Music as well as Western Pop Culture. This highlight from Episode 10 exemplifies the interesting relationship the series has with the West.

Panty and Stocking with Garterbelt used to be available to watch on Crunchyroll but has since been dropped due to licensing restrictions. Manga UK have hinted at a possible release so hold tight for now!