Rizelmaine Season 1: Appreciated for its charming characters and unique storytelling

Liselmaine [1st Season] - Liselmaine - Detailed Review and Recommendation

■ Public Media

TV anime series

■ Original Media

comics

■ Broadcast period

April 2, 2002 - June 19, 2002

■Broadcasting station

UHF

■Frequencies

15 min

■ Number of Episodes

Episode 12

■Original Story

Sugisaki Yukil

■ Director

Yasuhiro Matsumura

■ Production

MADHOUSE, IMAGIN

■Works

©Sugisaki Yukiru/Kadokawa Shoten, PC Rights, moe

■ Story

Yuki, a third-year middle school student who likes older women, is heartbroken when he is heartbroken and returns home, only to be hugged by his beloved homeroom teacher, Natsumi. The girl calls Yuki her "husband" and hands him a marriage certificate for the two of them! Rizel, an "uninvited young wife" estimated to be 12 years old, and Yuki end up living together from the day they met...

■Cast

・Rizel/Rie Kugimiya/Yuki Iwaki/Kappei Yamaguchi/Aoi Kiyomi/Masumi Asano/Ryuunosuke Hououin/Chihiro Suzuki/Kyoko Yachigusa/Rie Tanaka/Natsumi Ibata/Yuko Nagashima

■ Main staff

・Planning: BC Rights ・Original story: Sugisaki Yukiru (Kadokawa Shoten "Kadokawa Comics Ace")
・Director / Yasuhiro Matsumura・Assistant Director / Tsuyoshi Takahashi・Series Composition / Toshihisa Arakawa・Character Design and Chief Animation Director / Miwa Oshima・Color Design / Hitomi Sano・Art Director / Sotaro Hori・Director of Photography / Nobuhiro Tenkaji・Editor / Jun Taguma・Sound Director / Toshiki Kameyama・Music / Toshihiko Sahashi・Producers / Masao Maruyama, Akio Sakai・Executive Producer / Kenji Kume・Animation Production / Madhouse, IMAGIN
・Produced by: moe

■Subtitle

・1/Suddenly! A young wife!?
・2/Exclusive! Adult time!?
3/Aim for it! Two people in the futon!?
・4/ Bold! Happy to be hugged!?
・5/You did it! We came together!?
・6/SOS! Dangerous After School!?
7/ Rival? Big Tit High School Girl!
8/Power!? Five seconds left until fusion!
9/First experience!? I embraced him!
10/Love Letter Panic! Caught Between Love and Dilemmas!?
・11/It's summer! It's the sea! Aim for the legendary kiss!?
・12/ The Door to Adulthood! My First C!?

■ Related works

・Rizelmaine 2nd Season

■ Theme songs and music

・OP1
・Let's do it for the first time!
Lyrics: Toshihisa Arakawa; Composition: Toshihiko Sahashi; Arrangement: Toshihiko Sahashi; Singer: Rie Kugimiya

・ED1
・A dash of real power!
Lyrics: Toshihisa Arakawa; Composition: Toshihiko Sahashi; Arrangement: Toshihiko Sahashi; Singer: Rie Kugimiya

Detailed Review

"Rizelmaine" is a TV anime series that aired in 2002, originally based on a manga by Sugisaki Yukiru. The series was broadcast on UHF stations and has a compact structure of 12 episodes, each 15 minutes long. It was directed by Matsumura Yasuhiro and produced by Madhouse and IMAGIN, and the copyright belongs to Sugisaki Yukiru, Kadokawa Shoten, PC Rights, and moe.

The story begins when Yuki Iwaki, a third-year junior high school student, is heartbroken after suffering the loss of her beloved homeroom teacher, Natsumi Ibata. A beautiful girl named Rizel suddenly appears before the heartbroken Yuki, calls him "husband," and presents him with a marriage registration. Rizel and Yuki, who are estimated to be 12 years old, begin living together from the day they meet. This unusual premise is one of the charms of this work and is what draws viewers in.

The cast is filled with a host of impressive voice actors, including Kugimiya Rie as Rizel and Yamaguchi Kappei as Yuki. Kugimiya Rie's adorable voice is a perfect fit for the character of Rizel, capturing the hearts of viewers. Yamaguchi Kappei's Yuki role also realistically expresses the instability and growth of a boy in his teens. Other unique voice actors, including Asano Masumi, Suzuki Chihiro, Tanaka Rie, and Nagashima Yuko, add excitement to the series.

The main staff is also impressive, including some of the industry's leading creators, including director Yasuhiro Matsumura, character designer and chief animation director Miwa Oshima, and music composer Toshihiko Sahashi. In particular, Miwa Oshima's character designs bring out the best in the original work and pursue visual beauty. Toshihiko Sahashi's music also plays an important role in enhancing the atmosphere of the work.

If you look at the subtitles, you can see that this series has a strong comedic element. There are a series of humorous episodes, such as "Suddenly! A young wife!?", "Exclusive! Adult time!?", and "Aim for it! Just the two of us in bed!?". There are also some slightly extreme scenes, such as "Rivals? Big-breasted high school girls!" and "Powerful!? Five seconds before merging!", which will keep viewers entertained. The final episode, "The door to adulthood! The first C!?", depicts the moment when Yuki and Rizel's relationship takes a step forward, bringing the series to a moving finale.

There is also a related work called "Rizelmaine Season 2." As a sequel to the first season, the story of Yuki and Rizel is further developed. If you are interested, please check out Season 2.

The theme songs and music also add to the appeal of this work. The opening theme "Let's Start♡" and the ending theme "Honki Power no Dash!" are colored by Rie Kugimiya's singing voice, further enriching the worldview of the work. The team of Toshihisa Arakawa and Toshihiko Sahashi, who were in charge of the lyrics, composition, and arrangement, is also superb, creating melodies that will stay in the viewers' hearts.

Recommendation

"Rizelmaine" is a humorous work that combines youth comedy and romantic comedy. In particular, you can enjoy the strange living arrangement of Yuki and Rizel, and their interactions with the characters around them. Other highlights include Rie Kugimiya's lovely voice and Kappei Yamaguchi's realistic acting. In addition, the high quality of the work, provided by a stellar team of staff including director Yasuhiro Matsumura, character design by Miwa Oshima, and music by Toshihiko Sahashi, is also appealing.

This work perfectly matches the story of adolescent worries and growth with comedy elements. Viewers can enjoy both laughter and emotion at the same time as watching the relationship between Yuki and Rizell develop and their interactions with the surrounding characters. Also, as you can tell from the subtitles of each episode, it is full of humorous episodes, so you will never get bored of watching it.

"Rizelmaine" is especially recommended for those who like youth romantic comedies and those who like Rie Kugimiya's voice. It is also a work that fans of director Yasuhiro Matsumura and Madhouse can enjoy. In addition, there is a sequel, "Rizelmaine Season 2," so if you like it, you can continue watching it.

Be sure to watch "Rizelmaine" and experience the strange but fun life of Yuki and Rizel. I'm sure it will soothe your heart and bring a smile to your face.