Ultra Maniac

Okay this is my first review ok here i go. Ultra Maniac is a really good anime, its a great rom com anime not like those cheesy romance ones. What makes this anime twice as great is the fact that it involves fantasy, drama and romance which really pulls you into the story. One of the good points of its story is that very often more and more new characters join the story and old characters may reveal secrets about themselves that were previously unkown.That is probably what pulls most watchers more and more into the show. The only thing i didnt like about the animewas that the romance kind of comes later on so if your a romance kind of person you may have to wait a while before you get to that point. Other than anything else, just get away from it all, have fun and give it a shot try watching Ultra Maniac i am positive you will enjoy it. If you need a source to where to find it go to www.veoh.com it has the whole series subbed there. ^_^ enjoy!

STORY This is another Magical Girl series that deals with two girls race to get a covited position in their society by going to the human world, but it is refreshing as it really isn't revealed until later that this is what is going on. Also, the ending is a nice twist to the whole plot line that one gets from these race series, it is in fact the ending that makes it unique from them. It is also very comedic. ART The art is very acurate and detailed. In this one, the middle schoolers actually look to be the age of middle schoolers, which some Anime's madeto look younger. There is also detail in the Magical girl costumes and each character, expessully the girls have their costumes fully designed out. Also, the scenery looks to be a real place, as if one can actually go their, even the Magical places. The Magical Kingdom is very detailed too, more so then the human world, but that is to be expected. There are also small things worked into the story line by use of the art. SOUND The sound was enjoyable, but it was typical Magical Girl type music. It didn't really evolve at all during the series and tended to be static. But on a plus, it was very pretty. CHARACTER One of the things about the characters is that they learn it is better to be themselves rather then something they are not. It is an underlying theme in this show, one can be who ever they want. Also, some of the side characters are quite interesting, though one might say bizare. ENJOYMENT I personally enjoyed this one, it was a lot of fun. I personally liked Luna... if you watch far enough to find her, you'll understand perhaps why I liked her so much. OVERALL Most of the Anime races amoung Magical Girls are clique, but this one was unique in how it presented it and the ending it gave. If you like Magical Girl series that deal with canadit races, then this is definatly a series for you, if not, then no.

Ultra maniac is a rare kind of anime. An anime that's so bad it's funny. It fails in every category, but it fails in such a hilarious way that it's just so much fun to hate. Story 1/10 The most obvious problem with this anime is it has a really unoriginal premise. Seriously, I can name at least a dozen TV shows (not just anime) where it's just another fish out of water story that has a main character whose a witch (or an alien, a robot, a goddess, a vampire, etc.) whose going to a school for humans and has to adjust to her newsurroundings. Of course, even if your story has an unoriginal premise that doesn't necessarily mean the story as a whole is awful. A good example is Kiki's Delivery Service which is also about a witch moving to a new home. However, while Kiki tells the basic fish out of water story, it tells it in an interesting way with great characters and beautiful animation. Ultra Maniac has none of those qualities and instead relies on overused cliches and tropes. Every episode is just so predictable. For example, there's an episode where Maya creates a potion to make things shrink, but instead the opposite happens and it makes things bigger. Wow, who could've seen that coming (rolls eyes). Another problem is that the show's world building is convoluted and makes no sense. For example, in order for Nina to do magic she first has to transform, then search on her personal computer for what kind of spell she wants, then she has to plug a cord from her computer into a magic box, then she has to put a random object inside the box, then she has to type the spell into her computer, then she has to say "practice", and then the spell happens. From a writer's perspective, wouldn't it save like ten steps to just give Nina a magic wand like every other witch in popular culture? Oh, no wait, a magic wand is too old fashioned as Nina explains to Ayu. Another problem with the world building is that witches and wizards seem to have this godlike power to just make matter materialize from nothing. For example, we see characters several times just wave their finger in the air and make something like a four course meal with a set table appear from nothing. That raises so many questions. Can witches just make literally anything out of nothing?! Art 2/10 The character animation looks stiff with not a lot of movement or detail and the effects animation is even worse. Whenever a character does magic they just use the exact same animation every time which is just white sparkles covering the screen. I don't like the character designs much either. Nina's witch outfit just looks boring and isn't cute or eye catching at all. Character 2/10 Every single character has a one note personality and doesn't go through any sort of development. One things that confuses me about these characters is why are Nina and Ayu even friends? Seriously, all Nina does is cause trouble and make things worse for Ayu. I know everybody makes mistakes and nobodies perfect, but there's a limit as to how many times you can forgive a person before you just have to cut your losses. Another thing I don't understand is the character's motivations; why is Ayu in love with Kaji? There is nothing interesting or unique about him yet Ayu thinks he's this embodiment of perfection. Some characters I did actually like, however, were Sebastian and Luna. Unfortunately, for some strange reason, they only appear in one episode each. Overall 8/10 Ultra Maniac is a train wreck of an anime that is full of one note characters, cheap animation, unappealing character designs, and an unoriginal story. I absolutely love to hate this anime.

8/10 +Contains positive role models for girls and focuses on strong female friendships +Goofy, lighthearted comedy with feel-good relationship dynamics +Pretty character designs, soft animation, and pop-y music add to saccharine world -Poor pacing due to abundance of filler; at times lacks focus and higher stakes Sometimes a touch of magic is all we need to find the courage to change ourselves. Poor lovestruck Ayu Tateishi can’t seem to catch a break with the object of her affections, until chance bestows her with a clumsy, yet endearing witch in training named Nina. Through Nina’s friendship (with maybe some wacky magical antics), she’ll teach Ayu the value ofthat the true magic lies in us. Based on the classic manga from 2001, author Wataru Yoshizumi (creator of Marmalade Boy) offers a cheery, feel-good setting, positive female role models, wacky comedy, and an endearing, simple message. The saccharine world is further complemented by pretty character designs, soft animation, and a pop-y opening and ending. While the abundance of filler and sluggish first half ultimately distract from tighter character work, the budding friendship between Ayu and Nina is easily the story’s highlight. The supporting cast also adds the right amount of flavor and the twist ending provides a mostly satisfying conclusion. Ultra Maniac is loaded with cliches and isn’t doing anything extraordinary. Yet it stills stands as a quality, earnest fairy tale that resonates with our inner child.