Length: Five tapes, one OAV each - volumes one-four are twenty-five minutes, volume five is about fifty minutes.

Distributor: Available dubbed or subtitled from AnimEigo

Synopsis: Keiichi Morisato is a typical college freshman at Nekomi Tech, trying to order takeout when he mistakenly dials the Goddess Helpline. Before he can even say anything, from the mirror appears...a real in-the-flesh goddess! The goddess, who introduces herself as Belldandy, tells Keiichi she can grants him one wish...and he jokingly wishes for a goddess like her to stay with him forever. Of course, Belldandy takes this literally...and in a flash of light, is bound by contract to stay by Keiichi's side forever. Not very convenient in an all-male dormitory... Oh My Goddess is the story of Keiichi, Belldandy, and the people (and deities) in their lives...and a tale of the chaos that happens when a human begins to fall for a genuine goddess, and she for him...

Review: This OAV series has a very select audience, it seems: fans of the Aa Megami-sama manga by Kousu ke Fujishima (also creator of You're Under Arrest (Taiho Shichauzo). This romantic comedy, as charming and beautiful as it is (and as much as I truly like this series), has a few drawbacks to it...as character development is not nearly as fully realized in the anime. In fact, the characters really suffer from the compression of several manga volumes into the five OAVs made.
However, that should not detract from one of the most obvious assets of these OAVS: they are truly works of art. From the temple where Keiichi and the goddesses live to the hill where the dirt-bike race is held, nigh every setting is sumptuously drawn. Character designs are not just loyal to the original...but the entire anime is suffused with Fujishima's distinctive art style. (The running joke in this anime is that the goddesses' hair was just too expensive to animate more than the five OAVs made.)
The characters themselves are slightly caricaturish versions of their manga selves. Keiichi is a little *too* shy and unassuming and Belldandy a little *too* much a a traditional wife figure. Sexy, sultry, inept Urd and immature genius Skuld are done well, but the whole thing seems to need more of the manga treatment...more time, really, which, unfortunately is not possible with the OAV setup of the series.
Music is fairly well done, with the seiyuu pulling together for some rather catchy themes, and the direction, if a little overstated, does pick up nearer the end of the series when the actual plot begins to kick in. Overall, the Oh My Goddess OAV series is a good effort and a very worthwhile watch for the fans of the manga, and probably any fan of the romantic comedy genre. However, again, my gripe is that with the material in the manga being so compressed, it could've fit so much better as a longer OAV series or even a TV series. But what's done is done, true?

Rating: **** (four stars)

Audience Appropriateness: Very young children may be scared by some of the goddess's effects (lightning, etc.), and Urd wears some rather skimpy clothing. Probably good for older children and above.

The story revolves around a young fellow named Keichi. Being a bit short on stature and not very successful with women, he is forced to spend many a night alone. However, one night he accidentally dials the wrong number and calls in Belldandy, goddess of love. Needless to say, his past ineptitude with the opposite sex is about to be turned around.

Characters are the central driving point behind this series. If you like the characters, then you're set. Otherwise, you might have trouble enjoying this. I myself had mixed opinions. Keichi seemed like a nice enough fellow, even if a bit on the timid side. Of course, the fact that he does have trouble with meeting a girl sets the whole story in motion. Enter Belldandy. Unfortunately, the one character I didn't like would happen to be her. Now while she *is* incredibly nice (almost sickeningly so), her lack of assertiveness and general naivete tended to really get on my nerves (particularly in the third episode). At least her sisters, Skuld and Urd, were much more interesting and likable.

The episodes tend to focus on Keichi and Belldandy's somewhat awkward relationship. The first episode was a bit funny, as we get introduced to Keichi and Belldandy. Things pick up in the second episode when Urd makes her appearance, which results in some of the funniest moments in the series. The third episode introduces Skuld, and this episode was fairly entertaining as well. However, the final two episodes were sappy beyond belief. I'm not going to spoil anything by telling you what happens, but the predictable and overly-melodramatic romantic stuff that does occur was beyond the limit of what I can usually tolerate. On a lighter note, the ending credits of each episode are kind of fun to watch, especially the one with the crayon-style animation, featuring a super-deformed Skuld.

The technical aspects were well done. The music was decent, and the art and animation were pretty good.

If you're looking for a romantic comedy, with more emphasis on romance than comedy, then Oh My Goddess! is worth checking out.

Review
Oh My Goddess! has long been a fan favorite, and deservedly so--this has to be one of the sweetest anime series ever made. The story has its share of comedy, and dramatic moments too, but the overriding theme is just a good old fashioned so-sweet-your-teeth-hurt romance; you're just not going to find a cuter love comedy anywhere. In general, the story is well written and fun, but is always pretty low key, and definitely doesn't tread any new territory in the genre. To get a little more specific, Oh My Goddess! is categorized as a comedy, and that tends to be the tone of the story. After all, you can't stick three goddesses and a college student in a temple together and not have some pretty funny situations arise. But the comedy is pretty low key, and the story also has a bit more drama than most of it's kin (Tenchi Muyo and Ranma 1/2), although the problems of these lovers do tend to be pretty trivial. On the other hand, the two main characters are just so nice that you never really get the feeling that anything could pull them apart, and the story never goes overboard with the inevitable tense moments. All that applies to the first three parts of the series--in the final installment, things take a significantly more dramatic turn (though there are still a few light moments). One thing that surprised me was how well the uncomfortable situations and light drama throughout the series worked; it had just enough of a tug at the heartstrings to keep you riveted. The reason for this would probably be the flip side of how cute the main couple was--their relationship was so innocent and sweet that even the minor trials had enough impact to keep things interesting.
But the story isn't what has made Oh My Goddess! so popular. As with any super-popular series (including Kosuke Fujishima's other one, You're Under Arrest!), the thing that carved this one a special niche in the hearts of fans is the characters. Not that they're necessarily original, but you've got a great mix of characters and personalities, and you just can't help but like them. I suppose some people might be put off by Urd (though I wasn't), and you might not be the biggest Skuld fan (then again, you might be), but it's almost impossible not to like Belldandy--she's just too sweet and innocent not to love. And in any case, the character designs are clean, cute, and very attractive. In fact, I'd say that they're better than the originals in the comic version of the series--considerably better than at least the early issues, in my opinion (particularly in the case of Belldandy). The costumes are also noteworthy--the clothing has style (true to the original), and is beautifully drawn as well.
Other than the great clothing and character design, the art in the series isn't particularly noteworthy; the backgrounds are generally simple and use soft colors. Actually, the whole series frequently has a kind of soft, hazy look to it. It isn't a big deal, but it gives the series a distinct feel, and works well in the flashbacks and the few scenes that take place in the heavens. The animation never gets to flex it's proverbial muscles since there isn't much action in the series, but the character animation is smooth, natural, and generally very well done. It isn't the flashiest of series, but it is still a pleasure to look at.
Finally, the voices. The original Japanese dialogue is well cast and features some of the better voice actors in the business. All of the primaries are very well acted, but Belldandy in particular has this smooth, never too perky tone to her voice that stands out from the norm. Even the minor characters are well acted, and all the performances are very distinct; Megumi, for example, has a pretty distinct voice, and Keiichi's former dormmates are an amusing lot. The subtitles, as expected from AnimEigo, are very well done.
Although I have not personally seen the dub, I have it on good authority from someone who actually tried out for the part that the guy who got it couldn't have done a better job. The rest of the casting is also good, with a particularly great performance behind Belldandy's voice.
Summing up, Oh My Goddess! is one of the love comedy classics of anime, and deservedly so. The story is light but not over the top, and has enough drama to keep you interested and involved. The animation is very nice, and the character designs and clothing are distinct and a joy to look at. But best of all are the characters themselves, who have everything that an anime fan will no doubt come to love. If you would even consider watching a sweet love comedy, this is the one to get.

Production Notes
A five part OAV series based on the long running and extremely popular comic book by Fujishima Kousuke. Note that Fujishima's other work, You're Under Arrest!, also features an exclamation point in the title (the guy likes those, doesn't he?) As noted in AnimEigo's always thorough liner notes, the names of the goddesses are based on the Norse gods of the future, present, and past--Skuld, Urd, and Verthandy, respectively. Where did Belldandy come from? When you try to pronounce "Verthandy" in Japanese, about the best you can do is "Berudandi", which AnimEigo decided to translate as Belldandy. Another translation note is that the original title was Aa! Megami-sama!, which very literally translates into Oh! Goddess! Due to the very similar English expression, they added the "my" to it.

Mecha Rating
4.5--One of the sweetest of the the anime love comedies. You'll have to love it.

Genre
Semi-Dramatic Love Comedy (Comedy)

What's in it?
Pretty Goddesses, Divine Intervention, Magic, Phone Calls From God, & Motorcycle Drag Racing.

If you liked...
If you liked this, you'll probably want to give Fujishima's other series, You're Under Arrest!, a try. It's funnier and has more action than this one, and is lighter on the romance.

So, how bad is it?
Almost nothing objectionable in the story, except for a few of Urd's alllusions. Probably a PG.
Violence: 1--There are a few tense moments, but never anything really serious.
Nudity: 1--Some bathing suits.
Sex: 1--Mostly just innocent romance, but Urd gets a tad raunchy once or twice.
Language: 2--An occasional explitive.

Plot/Characterization: It was cute, but SO very sexist...Belldandy was just CRAZY in her wish to cook and clean for Keiichi, and I sure couldn't see WHY. There's lots of other ways to help out your man...^^; Skuld was pretty cute, though...Urd was...well, I'm conservative, so...^_-;;;

Animation/character design: The manga looks great, and it transferred to the OAV well.

My thoughts: It was cute...too bad Belldandy turned out to be so girly and disappointing...