Project A-ko 3: Cinderella Rhapsody

Title:Project A-ko 3: Cinderella Rhapsody
Cinderella Rhapsody
Project A-Ko 3
Overall:Watch
Keywords: , , , , , , , ,
Notables: ITOU Miki
MORIYAMA Yuji
SHINOHARA Emi
TOMIZAWA Michie
Could it be? Is A-Ko in love?! Who is the mysterious Kei and how will A-Ko's feelings for him affect her friendship with C-Ko? Can A-Ko lose two centimeters off her waistline over spring break? Watch and find the answers to these and many more vexing questions.

The characters from A-Ko start to develop more beginning with this one.
[1 OAV episode]
[edit] The ↗Project A-ko franchise:

Original story: Alternate retelling:
OverallArtAnimationCharacter Design MusicSeries StoryEpisode StoryReviewer
Watch 8 8 7 6 6 Ggultra2764 [series:353#1552]
Looks like this entry in the Project A-Ko quintology is meant to poke fun of rom-coms as A-Ko develops a crush on an attractive male motorcyclist. Unlike the prior two films in the franchise, this film lacks the franchise's trademark manic and over-the-top mood as this film is more grounded and meant to provide a bit more focus on the chemistry between A-Ko, B-Ko, and C-Ko and the first's attraction to a guy derailing the typical dynamics between them. Probably won't be everyone's cup of tea given the reputation of the prior two films, but this one does change up things with the film somewhat to give it something fresh to dabble into since I did feel the second film felt like it was too into familiar territory without having something else to dabble into from the 80s anime scene. But still, I'd only recommend this film to 80s anime fans, as the cliches and anime dabbled into are from that era and would be lost on fans of more modern titles.

Last updated Tuesday, August 04 2020. Created Tuesday, August 04 2020.
Rent 7 7 7 7 7 AstroNerdBoy [series:353#436]

Well, this one wasn't as funny as the previous stories, but I found it fun all the same. The gang is all back with B-Ko determined to carry out her yuri shoujo-ai fantasies with C-Ko as usual. A-Ko is determined to get a boyfriend and C-Ko is C-Ko.

The introduction of Kei made for an interesting twist. When A-Ko and B-Ko both fall for him, the situation changed a bit. B-Ko is torn between Kei-sama and C-Ko. A-Ko wants to be with Kei-kun, but what about C-Ko?

I found it interesting (though U.S. Manga Corps translations completely ignore this part by removing the Japanese honorifics) watching A-Ko's progression with Kei. At first, he's "Kei-kun." Then on the bike ride, he's "Kei". Then when she gets the party invitation, it is "Kei-san". At the party, it is "Kei-sama". So her changing feelings were reflected in the honorifics she used. For B-Ko, it was "Kei-sama" from the start, falling into the anime tradition of having rich, beautiful women address the man they love with the "-sama" honorific. ^_^

While exploring A-Ko, B-Ko, and C-Ko's feelings about things is interesting, lets face it, most folks are going to want to see the wacky humor found in the first to Project A-Ko titles. That was missing from this title and thus is the title's weakness.

Bottom line: A fun trip into the world of A-Ko, B-Ko, and C-Ko, but not a funny trip and not one I'd take a 2nd time.

Last updated Wednesday, January 12 2005. Created Wednesday, January 12 2005.

Watch Stretch [series:353#628]
Going in, the opening scene of Project A-Ko 3 was so completely unlike anything in the previous movies that I was sure I'd been mailed a mislabeled tape by mistake. The movie got off to a slow start as I noticed how long it took before some fairly funny jokes came along (perhaps my favorite was when A-Ko discovers who has gotten hold of the dress she had her heart set on buying!). When the mayor sounds the alarm and mobilizes all available Graviton City personnel to storm "Space Craft Land", I thought "Ah, here's where it gets good as things finally get really wacky". But nothing much came of it--five minutes later the movie was over! The credits were accompanied by clips from the previous movie, perhaps so that the clips from this one could be interspersed with a live-action music video--but the effect was largely just hearing the same unremarkable song played twice. All in all, unless you're a true Project A-Ko fanatic, I'd pass this one up. At least I know now that it would be more accurate to describe B-Ko as a bisexual than a lesbian!

9/03 #72

Last updated Tuesday, March 11 2008. Created Monday, September 29 2003.
Rent 7 7 5 7 5 Midnighter [series:353#94]
Project A-Ko 3 was an interesting departure from the first two in that it's much less a parody and more a romantic comedy.
The best part about it was the character development. We get to see inside A-Ko's feelings and see that she is not just a chipper girl who's always late and perpetually fed up with B-Ko. We learn that not only does she have other feelings, but that she has a feminine side that longs for beautiful dresses and a boyfriend. C-Ko, too, is given some development and emotions beyond "cute," spoiled stupidity. One sees just how deep her feelings run for A-Ko and how she deals with the understandable jealousy of her best friend's crush. But most importantly about C-Ko is the fact that we begin to understand why she's the way she is, and that is, she's a maturing girl afraid of the grown up world who is trying desperately to hang onto the innocence and happiness of childhood.
The Animation is nothing special, a step down from the first two, but the opening has some really nice character redesigns. I was disappointed that they were only used for the dream sequence.
Overall, Ako 3 is worth seeing, and the only reason I didn't give it a buy is it's rather light-weight plot and short length. This is an enjoyable anime.

Last updated Friday, November 09 2001. Created Friday, November 09 2001.

Other Sites
NameURL
Media Factory's Official Project A-Ko Site http://www.mediafactory.co.jp/anime/a-ko/
An official A-Ko site in Japanese.

Community Anime Reviews

anime mikomi org