Akazukin Chacha

Title:Akazukin Chacha
Red Riding Hood Chacha
赤ずきんチャチャ
Overall:Buy
Keywords: , , , , , ,
Notables: HIDAKA Noriko
SUZUKI Masami
Chacha, a novice wizard, starts magic school along with her friends Riiya and Shiine (who vie for her affections most of the time). Chacha isn't exactly a pro at casting perfect magic spells, so where Chacha goes, trouble is sure to follow. Her master, Seravy, gives her the power to transform into a magical princess who can do away with demons sent by the Evil Magic Lord who has a grudge again Seravy.

74 TV episodes (~24min each)
Episode Details 
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28
OverallArtAnimationCharacter Design MusicSeries StoryEpisode StoryReviewer
Unevaluated Stretch [series:85#628]
(Four episodes watched):

I also noticed the strong similarity of the character designs to those of Kodomo no Omocha. This show seems to have a fair dose of goofy parody of the mahou shojo genre, though present day viewers might find it stretched a little thin time-wise. According to ANN there are no less than 74 episodes, and I don't know if I'm prepared to go that distance. Still, a fun show which adults will find reasonably amusing.

To go off on a sidenote, I bought this series on VHS tapes back when I was first discovering that anime could be had via the internet rather than Adult Swim. Apparently somebody had taken fansubs and recorded them on tape, then offered the set for sale over the 'net (some special effort was made to decorate the nametags on the tapes). At the time, exactly where the legendary "fansubs" came from was still a mystery to me, and I was happy to get whatever I could at an affordable price. Yet somehow I never got around to watching them until today.

One reason why I delayed watching this for so long was because I had thought that it might be a children's show. Actually, it is--but it's a good children's show, one with wit and genuinely funny jokes. As such, it's as good or better than a number of comedies designed for adults, and the complete lack of fanservice and pantsu is refreshing. I like the OP sequence; the song is nice, and the scene of ChaCha and her elementary school "boyfriend" feeling embarassed together was cute. ChaCha herself describes this as a shoujo series, but I think pretty much anybody would get some fun out of it. ChaCha's transformation sequence reminds me of Sailor Moon; and a monster she encounters seems to have the face of Golgo 13.

Last updated Tuesday, November 24 2009. Created Friday, November 20 2009.
Buy Jenn-chan [series:85#31]
If you like Kodomo No Omocha, you will love this series. Though not as insane as KNO, it sure does have it share of hilarious, slapstick comedy. I found myself laughing outloud at most of the gags. Yes this is a magical girl anime, but from what I've seen so far, that element takes a back seat to the goofy fun Chacha and company have. I enjoyed every minute so much that I forgot that it was a magical girl anime until she transformed. The artwork and animation is nothing special, however it suits it purpose perfectly. This ain't Akira folks, this is a cute comedy about a girl named Chacha (can you get any cuter than THAT name?). Definitely worth my money :)

Last updated Thursday, April 27 2000. Created Thursday, April 27 2000.

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