Mahou Shoujo Ore

Mahou Shoujo Ore presents a synopsis so great one may argue the actual anime isn’t necessary, since it’s unlikely it will reach the absolute zaniness of its premise. And to be frank, parody anime as a whole is a tricky business: jokes being repeated to exhaustion, plots that refuse to go anywhere (when it can afford to have a proper plot to begin with) and characters who are just basic archetypes tend to be the ground rule, which means the number of parody anime that manages to be something more than a bunch of random gags stitched together is ridiculously small. Binan Koukou Chikyuu BoueibuLOVE!, which also tackles the mahou shoujo/magical girl genre, made great use of its clichés in its first season a few years ago, while others like Hatsukoi Monster aimed to obliterate shoujo conventions, but in the end turned out to be nothing sort of a nonsensical mess. Thankfully, Mahou Shoujo Ore delivers much more than a glorious synopsis. It suffers from some of the problems I’ve mentioned earlier, especially since the plot struggled a bit to fulfill a 12 episode run, but it still manages to stand on its own two (muscular) feet. In fact, it’s a pretty solid parody title, perhaps even finding its way into the classic mahou shoujo canon someday. Still, the road traveled wasn’t always the most pleasant: things were rocky not only for our protagonists, but also for the show’s audience. “Unpopular female idols transform into brawny men in miniskirts in order to fight cuddly but evil demons” is the main gimmick here and the basis for most of the jokes, with commentary on idol groups and the anime industry appearing every so often. The comedy hits more than it misses, but since humor is subjective, you may find yourself scratching your head more than chuckling on some episodes given how inconsistent the jokes are. The first two episodes (aired back to back when the anime first premiered) are among the best structured, perfectly introducing the plot while delivering some solid laughs. A good amount of the humor is presented on how the animation for both the action scenes and character expressions are made to be pretty crude and abrupt compared to your average flashy mahou shoujo anime. The girls’ mascot turning out to be a scary looking yakuza with a soft heart is the best example of this. There’s a good amount of references which range from well-placed to “what was even that”, but they don’t overstay their welcome and are usually over rather quick. Still, this may test the viewer’s patience as the episodes go by. Animation is pretty crisp, the main focus obviously being the attractive muscular men that protagonists Saki and Sakuyo turn themselves into, but the aforementioned character expressions are also a treat to watch. The way the show makes fun of itself when they deliver some bad animated sequences is hilarious on its own, but when you realize it’s the same studio that gave us the extremely rushed and poorly animated Tokyo Ghoul:re adaptation, the irony is just too funny. Episode 5 goes as far as comparing Studio Pierrot Plus with a Godzilla-esque creature, showing that the writers clearly don’t give a f*ck. The characters are something of a mixed bag. They hardly change from the first episode to the last end card, to be quite honest. Character progression is still present though, albeit quite faintly, but it feels like it was tossed on to make the plot move forward for the most part. Saki and Sakuyo are likable enough for this to not be a major problem, but I can’t say much for the rest of the cast, although they aren't necessarily bad. While Saki's mom goes on to have an episode just to focus on her retirement as a magical girl, other characters like the male idol duo STAR PRINCE is basically there as plot conveniences, and this sucks quite a bit considering one of their members is both Sakuyo’s older brother and Saki’s crush. Voice acting is on point, with solid performances from the whole cast, though personally I feel that Kouji Yusa was underused as Hyuoe, with his best contribution being the vocals to some of the songs present in the anime. The opening track was the most generic song I’ve heard all season, but maybe the show was spoofing how simple your average mahou shoujo song is (WE MUST GO DEEPER!). The ending song fares a bit better and was stuck in my head for a while, not going to lie. Much like its protagonists, Mahou Shoujo Ore’s trump card is its charisma, which shines through even when the pacing is flimsy or the jokes are lacking. This is because it’s evident that the writers are having the time of their lives coming up with these (seemly) random situations. Every episode had at least one thing that I liked, be small jokes on the contracts the characters had to sign or the satire of idol “meet and greet” events, it has something for both new and veteran anime fans. Even if the series pokes fun at nearly anything, at the same, it feels like a love letter to the anime industry, embracing all the good and bad aspects of the medium. The confusing, but ultimately rewarding fifth episode showcases that very well, resulting in an inspired, lunatic masterwork that matches shows such as Gintama and South Park at their best. Name another anime which aired this season that referenced/made fun of Pokemon Go, anime production issues, School Days and the United States of America (and not just as throwaway gags, as this all contributed to the plot) in the span of twenty minutes. Yeah, even if you’re Barack Obama, you can’t. I enjoyed the heck off of this show (even with all its faults), particularly since I watched it with a good friend, and we breezed through these 12 episodes together always wondering what the hell would happen next. As much as it is silly, Mahou Shoujo Ore manages to stay unpredictable and vibrant from beginning to end. At the end of its run, I’m left satisfied for the most part. It’s a little show that is oozing with ideas and social commentary, even if some of it does gets lost among repeated gags and slow pacing. It didn’t turn out to be Madoka Magika part 4… but then again, who REALLY needs another Madoka Magika title?!

Overall: Mahou Shoujo Ore is an anime that from the beginning until the end doesn't take itself seriously. I really don't really get the anime at all . Its like a big joke at all dialogues scenes are so cliche that in some way you probably feel you just watching any other anime but in the same time is totally bizarre the setting with jojo's mahou shoujo with dreamy fairy-yakuzas trying to become the idols that everyone want to be. It's a story about how Love can change someone and where ambitions can take someone. The episodes 5 and 10 are in totally diferente level of the othersi think in these two you can really grasp the meaning of deconstruction of the genre of mahou shoujo even madoka couldn't achieve that. The episode 12 Mahou Shoujo Watashi is when shit get real. The name WATASHI and all the meanings behind EVEN Evangelion doesn't have that much symbolism. Maybe the problems with the site don't give us the information but i really think Hideaki Ano and Hayao Myazaki worked in this masterpiece.The illustrations of Monokuma in the ending are really incredible. Maybe you'll like the anime just don't watch with big expectations.. Love POWER.

A parody of the popular magical girl genre. Was it good? Not exactly. Actually, this show had some opportunities for success. The concept of a girl turning into a guy in a magical girl parody show isn't that bad. However, they seem to lose focus a lot. There isn't a lot of creativity when generating the scenarios of the episodes. For a parody and comedy show, it falls short completely. I mean, I'll admit, there are some scenes that are funny, but overall, it's pretty bad. There's just a lot of "fluff" and actual action, believe it or not, among all the episodes. Plus, there'sa bunch of side characters that get entire arcs that are plain bad, like the mother arc, prisma arc, and the fujimoto arc. I just feel like the main cast isn't involved in those because the people making the show were running out of ideas what to write about. Honestly, if the episode scenarios weren't so bland, I think this show could have been very good. But instead, I just get some boring episodes. I mean, even the comedy isn't that bad. There are some good laughs out of those episodes, but the way the episodes turn out are just really predictable and mundane. You'd think a show focusing on comedy would have comedy, but I feel like there is more fighting than in an actual magical girl show. It doesn't focus on comedy, which is just a shame. Especially the ending, it tries to be comedic, but they really pushed it with the action. The characters aren't so bad, but Sakuyo is actually just hella boring. First of all, she only has a real personality when she transforms, and overall, there is practically nothing dedicated to her, other than the backstory we get. She's one of the main characters, come on. Do something with her, rather than just having her as an add on to Saki. However, most characters aren't bad. They just don't get much of a time to shine, since the plot is so boring. Unfortunately, poor storytelling does none of the characters justice, and this anime would be lifted much higher, if it only had better episode layouts.

Deconstructions and subversions of magical girl anime have been popular for quite a few years, and while most have tended to skew darker to try to explore the horrifying realities of what it may be like to be a magical girl, Magical Girl Ore sets out to do the exact opposite, by cranking up the ridiculousness to its absolute maximum. More closely resembling zany classics like Excel Saga than Madoka Magica, fans of any genre of anime will likely find something to laugh at. This isn't to say that fans of classic magical girls won't find enjoyment in it, too, however. There's plenty to love,from a wide cast of amusing characters to fun music and competent animation. The staples of the magical girl genre are parodied and then some, with just as many jokes often falling into poking fun at typical anime tropes. Sentai? Godzilla? It's all there. And more importantly, it's all funny. The plot, while terribly predictable, holds up well thanks to the humorous slant on everything that happens. The attempts at suspense are almost embarrassing, but do little to dampen one's enjoyment. The sincerity the characters show between slapstick and gags can be surprisingly genuine as well, with the climax managing to be downright touching. Some episodes in the middle may fail to hold up to scrutiny, and the quality dips occasionally with what can feel like filler episodes, but the strong opening and satisfying close make them worth the watch nonetheless. It may not be perfect, but what Magical Girl Ore tries to do, it does with aplomb.

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