box543's Full Review: Saber Marionette J - Complete Collection
After receiving the boxset as a gift, I was pretty much honor-bound to watch it start to finish. However, since my life is pretty hectic, it took me quite a while.... Actually, I'm glad I spent the time because it turned out to be a very enjoyable series and one that I'm glad I didn't rush through.
I know some viewers think that the eyes of some of the characters (Cherry and Lime specifically) are disturbingly large. While I admit they are a bit bigger than your average anime character, I didn't find it at all disturbing and it definitely didn't detract from my enjoyment of the series.
Overall, I really like the visual style of SMJ. I find that oftentimes series neglect background scenery, but that's not the case in SMJ. The buildings and backgrounds are visually interesting - but not so interesting as to be distracting. And I didn't get the "deja vu" feeling that I get from some anime - you know: it's a new town, but it looks JUST LIKE the previous one.
I loved the "costuming" on the marionettes. While the clothing and hairstyles of the Garlant marionettes were a bit too.... um... I don't know: odd?... for my tastes, they were nonetheless distinctive. I thought that Lime, Cherry and Bloodberry all had outfits that complemented their personalities well. It was nice to see that someone actually thought of giving the girls clothes that matched who they are rather than skimpy clothes just for the sake of fan service.
Music: Although I really liked the opening and ending songs, I found some of the background music to be a bit too cheesy for my tastes. It wasn't so awful that it made me not want to watch the show, but I feel that it could have been better in several places.
As far as the seiyuu are concerned, I thought they did a wonderful job and matched the characters well. I especially liked Megumi Hayashibara's portrayal of Lime. Lime's character goes through a lot of emotions during the series and I'm sure it must be dificult on a voice actress/actor to make all of those emotions believable.
The story line was interesting and different than any anime I had seen before. The plot constantly evolved (rather like that plot of Neon Genesis Evangelion), so it kept to watching and wanting to learn more.
Of course, probably the most important aspect of any series/movies, is the characters. To sum it all up: I really liked the characters.
Of the three main marionettes, my favorite is Lime. I tend to be drawn to innocent, childlike characters, so this really doesn't come as much of a surprise. I enjoyed watching her grow and learn and yet stay as "wide-eyed" as she started. The scenes with her and the mice: too cute! And I about died when she decided to cook for Otaru!
My husband, on the other hand, much preferred Cherry. I think her traditional girly-cutseyness is probably why... I thought is was cute that Cherry was sensativew about being "less endowed" than Lime and Bloodberry.
I liked Bloodberry, but I didn't feel like she was given as much of a personality as Lime or Cherry. Not to say that she was a "blank" character because she isn't. she just didn't seem to have the cute little flaws that made the other two so "human." Even Bloodberry's lewdness seemed half-hearted most of the times.
I would have to say that my other two favorite characters in the series were Hanagata and Tiger.
Hanagata was annoying and I'm sure his character has wrankled the nerves of more than one ultra-conservative viewer, but I see Hanagata as more than just a lovesick puppy. The society on Terra II is all male; it's very obvious that the male inhabitants would "pair up." This behavior in that society is not unusual or sick. In fact, loving relationships with marionettes (the only females around) is considered "sick" by that particular society. It really annoys me to see people discount Hanagata because they find homosexuals to be disgusting. Hanagata shows loyalty to Otaru - almost as much loyalty as Lime, Cherry and Bloodberry - and although he is rebuffed by Otaru, it should be noted that Otaru is considered an oddball/unusual person. Plus, Hanagata is a often a much needed source of levity and several times seems to act as Otaru's conscience. (And, for the record, I thought his PJs were adorable!)
The fact that I ended up liking Tiger so much surprised me. I'm not the kind of person who watches good-vs-evil shows just to root for the bad guys. However, Tiger's development through the series really touched me and, while I don't want to spoil anything for anyone who hasn't seen SMJ, she is a pivotal character. Through her you really begin to understand Faust's character and what exactly it means to possess a maiden circuit.
As a final note, I find it interesting that Lorelei is such an important character in the series and yet she's perhaps the least developed. I don't want to write a spoiler, but since I never felt that I understood her character, I felt more like Otaru than Faust at the end of the series....
All in all, I would definitely recommend this series... even though it made me cry a little bit toward the end.... :)
Welcome to Japoness, a society where the only females are emotionless androids known as "marionettes". Martial arts student and all around nice guy, O...More at HotMovieSale.com
Welcome to Japoness, a society where the only females are emotionless androids known as marionettes. Martial arts student and all around nice guy, Ota...More at Buy.com Marketplaces
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