I approached Tenchi Forever with a renewed sense of enthusiasm after the resounding enjoyment I had with the first Tenchi Muyo! movie, Tenchi in Love.
Typically, feature length movies that have spun-off from popular anime franchises (like Tenchi) rarely dare to push the boundaries beyond what their devoted fan base have come to expect. Tenchi Forever certainly assumes that its viewers already have a basic familiarity with the Tenchi Muyo! universe, but this is where the similarities end- Tenchi Forever is a slow, introspective love story that successfully trades the zany humour of the popular OVA/TV series with a bold attempt to resolve the potent feelings between our lovelorn heroes.

For a start, the animation in Tenchi Forever just looks different when compared with the now standard Tenchi Muyo! character designs. Perhaps in an attempt to help the viewer to take the story more seriously than usual; Tenchi and even Ryoko look older and so much more mature. Such changes are a little hard to grasp at first, but I found it perfectly set the atmosphere for what was yet to come.

The story itself revolves around Tenchi mysteriously disappearing and essentially missing from the lives of his friends and family (not least of all Ayeka and Ryoko) for a good six months. Typically, Ayeka and Ryoko rope in the help of the scientific genius Washu and when they eventually pin down Tenchi's location, the girls set off to rescue him.

But does Tenchi need rescuing? Catching a glimpse of him walking down the street hand-in-hand with another girl and looking particularly happy, Ayeka and Ryoko are left to ponder if Tenchi has simply run off with another girl and forgotten all about them.

Any Tenchi fans reading this review should be able to sense the emotional angst from a mile off. For perhaps the first time in Tenchi Muyo!, we see these hearty girls completely shaken- not physically, but emotionally shattered. This is the side of Tenchi Muyo! that we all knew existed, but is usually glossed over by a sharp sense of comedic timing.

The fact a movie like this can be made from a 'funny' anime like Tenchi Muyo! just goes to show the limitless potential in these characters and their conflicted relationships. We reach the end of the story and nothing has been resolved in terms of the dynamic 'Ayeka-Tenchi-Ryoko' friendships, but I just felt relieved to see these much loved characters come through the experience relatively unscathed.
I'm not sure if we ever will find out which girl Tenchi eventually chooses, but I don't think I care, Tenchi Muyo! has always been about these three characters and resolving their relationships would mean only one thing- and I am not sure I'm ready to wave goodbye to Tenchi and the gang just yet.

If that wasn't praise enough, the animation in this movie is beautiful. To reflect its restrained emotion, the story has been set to the vivid hues of autumn. The backgrounds have a vivid, almost water-colour look to them, perfectly balancing the surreal feeling of retrospect coursing throughout the lifeblood of this film.

In Summary
Tenchi Forever is Tenchi Muyo! as you have never seen it before; a sad yet uplifting tale of lost love that I thoroughly enjoyed. Don't let yourself be put off by change in certain larger-than-life characters- just like the rest of us, they are constantly growing and emotionally maturing.

Tenchi Forever is hard to recommend to anyone that has yet to experience the delights of the previous Tenchi Muyo! OVAs and TV series, but for established fans like myself, this movie is a rare chance to catch a glimpse at the softer side of Tenchi and friends.