Mao Chan:
I Will Protect the Peace of Japan
(Pioneer Region 1 DVD)
(2003)
review by Big McLargehuge

Mao Chan is a strange, funny, inventive, interesting, and bizarre
anime. It follows the adventures of second grader (yes, second grader as in 7 years old) Mao Chan as she begins her career as a Special Private in the Japanese Ground Defense Force. Her job is to defend Japan against an invasion of Cute Aliens (yes, Cute Aliens, and stop making me write in parenthesis!). The aliens definitely differ from what most of us expect from anime. Rather than being tentacled and toothed monstrosities the Cute Aliens are much more like something you’d see on a Hello Kitty lunchbox or a Pokemon Plushy collection.

Mao Chan isn’t all she’s cracked up to be either. Her grandafther
happens to run the Japanese Ground Defense Force, and while being a doting grandad, also walks around with a cape, screams his demands at the Japanese Diet, bullies the Prime Minister, and has elementary school teachers (young and pretty ones) fantasize about him. He wants more money for the Ground Defense Force, and what better way to get a budget increase than by exploiting his cute granddaughter in her battle against the Cute Aliens?

By “battle” I mean “bonk on the head with baton”. These battles make Mao Chan a media sensation.

Of course her ascention to media star doesn’t sit so well with the
chiefs of staff of both the Sea Defense Force and the Air Defense
Force, so they (both grandfathers) shove their second graders into
battle. Misora and Silvia take positions in the Air Defense and Sea
Defense forces which sets up a hilarious rivalry between the doting
grandfathers.

So, with that description in mind let’s talk visuals. ANYTHING, and I
mean ANYTHING by Production IG is totally worth watching. They are the guys responsible for Ghost in the Shell, Alien 9 (a series very similar to this one but with a much darker tone), and the anime sequence in Kill Bill. Not surprising that Mao Chan looks fantastic. Bright “Powerpuff Girl-esque” colors, very fluid animation, and a nice mix of CGI and traditional cell animation round out the visuals nicely.
Helping set the lighthearted tone is the constant silliness of the
story that manages a delicate balance between kid stuff (little girls
bonking stuffed animals on the head) and adult stuff (constant
references to the budget dollars that these girls are eating up).

The soundtrack, while I noticed no music during the actual episodes, features a great earworm of a title track and an equally “I-can’t-get-this-song-out-of-my-head-so- please-give-me-a-loaded-pistol” infectious track.

Pioneer offers Mao Chan with seven 20 minute episodes, chapter stops, original Japanese and dubbed English language tracks, English subs, goofy outtakes, and previews for other Pioneer DVDs.

If you like Pokemon but want a little more humor and MUCH better
animation, then the light hearted Mao Chan is just cotton candy enough for pretty much anyone.