Anime Review No. 68-Ah My Goddess, Season 1 Episodes 25-26 (OVA tied to 2005 TV Series)

AH My Goddess Season 1, OVA Episodes
Released December 23, 2005
Studio: AIC, Director-Hiroki Goda, Writers: Takashi Aoshima (E25) and Jukki Hanada (E26)
Now, I am only covering this OVA 2 parter related to the Ah My Goddess TV Series for two reasons. One, I like this show quite a lot but don't quite have the time to cover the series as a whole. Second, the remainder of my reviews for this year will be over OVAs, so it fits within the format. If you want to press me for another reason, I need something to fill in an empty slot and figure that this would be easy filler.

For those reading not in the know for Ah My Goddess, check out my reviews covering the 90s OVA (OMG OVA Part 1, OMG OVA Part 2) and the Movie (Ah My Goddess Movie Review). Also, be sure to watch this two episodes before reading the review as it is spoiler-heavy.
Here are the links to the episodes in question, courtesy of Media Blasters:
AMG Ep 25
AMG Ep 26

Ok, you done now? Let us begin...

Episode 25: Ah! Urd's Small Love Story?

Sake-please drink responsibly

After the incident with the Lord of Terror (final arc of Season 1), Keiichi and Belldandy's life has returned to normal it seems. However, Yggdrasil is running into some problems as it is still recovering, much like a computer recovering from a massive DOS attack or virus. For one thing, Urd has turned into a child and Belldandy has fallen asleep, though she has a nice and cute chibi avatar. After getting some proper clothes for kid-Urd, she decides to go out and just loiter about, with her booze in tow.


I smell a future ufo doll here....

In the course of her loitering, she runs into a young bespectacled boy named Shohei Yoshida, who look likes me back in the day. They bond over some videogames, as you do in these modern times. The poor boy is smitten by her, of course, and they plan to meet again the next day in the park.

Notice that it is POP, not you know, that other mobile gaming device...

Of course, Keiichi and Belldandy are off on a search for moon rocks, which can serve as an alternative power source. But Urd tells them not to worry about, as she is enjoying herself as a kid. One of the things that I like Urd and make her an interesting is her hidden sadness and regret masked by her bold in-your-face exterior attitude. For me , I can see why she is hesitant  to return to normal, as her childhood was, shall we say, less than pleasant. You know, being a half goddess, half demon hybrid; it is explained and explored further in the series proper. 


Words of Wisdom....from Urd?!

So, fun times with Shohei and kid-Urd 'til she ends up rescuing him for falling off a tree. After figuring out that Shohei is a bit of dorky coward, she decides to help him build confidence and get rid of his fear...by taking up to the top of a construction site. She means well, but her methods are a tad extreme to say the least. Nonetheless, Shohei mans up and overcomes his fear. It is quite nice and touching watching the two develop a relationship, only with Urd regretting it later.




So, she turns back to normal and sees Shohei as he had followed her back to the temple home. Of course, he only came back to give back the sake bottle, a nice gesture. She, as the above picture shows, gives him a nice gift in return. It is interesting to see how restraint she is in that scene-the usually boisterous and bodacious Urd.
The episode ends on a cliffhanger as now is Skuld who has become an adult.... Oh noes!!

Yeah, being an adult is too cool..... /sarc

Episode 26: Ah! Being an Adult is Heart-Throbbing?
So, Skuld is now an adult woman, much to the confusion of Keiichi. It is actually another side effect of Yggdrasil being in repair. Of course, the reason for this is quite interesting: The three goddesses govern the three time dimensions, much like the Norns of Nordic mythology: Urd, the past; Belldandy, the present; Skuld, the future. I have to say that is an interesting concept, that unfortunately isn't explored outside of this OVA too much. Perhaps it brought up more in the manga, but it has been so long since I last read it that I can’t properly remember.


Potential shipping ahoy?

Thus, Skuld and Keiichi have some bonding time. Whereas Urd represents the 'what could have been' and the associated regret and sadness, Skuld represents 'what is to come' and the associated anxiety and fear. She has even a run-in with the local play-boy, but thankfully she evades him. In the end, it amounts to the two going out on a date as Keiichi rescues her from that plight.


GAHHH!!!! >.<

Keiichi is a real trooper, I got to say, taking this all in stride. The two of them go out on the town, trying out makeup, shoes, clothes and other things one does with a girlfriend. There is a touching moment where Skuld, Belldandy and Keiichi are on a road, yet when Skuld stops for a bit, Keiichi and Belldandy continue on the path. It is a very poignant moment, with virtually no dialogue, just imagery. This of course leads to some awkwardness between Keiichi and Skuld as it seems that Skuld has developed some feelings for Keiichi. But, once again, this isn’t explored too much in the series proper, thankfully.

Luckily, the system has been restored as Belldandy has woken up. So, in time, Skuld will change back to normal. But before, Keiichi and Skuld share quite a nice, emotional scene. Skuld realizing that she shouldn't rush things and enjoy the present moment, for it is fleeting and the future is always around the corner.
Final scene is well this:


A return to normalcy, at least a certain sense of it.

So, final thoughts: These 2 episodes are a nice diversion between the two seasons of the TV Series. They offer some insight into some secondary characters, particularly Urd and Skuld. It has a few neat and interesting concepts that I wish were more fleshed in the anime proper, but hey that’s life.

The animation is a top notch effort for AIC, in fact its probably the last series AIC has done with this good of animation quality. This leads into something that I must admit slipped my mind: the character design shift. You know, that detail that changed from the 90s OVA to the Movie and carries through to this series. Well, that wasn’t entirely the work of Fujishima-sensei. No, that honor goes to Hidenori Matsubara as well, who also is character designer on Sakura Wars, another project Fujishima worked on and whose career stretches back all the way to Otaku no Video of all things (yay a full circle moment once again). Sorry for not bringing it up before, but it has bugged me ever since my earlier reviews of the franchise.

So, this begs the nagging question: Will I do more on this franchise? Hmm, perhaps. There is material aplenty to talk about, to be sure. Maybe, in the future, I shall see.

So, what’s next on the platter? Well, it’s the story of a shinigami, and no its not Bleach…



Later, dear readers

Anime Review No. 22, "Ah My Goddess" The Movie (2000)

Hi, I'm the Eclectic Dude and I review it for the lolz.

Well, after some years of the Oh My Goddess OVA and volumes of the manga were released, a movie for "Ah My Goddess" was almost a given. It premiered in October 2000, with a US release in Nov. 2001. It was done by studio AIC and directed by Hiroaki Goda, who also did the OVA from back in 1993-94. In the US, Geneon Entertainment (now defunct sad to say) released the movie a year later past its theatrical release.  So, is it any good? Let's see.

The events of the Movie takes place 3 years after the OVA's events. Belldandy and Keiichi's life is going great and all that. Their relationship/main characters are explained within the first few minutes, so it is assumed that you've watched the OVA or read the manga. More on that later, I assure you.

But, Celestin, Belldandy's old mentor, arrives on the scene unexpectedly after disappearing some point in the past. At the same time, Heaven (under guidance of Peorth, another goddess character who didn't appear in OVA) is dealing with the escape of a convict from their lunar prison and appearance of some problems in the Yggdrasil system (sort of like a giant computer system). Coincidence? Perhaps, though it doesn't take much to piece the two together.
Celestin, upon seeing Belldandy, kisses her and then flies off mysteriously after Bell faints (a cursed kiss?). It turns out, Bell got struck with selective amnesia, wherein she loses all memories pertaining to Keiichi. Now, for the casual/first-time viewer, this might not be a big deal. But for me, personally being a big fan of the series, this moment was a bit heart breaking and sad. Keiichi, along with Skuld and Urd, try to help Bell to regain her memories. Of course, they fail at first.
But slowly and surely, Bell regains her memories. Of course, then Celestin appears again to cause trouble. What is he up to? Well, he is akin to a Lucifer figure. He was a once a member in the high courts of Heaven, who once tutored Belldandy. However, he was troubled by the problems with reality, specifically the way that Heaven deals with relationships between members of different realms. There's this Judgement Gate that exists where these 'special couples' go and test their commitment to each other. Should there be any doubt, the couple is separated forever. So, he takes young Bell along to show this 'abomination' (as Celestin says) and then he attempts to destroy it. Now, while that might be something good, it has one huge downside-IT WOULD RENDER REALITY AS WE KNOW IT ASUNDER. (sorry for the all caps xD). He succeeds for a bit , but then is banished to the moon for his crimes. Belldandy then has to take a forgetting potion, so she won't remember it at all (hence the confusion when he showed up earlier in the movie). Also, this was told all in flashback, naturally.
He recruited Morgan, a fairy princess, to aid in his plan. She is a rather tragic figure, having felt the loss of her beloved at the hands of the Judgement Gate firsthand. She is the one who freed Celestin from the moon prison and aids him in trying to pry Belldandy away from Keiichi by first subtle means, then outright seduction of Keiichi. This of course didn't work too much.  
Now, Celestin wants to basically render reality asunder again, and create a new reality, probably in his own image. Of course, by that point, Bell regains her memories of Keiichi totally and she along with Keiichi, Urd, Skuld seeks to prevent Celestin's plan. The virus that is causing trouble to Yggdrasil is linked into Belldandy. the final solution, put forward by Peorth, would be to inject a vaccination into Belldandy and stem the virus at its source, which unfortunately would have unfortunate side effects as well. But its better then reality becoming no more, so they go ahead with this idea.
But it fails as Celestin takes over Keiichi's body and proceeds with his plan anyway. Just when it seems all is lost, the way to prevent this calamity is.....SINGING (I'm dead serious). Also, Belldandy and Keiichi pass through the Judgement Gate together, and because their love is unwavering, they are successful and they glimpse at Paradise (i have no idea, not really explained). Happy ending, closed by credits.

Well, what are the pros to this Movie? Well, quite a lot.
First, the animation encapsulates one word-Beautiful!!!!! This was where the Ah My Goddess series underwent artistic evolution on a grand scale, that carries through to the TV Series made 5 years later. From the first scene right up to the ending, it is all wonderfully animated. It also has a very well done blend of 2D cel and CGI, probably the best example of such a seamless blend from this era of animation (the turn of this recent century). 
Second, the voice acting (in the english dub). It is of course different from the dub of the OVA, which I reviewed last weekend. Now, the main couple is voiced by Bridget Hoffman (Belldandy) and Tony Oliver (Keiichi). They do a wonderful job, even if this was their own appearance in this role for the series. There are some other memorable performances in the cast as well. This includes Sherry Lynn and Mary Elizabeth McGlynn as Skuld and Urd, and interestingly enough Steve Blum as the baddie of the film, which surprised me a quite a lot. It is quite awesome, much like the rest of this film.
Third, the story. This is quite possibly the best story for an anime film outside of the Miyazaki canon. The plot is bit more developed than the OVA, as the series has been out for some time before this movie came out. It is also rather original, in that it doesn't take place within the manga series it is based on.
Finally, the music is very wonderful. It was done by Shiro Hamaguchi, who also did music for Final Fantasy VII-IX games as well as the One Piece movies. So, to say it sounds much like a video game soundtrack, not far from truth. Granted, it is totally grand classical orchestra playing the soundtrack and it is very well-done. It is grand and epic, which considering this is a theatrical release for a movie, not surprising.

Now, the one con against this movie, which I mentioned earlier: the continuity. In the first 10-15 minutes, we are thrust into this world, with lots of characters, most of which are incidental to the plot of the movie. Now, for the casual/first-time viewer, this will create some confusion. So, to truly appreciate this movie, one needs to have seen either the OVA or TV Series or read the manga beforehand just a bit to understand what most things are.

Now, final thoughts: This Movie rocks!! Like I say, this is possibly the best anime movie outside of the Miyazaki canon out there. I can heap more praise to this movie than I ever done for a lot for the titles I reviewed. It is the pinnacle of anime, the greatest example for this industry. There's hasn't been a lot of anime titles before or since that are as great as this movie. WATCH IT!!!

Now, next weekend is Legend of the Last Labyrinth.

Laterz, The Eclectic Dude