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Unless you've been living under a rock, you're aware that isekai is the biggest trend in anime right now. It's understandable; they can be very creative, with great world building, fascinating characters and designs and you can make your own rules be "whatever" because it's not Earth. You have so much freedom to do what you want.

Choujin/Isekai is an odd creature but it interested me because while I've watched several stories with just one character being summoned to this world (usually male), I've never seen one that takes SEVEN. And the designs and art definitely appealed to me. So I put it on and watched ... five episodes in a row.

We will get this out of the way first:

This show is stupid.

People will tell you it's stupid and they're not wrong, the writing is so poor, one would be insulted to buy into all this BS about all these overpowered teenagers who can pretty much do anything they want to.

It's also trashy. From how the girls dress...to a very uncomfortable assault scene...it's pretty shameless with its fanservice or 'disservice' in some cases. Sitting through episode 4 might be a deal-breaker for you...unless you like hentai. I don't like hentai. At all.

By all rights, I should hate the show. Yet I am just unable to. Why? I kept pondering that reason for myself "indeed why do I keep watching this?" and then I realized the answers quite simple:

"If you are chill with the dumb BS, there's literally something for everyone who likes anime in this".

Yep. That's really all it is. Because the cast is so diverse and each character focuses on a different theme per episode, it works. Also every single type of character is here. Guys who like big boobs? You'll love these; most of the cast is well-endowed. Maybe you hate big boobs? Well there are lolis too. Or maybe you're like me and pretty boys are more your thing. No shortage of those! OR maybe you're into cute furries? Elves? Ninjas? Economics? Politics? Girls with swords?

BOY OH BOY, I'VE GOOD GREAT NEWS FOR YOU.

Choujin/Isekai is so jam-packed with so much to choose from...it's impossible not to find something to like in here. Probably the only fanbase it doesn't cater to are the yaoi/yuri fans. No big loss for me. Then again, the show's barely half over so I could be speaking too soon!

In other words, "the author may not know how to write...but he sure as hell knows how to appeal to a wide audience". And that's the key. I don't think I've ever seen so much variety of...EVERYTHING stuffed into five episodes of anime. Yet...it doesn't really overwhelm me either probably because the main plot is pretty simple; "help the furry folk rebel against the cruel ruler and maybe try to find a way home".

Other merits I need to point out are art and animation. It's gorgeous. Not a single character goes off model and that's impressive because there's SO MANY of them. The furry folk are super adorable and it's fun to watch their ears perk up and tails wag. (I'm a dog person can you tell xD) You really just want to reach into the screen and pet them and you'll for sure want to take one of the children home with you.

The music and voice acting are fine. I feel the OP is a little mismatched because it feels more like a CGDCT OP. I'm more partial to the slower, pretty ED song.

As for the characters...I don't dislike anyone yet...except for the ones you're SUPPOSED to dislike. Then again, you might hate all the Choujin because they're too perfect. xD But like I said, if you can suspend your disbelief, and put away thoughts of "Hey that's not supposed to work THAT way!" they are not unpleasant to watch. Even leaving them out, I'm sure you can find a native character to latch onto and make a waifu/husbando from. (Mine right now is wolf-bishie Elch lol)

Let's sum up:

Stupid writing
Good visuals
Huge variety of characters
Simple story
Lots of tropes from lots of genres


So....yeah, ridiculous as they are, things are just far more interesting with these high school kids around. So I really hope they stay for a while. I'm having a good time.

So I'm just fresh out of the theater that showed this in my hometown. Thank you, Fathom Events.(please lower your prices and extend viewing days lol)

What do you get when you take Hayao Miyazaki, , mix in an equal amount of H.P.Lovecraft, a little bit of Ichigo Marshmallow, and a dash of J.R.R. Tolkein?

You get this masterpiece of fantasy genre, 'Made in Abyss'! This movie is a compilation of the first eight episodes and if you haven't watched the TV series, it is a damn good edit. This is really a perfect way to check it out if you have limited time and I highly ... recommend it.

Story: Without giving too much away, a friend of mine compared this series to One Piece...which had me going "Huh" but once I read some of the OP manga, I totally get what he means now. This story is a grand scale adventure of the most exciting kind. Because it's such a big story, pretty much anything is possible.

"Hey, there's a giant hole in the middle of town that stretches thousands and thousands of meters; let's go jump in it and see what we can find!"

That's the plot. It's so simple yet so brilliant, right?

Art: Breath-takingly gorgeous animation. Especially the backgrounds. There's a ton of creativity here. Tsukushi is a big fan of critters and there are lots and lots of imaginative critters in the abyss. That's where the 'Hiyao Miyazaki' aspect comes in. But Tsukushi isn't copying Miyazaki's style; this is very much his own. Some are adorable and some are terrifyingly hideous and ugly just like the real animal kingdom we come in contact with every day. Which makes it feel all the more real.

The child characters are round-faced and cute. I was in fact surprised that this WASN'T from the artists behind Ichigo Marshmallow because the resemblance is uncanny. And then there are the adults who are almost as unique as the creatures like Ozen and Habo. I especially love Lyza's Valkryie-esque design. It makes her limited screentime very charming.

Sound: If the art falls under 'Scenery Porn', the music most definitely falls under 'Ear Porn'. The score is fantastic and unlike anything you've really heard before. Which was the staff's goal; "we don't want this to sound like it's from just one country. That's too easy to do." So they met with a man from Australia (yes, that's right) and he composed the score. I would love to own the OST of this. There is a vocal song...that doesn't really say anything but it is so beautiful. You'll have to listen for yourself because I can't even describe it. Like....I dunno 'Enya but so much better'?

I haven't watched the dub yet but the Japanese voice actors are top-notch. The children are really cute. Ozen's seiyuu is silky-smooth which makes her feel even MORE intimidating, oddly. And old-school anime fans will be delighted that the narrator and Lyza, Riko's mother are voiced by Maaya Sakamoto (Hitomi from Escaflowne and many other notable 90s anime roles)

Character: This is probably Abyss's 'weakest' part and when I say 'weakest', I only mean 'slightly less fantastic than everything else that is so amazingly good'. Lol So they are STILL very very good. Riko is plucky and brave; basically a walking guidebook to the Abyss. She knows everything the experienced adults of her world know because she's utterly fascinated with the giant hole. ('Riko' in Japanese does mean "clever" and I have a hunch that's why she is named so).
Though Riko is smart, she still pretty naive and physically weak (because she is a 12-year-old girl). She's mischievous and always getting in trouble so she's also fun to watch. Not a lot of time passes between episodes 1-8 (this movie) so she doesn't really...develop or change but in this case, it's not that necessary.

There's also Reg, the super-adorable (he's my favorite ok) maybe-a-robot-maybe-not mysterious little boy who seems to have come up from the Abyss itself and takes on the role of Riko's bodyguard and protector (possibly future love interest because he blushes around Riko a lot and it's freaking cute lol) Reg is the more intriguing of the two because we know next to NOTHING about him and the cast, like the audience is willing to die for the answers.

The lesser characters are either cutely inoffensive, charming, or plain intriguing. Ozen definitely stands out as the most intriguing among the adults. But I'd also like to know more about Lyza. And though he has only a tiny role, I'm fond of Jirou. But he's just that type of anime guy I go for. *laughs*

Enjoyment/ Overall: .....as if you couldn't tell from everything above, I REALLY enjoy this series a lot. It's vastly entertaining and will fill you with a sense of childlike wonder.
However...
This is NOT for children. Oh I know it looks innocent enough with how cute everyone is but don't be fooled; this show is the POSTER CHILD of the phrase 'Don't judge a book by its cover'. You see, as Riko and Reg venture further down into the Abyss, the plot grows darker with each layer. The Abyss is dangerous and Tsukushi wants everyone to know it and experience it. And experience it, we do. This first movie is just the TIP of the disturbing iceberg. If you're planning on continuing to movie two, BRACE YOURSELF.

One last thing: There are...some odd innuendo jokes going on with the young characters and you WILL probably pick up on lolicon undertones. Some people who have watched this are rather disturbed by it. But I do think it'd be a shame to forfeit this amazing title just because of small scenes like that. There's just so much more to partake in.

Hime is a heroine with a seemingly impossible goal: become a super star seiyuu (voice actor) even though she has the most "uncute" voice ever, enough to sound like a boy. Or is that her strength? She doesn't know. All she does know is that she has a tough road ahead of her and she's surrounded by much more talented people. But she soon learns that being talented does not a perfect human being make.....along with some pretty other valuable life lessons....

Now THIS is how you write good shoujo manga.

It's fluffy and cute. There is drama...but it's not like "hey, this can be solved if ... we just TALK", no, it is more complicated than that....also, the said drama doesn't revolve around romance all that much either but rather between parents and children, the expectations both put on each other, and the brutal world of show biz.

Story: 8

I feel it's quite refreshing and not so typical.
This is the first shoujo manga I've read that focuses almost entirely on just voice acting (or other things related to the anime industry) and I'm really a sucker for stuff like this. Whether it's been done before or not, I don't know....nor do I really care because it's done pretty well here.
So why the 8? Well, the first few volumes start off a little slow, then it really picks up mid-series, (Senri's backstory is hands-down, the best arc) and had it gone for 13 volumes instead of 12, it could have finished REALLY strongly. But the ending.....I am disappoint. It feels rushed...like Minami was forced to hurry up and close it off with a time skip. I am NEVER a fan of that....dammit, I wanted to see what happened in between!
Still.....
it's good.

Art: 7

The art is....a bit off sometimes. Minami definitely needs to work on her proportions because sometimes heads look WAY too tiny and the limbs can look too long. Think XXXholic anime but not NEARLY as bad. XD While it's a little distracting, the most important stuff (to me anyway) is how the faces and expressions are drawn and yes, THOSE are good. The girls? They're cute. The boys? They are [i]H-O-T[/i] ♥ Though sometimes Senri and Mizuki look very similar so that can get a little confusing. But a lot of manga-ka have that problem so I can't beat up Minami too much.

Characters: 10

This is the most important thing for me to get attached to manga and Minami totally delivers. Their development is [i]wonderful.[/i] I was always rooting for Hime and squealing over Senri. I was always sympathizing with Hime and with Senri (dear God, SENRI THO ♥) And I was always being angry with their SHITTY MOTHERS....WHO MAKE ME SO ANGRY.....AJF;LDJF;LJF;LDJF;LADJF.
Yeah, both of their mothers are horrible. I won't go into it much because SPOILERS. Hime's mom pissed me off the most. She really treats her daughter like crap and the infuriating part is Hime never talks back to her or tells her she's wrong for saying such awful things. A mother is supposed to love her child UNCONDITIONALLY no matter what. This bitch follows no such rule and Hime never even did ANYTHING that awful to deserve such abuse in the first place! Fortunately she doesn't get much "page time" (like screentime, get it? haha) so I didn't spend the whole manga being angry at her.

Other characters (aside from Mizuki, whom I personally didn't like and Yamada whom I did) kinda get shoved aside to background ones once the plot tying Hime, Senri, and Sakura together thickens....but this feels pretty natural for the story. Others may find it odd....but it was necessary. And they do get their own backstories and develop a little bit too before Minami gets them out of the way.

Enjoyment: 9

Not a complete 10 because the ending did disappoint me a bit. But I would immediately read this again. I squealed and exclaimed a lot. It made me happy, it made me sad, it pissed me off, it excited me, it touched me; it did pretty much everything a good fictional work is supposed to do and I absolutely recommend it as a "good fictional work".

I'm surprised this is getting reviews as high as 8. Though being a die-hard Full Moon Wo Sagashite fan, thus die-hard shinigami fan, I gave a read out of curiousity.

Story: It is hard to for me to resist a story with a plotline such as this....but the problem is, it's WAY too rushed. The part that's the most rushed is the whole love triangle. Girl likes boy (and that's all we really know about her, besides that she is an airhead who is kind) boy likes girl back (and that's all we know about HIM) and then the shinigami boy begins to like girl too ... because.....she's the main character.
Yes, that's all it feels like. She's the main character, thus he must like her. She sees him crying, they have ONE friendly conversation....and then he is supposed to be in love with her. So in "love" that he needs to go after her boyfriend out of jealousy and then stop caring about his own well-being.
After ONE conversation over the matter of a WEEK!?
*sigh* This doesn't work for me. Sure, it's only two volumes...but that's not a good excuse to rush the triangle. I've read ONESHOTS that are more convincing than this.
The premise is fine but the execution is poor. Very poor. Did I mention that we aren't even given a reason to why she can see him....she just can?

Art: Oh boy. I've read SO much shoujo....but Mimori Ao's character art is.....probably one of the worst I've ever laid eyes on. Her SD/"chibis" are fine, as the comical expressions (they are indeed cute enough) but when the scene is serious and she draws the faces and bodies in that "normal" way, they are really really unappealing. The lizard noses, the big under-lashes, and the thick bottom lips all combined in one face just look so.....ugly. o_O

Character: If you want characters you're really going to care about and relate to....and root for.....this isn't the manga for ya. There's nothing to Ayumi, the heroine. There's nothing to her boyfriend. The only one who gets development is Shiro and his doesn't make a whole lot of sense and it happens too quickly and it's also too much.

Enjoyment: I dunno if I can say I enjoyed it...though it was hard to stop reading it. Like I said, it's the premise that hooked me. If the art was anything decent, I know I would have enjoyed it a bit more.

Surreal. Dreamy. Tragic. Breath-takingly beautiful.

I had put off finishing Air TV for years on end (and shame on me!) because the movie really really depressed me....and I really didn't want to feel like that again until I had a good chunk of time off from work and social events so I could wallow in my grief in peace.

But I was wrong. Air TV is practically soothing compared to the tragedy of the movie. (The movie is not bad by any means but the ending is very painful, emotionally.)

[b]Story[/b]: It has a 9 because tbh I didn't care that much about Kano and Hijiri's story, as ... they're my least favorites. I'm just shallow like that. :) ALL the other stories I really liked. They had my full attention and I remember skipping the ending quite a few times to hurry and get to the next episode. (I watched this for six hours in one sitting and it did not feel that way at all!)
Others who have not played the game or are not familiar with Key's way of story-telling might be put off or confused. Certain events will raise questions...but if you are patient and give your full attention, the answers will be revealed to you in time. The most important thing is: [b]Air is not told logically, it is told like how the best dreams are manifested.[/b]

[b]Art[/b] Oh my lord; the [i]art[/i]. Air by itself is a work of art; probably the most romantic of its kind. The characters? Adorable. The scenery? Gorgeous. The animation? Even more so.
Not [i]everyone[/i] will like the female character art; I won't lie. It's unique but the girls' faces may take some getting used to. Yukito, the male protagonist is bishounen perfect in the best example I can think of: pretty golden eyes and silver-haired, yet retains all his manliness so male viewers won't feel annoyed. I read in one of the Air artbooks that Key felt this was of utmost importance. *laughs* Yes, indeed!
As for the girls, sometimes they look very cute and sometimes you may find yourself wishing that their noses were just a [i]little[/i] bit further down from their eyes. It's a minor thing though; their cute antics with their cute voices are sure to win you over soon enough. The long, Rapunzel hair on many of the girls, [i]especially Misuzu[/i] is well-worth mentioning; the way it [i]flows[/i]........boy am I jealous. XD
The backgrounds and scenery are full of beautiful, romantic visuals: stars, sunsets, sparkling oceans, and white cloud-filled brilliant blue summer skies. You could just gaze at them for hours......the way Misuzu the title heroine does. :)

[b]Sound[/b] Outstanding. The theme of Air is the sky and flight and I honestly don't think the opening theme could have captured this more precisely. I've listened to it over and over. Whoever composed it is a freaking genius. Lia's graceful vocals are most appropriate.
The seiyuu are all fantastic. Tomoko takes Misuzu's cuteness and ups it about five more notches. Daisuke is great as Yukito. I really liked Kanna's seiyuu as well; her way of speaking traditional, very old Japanese is quite charming as is Haruko's heavy Osakan accent.

[b]Character[/b] This gets 10 for the mainest of the main characters because I just love them that much. This includes Misuzu and Yukito for the top two spots, followed by Haruko and the main three from the feudal era. I adore Misuzu; she's the epitome of moe. I don't think you'll meet another moe heroine who can steal your heart faster than Kamio Misuzu. Maybe I'm biased...but look, she's popular for a reason. *laugh*
I absolutely love Yukito too. Level-headed and mature (most of the time) he's just the perfect counterpart to Misuzu's cute, childish eccentricities and this makes nearly every scene of their interaction visual gold. Even from just their first meeting, you never want them to be apart. Misuzu's relationship with Haruko is heart-breaking and heart-warming at the same time....and you don't want them to be apart either.
Ryuya, Kanna, and Uraha are just plain fun. I enjoyed watching them far far more than I thought I would! There are some great comical moments...which is really nice because sometimes you need a break from the heavy themes of the present story. And it DOES get heavy. If you're looking for something light-hearted with cute love triangles, look elsewhere. Air isn't one of those; though it might fool you into thinking otherwise with the first two episodes.
[b]Brace yourself.[/b]

[b]Enjoyment/Overall[/b]
Are you a romantic? Do you like to dream? Do you like to see magical happenings with symbolic explanations and miracles and spiritual themes?
If yes, [b]Air is absolutely for you.[/b] It's very special to me and will remain in my top favorites for years to come.

.......let's get one thing straight.

Shoujo is my favorite demographic.
Fantasy and Romance are my favorite genres.

But Mamotte Lollipop is one of the absolute worst series I have ever seen even though it should totally be my thing.

"LAZY".
That's the main word that comes to mind to describe this show. It is so lazy. ZERO effort was put into this. I'll elaborate:

Story: The story is rather stupid. You already read the summary, yeah? It seems like one that can be so easily solved like "why not just do this" but it's like the characters are too dumb to suggest that. Don't get me started on the script and ... dialogue. I swear to God, a TEN-YEAR-OLD could do a better job. The two boys repeat the same lines over and over. That's fine for spells and speeches and things of that sort but no, the repetitive dialogue is more like something they keep saying because the writers don't care enough to think of what else they might say. It is PAINFUL.

Art: It's based on a manga that I've read which is...well, it's just okay. Mediocre, I guess. The MANGA art is not very good. The faces look so squashy and in the side profiles, the noses and eyes are hideously positioned. So....the show didn't have much to work with....but somehow it made the characters look even worse. Nina herself looks like....an alien. I don't know. The eyes are totally messed up and I LOVE big eyes! :(
That's not the most offensive thing about the art though.
IT'S CHEAP. So cheap. They reuse animation over again-DON'T even bother editing it if the characters are wearing DIFFERENT CLOTHES. That's right. That hits an all time low for me. I lost any lingering respect at that moment.

Sound: Haha.....you might hate me for this but as a lover of delightfully obnoxious high-pitched J-POP, I LIKE the opening song. Again, the lyrics are childish and dumb like "it's okay to be indecisive in love" oh really? ANIME FANS HATE THAT. But it's catchy enough. The ending theme is meh. I can't even remember how it goes.

Character: Good god....Ichi is the only likable character. Nina the heroine is a f*cking idiot who takes "idiot" to a whole new level. "All these bad people are after me so I will fight with my protectors and then RUN AWAY". Like that's all she does. And she doesn't learn. She does it over and over and over. Zero is an idiot too. The other characters....yeah, I don't even really care. The backstory of the little cousins is kinda cute...but it's not worth sitting through this crappy show just for them.

Overall, I do not enjoy this anime. Five-year-old girls might....but just because something is aimed at children doesn't excuse it to be crappy. Five-year-old girls also enjoy Sailormoon and Disney Princess movies and those are classic and loved by all because the creators RESPECT their audience.

Mamotte Lollipop does not respect you. In the slightest. I was actually offended by how bad it was. If I was Michiyo, (the manga-ka) I'd be crying to see my work turned into......whatever this is.
Now Michiyo has a few other manga that are WAY better than this; if you like shoujo, do check them out and hope to high heaven that if any more get adapted it will be done by a studio that gives a crap.

I do not understand why this terrible series is so damn popular (though I say the same thing about Twilight too) and just when you think THAT story couldn't be made to be more misogynistic than it is, Kyou, Koi Wo Hajimemasu will unpleasantly surprise you. This is bad as Mayu-f*cking-Shinjo's works. In fact, I will be amazed if the author of this garbage didn't EXCHANGE WRITING NOTES with Shinjo, let alone know her They'd probably be best friends! Yes, I imagine it would go something like this:

Minami Kanan: Hello! I love your work! Your men are so hot. God, asshole rapists sure do ... turn me on!

Mayu Shinjo: Oh yes!! They are the best! RAPE IS LOVE! I love your work as well! Horrible men are beautiful! They are so perfect too...like GODS! They should be the only sex in this world....that's what I've always believed.

Kanan: LOL! I know....women are so STUPID! All they do is cry! They belong in the kitchen for all eternity!!

Shinjo: Like TOTALLY!! I wish I'd been born a man. :(

Yeeeeeah.

Art: The artwork is nothing spectacular. It's much like the mediocre style of shoujo series that remain that: mediocre. But to call this series as a whole "mediocre" is far too much of a compliment.

Character: This is the part that will probably make you bash your head against the wall...if you were holding high expectations. Because shoujo manga in general really does characters right when it tries.

But this manga doesn't try. Not at all. Neither main character is likable. The heroine is a doormat who puts 1+1 together and ends up with "purple". The "love interest" is an abusive jerk who makes the childish "bad boys" of the more family-appropriate shoujo series look like saints, BEFORE their character development. He's perverted, he's a bully, he's mean. I don't mean as in name-calling or playing impish pranks or tsundere-pretending that he doesn't care (when he clearly does)
I mean "MEAN" as in "why hasn't this girl called one of those hotlines that help with domestic abuse yet?"

Now, as you can see, I did not finish this manga. I don't want to....because the ending to chapter 6 disgusted me so much that I don't think anything could possibly save it. NO girl with a brain or an ounce of self-respect would come to the same conclusion the heroine did. Unless she was a complete masochist, perhaps. It's so infuriating that I'd probably throw this book into a wall and then burn it.....had I been reading a physical copy...and thank God I didn't decide to buy this on a whim because I'd be demanding my money back in order to do something more productive with it, like using it to clean up my dog's poop. :(
.......actually that's a brilliant use for this manga for everyone who was unfortunate enough to spend money on it. :'D

First of all, this is my absolute favorite OVA out there so yes, this review might be a wee bit biased...but I honestly do think it's a true piece of art that could only come from Japan.

Second, and this is very important: this anime was never finished. A lot of OVAs and anime-from-manga adaptations often get bad reviews because they get discontinued, thus the plot never gets wrapped up.
I feel it is VERY unfair to judge an anime on this, because doing so misses the point entirely.
When anime is reviewed, no matter how many episodes there are, these are the most important questions to ... ask:

*Am I entertained?
*Do I care about the characters?
*Do I understand what's going on/really want to know?
*Do I feel there was effort put into this?
*Would I be disappointed to not see more of this?

While watching Princess Rouge, I found myself saying a definite "YES" to all of these questions. Thus I'm reviewing this lovely piece for what it is instead of what it could have been.

Story: 8
Why so high when there is so little?
Because that's how badly you want to know the rest of it!
At first glance, Princess Rouge is criticized as an Oh My Goddess! rip-off, stereotypical "Magical Girlfriend" anime, thus regarded to be rather low-brow.
Honestly, this couldn't be further from the truth.
Yes, our ordinary everyday "nice guy" protagonist finds a girl of mysterious origin. Yes, she ends up living with him. Yes, there is romance sprinkled between them, along with comedic hijinks and misunderstandings.

But this series adds in its own flavor, with plenty of darker undertones, shoujo-esque designs, interactions, and backstories, a somewhat unique setting (Rouge's homeland) and most notable of all, extremely little fanservice so you feel like you're being treated to an actual story instead of the loser male fantasy that a lot of Magical Girlfriend anime are notoriously known for. In fact, it does this so well, you won't even feel like you're watching a Magical Girlfriend anime. This aspect really makes the OVA stand out and shine.

For starters, Rouge and Yuusuke's fated meeting is handled rather well. They don't get along RIGHT away; in fact it seems that she is going to become a burden on him. Yuusuke is an orphan. Typical. But for once, FOR ONCE, he is one of those incredibly rare anime orphans who lives on his own and is shown to really struggle with paying the rent. Why don't more anime orphan boys who get girls to live with them have this problem? Simple: "the creators don't think that's important"
Lol, the hell if it isn't!!

Secondly, a lot of the tired, less desirable cliches you think you might see in this genre are widely ignored: Yuusuke doesn't take Rouge in because he's a geek who longs for a sexy girlfriend; he takes her in because she needs help. The girl is soaked and unconscious, but the ecchi cliche of "uh-oh, gotta undress her!" (to just provide an opportunity for fan-service) is done away with-for Yuusuke asks his landlady to undress the girl instead, off-screen. Now Rouge still gets the whole "omg I'm naked-what-the-hell-pervert" lawl misunderstanding scene between Yuusuke and herself but this is handled well too: no female-on-male violence-just a rather amusing argument between the two....which results in Rouge crying because she realizes her memory is gone and she feels frightened and helpless. Also, only her bare shoulders and back are seen because her very long, thick hair covers her chest. Points for this.

There is another scene where she is having a nightmare (still fully undressed) and Yuusuke (almost fully undressed himself) runs into the room when she screams. Instead of getting angry and punching him for seeing her naked, the two embrace each other. This is a very realistic reaction when a girl is actually terrified and confused. The scene is very short but it's touching, guaranteed to generate an "aww" from whoever's watching.
Consider me impressed.

And yet another. Take the REALLY tired, oops,-we-just-tripped-and-fell-on-top of-each-other *blush* gimmick used to create chemistry between a hesitant couple, turn it around into girl-falls-instead and turn the falling down into an accidental hug before a most appropriate reaction and you've got three minutes of something really really REALLY downright adorable.
Consider me VERY impressed.

Anyway, I am not going to spoil anything else as far as plot goes except with the focus of it being on Rouge's true origin instead of cheap romance comedy cliches keeps it fresh, gripping, and mysteriously intriguing. You'll just be heartbroken that we don't get a conclusion.


Art.
The art is gorgeous.
It really is. The backgrounds are so detailed, the colors are beautiful and warm. The character designs are rather unique. All the girls are slender-figured, have lovely, long, thick hair and are color-coded for your convenience. Their princess dresses are just as lovely and full of contrasting colors to their hair and eyes and you can tell they were well thought-out.
This shoujo-esque art style in my opinion, makes the series even more charming and far less catering to a male audience who want to see scantily-clad girls with D or F cups.
Sadly, the second episode's art style changes completely. I love the first episode's much more. But this doesn't make it bad either. The characters just look different which is one of my biggest pet peeves with 90s anime. Pushing that aside, the quality doesn't go down. It just changes.

Sound.
I fell in love with the sweet, mellow little theme song we are treated to by Rouge's actual seiyuu, Shiho-chan, the first time I heard it. Instrumental versions are played throughout the episodes in different styles, ranging from light to heavy and sorrowful to accompany the mood of the respected scenes. There are completely silent moments as well, which I think is a good way for anime to grab your attention. The music for action scenes (yes, there are a handful) is appropriately dramatic.

The seiyuu are excellent too. Everyone matches everyone well and the acting is good. Shiho is insufferably adorable as Rouge in particular.


Character.
I don't know if I'd call Yuusuke particularly interesting...because to be honest, he's quite typical. He certainly isn't a pervert....but he doesn't get embarrassed enough to push Rouge away if she hugs him. He is kind and lightly affectionate to her so it is pretty evident to both that they have feelings for each other. He does take responsibility for his actions and he does try to protect Rouge to the best of his ability instead of standing around whining "I just want a normal life". It is made clear that he misses his parents and thinks of them a lot. It is kind of heart-warming to hear him refer to Rouge as his family and the line "The thought of losing her scares me more than anything".

Rouge is a lot more interesting...because we know so very little about her, nor can you look at her and figure her personality out right away. It's possible, even hinted at that she has a completely different one with her memories intact. She is curious about the strange new world around her but she is also afraid and she is perceptive and suspicious when people are lying to her-she will even call them out for it. While she is cute in both looks and mannerisms, she is no dreamy sex goddess for fanboys to drool over and this gives her character quite the advantage to be realistic and worth getting to know.

Rouge's sisters are pretty cool. Kaige's backstory is excellent and really saves the second episode from most of its noteworthy flaws. At first you think she's just the tomboyish, temperamental red-head stereotype who is quick to throw punches but she actually has a very sensitive and girlish side to her, revealed to us in a tragic way. Not much can be said for Meige (we don't get to her backstory in time). You can just tell she's the most calm and level-headed of the princesses; the voice of reason.

The side characters aren't really worth talking about much. The villain is the worst one of the bunch. He's just a cold-hearted bastard with no trace of humanity and a really annoying laugh. But he doesn't get much screentime so that's okay. His henchmen are more intriguing characters.

Most people will definitely be sucked into this anime within the first ten minutes because it really shrouds itself in mystery and the dark fantasy elements should be quite appealing to some who are looking for something heavier than a rom-com. Even if you don't like boy-meets-strange-girl-from-another-world stories, you might find yourself pleasantly enchanted and wishing deeply that the creator, Aoi Takeuchi had been able to finish Princess Rouge.

On the bright side, there are DRAMA CDS. And I am proud to own the first one. :D Still trying to hunt down the second.