Virgin Fleet

Genre: Shoujo / Action
Parental Guidance Recommended
1998 RED / Hiroi Ouji / AIC / Imagawa / Beam Entertainment

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Cover Description:
Life isn't easy for the girls in the super-secret Virgin Fleet. Schoolwork is rough and the competition brutal. Luckily, cadets are trained in the use of 'Virgin Energy,' serious blasting power useful for playing pranks, scuffling with the (ick) boys, and blowing enemy war planes out of the sky!

(3 episodes)

My feminist side was alerted... >>> by skysenshi

My mind screamed, "Sakura Taisen!" while the opening credits were rolling. No wonder, the name Hiroi Ouji is the one responsible for this entertaining little package. Girls living in an AU WWII, ready for battle... ring a bell? They're not quite as common a fighter as you would think. They have one little important detail that must be observed in order to be a member of the Virgin Fleet. They have to be -- you guess it! -- maidens. No, no, this is not H! If it were, then I would have put it in the dark side of the Fridge.

Virgin Fleet is about this powerful force that comes from a girl's purity. It's not easy being a member of this group, as they have been underestimated too much by pathetic chauvinist pigs. I actually found myself hooked on the screen as my feminist side cheered for my gender as our fearless ladies showed those slobs what women can do.

One aspect I found endearing is Shiokaze and her intended. While they don't particularly look cute to me in the physical sense, I admire their sense of couplehood. They aren't your shoujo type of couple who have to have their mouths stuck to each other about 70% of the time. They don't spend half the time fighting over trivial things either. They're just your average love pair who define partnership to a good degree. The guy, especially, reminds me of my own fiancé who's as sweet as Tenchi without the added saccharine. Hmm...maybe I should join the Virgin Fleet. My wedding isn't happening for a little over a year yet anyway.

Overall, I prefer this anime over Sakura Taisen OAV (but not over the TV series), because in 3 episodes it was able to provide entertainment without the missing holes that Sakura Taisen OAV had. The story is not deep or anything complicated. It just has the right lightness that shouldn't be taken seriously. It's what busy career people like me should watch just to keep the load off our backs.

Individual Rating: Art/Animation 8; Story 7; Characters 8; Sounds 8