MAGIC KNIGHT RAYEARTH

DESCRIPTION

CAST

ANIME AdventureMagic Knight Rayearth II
MANGA ComedyMagic Knight Rayearth
OVA ActionMagic Knight Rayearth OVA
ANIME AdventureTsubasa Chronicle
ANIME AdventureTsubasa Chronicle 2nd Season
MUSIC ActionCLAMP in Wonderland 2
MUSIC FantasyCLAMP in Wonderland
SPECIAL ActionMagic Knight Rayearth Pilot
Not Available AdventureMagical Knight Rayearth (Shin Anime)

REVIEWS

• 

  linajthol

  65/100
  A sword and sorcery adventure (but it's all cute girls)

  Magic Knight Rayearth has actually aged pretty well.

  From a time when magical girls and power levels were at their peak, Rayearth is an interesting title. While there are transformation sequences and a couple of friendship speeches, it’s not a magical girl show, and it also doesn’t follow any of the general tropes of a shonen action show like Dragon Ball. It’s really structured like a JRPG- the main party of three young ladies are thrust into a fantastical world, given swords and magic, and told to save the land by the order of Princess Emeraude/Emerald.

  The progression of the show is incredibly similar to that of a JRPG. They trot along, linearly, from locale to locale and villain to villain. From monstrous, animal-like beasts to mystic sorceresses, they fight every kind of enemy. (No slimes, unfortunately.) Instead of pure violence, they try to communicate clearly with everyone they fight, as feral as they are, and it makes for some great moments of dialogue and reason. A few of the villains even decide fighting isn’t worth it, and run off, perhaps saving the main characters later. No one really “dies” in Rayearth, for most of the runtime. The main characters’ armor and weapons literally become stronger with the experience points they gain. That’s not to say this is all happy fun adventures, as there are a few dark developments that excellently set up the stakes of the world.

  I think the show shines specifically in its treatment of its characters. Hikaru, Fuu, and Umi are the only consistent cast (there are like 8 villains) and they’re a treat to watch. Their clearly element-oriented outfits and designs are pleasing to the eye, and they have outspoken personalities that clash and combine to make a lovely party. Hikaru is an especially entertaining and lovable girl, she’s headstrong and tomboyish. It’s hard to not cheer for her efforts, and the audience is constantly rewarded with victories that are never one-sided, but earned. Hikaru is definitely the one thing I will remember from the show, if not anything else.

  The action is also quite good. While it follows a basic shonen formula, where the heroes lose for a couple of minutes before gathering their strength and taking it down, there are a few elements that keep it interesting to watch. The magic the main characters use is a bit repetitive but they still apply it in unique ways. There are, surprisingly, tactics involved in many of the combat scenarios.

  Now, for the weak parts. The story is a rough one. It starts as a generic “save the world” plot, and carries on with that for about 19 episodes… out of 20. The last episode hits the audience with a bombshell of a plot twist that feels… off. It’s foreshadowed with tact, but only having one episode to digest and comprehend the implications of it is neither satisfying nor does it seem like a clever trick. It feels like an awful trick, actually. And the general pacing is good, but the pacing of the villains is pathetic. As I’ve seen other people mention in reviews of this show, two villains are given a large majority of the episode count. Like, about 11 episodes are dedicated to two of them, out of a total of eight. Granted, one of them is a beast-master who summons powerful monsters to take on the protagonists, but still, seeing such familiar faces gets tiring. And the show does get terribly tiring in the middle point, when animation is constantly being reused and cheaped out on. The villains are the same, the conflicts are the same, and the magic is all the same. Episodes 7 through 14 is an absolute slog to get through. It’s pretty awful.

  The ending makes up for a little in an absurd (SPOILERS but they’re in the OP so it’s really not that shocking) mech battle between two of the main villains and the protagonists. It’s a great way to escalate what was a stagnating show, and it’s really well-animated. There’s a lot of weight to the weapons they use, and everything is designed with a slick style I’ve come to expect from CLAMP.

  The animation is spotty. Some episodes look good, some just passable, some outright bad. The faces are the worst for this, but I think that’s also just a quirk of CLAMP. The music is fine but it feels like about 5 tracks re-used. It’s great music, and they save the weightier pieces for very impactful moments, but the less important tracks are played over every little event.

  In short, should you watch Magic Knight Rayearth? I don’t really know. Do you like low concept/impact high fantasy like Dragon Quest or maybe even the Ys series? Do you like energetic high school girls getting armor and beating monsters up after they try to befriend them? Do you like magical girl shows but you’re tired of the “hiding identities” plotline? Rayearth is for you. But if you just like regular high fantasy, I’d go somewhere else. My first recommendation for a slightly older audience would be DanMachi, younger audience, I suppose Deltora Quest.

  6.5/10. It’s by no means bad.

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