Search - Kashimashi Girl Meets Girl Collection on DVD

Tasteful and elegant yuri that is well worth watching

Burr | Lansing, MI | 01/12/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Kashimashi: Girl Meets Girl is a docile anime with a sensitive and cordial tone that any fan of romantic yuri will almost surely enjoy. The term simple elegance would not be an erroneous description for what is a very pleasant and pensive series.

For those not familiar with the plot, Kashimashi presents the plight of an effeminate young man who is transformed into a girl by otherworldly means. The 13-episode series (with OVA) then follows the charming, romantic and often saddening misadventures of the (girl) and her struggles to follow her heart in choosing either her dearest childhood friend, or the crush that had previously got away. The anime is very tasteful and although some Westerners might be disturbed or offended by the overly and intentionally creepy dad and his... enthusiastic attitude towards now having a daughter instead of a son, the anime does not even approach sex, has moderate fan service, and most of the more racy scenes (which are limited to begin with) are tasteful, appropriate and/or humorous. There is some slapstick, but it isn't really over the edge and doesn't get in the way of the drama like many other anime, and generally the show is quiet and placid.

Though the series is nothing groundbreaking and fans will be familiar with quite a bit presented here such as hot springs, haunted schools, quirky aliens, mysterious illnesses, karaoke, festivals with fireworks & kimonos and evening scenes highlighted by droves of fireflies, it still does have a thing or two going for it other than the obvious unique twists, and even on occasion pokes a bit of fun at some of these common conventions. The presentation and animation is pretty much top notch and includes bright, colorful, likable characters in flowery scenes sprinkled with delicate, heartfelt melodies played out gently on string instruments and piano with some occasional new age woven in. Picture dulcet, mellifluous classical strings & piano interwoven with The Album Leaf. The opening, ending & menu themes are soothing and pleasant and the music in general is truly beautiful and arguably one of the series' major strengths. It will stay with you long after the credits role. There are also some rather clever metaphors thrown in here and there... some subtle, some not so subtle, and many surprisingly meaningful. Generally, as far as presentation, if you appreciate nature you will appreciate the soft and pleasing settings & landscapes in this anime as most are filled with colorful plants, flowers, trees, and vegetable & fruit gardens with a lot of emphasis on the earth's natural beauty... with some thanks going to our horticulturally knowledgable lead character!

The low point is about 3/4 the way through. It can be somewhat aggravating to watch as the relationships just sort of tread water for a bit and you feel as if you are waiting for something to happen... which something does. I also would have liked to see more time spent exploring the comical challenges faced by our newly-female lead character in her adjustments to the change.

Fans of sparkles, painful cuteness and yuri will likely find this series to be worth their time and money. Kashimashi is overflowing with plenty of mystical glimmer, love & romance, invokes a wide range of emotions, and could charm just about anyone. The show keeps its promises and although the last OVA thrown in seems to go against the grain a bit and is more of an alternate fairytale ending than anything, it is nonetheless a joy to watch and is a rather satisfying conclusion... quite refreshing actually. I can't say the same for a lot of anime out there. Personally I preferred the original ending though, as it had much more of an impact on me. Either way, everything ties up very nicely and all of the small details throughout have meaning and purpose.

One more note about the DVD release... I purchased mine brand new at Best Buy for $14.99 and it is Japanese only with English subtitles. It comes in a box which contains 3 unique and artistic full size high quality DVD cases and comes with the usual textless opening/closing, trailers and interviews with the actors. I recommend (if you have the means available to you, of course) to visit your local Best Buy or perhaps give their site a look. If you like subtitles with original dialogue like me (and I should add voice actors are great and the captions contain only a few minor slip-ups and typos) you will not only find a cheaper release, but also one of higher quality.
"

Surprisingly funny

Maxee | France | 08/25/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Regarding the drawing it's quite nice to see. As for the story, it first looked quite surprising to me, but it turned out to be very funny! I particularly enjoyed ep.2, seeing this ex-boy trying to adapt to his (her) new condition, or rather his family and friends trying to adapt to him/her! At the beginning he kept acting like a boy, leading to some funny situations as you can expect ^^. But, with the help of his "girlfriends", he/she learns quickly how to behave properly (indeed he/she was rather effeminate before and this new situation doesn't seem to bother him/her that much). And this leads to the second comical aspect, where he/she behaves like a girl even more than his/her friends themselves (to their despair! looks like they have a new serious competitor! ^^). So this gender UFO ends up causing some trouble to both side, and I had lots of fun seeing them entangled in awkward situations. But then the end of the series is a little repetitive and kitsch. Still, I had a good time, I recommend it !"