Hello again, this is the Eclectic Dude
Well, after three rather solid episodes with lots of character introductions and situational comedy/drama, does this OVA pick up the pace? Let's find out.
Episode 4, titled Evergreen Holy Night, starts out with a bad dream by Keiichi in which Belldandy leaves him, which causes some distress. It is really good scene illustrating the transient nature of their relationship, especially considering they are an unconventional couple. Anyway, problems (micro snowstorm, things disappearing, magnetism, etc) start popping around Keiichi and Belldandy's temple abode. The problem is caused by the presence of 'bugs' (multi-legged rabbit critters), as reality seems to function akin to a computer system. More bugs equals glitches in the fabric of reality, or something. These 'bugs' come out from a 'portal' formed by the close attraction of Keiichi and Belldandy, as discovered by Skuld. The two now have to be separated or more problems will occur.
On top of that, 'Father' (the God-figure) calls Belldandy and says she got to go back to Heaven. She has 3 days before a gateway opens up to Heaven and take Belldandy. She reluctantly agrees it as she wants to make Keiichi's life better, even though both of them are in deep love with each other. The pain of separation gets to both of them, and attempts to reconnect with more problems. Near the end of the episode, it is discovered that a tree on the grounds of the temple is the source of the 'reality glitches'. Not much is explained about the tree, suffice to say that its is a rather scary and shocking cliffhanger.
Episode 5, titled For Love of Goddess, wraps up the OVA. it is a tad longer than the other 4 episodes, but I don't mind that too much. It continues the plot from Ep. 4 with Belldandy awaiting the day she has to leave Earth for the Heavenly Sphere, Urd and Skuld trying to keep her on Earth, and Keiichi going to do part time jobs to get something special for Belldandy. All of this during Christmastime, which does make it very poignant. Will it end in tragedy or will our couple have a happy ending?
Suffice to say, they do. I won't spoil details to the ending, suffice to say it does bring up a twist I didn't see coming even after watching it a few times. Thus, the OVA ends on credit roll with a cheery pop song set to character stills. Pretty good I must say.
Now the pros of this OVA:
The voice acting in the english dub is top-notch. Juliet Cesario and Scott Simpson do a very good job conveying the roles of the main couple. The rest of the cast is generally consistent, though Pamela Weidner and Lanelle Markgraf (who voices Skuld and Urd respectively) are particularly note-worthy as well. The music is rather nice as well. It has nice blend of orchestral and 90s J-pop/synth music that works well and complements the story. It also got interesting concepts, especially with regard to the nature of reality and role of fate in the universe. Those seems odd in this story, they do tie in with what the story is about: Even when they are odds against two people in love, they shall overcome.
Now the cons:
The story is rather straightforward: boy meets girl, boy falls in love with girl, the two become a couple and overcome obstacles, both human and universal. Still, the interesting concepts I mentioned above help make this OVA stand out among other similar series. Animation is the other thing that at times, ages this production considerably. The character designs look good and consistent, but the backgrounds often look faded in comparison, especially in the scenes during the daytime. Nonetheless, it is old enough to be considered old-school without much problem.
Now, one particular extra I liked about AnimEigo's release of this OVA in 2 episodes is the audio commentary. They decided to do an audio commentary for all 5 episodes. It includes Scott Simpson, Juliet Cesario, Pamela Weidner along with English Voice Director Scott Houle. It is a very enlightening commentary and worth a listen should you get the DVDs, which I recommend.
In conclusion, Oh My Goddess is a very good OVA and stands out as a classic, in my opinion. Sure, the animation makes this on the old school side, but it is worth looking at. Especially if you've seen the 2005-07 TV Series and want to see what it looked like back in the day. Of course, you can always check out the manga, which is very good as well.
Next week is "Ah My Goddess" The Movie, which came out in 2000.
The Eclectic Dude
Showing posts with label OMG 2 parter. Show all posts
Showing posts with label OMG 2 parter. Show all posts
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Saturday, February 4, 2012
Anime Review No. 21, "Oh My Goddess" (OVA) Part 1/2
Hi, I'm the Eclectic Dude and I review it for the lolz.
So, to kick off this month of themed reviews, I am going over a favorite of mine-"Ah My Goddess" or "Oh My Goddess" depending on the interpretation. This anime series stretches back to the Fall of 1988, as a manga made by Kosuke Fujishima. In 1993-94, AIC (one of my favorite studio for anime), under director Hiroaki Goda, made a 5 episode OVA entitled "Oh My Goddess". The basic premise revolves around the relationship between the two leads, Keiichi Morisato (college sophomore) and Belldandy (goddess from Heaven).
Now, I am doing this OVA review in 2 parts as the series was done in 2 DVDs by AnimEigo, the same company that released Otaku No Video (subject of my first ever review). Part I will be over Episodes 1-3, while Part II covers Episodes 4-5.
Episode 1, titled Moonlight and Cherry Blossoms, starts off the OVA on a good point, with a pretty good opening song. It introduces Keiichi Morisato, a average college sophomore guy. He is essentially an Everyman, generally good and likeable, but has flaws. He meets Belldandy through a weird situation-he was trying to call take-out, but instead called the Goddess Help Line. Belldandy answers his call, by passing through a mirror (...the fudge?). Anyway, Belldandy is a pure goddess, almost like a Yamato Nadeshiko (the Japanese ideal for women). She can grant only one wish, Keiichi decides on wishing that she be his girlfriend forever, on a whim no less. Nonetheless, the wish is granted and their relationship is bound by a 'Ultimate Force' contract. Of course, this lead to Keiichi and Belldandy being thrown of Keiichi's dorm (which was males only) out onto the streets. They resolve to find a place to live, and after some searching, find an abandoned temple. They then set to repair it. Some days later, Megumi (Keiichi's younger sister) shows up to spend a week or so living with the couple while she tries to find her own place to stay. Overall, a very well-done episode which lays down the exposition and gets down to business.
Episode 2, titled Midsummer's Night Dream, takes place 5 months later. It is summertime and life is good for our lovely couple. This episode introduces us to Urd, Belldandy's older sister (who pops out of an adult video Keiichi got in the mail-awkward). She is rather a smexy seductress with a bit of a trickster streak to her. Her aim is to get Keiichi and Belldandy as Keiichi is a bit of a wimp when it comes to romance (an understandable sentiment).
So, Keiichi and Belldandy go on a trip to the beach, and the episode turns into a 'Beach/Summer Vacation' episode (though surprisingly not much fanservice as expected, but I'm not complaining much). Keiichi tries to 'get it on' with Belldandy and fails epically. Not to knock him for trying, but it stresses that since taking on this contract, there will be obstacles to their relationship, especially since its a human-goddess relationship. Even when Urd intervenes with a love potion, it only leads to a fatal misunderstanding. But, the two resolve this. Though, Urd is forced to stay on Earth due to the fact she slacked off her job to intervene in the couple's affairs. She decides to live with Keiichi and Belldandy, much to Belldandy's delight and Keiichi's chagrin. A pretty good episode, builds on the first episode.
Episode 3, titled Burning Hearts on the Road, pretty much follows a similar formula to the first two. It introduces us to Skuld, the younger sister of Belldandy and Urd. She comes down to earth via magical transport, which ends up being straight out of the bathtub when Keiichi was taking a bath-awkward moment eh?). Shes comes across as annoying brat who has impressive mechanical skills and lover of gadgets and machines. She is also a tad overprotective of Belldandy, as she was lonely up in Heaven and can't quite understand why Belldandy would be in a relationship with a 'loser' like Keiichi.
Of course, the obstacle to the couple is a college drag race, with Keiichi's auto club going up against Aoshima's (rich prick) own racing team, with a wager involving Belldandy. Of course, Keiichi and his team win regardless, egged on by Belldandy's own encouragement and despite all odds against them. It is a really good fist-pumping moment as Keiichi overcomes this obstacle.
So, three pretty solid episodes in, and this story is very well-done. But, what will happen in the finale in last two episodes? Will Belldandy and Keiichi get it through all obstacles?
Find out in Part II, posted tomorrow.
The Eclectic Dude
So, to kick off this month of themed reviews, I am going over a favorite of mine-"Ah My Goddess" or "Oh My Goddess" depending on the interpretation. This anime series stretches back to the Fall of 1988, as a manga made by Kosuke Fujishima. In 1993-94, AIC (one of my favorite studio for anime), under director Hiroaki Goda, made a 5 episode OVA entitled "Oh My Goddess". The basic premise revolves around the relationship between the two leads, Keiichi Morisato (college sophomore) and Belldandy (goddess from Heaven).
Now, I am doing this OVA review in 2 parts as the series was done in 2 DVDs by AnimEigo, the same company that released Otaku No Video (subject of my first ever review). Part I will be over Episodes 1-3, while Part II covers Episodes 4-5.
Episode 1, titled Moonlight and Cherry Blossoms, starts off the OVA on a good point, with a pretty good opening song. It introduces Keiichi Morisato, a average college sophomore guy. He is essentially an Everyman, generally good and likeable, but has flaws. He meets Belldandy through a weird situation-he was trying to call take-out, but instead called the Goddess Help Line. Belldandy answers his call, by passing through a mirror (...the fudge?). Anyway, Belldandy is a pure goddess, almost like a Yamato Nadeshiko (the Japanese ideal for women). She can grant only one wish, Keiichi decides on wishing that she be his girlfriend forever, on a whim no less. Nonetheless, the wish is granted and their relationship is bound by a 'Ultimate Force' contract. Of course, this lead to Keiichi and Belldandy being thrown of Keiichi's dorm (which was males only) out onto the streets. They resolve to find a place to live, and after some searching, find an abandoned temple. They then set to repair it. Some days later, Megumi (Keiichi's younger sister) shows up to spend a week or so living with the couple while she tries to find her own place to stay. Overall, a very well-done episode which lays down the exposition and gets down to business.
Episode 2, titled Midsummer's Night Dream, takes place 5 months later. It is summertime and life is good for our lovely couple. This episode introduces us to Urd, Belldandy's older sister (who pops out of an adult video Keiichi got in the mail-awkward). She is rather a smexy seductress with a bit of a trickster streak to her. Her aim is to get Keiichi and Belldandy as Keiichi is a bit of a wimp when it comes to romance (an understandable sentiment).
So, Keiichi and Belldandy go on a trip to the beach, and the episode turns into a 'Beach/Summer Vacation' episode (though surprisingly not much fanservice as expected, but I'm not complaining much). Keiichi tries to 'get it on' with Belldandy and fails epically. Not to knock him for trying, but it stresses that since taking on this contract, there will be obstacles to their relationship, especially since its a human-goddess relationship. Even when Urd intervenes with a love potion, it only leads to a fatal misunderstanding. But, the two resolve this. Though, Urd is forced to stay on Earth due to the fact she slacked off her job to intervene in the couple's affairs. She decides to live with Keiichi and Belldandy, much to Belldandy's delight and Keiichi's chagrin. A pretty good episode, builds on the first episode.
Episode 3, titled Burning Hearts on the Road, pretty much follows a similar formula to the first two. It introduces us to Skuld, the younger sister of Belldandy and Urd. She comes down to earth via magical transport, which ends up being straight out of the bathtub when Keiichi was taking a bath-awkward moment eh?). Shes comes across as annoying brat who has impressive mechanical skills and lover of gadgets and machines. She is also a tad overprotective of Belldandy, as she was lonely up in Heaven and can't quite understand why Belldandy would be in a relationship with a 'loser' like Keiichi.
Of course, the obstacle to the couple is a college drag race, with Keiichi's auto club going up against Aoshima's (rich prick) own racing team, with a wager involving Belldandy. Of course, Keiichi and his team win regardless, egged on by Belldandy's own encouragement and despite all odds against them. It is a really good fist-pumping moment as Keiichi overcomes this obstacle.
So, three pretty solid episodes in, and this story is very well-done. But, what will happen in the finale in last two episodes? Will Belldandy and Keiichi get it through all obstacles?
Find out in Part II, posted tomorrow.
The Eclectic Dude
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