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Synopsis
- Love Hina
Urashima Keitarou is trying to his best to get into the prestigious Tokyo
University ("Toudai"), but keeps failing. He refuses to give up,
because he believes that if he gets into Toudai, he will meet the girl he made
a promise to back when he was a child. What sort of promise, do you ask? There
is an urban legend that those who promise to go to Tokyo University together
will fall in love and be happy forever. Unfortunately, he's forgotten the name
of the girl he promised to be with ... and worse, he's been kicked out of his
parents' house for being an abject failure at college.
So he travels to his grandmother Hina's resort to better concentrate on his
studies, for a better study environment so he can pass the tests.
Unfortunately, it appears that his grandmother has skipped out on the resort,
and never bothered to mention that it had been turned into a girl's dormitory.
Something Keitarou finds out the hard way. And so now, Keitarou is surrounded
by a gaggle of cute girls, including the high-spirited (and rather violent)
Narusegawa Naru. Could she be the girl he made the promise to so long ago? And
will he, in fact, ever be able to attend Tokyo University and find his true
love?
Review
Boy, does Keitarou bring new meaning to the archetype of the "loser
hero". When you first watch this series, you'll think it's going to be
another Tenchi Clone(tm). And even the manga artist seemingly intended the
series to be nothing but filler.
Somewhere along the line, Love Hina got really good, and therefore, the TV
adaptation was made. And the series quickly establishes that it is most
definitely NOT a regular "harem anime". In fact, not all the girls
fall in love with the hapless, but persistent Keitarou. Instead, Love Hina
plays like an updated version of Maison Ikkoku, with the ronin cramming to get
into college so he can be worthy of being with his true love, a zany
supporting cast that frequently serves as a distraction, and the beautiful,
flawed, yet completely likable main heroine, Naru.
Granted, this series shows a lot more flesh than Maison Ikkoku would ever
think of doing. Fan service is the name of the game here. What can you expect
from a series based in a hot springs resort? Swimsuits, towels, panties, and,
quite often, much less than that. Don't even get me started on the kotatsu
scene. But despite the blatant camera angles and jiggling, I could still get
into it. It's surprisingly clean and innocent, much more so than a show like
this has any right to be. For all the "opportunities" Keitarou gets,
especially with Naru, he doesn't get anywhere with any of the girls, and it
emphasizes just how much of a loser the poor boy is, especially when he's
getting punched into the stratosphere on a regular basis.
But it's not just situationally perverted comedy or slapstick that makes
that series work. The characters are excellent, especially Narusegawa Naru.
Characters like her are very difficult to pull off believably. It's too easy
to want to make these girls too perfect (Belldandy in the Oh My Goddess OAVs)
or too over-the-top (Ryouko AND Aeka in Tenchi Muyo). Naru is not so perfect
that female viewers like myself feel alienated or intimidated by her - you
know girls like her, you've probably gone to school with girls like her, you
may even be related to her. She's sort of an EveryWoman. And so you end up
rooting for her to hook up with Keitarou just as much as you root for Keitarou
to hook up with her, because she in her own way is just as much of a loser as
Keitarou. And if you don't see them as the Destined Couple of the Series,
well, you just haven't seen enough anime.
Not that the rest of the cast is weak by any means. My personal favorites
are Konno Mitsune ("Kitsune") and Kaolla Suu, respectively the nosy,
meddling alcoholic and the strange, random, genki foreigner of the series.
Both of them are there to make situations a little more interesting, using the
forces of chaos to their full extent, just so the budding relationship between
Keitarou and Naru doesn't happen quite so simply. Then there's Aoyama Motoko,
the sword-wielding descendant of samurai who seems completely aloof to
everything, and the super-cute (and super-shy) Maehara Shinobu, who harbors a
not-so-secret (but totally innocent) crush on Keitarou, which might be more of
a factor if she weren't so young. All of the cast is well-acted, and a whole
lot of fun.
Animation-wise, the series is quite obviously computer-generated cel-style
animation. Unlike Kamikaze Kaitou Jeanne, which often degrades in close-ups
and action scenes, Love Hina never really falters in the technical department.
Mind you, it's nowhere near OAV quality, but it's more than adequate for the
story being told. The incidental music is a bit too brash for my tastes, and
the opening song, an unusual industrial-sounding offering from Hayashibara
Megumi (who plays Keitarou's aunt in the series), takes some getting used to.
Don't leave it on loop and leave the room while it's playing, or your roommate
will kill you. But overall, it's not bad, but better than the TV show's
premise really deserves, and it grows on you.
I very, very much recommend Love Hina. While it's not the best anime ever
made, it's cute, funny, and makes for a great date show. And take a hint from
Naru. Next time your man acts like a complete idiot, kick him to the curb!
Yeah! Now that's girl power.
The Main Characters
Keitaro Urashima is a 20 year old drifter who won't give up his goal
of entering Tokyo University to meet the girl of his dreams. Stubborn and
awkward around women, he is nonetheless sweet and caring, and is very loyal to
the memory of his promise.
Narusegawa Naru is staying at the Hinata Lodge during her senior
year in high school, studying to take the entrance exams for Tokyo U. A bright
student, she ends up studying with Keitaro, who is smitten with her despite
the fact that she clobbers him every time he so much as looks at her wrong.
Mitsune Konno, at 19, has few aspirations to entering university.
Instead, she hops from job to job, staying at the lodge where she is
determined to have a good time. Seeing Keitaro's feelings for Narusegawa, she
sets out to hook them up, instead causing even more problems for them both.
Haruka Urashima is Keitaro's aunt and the caretaker of the lodge in
his grandmother's absense. Though in a fashion she has turned over that
responsibility to Keitaro, she remains to help with the lodge and the girls,
as well as to keep an eye on her nephew.
Motoko Aoyama is a warrior, but a woman at heart. Extremely skilled
with kendo, she is from a family who has mastered its art. She has taken it
upon herself to use her skills to protect the younger girls whenever Keitaro
appears to be attempting anything romantic.
Su Kaollo adds a great deal of energy to the group. 13 years old,
she is a technological genius, always inventing new creations to help everyone
or to cause mischief. She acts like she hails from the jungle, climbing trees
and showing great acrobatic skills.
Shinobu Maehara is a shy and quiet 13 year old with a crush on
Keitaro, though she expects he could never consider a girl like her. She is an
excellent cook and helps out around the lodge with a lot of things like
laundry and cleaning, partially to spend time with Keitaro.
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