Magic Knight Rayearth (Season One)

Three teenage girls: Hikaru, Umi, and Fuu, are summoned to a magical world called Cephiro where they must become the Legendary Magic Knights and save the land from total destruction.

The heart that believes becomes power in Cephiro. In this land where the strength of your will means everything, the three girls must learn to believe in each other and in themselves as they try to save Princess Emeraude, the person whose strong will makes the existance of Cephiro possible, from High Priest Zagato.

Believing in yourself and your friends may seem corny, but examining the power of friendship is actually a refreshing change from the usual lovers torn apart by conflict theme you see in a lot of anime.

Anyways, Zagato has a lot of minions and of course it wouldn't be a show if he didn't send out his underlings one by one to take a crack at destroying the budding Magic Knights as opposed to going out himself right away. Hehe. Seriously though, the enemies are well fleshed out and likable. Their are some friends along the way who try to even the odds for Hikaru, Umi, and Fuu but mostly they are on their own.

Don't underestimate this story. Its powerful and deals with some adult issues. Intentions will be misunderstood, Friends will be made and lost, hearts will be hurt and healed. Its so powerful in some spots it had me misty eyed. It definitely is the strength of the series.

The characters are awesome. The three girls work well together and their interactions with one another are genuine and amusing. Fiery, hot-headed Hikaru makes up for her shortness with an act-first think later disposition. Umi, a beautiful but prolific complainer, is ever cautious. And Fuu provides logic and analytical insight into any situation (how could she not with those glasses!) Plus there are some very cute chibi character moments of everyone! :)

The animation is top notch. Things are a little cutesy, but I prefer that in my anime. Make no mistake, you *will* be wanting to kill Mokona, the most annoyingly cute anime character ever dreamed up! The world of Cephiro is vibrant and varied, but pretty standard fare for a fantasy setting. All in all, the animation is not a hindrance in any way but I wouldn't deem it outstanding.

Amazing, that's all I can say. The music in MKR is some of the best I've ever heard. I'd definitely reccommend the soundtrack to anyone.

As everyone no doubt knows, the subbed acting far far surpasses the dubbed. In fact, the japanese voice acting is so good you can easily get the mood of a situation without being forced to keep your eyes on the bottom of the screen. Again, as I have said, the actors convey very well the power behind some of the scenes and had me reacting just as if I were there on many occasions.