Ah! My Goddess

The Best anime love story i have ever seen.the climax is a icebreaker.that is the ultimate no.1 most touching anime i have ever seen.The voice casting is also superb and the animation plus plot is also interesting.i hope there will be a 3rd season soon.A truly heartwarming tale of a true love between a human and a goddess.this anime depicts the struggle of the relationship and their love life.The 1st,2nd,the movie,the ova,manga is drawn and presented well.this anime in my opinion outbeat other anime although it is just a love story,in my opinion it is better than other anime that is consist of action.This anime shows that true love conquer all.I highly recommend viewers to watch this anime.I hope it touches yours because it touches mine.

This is the title that initiated the Magical Girlfriend subgenre and it's also amongst the oldest and longest harems ever, with multiple adaptations and OVAs. This adaptation happens to be the best work of studio AIC and is also an improvement over the original material by rearranging the order of events so the pacing will not get bogged down by several minor events. The director decided to take out lots of racing and engineering events which were fine to show how much the mangaka loved racing but would otherwise be completely boring in anime form.

SCRIPT

The story is about a teenage dork dialing the wrong number and ending up with a beautiful goddess, ready to fulfill his wishes, of which his is to stay with him forever (wish fullfilment). Soon afterwards her godly sisters pop up (harem creation) and his life becomes complicating as he is constantly surrounded by supernatural hot chicks and has to keep using his talents to save the world from cosmic horrors (action) without messing up his personal life (comedy). The story is one big pile of comedy, romance, and drama that also blends mythology with science fiction. The core premise is always about Keichi and Belldandy being in love and staying true to each other, even when the cosmic forces conspire against them.

Unlike most harems that are hardly trying to flesh out their characters or provide internal logic to all the madness in the story, AMG is actually trying its best to make everything seem logical and excused. The girls are all there for a reason, react somewhat logical with the restrictions of the premise, have powers that are somewhat excused through science and every event has technology and mythology to back it up.

Also, the story never forgets to still be easy-going and funny, where nothing major or deadly ever happens. There is no clear plot development, other than introducing more secondary characters and ephemeral threats every now and then. But if stand-alone episodes and stale stories don't bother you, this is not a problem. There is no objective or even a conclusion, it just goes on and on indefinitely. It is wholesome and cheery, with some parts being more exciting or funny than others. Most of the duration may feel like dead time but overall it is still quite enjoyable.

CAST

Belldandy used to be amongst my favorite anime girls. Too gentle and good to be true, but then again she is a goddess and that is enough of an excuse. Her sisters Urd and Skuld are also interesting in their own way and flavor the harem nicely. The combination of great visuals, ethereal music and unearthly nature makes them feel far better than the average harem bimbo out there.

The harem lead Keichi on the other hand is, was, and still is a typical male dork that is swarmed by beautiful girls without him being anything special. Oh, sure, he is gentle, kind, good-hearted and the like; but let's face it, girls don't really notice such males. We can always justify it with Belldandy being a goddess that can see people for what they really are. But since I am not a god, I say he is a sissy for feeling embarrassed every time he has the chance to make some lovey-dovey. He and all other males like him in most harem anime are despicable! They give the male gender a bad name, he is the driest and worst character amongst the cast. But if I am to give him a few redeeming qualities, I can say he is actually using his brain from time to time to solve some problems and even finds the courage to fight for his harem. Too bad he isn't bold enough to do anything other than that.

That aside, all characters have quirks, backdrop stories and goals that go beyond their stereotypes as sex-bombs, edgy lolitas and shy male virgins. The secondary characters are all likable and color to main ones. None of them were bad or unneeded in the story. I can't say the same about Keichi (and to think he is supposed to be the protagonist!). Obviously none of them develops or finds some sort of catharsis because of the lack of an overall plot, so that could become tiresome after awhile.

PRODUCTION VALUES

The animation is great if you compare it with other similar series.

-All Slice-Of-Life series don't use flashy visual effects (they don't fit there). So, the graphics here are catchier, by default.

-Almost all comedies don't have so detailed character figures. They are usually simplistic and go chibi all the time.

-Most Harem/Ecchi series turn their female characters into obnoxious, panties-revealing sluts. The girls here retain an air of purity and gentleness. The naughty scenes are few but worthwhile, as the focus in the series is not waiting to see boobs every 10 seconds.

Music themes and voice acting are very good. The women voicing the goddesses are also the singers in the songs (a thing that was kept intact in the remake as well). Very likable voices and backdrop music that fill your heart with happiness. Even the funky sound effects during the action parts feel cool as they are usually attributed to technology or mythology.

LEGACY

Like a sunny day, it is enjoyable but also rather passable. It helped to mainstream Harem and Magical Girlfriend stereotypes and thus deserves a spot in history just for that. Despite not being original or unique anymore, it is still amongst the best of its genre. It's still watered-down and far shorter than the far bolder in erotism manga. Rewatchability is medium-high for fans of slice of life, while for most others there is very little to gain from a second watch.

Some issues that can ruin your enjoyment.

-The relationship between Keichi and Beldandy never goes beyond hugging, making the whole deal stale and without further development. The story itself has no development, other than introducing more secondary characters every now and then.

-There is a lot of character fleshing out, but very little character development. You get to know more about them but you won't see them change.

-There are lots of uninteresting episodes, where the goddesses and/or demons rival each other, just for laughs.

-There is no conclusion.

Ah! My Goddess is a one of a kind romance anime. From the two seasons that I watched I never at one point lost interest which says something about a show. That being said the story line is very basic and easy to follow and there is no real major plot twist, in fact every episode is its own story.

But having a trait like that in a show doesn't take away from it at all. Especially when every character is likable from the goddess Belldandy to the demon Mara, they each have something that makes the show so much better. Along with that the intros for season 1 & 2 fit the show perfectly

In all even if you're not into the romance, the anime is still something to check out but sadly there has been no info or rumors on a season 3 which is sad cause the show doesn't feel finished.

I tried to like this series, I really did. And it does have a lot of good factors; good animation, interesting(ish) protagonist, exciting new elements and magic... However, wat really bothers me is Belldandy's lack of her own personality. From the moment she becomes Keiichi's personal goddess, all she cares about is making him happy. Which is cool and all, but not even once, she has any sort of desire to do/experience something just because of herself. It's like her life started when she met the guy. It's sad because she looks to be highly objectified; a "perfect" girl who does everything the guy tells her to, with a smile on her face, basically being a voluntary slave. Keiichi rarely asks her about her feelings on different matters, even those that directly affect her life. When he falls in love with her his reasons are basically; she's cute, she can cook, she's nice. Seems like this anime is a bit unbalanced, and Belldandy really needs a more complicated personality, with raw emotions, not just smiling all the time.

Didn't see the Anime or Manga. Decided to watch the movie instead. At first it gets a bit confusing because you don't know the background but you quickly catch up. It truly is a romantic action filled with love story that has the power to touch your heart and wish for true love or a lower just like our Goddess. I did love the concept of having Goddesses helping you out, alas it's true only in the Anime.

Overall, it was pretty great. I enjoyed it fully, I was close to tears at some point but held it together. I just wish I could find someone that I could love unconditionally as well.

Highly recommended.