I really wanted to love this show, okay? I really do love all the Angeloids, and the best moments are really great. It looks good for its time, and even has a separate ED for each episode, some of which are very memorable. Most importantly, the overarching story is quite good.
But man, I really don't like some of the things it does. Chibi abuse is when a show draws characters in a small and simple style more often than it doesn't, and Heaven's Lost Property is highly guilty of it, specifically with Tomoki. Rather than cutting corners, it feels like more of a way to separate the comedy/ecchi scenes from the more serious ones, but he's chibi like 80% of the time, often when everyone else isn't. This brings us to my second complaint: Tomoki fucking sucks. I've rarely had a big problem with a lecherous MC, but when it gets taken to far it gets really fucking old really quickly, and Heaven's Lost Property does this shit nonstop. The weird thing, it's rarely directed at the girls in his harem, but rather at just about every other girl at his school. And this schtick is accompanied by other girls, in particular Sohara, laying on Tom and Jerry-style abuse. Third complaint: Sohara is too mean to Tomoki. In episode 3, Sohara indirectly blows up Tomoki's house, and if not for the cartoon physics, Tomoki himself would be dead. Does she apologize? Hell, she doesn't even let him stay in her house next door! So they all have to go to Mikako's, where he again almost dies, but ends up getting his house rebuilt by them. Anyway, Sohara basically murders Tomoki several times over the course of the series, and he takes obscene amount of abuse from everyone else as well, that really doesn't sit right with me. Especially since Sohara is confirmed to ENJOY Tomoki's behavior, and fantasize about it often. Not to mention, this show is considered an ecchi, but it's almost not hot at all. I would've preferred they just cut the peeping and groping altogether and let the Angeloids' outfits speak for themselves.
These three complaints serve to undermine almost everything that makes Heaven's Lost Property good. The story about Angeloids coming from on high and learning what love means to them while fighting against their homeworld is interesting, fun, and otherwise well-executed. They could've cut at least some of the fluff to characterize the Angeloids (or even other characters) better, but I think the serious scenes are mostly good as-is. The main exception is the finale movie, which awkwardly cuts off the manga and kind of just leaves you confused and sad.
Overall, Heaven's Lost Property is good. I think its highs make it still worth watching, and admittedly some of the fluff was pretty fun. Saori Hayami, who voices Ikaros, has the voice of an angel, and she gets many chances to sing some really good songs. Pretty much all the girls were super loveable in their own ways, (even the non-Angeloids, though I probably disliked them more than I liked them) with best girl Kazane (save for Tomoko) not appearing until the first movie. I will probably go on to remember it as something I'm torn on, but ultimately glad I watched.
