Summary

It was a normal school day in Japan, (Isn't it always?) when young junior high kids take the school field trip to Tokyo Tower to get a birds eye view of the city with telescopes. I would comment on how Tokyo Tower is similar to the Eiffel Tower, but then, that would be getting way off subject! :-)

Anyway, several schools went all at once to have fun, among the three different schools are three girls, Hikaru Shidou, Umi Ryuuzaki, and Fuu Hououji, three girls with very different personalities. After the three come in contact with each other, a strange light fills the room, and they are instantly transported to the strange world of Cephiro, on a flying fish no less! There, they learn of their destiny : to save this other world and its princess as the legendary Magic Knights! First they have to figure out how to become these supposed heroes though...

The three girls' battles and abilities increase, they meet new people, and get new weapons with each passing episode, just like in an RPG (role-playing game). Oh yeah, be prepared for a VERY big plot twist at the very end of the first season!

For those interested, the first (and the best) season of Magic Knight Rayearth runs 20 TV episodes. I don't know how many are in the second season yet, and there are MKR OVA's too.

What I like about this series:

Super-deformed madness! Almost every other scene in this anime is a scene where the characters go super-deformed to either 1.) Run away from a monster, 2.) make a joke even funnier than it already is, 3.) explain something in a cute way, or 4.) just because! Because of the constant switches to super-deformed mode, this anime is very fun to watch!

The video game element of the series is also one of its appealing aspects. If you happen to like a good RPG, which is usually known for great stories, this anime is for you.

The characters! Anyanime with a great set of characters is sure to be a hit. The three girls are all very appealing that I don't even know which one is supposed to be my favorite! All of the supporting characters add even more to the mix. Also, the character interaction in this series is certainly a plus.

What I don't like about this series:

The romantic relationships don't really go anywhere in this series (ex. Fuu and Ferio). One episode turned out really sweet, but aside from that, it seems like a passing crush. Oh well. This anime isn't a romance, that's for sure.

Aside from that one qualm, there isn't much that I don't like about this series. Well, the first season that is...that brings me to the next subject...

The second season, while carrying over familiar characters and settings, has a totally different story altogether! I hoped that the continuation of such a great series would turn out great as well (look at Sailor Moon! It got better as it went!) though in this case I was wrong. The Magic Knights now have the responsibility of saving Cephiro (again) but this time from raiding space pirates. Yeah. Oh yeah, Hikaru gets a new love interest that happens to be twice her height. Kinda weird. Oh well. The one good thing I saw in the eight episodes I happened to see (I haven't continued watching it ever since) is that you get some background info on each of the girls' normal lives at home. I'm still into character development as always!

UPDATE! (09-09-2000) 

Ok, I finally got around to watching more episodes of the second season of MKR, and guess what? It's getting better! From the looks of it, the great story, superdeformity and weirdness are making their comebacks, (slowly, but surely!) and what's this? Everyone's just happening to fall in love with each other! This could get interesting...So, for this reason, I have changed my rating below, from a "BLEAH!" to an indifferent one. Now you can think about checking this series out.

The Ami Rating (first season):

For the second season:

If you're wondering about the colors of this commentary, Magic Knight Rayearth is very color coded. Everything about Hikaru is red, for Umi, blue, and for Fuu, green. Get the picture? The elements, the clothes, the hair...etc. are all matching. Nifty!

As for the ratings, I totally love the first season of this series. It has great replay value because of all the superdeformity and just because the girls are so fun to watch! As for the second season, it's ok so far, and it has gotten better with each passing episode. Perhaps it'll become one of my favorites when it reaches the end? I do hope so, the characters are just so cool!

For the fire arrow caption at the bottom of my main commentary page, that's Hikaru's Fire Arrow attack, which looks vaguely similar to Sailor Mars' Flame Sniper Attack. Hmm...makes you wonder...