Plot

In a world full of espers and supernatural powers, magical powers are still out of question. However, soon our here Touma will discover the existence of magic. He is the who finds Index. Index, a little girl drooping on Touma’s balcony fence. This girl got a perfect memorization, which allows her to remember every single drop of rain that falls, any leaves on trees and all faces she sees.

This remarkable ability is misused by her society , the church. They forced her to learn 103,000 forbidden grimoirs. Grimoirs are forbidden books containing powerful spells.  At the end, the church burned all copies, making Index the last library to the forbidden grimoirs.

Remembering those 103,000 forbidden books makes her a potent target for all who seek power.

Index, however, is optimistic and has powerful will to survive. Realized she will destroy any lives she contacts with, she decides to almost life in seclusion.

When Touma discovers the fact he cannot accept her fate and starts to make a life with Index. Using his own rare ability to dismantle esper and magic powers, he will be her guardian. As he learns of her deceivement he is willing to put his life to risk and safe her. Will it be enough, to safe Index, or is there more?

First Impression *The first impression covers a bit of the first episode, don’t read if you don’t want to be spoiled*

In the first few minutes we find our hero running away from a mob screaming ’such misfortune’. It reminded me of Keichi from “Ah My Goddess!” a bit, who held such misfortune as well. At any case, the boy, Kamijou Touma, had found these bunch of guys harassing a girl. Actually he attempted to warn to boys to do not provoke hér, but they didn’t get the his hint and thinks he’s just a troublemaker.

Rushing through the traffic our pal gets until the bridge when he suddenly doesn’t hear any of his pursuers. Instead the harassed girl appears, straight back walking in a straight line to him. Furious of him being meddled with she’s did not come to thank him.

Then they have a slight conversation which ends up the girl channeling her power and uses a ‘railgun’. A shocking lighting beam strikes a feet ahead of Tomou. Wow, magic, was what I thought, but in this world it’s called ‘esper ability‘. Magic in the world of Tomou is completely nonsense until he meets Index.

The first episode I watched was on Veoh. I didn’t thought the anime was that great, but Square Enix never fails to surprise me. Later on I subscribed and an episode later I found myself a decent To Aru Majutsu no Index Fansub. I chose ‘Eclipse’, since their quality never lack. You probably need to download the CCCP (codec pack) or use vlc player instead.

Videos

I found some video sources for you. At first we always have the OP, ED and promo on youtube. As I mentioned before, I watched the first episode streaming on Veoh. Excellent quality, but you need a Veoh client to get the real quality . The web based version isn’t quite that great (but way better than youtube).

Music
You ought to watch the OP just for once, it’s great! I bet you fall in love with the OP theme as well, which is sung by Kawada Mami. Kawada Mami did so many anime songs, you should know her by now.

The opening scene and theme are excellent. I love the flashy face of Index, which gives the expression of mystery around her.

The ED on the other side is a total different approach. I did not find it really interested to mention. Instead the mysteries screens you know get clear screens.

Overal the music is a real background music. At the moment, I don’t find any bad or good things to say about.

To Aru Majutsu no Index ~ OP Single, Kawada Mami – PSI-missing torrent.
To Aru Majutsu no Index ~ ED Single, ???

Manga
Most anime derives from manga. The first volume of this manga is published on April 10, 2004. I did not read the manga ‘yet?’ but I read it follow up the manga quite well. The first minutes of the anime, running from the dirks, is literary a follow up, running along the fight on the bridge and the finding of Index. Some manga images are literary translated in the anime.

If you are looking for a decent Manga scanlator, I recommend Sakurahana, (see mangaupdates for more).

I did not find Index in my shops yet, but I eagerly await it’s arrival. It will be a great addition to my collection (as will the series)

Season 1 ‘Zero no Tsukaima’ aniDB
English “Zero’s Familiar”
Season 2 ‘Zero no Tsukaima Futatsuki no Kishi’
English “Zero`s Familiar – Knight of the Twin Moons”
Season 3 ‘Zero no Tsukaima Princess no Rondo’
English “Zero`s Familiar – Rondo’s Princess”
Resources*: aniDB, animenewsnetwork, animeNFO
*The site also contains information about later seasons, search yourselves …
Genre: Romance, Magic, Fantasy, Ecchi, Humor
Episodes: Season 1 to 3 are 13, 12 and 13
Blogs: Random Curiosity(se3), Tenka Seiha (se3)

Plot summary

Zero no Tsukaima starts when our failing magician Louise Françoise le Blanc de la Vallière ‘failed’ to summon a familiar. Louise houses in the Tristein Magical Academy to become a fully fledge ‘noble’. People at this planet are noble if they are able to perform spells. People without the privelege are the rabble.

Becoming a mage is quite a task but Louise makes it an horrible experience. All spells she chants fails in a dramatic way. Her reputation is well known and she’s called Louise Zero, ’cause she can do zero spells. Now, epsiode 1 season 1, the day to proof her gift is set. The day of summons were a noble must summon a familiar to guide the mage in his entire life.

Finding her friends having dragons, fire lizards, golems and all cool sets of familiars, Louise should do things right. She closes her eyes in full concentration and spreads her wand to the sky. One moment to triumph, determined she chants the summon spell. In the next moment a big bang, followed by a thorn ball of smoke appears. Frighten all students concern about their well being, later on they questions. Did the spell backfired?

No, it didn’t. The summoning have dropped a Japanese boy from the sky, Saito Hiraga. Confused he finds himself being a ‘pet’ of a cute girl in front whose scolding him about everything. Later on he finds himself stuck at another planet. Being stuck his only concern is being the best familiar there is. Louise , being ashamed to call forth a commoner as familiar, she unfolding all her frustration to Saito.

Living together and finding Saito being a good familiar is changes her perspectives. However, she still have a face to save. Worse, a war breaks out. Surprised Saito finds Louise as a girlfriend of the princess. To fight for the princess, to fight for her girlfriend, Louise will NOT fail. She will do anything she can, given up her life if she have to, since no one would regret … would it?

My reasons to watch

Zero no Tsukaima is a fun series. It contains a lot of magic and places themselves in a difficult situation of being deceived by seeming allies. I think I like the concept of being a noble and being a ‘regular’ civilian great.

Whenever Louise gets to know Saito more and more she gets closer and closer. Finding the ‘common’ people not as helpless as they looks like. She wants to get closer, but on the other side she have a name to save. As a loser, a zero, it would be the ultimate joke to love a commoner.

Saito on the other hand has no objections being zero’s familiar. However he can’t except the fact of nobles and commoners. At top he finds the barbarian mind of thinking horrible. The raids, wars and sacrifice-honor horrible. Whenever Saito notes why Louise acts so differently to him in cases he’s alone or in public field, he tries to open Louise’s mind. He should be able to let her see what’s life about.

The way how those entire two different people, Louise and Saito, lifes together is so interested to watch. You both understand their movements, their thoughts and acts in despite their are contradicted. The same goes for the princess and several other characters. The characters makes this anime a supreme and romantic series.

Quality

The quality is really outstanding, though there are less details then I used to set for good quality. Eg. you won’t find little details in clothing nor grass. However I find the softness of the skins and blending of lights perfectly done. Animations are really smooth and if you take a look at frame to frame it’s really a big deal.
Eg. the picture we find her besides is Saito chained up like a dog. You inmediately see he doesn’t really care about, since as outsider he has no where to go. It’s evening and you see he’s thinking about is his mistress, Louise. A bit surprised and mostly confused he’s holding the underpants of his mistress.

Ecchi

Yes, you will see some naked skins. Mind the ‘forbidden’ parts of the body are never revealed (ecchi). Though Zero will change clothes in front of Saito, whose again gets in quite circumstances where he finds himself naked together with … Oops, almost spoiled.

Opening Theme (se3)

Youtube

OP Single: DDL (megaupload) xnao, (Megaupload) yes-anime, (Sendspace, Megaupload) my-animedaisuki

Ending Theme (se3)

I did not found ‘yet’ an video.
ED Single: (Megaupload, Sendspace) my-animedaisuki

Watch online

Watch the channels list at Veoh, for example I have Zero no Tsukaima (by Jetkie).

Watch offline

If I would advies a fansub group, it would be definetely Kuroneko, who have fansubbed seasons 1 and 2. They released both in xvid as in h264 codec. Both being outstanding quality. Leaving the h264 with 1280×800 it’s truely a remarkable fansub service.

Download torrent/irc: @Kuroneko (se1, se2) @Eclipse (se3) (recommond, since these fansub services are ultimate)
Download DDL: Season 1, Season 2, Season 3 (ongoing)

Buy

At the moment the entiry season 1, box set is in sales for just $18.95 at discountanimedvd. The same goes for Season 2, and Season 3, well it’s still being aired. For $18.95 13/12 episodes, well that’s a really reasonable price.

updated at 8 August, 2008;
ED Single DDL’s added

Duration: ~24min each episode
Episodes: 2 Seasons each 12 episodes
OVA has 2 episodes
(and 8 volumes manga)
Licensed status: Geneon Entertainment (DVD version only)
Licensed date: 29th May 2007
Genre: Action, Shoujo, Drama
Official Homepage
Promo (official, youtube)
Trailer Rozen Maiden (fanmade, veoh)
For more resources check below, a DDL for the first ep is also available, you can also watch the entire series, both seasons and OVA online in good quality. Please read on.

General Information

The first volume of the manga was published in Japan 25th March 2003. In 7th October, 2004 the new anime series ‘Rozen Maiden’ aired, which was a success. A year later, on 21th October 2005, the second season named ‘Rozen Maiden Traumend‘ was aired and nearing the ending of the show an OVA was introduced. Traumend is German for Dreaming.

The OVA is called Ouverture and aired on 23th December 2006. There is also an OVA about Detective Kunkun, the Duell Walzer OVA, but that’s more like a joke or bonus I think. It’s about the detective Kunkun, the series the Rozen Maiden watch at TV (in the anime at least, I didn’t read the manga).

News about a ‘renewal’ of the manga? Please read it all at moetron blog Rozen Maiden Manga Renewal. However it’s not renewing, it’s another story! The title isn’t true, so uh be warned. You must ofcourse be familiar to notice. I think you should just browse the moetron blog to find the differences. In short it’s an alternate story what would happen if Jun had choosen not to wind the doll.

Next I blog a first impression, without spoiling about Rozen Maiden. Well, ok, I spoil the first episode. Please be warned. As usual the first episode is to get you to the story, so telling about Rozen Maiden without it spoiled is a bit nasty. So, Warning Spoiler, Episode 1 if you read on.
Screenshots, images are from various wallpapers, episodes, seasons, ova and/ or fanarts …

Plot description

Looking to the Rozen Maiden DVD cover you might figured out a rozen maiden isn’t tall. A rozen maiden is a doll and there are seven of them to complete your collection, having Shinku as number 5. They are playing the game ‘ALICE’ to find their father, who every rozen maiden beloves. The desire to meet father, however is depended of the doll.

Shinku, the rozen maiden dressed in red having something todo with roses is the first rozen maiden we met. I can say without spoilers, so, well our ‘hero’ Sakurada Jun orders Shinku as he loves mysterious, cursed items. Ofcourse they all suppose to be fake and safe.

The fact I quoted hero is that Sakurada Jun is a failing member of the society. He dropped out of school without notifying his parents who works overseas. He lacks socializing and even avoids any conversation, regardless whether taking to his own sister.

So at a fated day our student receives a mail questioning him whether he would wind the doll or not. He chooses to wind the doll and put it in his second drawer of the desk as it is instructed to send the order to Holie who will take it to the spirit world.

After a small argue with his sister he returns to his dormitory and struggles over a beautiful suitcase, which had appeared suddenly in his room. Astonished of the craftsmanship and care he opens the case, finding a beautifull doll inside. The doll is soft and the clothes are more than gentle. After finding the wind key Jun bents the doll over his knee and winds the doll up from her back.

Suddenly the doll starts shaking, not a motion Jun expected from being winded up. Then, off all in sudden the doll is alive. Shocked Jun realizes who she is and tries checking his order which he left in his drawer, but the order is done, complete. Then he starts thinking she’s just a trick to get to him, but she’s not. At top she’s quite the boss around and sees Jun as her personal slave.

She spotted Jun’s socialize problem and starts getting Jun into some socializing again. Suddenly another doll appears. It seems the game starts as soon as she had been activated. Soon her sisters will emerge, assemble and play the game to find their father.

My opinion

The first episode is an eye catcher and it get even more interesting on the way. Please mind this is truly a drama. I see anidb.net not listening as a drama, but it’s a mean and a sad story. A wish, a will and longing is fighting the rozen maidens mind. The wish of become the one and only Alice, the long for their father, the will the survive and be ‘real’ sisters. These feelings are targeted and it’s very clear they can’t fulfill them all. Which one do they drop, which is stronger, the wish, the will or just longing to be with father.

The ending is splendid and for 12 episodes, watch! It’s probably like 5 hours but it’s great. You see these rozen maidens fighting, philosophizing and being a sisters of each other. Their pain and hatred are well done. Though you must love the ’so-cute’ and chibi genre’s too. Regarding the first comments I find at Rozen Maiden blogs, sites, videos, reviews etc…

The game

There are several games of Rozen Maiden, created as doujin game.
The best I think was Rozen Maiden Alibat (v1.5), promo vid. This game is created as a C71 doujin game. Which should sound familiar to an anime fan.

The second game is a Playstation 2 game, named Rozen Maiden Gebetgarten created by 5game/ Taito Corporation, promo vid. Alibat is cool ’cause you have the typical rozen maiden attacks, speed and a lot of action. This game however lacks to put the atmosphere. The attacks are slow and repeating.

Watching online, Download, Torrents

Searching at veoh I found a pack of channels of the series Rozen Maiden.
meluvblue (Season 1, Good Quality, Recommend)
abbas25 (Season 1)
SyntheticDarkness6 (Season 1)
AtariIce (Season 1,2 + OVA)
And mind you can always check the veoh site yourselves and search for the channels you love.

Download
The Veoh client btw is trustable, you only need to check out, ’start at windows’. Since you probably won’t veoh each time you start you pc. It’s a good client which makes it able to download the episodes to your pc. Most of the time this is flv, but you find avi (xvid/ divx), wmv, mov too. So there isn’t just one pinned codec. So, if you download and doesn’t like the codec, just try another channel.
A DDL is located in the at uploadr (a free file service), this is the first episode of the first season, ‘Fraulein Rose’.

Torrents
Boxtorrents is great. They aim at good sharing, which keeps the torrents alive. Please get your torrent over there. Mind you need to be registered to fully benefits from the private tracker. … Well I like the community, the people are nice and discuss able.

A figurine of mine, I brought back a while ago from Thailand is Barasuishou from the Manga ‘Rozen Maiden’.

Information and blog

I have found Kurogane’s blog about the second season.
!The wiki at wikipedia has a good summary and general info.
Be warned! Wikipedia contains spoilers, a lot actually!

Prefer check the AniDB entry which also has reviews, rating and is a dedicated anime fan-based info site.

Purchasing? The manga, anime series and a Shinku PVC is available at archonia. I have no clue were to get the other figurines of therozen maidens. Let me know if you do.

On the end some resources having a lot of wallpapers like minitokio(also contains reviews, community) and a site devoted to Suigintou.
Please also watch an awesome Superdolfie of Shinku (youtube).
If you are unfamiliar with super dolfies you really need to look into. Check google for instance. Super dolfies are like masterpieces of action models. Action models, again in short, are like PVC model’s only they have joints to move parts into your own position.

I hope you like this entry, it took me several hours to get all information around. Rozen Maiden is getting huge it’s a pity the story ends… In a couple of days I write a very detailed first episode summary.

Webpages: Official Homepage, AniDB, Anime News Network, Wikipedia
Genre: Adventure, Fantasy, Seinen, Swordplay, Virtual Reality
Type: Series
Aired from: 06/04/2006 till 28/09/2006
License status: Bandai (source: animeondvd)
Trailer: http://www.dothackers.net/media.php
(I hate people who direct links to files, so instead here is the page)

Why I start watching

.Hack … A game, a manga, the series, the ova, the movie. .Hack becomes a common concept in the anime world. However I’m sure it won’t be as famous as Sailor Moon, Card Captor Sakura or Neon Genesis Evangelion. Urm, okay, let’s see. I started watching these series because .Hack was such a good series. I just loved .Hack//Dusk, also known as, .Hack//Legend of the Twilight . After I watched the trailer I found out this .Hack series is again about “The World”, a virtual reaility game in which .Hack plays. However the place totally differs. The review next, without spoilers.

The world of .Hack// Roots

.Hack//Roots is placed after a huge timespan of .Hack//Legend of the Twilight. The world still exists, however it’s dancing on the cliffside. Player killers makes it hard for beginners and moderated players can’t protect there wares. Haseo, our hero starts the game in this development. Playing for just a few hours I get struck be a few player killers. Mad Haseo wants to quite, but suddenly Ovan arrives. A mysterious guy who wants him to be strong. He revives Haseo and makes sure he remains in the world.

Storyline

Thus our hero Haseo remains within the dark world, once a beautiful place. … I didn’t really like the sound of that, but ok, I continued watching on. It didn’t get better and the story is quite lame. The total episodes of this series is 26, but I think they could better put it in a 12 episodes instead. Each time you hope something will happen, but it’s so slow and not satisfied. I tried watching on and on, hoping the end would be a giant climax. I don’t want to spoil, but don’t expect ‘massive’ fighting.

I must say, if you want to start watching, please do NOT continue if you don’t like the series up to episode 5,6. It does not get any better. That slowness you found in those previouse episodes, that’s the fact of Roots. There are also a lot of parts I really didn’t get. Sometimes the characters are that sad and mad, you just don’t understand why they play along. Above all, it’s just a game.

Not only the heroes, leading characters of the series but the towns people as well. In .Hack//Dusk the world was great, living and the dark matters was unknown for common public. Thus the people would remain and play the game as usual. However in .Hack//Roots the world is broken. Everyone knows the world is falling apart and you really can die playing the game. However still newbies signs up, get player killed and they go on! WTF! If you get into a game in which you get struck just in a few minutes and you know it’s dangerous you won’t play it do you? They world of .Hack//Roots isn’t made for children playing the game, but for man who wants to build an imperium and rule the world.

Graphics, Animations, Character

The storyline might be wicked up, but the graphics, outlining and animations are still .Hack worthy. You really simple recognizes everyone be face and voice. Even if they switches from player character (in the world). That was just beautiful, a switch of characters will be placed by random people and you still recognize them by handling and speaking of certain events. You are able to guess what the next action of a certain person is. For example, it’s easy to say that character X will not tolerate character Y actions and will act like he ignores it, but will backstab him anytime soon.

The environment, the surroundings in which the players take place are awesome. From broken tiles to modded paths the details are fixed. Looking around you do see the great potential of the .Hack series. Scary places, unholy places, impressing places, they all feels like to it. So when the camera moves to show you how great and beautiful the area is, you do feel like so. From shabby places, towns and fields to unholy cathedrals … They all feels different.

As seen as the screenshots above, the ambient in this .Hack series is carefully set. Their glance and aura makes “the world” a beautiful environment.

Music and Sound effects

Nearing the end of my review I have to say the music is great! If you want to buy the Original Soundtrack of this series, be my guest. The music grants you the immense area of the world. Finding yourself in a sheepherd quiet area or a town filled with people. Hope and desperation is titled in the songs and it all feels like to it.

My opinion

I didn’t like this series. In fact I’m really disappointed. As I said, I like the games and .Hack//Dusk is one of my favourite series! Having the boxset in the corner of my eyes right now is my proof. I had hoped Roots would be alike. Again exploring the world, traveling alongside a newbie whose purpose, above all, wants to play a great game and just have fun. But it didn’t make it.

.Hack//Roots is THE outcast of the .Hack series. Dark and shattered around the great series out there. If you liked .Hack//Sign, .Hack//Dusk, please leave it with those series. .Hack//Roots is nothing compared to them, it’s even a shame .Hack//Roots sequels them, or even wearing the name .Hack.
Again, the music, characters design, graphics and animations are great! Still, the story is SO lame and slow. It’s a real pity.

To summarize a bit.

Music, graphics, animations and even the characters are outstanding work. They plot would be an average 6 out of 10 if it was 10 – 12 series big. However, they stretched the series enormously, making the plot very thin and incomprehensible! The leading characters seems to hate eachother, but they still remain a … well you can’t name it a team but they still look eachother up to get scolded. There is really no understanding why the leading players like eachother.

They only whine, scold, mysterious speak to each other. This also applies for the baddies. The baddies team is scattered as well and you have no idea why these people teams up together. Personally I will betray the full scale of them and start a guild myself, ’cause they would do the same as they could.
At top, watching the end, the big mystery remains a big mystery and suddenly another mystery is lost. There are a number of events which starts to get important (so it seemed) and suddenly vanishes in the thin air, to be never spoke of :S.
I would vote this series 2, for having a stretched plot. Incomprehensible events, lost mysterious and not making clear why the certain characters teams up.

A review which suited me well is found at anidb.net
I truely shares my opinion, like the reviewer I really waited for this series. Lured for months hoping to find a glance of trailers and sneek peaks. At the end this series truely is the most disappointing anime of Spring/Summer season 2006! I suggest, avoid watching the series and never think about buying it for a moment!

Fansubbing

Yes this is being fansubbed. You can find the fansubs at Anime-Supreme. For people searching for a direct download url, please look at cyber12, it’s less quality and you don’t know which fansub. :S But in this case, it’s nothing to worry about, ’cause the lousy first episode you’ll will make you wish to disappear again. Cyber12 is indeed a bookmark item!

Thick, flap-flap… A parcel drops down on the doormat. I wrap up the papers and shocked I hear the dvd loose in the box. I crosses my fingers as I take out the plastic. ‘no damage, no damage’. The case opens and I unfold a undamaged dvd inside my hands. Lucky! I check the bill’s note and frankly … that’s odd. The title is misspelled!

Disappointed I look down to my new acquired dvd which has the misspelling text all written at the case’s title. Instead ‘Cossette’ it reads ‘Cosette’. Pff, sorry Kaze, but if you type the title wrong how bad will the subtitles and translations be? What should I expect next? A bit depressed I take out the dvd and put it into my notebook. After a bit tweaking around in the menu I realise Kaze has no support for seeking! They also lacked translating the copyright text which isn’t too bad. No copyright so it seems. I double checked and really choosed Netherlands, but I get a France copyright text each time. So as stupid as I am I believe there is no copyright, ’cause it’s not written anywhere in the correct language and law reference.

At any case, you can rewind, forward the movie but no seeking. Now way, how annoying! At top of all those errors I end up having problems making screenshots. What now Kaze? Find a decent anime at the web? I probarly do ’cause seeking and screenshots is a must have for a blogger, pretty handy too.

The subtitles really needs anti-aliasing! They are ugly, are too big, put up too heigh and is txt styled. Txt styled? No style I thus, just a .sub file so it seems . Nothing to get excited about. Just text over the movie. A fansub would be scolded for it and to think I actually paid for this?! No fun and irritating. (See how I became dissapointed then depressed, annoyed and irritated at last? It get’s worse)

So people, Kaze f*ck*d up the dvd. No copyright text (not too bad ofcourse ), no seeking, no screen capture ability, a lot of misspellings even in the title, translation errors. Pff, if you find a not Kaze release, take that. Kaze s*cks. (Yup, now I’m mad)

*waving it’s hands before his torso and lowers it’s voice* Wait up, don’t get me wrong. The anime can be fine, it’s just the controls, overall protection and the lack of quality of the publisher. I haven’twatched the anime yet. You will see the summary popping up in the next couple of weeks.

I’m really having school issues if you know what I mean. Deadlines and stuff like that. Don’t worry it won’t break up the updates of the archive.

Those beautiful screens are btw of the anime I bought, named Le portrait de petite Cossette (and not Cosette!)

Update 2 hours later oh a bonus cd, the OST. That’s good, credits +1 (makes 1). No cda dat, credits -1 (total 0). Now I still have to google up the track data . *shakes his head* It really looks like Kaze is just an economic company. Do less get much. Anime, translation and subtitles with OST they got, but buggy navigation, misspelling and false translation, bad subtitles format, just music no album art or info included. Poor management over there.

Ink Nihihara is a regular schooler, urm high school student. She’s the smallest of the class and at first sight you’ll probarly say she’s just a primary school student. It’s what happens all the time and it really pisses her off. At any case she is the best student in the class and has a crush on Nao Tezuko. Nao has no idea Ink loves him, to him she’s just a small shy girl.

At a no particuliere day a duck falls out of the sky. It’s usual ducks fly, but this duck talks! The duck is in fact a great mage, Arks Sheldart Elbyas, of the kingdom Arukabeda. He fled his country to avoid a trial and to prove his innocence. He never managed to get away, the king caught him and send him on a training to become even more powerful. A strange punishment, but hey, just watch the anime. It’s not likely a serious series. At any case he’s send to earth as a duck.

Now Ark is dropped at Ink’s head he thinks it’s training is to help people. As duck he’s pretty vulnerable and signs Ink as his assistance. Indeed Ink is suddenly assigned as a magical girl to save together with Ark a lot of people. In fact, to end his training period.

Why watch?
It is a funny series, meant as humor with lot’s of ecchi material along. Don not expect a deep storyline or even a storyline at all. There is just some what story, but it’s very lousy. If you focus your mind on lolicon and the laughable scené’s it’s quite a fun. It’s a one-watch, time-wasting series to me. So got time, need amuse your boredom? It’s funny. Don’t have time too much? Watch another series!

I’m quite busy these and the next (at least) 3 months. So I won’t blog this anime. Probarly never … Not to worry about, the blogger site Random Curiosity have excellent summaries about them. Random Curiosity is one of the anime blogs I read time to time. They also have a nice RSS (wordpress) to subscribe at.

Note! Moetan is ecchi, lolicon. It’s NOT hentai. Hentai/ yaoi will never be uploaded at Hirvine archives. I also think there is no unlicensed hentai series around … However I never investigated it. (How come? )

Story description
Kunisaki Yukito travels the world to reveal it’s families secrets. A legend tells about a girl in the sky… Why? You probarly want to watch it yourselves, I’m still in first impression mode .

At any case he meets Misuzu at his seamless endless journey, at the beach. She found Misuzu as a common wanderer sleeping at the dunes. Somehow she feels comfortable and tours Yukito throughout the city. When she hears he hasn’t found any work and even a place to stay she invites him home.

Ofcourse Misuzu’s home isn’t really hers, but at the end Yukito has a sleeping place and finds work. Then it all starts. Some children seems to loose consciousness and perform rituals. The characters involved steps inside a brand new world … Above all some people hides a secret. What kind of secret? And why?

It seems the village he found is quite a catch of mysterious events all day long.

Overall graphics
If you watches the first episode (which is currently free at ADV films till 9 September) you truely find yourselves in a high quality movie. The cover picture at the top, left corner shows us how beautiful the movie is.

But ok, you see the screenshots yourselves. The characters are a lot detailer drawed than an moderate anime. The clothes they wear falls down properly and weaves in the wind. I would certainly give this anime series a 8.5 out of 10.

Opening (Theme)
Graceful and tender opening song (OP) you certainly love it. The characters are introduced and you find yourselves the great drawing skills of the artists, making you ready for all that comes.

Ending (Theme)
The ending shows a beautiful angel like creature flying through the sky. The wings reflects the sunlights which looks likes the white wings emits from itself. The flutter of wings is animated so smoothly you almost fall in love with it. You can feel the strength of the wing when it flies through the sky. Really a good job.

Watch it, buy it
So why should you watch this.
First you should mind there is NO fight, martial arts or magic actions involved. Neither you find people dancing and go to school events. Racing is out the question so don’t watch if you need one of those.

The series is a beautiful, slow building, romantic anime. Kindness, gentle and friendships tells the story. Solving the mysterious events together and lighten up the troubles in your surrounding allies. Help people out who lost hope and find the riddles and secrets the person kept in her heart.

AIR is one of the series which lives in the anime community. Everyone seems to have watch this series and most people loves it. Taking this in account, it’s a worth to buy. Don’t need to wait for a discount, the anime is fine. I would have bought the anime if the postal cost wasn’t €20 . I just need to wait until a dutch merchantmen finds the anime (and picks up). So yes, I will buy this anime.

I will write a description of AIR later this (or the next) day. So keep your eyes open for AIR first impression. (Nope I got AIR since the beginning and thus have the series before it got licensed (which is august 2007). Yeah, lucky me … However, I didn’t feel like it was worth to buy. Still it’s good to watch, very good to watch.)

Update: Ok, I’ll past this down to another post next day. Seems my internet connection is pretty ‘lazy’ at the moment.

Studio Ghibli performs always great works. That’s exactly the reason why I watched this movie of 1986.

Introduction
An air ship flies gracely through the air when suddenly some pirates attacks them. A young girl uses the raid to her advantages and escapes. So it seems she was kidnapped. However the pirates raid isn’t a regular raid. They bash into the ship and makes their way to the girl. The girl flees and uses the window. No luck, the pirates found her and she slides away, falling into the abyss.

Somehow she swiftly floats down until a young boy of her age grabs her. Together they examines the stone, which the pirates where after and glowed during her fall. They make an unimaginable discovery as the ‘bad guys’ have done. With this discovery the orphan girl meets her destiny and descent.

So now needs to confirm their discovery but also to protect what’s meant to be protected.

Graphics
You might think a 1986 has low details, lag of smooth animation, lag of animations at all … You are wrong. You’ll see wappering banners, dresses waving in the wind, pair of hair dancing in the wind and a stunning new world. Compare the graphics with an overal moderate anime nowadays and together with the storyline you have a great movie.

Background music and sound effects
Studio Ghibli never lacked sound effects. Also this time these are from great quality. But you should hear the soundtrack! You will just buy to hear “Kimi Wo Nosete (putting on you)” and “Sheeta’s Deciscion” over and over again. The lyric of Kimi Wo Nosete can be found at Anime Lyrics together with the midi file. Even the midi is worth the listen time over time.

Summarize
If you need to summarize the movie, you definetly should include the words love, power and might. This movie is about how blind people can be searching for the ultimate power. Even if they have or find a heaven place, they won’t see it. A mass of people searching for the ultimate power and a small group protecting it from them. ‘Cause the ultimate power will destroy anything they love.

… Man I don’t want to tell much more. Just watch it yourself. Does ‘Studio Ghilbi’ mark not tell you enough?

Screenshots

This isn’t just an regular anime. A deep plot is hidden in this mysterious series. The children who reincarnate each time has a mission. The need to track down a girl, an innocent girl who’s in trouble because of them. They have done something very bad and most take responsibility. They failed for a few lives to find her, but they continue living on, searching for her. However their time is limited. With their 12th rebirth their memories and knowledge will rapidly fade away. They most hurry.

They have only one clue, one point to orientate at. It’s a picture, painting or image with a crescent moon on it. The innocent girl, who also reincarnates without knowing it paints, draws this picture inside her head. She don’t know why but she knows that’s her destiny.

In her desperate search to reach this place she finds a couple of friends who wants to help her. Friends who never give up and sometimes those friends don’t even know why they keep helping her.

All storylines in this anime are well done and becomes clearer and clearer until you find the last episodes. Then you realize what happens and you watch until the problem is solved.

The music is just splendid and certainly gives you the creeps. Because the white-haired children doesn’t only face their fading knowledge but also death. Rebirth is something dead can’t have, they have to die. So if they want to stay alive, they must fight the darkness themselves. Or is there more?

A great anime you must watch. Worth to buy. Nope no magic or fantasy creatures involved. Just an mysterious adventure and love.

For me the Nanoha series is special. A bit revealing of my past will clarify it. Not for all to long I watch anime and the first anime I ever watched was Ragnarok the Animation, at November 2004. At the very first time I tasted the fruits of anime existence and fellows I loved it. So I went to animesuki to get some unlicensed anime. (I still do, great anime resource.)

My little research
Looking for an non-particular anime I had two claims in mind. The anime should be recent and have a magic involved genre. The little research results into (minimized to two) the all spoken Card Captor Sakura and Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha series. CCS looked great, but wasn’t recent. Nanoha on the otherside was still fansubbed by The Triad, started in October. So I had 3 episodes to start watching as ‘promo’. Which went well. ~Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha was the first anime I ever bought!~

What’s Nanoha all about?
Nanoha is a cute girl who has a nice family. Her family cares about a restaurant in the neighborhood. Not too small but not very popular. In fact only the locals seems to know the pleasant place and is more a social location for passing scholars and job takers. Nanoha is lucky to have both her parents with a big sister and brother to look at. At school she has reliable and nice friends around her and nothing seems to be a problem. As an regular scholar she goes to school, do sports, play with her friends, invite them and whatever. Until a midday when only Nanoha hears a fading voice, begging for help. Hearing the voice Nanoha jumps to it’s source. From there all events starts.

Why watch?
The anime is rich of magical battles and a good plot. The story has multy storylines but it doesn’t complicate the story at all. In fact it’s a lineair story which you will find no problem following the series. No deep plots are hidden like we may know of ‘Lain Serial Experiments’ which is very, very deep and complicated. Overal quality equalls a medium anime. So if it’s not a big and deep story, not a great quality graphic, what makes MGLN great?

Simple, it’s a warm telling story about hope and true friendship. How an intertwined feeling of love and hatred reaches the burden heart and enlights it’s presents. How blind and strong love can be and how friends safes their comrades. Telling about friends on who you can count on and ofcourse he great magical battles.

You should give it a shot once. Don’t waste your time looking for a low quality stream around the net. Instead of starting a search, enter the stream beam section and hit Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha Episode 1 ‘That`s a mysterious meeting, is it not?’ and start watching. The stream beam section is still in beta fase, sorry. Also we find an upcoming summary of Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha Episode 1 at this blog.

Information about MGLN seasons
Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha 03.10.2004 till 26.12.2004
Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha A’s 02.10.2005 till 30.12.2005
Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha StrikerS 02.04.2007 till 24.09.2007

Not directly related series
We find more of Nanoha’s family, Takamachi, at Triangle Heart – Sweet Songs Forever though it’s a complety other story. It has further NO relations to the Nanoha series I’m posting at the moment.

This anime is worth to buy and I have placed it in my anime collection. The series was almost a year unlicensed, but the first series got licensed on 30 June 2007 by Geneon Entertainment at the anime expo 2007 (source: animeondvd).

I bought the anime, but it’s still unlicensed and you might get it at the Triad’s torrent. However you should like me buy the DVD if you really, really likes the series. It’s just $15 … come on, those people deserves it.

Updated at 21 May 2008
- misspelling, licensing info and dates

The episodes are ~10 minutes each. Therefore I decided to blog the first ep as first impression with additional information.

Binchou-tan wakes up when the the first drops of morning light shines into her room. The birds chirps and a great day starts. Binchou-tan lives alone in these woods but she do fine. After she wakes up she do some house activities and go for an walk.

As she walks we can see the great enviremont Tokyo Broadcasting System (TBS company) made us. The great details welcomes the eye and you might just get stunned this is a free unlicensed anime with this marvelous quality.

Don’t forget the background music (bgm) and sound effects (sfx). The background music is mostly (in the first ep) a quiet tune of a flute. The drops of water and gras from her feets are realistic and is a welcome add to the scené.

The ambience of nature is just great, it’s like you are really walking in an forest making you feel all peacefully inside your head.

She walks and waits at a branche for an duck. The duck is her escort over the river where she meets all other kinds of animals. She looks to all of them with those gentle eyes of her.

When she gets there she finds a snake and startles for a bi, but not for too long. It seems she’s not in interest and is being ignored.

Back at home she prepares the food and take out her blanket which became warm of the shining sun. After a little nap she wakes up and turns on the fire. She nips her food and a glance of a smile appears on her face, again a delicious meal.

A casual day in Binchou-tans live, a peacefull movie with in only ~10 minutes makes you feel all fine. It might be a welcome anime to watch next to your long busy day, though you should like it.

In the next episodes Binchou-tan speaks, so it’s not an music anime. So don’t misjudge Binchou-tan regarding after the first episode.

Storyline

W.I.T.C.H. is about five teenagers students who become guardians of the Veil. As guardians it’s their duty to close all portals leading from earth to the ‘other world’ named Meridian. At Meridian prince Phobos makes plan to rule Meridian and eventually earth. To achieve his goal he needs the power of the rightfull ruler of Meridian who’s his sister Elyon. Though she’s not aware of Meridian neither she’s a princess since she’s hiding from birth on earth. She’s unaware of her own powers and the danger which lays ahead. Can she tell the gaurdians are on her side or Phobos does? Who will claim the throne and can the princess be saved? Will the bound friends hold up or will it perish in their fight? It’s time for W.I.T.C.H. “Gaurdians unite”.

General info

Does it sounds like a regular anime to you? In fact it’s not at all 100% anime and most of people would place it in toon shoes. However if it were a toon you can’t complain about the quality since it would be splendid and decent for an anime. W.I.T.C.H. is an abbrevation of Will Vandom, Irma Lair, Taranee Cook, Cornelia Hale and Hay Lin, the five friends, the five guardians. The first episode starts when the four friends meets Will and finds their powers.

Irma is capable to bend water
Taranee is poorly the bender of fire
Cornelia reign over earth
Hay Lin rules the the air

Duration: 24 minutes each episode (regular)
Seasons: 2
Airing from Jan 2005 til Jan 2007
TV Channel: Jetix (Europe in anycase)
Company: Disney
Episodes: 49 (Season 1:26, Season 2:23)
Producer: Disney

Traditonal/ Originality (Story quality)

As we have now the four elements it would be a traditonal storyline. So Will is there to break the traditional four. (I NEVER said it’s original, there are a lot games, movies like even the one named “the fifth element” which also has five elements instead water, fire, earth and air).

Enough of those movies about the four/ five elements? Still consider W.I.T.C.H. which is really something different. It’s a nice story and excited. I must admit the first three episodes are too common but entertained time killing. In the next five episodes it becomes clear what the problem is and what the guardians powers and limits are. After the previous episode you can’t stop. So if you like the first episode a bit, try in any case the next two.

Back to the generall info

As Will isn’t one of the traditional four elements she has to be the most important element, following the standard guidelines. Will is responsible caring over the heart of Kandrakhar. The heart makes it possible to become W.I.T.C.H. and magnifying the guardians powers. In fact without the heart the guardians are powerless and useless since they can’t close portals. Above all Will toke the role as leader and makes sure the friends uses their powers wisely.

Providers, encoders

Whoever P7 is thank you. Also thanks to the other providers, encoders not mentioned. I can’t find your homepage(s) so I’m seeding it thank you. (Ratio 16.7 ) I can find it on my tv as well but I’ve to work and recording is fun but the tv isn’t mine so I can’t use it all the times when I get home .

As always I will provide you (my visitors), exact the same data, filename I found when downloading the episodes. The episodes uses the codec divx. The episodes I have has a remarable stable codec, the encoded it pretty well with good quality. Whenever you burn it down to see on your tv you won’t see a different (mind you haven’t hdtv).

To all not familiar to Hirvine.com. To honor the groups, encoders, translaters and stuff I will NEVER modify, change data without labeling I did. At this point it’s I never did also I never think I need to.

Blogging?

I might, but the first consideration is to just upload.

While it’s still in consideration this anime is posted in the category Hirvine. Since, will I upload the files at Hirvine or not. Sounds logical not? In fact it took me bad much time to figured out …

*Warning, this first impression contains spoilers of episode 1*

A fairy cute anime and might be the cutest on the run. When Suzukaze Souta was just a little kid his mom told him a fairy tale about a man who was so powerfull the king divided the world into science and magic. The world of magic named Fandavale knows of the existence of earth, the world of science. They try to protect the world borders but there is always someone who wants all the power.

Ringo wakes Souta up, he had just a nightmare but he meeted ‘her’ again. The same dream though he doesn’t want to talk about. Ringo seems to be Souta girlfriend, or at last someone who watches over him. I doesn’t really get the relationship. At any case when Souta goes to an old bookshop to research his mother fairy tale he get’s lured by a guy. The guy says he finnaly found “Elde’s key” and attacks Souta. Lucky for Souta a blue wolf comes to rescue him, do not be so surprise and flee for instance!

The wolf was allready wounded and in his state they die. Those monsters were send by a cat working for an evil witch of Fandavale named Cendrillon. She fought countless battles to darken Fandavale and now she seeks elde’s key. Lucky for Souta and the wolf a Fairy Musketeer arrives. Akazukin, a cute little girl just a bit older than Souta. She fights and win. Akazukin is the girl Souta meeted in his dreams, the scenario everything was the same, she even weares gummi shoes! On the end Akazukin introduces the wolf, Val as her partner to find and protect the elde’s key.

A great and cute movie which is really lovely to see. Only a must watch for cute anime lovers, if you are in for real action or a serious magical story please don’t. The kids are about an age of ten or twelve but not older than that, so a real big battle with gunshots, blood, horror and all never happens. The anime is involved with magic but doesn’t sproud with it, it depends on cute characters, cute events and a warm telling story.

What’s all about?
As the movie starts, Chihiro moves to her new home. She’s sad because she loses her friends. Her parents tries to cheer her up but it is no use.

Not too long on the way they got lost and finds their self at a dead end just before a large massive red building. Chihiro shivers, she get’s a tight feeling on her chest and wants to go away. But her dad, who droves the car think it’s a great oppertunity to take a break.

In the building she hears a train, looks like she’s fond to it because she starts too look around, still holding her mother’s arm. A moment later her father finds some restaurants. Her parents like to eat but no shopkeeper is around. Her father decides they pay up when they show their faces and starts eating. Her mom joins him but Chihiro is a little awkward. She takes a little tour and finds the train beneath the bridge.

It’s where the movie really starts. On the bridge is a boy, not rather surprised but more frightend she’s her. She isn’t allowed to come her, ‘go back inmediately’ he calls, ‘I’ll distract them’. Chihiro driven by the boys energy runs away to pick up her parents and leave this place once for all. Returned by her parents she finds out they are turned into pigs!

Chihiro is too late and can’t leave this island anymore. Island? Yes, she’s so surprised she steps into the ocean before the red building. What the hell? What’s happening, she can see through her own hand, oh no she’s vanishing!

Few remarks
A really exciting movie with unordinarily events. It got lot’s of magic and a totally new ’spirit’ world. Studio Ghibli sets up an entiry new world totally of your imagination. It might not be new to put a girl into a new world regarding to Alice in Wonderland, Escaflowne, umm and a lot of others I can’t come up with them … Please don’t think you know the plot, Studio Ghibli really made a masterpiece and once again a must have to see.

When does it all starts
It starts about 20 minutes, after Chihiro finds out she shouldn’t be ‘there’. In fact, were I stopped my story and make damn cliffhanger.

Graphics & Animation
Just take a look at the screenshots, so much detail. Did you see that ugly witch? That’s what you can call it, a masterpiece. Water flows like water and hair and clothes plays with wind and gravity. As Howl Moving Castle is allready up, there is a fewer animation than at Howl. Though any animation is again very good and you don’t want to miss any of it. You might be distracted by another action or you simple tries to follow what just have happend.

Music
Tradition japanese music is appearing in any shape and form in this movie. Combined with some mysterious tones and you got a quiet peacefully soundtrack. Another original music composed by Joe Hisaishi. The artist is Yumi Kimura and the lyricist is Wakaku Kaku. The snair instruments are really the best. The song Itsumo Nando Demo (Always With me) is a song to remember, still you really need to love it. It’s a really quietly music without any drums or fast samples in it. It’s more a singer playing a piano. I love it.

What say other people about it?
The movie was released 2001 and was rewarded with an oscar the Animation Grand Award at Mainichi Awards. After a bit research I found out almost any Studio Ghibly’s releases are awarded, funny not? Why? People were stunned by Miyazaki’s fantasy and his incredible imagination. Mysterious events are added uncommen and unsuspected situation that still gives you a feeling, with magic it can. It’s not you think, aww, just a snap in the fingers. Additionally people speak of historical information and culture in this movie. Like there is no way to hold your shoes on, or kindly bow to your supreme and how landscapes are changed from the war into a sad, but peacefull brake land.

Also Chihiro is just a girl, she hasn’t got super powers and she’s frightend for the weird world she’s into. She feels like she’s left behind but doesn’t stand alone while she found a very trustfull boy and a friend.
People talks about characters expression’s too especially those of Chihiro. She’s the main character and she’s never boring to look at. Her whole expression changes during the time and she makes you believe she really lives. You want to embrace her and protect her with your arms. Holding her, cause she’s just too small to deal with the problems. Though she seems to be more powerfull than anyone suspected. She’s a real heroine, though no one out of the spirit world will ever know.

(Edit: Comments closed due spam reasons)

What’s all about?
How’s moving castle is a great anime about a women named Sophie. She lives in a quiet neigbourhood as an hatter. It’s a fine job though she does it only since it’s her mothers store. The movie starts when Howl comes to this city, he meets Sophie in an alley where two stubborn soldiers is making fun of her. Howl helps her out but he has been followed by creatures from the witch of the waste. The witch is a mighty person and feared by everyone, despite she’s a nightmare for everyone it seems she has a crush on Howl.

When the witch enters Sophie’s store after curfew she’s is nicely informed by that the store is closed. Though the witch is not willing and a bit surprised she dares to face her. Sophie even get’s mad and points her the way out.
The with looks like she holds her tempered but then she suddenly curses poor Sophie. The spell will make Sophie as old as she thinks she is, instantly a 90 year old women. She’s a granny now! What now? She can’t stay home, no one can see her like this. So she left the town to live on her own and finds Howl.

Howl self is a deserted and fleeing magician. As Howl says, he’s more a coward than a great mage (still he is), strugling to survive without a real purpose. Lucky for Sophie he’s very friendly and she may stay as a housekeeper.

In meantime a war between two nations is exploding and the queen mobilises every magician there is. Howl doesn’t want to fight, especially for the queen who knows Howl’s contract with a demon. Is Howl able to flee? What happens to the demon? Will Sophie finds out the true behind Howl’s face?

A great movie I praises it with a 10 out of 10. From the same creators as Spirited Away which also was a great movie. Still you should love the Mysterious Magic and Fantasy.

When does it starts
The real movie starts after 10 minutes and that’s really fast for what I see in movies. You meet the secundaire main character (Howl) in the 5th minute.

Howl’s castle just moved in front of Sofie’s town as the movie appears. You see Sofie as an hatter while her mother and sister rumors about Howl Castle in the neighbourhood. She closes the store and after she went to her girlfriend she comes back to the store where it all starts.
Graphics & Animation
The animations wonderfull. The faces looks like those in Spirited Away, definetly the same creators even if you hadn’t read the producer’s name, you can guess. The animation is way better than any average anime and Spirited Away. It’s not only smooth but there are so much. There is animation in clothes, closing eyes, fire, smoke and flags that flaps and plays in the wind. Sand and stones shakes realistic when a train drives by. There are a lot of people and the creators doesn’t thought of, way to much animation other scené. It looks like they put anything into they wanted todo.

So much details
The stones at the front are detailed and you can even see the wood textures in the doors and wardrobe. You see the roofpans and mud on the railing. Humans self are great drawn and as a lot more details then an normal anime. Sofie’s looks real old “when she’s a granny” and young when she’s feeling herself strong and filling of hope.

There are a lot of characters in the movie and they are all well drawn and motivated. There is no person in the movie which really there to fill up screen. Every character do something.

Music
The music is a quiet background sound. The melody is mostly not excitment and plays high tones. Howl’s theme, the start theme, is a theme to remember. Once heared and you never get rid of it. It’s the typical music which is Howl’s Moving Castle. How strange it is, the music is really meant for the movie.

What say other people about it?
After looking around it seems that this movie is probarly Miyazaki’s most intriguing movie as most of the people say so. As I thought the surrealism art of landscapes and decors stunned most of people and pinned them down the seats. As you should know, the anime is based on the novel. I haven’t read the novel, but it seems Miyazaki did a good job and only made a small adaption for the movie. You might not believe it, but it seems no novel reader worries about the lack of … in this movie which is uncommen for a translated movie out of a novel.

* People write Sofi or Sophi, still the official name for our hatter is Sophie. As the official site calls her that way.

The episodes are short, if I substract the end and open sequence I would have 10 minutes to watch. So I will each time, for this anime, give a summary of a pair of episodes. Meaning that I will now tell about episode 1 and 2. The next would be the episodes 3 and 4, go on.

Impression
My first impression of this anime is that it is great, a must watch anime for those who love magic and cute girls. The creators succesfully made an entire new world where magic is common. It’s sometimes a bit weird what is what, but it all looks good.

Mahou Shoujotai is a high quality anime, pitifull it’s only for ten minutes each episode. It might be a small time but I think that it didn’t ruined the story. The anime is not created on the fly neither does rush it as I thought it would be. Still you need to watch seriously to the anime if you doesn’t wish to end up with, ‘uh?’. It’s not the easiest anime to follow, but it’s worth to see.

The first episode starts with the history of Alicia. After that we directly go to the magic world where she finds herself in trouble and got locked up. She must witness her deeds, she was keeping witches off work, capturing a sprite. So she tells about the human world and how she came in this world. She was just toying with her friends untill she slipped out reaching for her book which her friend reached out of her (picture 5). When she woke up, she was in de middle of the forbidden forest.

Eva let her go in trade of some eatable nuts. Alicia frees all the sprites and have to flee together with Eva and Sheila to get out in one piece. Sheila and Eva, the two apprentices who are responsible for the dungeon, get punished for Alicia actions. Alicia tells them she set the sprites free at purpose, according to her sprites should be free. Sheila is furious because she took action with none knownledge of the world and so the apprentices and Alicia end up seperated.
Generall info at anidb.

Introduction
It was a very busy month when this Anime was announced. Mass new anime’s tuned up. To be honest, I readed the information at http://anidb.info/ and I didn’t like it. I don’t really like drama genre’s so I back off inmediately when I read it. Still, after the final release of the last episode lot’s of people amazes and talks about the great animation and atmosphere in ‘Aria the Animation’. So, let’s take a look.

Story
The story is about a girl named Akari. She lives at Mars with a kind of pet, that white creature, called Aria. Mars became a lively planet baded in water. It’s long time ago that people terraformed the planet and is now a custom trip. Akari is an amateur undine, she is not allowed to ask money for her trips yet like Alicia does. Each day she’s training untill one day a kid really wants to go, but Alicia is not there …

Character
In the first episode only Akari and Aria is really taken seriously. Let’s start with the girl Akari.

Akari
She’s really a lovely girl who always is positive, you should always look at the bright sight of life, isn’t it? So whatever there happens, it will work out, for certain. Furhter she has a high potential to become a good undine. She really loves the job and do what it takes to become a proffesional undine.

Aria
The little one can’t speak human language. It’s really like a pet and also not very clever. Like a real animal it explorers the world and plays with everything it sees. It doesn’t really look out and before you know it, it all turns …

Overall
It isn’t the best first episode there is, still fine. The water flows smoothly and reflects the surroundings very well. The backgrounds have a kind of paint style and are well drawed. The animation is really good, it’s smooth and naturall. You can see the wind in the clothes and hair. If Aria’s pushes or lift up a tea cup, she really does. Though I don’t like the creature Aria, (yet?). The creatures really wanted to make a cutey fellow of Aria, but they really overdue it.

Continue?
I decided to continue this anime. I’m not really sure wether this is a good anime or not. Therefor I need the next episode to create a real opinion. Let me say, the first episode is quite enough to continue.

{Edit 1 December 2006: Due spam reasons comments are closed}