First Impressions / Series Introduction / Snapshots

OP Sequence

OP: 「妄想戦士 宮前かなこ」 (Mousou Senshi Miyamae Kanako) by 杉田智和 (Sugita Tomokazu)
Watch the OP!: Download, Streaming ▼

「禁断の女子寮」 (Kindan no Joshiryou)
“Forbidden Girl’s Dorm”

My favorite trap of 2009 Shindou Mariya (Kobayashi Yuu) makes his return to television airwaves right on schedule, suggesting that SHAFT may have “delayed” Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica to get Maria Holic’s sequel out on time. Whether or not that’s actually true is another matter, but I am quite impressed with how good Maria Holic Alive looks. It probably helps that it’s a legitimate jump to high definition, whereas the first season was only re-released as a Blu-ray box set this past February. Improved visuals definitely help for a series whose deadpan humor goes hand-in-hand with Miyamae Kanako’s (Sanada Asami) wild lesbian imagination. The artistry in some of those stills often helps me appreciate the unique style of humor, even when it doesn’t always click with me.

Incidentally, the rather silly premise of Maria Holic combined with the distinct style of SHAFT’s go-to-director Shinbou Akiyuki is what won me over by the end of the first season. When the series isn’t going for the slapstick type humor where Kanako is flying into walls head-first or swimming in a pool of her own blood because she got a little too excited over the idea of her friends Kiri Nanami (Kanda Akemi) , Inamori Yuzuru (Gotou Saori) , and Momoi Sachi (Shintani Ryouko) bound up, it tends to have an inexplicable charm to what I feel is a “clever” sense of humor. Sometimes it’s trying to be too clever with its subtle form of delivery, to the point that it’s not even funny to most people (myself included), so I can’t even confidently say what I always find amusing in this series.

What I can say is that Kanako naturally plays a big part in it, being the outlet for Mariya and his maid Shinouji Matsurika’s (Inoue Marina) constant ridicule as she desperately tries to find some dirt on them to return fire with. She almost never does and is more often than not a victim of herself, which further tips things in their favor. Matsurika in particular is truly something else though, with her straight-faced insults masked in polite forms of Japanese speech that leave both Kanako and myself perplexed over exactly how insulting she’s actually trying to be. This premiere episode was fairly light on both their input, after Kanako got ahead of herself when she wanted to see the legendary tree that brought her parents together, and ended up going through a bunch of “trials” in the old girls’ dorm intended to keep guys from Ame no Kisaki’s sister school away. Without Mariya’s active involvement, it was just Kanako unknowingly screwing herself over. Still amusing, but not to the same degree like when Matsurika made an appearance as a “helper” who Kanako “had” to summon.

Seeing as this is just the first episode, I’m optimistic that things will only get better here on in. I didn’t really enjoy the first season until the later episodes, so I’m actually more psyched about this show than I’m probably letting off. It’s a SHAFT production too. *gasp*

* Note: This episode featured a one-off opening theme by Sugita Tomokazu. The actual opening theme will be performed by Kobayashi Yuu.

 

Omake

41 Comments

  6. Ok wtf is up with that OP…. I mean why get Tomokazu Sugita AKA Kyon singing an OP in that voice with a song that sounds like its out of a 60s Super Robot anime? For a Yuri spoof anime.

    (I may have just proved my own point.)

    Raso
    Reply

  10. I just notised that the OP’s animation is all clips from S1 so it might be a way to recoup some time lost from the quake and just added the most ridiculous music with an actor who is famous for liking the classic Mech animes just for Rule of cool.

    Its better than what shaft has done before with Negima!?’s ending and Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei S1’s Opening.

    Raso
    Reply

  14. Its been so long since I’ve watched this. I think I’ll wait and re-watch the first season before watching this. Just going by the screen caps though, this looks amazing! I’m looking forward to seeing this. 🙂

    Justa_Dream
    Reply

  24. Thank goodness someone is subbing this 🙂 I have to say the first episode is quite good in reintroducing the cast and giving some basic facts for newbies who might be keeping tabs on the show. This is now on my list of “must watch” for this new season.

    Ghostalker
    Reply

  26. Oh boy, the return of the epic LOL-fest that is Maria Holic is welcomed with ferocious laughter.

    After two whole seasons of K-ON, I got so used to hearing Sanada Asami as Sawa-chan that I just imagined that’s the insane Sawa-chan in Kanako’s body. I wouldn’t be too surprised if Sawa-chan were an insane lesbo. LOL

    First LOL has to go to Sugita Tomokazu for doing the Tokusatsu-like OP, that was so funny in so many ways.

    Funniest moment today was Kanako imagining the girls getting wet in the hot baths, only to get a nosebleed and fall into the scathing bathtub herself. LMAO

    Kinny Riddle
    Reply

  35. Is anyone else hoping that Kanako will find someone at the end of this show? I mean, I totally get that this anime is a full on comedy/sometimesdrama, but I’m really holding out for Kanako.

    Well, really, she could go the whole season without finding anyone, as long as they don’t pull a fast one and stick her with Maria.

    illbeats
    Reply

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