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Toon Princess Power....Make Update!
by Panadero - November 12, 2012 10:38:30 AM MST
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, the inspiredly lame headlines are back. On this Veteran's Day weekend, we have thirty five new characters across five series, all with the common theme of 'princess' in their names.
First we have D4 Princess, a series about girls who can summon battle armor, centered around a spoiled and insecure girl named Doris. Initially silly and innocuous, it actually grew into a serious series. Not excellent, but enjoyable enough and Doris is cute as a button.
Next we have the absolutely amazing Princess Tutu. A critically acclaimed series that I didn't catch when it came out, it's the story of a town in which reality and fantasy intertwine. A duck becomes transformed into a girl who in turn transforms into Princess Tutu in order to protect her prince. The series feels less like a television show and more like a theater production, even during the day-to-day school events, weaving a fairy tale storyline that any self-respecting anime fan should see.
Third, we have the wonderful Hime-chan no Ribbon, a magical girl series from the early 90s in which Himeko receives a magical ribbon from the princess of the Magic Kingdom. The ribbon enables her to change her appearance to anybody, so as expected, lots of hijinks ensue. The series is full of charm and fun character interactions - I really love series from this era.
Next up is the very enjoyable Princess Nine, about a newly formed girls' baseball team and their struggles to prove they are capapble of competing against boys. My initial gripe was that there wasn't enough actual baseball, but upon further reflection, the series is less about baseball itself than it is about the relationships and emotions around it. I'm usually not one for sports anime, but this really hit a sweet spot for me.
Lastly, we have a two episode OAV called Princess Army, in which a judo student is torn between two close friends she might have feelings for and a childhood friend who has returned from overseas and announced his intent to marry her. This is one of those OAVs that samples a small arc of a longer manga series so some context is lost for those who aren't familiar with it, so I found it not much more than a nice little diversion.
I expect at least one more update by the end of the year, but for now you have thirty five new characters to vote on!