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[R1 DVD box art.]
AKA: ああっ女神さまっ それぞれの翼 (Aa Megami-sama: Sorezore no Tsubasa), Ah! My Goddess: Flights of Fancy
Genre: Romantic comedy/drama
Length: Television series, 24 episodes, 23 minutes each
Distributor: Relicensed by FUNimation. (License rights earlier belonging to ADV.)
Content Rating: PG (Light violence and fanservice, some light adult themes.)
Related Series: Ah! My Goddess TV season 1 (prequel), Oh! My Goddess OAV (sorta-prequel), Ah! My Goddess the Movie, Ah! My Goddess: Fighting Wings (sequel), The Adventures of the Mini-Goddess (comedy spinoff)
Also Recommended: Anything Ah! My Goddess, Tenchi Muyo.
Notes: Based on manga by Fujishima Kosuke
Rating:

Ah! My Goddess TV season 2

Synopsis

Life continues for Keiichi and the goddesses after the ruckus with the Lord of Terror, and things are starting to settle down again....

...for a little while. Of course, things are never easy in the Morisato household, and both Keiichi and Belldandy will learn that they still have some ways to go in their relationship.


Review

It's been quite some time (more than two years, in fact) since I professed my love for the first season of this show, which in itself is something I had waited a long time for by itself. After all, I had been waiting for something like this for a fairly long time, and the TV series certainly didn't let me down.

And so, Ah! My Goddess: Flights of fancy is here to pick up where the first show left off, which means more animated shenanigans based fairly accurately on the manga events (with a few cosmetic changes.) At the time of writing, two volumes of this show has been released on DVD (though I have long since completed it by way of digital source.) The reason I waited with the review until I got my hands on the DVDs are mainly because I was curious whether they'd keep the original voice cast, given that ADV picked up the license in lieu of Media Blasters. And, much to my relief, they did.

Most of that relief stems from the fact that, despite my initial concerns about the Ah/Oh! My Goddess continuum gaining another group of voice actors to represent the different characters, the cast in the TV series did an admirable job in playing their respective roles in the show. (On a curious note, it would seem Peorth's VA in this show once did Belldandy in the OAV.) In other words, while I didn't really get my wish (pun/reference not intended) in regard to the voice actors, I'm not the least bit disappointed by it.

The show easily keeps up the looks from the first season -- that is, the art and animation is decent -- even good -- for the most part, with some clever use of CG to keep things smooth and flowing. Ok, so the quality may vary a little, but it never really reaches the echelon of badness, and quite frankly, I prefer the character designs of the TV series as compared to the OAV.

But then, where my heart truly lies is in the show itself. At the risk of running the fanboy ratio a bit too close into the red, this show is still giving me exactly what I want to see; more manga stories. While one might argue that Belldandy and Keiichi's relationship doesn't seem to have progressed a whole lot, the two of them have certainly changed a lot individually. Even Urd and Skuld show great dynamic in how they interact both among themselves and towards the main couple. Ok, so yes, they still bicker and argue, and yes, they each push and pull at Keiichi and Belldandy in their own respective attempts at influencing their relationship. Still, if I may be allowed one tiny spoilerish hint, then I just have to say that I'm delighted that they chose to include the part from the manga where Skuld learns, grows and even experiences her first crush. That is... not counting the one in the last episode of the first season, of course, which was an anime only deal (albeit a very well thought out one.) Even so, Urd seems to have settled down a lot since her first appearance in the first season, and Skuld herself have calmed down and actually grown up to no small extent.

And character growth is basically where it's at. I said that the anime follows the manga pretty close, but after having seen two season's worth, I'll also have to make a note that the anime story order seems to have been shuffled quite a lot compared to the manga. Not that it's really hurting the anime any -- or the manga for that matter -- but I just thought you should know anyway. Of course, there was also a few manga story arcs I wanted to see that weren't included, but... oh well!

I guess if you were a fan of the first season, I probably don't need to tell you to go get this show -- or if you didn't like it, not to bother, then. Much like with Aria the Animation and Aria the Natural, this show is the natural follow-up to the first season of Ah! My Goddess TV. Nothing more and certainly nothing less.

Now, if someone would just grant my wish and start the production of the third season....

Excellent stuff, really, though I guess stars needs to be docked depending on how impatient you are regarding the progress between two certain people.Stig Høgset

Recommended Audience: Much like the first season, you have your light violence, light fanservice and loose ties to Nordic mythology. And, thankfully, they kept Tamiya and Ootaki out of the cheerleading outfits this time.

Curiously enough, while season one of this show was rated "13 and up", season two seems to have been rated PG. I know this is a reflection of the content, but that still means you have to wait three years before you can see how it all started out.



Version(s) Viewed: R1 DVD, bilingual
Review Status: Full (24/24)
Ah! My Goddess TV season 2 © 2006 Fujishima Kousuke / Kodansha / Ah! My Goddess Production Committee
 
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