Chu-Bra

""A wonderful day begins with wonderful underwear!""

- Nayu

Nayu Hayama, a middle school student, surprises everyone when she trips at the school entrance ceremony, and, thanks to a well-placed Panty Shot, is revealed to be wearing lacy underwear unfitting for someone her age. It's revealed that Nayu's older brother Keigo is an underwear designer, and Nayu herself is a a fan of all things undergarments. So she decides to help her fellow classmates be more knowledgable by creating an Underwear Club in school, and recruits two best friends, Yako Jinguuji and Haruka Shiraishi, in with her. Nayu's indefatigable enthusiasm sweeps up a worldly girl (Kiyono Amahara), a busty home-room teacher (Tamaki Mizuno-sensei) and a flustered boy (Hiroki Komachi).

Based on the manga of the same name, the Twelve-Episode Anime Chu-Bra aired in the winter of 2010.


 * Adaptation Dye Job: Everyone had the same brown hair in the original source, but they were given varying shades in the anime. Only Nayu remains largely unchanged.
 * Adult Child: Mizuno-sensei, the Underwear Club's sponsor and assistant homeroom teacher.
 * All Men Are Perverts: Only Komachi and Nayu's stepbrother are portrayed sympathetically, but the population of the school is largely thinking with their libidos.
 * Justified Trope: At that age... Trust me on this.
 * Beach Episode / Hot Springs Episode
 * Cerebus Syndrome: And HOW.what begins as a risqué loliconesque fanservice comedy series evolves (at least in the manga) on an exploration on budding sexuality and an analysis on sexualization. It also points on how Nayu cannot connect the actual meaning of titilating underwear with her own emerging romantic feelings due to having spent all of her life surrounded by lingerie in a neutral context.
 * Character Development: A pretty surprising example.
 * Chewing the Scenery: The Acting Club is over the top in all situations.
 * Class Representative: Both Nayu and Komachi.
 * Club President: Nayu, who establishes the Underwear Club pretty early on.
 * Enjo Kosai: The rumors floating around about Nayu.
 * Faceless Masses: If you're not an important character, vanish into the background.
 * Fan Service
 * Festival Episode
 * Fille Fatale: Kiyono
 * Gilligan Cut: In episode 10 when Kiyono is desperately trying to find a way to make her bust larger Yako suggests using a vacuum cleaner which Kiyono dismisses as a stupid idea... Then we cut to an exterior shot of an apartment building and hear a vacuum cleaner being turned on.
 * Girlish Pigtails: Nayu
 * Girl Posse: There's a trio of girls who always run into Nayu and her friends, mostly to make sarcastic comments.
 * Goofy Print Underwear: Yako, still in middle school, wears bear-print panties.
 * Gratuitous English: "She doesn't leave a lot to the imagination."; "Oh, no."
 * Hey, It's That Voice!: Nayu is voiced by Minori Chihara. That's right, Yuki starts her own underwear club!
 * Kiyono is Mio Akiyama, while Yako is Tsumugi Kotobuki.
 * Innocent Innuendo: The "unhooking the bra of a mannequin" trick is used twice, first to make us think that Komachi is unhooking Nayu, the second time is Haruka and Nayu with each other.
 * Hexagonal Speech Balloon: Heavy usage of them in episode six.
 * Huge Schoolgirl: Haruka, who's easily the bustiest of the main trio.
 * Imagine Spotting: When looking at a catalog of imported underwear, Yako imagines Haruka in a pair of them. Which Haruka knows she's doing.
 * Ironic Echo: One of Nayu's lines about how "sexy" underwear is impractical is repeated later on by Komachi, who quickly becomes aware of what he just said.
 * Large Ham: Angela and "Sir Charles" who appear in episode 10.
 * Les Yay: Haruka seems to have something for Nayu.
 * Love Letter Lunacy: Happens in episode seven. Turns out the secret admirer put it in the wrong locker.
 * Meganekko: Nayu
 * Male Gaze: Rotated ninety degrees: Nayu zeroing in on Haruka's breasts the first time they introduce themselves. An HUD even pops up behind her eyes, analyzing the other girl's bust.
 * Mistaken for Gay: At the end of the first episode, though it's not like Nayu was in a better position before that.
 * No Periods, Period: Averted. Haruka having hers is mentioned.
 * One Degree of Separation: Nayu's stepbrother knew her teacher back in high school, and both of them are still living in the area.
 * The One Guy: Komachi
 * Panty Shot: Given the very premise of the series, this is all over the place. Includes what is likely the world's only Crowning Panty Shot Of Heartwarming. Seriously.
 * Ridiculously Cute Critter: D'awww, look at the turtle! ^_^
 * School Festival: Maid cafes and a School Play that looks like a combination of Neon Genesis Evangelion and Revolutionary Girl Utena.
 * School Swimsuit: Mizuno-sensei has it, though she loses it just as quickly. In her search for a replacement swimsuit, she tries various levels of Barely-There Swimwear until not much is covered at all.
 * Serious Business: According to Nayu, underwear is.
 * Sleep Cute: The end of episode five.
 * Also the car scene near the end of episode 8.
 * Stat-O-Vision: Nayu can analyze underwear with a simple glance. In episode seven, she launches into a full fashion show in the middle of the street.
 * The Tease: Kiyono.
 * Too Hot for TV
 * Tsundere: Poor Komachi....
 * Twelve-Episode Anime
 * Unknown Rival: Komachi has had the number one spot taken from him by Nayu ever since elementary school and considers her a challenge. She doesn't seem to know he exists.
 * Widget Series: hoo boy
 * Vapor Wear: Kiyono, after forcefully having her panties exposed, takes them off, throws them in the trash, and walks out.