Android Ana Maico 2010

After being delighted by this amazing anime series, I had decided to write a review. There were already a few that recommended it, so I forgot about it. However, I've been thinking about Maico a lot since then. It truly is the hiddenest of gems of 90s TV anime.

The episodic nature of the series allows it to have small plot-lines that are quickly forgotten, but there are many continuity details that provide style and character to the story. Also, the stars of the show are definitely the characters, some more than others, and they have stereotypes that you hardly ever see in other animes. ... They are extremely flawed too: angry, lazy, greedy, violent, bullies, anti-social, indifferent, talent-less, egoistic, unhealthy; just very toxic personalities. Maico, on the other hand, is the sweetest and most innocent character ever. The show is very funny too! The format will remind many about the The Office. During the last episodes, some of them take a serious, emotional and sad tone (Evangelion-inspired maybe?)

Art is late 90s but it clearly isn't top quality; it has a sort of amateur doujin feeling to it, which I kind of like as it is representative of its era. Additionally, most of the backgrounds are CG designed, that will definitely remind you of many PS1 games. It's a pretty unique detail. Overall, the popularity and production quality of the real-life show is ironically similar to the radio show that they work at.

I usually don't write about the music in animes, but both the OP and ED feel surprisingly nostalgic for some reason.

I'm not a huge fan of TV anime; I prefer OVAs by far, but Maico and the cast managed to be entertaining enough for 24 episodes. Only one or two felt somewhat boring, but that happens in every show ever.

Android Ana Maico 2010 is another of those odd little shows that I seem to have a talent for finding. The anime is based on the Maico 2010 manga series by Toshimitsu Shimizu (who also wrote the original manga for 801 T.T.S. Airbats and Red Prowling Devil), which ran in Young King Ours magazine from 1997 to 1998. The anime was aired on WOWOWs Anime Complex omnibus block alongside The Adventures of the Mini Godesses and Neoranga from April to Septemeber 1998.

The story is very simple. Japanese radio is on the decline, so the various stations are trying to think of new and exciting methods ... to get people to tune in. Enter Maico, Japan's newest radio DJ - with a big difference. Maico is unlike other DJs as she is a state-of-the-art android, and her first appearance in the anime makes this fact very clear.

As Maico is a very new android though, she has had very little contact with humans. Because of this she doesn't understand concepts like love and hate, friendship, rivalry, etc. Her work as a DJ has the dual purpose of boosting ratings and hopefully bringing her one step closer to being human. Also, because she's very new, she has no knowledge of how a radio show is produced.

The story follows an episodic format for the most part, something which works well with this type of show. Many of the episodes are fairly lighthearted, and it's only the last few episodes that stray from this format, being more serious in tone, and following on from each other.

The art for Android Ana Maico 2010 is very derivative of it's manga predecessor, and rather dated at that. The character designs definitely show their age in comparison with some of the more "realistic" designs we see today. Animation is also fairly mediocre, and is sometimes jerky and uneven. Also, because almost all of the show takes place in a radio studio, the animators never really got a chance to show what they could do.

Sound is another area where the series shows it's age. Unlike the animation though, the fact that the series is about a radio show actually helps with the sound, especially as the various effects and noises used in the radio broadcast need to be inckuded in the anime.

There's not much to say about characters. The only real character worth mentioning is Maico, as the rest of the cast were no more than a collection of glorified side characters. However, the cast as a whole were enjoyable enough, especially with their various antics and shenanigans.

As I said at the start, Maico is a bit of an odd show, but it's not a bad one. It does fall short in comparison to the manga, as a lot of the more serious elements were purposely removed (Maico originally being built as a sex doll for example, never gets mentioned in the anime). It's a quirky little series that may or may not appeal to people, but your enjoyment of the show will probably depend on how seriously you take it.

it was fine, characters were average, graphic weren't great, story or what of a story they had played out decent. i mostly like the "emotional" scenes with comedy added in the background. although how the director kept abusing who i think is the main got on my nerves, especially with how he just accepted it.


ART: very bland, did not suit the time frame it came out in.


STORY: it was just about a radio show getting a robotic announcer to help their show, not much of a plot. few episodic plots that were decent.


CHARACTERS: characters shined, but only at certain time. most times they were written ... as cliche, the wussy mc who cant do anything, all loving mistake making android, always pissed off abusive director, a writer who gets off on peoples despair ( not focused on much.)


SPOILER: the death scene near the end didn't make me feel a thing, no connection to the character, it was like they didn't need him.

SOUND: i never really notice this enough to judge, all i can say is maicos voice got annoying. apart from that all fine.


ENJOYMENT: i enjoyed some episode, others were fine. not a bad watch but dont expect amazing comedy, story or romance. the comedy is hit or miss, the story is on directional and there is no romance, which i liked, instead of having it focus on the androids love life.