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REVIEW: Maria Watches Over Us Season 1 DVD


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walw6pK4Alo



Joined: 12 Mar 2008
Posts: 9322
PostPosted: Fri Aug 22, 2008 11:25 pm Reply with quote
Rightstuf is the most beloved by the hardcore fansub watchers.

"What this? A full series boxset, no dub, good initial price, and extras? SOLD"

I hope they pick up many more shows and give it the same treatment. Better than spending about $20 dollars for a single DVD where the extras are: previews for other shows, textless Openings and closings. Those aren't extras, those are to be expected. Hell, some even include "interactive menus", ugh.
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Fronzel



Joined: 11 Sep 2003
Posts: 1906
PostPosted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 12:01 am Reply with quote
Quote:
Though the lighthearted previews and hilarious SD specials give some indication that Matsushita and his staff are aware of how silly their material can objectively seem, the series proper is played perfectly straight.

Tell that to episode 3 of the OVA.

But that won't be released until next year probably, so never mind for now.

While it is played straight...sometimes I detect hints of self-parody, like anything involving Rosa Foetida. That the series maintains its sobriety even then shows a mastery of tone.
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darkchibi07



Joined: 15 Oct 2003
Posts: 5459
PostPosted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 12:12 am Reply with quote
"Influential shoujo-ai" series, indeed. I am still boggled how those Japanese otaku were able to take this series and totally go nuts with the yuri which in turn make themselves and other companies think this is what most shoujo-ai series should contain. It just seems odd to me that this series gave shoujo-ai genre the push towards some recognition (and it did give rise of the Yuri Hime magazine).

On a somewhat related note, has anyone read the Marimite doujin "Pure White Disciple Shimako-san"? I'm pretty surprised that has like 5 volumes worth of it!
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fuuma_monou



Joined: 26 Dec 2005
Posts: 1816
Location: Quezon City, Philippines
PostPosted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 12:56 am Reply with quote
While I enjoyed watching the show on Animax-Asia, the melodrama pulled me out of it at times. Like the whole bit about Noriko spoiler[worrying that she'll be kicked out of Lillian if the school finds out she's not Catholic. Some of my classmates in a Catholic boys' school were Protestant, so there was absolutely no suspense for me there.]

I think the source material just doesn't work as well for me, given that I loved Sugar Sugar Rune, also directed by Yukihiro Matsushita. Music by Yasuharu Konishi probably helped as well.


Last edited by fuuma_monou on Sat Aug 23, 2008 4:59 am; edited 1 time in total
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dormcat
Encyclopedia Editor


Joined: 08 Dec 2003
Posts: 9902
Location: New Taipei City, Taiwan, ROC
PostPosted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 1:09 am Reply with quote
Interviewed the original author and illustrator. Will have it translated later today.
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Fronzel



Joined: 11 Sep 2003
Posts: 1906
PostPosted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 1:12 am Reply with quote
fuuma_monou wrote:
While I enjoyed watching the show on Animax-Asia, the melodrama pulled me out of it at times. Like the whole bit about Noriko spoiler[worrying that she'll be kicked out of Lillian if the school finds out she's not Catholic. Some of my classmates in a Catholic boys' school were Protestant, so there was absolutely no suspense for me there.]

Yeah...much of the plot is mere sham, which is unfortunate since the very first arc actually went somewhere...

I managed to maintain enjoyment by putting the plot is its proper, foolish place and focusing on what the series is really about; the relationship between two people, which two it is changing episode by episode.
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maaya



Joined: 14 Oct 2007
Posts: 976
PostPosted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 1:23 am Reply with quote
Nice review. But it's called "Soeur" (or actually sœur) not "Seour" o_O;; Is that a translation mistake or a typo?
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Splitter



Joined: 19 May 2003
Posts: 1276
Location: Knockin' on Heaven's Door
PostPosted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 1:30 am Reply with quote
I picked this series up once before, dropped it, picked it up again, loved it and have now bought it. I agree 100% with the melodrama, and it's a shame too, because all the characters have been blessed with such brilliantly unique, intricate, and realistic personalities. It's the blessing of these personalities and how they interact that make the ridiculous plots stomachable. If not for that, The story of MariMite, however elegantly dolled-up it may be, would be high society trash.
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enurtsol



Joined: 01 May 2007
Posts: 14746
PostPosted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 1:51 am Reply with quote
Seriously, a company-wide presentation put this out: Shocked

"Phishing for Yuri"




Either the presenter just grabbed a random pic off the Net not knowing what it meant, or someone's having a lot of fun putting one under the company's watchdogs. Laughing
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marie-antoinette



Joined: 18 Sep 2005
Posts: 4136
Location: Ottawa, Canada
PostPosted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 7:31 am Reply with quote
I watched the first few episodes of this series, but got bored with it quite fast. I might try it again, now that Honey & Clover has shown me that slice of life can be great, but I don't think it would make much of a difference because I just didn't care about the characters. This is one show where I just don't understand why it's become so influential.
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fuuma_monou



Joined: 26 Dec 2005
Posts: 1816
Location: Quezon City, Philippines
PostPosted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 8:29 am Reply with quote
marie-antoinette wrote:
I watched the first few episodes of this series, but got bored with it quite fast. I might try it again, now that Honey & Clover has shown me that slice of life can be great, but I don't think it would make much of a difference because I just didn't care about the characters. This is one show where I just don't understand why it's become so influential.


I think the TV series assumes the viewer already knows the characters from the light novels or manga, like Yamamoto Yohko TV, so introductions are kind of abrupt.

H&C's music hooked me in. Judy And Mary and Spitz were some of the first Japanese bands I heard back in the nineties, so having Yuki sing the OP theme and Spitz songs as BGM was a big plus.

As for influential, there's this little fan-edited trailer using audio from Cream Lemon: Escalation. Normally the porn version comes later, not twenty years earlier.
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maaya



Joined: 14 Oct 2007
Posts: 976
PostPosted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 10:24 am Reply with quote
I don't think Maria can compare to H&C, eventhough they're both slice of life, H&C is so much more real and ... deep? H&C doesn't fall into the "make a mountain out of a molehill"-category. While Maria was just boring to me ... eventhough it's still a lot better than Strawberry Panic f.ex., which seems to be heavily influenced by it oO;;; In fact I can't really think of any slice of life show as good as H&C (recommendations welcome Wink ). But well, you can always give it a try ^^
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Splitter



Joined: 19 May 2003
Posts: 1276
Location: Knockin' on Heaven's Door
PostPosted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 12:37 pm Reply with quote
maaya wrote:
In fact I can't really think of any slice of life show as good as H&C (recommendations welcome Wink ). But well, you can always give it a try ^^


Beck
Aria
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Zin5ki



Joined: 06 Jan 2008
Posts: 6680
Location: London, UK
PostPosted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 1:01 pm Reply with quote
Quote:
What sets Maria apart from its imitators isn't that it's melodrama free, but that it earns its melodrama—with careful characterization and two- to three-episode story arcs that build slowly to a single, potent emotional payoff.

If I were a yuri fan, this series would be on my "want to see list" lickedy-split based on that description alone. On reflection, whether something earned its melodrama or not is a quite a useful way of evaluating virtually all of the romantic dramas I've watched so far.
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Fronzel



Joined: 11 Sep 2003
Posts: 1906
PostPosted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 3:45 pm Reply with quote
Zin5ki wrote:

If I were a yuri fan, this series would be on my "want to see list"...

Pegging Marimite as a "yuri show" isn't really fair. As alluded to in the review, only one character can actually be identified as a lesbian. It's about close friendships rather than romantic love.
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