Search - Ultramaniac - Magical Girl (Vol. 1) on DVD

Ultra-cool show!

Hagaren Otaku | 06/06/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Yeah, that was a bad play on the title I admit.
Ultramaniac's story is that a young girl named Nina Sakura is sent to the regular world from the "Magic Kingdom" she comes from because of her horrible grades. Nina meets Ayu Tateishi who befriends her quickly, and the journey to help Nina succeed begins.
The animation is wonderfully done, while the voices are also just as good. The story seems pretty simple at first, but becomes more complex as it goes on. The music is great, and so are the characters. Ultramaniac is a romantic love comedy that really is pretty cool.
I suggest that you buy the box set if you decide to purchase this awesome show that really is hard to resist."

Silly and unremarkable, but cute enough

Dorothea | 05/17/2006

(3 out of 5 stars)

"This anime is centered around two high school girls. Ayu Tateishi is athletic, popular, and currently obsessed with a cute boy who is in her class and plays baseball. Nina is a clumsy, well-meaning magical girl from a magical kingdom, sent down to earth to improve her grades and learn about the human world (but even in this first DVD, you get a sense that there's more to it than that). Nina, who is innocent and somewhat childish, takes to Ayu right away and decides to follow her new friend around and use her magic to help Ayu's relationship with her crush advance. Naturally, Nina isn't very good with magic and all her attempts to help end with disasters of varying proportions, from giving Ayu a ring that will cause any boy who touches her to be zapped with powerful electricity to turning Ayu into a boy to help her with a tennis match.

This isn't really my kind of show, but it's definitely decent enough. It's considerably more childish than a lot of other high school shows out there, like Azumanga Daioh and School Rumble. There are few laugh-out-loud moments. Most of the humor stems from the ridiculous spells Nina comes up with and their many side effects, but as that none of the side effects last, the show was a little episodic. The magic is fun and is used pretty often; it feels a little like Bewitched. While humorous, it just won't make you laugh much. Young girls will probably like it, but I wouldn't recommend it to any adults unless they know in advance what they're getting into."

Cute! Cute! Cute!

J. Alford | Atlanta, GA. United States | 03/07/2006

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Where as most magical girl shows have the magical girl as the main character, this new series from the creators of Marmalade Boy is more about a regular girl who happens to be friends with one.

Taking place mainly at a stereotypical well-to-do Japanese junior high, Ayu is a popular girl, and is well liked by her classmates. Especially by the new transfer student, Nina. She only happens to be a magical girl from another dimension. She's come to Earth to study humans, and how to use her magic better. Nina is kind of a novice when it comes to using her powers, which all seem to come from a pocket computer she carries with her. She usually tries to use her powers to help Ayu out, mainly with her crush on the school heartthrob Kaji. Nina's attempts backfire most of the time though, despite the advice given to her by her talking cat Rio who can sometimes take on human form.

The bulk of the series mainly deals with other teenagers from Nina's world coming to Earth and searching for five magic stones. Whoever gets all of them will be able to marry the prince of the magic kingdom in Nina's world. There's not so much an evil power like in Sailor Moon to be fought like in most magical girl stories, aside from the magical rivals and nosy school nerds, but your just regular shoujo comedy scenarios with a fantasy element.

Ultra Maniac might seem to alot like a deliberate ripoff of Cardcaptor Sakura. But it does hold a little bit of its own. It's certainly likeable and cute enough for most young girls to like it. The anime goes on for 26 episodes, although it was preceeded by a 1-episode OVA pilot. If you can stand the taste of sugar you'll have left in your mouth for watching, then this anime should be okay enough for you."