released 06 may 03 / last mod 01 jun 07 / greg goebel / public domain
* The Japanese TENCHI MUYO ("No Need For Tenchi") series is one of the best-known and most popular anime series. It involves Tenchi Masaki, a Japanese high-school kid, and a flock of females who compete for his attention: prissy Space Princess Ayeka; loose Space Pirate Ryoko; Ayeka's sweet little sister Sasami (who has a semi-mystical grown-up alter-ego, the goddesslike Tsunami); egotistical mad scientist Washu; and Galaxy Policewoman Mihoshi, the archetypical airhead blonde who seems to have a talent for serial bungling that actually gets results. They all go through a series of cosmic adventures, dealing with galactic villains while Tenchi tries to deal, awkwardly, with the women's advances (which can sometimes resemble sexual assaults) and their squabbling.
On the face of it, it is not entirely clear why TENCHI MUYO is regarded as a classic. The production values / artwork are OK but nothing particularly impressive; the whole "hapless kid surrounded by bickering crazy females" bit has been done to near-death by anime series; and the story line is meandering and littered with odd dead ends -- for example, a mega-villainness named the Goddess is introduced and then basically forgotten without much further explanation.
The answer to why TENCHI MUYO is popular is simply that it is good fun. It is entirely good-natured, almost always entertaining, and even has its imaginative and inspiring bits on occasion. As far as the basic scenario being overly familiar, it was apparently TENCHI MUYO that got it started in the first place, and it is no fault of TENCHI MUYO that it has been done to near-death by others.
To be sure, the TENCHI MUYO franchise has been largely done to death over the years by its own creators, but this "original anime video (OAV)" is the master source and almost unarguably the best treatment. The TENCHI MUYO manga series follows the basic premises of the OAV.
One word of warning about the OAV is that it has a few rudish scenes, nothing that would shock an adult or adolescent much but which are inappropriate for smaller kids. I originally saw the OAV in translation on CARTOON NETWORK, and after watching the DVD I understood why there were a few confusing scenes that seemed to have important elements cut out -- and also understood exactly why they were cut out.
In sum, the TENCHI MUYO OAV is something I would be reluctant to praise too much or too little. It is by no means a great work of art and I doubt it would impress an open-minded viewer who was not an anime fan. However, almost any anime fan will likely enjoy it and consider it time and effort well spent.
* If you do like the TENCHI MUYO OAV and want more, I wouldn't recommend the TENCHI UNIVERSE TV series, which is basically a watered-down remake for younger viewers. The TENCHI MUYO manga / comix actually are a continuation of the OAV and are more entertaining, if definitely lightweight.
