Aa! Megami-sama! (TV)

I saw the original Ah! My Goddess! OVA first, and although it was enjoyable, it was essentially a heavily-abridged version of the manga's storyline. Understandably, packing such a lengthy story into five episodes would be too much to ask for, yet I was still left wanting something more developed. The Ah! My Goddess! television series is just that. The storytelling, typical of romantic comedies, is rather gradual. Perhaps too gradual, as Keiichi's and Belldandy's romance develops rather slowly, often succumbing to "Just say it already!" syndrome, leading to a laundry list of missed opportunities to push the relationship further. Still, those moments when they do sharetheir feelings and develop as a couple are genuinely heartwarming. From a visual standpoint, the series is absolutely stunning. The character designs are nice and varied, and the animation is very fluid. The background art is especially nice - From the busy city to lush open fields, each backdrop is incredibly detailed and beautiful. Artistically, Ah! My Goddess! does a fantastic job. The music does an excellent job setting the mood. In addition to its remarkable opening and closing, Ah! My Goddess! has a great selection of background music. I highly recommend the soundtrack, whether you're a fan of the series or not. More importantly than anything else, I think what really makes this show(And to some extent the OVA before it) work so well is its rich cast of supporting characters. Though the show centers on Keiichi and the three goddesses, the side characters are well-developed and positively brimming with personality. From Tamiya's and Otaki's comical antics to Megumi's snide commentary to Marller's scheming, I found myself actively liking every character on the show for their endearing and memorable personalities. A minor complaint of mine would be a somewhat anti-climactic ending. Without spoiling the specific details, the last two episodes of the series felt very detached from the otherwise gripping story arc leading up the final battle. While it was nice to see Urd and Skuld each get more character development as a result of these episodes, I feel their place at the very end leaves us with a very jarring and inconclusive ending. Still, overall, Ah! My Goddess! is a fun, humorous, and even touching series that I think will greatly appeal to fans of romance stories. I recommend checking it out, and give it my score of 8 out of 10.

Despite what some people might tell you, this is not a harem. Yes, it does have several women living with a man, but only one of them is interested in the man in question. The other 2 are just there because of the one who is interested in the man. How big of an impact can a single phone call have on your life? Ah! My Goddess shows us just how big of an effect one supernatural phone call can have in what is easily one of the most charming anime I have ever watched. Story - 7/10 The story to Ah! My Goddess followsKeiichi, who is very unlucky - he gets shot down when he attempts to ask the popular girl out, he doesn't have any money, and he has to take care of the dorm while his friends go out partying. One day, while taking care of the dorm, he makes a phone call like one of his friends asked, but he dials a wrong number - and he calls the Goddess Help Line. Belldandy, an absolutely gorgeous goddess, answers, and appears before him, explaining that she can grant him one wish. Keiichi, not thinking, wishes for her to stay with him - and his wish is accepted. When Keiichi's friends return, they kick him out because there's a strict policy against inviting girls to the dorm (some friends they are). Fortunately, Belldandy manages to find a temple for them to stay at, and a series of events results in the monk giving the temple to them to take care of. Over the course of the story, 2 more goddesses come to live with Keiichi - Urd (who wants Belldandy and Keiichi to upgrade their relationship) and Skuld (who's a younger sister who wants nothing more than to separate Keiichi and Belldandy - fortunately, she never succeeds). Art - 7/10 The art is nice and colorful, which is just what I like about it. It just looks very good. Sound - 6/10 The sound here is alright. I do remember the opening theme (in a good way). For those of you who dislike the opening theme: You just need to Open Your Mind, Open Your Mind, Open Your Mind....Okay, you can shoot me for that pun. The dub is actually very good, and even though some may find Belldandy's voice to be annoying, I personally found that it added to the charm of the show. Character - 9/10 The cast was what won me over with this show - Belldandy is one of the biggest sweethearts I've seen in any anime (she's basically who Haruka Shitow would be if Haruka was a goddess), and her relationship with Keiichi is one of my all time favorites. Keiichi himself was a very good natured guy - the kind that you want to get the girl in the end. And fortunately, he does. Urd is kind of similar to Aversa from Fire Emblem: Awakening (although she's, you know, not evil), and Skuld is kind of a bratty little sister - except she can be nice at times. Enjoyment - 10/10 This is one of the most charming shows I've watched. It's a perfect show for reminding people of how beautiful anime can be. Overall - 8/10 Looking for a good romance? This one will satisfy your desire. RIYL: Ai Yori Aoshi, Sekirei, Onegai Teacher, Heaven's Lost Property.

Overall Impression: Aa! Megami-sama is a romance about a college student, Keiichi Morisato, that is visited by the goddess Belldandy and granted one wish to balance out a run of misfortune, and so he wishes for Belldandy to stay with him forever, thus beginning their life together. It's a slice of life series with occasional multi-episode arcs, and is mostly light-hearted save for a few bits of drama here and there. Overall, while the series isn't without its merits, I was unimpressed by the romance and the main characters. This is one that can be skipped unless you're a big fan of the manga. + Positives:Belldandy's goddess sisters Urd and Skuld (but especially Urd) are very entertaining. The strongest episodes in both seasons tend to be the ones that ditch the main duo and focus on one of these two. The side characters in general are one of the strongest elements of the show, though they could stand to be given a little more to do, as many disappear for long stretches. Character designs are also quite good, and are both distinctive and attractive. The music is a frequent highlight, in particular the OPs for both seasons. Solid voice acting. - Negatives: Embarrassingly chaste romance for a series with college-aged characters. Keiichi and Belldandy have zero chemistry together and make little discernible progress as a couple over the course of 26 episodes (including the two special episodes). Keiichi is dumb as a brick and has half the charisma, while Belldandy is an utterly vacuous mother-wife with no interior life beyond doing chores and loving Keiichi. They are constantly overshadowed in their own show by the supporting cast and their relationship is so bland and devoid of passion that I had no desire to see them get together as a couple. Their elementary school-tier courtship is outright cringeworthy at times, with characters in their 20s going red in the face over the mildest possible stimulation like holding hands. Skuld, an actual elementary school aged character, makes more romantic progress with the kid that teaches her how to ride a bike over the course of two episodes in the 2nd season than Keiichi and Belldandy, who are adults, do in the entire series. The animation is also quite poor. It doesn't look "bad", but it's pretty lazy and unambitious. There isn't much action in this series, and the few scenes that are dynamic are usually rendered as glorified slideshows, while lower key scenes tend to turn into close-up shots where only mouths and eyes are moving for significant stretches of time. Technically, this is a comedy, but it won't really make you laugh. The humor is pretty lame and uninspired.

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