Tenchi Masaki was a normal teenager living a peaceful life in Okayama- at least until the day an alien girl named Ryoko crashed her spaceship outside his home! And, even as it becomes clear that Ryoko plans to stick around, five more girls show up- Ayeka and Sasami, princesses from the planet Jurai; Galaxy Police officers Mihoshi and Kiyone, and Washu, the self-proclaimed ‘greatest scientific genius in the universe’�. With so many new faces around, Tenchi soon finds that his quiet life has become a distant memory!

An alternate retelling of the first OVA, Tenchi Universe starts again from the beginning, reintroducing the main cast and adding its own spin with some new characters and side stories. The series is pretty much split down the middle- whilst the first half focuses on light-hearted, ‘slice of life’ episodes, the second half ups the action content and introduces more of an ongoing storyline that sees the entire main cast heading into outer space.

Given that the series treads some of the same ground as the OVA, comparisons are inevitable, especially as many of the original elements have been altered somewhat. Most notably, the character back stories have been changed, and the romantic elements have been toned down. Gone are the raunchier jokes of the original, and this time around only Ryoko and Ayeka seem interested in Tenchi- although their trademark rivalry is very much intact.

Despite these changes, however, Tenchi Universe manages to remain true to the feel of the original, whilst at the same time introducing enough new material to make it a worthy purchase even for those who have already seen the OVAs. From the opposite perspective, Tenchi Universe is an entertaining series in its own right- and there is certainly no need to have any prior familiarity with the franchise in order to enjoy it.

Tenchi’s true strength has always been with its characters, and this series is no exception. Although the characters are subtly altered from their OVA incarnations, their core personalities remain the same- as always, Tenchi is the likeable hero who someone manages to hold his own as each of the girls brings their own brand of chaos to his life. Character development is not really a priority here, but then again, it doesn’t really need to be- the interaction of such strong personalities provides ample material for the entire series.

In Summary

A solid slice of comedy laced with just the right amount of action and drama, Tenchi Universe makes for a welcome addition to the franchise that should appeal to fans of the OVAs and newcomers alike. If you’re in the mood for some entertainment that’s not too heavy on the brain, you can’t go far wrong with this series.