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Suddenly Princess is a bizarre, gorgeous little 90s OVA about a magical princess obsessed with pudding and her motley crew of friends as they adventure through the intriguing world they inhabit. It's one of those titles that goes to show that anime as a medium is littered with countless little gems that go completely unnoticed, nearly forgotten by time and certainly forgotten by the majority of modern audiences. Beginning with the story, it's a charming setup where a quirky, high-energy magical girl princess gets accidentally transported across the continent, and her and her friends have to find their way back by foot, encountering mysterious strangers ... and enigmatic towns, helping out with their various problems along the way, often by accident. These episodes are largely self-contained, and exist as their own adventures in the vague context of heading back home. I love this format, as it allows the rich worldbuilding to really shine as a main event all its own. The comedy is generally pretty funny, but some of the jokes occasionally fail to exactly land in quite the right way. Meanwhile, I must emphasize here, above all, that while the world of Suddenly Princess could have definitely been treated as an afterthought, it absolutely wasn't. It is genuinely rich and interesting, feeling like a uniquely creative world all its own that really makes you want to explore all it has got to offer. It doesn't feel shallow, or like a justification for the story at hand, but rather like it exists on its own, enveloping the journey within, which is broadly lighthearted, silly, and comedic. This brings me to the art, which is the strongest aspect of Suddenly Princess. The world is lavishly detailed, from the masterful character designs, to the extravagantly colored backgrounds, to the architecture in every settled area. It elevates what should be a throwaway slapstick comedy to an honestly breathtaking snapshot of 90s anime and the aesthetics that entails. The characters are fun, and while not exactly groundbreaking they are more than simple archetypes, fulfilling their role in the story and its comedy flawlessly. Of them, my favorites have got to be our main heroine the princess Lapis, and her sworn enemy Topaz. Lapis is the perfect main character for this kind of anime, and manages to be a strong driving force for much of the comedy within it, while Topaz is her perfect villain, goofy in her own right while managing to contrast Lapis in such a way that a solid amount of all the comedy that does take place within Suddenly Princess is generated by their ridiculous rivalry. Overall, Suddenly Princess is a fun 90s comedy romp, while also being a fantastic study into 90s fantasy anime and the art that entails. When coupled with its brevity, which I feel is perfect for this anime and essential to preserving its punch, this is a title which is easy for me to recommend.

Ninja Cadets is an obscure, passionate, action-packed 90s OVA that I believe punches far above its weight. Beginning with the story, it's a pretty simple setup, with a group of young aspiring ninja students looking to infiltrate the castle which was once the base of operations for their clan, and retrieve magic scrolls from its possession, all while they are pursued by a band of evildoers. The story has strong bones, and provides the perfect structure within which all the action can unfold. It does a great job of investing you in the world and its characters, and therefore the story, pretty much right away. ... The strongest aspect of Ninja Cadets, however, is the art. Not only is it a perfect example of 90s anime, it is a perfect example of 90s anime that's done really well. The backgrounds are colorful and provide a sense of depth, the character designs are visually intriguing and aesthetic, the animation is fluid and dovetails nicely with the fight choreography, which is itself downright badass. I love the way everything looks in this art style, but especially the fights, specifically when there's a monster involved. The monster designs are otherworldly, and capture this mystic sense of being, either through a sense of scale or unfamiliarity. They're not just reskins of common monster tropes, but rather unique imaginings, to the point where when you see one for the first time it's not instantly clear what exactly you're looking at until it dawns on you, which makes their reveal all the more enthralling. Ninja Cadets has some of the best monster designs I've seen in anime, to be honest, and that really is an unexpected strength. The sound is a close second, with an awesome OST consisting of high-energy 90s electronic music that somehow doesn't feel out of place in this anime. It slowly builds tension with the gradual addition of new elements throughout a given scene, and before you know it, the scene is backed by a complex and riveting musical accompaniment, elevating the action to the next level. Furthermore, the sounds of life are rich and abundant, be it the quiet sloshing of water, the creaking of floorboards, or the metallic clashing of blade against blade. The characters are also quite good, being themselves quite engaging despite the severely limited time the viewer has to get to know them. They interact in ways which feel realistic, despite their powers or skills, with distinct personalities that contrast against each other very well. Of them, my favorites are Matsuri and Pochi, Matsuri for the persistent comedy she adds to various scenes through her stubborn, competitive nature, while still being a competent and valuable member of the group, and Pochi, for his honest, heroic nature, interesting character design, and especially his actions in episode two, which are extremely cool, and thoroughly badass, though impossible to expand on without spoiling it. An honorable mention goes to Jame, the tall, spindly, evil witch with wild hair who leads the nefarious villains of this OVA, boasting a striking character design and cool, collected Machiavellianism that makes her feel truly sinister. Overall, Ninja Cadets exceeded every expectation I had for it, and the only problem I really have with it is that there Isn't more of it. If this OVA were even 4 or 5 episodes instead of 2, it would have easily gained a score of 8 from me. Regardless, I still absolutely recommend this gorgeous, maverick title.

Psychic Force is a goofy, aimless OVA which poorly adapts an arcade fighting game of the same name. It feels like a stereotype of what your average non-otaku in the 90s thought anime was like, with an incomprehensible plot, vaguely defined powers, and meandering, melodramatic dialogue. Beginning with the story, it is a total mess. Why anything happens the way it does is almost totally unexplained, and the time skips are downright jarring. Expanding on this, the pacing as a whole is all off, with sudden smash cuts between certain scenes, a first episode which is almost rabidly impatient to get to where its going, ... and a second episode which is slow and ponderous in a way that a 2 episode OVA cannot afford to be. It also makes heavy use of lazy kids TV-tier messaging in lieu of forging legitimate conflict. The whole thing, from the afterthought of a plot to the weird dialogue, felt as though I was watching some American cartoon designed to hawk a failing toy line. The art is the strongest point of this anime, but that's relative. It looks passable, meeting all standards of quality for the time, but that's not really saying much. To say that it looks unremarkable is really just the bare minimum an anime can offer. The sound is broadly generic, and at times quite bad. The sounds of life are sparse and artificial, the soundtrack is forgettable, and the voice work is perhaps some of the worst I've heard. Since Psychic Force, for the most part, takes place in the United States, I decided to watch the dub. However, this dub is weird, amateurish, and at times unintentionally hilarious. It is an archetypal example of a bad dub, with poorly delivered lines coming from people who sound as though they were just brought in to the studio off the street or something. The characters are also paper thin, and I don't really like any of them. I guess the 'strongest' characters are the main two, though, I suppose 'least weak' would be a better word to describe them, because they're still pretty bad. These are the American farm boy with ridiculous hair, Burn, and the melodramatic ice psychic with the anticlimactic name, Kieth. Kieth, by the way, is a name you'll probably get sick of by the end, because a solid quarter of Burn's dialogue is just some variation of him saying 'Kieth'. Overall, Psychic Force is a real mess of an OVA that does its source material no favors. Bland, confusing, and forgettable.

Elf Princess Rane is a vanishingly brief, well-produced, confused little mid-90s OVA. It has all the visual acuity and charm one expects from both the era and the format, but none of the narrative clarity that allows the abundant comedy to really shine through. Beginning with the story, it is essentially nonexistent outside of the setup. Go is an eccentric treasure hunter, and along with his childhood friend Mari, they stumble upon a tiny magic elf called Rane, who is on a quest to discover some artifact known as the four hearts. Beyond this setup, it is simply a chaotic mess. Two rival organizations, the ... Fire Department and Yumenotaka, both staffed by two sisters of a set of identical triplets, are also somehow involved with Go's pursuit of riches and all the elf magic, but exactly how is not exactly clear. There's also this trend of certain characters speaking complete and total gibberish, a language only those who clandestinely speak it understand. This is exemplified by Zenshuuin, a blue-haired eccentric and Feng Sui master who has perhaps more than 50% of his dialogue in this tongue. Anyway, individual moments of slapstick comedy are well-executed, but that's more thanks to the art than any aspect of the story or its writing. Speaking of the art, it is the strong point of this OVA by a mile. It looks fantastic, with smooth, lively animation that is bursting with color, and character designs which strike a balance between visual appeal and creative flare. The art style really brings everything to life, from the detailed machines to the sheer expressiveness of the characters which live within the world itself. The sound is a close second to the art, with impressive, fast-paced voice acting with an especially wide range of temperaments, though that feels almost wasted on a one-off comedy which is pretty much only in one emotional gear the entire time. The characters are solid, meeting all standards of quality for the time, and of the cast the main duo, Go and Mari, are my favorites, mostly due to their contrast and interactions with their respective magical guests. Overall, Elf Princess Rane is fun, but it leaves a lot of its potential on the table, resulting in an experience which is passingly entertaining for its total run of just under an hour. Give it a shot if you want to see a relatively unknown comedy OVA, or if you're really into this subgenre of 90s anime, but even then, there are better examples out there.

I've heard it said that anime is often just an advertisement for the media it's adapting, be that a manga, light novel, or visual novel. I don't agree with that take all that much, but Suki desu Suzuki-kun!! takes this phenomenon to the next level. While you can tell there's something there, at the very least a passable romance plot, the execution of this anime is simply just terrible. From what I can tell, the manga itself isn't bad at all, and even has somewhat of a beloved status among its fans, so it's not what's being adapted that's the problem, it's the adaptation itself. ... It is choppy, confused, and generally feels very, very cheap. The only excuse I can see for this being played anywhere is at a store which is selling the manga, and even that might hurt sales. beginning with the story, the audience is presented with little snippets and vignettes in the first episode which establish the main cast, featuring a truly bizarre meta commentary by the characters on their own scenes before and after they play. The second episode is an even more bizarre vignette featuring a delusional premise and fight scene with the world's most embarrassing gang of high schoolers who accost our protagonists. It is all handled very poorly, and feels like a soulless advertisement for the manga. The art is broadly terrible, with awkward, stiff animation, atrocious CG, and even horrendous, low-quality scans of the manga itself. The only halfway redeeming aspect is the character design, but that credit should go to the manga, not this empty husk of an anime. The sound just barely meets all standards of quality, with sound effects and a soundtrack which feel corporate and artificial, though the OP in the second episode is pretty catchy. The characters are the strongest part of this anime, but once again, this credit should go to the manga. In the anime itself, they are weird, stiff caricatures of full characters, featuring bizarre dialogue and overreactions which don't often make much sense at all. At the very least their archetypes have been conveyed, which I suppose is the least you could ask from an ad. Of the cast, Hoshino and Shinobu are perhaps the least terrible. Overall, Suki desu Suzuki-kun!! shouldn't exist. It is an insult to the source material, a manga I am not even vaguely familiar with at the time of this review. It's just obvious that's the case because of how bad it is. It's almost like they tricked the mangaka into giving this the green light or something. It feels like a tax write-off, a scam. In any case, it's clear the people behind this anime didn't really care about how the finished product would turn out, and that is abundantly clear from start to finish in its mercifully brief run.

Escha Chron feels like an orphan. It is this cute, lonely little OVA with no discernible attachments to any other property or format. It starts in what feels like the very middle of an interesting story with a strong, unique premise, providing very little context and hardly bothering at all with introductions. An experience which is, out of context, just a relaxing CGDGT anime, but in context, absolutely bizarre. My personal theory is that Escha Crhon is an anime which was cancelled early in its production cycle, and instead of trashing what they already had, they released it in the form of the standalone OVA ... we see today. In this way, it's an experience which stands out on its own as something that is nice but feels almost unfair to review, as it feels unfinished. Beginning with the story, it is easily the strongest aspect of this show. The idea of our two protagonists from a foreboding yet somehow cozy post-apocalyptic future innocently exploring the world of today, amazed at the simplest of its delights and pleasures, makes for a formula with a lot of potential mileage and a distinctly calming effect on the soul. However, it is lacking necessary context, and the pacing is all off. I kept checking to see if I was indeed watching the first episode or not, since it really does just drop you in the middle of it all with no real explanation. The art is strong, with a cozy, playful atmosphere, bolstered by the clean, colorful art direction and personable character design. The sound is good, meeting all standards of quality. The characters are also fine, simply meeting the standards which the story demands of them. Of them, my favorites are of course the main duo, Escha and Chron. Even though they don't get a ton of time to develop, what we do see establishes that their connection is a complimentary one, and would have continued to drive the story forward if the anime had continued. Overall, Escha Chron is a nice, relaxing experience, but is regardless woefully incomplete. I feel like if it had been given its due as a full anime, it would have made it much higher up on my list.

Dragon Half is a creative, self-aware, raucously funny parody of 90s anime and all its stereotypes, complete with complicated fantasy setting, slimes, dragon girls, and magic. It handles itself with the exact amount of seriousness it ought to- none at all. It is archetypal of the mindless good time that many of these tiny OVAs had on offer during that era. Beginning with the story, it's a simple setup that makes sure not to get in the way of the comedy. Mink, a girl who's half dragon, and her two friends, are under attack by a fat oaf of a king and his hapless henchmen, ... whose ridiculous and self-absorbed plans always fall through. I'll call the story the strongest part of the anime, since the comedy is just so hilariously well-written. With such a short total runtime, they make sure not to waste a moment when it comes to making you laugh, be it through physical comedy, ridiculous gags, or writing which scathingly parodies anime of the era, especially fantasy adventure stories, while still remaining eager and independent as its own thing. Dragon Half, in this way, can be enjoyed both for what it is and what it's making fun of. In short, I cannot stress just how funny it is throughout- the comedy holds up fantastically well, even to this day. The art is unique and distinctive, with a fun, playful style which changes on a dime. This sometimes proves to be a boon for the prominent and well-executed physical comedy, but other times is a little jarring. Though, the character designs are great throughout, managing to be unique yet referential to the popular styles they're poking fun at. The sound is really great, with strong, characteristic voice work and a soundtrack that is wacky, energetic, catchy, and emblematic of an early 90s OVA. Copious use of synthesizer paired with creative musical direction combines to form a fun, carefree, and memorable soundtrack, adding to the generally lighthearted tone of the anime as a whole. The characters are also pretty good, save for Mink's dad, who comes off as flat and unfunny. He doesn't get much screentime, but in a show which doesn't have that much screentime to begin with, it is still suboptimal. Of the otherwise hilarious cast, my favorites are definitely Rosario and Damaramu, both for the same reason- they absolutely nail the inept henchman schitck. Rosario's constant attempts at being a mysterious mastermind and Damaramu's regular failures to live up to his boastful warrior persona mirror each other in their hilarity, and watching just how bad they crash and burn is probably one of the best parts of the show. Overall, while it isn't perfect, Dragon Half is a blast of an OVA, and deserves to have more episodes than it does.

Labyrinth of Flames is horny, goofy, and funny as hell, proudly leaning into anime's most ridiculous tropes from start to finish. However, it does so in a way which preserves its unique little world as something all its own, not feeling like carbon-copy ecchi slop that's so common in the medium. Beginning with the story, Labyrinth of Flames finds itself following in the footsteps of the inimitable Golden Boy, with an oblivious yet optimistic horndog of a protagonist surrounded by beautiful women getting wrapped up into hijinks of a nature far beyond his comprehension, and sometimes more serious than he is made to handle. In ... this way, Labyrinth of Flames does well, delivering regular laughs, and crafting a short tale that is simultaneously eager and self-aware. It excels in laying on the stupid, lowbrow humor, while not losing itself in it. The best part of the writing is how they harp on Galan, and make frequent jokes referencing the fact he's Russian. However, it isn't perfect. In a show like this, it has to absolutely nail the execution, and for the most part it does. However, there are moments where the comedy falls flat, and certain gags which don't land, and when you only have 2 episodes there's only so much room for error. Most of these have to do with jokes surrounding the father, Shigemitsu, who I believe was intended to be much funnier than he was, but I'll get to that later. The art is the strong point of this anime, wreathed in that characteristic warmth and detail which 90s anime is known for, despite being released in the year 2000. Pretty much everything about it is fantastic, from the vibrant use of color, to the character design, and seamless execution of visual gags. I can't emphasize enough how beautiful the art is, and how much it adds to the type of comedy this show is trying to pull off. I also must mention that, while this is an ecchi anime, complete with the frequent use of low camera angles, it's actually way more tame than you'd expect. It only just earns that title, to be honest. I'm not making a judgement on that one way or the other, it's just a creative decision I wasn't expecting. The sound is great, with fantastic voice acting, sounds of life, and music. The soundtrack is particularly notable for its Russian musical motifs, and the bold use of 'Kalinka' as the ED song, which is a wild choice when contrasted with the slow panning shots of scantily clad anime women, adding an almost surreal element to the comedy. The characters are notably stronger than one would typically expect in an ecchi, and I think this is part of why the whole thing feels so put together. All the characters have their own quirks, even the myriad anime girls who are usually only there to be sexy in your typical ecchi. Kasumi is a maid in a short-skirted uniform, but she's also awkward and literally anemic, leaning on an IV stand nearly the entire show. Natsu is the rich heiress of her influential family, but she also has rage issues and often takes matters into her own hands. Galan is our oblivious Russian protagonist as mentioned earlier, but he's also a massive weeb, who wants nothing more than to be a real life samurai. These descriptions only scratch the surface, but they're not all great. Specifically Natsu's father, Shigemitsu, who comes off as a one-note, run-of-the-mill pervert, with no other crazy trait about him. Everybody else has really funny contrasting traits, so he comes off as one-note, and takes the wind out the sails of certain scenes he's in. Of the cast, my favorites are Kasumi, for her hilariously unique character archetype as the anemic yet obsessive maid, and Galan, as a well-written goofball protagonist who fits perfectly as the leading man for this kind of story. Overall, Labyrinth of Fire is lovable garbage, and though it does have some unmistakable flaws, it features a much better execution than one would expect going in, which betrays a level of creativity and dedication that elevates this title above its comparable peers in the ecchi genre.

au Future Laboratory is a brief, technically impressive ONA with a unique premise that is worthy of a much longer run. Beginning with the story, it covers the tale of a laboratory which has developed a means of communicating with the future, and its experience as a victim of corporate espionage. Solid, uncomplicated, and unique, the story has good pacing for how short it is and is an interesting experience throughout. Though, this brevity does leave the whole thing feeling a little incomplete, even though the ending itself I feel is generally satisfying. The art is this anime's strong suit, which is very impressive both ... for how short it is and the relative obscurity in which it stands. The animation is clean and fluid, the character and tech design interesting and detailed, and the overall aesthetic both believable and just futuristic enough to feel advanced in a grounded way. In short, it is very pretty to look at. The sound is solid, meeting all standards of quality. This is also true for the characters, and though the total runtime isn't long enough for any them to get great development, the main duo of Kido and Mizue are my favorites among the cast for their believable working relationship and contrasting friendship. Overall, au Future Laboratory is a neat, impressive little experience, but it is bewildering that this ONA hasn't been given a full season run, and isn't an adaptation of something else like a manga or light novel. It just exists, on its own, in a vacuum, without any further action on it or extrapolation on its story. It's almost like it exists as a demonstration of a team's animation or storyboarding skill. In this way, it feels reminiscent of many much older OVAs from the 80s and 90s, which put out a brief experience like this as the beginning and end of the project. I'm not complaining here, as even though I would watch a fully realized version of this anime, they are using a formula which allows for creative original ideas like this, which would otherwise perhaps be passed over for production in many cases, to exist at all. It's just that I haven't really seen this strategy used by major studios since the early 2000s, and that alone would be enough to make this a thoroughly unique title. Give it a watch, as it is more than worth the little time needed to do so.

Gestalt is one of those myriad OVAs released in the 90s, titles which often get forgotten despite a certain level of creativity and passion which deserves some recognition, even for all the problems which often beset them. Gestalt embodies this phenomenon, pairing an interesting premise with a nostalgic, if flawed, execution. Beginning with the story, it's a simple fantasy adventure setup, with a distant mystical destination, a mystery, and populated by dragons, dark elves, and sorcerers. I like the story for its creative worldbuilding, which has its own sense of identity, while also drawing on many of the tropes which give many 90s anime that ... sense of warmth and adventure. However, it does feel as though the viewer is dropped in right at the middle of the story, missing serious context. As a result, the wider story is generally lacking the weight needed to make the viewer really care about it. The art, meanwhile, is simultaneously the strongest and weakest aspect of this anime. The art direction, creature design, and architectural detailing, altogether lends itself to the construction of a fascinating world which feels eminently explorable, driven by the passion and creativity often on display in titles of this era. It is this aspect that really carries the rest of the anime for me. However, the character design is uninspired, the animation is often pretty stifled, and the frequent reuse of animations is both obvious and clumsy. Characters also sometimes suffer from what I term the 'dreaded mask', where facial animation is sorely lacking and dramatic moments fail to play out in facial expressions. This can take the wind right out of a scene that would otherwise be quite engaging. The sound is fine, though it falls behind in a few areas, namely the obnoxious stock sound effects and occasionally awkward line delivery. The characters also meet all standards of quality, managing to develop just enough to feel more than empty puppets for the story to move around. Of them, my favorites are the main duo, Olivier and Ohri, namely for the way in which they fill the gaps in the others' character, keeping each of their glaring flaws from getting in the way of the story. However, I did not like how they developed Ohri later on, towards the very tail end of the 2nd episode. In my opinion, it was a very odd direction to go in. Overall, Gestalt is an intriguing little OVA with a fun world that bleeds 90s fantasy vibes, but fails to stick the landing overall. Give it a watch if you just want to enjoy some light viewing and fun, nostalgic visuals, especially if you're not too bothered about the wider tale being told.