Following on from my last Anime post, this is my second ‘Inspirational Anime’ post, which features one of my ‘Top 10 Anime of all time’, which you should defiantly watch!
Note: Watch the Japanese language subtitled version, not the American dub (it’s terrible)
What is Rozen Maiden
The Rozen Maiden anime is another that I would consider one of my Top 10, infact it is my second favorite anime of all time!
Rozen Maiden was originally a manga series by Peach-Pit, a female mangaka duo who are mostly known for their award winning childrens manga Shugo Chara!.
The manga has spawned two anime series and also a two part prequel to the show, the manga story is still ongoing though the two series are completed their is still a possibility for a possible third season due to many unresolved issues and plot points.
Season one and Season two (titled Rozen Maiden: Träumend) both contain 12 episodes which is the perfect amount for both story arcs and also the perfect amount for easy watching if you’re anime watching isn’t frequent or you have never watched an anime series. It is a lot easier to commit to a show with fewer episodes as even some of the highly dedicated anime viewers find shows with a large volume a challenge to get through.
The anime, especially the second series has at times dark themes mixed in with plenty of cute moments, mysterious elements are placed carefully throughout and the full story is never truly given to the viewer in one go, instead you are required to piece together the elements yourself which is turn makes for excellent viewing.
There are plenty of comedy moments within this anime and plenty of characters that will make you smile, however towards the end of both series there are moments that will make your heart ache as you watch things you knew were inevitable occur, these elements of happiness mixed in with episodes that will bring a tear to your eye of course make this anime a must see.
This anime will be enjoyed by anyone that is fond of Japanese Lolita fashion style, as each of the doll characters within it is dressed in French period clothing quite similar to that of the Lolita trend seen in Japan, also anyone that is fond of the Ball Jointed Dolls popular in Japan such as Super Dollfie will also find this anime slowly turning into one of their favorites purely due to the characters themselves.
And although Peach-Pit are known for their Shojo (Girls manga) works a good deal of their work is viewable by both sexes (Zombie Loan for example) and I feel Rozen Maiden indeed falls into this ‘unisex’ category, however once again it fully depends on what kind of anime you are used to watching. The main protagonist of this story however is a boy, which will make it a much easier watch even if you’re used to giant robots smashing each other to pieces in your anime, Rozen Maiden will defiantly draw you in to its plot and soon you’ll find yourself needing to watch the entire thing!
The story
The stories main character is Jun Sakurada, he is a High School student but is never there he instead locks himself away in his bedroom and refuses to go to school due to embarrassing experiences that still haunt him, and a lack of self confidence. He is an internet shopping addict and spends most of his days tracking down rare supernatural items online to add to his collection and this is where the twist comes into it, usually in this type of anime you would expect Jun to suddenly find a harem of big busted girls in skirts so short you have their 
underwear in your face for the rest of the show however this is not the case instead he is informed that he has won a prize and almost moments later an antique wooden box appears in his room this box contains a doll, she is dressed in french aristocratic clothing and resembles a Super Dollfie. The only difference is that this doll has a key and when Jun decides to wind her up, she springs to life, slaps him across the face for mishandling her and makes it known that she is Shinku, the fifth doll of (what will become) the mysterious ‘Rozen Maiden.’ Enter a killer stuffed clown forcing Jun to become Shinku’s servant in order for her to save him from it and thus the story begins.
The Alice Game
I don’t really want to talk about ‘The Alice game’ to much as it is best understood when watched unfold through the anime, but Shinku is not the only ‘Rozen Maiden’ doll in existence in fact she has a few sisters and it isn’t long before the others surface, and as each new doll is re-awoken the centry old battle between them known as ‘The Alice game’ must begin.
This competition is a fight to destruction and only one doll can remain, this winning doll will become ‘Alice’ the perfect doll and this doll will get to meet ‘Father’ the creator of the ‘Rozen Maiden’ In order to become ‘Alice’ the dolls must battle using their guardian spirits and special abilities, the losing doll will in turn lose her ‘Rosa Mystica’ which is almost like the souls of the dolls containing their memories and abilities, this ‘Rosa Mystica’ is then taken by the winning doll, this game continues until one doll has collected all of the ‘Rosa Mystica’ and then she alone will become ‘Alice’ and in this game only one doll can be allowed to remain intact at the end and she alone will become ‘Alice’ and get to once again meet ‘Father’, the creator of the dolls themselves.
The characters
All of the characters are beautifully crafted and well copied from the original manga with only small character changes, all made however to make the characters more screen worthy.
Firstly there is Jun, you slowly get insight into his fears, and why he is such a recluse during the course of the two series and you find yourself rooting for him to overcome the things that cause him pain in life and become a much better person. His confidence gains and he takes on almost a fatherly role for the dolls, all of which are trying to find their real ‘father’, his relationship with Shinku is especially poignant and though she slaps him and bosses him around you get glimpses of her blushing cheeks and shy demeanor when faced with her feelings towards him.
Each of the dolls in the show has her own personality as well as guardian spirit and supernatural power to be used during fighting in the ‘Alice game’, these different personalities make each of the characters a joy to watch even if you may end up finding some of the them annoying you soon realise that there are aspects of that you love, and that the show wouldn’t be the same without them. 
None of the characters present in the program are their as ‘bit’ parts, they all serve their purpose and all have their own reasons for their partaking in the ‘Alice game’, their personalities are built slowly and carefully starting out as extreme characters and cliches of themselves but these characters are soon revealed to be much more, even the more destructive of the dolls have their reasons, and Peach-Pit don’t create a purely evil character unlike many story writers, instead they allow you to make up your own mind about each characters motivations and feelings through flashbacks and small, slight insights into hidden aspects of their personalities.
Then you have the mysterious characters within the anime, some barely showing their faces, some speaking in riddles and some not being entirely what they first appear these characters feed your need for answers within the program yet you find yourself being left with more questions until the big bombshells are dropped, because it really does all gloriously come together.
Not convinced?
Rozen Maiden is a story of confidence, battle and most of all friendship and love the characters within it have to make some hard decisions and rethink traditions that have been instilled in them since quite literally their creation. It is an insight into family and it is slowly reveled that all of the characters want to feel love and be loved in return however could this love be not found in the places they expect it to be but instead somewhere all togetherness different?
You find yourself routing for the happiness of these porcelain doll characters, each with their own very distinct personalities and you find yourself wishing them not to fight as they slowly begin to realize that maybe they are best off surrounded by each other and within the warm home of Jun and his sister.
In its most simplistic form it asks the questions ‘Which is more important your own happiness or having the ones you love?’
Again like with NaNa give the anime a try watch a few episodes and see how you like it, you wont be disappointed. I would strongly recommend however that you watch the Japanese language subtitled version of the program, it has since been dubbed in American and in most peoples opinion the voice actors used in the dub are (as usual) sub-par to that of the Japanese version.
You can find Fansubs of the anime itself on various online streaming sites and there are a few torrents out there if you would prefer to download the anime yourself though since the series has been licensed you may have to hunt around the net though it is nothing that a quick google search can’t help you with, there are also various DVD’s of the show online to buy ranging from the licensed versions (which feature both American vocals and an option to watch in Japanese with subtitles) that are released with a few episodes per DVD, and import copies of the anime with original Japanese voices (and the option to turn subtitles on) its up to you to decide which you’d get better value for money out of!
As always if you do watch the anime please drop me a comment and let me know what you think of it! Or maybe you’ve found a similar anime, or would like to recommend me one of your top 10 anime? I’d love to hear from you, so get to it.
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