|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Ripples...
+ Learn Some Japanese
Reviews,,,
Here you will find a few opinions/overviews of an anime/jpop concerts (or CDs) that either myself or a friend viewed. Hopefully, you'll get a better idea of these shows after reading these.
Mahou Tsukai Tai!
Written by Meg-chan
Title: Mahou Tsukai Tai! (Magic User's Club!)
Distributor: Media Blasters
Genre: Comedy/action
Original Creator: Junichi Satou, Triangle Staff
Grade: B (84%)
Age Rating: 13 and up (mature situations, brief language, brief nudity)
Episode count: 19 (6 OVA, 13 TV)
Format Viewed: English dubbed
Sometimes it�s a nice change to view an anime that has just a little more than a pitiful plot. Sure, it�s great to watch in-depth �genius shows� such as Neon Genesis Evangelion, but other times it is as good to sit down, eat popcorn, and laugh at a cute little cartoon produced merely to be fun to watch. Mahou Tsukai Tai! is one of those shows. Sure, there are hints of a plot here and there, but mostly it�s just a wannabe-angst anime about a girl, a boy, and some magic.
One of these �plots� that Mahou Tsukai Tai! attempts to portray is that of an alien invasion. Although the whole �alien ploy� is overplayed quite often, in this particular instance, it is a humorous fragment of storyline that does not relate to any other design involving aliens that I�ve ever seen. Following the conquer of Earth, instead of using violent tactics to overcome its civilization, the aliens merely fall alongside society and maintain a peaceful existence together with humans.
Enter Sae Sawanaguchi, a clumsy, insecure sophomore girl in high school. With her short, moppish red hair and bright blue eyes, her appearance portrays her as someone younger than her actual age. Sae is two-year member of the Mahou Tsukai Tai, or the Magic User�s Club, and enjoys it very much. She, in addition, secretly has a crush on the president of the club, Takeo. Sae tries to complete the difficult task of convincing her best friend, Nanaka Nakatomi, of the benefits of such an organization. Nanaka, however, resembling very much the personality of Rei Hino of Sailor Moon, refuses to enjoy the Mahou Tsukai Tai and continues to visit club meetings merely because Sae insists on attending. Her final agreements on attendance may also reflect her romantic feelings for vice president Aburatsubo.
Takeo Takakura, the hormonally strained president of the Mahou Tsukai Tai, is a senior in the same high school as Sae and Nanaka, and organized the actual club because of his discovery of an ancient tomb in his childhood where he found a wand and proceeded to practicing magic. He and the vice president, Ayanojyo Aburatsubo are the only males in the Mahou Tsukai Tai. Takeo seems to have strong, but hidden, feelings for Sae, but Aburatsubo appears to have his heart set on Takeo and will go to enormous lengths to seduce him � much to the frustration of Takeo. (This is a great portion of the comedy in the series.) Takeo seems to have a daydreaming problem, as any mention of anything that might result in getting undressed sends him into sexually explicit visions during which the female members of the Mahou Tsukai Tai done scantily-clad clothing (if any) and throw themselves at him.
Akane Aikawa, the newest member of the club, is a freshman and seems to have difficulty committing to the club, missing a great number of meetings, and instead dating older men while atoning skimpy attire. Akane seems to be a very skilled magician, and at times uses it for the wrong reasons � focusing on her own selfish desires. Akane is a model with an acting ability and acts quite mature for her age, even though she is the youngest of all the club members.
Although the main storylines follow either the members of the Mahou Tsukai Tai and their romantic interests or the alien invasion, there is yet another side story that the viewers are expected to pursue and understand. Mizuha Miyama, a childhood tormentor of Takeo�s, is president of the Manga Club � the main rival for the Mahou Tsukai Tai, and their next door neighbors. Although she resembles a teacher more than an actual student, (due to a very over-endowed body), it seems that she is the same age as Takeo. It also appears later in the series that she has a slight romantic interest in the male lead.
As the series progresses, the aliens abandon Earth and the only thing left reminding Tokyo of their previous company is a giant cherry blossom tree that the Mahou Tsukai Tai accidentally produced. (This unfortunate mistake was in fact Sae�s fault, because she allowed her mind to drift, as she often does, while the club recited a spell to rid the city of any evidence.)
At this point, the storyline switches to more of a high school drama setting, to where Sae begins and continues to see a young boy in her dreams. It is, at first, impossible to tell whether or not this figure is in fact a male, but you see later on as Sae confronts him in real life that he is. The boy�s name is Jurika Jinnou, and he eventually joins the Mahou Tsukai Tai after a few episodes � much to Sae�s confusion. After his admittance, he confronts Takeo, Nanaka, and Aburatsubo about their unrequited loves. He also coaxes Akane into believing that she can acquire anything that she wants � that by using magic, she can attain it.
In addition, Jinnou steals Sae�s first kiss, visiting her while she�s in Hokkaido on her parents� ranch. But how could Jinnou have been with Sae in Hokkaido when he was also with Takeo in Tokyo? This is one of the questions that the Mahou Tsukai Tai is left to discover.
The series continues, Sae becoming more and more hard on herself, eventually quitting the club altogether and mysteriously getting lost. The remaining members of the Mahou Tsukai Tai hurriedly rush around in search of their lost member, and Takeo encounters her by a fountain that is visited frequently throughout the series � and he only discovers that she is transparent and she is unable to hear him try to make communication with her.
The viewers finally encounter Sae, and realize that she is trapped somewhere, unable to escape for an initially unknown reason. She continues to struggle until finally admitting to herself that if allowed to go free, she will be true to herself and admit her growing feelings for Takeo. Only then is she permitted to escape, and afterwards Sae immediately finds herself in a confrontation with Takeo. Before this, Takeo had received a suggestion to reveal to Sae his romantic feelings for her, which always seemed incredibly difficult in the past. (Several times throughout the series have these two come so painfully close to telling the other about their romantic desires.)
Mahou Tsukai Tai! ends with Sae and Takeo admitting their emotions to each other under the moonlight, and with the other members of the club joining them shortly after.
This series, although a bit perverted and silly at times, satisfied me a great deal during my viewing. I think that I enjoyed the OVA series a bit more than the television series, which succeeded in irritating me more than anything. (Sae and Takeo�s unwillingness to accept the truth is almost unbearable.) The final realization of Jinnou�s identity is surprising as well, but I won�t reveal that at this point; there are enough spoilers in this review.
I can�t very well give my opinion on the Japanese cast, as I only viewed the English dub. I know a few of the Japanese actors; Akane�s was Junko Iwao, who also voiced for Tomoyo in Card Captor Sakura and Mayumi Iizuka was Nanaka�s voice actress; this particular woman also provided a voice for Maya in Geobreeders. As far as the dubbing goes, you honestly have to get used to it, although it could have been far worse. Sae and Nanaka�s voices are incredibly squeaky and irritating, although I am quite bias in my opinion of Lisa Ortis. (I refuse to believe that she was the BEST that Software Sculptors could dig up for the role of Lina Inverse.) Akane�s role made her sound like more of an old lady instead of a mature freshman, but Takeo and Abaratsubo were fit, in my opinion.
Mahou Tsukai Tai! is one that I recommend to anyone who is tired of deep plots and serious characters. If a high school drama mixed with a hint of science fiction is what you�re looking for, then I can�t suggest anything better than Mahou Tsukai Tai!. The television series, like I said, is something that I must warn viewers of, however. It is enough to send any sane person into a fit of frustration. (I am NOT fond of Jinnou at all.) However, most of this series was surprisingly wonderful and I enjoyed watching it very much.