Hanaukyou Maid-tai

Well, this was my first Harem anime and it was actually quite surprising at what I was watching, it was a lot better than i had expected, the humour was good with the many embarrassing situations that the maids get Taro into. I also particularly liked the side story of Taro and Mariel, but since I can't give much away, I would recommend this anime, although be warned its rated 15+ for female nudity and some mild language. I found the characters, which all had their own different traits to be a very good plot line also, with Mariel being the maid of maids, the threesisters, Lemon Melon and Maron as the seductive types and etc. This Anime gets a 4.5 from me which is equal to 9 out of 10 on here. A must see for all Harem and Bishojo lovers out there. P.S I did not watch this for the Bishojo, I enjoy seeing boys and young men being teased in such manner. :)

"Hanaukyou Maid-tai" is a surprisingly entertaining Ecchi flick. And by "entertaining" I don't mean it in the "it's so bad it's entertaining" sense like those terrible Onegai series. It's still a bad show, but it does at least have some redeeming qualities, which is a lot more than what you can say for other ecchis. Ecchi and Comedy. That pretty much sums up this anime. Those two are also two of my least favourite genres. Ecchi... well, not much to be said here - I dislike it for pretty much the same reason many other people dislike it, and it's no exception when it comesto the ecchi elements in this anime, except that a lot of the time I was able to overlook it for some reason. The comedy... I have to say, though I'm really not a fan of this type of comedy, "Hanaukyou Maid-tai" really had me laughing out loud on numerous occasions. I don't know why, but for the most part, I actually quite liked this series, or at least more than I expected to. There's not much of a continuous storyline, it is more of a collection of mini adventures focusing upon the different members of the cast... but that's ok, because aside from the comedy, the characters are probably what makes this anime so charming. Apart from the really annoying generic maids (with their extremely annoying voices), a lot of the characters are actually genuinely likeable, like the main character Taro, Mariel, Cynthia/Grace etc. Unfortunately, "Hanaukyou Maid-tai" does lack consistency, and the last couple of episodes are a real let down especially. The jokes in those last episodes feel contrived and the series is brought back down to the normal level I expect for an ecchi. At the end of the day, nothing was really resolved in the anime, which is a major disappointment for me. Still, it's sufficiently entertaining such that it didn't feel like I had to forcing myself to keep watch it, unlike the majority of say, "Martian Successor Nadesico". It's unfortunate that the show is marred by the ecchi in it. But without it, perhaps this anime wouldn't be what it is - perhaps it took comparisons with the more shallow characters to bring out the better one. They could have at least left the better characters out of the pr0n scenes though, which would have allowed me to decouple the good and the bad parts more in my mind :-/

~ Review ~ Anime Information Anime Production : m.o.e Director: Yasunori Ide Episodes: 12 episodes + 3 OVAs (Total 15 episodes) Genres: Comedy, Drama, Ecchi, Harem, Maids, Romance, Slice of Life Duration: 14 min. per episode Original Run: 8 April 2001 – 29 June 2001Synopsis : After losing his mother, 12-year-old Taro journeys to Tokyo to live with his grandfather. But he gets the biggest surprise when he discovers that his grandfather’s home is a huge mansion with hundreds of beautiful maids ready to serve him. Making matters worse (at least for Taro, but not for our viewing) is that not only does he inherit the Hanaukyo mansion, he gets the services of all of the maids 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. A sudden change in his life, can he manage it? Storyline: [7/10] Basically, this anime talks about Tarou Hanaukyo’s life after he lost his mother in which he was told by his mother will to live with his grandfather. Without ever knowing who his grandfather, Tarou set his journey to stay in his grandfather house as a final tribute to his mother. But Tarou was shocked after learning that his grandfather was a wealthy man and his house is not even a house. It is a mansion in the middle of forest somewhere in Tokyo. Tarou also learn that his grandfather was already long gone and left him a video stating that he is now the head of the Hanaukyo family and inherited not only his entire fortune but also his home with many personal maids that would serve him 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Honestly, if you’re not really a true anime lover then you will quickly feel the boredom in this anime. This anime storyline is flat course. Furthermore, this anime is also a slow pace anime. You can barely feel the climax and anti-climax in this anime. No significant confict that arise. If there is any conflict then it will be finished in that episode. For me, it eliminates all the meaning and importance of the conflict in this anime. In terms of drama, just a few episode that I find have an interesting drama but alas, the drama itself was also wrapped with a less attractive way. Finally, this anime does not have something that really stick in the minds of the watch. And that’s what makes this anime could quickly turn into boring anime. One of the advantages that this anime has is a comedic side with the right portion through entire episode. The comedy itself was a fresh comedy. This kind of comedies can make you smile and laugh while you watch this anime. The concept of anti-master/enslaved-maid that this anime bring is also one of the advantages this anime has in his time. Art: [6/10] The whole character of both men and women, both the main character and supporting character have a cute and sweet character. They also have a cute and funny facial expressions. The weak point of this anime is almost all the character in this anime does not leave strong impression for me. No special uniqueness is given to all of the character except for the clothes and the color of their clothes. For an anime who release in 2001, this is a common so-so art anime in his time. Sound: [6/10] I can only say that both OP and ED fill with OST befitted in their time. You can enjoy it but don't compare it with anime OST nowadays. Character: [7/10] This anime, generally, gives each character a standard personality for main character. Tarou with happy-go-lucky, kind, hardworking and cannot-see-people-suffering personality, Mariel with mature and motherly sense personality, Ikuyo with witty personality and a natural prankster and Konoe with strict attitude and silent type. A bit let-down for Tarou to have this women-touch allergy. For an anime with ecchi/harem theme, this is really no good. But for this 2001 anime to have a bi-personality character, Chyntia dan Grace was a great plus this anime have in his time. Chyntia is a pure and innocent kid. A kid with cheerful, easy-going and playful personality. Basically, Chyntia is a common kid in her age. Grace is genius kid. A kid with serious, hard-going and a bit tsundere personality. Basically, Grace is a polar opposite of Chyntia. Enjoyment: [6/10] Well for some anime watcher, you’re going to run into trouble in finding some little pleasure in watching this anime. Flat course storyline with a slow tempo progress anime. But despite it all, in a few episode of this anime episode gives some common knowledge and words of wisdom. Each story in this anime episode contain life lessons meaning in the end. For me, this anime shows us a 12-year-old boy’s journey into manhood. How does a boy become a man? How can a boy who for all his life just became the master for himself, must now become the head of the huge, wealthy and respectful family? What kind of leader he become? And what kind of master he become for all his maids? This anime is filled with many life lessons. Overall: [6/10] Fan service is so-so. The comedies is in the right portions, but the drama is almost have no bite at all. This anime tempo was also slow and each episode has a different set of story so in the end, this anime doesn’t have a clear purpose and something is missing on the ending. This anime has a tendency to quickly turn into a boring anime. Interesting point is to see changes in the main character, Tarou Hanaukyo in personality and life. During the whole episode, we can see Tarou began gradually learn and understand some of the realities around him. Tarou learn to respons to situations with a cool head attitude. Sometime Tarou also said some words of wisdom and wise remarks that take him closer to maturity and the more worthy to be the head of the Hanaukyo family. Another interesting point is that this anime bring a concept of anti-master/enslaved-maid which is quite a populer issue in that time. Personal message and opinion: I like anime with a life lesson in it and even more with maids themed anime combine with ecchi/harem theme. For me, I quite enjoy old anime and the fresh comedy inside this anime. Although, to be honest, I watch this anime quite rarely. But nonetheless, I am grateful to have this anime and this anime became one of my most valuable anime that I ever got. In the end, for me it’s a good anime to watch. And.. Do you know about the rumors that this anime once was originally planned for more than 12 episodes? Do you also know about the rumors that this anime once was having financial trouble? Did you know that in fact this anime once was a highly awaited anime? Did you also know that in fact this anime get a remake? You know for an anime to get a remake then it proves that that anime was a successful anime. For an example, just take a look for Dragon Ball and Hunter x Hunter who get a remake. Well, I leave back to you guys to decide if this anime worthy to watch or not!

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