I first heard of this series some time ago. Some company has the license for the OVA/Movie for this series and titled it “Oh My Goddess!” I’ve seen that floating around on the shelves before, but never took an interest because the packaging for the OVA box is less than spectacular and reveals little to nothing about the content on the DVD. Then I found a fansub of the tv series available online. I downloaded it and watched the first eight episodes.
Ah My Goddess is exactly what I was looking for. I wanted a light, funny and warm-hearted story that was a change from the dark and ominous anime that will be reviewed later this week. It fits that bill perfectly, but in addition that, it’s got some clever gags and grown up humor that most comedy anime simply doesn’t live up to.
The Story: Morisato Keiichi is having a hard time of it. His luck is consistently bad, he’s always late to class, his bike never runs and his senpais are always sticking him with the chores around their dorm. But his luck changes when he dials a wrong number and gets in touch with Belldandy of the Goddess Help Line. From here, wackiness ensues.
The Dub: The English Dub is all right. I prefer the Japanese, but I am finding that over time, I’m becoming a purist. As far as dubs go, this one isn’t really all that bad. It’s not quite to the level of the English dub for Fruits Basket (which must have simply been a fluke for Funimation), but it’s still servicable.
The Package: Looks gorgeous and is a perfect fit for this series. The first two volumes’ spines fit with the interstitial graphics used to lead in and out of commercials in the show. I do hope the other volumes continue with that theme because it makes for an interesting presentation on the shelf.
DVD logistics: I’ve watched this dvd on two panasonic dvd players. One of them on a 27″ television and the other in my basement on my home theater system. The video quality on this dvd is excellent. The audio quality is great. No major glitches here. I do have one beef though. The menus. It gets annoying having to wait for Belldandy to flick open her wings and drop a few feathers so I can change the language track, or play the show. Otherwise, the menus are nice, clean and easily navigable.
This is a great little show. If you’re looking for some witty, wonderful light-hearted comedy, “Ah My Goddess” is for you!
