+ | N o v a s t o r m | +

Rating: 8/10

Overall Series Rating: 7.5/10

Impressions:

Overll, the entire OAV series doesn’t impress me that much. This probably due to the poor plot linking between the four episodes, with episode 2 and 3 being rather wasteful, in my opinion. The story isn’t very strong, though I do see some elements of the Mai Otome manga in it. The animation and action are pretty high though, and this last episode by itself is quite enjoyable to watch. I think for me, I enjoyed seeing the reunion of Arika and Nina the most—sequels are always great to see old characters come together again. I guess that effect is what the animators tried to build on in episodes 2 and 3, though it ends up making the plot rather weak.

Read more

Popularity: 15% [?]

Rating: 9.3/10

Impressions:

As a standalone, this episode is pretty good, with the standard OAV-level of animation and the amount of action (plus Nao gets a lot of attention!) However, being a whole quarter of Mai Otome Zwei, the fact that it didn’t really develop the story much is a real shame, like last episode. It’s like a really good story starts unfolding, but comes to an untimely end halfway through. Because of this, I am very confused about everything that’s happened so far, and I can’t make sense of how a lot of things tie together. Not to mention it’s been quite a while since the first episode was released. The spa scene didn’t really help to advance the story either.

Read more

Popularity: 16% [?]

Rating: 9.3/10

Impressions:

Being a big fan of Mai Hime and Mai Otome, and a bigger fan of the Mai Otome manga, I, like many others I presume, have been eagerly anticipating the second episode in the Zwei OAV series. Overall, this second episode is actually a bit of a disappointment. Although not lacking in action and quality, it suffers from slow plot progression, especially as it is a four episode OAV. It seems like the final battle will probably begin next episode and end in the last episode. I was really hoping for more plot twists and extra development, with little subplots involving the various characters, but of course, what was I thinking? This isn’t a full fledged TV sequel…just a four episode OAV.

Read more

Popularity: 19% [?]

Medium: OAV
Genres: Comedy, Drama, Fantasy
Episodes: 4
Studio: Sunrise
OP: “Believe ~Eien no Kizuna~” by Mika Kikuchi
ED: ??
Official Site: http://www.my-zhime.net/

Rating: 9.6/10 (since I love Mai Hime/Otome so much!)

Impressions:

This is an amazing first episode, but I’m pretty sure I’m being extremely biased since I adore both Mai Hime and Mai Otome, and their last episodes let me wanting more. What gives me this great feeling from watching this episode must be the return of all the Otome cast, including Shiho, Nao, Sergay and Nina, despite their extremely brief appearances. The initial joint attack on the meteor is a powerful attention-grabbing tool, as it presents all the powerful Otome together, facing a single enemy. And once again, Arika manages to surpass everyone else and save the day by herself…or so everyone thinks for the first half of the show. Later on of course, we learn that the meteor had actually been some sort of transportation or decoy, with the appearance of the shadow manifests that have the ability to take on the form of whoever they come into contact with. This is the true enemy. The good thing about a four-episode sequel is that there is no need for an introduction for all the characters, and no need to drag on with meaningless events, as the main plot can immediately begin. However, there’s always the chance that the story ends up getting rushed, so hopefully that won’t happen here. There probably won’t be many laid back scenes/episodes, since the main threat has already arrived. That’s a bit of a disappointment though, seeing how everyone has such an interesting character.

Read more

Popularity: 14% [?]