Review | Movie | Tenchi Muyo: Daughter of Darkness

TENCHI MUYO: DAUGHTER OF DARKNESS : When Tenchi Masaki is
suddenly approached by a mysterious girl named Mayuka who claims Tenchi is her father, the entire Masaki house is in a tailspin about who the mother is, and,
more importantly, how a 17-year-old boy can father a 16-year-old girl. As
Mayuka befriends the girls of the household, it is slowly suspected that Mayuka
may be part of something far more sinister.

I actually watched this movie before I began the series. This was many years ago, very way back.

Tenchi Muyo's charm is never shy; the excitement and comedy you get out of Tenchi's awkward moments, most of the time courtesy of space pirate Ryoko, never ceases to keep you alert. That's why, after watching this great movie, I finally began the series where it all began.

The story begins when Tenchi is doing his regular routine chores around his (impressively large) land, when he discovers a mysterious young girl sitting on his property. As soon as she sees him, she begins to refer to him as "daddy" and will not leave his side. Confused as always, Tenchi brings her back home for what could possibly be some answers. Naturally, this does not sit too well with Ryoko and Ayeka, who are head-over-heels in love with Tenchi. The jealousy is so strong you can smell it, and the sour taste remains with them even though Mayuka shows no sign of threatening them. Eventually, she forms her very own dislike for Ryoko, but a very strong friendship with young Sasami.

After running some tests, Washu comes up with the theory that Mayuka may be from the future, because DNA tests have proven that Tenchi is indeed Mayuka's father. She is therefore allowed to stay in the Masaki household.

Enter Yuzuka, a crazy-looking cat girl who is another in a long line of aliens seeking revenge on the Masakis, but just what could she be after? Is she the explanation for Mayuka's recent strange behavior? Ryoko's onto something, but no one wants to listen, figuring it's another one of her jealous rampages.

There is cursing in this movie, and of course the occasional groping of Tenchi by the alien chicks, and some one-sided incest. Parents may want to do some checking up before showing it to a young child, who may otherwise enjoy it for its sci-fi style fighting.

This is a fantastic movie to add to your Tenchi Muyo, and anime, collection. Tenchi Muyo became quite popular with anime fans when it was first released, and was even aired on TV for a brief time (I myself tuned in for some episodes) and this is one you'll want to keep an eye out for next time you're at the DVD store.

Overall Rating:
/ 5

Review | Anime | Tenchi Muyo

TENCHI MUYO : Tenchi Masaki lives a quiet life with his father and
grandfather in their large house on historic grounds. When Tenchi accidentally
releases a 5,000 year-old demon named Ryoko sealed away under a cave of
boulders, things begin to collapse. Space Pirate Ryoko attracts Space Police
officers Mihoshi and Kiyone, later attracting planet princesses Sasami and
Ayeka, and 12-year-old genius Washu. Out of pity he ends up housing the oddball
girls and ultimately becomes the subject of their affection, which becomes too
much for him to handle.

One of the many results of my days of movie store anime scavenging for anything that caught my eye, I first rented one of the Tenchi Muyo movies, Daughter Of Darkness, and I tried it on for size. My liking for the movie finally guided me to the series.

This series is very, very Sci-Fi. The girls that live under Tenchi's roof are all aliens, even though they take on the physical forms of humans, and some of them are actually a lot older than they appear. At one time or another there's always lots of Sci-Fi-stylized fighting going on, which includes but is not limited to Ryoko and Ayeka's consistent cat fights over the heart of Tenchi, which only drives him away rather than draws him close. The only one of the girls that does not show an almost demented obsession over him is young Sasami, who sees him merely as a brother figure rather than a possible boyfriend.

This used to air on an anime segment of a children's television channel, which I found extremely strange because this show is very seinen and definitely not for children. There is profanity in the show and a lot of the time some nudity. Even though nothing too detailed is shown, there are a few scenes of the older girls (ages from about 18-24) in the girls' bathhouse fully unclothed. Even though the episodes they showed on the network were the mild ones that did not feature any nudity, I was shocked to find that there were a couple of "go to hells" here and there. They removed a scene of a very mild slap in an episode of Sailor Moon, yet they allow the airing of episodes with that kind of language on a children's network. I found it a little odd.

There is a large amount of unsuitable content in this series and I really wouldn't recommend showing it to a child, even with supervision. Again, some of the episodes are mild with no such content, but when there is, you really don't know it's coming, it's pretty much there before you can react.

If we are, however, talking about those suited for seinen animes, I would check this one out, it's a good show, just not very child-appropriate.

Overall Rating:
/ 5

~~Multimedia~~

Livejournal Avatars

Audio:

Season 1 Opening Theme : Ryo-Ohki's Theme
Season 2 Opening Theme : I'm A Pioneer
Season 1 Ending Theme : Talent For Love
Tenchi Universe Opening Theme