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(continued from part 5)

MAI-HIME: 16 year old Mai Tokiha and her younger brother Takumi
are transferring to their new school, the Fuuka Academy, by ferry.
After an eventful journey involving mysterious shining red stars and a
frenetic fight between the sword-wielding Mikoto and the gun-toting
Natsuki, Mai discovers that she is a HiME, a girl with special powers
who must defend Fuuka against Orphans, monstrous creatures that menace
the area. As more and more HiMEs are discovered, the stakes hot up
with mysterious prophecies, the consequences of their powers and
several insidious organisations wanting to control the HiMEs - or
destroy them.
Studio Sunrise throws several cliches together - high school comedy
drama, some bishoujo (and occasional bishounen) fanservice,
superpowered action with "mecha" - and surprisingly manage to make
something that sticks together fairly well. MAI-HIME is fairly
unoriginal in execution, but the fact that there's something for
almost everyone, coupled with excellent animation and strong
characterisation, means it's almost bound to be enjoyable in some
respects.
At the time of writing, MAI-HIME is still running in Japan, with 18
episodes of 26 aired - the Japanese Region 2 release has begun with
the first two episodes on DVD.
[Entry by Andrew Hollingbury]

MAISON IKKOKU: A young man in love struggles to achieve his
impossible dreams. The widow who can't forget her beloved husband
knows she has to move on. The handsome, worthy tennis instructor vies
for the widow's love. The harpy-like friends keep the young man and
the widow apart. That, in a nutshell, is MAISON IKKOKU: a slice of
everyday life in a seedy suburban Tokyo boarding house.
Real life is the setting for this romantic comedy from Rumiko
Takahashi (RANMA 1/2, INU-YASHA). Godai is a "ronin", a young man who
failed to get into college. While he struggles to pass his entrance
exams, he moves to a boarding house closer to Tokyo and gets
neighbours right out of a wacky sitcom, who drive him to distraction
and tease him mercilessly. The day he swears to leave Maison Ikkoku
forever, the love of his life shows up to become the new manager,
Kyoko Otonashi.
Kyoko is a young widow who hasn't recovered from her loss. Her
father-in-law offers her the resident manager position at this
boarding house he owns until she decides what she wants to do with her
life. So begins the impossible dream for Godai.
This love story is interesting because it breaks the rules. Godai
is *not* the perfect hero. The rival, Shun Mitaka, isn't a complete
jerk. It feels more realistic than other romance stories, yet is also
a very typical one. The story is filled with laughter, touching
moments and wonderful characters. And when the ending unfolds, it is
a wonderful moment that just about breaks your heart. Even guys who
hate romantic stories love this series. Advisory: Mature situations.
Ages 13+.
Available from Viz.
[Entry by Travers Naran, edited by Rob Kelk]

MAJO-NO TAKKYUBIN: see KIKI'S DELIVERY SERVICE

MAMONO HUNTER YOHKO: see DEVIL HUNTER YOHKO

MAO-CHAN: Aliens have targeted Japan, but they've done their
homework. They know that the cuter the invaders are, the more likely
human public opinion will rise against the defenders if they "bully"
the invaders. What's needed are even cuter defenders ... Thus are
Mao, Misora, and Sylvia - three cute eight-year-old girls - drafted to
defend Japan from the cute aliens.
On the surface, this is yet another entry in the magical girl genre
so popular in anime, and youngsters will happily take the show at that
level. Look deeper, though, and you'll see a parody of the genre and
a satirical look at military inter-service rivalry, along with a
comment on creator Ken Akamatsu's inability to come up with different
character designs (in the crossover episode with LOVE HINA).
Available from Geneon.
[Entry by Rob Kelk]

MARIS THE CHOJO (a.k.a. SUPERGIRL MARIS): Unlike the other RUMIK
WORLD stories by Rumiko Takahashi that have been turned into anime,
this OAV is not at all serious. Maris is a super-strong
troubleshooter who just can't stay out of debt. (She dreams of
getting rich, or at least breaking even, but fate conspires against
her.) One day, she's assigned to track down the kidnappers of one of
the richest eligible bachelors in the galaxy ... This OAV is one of
the few anime to have a Jackie-Chan-style "blooper reel" under the
ending credits. Was available from USMC.
[Entry by Rob Kelk]

MARMALADE BOY: Miki is your typical teenage anime girl, popular in
school, star of the girls' tennis team, happy with her life. Until
the day she came home from school and her parents told her they are
divorcing. Not just divorcing, but also swapping partners with
another couple they met on their recent vacation. And this is just
the first 5 minutes of episode 1! Based on the manga by Yoshizumi
Wataru, MARMALADE BOY follows Miki, Yu, the teenage son of the other
couple in the partner-swap, Meiko, Miki's best friend, Ginta, Miki's
tennis teammate, Arimi, with her ever-present group of male followers,
Suzu, famous teen model, and others through 76 episodes of high school
romantic comedy/drama that often has viewers semi-suicidal with its
unexpected plot twists and turns.
Licenced by Tokyopop.
[Entry by Jeanne Hedge]

MARTIAN SUCCESSOR NADESICO (a.k.a. MOBILE BATTLESHIP NADESICO):
Aliens attacking Martian colonies. Dead parents leaving orphaned
children to defend themselves. Doesn