To those of you who don't know what Wagnerian opera is, a brilliant composer from the 19th century wrote several popular German operas (including Die Valkyrie - the famous opera with horned hats and mythology), which to this day have spellbound billions of listeners. It is recognized mostly for it's intensified drama, put in place by powerful music and "foghorn loud" voices.
Magic Knight Rayearth is really one giant, obnoxious Wagnerian opera. It's ALL about the drama. In fact, it sacrifices character development and storyline for the damned drama, crippling my interest and overall rating for the anime.
There are two story arcs, both contrasting universally in substance as well as quality. Therefore, I will review both arcs, with respect to the averages in the panel.
The story: Hikaru, Umi, and Fuu, three girls from three different schools, are suddenly warped into another world. This world, called Cephiro, is a land of will, and an evil lord has captured the princess, who supports the world with her prayer. Now with Cephiro on the brink of destruction, these girls must follow their destiny as the Legendary Magic Knights, and save the planet.
First story arc (episodes 1 - 20)
Animation:6.5
It's fairly aged, so of course it won't carry all of the balances that newer animes do. Of the three girls, I found Hikaru to be the most appealing, but their overall designs are pretty good. The one thing noticeable here are the comical moments, wherein character proportions completely warp, and they look silly. I find it amusing sometimes, but when they warp the characters almost all the time, it can become irritating. Other than that, no real complaints.
7
I only heard the opening theme once, but I don't think it was bad at all. The music stays pretty consistent throughout the whole story.
The seiyuu are also fairly consistent throughout the whole story, but I think I would feel sorry for them, having to yell at least 10 times each episode "Hikaru! Fuu! Umi-san!" Nothing worse than that for your vocal cords. :-(
Story:4
Firsthand, I don't like how it began. Sudden is okay, but sudden without understanding the characters isn't good at all. From that point on, the story develops into an adventure. It remains simple and dull throughout this story arc, which I couldn't wait to finish.
3
Magic Knight Rayearth attempts to give the watcher an adventure thrill, while keeping up the intense drama. An overdramatic, cheesy, and pathetic anime that resorts to the same themes and meanings in every episode is the end result. It took all of my willpower just to finish the first half alone. I don't find any significance in this portion of this anime...
2
...which in the reason stated above is why I plan on never watching it again.
10
Since I am a fan of CLAMP animes in general, I give Magic Knight Rayearth much more credit than what it deserves. I don't exactly hate this story arc; I was entertained by its efforts. However, I feel that too much of the story is sacrificed for yelling and screaming to be worth as much as equally entertaining adventure series, such as Fushigi Yuugi.
Avg. Rating: 5.42
Second story arc (episodes 20-49)
Animation:7.5
I was actually quite surprised when I watched the second season. There weren't quite as many crazy drawings, and the quality of the animation appeared to be much more consistent as well. I suppose since this was made in 1994, there must have been some technological improvement that was applied to the animation, which I must say looks significantly better.
7
As I mentioned earlier, the music is consistent through the anime as a whole. However, in this season, the opening theme is good, as is the ending theme. I also really like some of the background music, including the hysterical cheese-whiz songs that play when the Magic Knights fight Chizeta's Djinns.
8
I was much more impressed with this half of this anime. The story involving the three invading countries is excellent, as is the history behind the pillar. I also am happy that the tie-in with the horrible first season didn't turn out to be bad at all, and actually changed my outlook on this entire anime.
The funniest thing is the story with Chizeta. Japan has some strange ways of assimilating world culture into anime, and in this anime they did it with dark-skinned Arabs that speak Osakan Japanese. Yes, THAT is Chizeta. Some people may excuse this as a form of racism, but I found it to be quite amusing. Stereotypes of people from the Middle East are very prominent in the Western world, so to see Far Easterners demonstrate it proves how stereotypes spread too easily.
On the other hand, the actual plot goes along smoothly, with a few bumps from the overdramatic shit here and there. The ending is cute, but predictable since the very beginning of the anime anyways.
Character:6
I am much more pleased with the limits on the overdrama, and more focus on developing the characters. There are even a few episodes in this season that take time to enter the lives of the main characters. I appreciated this, as the first season seemed like they were lifeless, and never thought of anything but saving Cephiro.
There are several cute characters introduced and developed in this half. That little rabbit thing, Puu, which I despise, wasn't the only thing flying around servicing the audience's comic relief. A couple of other kawaii characters are introduced, which balance the comedy between all of them.
Value:6
I am more likely to watch this half of the story than the entire thing again. Even then, I'm not likely to watch it again. The angst is fun for awhile, but this anime overwhelms anyone who watches it with teenage girls and plushy creatures.
10
I can say as a whole I really liked this anime - and it appeals with its adventurous storyline. The second season really saved its ass; it even makes me want to wish for a continuation.
Avg. Rating: 7.42
Recommendations?
Well I strongly recommend anyone who liked Fushigi Yugi and wants another fix of it to pick this title up. Also, anyone who has seen El Hazard or Juuni Kokki are welcome to get this, although I wouldn't really say its as worthy as any of them.
Last of all, there is a lot of romance in this anime. It isn't a central element, nor does it ever really surface, but the subtle elements make it a pleasant watch every once in a while, especially after 20 minutes of tolerating yelping bishoujos.