Mai-HiME

While taking a ferry to Fuuka Academy, new students Mai Tokiha and her sickly younger brother, Takumi, spot a girl adrift on the water. Shortly after bringing her aboard, the ferry comes under attack from an assailant who summons a mechanical monster. Despite still recovering from her injuries, Mikoto Minagi fends off the monster using a supernatural sword.

Mai soon discovers that Mikoto is a fellow Fuuka Academy student with abilities called HiME (Highly-advanced Materializing Equipment). Female students with HiME are responsible for defending the academy and the local city from the monstrous "Orphans." After several incidents at the school involving battles against these mysterious creatures, Mai learns that she is a HiME herself and is capable of summoning a Child, a mechanical creature capable of great utility and firepower.

Now burdened with new responsibilities, Mai s 12 other HiME as they safeguard the school from a threat they know little about all while protecting the ones closest to them.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Kuga, Natsuki Main

Chiba, Saeko Japanese

Tokiha, Mai Main

Nakahara, Mai Japanese

Minagi, Mikoto Main

Shimizu, Ai Japanese

Fujino, Shizuru ing

Shindo, Naomi Japanese

Yuuki, Nao ing

Nanri, Yuuka Japanese

Sugiura, Midori ing

Tamura, Yukari Japanese

Okuzaki, Akira ing

Kobayashi, Sanae Japanese

Suzushiro, Haruka ing

Yuzuki, Ryouka Japanese

Homura, Nagi ing

Ishida, Akira Japanese

Tate, Yuuichi ing

Seki, Tomokazu Japanese

Taniguchi, Gorou Producer

Kunisaki, Hisanori Producer

Nagai, Tatsuyuki Director, Episode Director, Storyboard

Obara, Masakazu Director, Storyboard

Reviews

Oct 12, 2022

delesley

Recommended

Some flaws, but well worth watching for adults.

Based on the other reviews, I didn't initially have high expectations for the show, but Mai Hime turned out to be surprisingly good. I started watching it mainly because the soundtrack is by Yuki Kajiura, and the music is absolutely amazing. The main theme, "Mezame", is one of the best in any anime.

The good:

Characters and relationships are always the most important part of any story, and that's where Mai Hime shines most strongly. The main character Mai really carries the show. She's torn between the love and responsibility she feels to her brother, ... her reluctance to use her powers, her confusion over budding romantic feelings towards boys, and her friendships and rivalries with the other girls. The other characters are great too; they all have distinct personalities and different motivations. The relationships between the characters are what drive the story.

The plot is also quite good. The first half of the show follows a fairly typical magical-girl setup, where girls with powers battle monsters, while engaging in typical high-school antics. However, the themes are darker, more mature, and more sinister than is typical for the genre. There's a shadowy organization named District 1 that wants to use the Hime in some way, and we don't know why. Mai's powers are a curse, not a blessing. The show feels much more like Evangelion than Sailor Moon. Then, in the second half, there's a major and unexpected plot twist, and from there on Mai Hime turns into a truly heart-rending drama. You really feel for Mai as her world begins to fall apart around her.

The animation is good, the battle scenes are good, and the girl's powers and "children" that they summon are interesting and creative. However, Mai Hime is not a battle anime. Mai's powers are strong, but she's reluctant to use them, so viewers who are hoping that the conflict will be resolved by testosterone-fueled combat will be disappointed. Mai has grit and determination, but she's not a typical shounen action hero. This is a show about love and sacrifice.

The bad:

The pacing is poor. The mystery of who the Hime are, and how they relate to District 1, is introduced in the first episode, but for the first half of the show the girls make very little progress towards unravelling it. There's a bunch of silly fluff, including a ridiculous panty-stealing episode, and a cake-baking competition, that do nothing to advance either the story, or to develop the characters. The show feels a bit bi-polar, like it can't decide whether it wants to be Evangelion or Azumanga Daioh, and the silliness contrasts sharply with the more serious themes. For such a character-driven story, they should really have spent that time on more serious character development and back stories.

Because of the poor pacing, the second half of the show feels rushed. Mai hasn't yet had a chance to come to with her powers. There's a large cast of characters, and we get emotional scenes with side characters that have barely been introduced yet. The mystery of District 1 is revealed, but there's so much other stuff going on that it kind of gets lost in the shuffle. In an effort to keep the plot twists coming, some people start behaving out of character.

The ugly:

Totally unnecessary fan-service in the first few episodes. Worst of all, one of the Hime is a highly sexualized femme fatale *middle-schooler*. Ugh. Together these two things make the show utterly inappropriate for its target demographic of teenagers. For adults only.

Reviewer’s Rating: 8

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Jul 30, 2023

undamoth

Mixed Feelings

Regrets come in many forms. One may anticipate something that would never come, some anguish on things that have been done, some still wallow over opportunities lost, and if you are like me, finished Mai-Hime.

Mai-Hime is one of the best magical shows ever made but I am someone who wholeheartedly cannot recommend it for a simple enough reason: IT HAS ONE OF THE SHITTIEST ENDINGS FOR AN ANIME EVER.

I do not wish to spoil it to anyone but it felt like eating on a table, when promised a full-course meal of a lifetime and there you are consuming wonderful meals that kept surprising you ... with every succession but then the dessert comes in the form of a gelatin filled with the kitchen's leftovers from the lavatory drain.

To keep it short, this show was a SUNRISE production which I respected since they made Code Geass and Gundam and follows the story of Mai and her destiny of being a HIME, or a mechaesque-version of a magical girl. It was filled with action, intrique, fanservice, varied cast and an awesome plot with a distinct twist. It was a complete package and its ingredients was there to make it a classic. Great pump-up music, well-animated fights, I mean... come on!

My main gripe was that the show has well-established dynamics within its cast. Their motives were distinct, understandable and even the nastiest assholes were given enough depth to be highly invested on what happens next. This quality writing continued on for many episodes and I kid you not, I think the final episode was made by someone else. I love Code Geass despite its numerous flaws because the story ended in a high note, in Mai-Hime's case it was relative to Game of Thrones'. It betrays everything the show has created prior: tension, consequences of actions, permanence, dynamics... The show was dark as heck yet the show has the gall to end it... ON A MY LITTLE PONY-like vibe?! There was clear sabotage and no ending has fumed me so much as this one. NOTHING feels earned. It feels disted, out-of-place, and really, really fucked up all threads that have been set up. The story ended on such a whimper that all desire of rewatch would never come over me, despite its enjoyable narrative.

In short, this would easily be on my top 10 if not for its 1/10 finale. If a director's cut or so happens it might just be. I mean come on, how can its creators drop the ball on its final moments?! You got golden 25/26 episodes but why end it like that?! It has been more than 12 years but I still cannot forgive the director for this.

I don't recommend the show on how it ENDS, just to clarify. People, if you watch this, watch its first 25 episodes only, muster all strength to stop there, and just make a fanfiction on how it ends. It will save you from ruining your day.

However keep this in mind folks, I absolutely loath its finale like Soul Eater's yet I would still give it an 8/10 overall just because of how good the things that came before. Take that as you will.

Reviewer’s Rating: 8

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Jun 9, 2015

Rohling

Not Recommended

So, i watched this one because friends told me it was a good one. Maybe tastes are different but i really hated it.
The story was non-excictent, just some girls fighting and at the end there is still everybody alive.
Sound and art where ok.
Chars, there are no chars. Non of them where improving over the whole show, they just stay dumb as they where at the start.

Overall: There where just so many flaws i don't know where to start. If the chars would actually get some development i could give this one a better rating, but they're not only dumb, they're immune to learn.
Try fit comedy/school ... life/abit ecci/SoL and drama together, MAYBE could work, but not here.It get's so pathetic i almost ragequitted it.
That's all before i'm spoiling more story (asif).

Reviewer’s Rating: 2

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