Movie: Those who like romantic comedies in anime style, which is a lot of you since that's a major sub-genre in anime, have probably heard of a little show known as Love Hina. The show revolves around a young man, Keitaro, whose biggest dream is to attend Tokyo University and to meet a childhood flame that he swore his undying love to. The woman of his dreams, Naru, remembers the promise of love but over time, his memory has faded so that he doesn't quite remember her. He strongly suspects it though and the ensuing situational comedy made for a lot of fun in the original series. In the follow up movie, made up of 3 OVA episodes, Love Hina Again, continues the show and sort of resolves it.
In the first third of the show, Keitaro is admitted into Tokyo University, is injured and decides to go on an archeological dig with Naru's old flame, Seta. To take his place as manager of the apartments he ran, his sister, Kanako, takes over. She also has a crush on her big brother and the sister drives everyone crazy with her strict adherence to the formal rules, using them to try and boot out the competition. Most of the rest of the show, particularly the middle third, deals with the various gals who want to stake their claim on Keitaro and the infighting between them. With Keitaro caught in the middle of the action, the humor was often over-the-top and amusing to the max. The last bit third or so of the show dealt with tying up a lot of loose ends and was a pretty satisfying way to end the show.
I thought the show was cute and worth checking out but it really didn't have the replay value so many other shows I've watched lately had. As such, I'll rate this one as Rent It although most big fans of the show will likely consider it a must buy. The style of anime was well done, the music cute and bubbly, and the overall feel of the show a very wacky look at relationships so I suggest checking it out before dropping your cash.
Picture: The picture was presented in 1.33:1 ratio full frame color. It was very clear and colorful too with no noticeable grain or artifacts.
Sound: The audio was presented in Dolby Digital stereo with a choice of either English or Japanese with optional subtitles. The vocals were clear and the music very well done.
Extras: The extras included a very brief set of bloopers, trailers, credits, textless opening and closings, a double sided dvd cover, and a paper insert with a picture on it.
Final Thoughts: If you like wacky romantic comedies, Love Hina Again will be right up your alley. It has a lot of fun going on and the three episodes, Kanako, Keitaro, and Naru all focus their attention on the character who they're named after. I bet the series was pretty good too but there was a "sameness" to the three episodes here so you might want to rent before buying.
Buy: