Your One-Stop Anime Site, Anime Downloads and Anime Reviews: Ah! My Goddess

HISTORY:
Prior to starting work on Oh My Goddess!, Kosuke Fujishima created the manga You're Under Arrest. Miyuki Kobayakawa, one of the principle characters of You're Under Arrest, was featured as a goddess character in a "four panel gag strip" in the manga.While the exact relationship between this initial goddess character and the Oh My Goddess! series is unclear, there are suggestions that Oh My Goddess can be viewed as a spin-off series.Irrespective of the origin, the concept of a goddess "as a job" interested Fujishima,leading to the first appearance of the Oh My Goddess! series in the comic Afternoon in August, 1988.

"Ah" or "Oh"?

Translating the original Japanese title of ああっ女神さまっ (Aa! Megami-sama!) proved to be problematic. Indeed, Fred Patten, in writing the preface to the collection "Watching Anime, Reading Manga: 25 Years of Essays and Reviews", stated that fans were still debating whether "Ah! My Goddess" or "Oh My Goddess!" should be used at the time of writing, approximately 15 years after the first Oh My Goddess! manga was published. When the US-anime import company AnimeEigo obtained the OVA rights, they entitled the series as: Oh My Goddess!. This approach was also followed by Toren Smithand Dark Horse Comics when translating the manga. Released in concert with the OVA series in 1994, Smith has since stated that he saw the title as a play on "Oh my god!", and thus he felt that there was no problem when translating it. Smith confirmed that his interpretation of the author's intent was correct by consulting with Fujishima. Nevertheless,'s bilingual release of the manga used Ah! My Goddess, as did Pioneer in their North American release of the movie and the 2005 Media Blasters DVD release of the TV series.

When asked about the issue in America, Fujishima stated that "Oh" was closer to his intent, but acknowledged that the title should be rendered so as to make sense within the country that it is published, and specifically stated that movies may warrant different titles to other works ("After all, there are movie titles that work much better after they're changed ..."). He did, however, state that he would prefer to see consistency between the titles of the manga and those of the animations.

PLOT/SUMMARY:

The manga tells the story of college freshman Keichi Morisato, who, because of his pure heart, has been chosen by Yggdrasil, Heaven's computer system, to receive a single wish. The "angelic" goddess Belldandy is sent down to Earth to ask for his wish, and tells him that he can theoretically wish for anything that he wants, from becoming a billionaire to destroying the world in an instant. Keiichi, thinking the situation is a prank set up by his senpai(s), wishes Belldandy to stay with him forever, under the condition that the offer is valid. Ironically, he does not fully comprehend the outcome of his wish, and is stunned on realizing that Belldandy will now be living with him. The manga/ anime follows their relationship as they become closer to each other.

The varying anime series feature the main characters and are based on the same basic plotline as the original manga, but each has taken a unique interpretation on this concept — described below — and, as such, should be considered separate canons. The only exception to this is the more recent TV series, which follows the plot of the manga closely.

Being a mechanical otaku himself, Fujishima frequently bases whole chapters, or even story arcs, around mechanics, focusing especially on motorcycle mechanics. Most notably, readers discover that Keiichi Morisato is a member of his college's motor vehicle club, which is always under threat of being put out of commission by a rival motor club. There are also several story arcs related to racing found earlier in the manga; the concept of racing is also a significant plot device in each of the anime canons. Both Keiichi and Belldandy are exceptionally gifted at racing (Keiichi because of natural ability and Belldandy because of her ability to "talk" with the machines). Most of the other main characters have exhibited some degree of skill in racing and/or mechanics, making the idea of mechanics a significant device for character development and growth.

Episode: 27 January 6, 2005 - December 23,2005

OVERALL RATING: 8/10

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Sunday, September 21, 2008

Ah! My Goddess

"Ah" or "Oh"?

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