ichigo mashimaro: cuteness overload

if you think this post will be loaded with references to chibis and impossibly cute girls in the fairy tale mode, you can get rid of that notion right now. the kind of cuteness you will find in Ichigo Mahimaro (Strawberry Marshmallow) is the type that’s easy to appreciate but a bit tricky to explain.

the Ichigo Mashimaro girls — who can be adorably cute in varying degrees — are not placed in impossible situations so as to render them heroically fair and virtuous, nor are they denizens of some magical kingdom, endowed with superpowers and spiffy costumes. and no, they’re not from outer space either. Anna (11), Matsuri (11), Miu (12) and Chi (12) are your typical schoolgirls who more or less look up to Nobue (20), Chi’s older sister.

what makes these girls leap out of the screen and engage your attention right away is the manner in which they are portrayed: as real characters with their respective hang-ups and quirky personality issues.

nobue ito is a college coed who works part-time and who on occasion likes to pull pranks on her younger sister and her cohorts. she likes to drink and smoke and drives a scooter to work. although she can be a bit of a slacker, she does look out for the younger girls.

chi ito is the intelligent and studious type who is basically the long-suffering voice of reason in this series. she is conscientious and very organized. in a sense, her normality almost makes her an ‘uninteresting’ person when compared to the rest of her friends.

miu matsuoka is chi’s impulsive and restless classmate who has an unfortunate knack of saying and doing annoying things (in the tradition of Azumanga Daioh’s Tomo Takino and Minami-ke’s Kana Minami). she instigates most of their activities with predictably disastrous and hilarious results, although occasionally she can come up with good ideas, too.

matsuri sakuragi is a sweet, bespectacled girl who looks and acts younger than her age. she is the most timid of the group and is easily flustered by miu’s antics. she has a pet ferret that she calls John. (she’d look right at home in a Precious Moments greeting card.)

anna coppola is the blond, blue-eyed anglo-japanese transferee who — with her extensive knowledge of local culture and customs — ironically seems more ‘japanese’ compared to her friends. the fact that she’s very good in japanese and matsuri speaks better english is an exquisite source of gags in a couple of episodes.

oh. about that “cuteness” tag? you will find that quality entrenched in this series in a most unobtrusive fashion. these girls are cute alright — but in a funny, matter-of-fact, insidious, clever, and effortless way.

miyazaki’s Kiki’s Delivery Service

Kiki’s Delivery Service ] is another winner from a stable of Miyazaki gems that i shall never tire of watching.

this coming-of-age film centers on Kiki, a young witch-in-training who sets out for a city/town of her choice and learn to live and manage her way around ‘normal’ people (sort of like a finishing school before young trainees can actually concentrate on the serious business of practicing their craft).

with her familiar (a spunky black cat named jiji) in tow, Kiki finally decides to live in a seaside city because she has never seen the sea before. after a shaky start, she finds lodging and part-time work with a kindly bakeshop-owning couple. meanwhile, she has her hands full as she tries to get her fledgling business off the ground: delivering packages/parcels by air — courtesy of her broom. at first, city folks are amazed to see a young witch at their midst, and would often watch in fascination as she goes off into of her delivery trips. eventually, they grow used to her presence.

after a while, kiki’s business begins to thrive. she also manages to form bonds with several people: ursula, a young reclusive artist who lives in a remote village; tombo, a young boy of her age who is passionate about planes and flying; oku-sama, a rich and elderly customer.

soon enough, however, kiki undergoes a crisis of confidence that shakes her to the core. at some point, her self-doubts begin to affect her ability to fly and this leads her to question her choices. how she resolves this setback and finally regain her confidence is handled by Miyazaki et al. (Studio Ghibli) with delicacy and bittersweet detail — it’s the kind of stuff that inexplicably tightens your throat long after ending credits had rolled.

with Kiki’s Delivery Service, miyazaki once again validates his deft touch in dealing with issues that confront young people who are in the brink of adulthood. nothing really earth-shaking or emotionally shattering happens in this movie, but you can easily empathize with the characters. the european setting has a comfortable, nostalgic feel to it. for some reason, there is something captivating about seeing life’s wonders and terrors from the vantage point of a young girl who is desperately trying to hold on to her broom as a source of comfort, security, and ultimately, strength.

currently watching: kamichu & hatenkuo yugi

 

to continue…

i’m now in ep. 7 of kamichu, and i think the series is shaping up well. first off, i like the way the writers developed the story and its characters (yurie, a klutzy but well-meaning teenage goddess to boot, and her high school friends). the sheer imagery and scope of its flowing rural scenes are a great plus. i almost feel like i’ve stepped into an extension of Miyazaki’s Spirited Away — they exude the same aura. i have a feeling that in time this series is going to enter my list of favorites.

incidentally, Kamichu was awarded the Excellence prize in the 2005 Japan Media Arts Festival, which should give you an idea what to expect.

 

i also managed to peek at the first episode of hatenkou yugi (Dazzle), and i like what i’ve seen so far. for one thing, the major characters just seem to leap off the screen: rahzel, a spunky and adventurous magic user; alzeid, a grouchy loner bent on revenge, and baroqueheat, a skirt-chasing adventurer. hatenkou yugi is a series that combines elements of adventure, comedy, drama, supernatural, etc.

 

coming up next: the film Paprika.

 

new additions

 

last weekend i was able to add 3 more titles to my growing collection: Night Wizard, Kamichu, and Hatenkuo Yugi. i didn’t have much time to sift through the newer titles, but i think i’ve lucked out this time.

 

i was able to finish Night Wizard last night. all in all, i’d give it a fair rating i think. it’s rather a run-of-the-mill high school comedy/fantasy/magical girl mixture that would have normally bored me silly if not for the good quality of its graphics and occasional flashes of humor. it’s rather short (13 eps), which worked well in its favor because i would have gladly given up on it had the series been longer.

 

 

the main heroine (elis shiho) is rather bland and generic, but the support characters (mostly magic users like elis) are well-drawn and have distinctive traits that make them stand out a bit more: the hapless but loyal renji hiragi, the livewire kureha akabane, the laconic and formidable fighter akari himuro, and the youthful-looking (and brimming with wicked sense of humor, esp. where renji is concerned).

the plot isn’t all that challenging to understand. still series should appeal to younger anime fans, particularly girls, although there are several mildly violent scenes in it.

coming up: kamichu and hatenkuo yugi (aka Dazzle).