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Hanaukyo Maids


areaseven

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Hanaukyo Maid-tai ( 花右京メイド隊 )

m.o.e./WOWOW/Pony Canyon, 2001

U.S. Distributor Pending (Wow...ADV hasn't picked this one up yet?).

Directed by Yasuki Ide.

Not Rated (Suggested 17+). Contains gratuitous T&A, HLA and suggestive sex with a minor.

Based on the manga by Morishige (published in the U.S. by I.C. Entertainment). After losing his mother, 12-year-old Taro Hanaukyo journeys to Tokyo to live with his grandfather. But he gets the biggest surprise when he discovers that his grandfather's home is a huge mansion with hundreds of beautiful maids ready to serve him. Making matters worse (at least for Taro, but not for our viewing) is that not only does he inherit the Hanaukyo mansion, he gets the services of all of the maids 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Lucky kid.

Story: B-

I've seen a lot of anime titles filled with fan service, but Hanaukyo Maids takes the cake. Not as many panty shots as Agent Aika or Najica Blitz Tactics, but Hanaukyo Maids is borderline hentai with all the T&A shots left and right, gratuitous groping, etc.

As for the story itself, it's very different from the manga. For instance, in the manga, Taro is 15 years old (as opposed to the anime's 12-year-old). Unlike in the anime, Taro isn't allergic to girls. There are also no triplets in the manga; majority of the maids look the same. Despite not being faithful to the original story, Hanaukyo Maids is still worth checking out.

Animation: A-

Regardless of all the content stated above, m.o.e. (Steel Angel Kurumi 2/Zero, Rizelmine) did a good job animating this series. Characters are very well-drawn and the 3D effects blend well with the 2D.

Soundtrack: B+

The background music is very pleasant and the cabaret-style opening theme is downright hilarious.

Cast

Hanaukyo Maids features Yuki Kaida (Kurapica in Hunter X Hunter, Shusuke in The Prince of Tennis) as Taro, Rie Tanaka (Chii in Chobits, Saki in Steel Angel Kurumi) as Marielle, Tomoko Kaneda (Chiyo in Azumanga Daioh, Marie in Please! Teacher) as Cynthia/Grace, Moyu Arishima (Misty in Vandread) as Ikuyo, Akiko Hiramatsu (Yukari-sensei in Azumanga Daioh, Miyuki in You're Under Arrest) as Konoe, Hazuki Kagawa as Ichigo, Ema Kogure (Saori in Fushigi Yuugi Eikoden) as Ringo, Yuki Watanabe (Yasuko in Boogiepop Phantom) as Sango, Natsumi Yanase as Nurse Yuki, and Rieko Takahashi (Diana in Turn-A Gundam) as Ryuka.

The Bottom Line

With all the non-stop T&A and groping in the series, Hanaukyo Maids is an ecchi fan's dream come true.

Links

Hanaukyo.com (Japanese)

m.o.e.'s Official Hanaukyo Maids Homepage (Japanese)

Reference

Anime News Network

Edited by areaseven
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I think that's a typo.  I have the anime and Taro ain't allergic to girls. 

I don't read manga, however.

Why does he turn purple if a girl other than Mariel touches him?

Afaict, it's just regular boy-reaction, i.e. shyness, adolescence, innocence, etc. Iirc, in one or more scenes, he just couldn't pee coz of the triplet's presence and looking on. Just one of the hilarious stuff in the series. I like the way they portray it as part of his growing-up period.

He's got more confidence with Mariel since Mariel's not as sexually aggressive as the triplets.

fwiw, I couldn't believe Tanaka Rie (Chii of Chobits, for those that don't know, yet) sounded alot like Ikkoku Inoue (beldandy, etc) in the Mariel character.

^_^

Edited by treatment
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This show terrifies me. LOL. Because all the sexual stuff is hidden!! You have to figure it out on your own! And I suck at that!

Like when the triplets are under his blanket as he's asleep, doing /something/, and the he wakes up screaming with a goofy expression on his face, and two of the triplets start yelling at the third who now has a shy "oopsies" expression on her face, and Im left thinking "wow, she gave him a bj." but did she??? It tears my mind apart when I watch that show because I just cant figure it out! LOL!

But yes. This show is pretty good, especially if your a little pervert. ^_^

-BEN-MAN-

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haha...and have you seen Sailormoon Live?

Many live versions don't quite...live up.

The maids show sounds interesting though.

Edited by Anubis
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Like when the triplets are under his blanket as he's asleep, doing /something/, and the he wakes up screaming with a goofy expression on his face, and two of the triplets start yelling at the third who now has a shy "oopsies" expression on her face, and Im left thinking "wow, she gave him a bj." but did she??? It tears my mind apart when I watch that show because I just cant figure it out! LOL!

O.o

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 4 months later...

hanaukyo2.jpg16up.gif

Hanaukyo Maid-tai La Verite ( 花右京メイド隊 La Verite )

Kitty Film/Geneon Entertainment, 2004

Geneon Entertainment, 2005

Directed by Takuya Nonaka (Dokkoida!?)

Not Rated (Suggested 16-Up). Contains gratuitous T&A, HLA, S&M and suggestive sex with a minor.

Remake of the 2001 Hanaukyo Maid-tai series. After his mother passes away, Taro Hanaukyo is invited to his grandfather's home. There, he meets a beautiful maid named Mariel and finds out that his grandfather has given him ownership of his estate. Taro also discovers that not only is the estate a colossal mansion, it has hundreds of gorgeous maids ready to serve him 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Story: B+

Unlike the first TV series, Hanaukyo Maid-tai La Verite has considerably less T&A (but still a lot, though) and much more character emphasis. Instead of the squinty-eyed 12-year-old who turns purple when he touches a girl, Taro is a normal 15-year-old boy, which is much closer to the manga character. Sanae Yashima, a character originally from the manga, is added to the series. Ichigo, Ringo and Sango are replaced by a new set of triplets: Lemon, Maron and Melon. And it looks like we'll see more of Taro's rival Ryuka than in the first series.

Animation: B

Perhaps the only disadvantage over the first series is the animation quality. There's less CG effects and the animation is not as clean, but the artwork appears to be more faithful to the manga.

No live-action cosplay on the ending credits, though...

Soundtrack: A-

Michiru Oshima (Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon, Fancy Lala) supplies an excellent score that's down-to-earth and much better than that of the first series. All that and a great opening theme - "Voice of Heart" by Rie Tanaka.

Cast

Reprising their roles are Yuki Kaida (Kurapika in Hunter X Hunter, Suu in Twin Spica) as Taro, Rie Tanaka (Lacus in Mobile Suit Gundam SEED, Yomi in Azumanga Daioh) as Mariel, Tomoko Kaneda (Bonta-kun in Full Metal Panic? Fumoffu, Renge in Air Master) as Cynthia/Grace, Moyu Arishima (Misty in Vandread) as Ikuyo, Akiko Hiramatsu (Nene in Bubblegum Crisis, Ibuki in Dai-Guard) as Konoe, and Rieko Takahashi (Dianna in Turn-A Gundam) as Ryuka. Joining the cast are Akeno Watanabe (Witch Hunter Robin, Angela in Someday's Dreamers) as Sanae, Kozue Yoshizumi (Naomi in Magic User's Club, Koro-chan in Photon) as Lemon, Mai Kadowaki (Mare in Popotan) as Maron, and Yuya Yoshikawa (Misora in Mao-chan) as Melon.

The Bottom Line

The Hanaukyo franchise finally goes on the right direction with this new series. Look for Hanaukyo Maid-tai La Verite to be released domestically by Geneon Entertainment in the near future.

Links

Official Hanaukyo Maid-tai Homepage (Japanese)

Reference

Anime News Network

Edited by areaseven
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Speculation is rampant right now that La Verite may get an R1-release since Geneon is listed. No official confirmations, yet, tho.

Well, Geneon USA did co-produce it, so it's not a question on whether or not it will be released. It's a question on when it will be released.

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  • 1 month later...

SPOILER ALERT!!! Click at your own risk unless you've seen episode 5.

Taro and the maids accompany Ikuyo to a manga convention, where she hopes to sell her home-brewed manga. As part of her sales pitch, Ikuyo has everyone cosplaying...

Mariel

Lemon

Melon

Maron

Grace

Taro ("Ecchi na doujinshi wa ikenai to omoi masu!")

Trivia: What do the costumes and Hanaukyo Maid-tai La Verite have in common?

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:lol: Great pics.
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This sounds too smutty for my taste kinda like Playboy's teases(najica aika) to Hustler's raunch(this)

Other than the first two or three epsiodes, it is pretty tame next to Aika and Najica, and far less violent. If it wasn't for the nudity (almost every ep.) and some of the adult situations, it could almost be an older kid show.

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Might as well give out the answers:

mariel.jpg

Mariel as Chii (Chobits) - Coincidentally, Rie Tanaka is the voice behind both characters.

lemon.jpg

Lemon as Nurse Witch Komugi-chan (The Soultaker, Nurse Witch Komugi-chan)

melon.jpg

Melon as Alucard (Hellsing)

maron.jpg

Maron as Nonomi Higashihara (Gunparade March)

grace.jpg

Grace as Sugar (A Little Snow Fairy Sugar)

And the easiest one next to Melon...

taro.jpg

Taro as Mahoro (Mahoromatic)

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