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[ café reviews ]

Belldandy drops in on a very surprised Keiichi.

amg_0000.gif

Ah! Megamisama!
(Oh! My Goddess!)

Episode 1: Moonlight and Cherry Blossoms


[ production info ]

Copyright: © 1993 Kodansha (Japan), © 1994 Animeigo (North America)
Length: 30 minutes
Rating: NR, suitable for family viewing
Format: Subtitled (VHS)

Based on the manga series by: Fujishima Kosuke Director: Goda Hiroaki Producers: Shindo Masao, Takimoto Hiro Character Design: Matsubura Hidenori English Version Executive Producer: Robert J. Woodhead Translation by: Shin Kurokawa, Matsushima Naoko


[ plot summary ]

vhs jacket

Be careful what you wish for. That's the lesson that Morisato Keichi learned when he accidentally dialed the wrong number. Desperately trying to find a restaurant which was open (let alone delivers), he ends up getting connected to the Goddess Help Line. Belldandy, a Class I Unlimited goddess pays him a visit and grants him one wish. What does a short guy in university ask for? Why, a girlfriend of course! Someone just like the goddess who granted him the wish. Lucky for Keichi, Belldandy takes the request to mean for *her* to stay by his side.


[ capsule review ]

Fujishima Kyosuke has got my vote for "Most Sugar-Coated OAV Writer of the Decade" award (Miyazaki would get "Most Sugar-Coated Writer"). Even his "villians" aren't very nasty -- more troublesome than truly evil. A!MG! is so sweet, that you'll want to keep your toothbrush handy. But I didn't find it sickening. In fact, A!MG! has the unique distinction of being the first videotape series that we've worn out to such a point that we've had to purchase three sets of tapes, and then the LD's. Why? It's because it's so nice, to the point of being idyllic. Morisato Keichi (Kikuchi Masami) is a fairly typical junior in college, who can't seem to find a girlfriend if his life depended on it. When Belldandy ends up being his constant companion, his own uncertainty and naivete really hinders his attempts to "put the moves" on his new female room-mate. To top it all off, add Megumi, his younger sister who's decided to move in because she'll be a junior in the same college as Keiichi (she has an especially memorable introduction!) Characterisations aside, the story is very simple -- your typical "boy meets girl goddess" script. Animation is nothing spectacular, but the detail of the backgrounds are good, and the colour choices are strikingly beautiful at times. Both the opening and closing themes are catchy, sung by the "Goddess Fan Club" (Inoue Kikuko, Tohma Yumi and Hisakawa Aya). Light comedy -- a good video to watch when you really want to escape. (An little trivia point to note -- those old temples you see featured in a lot of anime -- yes, the floors are damnned cold, even in the middle of summer.)
- AN


This is a typical boy meets girl story with the interesting twist of the girl being a goddess. The story itself is pretty basic and the characters are interesting and well portrayed. Belldandy can be a bit weepy and overacted at times, but all in all is fairly well done. Morisato Keichi's sister Megumi is well portrayed. I quite like the way she gives him a hard time about living with a girl, let alone a foreigner. But then, isn't that the prerogative of all little sisters? To annoy big brother? The animation is rather interesting with a fair amount of detail in a fuzzy background. The fuzziness sort of defies there being any detail to the background scenery, but this is not the case. Instead, there is a washed out or almost dreamlike state to the entire episode. (Hey! What would you expect if you suddenly have a goddess living with you?!) The background music is well done and nice to listen to and the beginning and end themes can be rather catchy. - JYN


[ café rating ]

Original: Subbed: Dubbed:
Story: N/R 3 stars N/A
Direction: N/R 3 stars N/A
Acting: N/R 3 stars N/A
Animation: N/R 3 stars N/A
Music: N/R 4 stars N/A
Translation: N/A 5 stars N/A
Overall Rating: N/R 3 stars N/A


[ café trivia ]



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