Based on a series of best-selling novels by Nagaru Tanigawa, The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (2006) overflows with zany energy. Despite the title, Haruhi Suzumiya is anything but melancholy: she's a bossy, outspoken high school girl who's searching for "aliens, time travelers, and espers." To aid her search, Haruhi founds a new club, The SOS Brigade. Although she doesn't realize it, Haruhi has actually found what she's looking for in her recruits: Yuki is an alien; Mikuru, a time traveler; Itsuki, an esper. Kyon, the put-upon narrator,is normal--at least superficially.Itsuki warns Kyon that the existence of the universe may depend on Haruhi's whims. When she gets upset, dark gaps open between dimensions, haunted by shinji (ghostly giants) whom Itsuki and other espers must destroy. Kyon wonders if he's having nightmares or protecting the world from destruction, but this storyline recedes as the series progresses. Like Dokkoida and Magical Shopping ArcadeAbenobashi, Melancholy spoofs the clichés of anime and otaku culture. When the president of the computer club challenges the SOS Brigade to a duel playing "Day of Sagittarius 3," the episode turns into an outrageous spoof of sci-fi anime, with Haruhi shouting commands from the bridge of an imaginary space ship. But the series stops, rather than ends, with the story unresolved as Haruhi and Kyon walk off into the rain. Given the popularity of Melancholy in Japan and the US, a sequel may be in the works. (Rated 13 and older: cartoon violence, risqué humor) --Charles Solomon
