Tenchi Muyo

Who needs Tenchi (or Tenchi Muyo for the more expert)? Who doesn’t know this fantastic video in three thrilling videocassettes? When I asked in the editorial office there was a chorus of “I don’t know it” (liar, the only one who didn’t know it was you. – Tribal’s note), which makes me T_T (crying, if you don’t recognise the little face). So this survey made me decide to review it for the most ignorant (you got that, editorial crew?).

The story is certainly not among the most innovative: the protagonist is the classic Japanese high-school student who at the end of these 6 OAVs discovers he is a prince of the universe. (“Absolutely fantastic!” – very ironic remark by someone passing by who minds his own business). The real beauty (I’d say Stupefaction) of these videos lies in how the story unfolds: the engine of it all is the curiosity of Tenchi Masaki, who, disobeying his Grandfather (I write it with a capital letter because until the 5th of the 6 episodes everybody calls him that), opens the cave in the family shrine where legend has it that a demon is imprisoned; strange to say, there really was one, and Tenchi sets it free. This demon, however, is anything but an ugly thing to fight: it is nothing less than a beautiful girl (even though she is actually 700 years old)(she wears it well, though. – Ryo’s note) named Ryoko.

The first clash between the two takes place at Tenchi’s school, which gets destroyed in the process (every student’s secret dream), and Ryoko discovers that Tenchi is in possession of the sword named Tenchi (I didn’t get that. – note by the guy from before, who still has nothing better to do than pester me, but my patience has a limit, tending to 0 as Ryo always says). To recap, Tenchi (the sword) is the only thing that can give Ryoko back her powers, but the only people who can touch that sword are Tenchi (the man) and his grandfather. After this atrocious (for her) discovery, Ryoko, who is very uninhibited by nature, decides to seduce Tenchi (the man, of course) to induce him to give back the gems set in the sword, which are the source of her power.

But, while Ryoko starts her manoeuvres to conquer poor, very clumsy Tenchi, Ta-Dan (the sound all the protagonists of comics make as they suddenly appear at the crucial moment, I’ve been wanting to write it myself for a while) princess Ayeka arrives with her spaceship. She is looking for her half-brother Yosho, also a prince of Jurai and her betrothed by the family’s decision. Yosho had left Jurai chasing Ryoko, in reality a space pirate, who had attacked the planet to steal. Ayeka, having followed the traces of Ryo-ohki, Ryoko’s spaceship, as soon as she arrives on Earth launches a violent attack on Ryoko, who in the meantime manages to get one of Tenchi’s three gems by means of Tenchi (what a mess. – Ryo’s note), wakes up Ryo-ohki and returns fire.

Ryoko and Tenchi are captured, and while Ayeka tortures Ryoko to find out where Yosho is, Tenchi meets Sasami, Ayeka’s younger sister, a very cheerful and playful child, so much so that she plays a lovely prank on Tenchi. Then Tenchi and Ryoko manage to escape and get back on Ryo-ohki, and they start a violent fight in which the two spaceships are irreparably destroyed, so Ryoko, Ayeka and Sasami are all forced to live together in the house with Tenchi and his grandfather. In the first days of living together things are very difficult because Ryoko keeps playing tricks on Ayeka, and besides the previous hatred the two girls feel the other as a rival in love, because they are both in love with Tenchi (why do these things never happen to us? sigh!! – everyone’s note). During the Masaki family’s holidays and yet another clash between the two girls, Mihoshi falls from the sky, an agent of the Galaxy Police (another beautiful girl) who, knowing she was saved by Tenchi, falls in love with him believing it was a sign of destiny (her too, NOTE as usual pest… I swear that if she stresses me out once more I’ll hit her, and the swallow too)(NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!– Tribal’s note).

With Mihoshi’s arrival we find out that Kayato (STOP! this is not the original Japanese name, but if I write it they’ll censor me. But I’ll tell you anyway: take Kayato and replace the “y” with a “g”…) is coming to Earth. (But who is Ka?ato – Tribal’s note) Kayato is a space pirate, but not just any: he is the most dangerous there is, with a criminal record of 5000 years of crimes. (Happy now?) (Quite) The pirate, strange to say, shows up at the hot springs where Ayeka, Mihoshi and Ryoko are bathing, quarrelling and drinking quite a lot. Kayato attacks the girls because he is looking for the secret of the universe, which according to him is held by the royal family of Jurai. At first Kayato kidnaps Ryoko, but shortly afterwards (after a short while – note by Frengo and that’s it) a new clash takes place in which the true identity of Tenchi’s Grandfather is revealed, namely… (I won’t tell you) (and I won’t publish your article – Ryo’s note) (then I’ll say it) He is in fact the great samurai Yosho, the one who defeated Ryoko. Thanks to his intervention Kayato is forced to retreat to his star cruiser, taking Ryoko with him, and so Tenchi decides to go and save her. He is joined by Mihoshi, as a Galaxy Police officer, and by Ayeka (though reluctantly). To reach Kayato’s spaceship Tenchi & Co. use Ryo-ohki, because even though it had been destroyed it had laid an egg from which a cabbit (1/2 cat and 1/2 rabbit) was born that can turn into a spaceship (yes, and Tribal’s dog turns into a helicopter. Come on, please… – Ryo’s note).

But the attack Kayato’s cruiser makes on Ryo-ohki is too violent and the ship is seriously damaged: Tenchi is missing and the girls believe him dead. Meanwhile Ryoko frees herself and returns to Ryo-ohki. The three girls are desperate and want revenge, so they dress up as three perfect Rambos in skirts and attack Kayato. In reality Tenchi is not dead, because he is saved by Tsunami, the royal spaceship of Jurai called back to Earth by Sasami. Finally Tenchi, himself a member (don’t think badly if I use this word) of the royal family of Jurai, discovers within himself the secret of the strength of the universe and defeats Kayato. In the grand finale all the girls permanently move into the Masaki house and the troubles go on, even bigger!! In these videos the animation and the character design are fantastic, the only negative note is the music: the opening theme is nice and short, nothing special, but acceptable; what I really don’t like is the ending theme, which if you listen to it a couple of times is nice, but is very long and tiresome. Moreover, the special bonuses on the tapes contain the same ending song with English lyrics or with different images (Well, honestly, I really liked the opening theme a lot, and I don’t find the ending one that unbearable, at least at the beginning… – Ryo’s note). By the way, if you want to keep having fun with Tenchi, in Italy the publication of the comic that was born after the OAV series began a few months ago; it is in fact its continuation. It won’t be as fantastic as the animated series, but it is very nice and fun.

P.S. (Excuse me, does it end like this? BANG! – note by the guy who was annoying before, and now no more!)