Nichijou (or My Ordinary Life) is anything but ordinary. This series is a masterclass in absurdist comedy, blending surreal humor with pitch-perfect timing and animation that goes way too hard for even the smallest gags. Whether it’s exploding pastries, over-dramatic schoolyard conflicts, or goats in the classroom, Nichijou is the kind of anime that catches you off guard and leaves you laughing until your stomach hurts. These are the kind of scenes that make you rewind just to laugh all over again.
#10: Yukko vs. The Principal (Season 1, Episode 4)
In what starts as a standard school assembly, things escalate fast when Principal Shinonome appears out of nowhere… and suplexes a deer. Yes, a deer. When Yukko tries to complain about the chaos, the principal challenges her to a wrestling match, and suddenly we’re watching WWE: Homeroom Edition. The sheer randomness of the deer’s presence, the over-the-top animation, and the dead-serious expressions on everyone’s faces make this moment legendary. Yukko’s shocked face alone is worth the price of admission. It’s one of those “did I really just see that?” scenes that defines Nichijou’s blend of absurdity and brilliance.
#9: Nano’s Arm Fires a Missile (Season 1, Episode 1)
The very first episode sets the tone perfectly when sweet, innocent robot girl Nano tries to hide her mechanical nature at school. Unfortunately, her arm launches a missile mid-conversation with her classmates. No one knows where it came from. No one reacts normally. She runs off in embarrassment, and the entire scene plays out with the most dramatic animation and musical scoring possible—like a high-stakes war film instead of a school comedy. It’s hilarious because of the contrast: such a tiny problem (Nano trying to act normal) becomes an apocalyptic catastrophe in the show’s eyes. It’s the kind of exaggerated drama that makes Nichijou so endlessly memeable.
#8: Mio’s Rampage (Season 1, Episode 8)
What begins as a sweet picnic turns into one of the most outrageous scenes in anime when Mio tries to recover her private yaoi sketchbook from a group of pranksters. As soon as it’s taken, something snaps—and Mio goes feral. She beats a group of kids, chases down a train, hurdles walls, and pile-drives people through the pavement—all to recover her embarrassing drawings. The comedy here is kinetic and unrelenting, with the animation turning up to eleven as her rage spirals out of control. It’s like a Looney Tunes segment cranked to 300%. And the cherry on top? The dramatic orchestra music that makes her freak-out feel like an epic battle for honor.
#7: Sakamoto-Sensei Wears a Scarf (Every Time He Talks)
Sakamoto, the talking cat, adds a layer of dry humor to Nichijou’s slapstick madness. But what makes him so funny is his scarf. The moment he wears it, he speaks in a dignified, condescending tone—like a grumpy old man trapped in a cat’s body. But when the scarf comes off? Instant meows and normal cat behavior. This running gag is subtle but hilarious, playing off the idea that all cats think they’re sophisticated when in reality they’re just fluffballs with delusions of grandeur. The dynamic between Sakamoto, Nano, and the Professor creates some of the show’s coziest and most consistent laughs.
#6: Yukko Forgets Her Homework (Season 1, Episode 7)
You’ve seen characters forget their homework before—but not like this. When Yukko realizes she left her assignment at home, the show turns her internal panic into an epic war sequence. The background explodes. The music swells. Her face contorts into the expression of someone losing her entire life savings. It’s overdramatic, ridiculous, and completely relatable. The funniest part is that no one else in the class even notices her emotional breakdown. The disconnect between her internal drama and the outside world is peak Nichijou: making mountains out of molehills—and then blowing those mountains up with fireworks.
#5: The Helvetica Standard Sketches (Various Episodes)
Scattered throughout the series are short, deadpan vignettes called Helvetica Standard, and they are hilariously understated compared to the explosive chaos of the main show. These sketches thrive on awkward silences, non-sequiturs, and anticlimactic punchlines. One particularly funny bit involves a girl asking a boy, “What would you do if I said I liked you?” and he responds, completely flatly, “I’d be happy.” That’s it. No music swell. No blushing. Just pure emotional dead air. It’s so awkward that it loops right back around to genius. These moments contrast perfectly with the main episodes and offer a totally different kind of laugh—quiet, delayed, and often weirdly profound. Like a joke that hits ten seconds later while you’re sipping water. It’s Nichijou being weird in the most minimalistic, artsy way.
#4: Yukko vs. The Cube Game (Season 1, Episode 19)
In a totally random side segment, Yukko tries to win a seemingly simple game of stacking cubes. Simple, right? Not in Nichijou. The moment she almost wins, the suspense becomes unbearable. The animation style becomes hyper-realistic. Her breathing intensifies. The wind roars. The cubes shake. It’s as if she’s diffusing a bomb instead of playing a party game. And when she finally loses? The world shatters. The sky cracks. Her will to live collapses in slow motion. This moment is hysterical because of how disproportionately dramatic it is. It turns the smallest loss into an existential crisis, and we laugh because we’ve all felt that way over dumb games and board flips.
#3: The Principal Fights a Deer… Again (Season 1, Episode 14)
Yes, this gag makes another appearance—and somehow, it’s even funnier the second time around. The principal is alone in the courtyard when a deer attacks him again, and instead of just running, he engages in a full-blown martial arts showdown. The camera angles are cinematic. The punches are DBZ-level. And the deer? Unbothered and ready to scrap. The best part is the sheer seriousness of the fight—juxtaposed with the fact that it’s literally a man in a suit wrestling a deer. The absurdity is turned up to eleven, and the animation sells it so hard you almost believe you’re watching an action anime. Then reality kicks in nope, still a deer. Still amazing.
#2: Professor’s Mayonnaise Obsession (Throughout the Series)
Professor Hakase is a literal genius… who also acts like a six-year-old and has an intense, undying love for mayonnaise. Like, unholy levels of obsession. She puts it on everything. She threatens Nano if she doesn’t stock it. She squeals when she gets new bottles. The hilarity comes from the contrast—this brilliant inventor who built a talking cat and a living robot can’t go five minutes without shouting “MAYONNAISE!” with sparkly eyes. It’s so absurd and pure that you can’t help but laugh every time. The way she manipulates Nano to get what she wants, usually via tantrums, turns every mealtime into a comedic hostage negotiation. It’s weirdly wholesome and endlessly funny.
#1: Mio’s Drawing Is Revealed in Class (Season 1, Episode 9)
This is the moment that sends fans into full laughing-fits on every rewatch. When Mio accidentally drops one of her yaoi-style BL drawings, it ends up in the hands of her classmates—and the sheer terror on her face is real. She goes full berserk trying to retrieve it. People get punched. Fences are jumped. Time slows down. It’s an explosion of embarrassment-fueled rage, all beautifully animated like a Shonen Jump fight scene. The absurdity of the action, combined with how relatable the situation is (who hasn’t wanted to crawl into a hole when something embarrassing gets out?), makes this moment utterly iconic. It captures the essence of Nichijou: take something small, crank the drama up to 1000, and let chaos unfold.
Nichijou is a rare gem in the world of anime comedy—an unhinged, hyper-animated series that finds humor in both the surreal and the sincerely relatable. Whether it’s over-the-top action sequences for the dumbest reasons or awkward silences that echo for comedic eternity, every scene is crafted with love, detail, and absolute unpredictability. The Matsumoto sisters, the Professor, Nano, and the entire cast remind us that life’s smallest moments can be the funniest when viewed through the lens of pure, chaotic joy. These ten scenes had us laughing until we cried—and then hit replay just to cry all over again.
