Summary: Long ago, a man named Rozen lived, and he was a master doll maker. He was so good, that he was able to give life to his dolls. These dolls, the Rozen Maiden's, are required to take part in the Alice Game. The winner of the game becomes Alice, the perfect girl, and will be allowed to once again see their father, Rozen. The losers, however, will be cast aside, and become the inanimate dolls that they originally were. The Alice Game has continued for over a hundred years, and now the Fifth Rozen Maiden, Shinku, has found herself in the care of Jun Sakurada, and the next chapter of the Alice Games has begun. Review
Plot: At the start of the first season of Rozen Maiden, Jun acquires Shinku by accident, and once he awakens her, is pulled into the Alice Game. This is very problematic for Jun, since at the series start, he is a virtual hikikomori, who has become so traumatized by the outside world, he never leaves his room. Jun's struggle to escape the confines of his house is one of the main tenants of the plot of the first season, and in some respects goes hand in hand with Shinku's struggle in the Alice Game. As season two starts, Shinku is faced with the real consequences of the Alice Game, and must discover for herself what her true goals are. Like Shinku, all of the Rozen Maiden's must decide what they will do as well, as circumstances have changed for all of them, especially Suigintou, the First Rozen Maiden. The events in the first season are unfortunately lacking, but they do a very good job of setting up the story in the second season. The OAV is a prologue which takes place about a hundred years earlier, and tells the story of the first time Shinku met Suigintou. It does a good, but not great, job of explaining the relationship between the two seen during the series.
Characters: As is the case with most of my opinions on Rozen Maiden, the show's first season and second season could not be more different. In the first season, characters are barely developed and it is hard to gain any real emotional attachment to them. Even Jun, the show's main character, is poorly developed. The reason for his absence from school, and other psychological problems, is revealed late into the first season, but even after the revelation is made clear, I could not feel any sympathy for his character. The dolls are also mostly underdeveloped, with the only depth coming in the form of Shinku (barely) and Suiginto, but the latter of which is not fleshed out til the final few episodes of the season. Because of the character development that does occur, combined with the events, in the first season, the characters have much more depth the second time around, even the childish Hinaichigo. In the case of Shinku and Suigintou, that depth becomes the catalyst for what makes the second season so good. As for Jun, his character is certainly more evolved in Rozen Maiden: Traumend, and he is less prone to run away, but even so, I felt his character was nearly the same as the show's first season, despite the great obstacles he had overcome. Thankfully, in the second season, Shinku takes a more front and center role over Jun, and does well in the spotlight.
Presentation: The animation of the two seasons of Rozen Maiden is very different. The first season features animation that is a bit older looking, and at times can be surprisingly choppy. On the other hand, the second season's animation flows well with better colors and far less choppiness. It's quite amazing to see given that they were made only one year apart. As for sound, the first and second season had opening and ending themes I was not a fan of. The background music in both seasons is very similar, maybe even the same, but the second season controls the volume, timing, and pacing of the music much better. While the music of the first season is just there, in Rozen Maiden: Traumend the music enhances the dramatic moments excellently, providing an almost tangible sense of emotion to them. The OAV's production values are just as high as the second season with the animation and sound both top notch. As for the opening and ending theme in Rozen Maiden: Overture, I found them easier on the ears and I wish they were used in previous seasons.
Entertainment Value: The first season is just okay. It starts very slowly and at times is just boring. Despite that, there is an interesting story that is worth discovering underneath the faults. Once the first season is done, it sets up what is a very entertaining rest of the series, especially if you can find yourself connecting with the Rozen Maidens. The drama that unfolds around them is all encompassing, and if you like the characters, especially Shinku and Suigintou, you will be glued to the action waiting to see what happens next. That being said, at the start of the second season, I couldn't help but feel some of the action was a bit contrived, and while it came together within the first few episodes, that was still bothersome. The final ending also leaves a bit to be desired, and I wish there was more. The OAV tells a great prologue that fans are sure to enjoy, but if a viewer has never seen (or read) Rozen Maiden, especially Rozne Maiden: Traumend, then the events will likely not make sense.
Rating: 7.5/10 (Season 1: 6/10, Season 2: 8.5/10, OAV: 8.5/10) - A good show that manages to overcome its weak first season to create an engrossing universe centered on the plight of the Rozen Maidens.
Rozen Maiden - 24 episodes + 2 OAVs
Note: Rozen Maiden is based on an eight volume manga that is currently being reprinted in Japan. The manga was released in the United States by Tokyopop, but is currently not in print. Each of the two seasons is twelve episodes long. The word 'traumend' is German for dreaming. Lastly, I felt that there were some continuity problems with Rozen Maiden: Overture, but I wasn't able to determine if I was right, so I did not include that in my review (mainly the number of Rozen Maiden's made and certain aspects of the timeline).
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