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Synopsis
Maison Ikkoku from VIZ: Because Home is Where the Heart Lives. Maison Ikkoku is a story which takes place in Japan. But that doesn’t mean it couldn’t happen anywhere. Here is a romance the way it was meant to be - a romance its creator, Rumiko Takahashi (Ranma 1/2, InuYasha), meant it to be - a story of a ronin named Yusaku Godai, and the building’s new manager, a woman who hids a secret sadness, Kyoko Otonashi. It all happens here, in a a rundown Tokyo boarding house…known as Maison Ikkoku.

Review
This is one of my favorite anime series of all time, so perhaps I am a little biased. I simply see this as one of the best romantic comedies ever written. Done by the queen of the genre, Rumiko Takahashi, Maison Ikkoku (only the second series Takahashi ever wrote) is the most touching of all her work. Maison Ikkoku is set in Japan in the 1980s, the actual time that the 15 volume manga which was the basis for the anime; the result is one of the best examinations of regular life in Japan. It’s so quintessentially Japanese that a number of anime reference books use the series to highlight aspects of Japanese culture.

However, the humor and romance will appeal to anyone with a sense of humor, or romance. The comic usage of misunderstandings is straight from Shakespeare, and any fan of screwball comedies will be rolling on the floor with laughter. But the characters are grounded in reality, and moments of drama and romance will often take you by surprise. Godai matures as the series progresses, he’s only 19 when the series starts, and we see Kyoko overcome the massive loss she suffered.

The only problem I had with this box set was the awful english dub. The voices for Kyoko and Godai simply didn’t match the character’s personalites. I can only recommend the original japanese (the subtitles are a very good translation). My only other complaint (even though it’s not an important one) is the fact there aren’t any real extras on the DVDs. I was just hoping to maybe get some cultural notes, or perhaps an interview with Ms. Takahashi (are you listening Viz?)

Overall, this DVD set is a must have for anyone interested in Japan, any fan of Ms. Takahashi, (Ranma, Inu-Yasha), as it is her best work, or any lover of comedy, romance or the combination thereof.

The Breakdown
Pick this up ASAP, you’ll thank me (nay, worship at my feet) for letting you in on one of the best anime series ever put to film.

Synopsis
Junta’s teenage great-granddaughter Lulara appears from the future, but not for a joyful family reunion. To save her own life and the future of all her kin, she’s determined to permanently transform Junta into the Mega-Playboy. His one chance for survival may be to destroy his flirtatious alter-ego… but if he succeeds, his great-granddaughter might disappear forever!

Review
Just when I thought volume four was the end of DNA2, more is added to it. In volume five, as the synopsis stated, Lulara, Junta’s great granddaughter time travels back to his time along with Mori (her master) to activate Junta’s mega playboy DNA. If this task is accomplished, Junta and his descendents will all be under Mori’s control. Quite a bright idea is not it? You have a mega playboy in Junta who could get any women in the sacks and then have a whole army of mega playboys with both the abilities to charm the ladies and fight with usual prowess. It is the perfect army anyone could ask for. But it would not be easy to accomplish their evil plans. Karin defends for her life in this volume as Mori is set to take her out with his little posse, which includes Ryuji, Lulara, and… Junta!

What? Junta?! You heard that right, Mori sent Lulara to shoot Junta with a DCM bullet that also had the ability to control a person according to his likings. So now that Junta is under Mori’s control, Karin has no chance in winning the fight; she does put up a good one however. Anyways, what could be done, now that Junta is on the evil side? Absolutely no one could do anything except for himself. That is right; Junta’s DNA has not been stabilized yet, so he flashes back to the normal Junta back and forth. Mori’s going crazy as a result of Junta changing back and forth, till finally he is not able to control him anymore.

The ending of this series was not as good as I thought. I firmly believe that if DNA2 had ended with episodes loaded with fun, it would be better. Although, if that was done, we as fans would want more, hence, giving us an unwanted obsession over DNA2, in which I would not be pleased with, because there are other things I have to get to as an anime reviewer. We have come a long way, fifteen episodes seemed as it was twenty plus episodes. DNA2 is a fun adventure that has all the elements of a great anime series. Sigh… time to move onto another series :(.

The Breakdown
DNA2 is a great series that all fans of the ecchi humor genre should pay attention to.

Synopsis
Now that the Steel Angels have found the powerful Academy, they plan a daring break-in to save Nakahito, who is being pressured by the mysterious Mikhail to betray Kurumi. Unfortunately, the Academy is aware of their every move, and they successfully succeed in dividing and conquering the group. Saki and Karinka are trapped within a powerful force field. Dr. Amagi is captured by the Academy scientists. And when Nakahito makes his stand, he inadvertently activates Kurumi’s greatest threat. Now Kurumi must face her most powerful foe-a ruthless killing machine that has the same supercharged Mark II Angel Heart that Kurumi has. Will Kurumi’s better nature win out? Or will her dark side get the better of her? Find out in the exciting conclusion to the most thrilling, action-packed anime smash of the year!

Review
Steel Angel Kurumi captivates you with all sorts of things, such as, action, romance, and comedy; although, this volume has a more serious tone than the other previous volumes. What I like the most from Steel Angel Kurumi is that it is short in time, the running time that is and even though each episode is approximately fifteen minutes long, it makes up twenty four episodes. Enough with the introduction let us get down to business. Now it has been a while since I have reviewed my last volume of Steel Angel Kurumi and looking back at my review of the third volume, I stated that it ended with an intense moment. And Steel Angel Kurumi certainly does not disappoint with the turn out of all that intensity enough to give me a heart attack, well maybe not that serious heh :P, but I guarantee you will be in for a treat, as the ending is very, very, acceptable; probably one of the best endings I have seen throughout this year (2003).

In this volume, we get a little surprise as Mikhail was actually not a boy… Mikhail was actually a steel angel that shape shifted into a boy form to fool Nakahito into following her to the Academy’s base (Comon guys would it actually matter? If you saw some pretty lady wearing quite a revealing attire, would not you follow them too? ;-) ). This steel angel is not to be taken lightly; she boasts both an Angel Heart and an Angel Heart Mark II in her. When she transformed from the boy form to the steel angel form I was at a disgusted state, but then went back to normal as I saw that Mikhail was female (Sorry I was never much of a yaoi fan). Anyways she gets commanded to terminate Kurumi. And of course, this task was not easy, as we see flashes of Kurumi’s hidden demonic powers as the battle progressed.

By the time the climax is reached, the episodes are just flying out the windows, one after another, until finally, we are up to the last episode, in which, a better ending could not be planned out, in my honorable opinion. Steel Angel Kurumi definitely has an ability to attract its viewers and hold them for a fun ride. I am delighted to have been able to watch such a great series, and now that Steel Angel Kurumi has ended, it is time to move onto Steel Angel Kurumi: Encore! Yay!

The Breakdown
Hmmm… now that the threat of Kurumi changing to a demon is neutralized, what will happen in the future of the series?

Synopsis
After Yugi’s victory at Battle City, you thought he’d be given some time to relax. Absolutely not. The key to Yugi’s memory has been sealed. The God Cards are stolen. A new enemy comes to challenge the young pharaoh and his friends, the three swordsmen of Doma who possess a power different than the millennium items. Oreikarukosu, an ancient light strong enough to dominate even God…

Review
The Doma (Doom) Arc has yet to be dubbed in english and butchered. Maybe butchered comes off as too strong of a word, how about profoundly edited. At the time of this review, KidsWB is 37 episodes behind (on Episode 108 Neia’s Arc). It won’t be until more than half a year until the English catches up assuming no reruns. Doma is the latest new series from Japan published by Kazuki Takahashi since February 2003. This assessment is in and of itself both a review and preview for season 3, Episodes 145-184 after the duels within Battle City conclude. Volume 19 shown above includes 164 - 171. Episode 145 begins a whole new saga not featured in the manga, sort of a transition series between Battle City and the Egyptian Memory Arc.

The Breakdown
For fans of the show and want to watch it before everyone else does, to poke-lovers and other monster fanatics who just can’t get enough, and those who own the card game and want even more strategies to try out at tournaments.

Synopsis
Kai Kudo has been recently stationed at AESES, an independent facility of the Ashurum military. He recalls nothing of his past memory only that after his mother died, it was Ashurum hat adopted him and his sickly sister named Hikaru. As an Esper, he possesses powers that ordinary humans would only envy and fear. Outside of Ashurum, siblings like Kai and Hikaru would regularly be killed and never have the chance to experience fun and joy. That is why AESES was created, to harness the abilities of Espers to help people and save other Espers. At least that was what Kai was told…

Review
E’s Otherwise is a 26 episode series based on a popular comic series featured in G Fantasy Monthly. It is directed by Shimoda Masami (Ai Yori Aoshi, Ai Yori Aoshi Enishi) and scripted by Chiba Katsuhiko (Rune Soldier, Stellvia). E’s Otherwise is the japanese X-Men series; instead of mutants they are called Espers. Unlike the X-Men that are limited to a single mutant power, Espers have greater variety in that they can teleport, launch fireballs, and levitate. An esper’s powers are more psychic and telekinetic. Unfortunately their powers are not limitless like the X-Men. As explained in episode 4, when both psy-energy and physical strength are low and if an Esper forcibly invokes their powers, their stamina will be used to replenish their powers diminishing their life.

The Breakdown
E’s Otherwise starts off better than it finishes, similar to Bubblegum Crisis Tokyo 2040.

Synopsis
Imagine that it’s your fourteenth birthday and on that day you’ve finally confessed to your true love only to find out that she thinks of you as a best friend. Depressed you stare at a painting of your girlfriend in the safety of your own home when suddenly it happens. A great pain afflicts your chest, you gain a few inches of height, and your hair changes from red to purple. That is the life of Daisuke whose bloodline carries the legendary phantom thief Dark Mousy. It’s been forty years since his last appearance but his purpose is the same, to steal in order to protect those who are in need.

Review
Parts of this review come from the past Watcher column right here at animesou. Just a reminder, DNAngel is not the same as DNA^2 that Alpha has been reviewing, although Dark is quite the womanizer. Nor is it related to the Angel’s Sanctuary OVA. The series is much longer than either one of them, 26 episodes in length. DNAngel is based off of the manga by Yukiru Sugisaki. The DN in DNAngel can represent the initials Niwa Daisuke. Angel symbolizes Daisuke’s other personality, Dark-san. The story with the whole split personalities between Dark and Daisuke seems reminiscent of Yugioh, Samurai Deeper Kyo, and Angel’s Sanctuary in that there is another spirit sharing the host’s body. DNAngel is slightly different because Dark-san is constantly being reincarnated through the generations along the male bloodline. The last person who transformed into Dark was Daisuke’s grandfather. Daisuke is not the only one though; his classmate Hiwatari-kun contains the soul of the white angel Krad, Dark’s arch nemesis.

The Breakdown
High scores all around in animation, story, characters, and music. Don’t forget, inside you a piece of Dark exists.

Synopsis
A friend of mine used to say that the universe is constantly expanding, that the universe is alive. But from my point of view, it seems like the universe has stopped. What I mean to say is I think the universe goes on for eternity. That way, it seems more universal…
At that time when the summer’s last days were coming to an end, something that was frozen inside me started to move slowly…

Review
Onegai Sensei translated Please Teacher is a short 12 episode series plus an OVA which really can be considered to be episode 13. As you watch the series, you will come to see why it is called Onegai Sensei. It comes to represent the ups and downs in a relationship. The questions that are raised - Will everything work out? Are we better off going our separate ways? Then the realization of the true feelings you have for one another. Please be with me. Please listen for I have a confession to make. Then to move forward even if there is sadness. Making good for lost time, and ever accelerating.

The Breakdown
Kanon had you craving Taiyaki. Onegai Sensei will make you carry a box of pocky everywhere you go, jk.

Synopsis
We learned about it while watching the news about the UFO (Mizuho-sensei from episode 1 or Mizuho’s mother in episode 13, Onegai Teacher OVA). What caught our attention wasn’t the news itself, but the scenery that was being shown on the TV. That same house which only we recognized through a photo…
I wanted to take a chance.
I wanted to stay there.
I wanted to discover my childhood memories.
That’s why…that’s why…that’s why…

Review
Onegai Twins (Please Twins, hmm sounds awkward) is the 12-episode sequel to Onegai Sensei that aired from July to October 2003. It was one of the most requested and downloaded series with a large fan following although anime reviewers have frequently shot it down. It is not really a true continuation or second season to Onegai Sensei like how Slayers and Slayers Next, Orphen and Orphen Revenge, or Ai Yori Aoshi and Ai Yori Aoshi Enishi are connected. Onegai Twins takes place two years after Onegai Sensei and features a brand new storyline and lead characters. I still recommend watching Onegai Sensei first due to the references to events that took place in Sensei and the returning characters and cameos.

The Breakdown
Ending the review with the last line of the series: Now and Forever Twins!

Synopsis
The Landing, Day 81, First Season, Year 172
Official announcement by the Crown Prince of the Abh: ‘I’d like to begin by outlining the nature of the relationship between our Empire and you. Firstly, my will and that of the Empire are one and the same. At least as far as you are concerned. Our nobility will first survey your systems. For the time being, our Emperor will be your lord. Needless to say, our Emperor has numerous duties so a magistrate will be appointed to your system. In any case, a ruler or magistrate normally does not get involved in the details. The reason for this is that we feel governing your world is the furthest thing from being elegant.’

Day 87, First Season, Year 172
The Martine Government surrenders to the Abh Empire. As a compromise, the President made a request that would allow the citizens of the Hyde system to make use of the routes to other star systems on the condition that the Abh be given the codes to the Space Defense System. President Rock Lin will rule their star system as magistrate.

Review
Based on the novels by Hiroyuki Morioka, Seikai no Monsho (Crest of the Stars) takes place seven years after the surrender of the Martine Government. Jinto Lin, son of Rock Lin, departs for the capital in order to attend the official Abh Star Forces military school. Elf like but far from harmless, the Humanoid Abh Empire extends to over 1,500 inhabited star systems and another 20,000 partially inhabited star systems. Due to genetic manipulation, they are able to live for 200 years, are characterized by their blue hair, and both men and women are equally beautiful. Mysterious, they are more concerned with controlling space rather than directly ruling the planets themselves. They are as they say it themselves the kin of the stars. In other words, they are the crest of the stars. By one definition, they are the head, the top, or the highest point of the mountain known otherwise as the universe. Jinto has yet to met an Abh. That is until now.

The Breakdown
A strong science fiction series. Not overly romantic, while not weighing heavily on interstellar conflict.

Synopsis
At the end of Crest of the Stars was a sneak peak into Banner of the Stars. Sporh is promoted to Admiral of the First Fleet of the Abh Star Forces. Jinto finishes his schooling and achieves the rank of supply officer, while Lafiel is now the commander of the assault ship Barsroil. The war that was started in year 952 with a surprise attack by the United Mankind is full underway as both sides mobilize their strength.

Review
Based on the novels by Hiroyuki Morioka, Seikai no Senki (Banner the Stars I, Banner of the Stars I, even Battle Flag of the Stars I) takes place three years after the events of Crest of the Stars. The Barsroil, consisting of crew without any battle experience, is famous for a strange reason: the presence of two nobles on a ship at the same time. One is Captain Abrial Nei Dobrusk Baron Paryunu Lafiel (how’s that for a title), the princess of Abh. The other is Lin Syonu Rock Prince of Hyde, Jinto. Banner of the Stars is a suitable title for the sequel. A banner is a flag, some piece of cloth, used by a monarch or commander in wartime. Lafiel possesses both qualities, is captain and in line to be empress one day. Her banner is a hornet, which she hangs proudly on the bridge representing her ferocity and her relentlessness to sting the enemy. Her second banner is Jinto that she also carries wherever she goes, who symbolizes her compassionate and dignified side. Jinto is the only one who can refer to Lafiel by her first name, the only candidate who can cheer and restore confidence in her, the only person who can put her at ease.

The Breakdown
For completions sake, Banner of the Stars I is worth the investment. Some sequels like Slayers Next and Slayers Try do a remarkable job. Banner doesn’t quite do that.