Ranked #947

Mahou Shoujo Tai Arusu

Brilliantly rendered with unique style and brimming with boundless imagination, Mahou Shoujo Tai Arisu (Magical Girl Squad Alice for the non-weeaboo among us), is a charming anime about a girl who loves magic, who falls into a realm where it is a tool of oppression and warfare. An adventure in the truest sense of the word: a journey to strange new land, and an exploration of the human heart, through challenge and trial. The show is fun to the very core, and its fictional landscape is well-realised in all its peculiar glory, but it also has some very strong dramatic moments, and some dark/mature themes, which is what ultimately makes it so compelling. Its quirky characters befit the experimental feel of the show in general, especially the protagonist, Alice, who is simply an absolute joy to watch in any scene she’s in. The series is 40 episodes long, but each episode is only half-length, so it actually ends up being a shorter series that usual. However, with the way the show is paced, it covers a lot more than pretty much any 26 episode series can manage. In fact, at first the ridiculous speed at which the show moves forward may seem jarring (especially, perhaps, if you’re not too quick with subtitles). There is almost constant dialogue, and the scenes move rapidly from one to the next, so you really have to be paying attention. However, I soon got used to it, and loved the way in which it didn’t waste time.


Produced with a childishly colourful simplicity, but also with an ever-present artistic flare, the show almost always looks stunning. The actual detail in the cel animation is very low, but, as is the case with the lack of consistency in Noein’s animation, it just doesn’t matter, in fact I prefer the way this show looks to countless other anime irregardless of their detail. The use of colour and an innovative stylised approach make the show look fantastic, and is just one of the things that make it stand out from the crowd as a unique viewing experience. Probably the best thing about the way the show looks, though, is the directing, which, without any doubt, is some of the best I’ve seen in any anime. Why this ‘mahou shoujo’ (albeit unconventional) is deserving of such fantastic direction is beyond me, but it has it in spades. Being very fast-paced, the show has a lot of editing to deal with, and I suppose that some of the interesting techniques evolved from that. But thanks to this factor, almost every scene looks remarkable, and the effort that went in to the show’s design really pulls through. Also, I think some of the sense of freedom the show uses as a theme seeped into the minds of the producers, because conventional is thrown out the window in favour of experimental - which, fortunately, works. My only criticism is that there are a few (2 or 3) episodes where the animation is poorly done. The music is also fantastic, especially the theme music (which is also the OP) - I just love it.

The show is relentlessly energetic, propelled forward by Alice’s uncompromising ideals, stubborn bravery, and love for fun and freedom. For me, she represents the epitome of the goodness of human beings; she is comprised of every emotional quality I value in other people and myself. I think almost all of my appreciation for the show comes from my love of her character, and the way she behaves. Her belief in magic, and her faith in herself is oftentimes inspiring. Her big heart and childish innocence lend the show a strong emotional potency, from the moments of playful laughter, to those of great sadness, Alice’s character attached me to the show’s emotional context. Very rarely can a character do this, and I think it’s because she was so well-written: despite her larger-than-life attitude, she felt very believable due to the fact that despite her actions always being admirable, they were not always right. The other factor that contributed to her greatness was Alice’s seiyuu, who I don’t think I’ve heard until I watched this anime. That’s a shame, because the way she voiced Alice her was just spot-on, and her voice itself is so full of life and sincerity that she became her character in a way that many seiyuus don’t manage. Needless to say, she’s now one of my all-time favourite voice actresses.

The thing that ultimately sells the show and made it such a memorable experience for me is that it tells a story with heart; every moment of the show radiates with an aura of originality, and one can see that it wasn’t produced just to sell - it’s not trying to appeal to its audience through generic moe or pointless mecha, it’s trying to tell a story. It’s the sort of impression one gets from reading a good book, but one I rarely get from watching anime, and in a sense, that is why this show appealed to me so much; beyond its actual quality it speaks to my inner love for fiction as a product of passionate creativity. To sum up the series, I’ll say that it is the best mahou shoujo (if you care to call it that) series I’ve ever seen. It is dark and dramatic at times, has a thoroughly compelling plot, memorable characters, an exciting plot, and is always great fun to watch. I’m positive that most people won’t agree with me on this, and even I’m surprised at how much I enjoyed the series - if you only like shounen or fanservice: stay away, otherwise, give it a try! read more

Story: 8

Mahou Shoujo Tai Arusu is one of those animes where the storyline can, for the most part keep you intriged and wanting the next episode, as each small episode ends in a cliff hanger for the most part. The story overall in itself is genius, and except for a few things is very likable. So, what isn't likable about the storyline?

The thing about Mahou Shoujo Tai Arusu is that it likes to slam the reader over the head with 'ideas'. For example, there are messages that become apparent in some of the episodes. One is that we depend to much on technollogy. The other is that evoulution is true, which might upset people who either refuse to believe it, or hate it when it isn't treated like a theory.

And the overall theme is peace instead of violence. The problem with this message, is human nature itself has always had to have a balance of these two. Of course, this is a story where there needs to be a happy ending, so this in a way works.

Art: 7

The art in here is experimental in the style. There is a lot of detail in their, but in the same time, not a lot. For example, there is detail put into the intricate designs of the costumes and clothing, but the hair and other things lack texture, and it isn't blocked in, not to mention that shadow for visual depth is lacking, giving the anime a kind of haunted look.

And some of the techniques don't quite fit. For example, when the characters cry, their tears become really sparkly and look more three dimentional shadow wise then anything else. Other times, one is given a wierd effect as they distort things visualy.

Also, flash back are flash backs, flashing in and out for a few seconds. While this fits with the mood and theme of the anime, it should be warned here... if you run the chance of having siezures, you may not want to watch this anime, even if you might find it delightful.

Sound: 10

The sound was haunting, action packed, and fit the moods as they came and went. The score was beutiful and is one of the highlights of this anime.

Character: 10

Part of the enjoyment of the characters is that, if it isn't am unnamed character, they are given lots of attention to detail on the designs of the characters. The second part of the enjoyment is the depth behind hte characters. Each has a very distinct personality, which actually helps the storyline along, and to go into depth about the characters would spoil the actual story.

Enjoyment: 8

While I rather enjoyied this, there was a point where I had to put down the anime. The main reason is, I got annoyied at the time with Alice's overly positive attitude at that time. However, I met characters that I really liked later on, others that I knew I was meant to hate.

Overall: 7

This isn't going to be for everyone. Some will take one look at the art style and choke. Others will get fed up with Alice's attitude of positiveness, while others will not like things bashed over their head. But it is at least worth watching for a bit to from ones own opinion... read more