Fancy Lala

Miaka-chan

Stand User
I've just finshed watching this ultra cute magical girl style anime and want to recommend it to anyone who enjoys watching sweet anime!

Fancy Lala is a really light hearted and fun anime, that could almost be classed as a "magical girl" anime, with transformations and cute pets, but no villans or imminent destruction of the earth scenarios!
It's just a sweet story about a young girl who gets the chance to use magic and what unfolds, is the tale of how she chooses to use that gift. It's heartwarming and very sweet, with a fun storyline, nice tunes and a perfect shoujo ending ^_^

I must admit that at first I thought it was much older than 1998, not because of any flaw in the animation, but because of the character design. It had a much plainer and more simple feel to it, like a lot of early 90's anime. Having said that, the character design is very pleasing and the characters have been made to look human, rather than the usual exaggerated anime features. (I was reminded a little of the character design from Blue Seed). The quality of the animation however, was the give-away that it was infact quite recent. The animation itself is very crisp and clean, with nicely toned down colours and I would say almost flawless.

The op & ed songs are quite pleasant, but after a while you do get the urge to foward them on, as they're not that interesting after hearing them 5 or 6 times! The insert song "Transparance" however, is absolutely gorgeous and I never tire of hearing it. The tune is so upbeat and the lyrics are great (except maybe the way transparance is actually pronounced!).
The voice acting is pretty good on the whole. Miho/Lala has a sweet voice, but it doesn't really transfer well from a 9 year old girl to a 15 year old, it sounds too childish, although very cute when she's singing.

It doesn't have an "in-your-face" type storyline. It's basically a very sweet and endearing tale of a young girl who has been granted "magic" by a very mysterious man and with the help of 2 very cute dinosaur type pets and a magic pencil and pad, she is able to speed up time and become a 15 year old girl. The story truly starts when she goes for a walk as her new "self" and is discovered by a talent agency, she becomes a teen idol named Fancy Lala.

It is very much like Magical Angel Creamy Mami, same scenario, different cute pets etc, but having the more modern animation techniques gives this the edge over Creamy Mami (which was made in 1983).
The only other anime I can think of with a similar theme, is Full Moon Wo Sagashite, but Fancy Lala doesn't have all those depressing moments! Other than that, it's actually pretty original!
The ending was a bit of a surprise, but a very nice one. I was hoping it would have the perfect shoujo ending, but was beginning to doubt that by half way through the final episode, but the way it ended was so wonderful and brought a little lump to my throat!

The characters are all wonderful!
Miho/Lala is sweet and although she transforms into a 15 year old, she's still only 9 inside and the naivety/innocence of the 9 year old is always present, but this is why she is so endearing as Lala!
There are some cool characters, like Hiroya, the established 19 year old idol (Miho is his biggest fan, so you can imagine how excited she is every time she meets him!), he finds himself falling for Lala, but it's not in a funny way, just sweet! Miki is also an established idol and Lala's biggest rival, a girl who seems cool and aloof in public, but Miho knows the "real" Miki.

Miho's Dad is a laugh! He has the ultimate job, researching Dinasaurs and you can see what a big kid he is really. There's also a Mum and a cool older sister (who has a similar offer to Miho).
You can't fault any of the characters - well I can't :lol:

If you enjoy magical girl anime without fukus and baddies, this is perfect!
 
Well, I can't really add to what Miaka-chan has said about Fancy Lala but I found it a surprising enjoyable magical girl anime. It is well thought out, funny and even sad at times due to the situations Miho (Lala) gets herself into!
Another plus point is that it's at budget price, so it's something to look out for if you have nothing else on the go! :D

I'd rate it a solid: 8/10
 
Never thought to add the budget price bit! UP1 are selling the R1 DVDs for a measly £5.60 each :D

BTW I'd personally give it 9/10 :wink:
 
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