Nichijou

Nichijou:  C+

It's said that our everyday lives are nothing less than a string of miracles.

Nichijou ("Everyday life" or "Normal life") is a slice of life series that I have a difficult time describing in any way other than "Azumanga Daioh by way of Gurren Lagann."  To be clearer, Azumanga Daioh is a series about Schoolgirls being schoolgirls.  Gurren Lagann is best known for hot-blooded-ness and taking things to new levels of absurdity.  Nichijou is a series about schoolgirls taking things to new levels of hot-blooded absurdity.

As I've said before it's really hard to talk about what a Slice of Life series is about, so instead I'll just list out of context things that occur or exist in Nichijou:

An 8-year-old scientist.
An extremely polite, well-mannered boy who rides to school on a goat.
Extraordinarily long gags.
A kendo practitioner who gives people shogi pieces for no adequately explained reason.
A manga called "Helvetica Standard."
A girl so tsundere that her only method of response to the boy she has a crush on is with heavy weapons.
The sport of Go-Soccer.
A boy who visits mediums and priests trying to disprove the supernatural.
A talking cat.

Nichijou revels in its own absurdity, and manages to be very funny and quite heartwarming in places.  In a lot of other places, the gags will result in "What?!" rather than laughter, and while I don't have anything against that sort of humor, when it's the greater part of the punchline, it gets a bit tired.  Note, however, that I watched the series alone; I suspect it would hold up better under a group audience.

If you're looking for truly absurd screwball comedy, Nichijou delivers.  If you're looking for... anything else at all, I'd stay away.