Mahoromatic seems like a frothy sex comedy, but turns out to be a dark sci-fi drama. © NAKAYAMA * DITAMA/WANIBOOKS * MAHOROBA PROJECT

Mahoromatic: Automatic Maiden. V.1, Combat Maiden. V.2, Haunting Past. V.3, A Warrior's Fate.
TV series (12 episodes), 2001. Director: Hiroyuki Yamaga. V.1-3, 4 episodes/100 minutes. Price & format: DVD bilingual $29.98. Distributor: Pioneer Entertainment.

At first glance, Mahoromatic is just another of the "super French maid" risque sci-fi comedies for hormonally-excited adolescent boys (age-rated 16+). At second glance, it seems more like a parody for adolescent girls of the silly girly mags that their male counterparts are suddenly going crazy over. At third glance, it seems one of those productions where the animation staff (the Gainax and Shaft studios) challenge themselves to keep surprising the audience. What starts off as a zany sex comedy turns into a grim sci-fi battle drama with wholesome family values and a Romeo and Juliet tearjerker romance.

There is a secret war on Earth (hidden from the public by the Authorities) between humans and invading aliens. Both sides use combat androids disguised as ordinary humans, although they only last 10 years. Earth's top android warrior, Mahoro, has the appearance of a young girl (officially 19 because of all the full-frontal nudity, though she looks and acts more like 13 or 14). After almost nine years, her superiors allow her to retire to live her last year in peace. Since she has no idea what to do, she requests assignment as a housemaid (in traditional French maid uniform) to the young son of her former commander, because she feels responsible for not preventing his death in battle.

Suguru Misato is an eighth grade student (presumably 14 years old) who has lived alone in his family's large house since both parents died. After four years of juvenile bachelor housekeeping, he really needs a maid! Mahoro starts out pleased at being able to be useful, teaching him cleanliness and stifling his growing interest in porno magazines. But the more she observes the male-female socialization between him and his classmates (trying to understand such things as "why are boys so obsessed with big boobies?"), the more human she becomes herself. Moments range from the poetic as Mahoro learns to appreciate the beauty of sunsets and flowers (and Suguru learns by watching her), to the erotically comedic as Mahoro jealously protects Suguru from his exhibitionistically nymphomaniac schoolteacher.

Mahoro and Suguru become increasingly close, although they cannot decide themselves whether their warm and tender feeling is love between equals or a mother/older sister and child/younger brother relationship. The plot abruptly switches to stark drama when Ryuga, the aliens' top combat android, tracks Mahoro down to force a fight to prove which is the better warrior. Mahoro cannot let the alien win, but a fight with super-battle weaponry would kill every human in the vicinity. Suguru is willing to sacrifice himself to protect Mahoro, but she knows that she has less than a year of life in any case.

Mahoromatic was a 12-episode TV series (October 5 to December 28, 2001) for the junior high age group in Japan, based upon a popular manga, which carried the story much further. The final episode reaches a satisfactory semi-conclusion but leaves lots of room for a sequel.