Ai, Mai, and Mii are sisters who journey through time and space in search of
their destiny, or something like that. They travel in a magical mansion along
with their maid Mea, communicating with dandelions
(“popotan” is a slang term for “tanpopo” which means “dandelion” in
Japanese), and helping out problematic people they meet along the way. But is this
never-ending journey all there is to their existence? Ai, Mai, and Mii
eventually begin to wonder…
Popotan Anime Review
With its weird blend of sugary sentiments, comical bits, and excessive fan
service, Popotan gives a whole new dimension to the term fluff. That was my
first thought after watching all twelve episodes, despite the slew of good
customer reviews at good old Amazon.com.
Ai, Mai, and Mii are sisters who jump from one period to another in a magical
mansion which is passed off as a Christmas Shop to outsiders. They also have a
robotic maid
(up to now I’m not quite certain if she's really a robot or just an
extremely stoic person)
named Mea who takes care of the mansion and all their needs. This is basically
how each episode goes: Ai, Mai, and Mii would arrive in a certain time and
place. Ai would help out someone in need. That someone would become Ai’s
friend.
By the end of the episode, the sisters would have to move on to the next
destination and Ai would become separated from her new friend… causing some
sadness and heartbreak both on Ai and her friend’s part. Now just substitute
Mai's and Mii's names for Ai and you have individual episode summaries for
most part of the series.
Popotan is structured rather uniquely, taking its characters individually and
then giving each an episode to strut their stuff with. Now it's Ai, next it's
Mai, then Mii, and then Mea. Rinse and repeat.
There is a twist, however. In the later part of the series, the girls would
start bumping into the friends they made in the past. Time would have passed
for those friends – they are older, they have children, and some of them are
even dead.
The girls would be just as they were when they first met
(since they don't age), and eventually these friends
(or their descendants) start piecing together the mystery behind the
sisters. Then there’s the sisters’ journey. They don’t know who or what
exactly it is they are determinedly searching for, making the series seem
rather directionless and at some points even silly.
Another thing I could not quite fathom was the sheer amount of gratuitous
nudity. The girls, especially big-breasted Ai, are always shedding off their
clothes and flashing their boobies for no reason. There’s also a bath scene in
almost every episode, wherein even the lolicon Mii displays her nonexistent
assets.
Further research on my part revealed that Popotan anime is actually based on an
adult bishoujo game, which should explain the raunchy scenes. Well at least
the fan service is not as annoying as the one thousand and one panty shots of
Agent Aika.
The art and animation are pretty good. Character designs are glossy and
distinctive, while scenes are detailed nicely and brightly rendered. The theme
songs and background music are cutesy in style, complementing the series
perfectly.
Popotan is a one-of-a-kind series that explores an angle of friendship with
some depth, I'll give it that. The way it attempts to connect the sisters'
overly ambiguous journey with dandelions is weak though, and I felt the series
could have benefited more from a less contrived approach. The ending is also
not as conclusive as I would've liked. All in all a notch above average, but
not something I'd readily recommend.
Miscellanies: Popotan
Popotan DVD spans twelve episodes.
Popotan | |
| Genre | Comedy, Drama, Supernatural, Ecchi |
|---|---|
| Episodes | 12 |
| Status | Finished Airing |
| Aired | Mar 18, 2003 to Oct 3, 2003 |
| Producers | Bandai Visual |
| Studio | Shaft |
| Rating | R+ |
| Themes | Time Travel |
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