Tenchi Muyô! In Love

This truly is the best of any of the Tenchi's. I bought this one on a whim, and at the end of the movie my wife couldn't stop crying (which is a good sign for this movie). A few months later we watched it again, and she had the same reaction.

This movie has some top animation and a good solid story. I recommend it to anyone who wants to start to break away from all the generic Mecha stuff being played on cable (the stuff that got old back in the 80's in Japan).

I'm not into Anime as much as some other people I know, but this movie knocked my socks off! It's really awesome, especially because it reminds people how good animated films without the "Disney" trademark can be. The sound and the detail in the animations are technically superb! Plus, this animated film actually has a story that could have easily been made into a live-action motion picture. Still, I think it works better this way, because you can do anything with animation and cartoons. The only problem I had was that this and "Akira" are pretty much the only Anime films I've actually seen. I know kids in school who discuss and analyze the films as if they were like any other motion picture. To me, I'm just blown away by the film in the first place. I guess I'm inexperienced with Anime films. It's kind of weird, because I'm lost in the film, while the others kids can point out who's who at the snap of a finger! At first, it was a little hard to follow. I also didn't quite get all of the spirituality and the kung-fu fighting. Once I got used to it though, I was really impressed with it! I highly recommend this picture to Anime fans, and to people who are not into Anime! You will like this, I guarantee you!

The storyline is a little lacking, but it is interesting none the less.

Where this movies really shines is in the music. The music is absolutely fantastic. It just fits so well with the movie. Most of the music is pleasant and flowing, and isn't harsh, but simply sits in the background, moving the storyline along. What's more: You can buy the soundtrack and sit there, listening to it, and see about half the movie in your head, just because the music is so good at pulling the images out of your brain.

Christopher Franke really is a sonic painter.

I enjoyed this movie even though I was not familiar with the Tenchi Muyo show, it had a lot of colorful characters and was funny and had good action too. The story though was a bit hard to follow, it made a bit more sense when I had seen the Tenchi show, but it still has points that make very little sense. My guess is that this movie takes place in the realm of the show "Tenchi Universe" rather than the first show as this movie features both female galaxy officers that are in the "Universe" series while the original only featured the blond officer. Also, Ryoko is the space pirate she was in that series as well. The story is a bit of a time travel movie with a dangerous being escaping a galaxy police stronghold and going back in time to kill a member of a royal family that has the power to bind his almost limitless power. That person just happens to be the mother that Tenchi himself has never met. So off go he and all his little gang to try and stop this being from killing his mother. At times it is a bit tough to follow the plot, it was very hard when I had not seen the show, but it has such colorful characters that its story shortcomings can be forgiven. The action is good too, however, the movie is most certainly more comedy and such than action...most of the action comes at the tail end of this one. However, if you enjoyed the Tenchi Universe show you should enjoy this.

Tenchi Muyo! In Love adds fills a lot of holes in the original Tenchi story, cleverly adding some of the history of the Masaki family into the film as part of the main plot. In TMIL Tenchi's mother Achika is disappearing from the past, consequently dragging Tenchi out of the real world. Soon enough Washu convinces Tenchi and the girls to travel into the past to find the man trying to kill Achika. So, the film takes you into the past to Achika's life - and the thrilling hunt for her stalker. The plot has a few twists and turns, but a healthy amount of them so as it doesn't turn the film itself into an enigma that leaves you behind. Instead you are drawn even more into the mystery, and the closer you are to the end you wonder more how many more ways it could come to an end. Generally Tenchi has it's problems balancing comedy and serious story line - however TMIL will never leave you lost or confused. It's not like Tenchi in Tokyo where randomness ensues one episode after the next. TMIL is highly tolerable, consistent, and not sickeningly corny or unrealistic - leaving aside the whole idea of the magic of the Jurian family and sci-fi material. TMIL is a perfect mix of action, suspense and it's deep and fascinating enough to get you into the film and interested early on. It flows better than any of the other Tenchi films and even the 3 original series. You will not be disappointed, the film is well worth your time whether you're a Tenchi fan or not.