wFeb 16, 2008


Magic Knight Rayearth

Magic Knight Rayearth is a 6 volume series (although the latter three volumes are also referred to as "Magic Knight Rayearth II, vol. 1-3). Hikaru, Umi, and Fuu are three girls who attend different schools in Tokyo. Their classes happen to be having field trips at Tokyo Tower at the same time when they meet by chance. The three girls are transported to another world while they hear a voice calling them "Legendary Magic Knights," and asking them to save the world of Cephiro.

Princess Emeraude is the one who called the girls. Along their journey to save the princess (and thus, Cephiro), they are given weapons, armor, and a white ball of fluff that looks like a chubby rabbit, called Mokona. In the world of Cephiro, one is able to fight enemies with the strength of their will.

There is a nice plot twist at the end of the first arc, but it didn't really make the three volumes leading up to it worth it. I found the second arc to be much more boring than the first one. Especially disturbing was volume 4, when each of the girls felt the need to apologize profusely to their love interests for happenings that were not their fault. I think it was supposed to be romantic? SO NOT.

This series was more interesting than, say, Angelic Layer, but I still don't really care for it. In terms of having a girl (or group of girls) transported to another world, I like Escaflowne better (and possibly Twelve Kingdoms - I need to rewatch that series). In terms of magic girls fighting, I like Sailor Moon better.

This series was made into a 49-episode anime series, as well as an OVA. The OVA apparently changes the storyline a lot, but I'd be more willing to watch that than 49 episodes!

Overall: meh.

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scribbled mystickeeper at 12:23 PM
2 comments
2 Comments:

Oh man, Magic Knight Rayearth. I haven't read the manga, but it sounds pretty close to the TV show. First season: Pretty good. I actually own it. The art is old-school yet cute, the characters are endearing, and the aforementioned twist makes it a pretty fun watch. Second season: An abomination. Resurrecting dead characters? You bet! Arbitrarily assigned love interests? Why not? A plot that pretty much destroys any meaning gleaned from the first season? Of course! Season 2 is actually my personal choice for Worst Television Sequel Ever. As for the OVA, if you really wanted I could lend it to you Jackie, but the characters seem like exaggerations of their originals, plus it feels way too long.

By Anonymous Anonymous, at 2:29 PM, February 18, 2008  

Yeah, I'm thinking I'll probably keep my omnibus of volumes 1-3, and get rid of 4-6. Although, I'm having the suspicion I should wait until I get through Tsubasa Chronicle and xxxHolic, as the Mokonas seem to play an important role.

That was also what I found very WTF about part 2 of MKR. Any series that makes Mokona a god is questionable.

I never thought that Sailor Moon would stand up so well compared to other series! It's very exciting for me, :D

By Blogger mystickeeper, at 9:19 AM, February 22, 2008  

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