released 06 apr 02 / last mod 01 jun 07 / greg goebel / public domain
* I picked up MIYUKI-CHAN IN WONDERLAND (MCIW) with some uncertainty, since most of the recommendations could be summed up with one word: "bizarre". The odd thing is that after watching this bit of fluff and nonsense, I still have the same uncertainty about it, and can absolutely agree with the one-word summary: "bizarre".
MCIW is really not so much an attempt at storytelling as it is an experimental piece, an exercise in playfulness and imagination on the part of its makers, the foursome of Japanese femmes who call themselves CLAMP. It does a Japanese twist on ALICE IN WONDERLAND and ALICE THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS, casting sweet little adolescent Miyuki-Chan in the role of Alice and, while retaining the basic outline of Lewis Carroll's works, doing a erotic spin on them from end to end.
Now this might make it sound like hentai / porn, but actually it's really erotic silliness -- for example the White Rabbit being a nightclub bunny -- though it does push the envelope here and there: the Chesire Cat (a blonde in a catsuit) begins to assault Miyuki-chan, only to fade away; the Red Queen in her leathers chases after Miyuki-Chan, cracking a whip; and the chess game of THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS becomes "strip chess".
MCIW is a novelty, and maybe a bit much to pay for a novelty, particularly when the two installments are so short. (I hear there were longer versions, I wish I could have got them.) However, after putting up with so much machine-made by-the-numbers predictable anime series it's nice to see something that has some imagination and enthusiasm, even if it is silly, strange, and kinda kinky.
Of course, if you really want to get your head twisted around, try Jan Svankmajer's stop-action version of ALICE. I swear I watched it with my mouth hanging open from beginning to end ... but that's another story.