Ranked #2773

Mai-HiME: Kuro no Mai/Saigo no Bansan

First, let me say that I gave this a 10, simply because I'm a big fan of the franchize and, surely, this special was pretty entertaining and nostalgic somehow. As I review, I'll give more suited rating.

Story: It's a beach episode, actually. Yes, the good, old, never-getting-old beach episodes. But putting that aside, it revolves around tormenting Reito. Now's the time to say - if you haven't completed Mai-HiME, don't watch this. You won't get a thing. Now I must say, of all the specials I've seen, this is the most entertaining so far, it was funny, sort of a parody and hillarious. Some may not like that a lot of characters don't have lines and the special is only about the humour though. It was a simple story filled with smiles - Let's say an 8 ;)

Art: I personally think, that the art is even more beautiful than the art in the anime itself. The animation was smooth, the shadows and light effects were nice, everything was drawn so well. There's this one scene though, when Reito turns back and looks at Mai and Mikoto - they got a little lazy there and it doesn't look alright. Still, a perfect 9/10 from me. This is by far, the special with the most awesome art I've seen up to date. And that's saying something.

OST: Well, nothing new here, but if you're familliar with the soundtrack for Mai-HiME - then you shouldn't doubt that this gets a 10/10 from me. Also, never have I seen so many songs included in just one 4 minute special. Watch it, and you'll see what I'm talking about. The VAs did an awesome job as always, too.

Characters: 9/10 Well, my only complain is that not everyone had their chance to shine, sadly. But still, for the 4 minutes at our disposal, the characters totally will grow on you once again. Everyone's acting like usual, but that's not always a bad thing. At the end of the special, I was already sobbing that there's no 2 season. They will make you feel nostalgic, that's for sure. Oh, and, Mai is acting pretty funny at the beginning so she actually made me like her a bit more, even though I'm not a fan of hers. And what's more - the heroine that brings me nuts /I'll save it for myself who she is/ actually didn't disturb me at all this time. It's all so nice and calmy; Perhaps you'll forgive those you hate, too. Even if just this once. Did I mention we have fanservice? Smoothly animated, too.

Enjoyment:10/10 Well, I'm a Mai-HiME fangirl, so I didn't expect less. I knew I would enjoy it but really, it was even greater than I expected. If you are also a big fan like me, you'll most probably enjoy it. If not - you might; depends on your sense of humour :) read more