After reading the previous article on Cardcaptor Sakura, you may be wondering where I am heading next. For those that know me, it may raise a few eyebrows (I know hybridial is going to have words with me, or shake his head in disbelief at the very least), and for those that don’t, it may cause some slight confusion. “How could Maxon possibly like things like these?”. You’d be right to question these choices, since I am generally quite sick of moe and whatnot. However, I can make a few exceptions. Today, let’s take a look at…
Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha
Nanoha Takamachi is just a typical 9 year old making her way through her childhood years. She goes to school. She has two best friends. She has a happy family. She partakes in whatever hobbies 9 year old Japanese girls have. Typical, right? Under the surface, she feels alone. Her family may be close, but for some reason, she feels a bit distant from them, and has a slight melancholic aura around her because of that. However, this starts to change when she comes across an injured animal that looks like some sort of ferret. She takes care of it and nurses it back to health, but discovers that it can talk. Its name is Yuuno Scraia. He is a being that has travelled to different worlds to recover magical relics called “Lost Logia”, but he was injured in his previous fight with a monster that had acquired one. So, it’s up to Nanoha to collect them instead and Yuuno bestows a jewel upon her that allows her to transform and call forth her magic staff (you’ll see why it’s not a wand). However, soon after, a rival appears to also collect the Lost Logia. Her name is Fate Testarossa.
A lot of that is pretty standard stuff, and I can see a slight resemblance to Cardcaptor Sakura. However, there are a few key elements that also separate it from the typical magical girl show. The main point is that it’s actually a combination of the best parts of shoujo and shounen anime. Your first impression might say otherwise, but I think some of the shounen elements are a bit more subtle. Fate is also pretty adorable yet cool at the same time.
Zero no Tsukaima
Louise Françoise le Blanc de la Vallière has had zero success in being able to cast magic, which is why her classmates call her “Zero Louise”. However, by fate (or accident) at her familiar summoning ritual, she summons Saito Hiraga from Earth. At first Louise is rather disgusted by Saito due to being a human and being a commoner, and treats him like a slave. Saito isn’t happy about the situation either but decides he might as well ride it out until he can figure out how to get back home. In the meantime, when Saito gets into certain situations, he seems display great powers. The markings on the back on his hand lead a few teachers at Louise’s Academy to believe that he is a reincarnation of a legendary familiar (Gandalfr) to a magic user who used the mythical void element, which no-one who is alive today can use.
I don’t have much to say on this one. I have a soft spot for tsundere girls, which is why I like Louise. Even though he is pretty goofy, Saito isn’t spineless wimp. He may moan, but at least he gets stuff done, unlike many male leads of similar anime. Having Yui Horie and Ayako Kawasumi as the voice actors for Siesta the maid and Princess Henrietta is a nice bonus I suppose (and Siesta and Henrietta are pretty cute). They both seem to be in a lot of anime I like.
That’s it for the second installment for my guilty pleasure anime. Part 3 is coming in a little while. I’ll also have that 3rd part of my look at Full Metal Panic that I promised up soon too.
Posted by Maxon 