Reviews for Ultra Maniac

A good show with a lovely ending Story The story starts not too quick, but not too slow. Ayu and Nina are good friends who are attending the same school, but Ayu is the only one who knows that Nina is a witch from the Magic Kingdom. However, Nina isn't really good at magic and that's why she came to this world. Of course there's a boy that Ayu likes, Kaji. The show views Ayu's and Nina's daily life around school, magic, love, etcetera. It doesn't sound that original and that's true, but it has good point and that's why this show immediately grabbed me from thefirst episode. The story has this really lovely ending, which I didn't really expect and it still was good.

Art

The art was okay. The persons are pretty good looking and the backgrounds are sometimes pretty cool! The only thing that actually bugged me, were the repeated scenes of ofcourse Nina's transformation, but also the usual and same shot when they show Orihara's house.

Sound

The seiyus did a good job. Only the word ''Practice'' ended up annoying me, but nothing was troublesome. The OP and EN are okay, but not that good. Sure, it fits with the anime and it's catchy after a while, but that's it. The background music is pretty normal and perhaps a bit too sweet.

Character

The characters are very good! Okay, they are somehow what you expect them in a story: Ayu is the popular girl who likes the popular boy, Nina is the clutz, Kaji is mr. popular, Tsujiai tags along, Orihara as jealous person and two other characters who make the show funny when it's needed. The characters do grow and have their own problems, which makes them credible. Backgrounds of the characters are given and developments are made. Unfortunately, there was a character that was a bit too late introduced, but it didn't feel any rushed. It made it only more interesting!

Enjoyment

I really bursted out in laughs at certain times and sometimes even at parts of the running gags like something about a locker. I can't say that I liked all of the filler episodes (which weren't that much luckily), but there were certainly some episodes that I really did like! You could think different about cats after a certain episode... And there's ofcourse the ending. Yes, Ultra Maniac is definitely worth watching!

Okay this is my first review ok here i go. Ultra Maniac is a really good anime, its a great rom com anime not like those cheesy romance ones. What makes this anime twice as great is the fact that it involves fantasy, drama and romance which really pulls you into the story. One of the good points of its story is that very often more and more new characters join the story and old characters may reveal secrets about themselves that were previously unkown.That is probably what pulls most watchers more and more into the show. The only thing i didnt like about the animewas that the romance kind of comes later on so if your a romance kind of person you may have to wait a while before you get to that point. Other than anything else, just get away from it all, have fun and give it a shot try watching Ultra Maniac i am positive you will enjoy it. If you need a source to where to find it go to www.veoh.com it has the whole series subbed there. ^_^ enjoy!

STORY This is another Magical Girl series that deals with two girls race to get a covited position in their society by going to the human world, but it is refreshing as it really isn't revealed until later that this is what is going on. Also, the ending is a nice twist to the whole plot line that one gets from these race series, it is in fact the ending that makes it unique from them. It is also very comedic. ART The art is very acurate and detailed. In this one, the middle schoolers actually look to be the age of middle schoolers, which some Anime's madeto look younger. There is also detail in the Magical girl costumes and each character, expessully the girls have their costumes fully designed out.

Also, the scenery looks to be a real place, as if one can actually go their, even the Magical places. The Magical Kingdom is very detailed too, more so then the human world, but that is to be expected. There are also small things worked into the story line by use of the art.

SOUND

The sound was enjoyable, but it was typical Magical Girl type music. It didn't really evolve at all during the series and tended to be static. But on a plus, it was very pretty.

CHARACTER

One of the things about the characters is that they learn it is better to be themselves rather then something they are not. It is an underlying theme in this show, one can be who ever they want. Also, some of the side characters are quite interesting, though one might say bizare.

ENJOYMENT

I personally enjoyed this one, it was a lot of fun. I personally liked Luna... if you watch far enough to find her, you'll understand perhaps why I liked her so much.

OVERALL

Most of the Anime races amoung Magical Girls are clique, but this one was unique in how it presented it and the ending it gave. If you like Magical Girl series that deal with canadit races, then this is definatly a series for you, if not, then no.

For anyone who's into shoujo manga, particularly from the late 90s to early 2000s, who among you has heard the name Wataru Yoshizumi? Or if not that, ever heard of a previously popular show called Marmalade Boy? Yoshizumi, real name Mariko Nakai, created that. Marmalade Boy was a pretty popular shoujo anime and manga around the late nineties and early 2000s, but that's not the only thing they made. In 2001, Yoshizumi published what would be her first fantasy/magical girl manga, Ultra Maniac, which was adapted into a TV anime two years later, which is the subject of today's review. It had been on myradar, but I never got around to watching it due to other obligations and the Geneon DVDs going out of print. But in 2017, Discotek Media rescued the series, re-releasing it on DVD, and now it's officially streaming on sites like RetroCrush for free. Magical girl anime don't normally get uncut releases here in the US, much less even faithful English dubs, so this was a rarity. But by magical girl standards...as much as I hate to say it, Ultra Maniac isn't one of the better ones.

On the outside, Ayu Tateishi seems like the coolest girl around. She's pretty, popular, smart, mature, and has a good head on her shoulders, but inside, she's actually rather awkward and really wants to ask out the coolest guy in school, Kaji. One day, she has a strange encounter with a mysterious but clumsy girl named Nina Sakura. It turns out, Nina is a witch from a magical kingdom sent to Earth on a mission to collect five holy stones, all of which are in the human world. But the problem is, Nina is utterly lousy at magic. Even so, the two of them wind up becoming friends and decide to help each other out. They have to deal with all sorts of mishaps, from one annoying kid constantly trying to find out Nina's secret, to Nina's callous rival Maya, who is not only better than her at magic in every way, but wants to get those holy stones at any cost. Ayu's life just became a little more magical.

For anyone who's read my review for Mahou Tsukai Pretty Cure, rememeber how I said on there that the main characters of that show were the weakest part of the series, with the side characters coming off as far more interesting and less obnoxious? Well, Ultra Maniac has the opposite problem. Ayu, the main character, isn't like most lead characters you'd find in shoujo manga, and she's actually the best character in the series. She's mature, intelligent, and has plenty of flaws but is competent enough to carry the series and grows as a person. Granted, she's not the most three-dimensional—and neither is anyone else—but she's definitely the kind of lead character that you want to root for and won't want to strangle. The other main characters...are rather bland. Nina is your typical klutzy but sweet magical girl who can never seem to do anything right, the two male characters, Kaji and Tsujiai, are really just there to be love interests and are about as bland as white toast. But the main quartet are an absolute blessing compared to the minor characters, because every single minor character, even random characters who only appear for one episode, are not only utterly abysmal, but annoying as hell!! Seriously, I have honestly never seen a show that actually goes out of its way to make every single minor character be as utterly annoying and rage-inducing as possible! Tsujiai's cat Shinnosuke, Luna, the three little kids from the magic world, Maya's butler Sebastian, Nina's grandfather, that Kawanakajima kid, dear lord! Most of them are just there to be violently possessive (Sebastian) or creepily clingy (Luna and Shinnosuke), and Nina's grandfather in particular completely ruins every scene he's in. He's such a raging asshat it's not even funny, and not only is he verbally abusive to Nina even when she improves her magic, he often goes out of his way to mess with her friends in ways that are downright criminal...and the show expects us to forgive him for it JUST because he was worried about Nina. As a result, many of his more heroic actions later in the series feel completely unearned. Ugh, bite me.

But while everyone except the main characters is the worst thing about this series, it's unfortunately not the only problem holding the show back. Ultra Maniac as a show is mainly a slice-of-life magical girl series consisting of the girls encountering a problem and Nina trying to help with magic, with most of her solutions going wrong. This isn't necessarily a bad premise, as other shows I like have done similar premises, like Fancy Lala. But Ultra Maniac doesn't do anything new with it. A lot of the show consists of teenage angst revolving around trying to get with the guys, with only very few moments of brilliance here and there. There are times when the show tries to flesh out some of its ideas, like Nina being unfamiliar with how most human customs work due to being from another world, but they're never really expanded upon, and I feel like the show could really benefit from fleshing out the more fantastical parts of its premise and ditching the romance and teenaged angst. Plus, the animation and soundtrack are pretty typical of early 2000s fare, and are completely unmemorable in any way.

So with all this, does Ultra Maniac have anything to offer that's actually good? Well, yes. For one, it's a fairly safe, kid friendly show that you can totally show your little sister, daughter, niece, or whoever else without feeling skeeved out. Secondly, like I mentioned before, the main cast of characters, while nothing noteworthy, are a fun little group to follow with good, light-hearted chemistry between one another. Thirdly, it does have little moments where it actually subverts a lot of cliches that it follows (Example: Girl sees her crush and another girl together, assumes they're in love and angsts about it, only in here, the show actually has the real situation explained to her, and the characters ACTUALLY TALK TO EACH OTHER about their issues rather than angsting about it or believing a misinformed third party!). Unfortunately, for me, these aren't enough to save the series from being utterly cliche, generic, shallow, and ultimately uninspired. Though from what I've heard, the anime diverges a lot from the manga, so for all I know, maybe the manga did the premise better. Who knows? I ought to check it out. That being said, I do admit to being a hypocrite and buying the DVD set for Ultra Maniac anyway, mainly because I want to support Discotek and because magical girl anime don't get a lot of love in the US, so I thought I'd give some support to the genre.

All in all, it's just a cutesy slice-of-life magical girl anime, and nothing more. But if you want something better, I'd recommend stuff like Fancy Lala or Cardcaptor Sakura.

Ultra maniac is a rare kind of anime. An anime that's so bad it's funny. It fails in every category, but it fails in such a hilarious way that it's just so much fun to hate. Story 1/10 The most obvious problem with this anime is it has a really unoriginal premise. Seriously, I can name at least a dozen TV shows (not just anime) where it's just another fish out of water story that has a main character whose a witch (or an alien, a robot, a goddess, a vampire, etc.) whose going to a school for humans and has to adjust to her newsurroundings.

Of course, even if your story has an unoriginal premise that doesn't necessarily mean the story as a whole is awful. A good example is Kiki's Delivery Service which is also about a witch moving to a new home. However, while Kiki tells the basic fish out of water story, it tells it in an interesting way with great characters and beautiful animation. Ultra Maniac has none of those qualities and instead relies on overused cliches and tropes.

Every episode is just so predictable. For example, there's an episode where Maya creates a potion to make things shrink, but instead the opposite happens and it makes things bigger. Wow, who could've seen that coming (rolls eyes).

Another problem is that the show's world building is convoluted and makes no sense. For example, in order for Nina to do magic she first has to transform, then search on her personal computer for what kind of spell she wants, then she has to plug a cord from her computer into a magic box, then she has to put a random object inside the box, then she has to type the spell into her computer, then she has to say "practice", and then the spell happens.

From a writer's perspective, wouldn't it save like ten steps to just give Nina a magic wand like every other witch in popular culture? Oh, no wait, a magic wand is too old fashioned as Nina explains to Ayu.

Another problem with the world building is that witches and wizards seem to have this godlike power to just make matter materialize from nothing. For example, we see characters several times just wave their finger in the air and make something like a four course meal with a set table appear from nothing.

That raises so many questions. Can witches just make literally anything out of nothing?!

Art 2/10

The character animation looks stiff with not a lot of movement or detail and the effects animation is even worse. Whenever a character does magic they just use the exact same animation every time which is just white sparkles covering the screen.

I don't like the character designs much either. Nina's witch outfit just looks boring and isn't cute or eye catching at all.

Character 2/10

Every single character has a one note personality and doesn't go through any sort of development.

One things that confuses me about these characters is why are Nina and Ayu even friends? Seriously, all Nina does is cause trouble and make things worse for Ayu. I know everybody makes mistakes and nobodies perfect, but there's a limit as to how many times you can forgive a person before you just have to cut your losses.

Another thing I don't understand is the character's motivations; why is Ayu in love with Kaji? There is nothing interesting or unique about him yet Ayu thinks he's this embodiment of perfection.

Some characters I did actually like, however, were Sebastian and Luna. Unfortunately, for some strange reason, they only appear in one episode each.

Overall 8/10

Ultra Maniac is a train wreck of an anime that is full of one note characters, cheap animation, unappealing character designs, and an unoriginal story. I absolutely love to hate this anime.

8/10 +Contains positive role models for girls and focuses on strong female friendships +Goofy, lighthearted comedy with feel-good relationship dynamics +Pretty character designs, soft animation, and pop-y music add to saccharine world -Poor pacing due to abundance of filler; at times lacks focus and higher stakes Sometimes a touch of magic is all we need to find the courage to change ourselves. Poor lovestruck Ayu Tateishi can’t seem to catch a break with the object of her affections, until chance bestows her with a clumsy, yet endearing witch in training named Nina. Through Nina’s friendship (with maybe some wacky magical antics), she’ll teach Ayu the value ofthat the true magic lies in us.

Based on the classic manga from 2001, author Wataru Yoshizumi (creator of Marmalade Boy) offers a cheery, feel-good setting, positive female role models, wacky comedy, and an endearing, simple message. The saccharine world is further complemented by pretty character designs, soft animation, and a pop-y opening and ending. While the abundance of filler and sluggish first half ultimately distract from tighter character work, the budding friendship between Ayu and Nina is easily the story’s highlight. The supporting cast also adds the right amount of flavor and the twist ending provides a mostly satisfying conclusion.

Ultra Maniac is loaded with cliches and isn’t doing anything extraordinary. Yet it stills stands as a quality, earnest fairy tale that resonates with our inner child.

I started Ultra Maniac to rediscover a genre that was popular when I was little (majokko) and I was surprised. I was definitely expecting a very childish anime with simple stereotype characters, instead I found myself very taken by what I saw and I became fond of the whole cast. Let's go in order, Nina is a witch girl sent to Earth to collect 5 magic stones, under the guidance of her grandfather, so that she can apply to be the next princess and marry the prince. Nina is not the only participant in the race for power, but there are 6 other candidates. The only onewe are shown is Maya, the antagonist of the work. Maya is more determined than Nina and does not tie herself to anyone on Earth. Her only goal is to become the princess. We only discover in the last episode, with a nice twist, that Maya sought power for love. The prince always believed he was in love with Nina, but in reality as a child he gave her a key and danced with Maya.

Nina is a bit of a mess and in almost every episode we have her using magic, trying to solve some ordinary situation but she ends up doing worse because she is not able to use magic to its fullest.The two have a sincere and close relationship.

Ayo is in love with Kaji, both are very good at sports and have been friends for a long time. The two boys will get together also thanks to Nina, who does a great job as a friend of both boys.

Nina instead is in love with Tsujiai, a boy who doesn't think much about love instead, who is quite cold in this aspect.

Kaji, on the other hand, is the perfect boy, but he doesn't like to be considered that way because he also has some negative sides and always feels the need to give his best when he also has his imperfections.

In addition to these interesting characterizations, I also appreciated the friendship between the four and it is not easy to find a work with such a pure relationship between boy and girl friendship, like the relationship mentioned above between Nina and Kaji.

I also really appreciated the secondary characters, like Maya's crow and chameleon who somehow try to limit her use of black magic, or Jun, the boy with glasses who accumulates evidence of the existence of magic, the only one in the school who suspects Nina.

Speaking of the ending, I also appreciated how Nina had to struggle to hide the fact that she was just passing through Earth and that all the relationships created would disappear because Ayo and the other humans, after Nina returned to the magical world, would lose their memories. Even more enjoyable then when Nina chose to stay on Earth, after Ayo and Tsuji said they did not want to forget about her. Also with this choice, Maya and the prince were able to fulfill their childhood dream.

Also not to be underestimated is Nina's grandfather, who after fighting for Nina to recover the stones, then understands the bonds that his granddaughter has created on Earth and leaves her free to go her own way. In short, ultra maniac is a sweet story of magic and love, highly recommended for those looking for a relaxing and fun anime.

Ultra Maniac is a charming magical-romance anime that blends comedy, friendship, and a bit of everyday school life. The story follows Nina, a clumsy witch whose magic rarely works the way she expects, which leads to many funny and chaotic moments. Her friendship with Ayu becomes the heart of the series, creating warm and genuine interactions that make the story feel light and comforting. The colorful art style and energetic tone match the magical theme well. The characters are expressive and memorable, and their personalities help keep the episodes entertaining. The humor mostly comes from Nina’s unpredictable spells, which often turn simple situations into amusing disasters. Whilethe story is relatively simple and sometimes follows a familiar episodic structure, the series maintains a cheerful atmosphere that makes it enjoyable to watch. The focus on friendship, small emotional moments, and magical mishaps gives the anime a nostalgic charm.