Line #45 YMMV/AhMyGoddess


1	* AdaptationDisplacement:
2	** In North America, the anime in general tends to be better-known than the manga (which ''part'' of the anime depends on which generation of fan you're talking to), despite the manga arriving stateside first and remaining in-print to this day whereas the licenses to the various anime have all expired.
3	** In Latin America, the TV series was never dubbed, so it's overshadowed by the earlier OVA series (and the movie, to a lesser extent).
4	* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation:
5	** Does Belldandy initially agree to [[spoiler:the heart-wrenching curse on Keiichi because his wish locked her out of heaven (among many things), and eventually started to object when she grows to love him?]]
6	** Does Hild love Urd or not? She desperately wanted to stay alongside her to the point of placing an avatar child version of her on Earth, but then [[spoiler:she is the mastermind behind the Angel Eater arc.]]
7	** Might Skuld be in love with Keiichi? Sure she's hyper-protective of Belldandy but, as the series goes on, she finds herself wanting to be nicer to him (and blushing any time she tries). She also goes berserk when she sees him in a compromising position with ''any'' girl, not just Bell. Later, she gets friendly with the one boy in Nekomi who most looks and acts like a young Keiichi. Urd seems to be aware of this and teases her about it.
8	** Urd not stopping Skuld from interrupting Keiichi and Belldandy's intimate moments together can either be attributed to her wanting Keiichi to "be a man" and act on his own or due to her slight sadistic streak (a leftover from her older characterization).
9	* ArcFatigue: Particularly for the fans who kept up with the manga as it was coming out. ''Goddess'' ran in a monthly magazine, so one could really feel it if the story dragged. It tended to be worst in the [[AuthorAppeal racing chapters]] – did the broom-race between Bell and Hild really need to be spread out over five months?
10	* BaseBreakingCharacter: Keiichi is either a sympathetic UnwittingPawn who makes hasty decisions out of desperation and skepticism (when his wish is concerned) or a subject of mockery after [[spoiler:he was revealed to have his sexual desires suppressed by Heaven]].
11	* BrokenBase: Several, which is no surprise considering how long this series ran.
12	** Fujishima's art style changed radically over O/AMG's quarter-century of publication, so fans have differing opinions on which "era" of his style is the best. The most common answer tends to be the turn-of-the-millennium style seen in TheMovie (around volumes 18-23). Others claim it's the 90's style seen in the OAV (between volumes 7-15), or the mid-2000's style seen in the TV series (approx. volumes 25-35). The one thing pretty much everyone can agree on is that the earliest art (up through the Lord of Terror arc in Vol.6) isn't anywhere near as good as what came later.
13	** Fans of the series tend to have pretty intense arguments over whether or not the quality of the manga dropped significantly after the Sayako palace arc as well as after Keichi graduates due to the shift in tone and downplayed humor, stacked on the previously mentioned ArcFatigue. Also, there's a big split on the retcon of [[spoiler:Keichi having his sexual desires suppressed by Heaven and felt that that plot point was created as a lousy excuse]].
14	** While most ''Goddess'' fans enjoy all iterations of the franchise, there are manga fans – most notably the admin of the franchise's largest English-language fansite – who dislike the anime and its director Hiroaki Gohda.
15	** In contrast to the above, some fans of the anime have complained about the original manga because [[ArcFatigue it went on and on and on and on]], [[EndingFatigue never even hinting at a conclusion]]. While not as unbearable in book form now that the series is completed, do note that ''Goddess'' ran in a monthly magazine, meaning that a broom race that spanned most of a book took five months to complete in real-time.
16	** There are disagreements as to which anime installment is superior – the OVA, which has fine animation and a [[CompressedAdaptation simple condensed story]] but outdated music and character designs; TheMovie, with its gorgeous music and art but BroadStrokes canon; or the TV series, which attempts to [[AdaptationDistillation tell an updated yet more-faithful version of the manga's story]] but has inferior but still decent animation to the other two as well as at least one AdaptationInducedPlotHole. Amongst older fans, the OAV and/or Movie tend to win out, but the TV series has its fans too. There is one thing the vast majority of fans can agree on though – ''Mini-Goddess'' can be skipped.
17	** This happens with the English dubs, due to there being completely different casts between the OVA, Movie, and TV series. All three dubs [[SugarWiki/SuperlativeDubbing are well-regarded]] – a rarity in this sort of situation – but fans disagree on which is superior. TheMovie, being an LA dub using longtime industry veterans, has the best-known cast. However, many of the first wave of fans swear by the original OVA cast (and were very upset Pioneer decided not to dub the movie at Coastal for consistency). Those same older fans tend not to like the TV series dub as much, but it was popular with critics and newer fans.
18	* EndingFatigue: While it was still running, this series was infamous for its apparent inability to ever reach any conclusion. Made worse by the fact that it ran in a ''monthly'' anthology. Fans became convinced that if Keiichi and Belldandy ever did anything to further their relationship, the manga would come to an end. Sure enough, that's exactly what happened, but there was absolutely zero movement on that front for ''over twenty years'' thanks to Keiichi's being [[CannotSpitItOut utterly unable to spit it out]]. Granted, late in the story [[CerebusRetcon we learn WHY that's the case]], but still.
19	* EnsembleDarkhorse: Peorth and Hild.
20	** Lind too, perhaps. She had only recently been introduced into the manga when the first TV season was in production, so they decided to incorporate her into the final episode of the Lord Of Terror arc (meaning she appears in the anime before Peorth, even though Peorth showed up in the manga ''long'' before Lind did).
21	* EvilIsCool: The punk-rock outfits Mara and [[spoiler:Lord Of Terror while possessing Urd and Keiichi]] wear are certifiably ''fabulous!'' Especially those of the more powerful ones. Also qualifies for CostumePorn.
22	* FanficFuel: The entire concept behind the "Goddess Relief Hotline" can potentially lead to a slew of plots where someone (be it one of the other characters, an OriginalCharacter or even a character from another fandom) accidentally dials the Helpline, summons one of the goddesses (or even Mara the demon) and makes a wish, accidental or otherwise.
23	* FauxSymbolism: Urd is basically the illicit love-child of God and Satan (more specifically Tyr the Almighty and Demon-Queen Hild). The manga ''eventually'' confirms what the OAV series hinted at nearly two decades earlier – that all three norns were sired by the Almighty.
24	* FirstInstallmentWins: The most-remembered anime adaptation in the West is usually the 1993-6 OVA series, particularly amongst older fans. However, most non-manga official art you're likely to find online will be from the TV series.
25	* FreezeFrameBonus / GeniusBonus: In the t.v. series, when Professor Osawa finds the fake profile that K1 created for Belldandy, it says that she transferred from "University of Bifrost". Bifrost is the bridge that connects Asgard to Midgard, allowing the gods and goddesses of Norse mythology to come and go.
26	* GrowingTheBeard: It took Fujishima a while to get a handle on the character designs and characterizations (see EarlyInstallmentWeirdness on the main page), but once the goddesses begin to take on a less-Oriental look, the series really develops into the lighthearted romantic comedy it's known for being.
27	** This may be why the OAV (beginning production while the manga was still evolving) and the TV series (which debuted long after the manga had hit its stride) both have Belldandy make her initial appearance with her hair done up in a dishwater-blonde ponytail while wearing her trademark blue, gold, and white goddess outfit (which fans agree she looks more attractive in), as opposed to loose silvery hair and that… thing… she wore in the very first chapter.
28	** The dynamic between the main cast really didn't gel until Skuld showed up in Volume 5.
29	* HarsherInHindsight: Many people, both in universe and in the fandom, make fun of or complain that Keiichi and Belldandy are not that intimate despite being the OfficialCouple and having been together for years (decades in RealLife). Then came TheReveal that [[spoiler:the reason why was because Heaven was suppressing Keiichi's urges towards Bell since inter-species romance was forbidden at worst and heavily-regulated at best]].
30	* MagnificentBastard: [[FallenAngel Celestine]], the BigBad of the film is a powerful God and mentor of Belldandy. Becoming dissatisfied with the world as it exists, Celestine tried to rebel against Yggdrasil. After being freed from his imprisonment, Celestine erases Belldandy's memories of Keiichi Morisato with a virus to gain access to Yggdrasil's system, in truth manipulating Belldandy and Keiichi so he may [[GrandTheftMe hijack Keiichi's body]] and destroy the entire system, along with the world so he may force a new one free of suffering to be created.
31	* MemeticMutation: BELLDANDY [[spoiler:LIED, [[Website/FourChan /a/]] DIED.]]
32	* {{Moe}}: Most of the young-looking characters definitely count, especially Skuld and Megumi.
33	* RonTheDeathEater: Belldandy, and ''only'' Belldandy, became this in the eyes of forum users after the [[spoiler:magically lowered inhibitions]] reveal, calling her a jerk and a freeloader for keeping this a secret from Keiichi while reaping the benefits of living with and loving him without [[spoiler:his hormones]] getting in the way, even if the order was sent from above.
34	* TheScrappy:
35	** Skuld, for many fans, is just plain annoying because she deliberately gets in the way of [=K1=] and Bell's relationship – i.e. the focal point of the series. However, the degree to which this is the case [[DependingOnTheWriter depends on the incarnation]]. For instance, in the original manga, she's a generally tolerable character [[CharacterDevelopment who grows up a little every so often]]; the OAV series sees her as a broadly sympathetic girl who legitimately missed her big sister but is still willing to play dirty to stay close to her; the TV series, by contrast, zig-zags it – in the first season she's [[ClingyJealousGirl annoying and obsessed with Bell]], but in the second she is ''literally'' a [[ChainsawGood chainsaw-wielding maniac]]… before she meets Sentaro and calms down.
36	* SecondSeasonDownfall: Despite the presence of [[EnsembleDarkhorse fan favorites]] Peorth and Hild, ''Flights of Fancy'' is near-universally considered inferior to the first season of the anime, and the TV anime didn't get a third season. This is because the first season was a complete story that ended with a RelationshipUpgrade, while the second season was just a direct copy-paste of various manga arcs from a time when Bell and Keiichi's relationship was permanently stuck in neutral.
37	* TheWoobie:
38	** Sora when she explains why she [[http://img683.imageshack.us/img683/493/soraangelofdeath1.jpg thinks]] [[http://img717.imageshack.us/img717/7082/soraangelofdeath2.jpg she's]] [[http://img163.imageshack.us/img163/8226/soraangelofdeath3.jpg a jinx]]. Go on; tell me you ''don't'' feel like giving her a comforting hug. (Note: these translations are flipflopped; read left to right.)
39	** The Goddess of the Lake. [[spoiler:When she was still human, her village was in a terrible drought in which she chose to be sacrificed to restore it. After becoming a goddess, she was bound to the lake forever, even after the village died and people stopped visiting the lake, leaving her alone. And ''then'' there's all the crap she went through after she fell in love.]]
40	* {{Woolseyism}}: Many of the various English translations have these.
41	** Most notable is the original Studio Proteus manga translation by Toren Smith (that's the flipped version).
42	*** Aoshima has a personalized license plate that reads "SMARM-E".
43	*** At one point early on, Keiichi lists off a bunch of Japanese musicians, which is replaced in the translation by English equivalents including Music/WeirdAlYankovic. In fact, Keiichi's musical tastes are radically altered in the English manga, nearly always for the better (swapping Music/{{Carpenters}} for Music/MatthewSweet).
44	*** As mentioned on the character page, Peorth in the original speaks a form of keigo that is in RealLife largely [[FormalCharactersUseKeigo restricted to upper-class women]] born before UsefulNotes/WorldWarII (in other words, ''way'' off base with how she looks and acts). There's no way to accurately depict that in English with just text, so she instead peppers her speech with GratuitousFrench.
45	*** When Keiichi becomes president of NIT's Motor Club, Sora Hasegawa refers to him as "sir" (vice-[[UsefulNotes/JapaneseHonorifics sempai]]), not unlike a certain ''ComicStrip/{{Peanuts}}'' character she more-than-slightly resembles.
46	** The TV series dub gets in on the action too.
47	*** In the first episode, after Tamiya fixes an Auto Club customer's bike, he announces, "[[Series/PimpMyRide Your ride's been officially pimped!]]"
48	*** In the second episode, after being thrown out of his dorm, Keiichi tries to stay at a friend's apartment during their mahjong game… but keeps winning due to Belldandy's presence. He aptly exclaims, "[[Music/FrankSinatra Well, luck be a goddess tonight!]]"
49	*** Trickster demon Senbei, in the original Japanese, peppered his speech with GratuitousEnglish. In the English dub, he instead uses GratuitousFrench, GratuitousItalian, and switches between multiple accents (often within the span a single sentence).

Context YMMV / AhMyGoddess