Reviews

Humanity lives on a broken desert planet. Past warfare, conducted with vastly powerful weapons, has rendered most of it a lifeless desert. Advanced technology is still around, but no longer being produced. Science is regressing, rather than advancing. The power is in the hands of a mostly aristocratic elite, who rules over their countries with the help of “Otome”, users of one of the most powerful technologies remaining. The ability to create Otome rests with Garderobe, which also guards and restricts access to this old technology. This school is the lynchpin of international relations and at the center of a mutual defense treaty. In it, young girls are brainwashed into devote servants of the aristocrats who sponsor their transformation into mighty Otome.

The story kicks off when main protagonist Arika successfully, if unexpectedly, gains entrance into Garderobe. Soon, several groups, who are unhappy with the status quo, will make their move and shake up the political landscape. Arika, and her fellow aspiring Otome candidates need to find their way as the world descends into war.

The world building of Mai-Otome is top-notch. If you can accept the concept of Otome (who are basically technological versions of magical girls), the world makes a lot of sense. There is scheming, conflicts of interest, and more than one betrayal. On top of this, the story delivers. There is a satisfying finale, no loose ends and a well done mystery (who is the real queen??) to top it off.

So, where does the anime go wrong? In the directing. Unfortunately, the mood of the episodes does not match the tone set by the world building. The characters live in a veritable dystopia, are brainwashed and their lives are bound to their masters. This calls for a dark anime that explores how the characters deal with their flawed lives. Instead, the directing is much too upbeat. Even during the climax, slapstick jokes are present in most episodes. So much of the world’s impact is blunted when the people in it treat it as a joke. Not that Mai-Otome is a comedy. It tries to be dark at times, it just does not try hard enough to make it work.

It needs to be mentioned that all characters are lifted wholesale from Mai-Hime, design, name, character and all. Even some character-specific “jokes” are repeated. On the whole, this did not distract me too much, but it is rather unusual. The main characters of Mai-Hime are relegated to side-roles. This is unfortunate. While Arika is ok as a main character, she lacks the depth of Mai in Mai-Hime. Having a main character that is not as unqualified upbeat would have helped.

Overall, Mai-Otome is an anime that could have been great, but is let down by not matching its dark world with equally dark characters.