Ah! My Goddess TV - Volume 1: Always and Forever + Artbox - Review
Studio Summary
Contains Ah! My Goddess TV DVD 1 plus a gorgeous collector's artbox!
Keiichi Morisato is an engineering student, top driver of his campus motor club, and not very lucky with the ladies. But while placing a phone call one evening, a wrong number puts him in contact with the "Goddess Hotline." One misplaced wish later, Keiichi finds himself blessed with Belldandy, the perfect girlfriend and a goddess in every sense of the word.
Unfortunately, she doesn't have any idea of how to act in the human world, and her presence quickly gets Keiichi kicked out of the dorms. Fortunately for Keiichi, his troubles have just begun!
Contains episodes 1-5.
DVD Features: Textless Opening, Japanese Voice Actor Interviews, Japanese Voice Actor Outtakes.
Spoken Languages: English, Japanese, English Subtitles.
Age Rating - 13+
Grades
Video: A+
Audio: B+
Dub/script/VAs: A
Theme song/opening credits: A-
Story: A
Overall: A
Buy Ah! My Goddess TV DVD 1 (Hyb): Always and Forever + Artbox in our online store!
Review
I have a lot of history with this franchise. The AnimeEgo Oh! My Goddess OVA has been at the top of my romantic comedy favorites for more than a decade, and it was my first real exposure to an anime genre other than Sci-Fi. The Oh! My Goddess OVA was also the first VHS set I bought in subtitle form (a set I still own), and I have read some of the manga over the years. Overall, I'd say the TV series has a lot to live up to ... and it does.
This is the Ah! My Goddess I've been waiting for for a long time.
The first episode introduces Keiichi Morisato and sets up the reasons why he is worthy of the grace of heaven. Keiichi is the epitome of the phrase, "Nice guys always finish last." Plagued by the Star of Misfortune, he was born to be taken advantage of and used the way others see fit. Yet, he remains in very good humor and has a good attitude in life ... and that is something that finally plays to his own advantage. The Goddesses in heaven decide that he is due a wish since he has had the scales of misfortune tipped so severely against him. Will he be able to thwart fate or will the wish just cause him further misery?
While once again being taken advantage of by babysitting the dorm, Keiichi dials a "wrong number" and ends up contacting the Goddess Hotline. Belldandy, Goddess First Class - Unlimited Licence, visits him for a consultation and tells him he is allowed one wish. Needless to say he is a little surprised, and very skeptical. Thinking it is a joke, he blurts out that he wished a girl like Belldandy would be by his side forever.
And just like that, he is bound to a Goddess for all time.
Yet, this presents a new problem. Girls are not allowed in the dorms. Moments later his Sempai's return and he is immediately thrown out of his home. Belldandy explains that this is a result of the System Force, a strong program that ensures that a wish will remain fulfilled. In their case, anytime someone tries to separate Belldandy and Keiichi, the System Force creates a situation makes sure they will remain together. The situations range from the benign to the downright dangerous, so great care must be taken to avoid opposing it.
So now homeless, and with a beautiful goddess with him, Keiichi sets out to find a new home and start a new life. It won't be easy, but it will be fun.
The Ah! My Goddess formula works in ways that many have tried to replicate but few have actually managed. Although Belldandy shows much surprise and some dismay at Keiichi's wish, she is never bitter toward him and does her best to always make him happy. She is perfect in almost every way, and is one of the most selfless and attractive anime characters out there. Keiichi really is a nice guy, and you have a hard time thinking of anyone else more deserving of her. The TV series shows it better than the OVA - if for no other reason that the characters are fleshed out more, giving more space for fun situations ... and we still have not met half the cast yet! Things get even better when the couple squares off against Sayoko Mishima, the campus queen. I can't wait for Urd and the others to show up!
On the technical side, the dub is top notch. I actually think they nailed the main characters better here than either AnimEgo did with the original OVA or Pioneer did with the Ah! My Goddess, the Movie release. That's really impressive given that Media Blasters went with relative newcomers for the main characters. Both Eileen Stevens and Drew Aaron only have a few titles to their names, but I think they hit Belldandy and Keichii dead on. I don't think I could be happier with their perfomances here, and it is really early in the show. I don't think they needed much warm up time to find the characters ... very nicely done.
The video is stellar. As of late I have noticed a lot more transfers that have some digitizing to them. Although it is a CG colored release, the action is as smooth as can be. The animation and CGI is not quite cinimatic quality, but it comes very close. For a weekly series, the production values are very strong. The audio is crisp and clear, about as good as you can get from a 2.0 release. The opening theme song is very sweet with a real Irish Folk flair, and the ending is happy and snappy - both are humable tunes.
All-in-all, it's another grin-a-minute show that I just totally enjoyed. I can't wait for more!
Reviewed by Johaan
Contains Ah! My Goddess TV DVD 1 plus a gorgeous collector's artbox!Keiichi Morisato is an engineering student, top driver of his campus motor club, and not very lucky with the ladies. But while placing a phone call one evening, a wrong number puts him in contact with the "Goddess Hotline." One misplaced wish later, Keiichi finds himself blessed with Belldandy, the perfect girlfriend and a goddess in every sense of the word.
Unfortunately, she doesn't have any idea of how to act in the human world, and her presence quickly gets Keiichi kicked out of the dorms. Fortunately for Keiichi, his troubles have just begun!
Contains episodes 1-5.
DVD Features: Textless Opening, Japanese Voice Actor Interviews, Japanese Voice Actor Outtakes.
Spoken Languages: English, Japanese, English Subtitles.
Age Rating - 13+
Grades
Video: A+
Audio: B+
Dub/script/VAs: A
Theme song/opening credits: A-
Story: A
Overall: A
Buy Ah! My Goddess TV DVD 1 (Hyb): Always and Forever + Artbox in our online store!
Review
I have a lot of history with this franchise. The AnimeEgo Oh! My Goddess OVA has been at the top of my romantic comedy favorites for more than a decade, and it was my first real exposure to an anime genre other than Sci-Fi. The Oh! My Goddess OVA was also the first VHS set I bought in subtitle form (a set I still own), and I have read some of the manga over the years. Overall, I'd say the TV series has a lot to live up to ... and it does.
This is the Ah! My Goddess I've been waiting for for a long time.
The first episode introduces Keiichi Morisato and sets up the reasons why he is worthy of the grace of heaven. Keiichi is the epitome of the phrase, "Nice guys always finish last." Plagued by the Star of Misfortune, he was born to be taken advantage of and used the way others see fit. Yet, he remains in very good humor and has a good attitude in life ... and that is something that finally plays to his own advantage. The Goddesses in heaven decide that he is due a wish since he has had the scales of misfortune tipped so severely against him. Will he be able to thwart fate or will the wish just cause him further misery?
While once again being taken advantage of by babysitting the dorm, Keiichi dials a "wrong number" and ends up contacting the Goddess Hotline. Belldandy, Goddess First Class - Unlimited Licence, visits him for a consultation and tells him he is allowed one wish. Needless to say he is a little surprised, and very skeptical. Thinking it is a joke, he blurts out that he wished a girl like Belldandy would be by his side forever.
And just like that, he is bound to a Goddess for all time.
Yet, this presents a new problem. Girls are not allowed in the dorms. Moments later his Sempai's return and he is immediately thrown out of his home. Belldandy explains that this is a result of the System Force, a strong program that ensures that a wish will remain fulfilled. In their case, anytime someone tries to separate Belldandy and Keiichi, the System Force creates a situation makes sure they will remain together. The situations range from the benign to the downright dangerous, so great care must be taken to avoid opposing it.
So now homeless, and with a beautiful goddess with him, Keiichi sets out to find a new home and start a new life. It won't be easy, but it will be fun.
The Ah! My Goddess formula works in ways that many have tried to replicate but few have actually managed. Although Belldandy shows much surprise and some dismay at Keiichi's wish, she is never bitter toward him and does her best to always make him happy. She is perfect in almost every way, and is one of the most selfless and attractive anime characters out there. Keiichi really is a nice guy, and you have a hard time thinking of anyone else more deserving of her. The TV series shows it better than the OVA - if for no other reason that the characters are fleshed out more, giving more space for fun situations ... and we still have not met half the cast yet! Things get even better when the couple squares off against Sayoko Mishima, the campus queen. I can't wait for Urd and the others to show up!On the technical side, the dub is top notch. I actually think they nailed the main characters better here than either AnimEgo did with the original OVA or Pioneer did with the Ah! My Goddess, the Movie release. That's really impressive given that Media Blasters went with relative newcomers for the main characters. Both Eileen Stevens and Drew Aaron only have a few titles to their names, but I think they hit Belldandy and Keichii dead on. I don't think I could be happier with their perfomances here, and it is really early in the show. I don't think they needed much warm up time to find the characters ... very nicely done.
The video is stellar. As of late I have noticed a lot more transfers that have some digitizing to them. Although it is a CG colored release, the action is as smooth as can be. The animation and CGI is not quite cinimatic quality, but it comes very close. For a weekly series, the production values are very strong. The audio is crisp and clear, about as good as you can get from a 2.0 release. The opening theme song is very sweet with a real Irish Folk flair, and the ending is happy and snappy - both are humable tunes.
All-in-all, it's another grin-a-minute show that I just totally enjoyed. I can't wait for more!
Reviewed by Johaan
