"2DAniCritic" Review:

Heaven's Lost Property

Review Score: 2.86 / 5.00        

Score Categories:
Visuals: 3.50 | Animation: 3.00 | Music: 3.00 | Acting: 2.50 | Story: 2.50 | Fun: 2.50 | Personal Bias: 3.00

Release: 2009
Format: TV
Genre: Action, Comedy, Erotic, Romance, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Drama
Country: Japan
Director: Hisashi Saito
Studio: AIC
Runtime: 650 minutes




Disclaimer: this review covers both seasons 1 and 2 of "Heaven's Lost Property" (season 2 is labelled "Forte").

I'm torn about "Heaven's Lost Property." It's a harem-comedy-porn show, the kind we get so many of in only Japanese anime. But it's easy to like, with a rambunctious cast and the main female being hopelessly cute (and with chest jugs the size of juice jugs). There's a lot to like about the show, and yet it is so full of both cliches and contradictions... I almost want to say it's bad. So why do I still like it?

Tomoki is your typical high school boy. He's a bit perverted, but otherwise normal and wants to continue enjoying his normal life. That's not easy, with a childhood girl-friend who karate chops his head every time he embarrasses her, a smarty-type that vows to discover a new-yet-unknown world a-la Christopher Columbus, and the student class president who is secretly a masochist, and also the daughter of the local mafia head. That already sounds like a slice-of-life show, but throw in a mysterious angel-like creature that calls herself an "Angeloid," set to be Tomoki's servant and do anything to please him. Who also has giant knockers, the power to do just about anything with magic, and limited emotion and memory (basically a robot that looks like your dream girlfriend).

The concept of angels being robotic servants sent from the sky brings up questions, and is slowly dealt with over the course of the show. The truth is mostly revealed by the end of the first season, and is honestly quite painful. Seriously, it's hard to watch. The second season introduces another angel with a more humorously-dim personality, but the backstory for her and other angels that appear in the show also contains tragedy. It is the crux of the drama and seriousness of the show, and also an excuse to throw in a couple excellent action scenes. The problem is, this only makes up for about half of the show: the rest is comedy. Not smart comedy either: it's the kind that follows Tomoki as he uses Icarus' magical powers to look up skirts and cop a feel in the most imaginative of ways. It's strangely endearing to see his passion for teenage youth and puberty, but also disgusting. And also contradicts his otherwise gentle and kind personality.



That's the biggest problem. Like many other shows before it, the show doesn't know what it wants to be, or even what the characters are supposed to be like. Tomoki is very kind, yet very perverted, and very much tries to avoid conflict or change in his life. Icarus is dimwitted and emotionless, and yet by the end of the show can show emotion while still being emotionless. The main girlfriend hates Tomoki's perversion and yet has secret fantasies that show her being just as kinky. In one scene we see a character pretending to be a girl to visit the girl's changing room, in another we see a character's ability to catch fish effortlessly, and another we see a character forced to rip the wings off a tiny bird. These inconsistencies are played for laughs and occasionally drama, or to make characters seem they have more depth to them, but instead it feels like qualities were taken randomly from a box and thrown together without thought.

The production values are solid. Animation is surprisingly good, colors come off well in HD. Character designs are attractive and slightly "moe," although a decade from the show's release, those character designs likely won't age well. The characters occasionally go into Chibi mode, which is jarring but adorable (especially Icarus with her blank stare). Music is decent, with the multiple ending tracks and one very catchy opening standing out. Voice acting is fair, but contradictions in character betray their ability.

Most anime fans can remember the titles of at least a couple harem anime shows that were popular a decade ago, even if they were terrible. "Heaven's Lost Property" comes across as that type of show, the kind that will remain in memory for a good while. There's certainly a lot to complain about, but the characters are easy to get attached to, and that's more than enough for you to want to watch all of it. As I write this years after seeing the show, I still recall it with fond memories more so than distaste.

- "Ani"

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