| | Alternate title : Maria Watches Over Us
Studio : Studio DEEN
Licenced by : Nozomi Entertainment/TRSI
Length : 13 Episodes
Year : 2004
Genre : Romance - Shoujo-ai - Shoujo - Drama
Synopsis :
Maria-sama ga miteru is based on a series of 15 novels.
It takes place in an all-girls school called Lillian Girls' School. At the school, there is a system whereby upperclassmen take younger classmen as their "little sisters" ("petite soeurs").
The Student Council, called the Yamayurikai (Mountain Lily Council), is run by the so-called three Roses: Rosa Chinensis, Rosa Foetida, and Rosa Gigantea. The "little sisters" of these Roses are the ones that will replace them the following year, and are called "boutons" or "tsubomi" ("buds")
The main character, Yumi, is asked by Rosa Chinensis en bouton to be her petite soeur, but under complicated circumstances, Yumi turns down her offer, and the Rosa Chinensis en bouton won't stop until Yumi becomes her petite soeur (little sister)!
Added : 2004-01-10
Synopsis by : ^PaNdA
Last update : 2008-03-06
Last update details : Modify info
Score : 8.53
Number of reviews : 17
Link(s) :
Official #1 : Laurence's MariaMite Fansite (French)
Official #2 : Maria-sama ga Naisho - An Unofficial Fansite (English)
Official #3 : TV Tokyo's Maria-sama ga Miteru Website (Japanese)
Song(s) :
Opening #1 : Mikiya Katakura - Pastel Pure
Ending #1 : Mikiya Katakura - Sonata Blue
Release(s) :
2005-09-22 -- Episode(s) 6 by Ayu. BT Link
2005-04-27 -- Episode(s) 5 by Ayu. BT Link
2005-03-08 -- Episode(s) 11 by Anime-Keep. BT Link
Found 56 releases. Click here to [ Find them! ]
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Posted by : du5k 
Posted on : 2007-10-24  
At first glance, Maria-sama ga Miteru (MariMite) doesn’t seems to have much to offer. The pacing of the story’s a little weird, the situations can get unrealistic at times and the music can make you (me) fell asleep. But until the first couple of episodes and when you starts to appreciate the solid character designs, you should start to like this series. Perhaps not so much if you’re not into Shoujo-ai series, though (like me).
Plot-wise
Nothing much seems to be going on, it’s mostly about Yumi accepting the rosary from Sachiko and getting her to accept her. It’s nice to see how they try to change themselves for each other, especially when they have so much differences and barriers to overcome. One lacking thing is that the story does not have a main climax; it’s mainly just short stories about how these girls gets to know each other better.
Story style
Besides constantly involving viewers into Yumi’s thoughts, Marimite has plenty of comedic moments that usually involve Yumi’s expressions and Sei’s outgoing personality, which helps lighten the mood and also gives a warm atmosphere to the series. The interesting parts is what Yumi, the protagonist, thinks in various situations, but it’s also the boring parts; sometimes she just kept making a fuss out of trivial stuff.
Quality
I don’t like how they use that music as a opening sequence; it might help some people get into the “serene�? mood for the show, but otherwise for others like me it just gets really boring. Unlike a series with a similar genre, Strawberry Panic, which has great opening music, I usually just skip over them.
The animation isn’t really smooth or high detailed, and the colors are pretty flat. But at least there isn’t anything really bad about it, maybe except the faces are a little too similar. (Initially you have to tell them apart by hair styles)
Overall
If you’re into Shoujo-ai series, you will love this one. I only wished there was a good climax, but oh well. 4 for quality and 3 for enjoyment, giving this a 7.
The DVD special, Maria-sama ni wa Naisho, was hilarious though.
Posted by : ninetales
Posted on : 2007-06-02 
I seldom watch shoujo-ai movies but this one really got my attention and got me into watching it and because that I watch the same episode 4 to 5 times a week, I think I could write a review..
story
the story mostly takes place at Lillian girls high which is an all girl school. The storyline mostly focuses on the student council which is made out of 3 roses, namely Rosa chinensis, Rosa gigantea and Rosa foetida and these roses gives their rosary to younger students to make them their little sisters to replace them when they graduate, and these younger students are called Rosa ----- en bouton. the first few episodes are about yumi a 1st yr student being picked as a petite souer by Sachiko ogasawara which is Rosa chinensis en bouton. At first she rejected her offer but in the end she ended up accepting it. I think that the mixture of emotions really takes this shoujo-ai into another level.
characters
the characters are designed perfectly, each has different personality. There’s only one thing I don’t like about the characters, its the lack of the boys characters in the animation, though there are few but they hardly stays more than half of the episode.
animation
even with the lack of action it’s still a great anime and because they used pastel type of coloring, this only makes the whole animation quite unique from others. this animation will take you into another dimension; this anime also gives attention to the different seasons of the year.
music
very instrumental, both opening and closing songs are both good. In fact I even looked for the chords and keys though I’m not that good at playing the piano
Its one of the best shoujo-ai anime around. Maria-sama ga miteru changed my opinion about shoujo-ai movies.
I'll recommend this anime for the mature kind of persons, because it will take a lot of understanding to fully appreciate this movie.
Posted by : Molenir
Posted on : 2007-05-03
In writing this review, its hard to know whether to review just Maria-sama ga Miteru, or whether to include the spring season, and the summer OAVs. Taken as a whole this anime is terrific in a way that is at once very enjoyable, and eminently watchable. If we break them up into each group though, they each have their own strengths and weaknesses.
The story revolves around Yumi, a first year student at an all girls school, and her involvement with what amounts to the student council. At the school they have a tradition of adopting a younger sister, and Yumi is eventually adopted by Sachiko, a second year student at the school. Sachiko is a member of the student council, and so Yumi, by becoming her "little sister" becomes one as well.
The first 2 episodes of the first season, are terrific and fun. The courtship that goes on between Sachiko and Yumi, as Sachiko tries to convince Yumi to become her Soeur, was in my opinion, the best part of the season. After that, while the story progressed, it also meandered along, sometimes moving forward, and at other times moving back. In one episode it is Valentines day, and then in the next, its Christmas. This was a bit confusing, and unnecessary. While this was a primary weakness of the first season. Its greatest strength was with Sai, one of the secondary characters who is always helping, and playing with Yumi, to the irritation of Sachiko.
The animation has a bit of an older style, that makes the first season look less polished then the Spring and summer series. Even still its still very nice. The OP and ED music while pretty, was simply, boring. After watching them once, I just skipped to the next episode afterwards.
In my opinion, Maria-sama ga Miteru is a terrific anime, one worth watching. While the first was the weakest of the 3, it was in itself definitely worth my time, and one I plan to watch more then once. Overall I highly recommend the entire series. Spring, and especially the summer OAVs.
Posted by : chaosranger
Posted on : 2007-03-17
The one thing that I can say the the author got dead on was the setting of the seasons, autumn & winter, to portray the mood or feelings of some of the characters mainly the main characters Yumi & Sachiko... cold before they really understand one another.
The first few episodes are slow and borderline boring but it is expected for this type of drama where there is little to not action to move the show along.
Story 6/10 This seems like a stereotyping set of short stories, with some misunderstandings in the animation. I am sure the original story, not this anime, gives a better feel and understanding on what's really going on.
Characters 6/10 Some of the characters are stiff, cold, and monotoned but the supporting character Sei Sato seems to be the glue that holds this whole story in check.
Animation 6/10 There is little to no action, the colors seem to be monotoned and dull. I can see this for the winter scenes but I did expect more vivid colors in the autumn scenes.
Over All 7/10 Why 7? Because this is geared toward the female gender than an all around gender show, it's slow and held together by a supporting character Sei. The last few episodes makes the show more enjoyable and picking up speed thus breaking away from the boring effect and getting down to the drama. Hopefully next season's episodes, Maria-sama ga Miteru Spring, picks up where the drama is getting good.
Oh by the way a lot of people, mainly males, presume that the character, Sei, is a lesbian because of her romance in two episodes or her close contacts with Yumi. Don't presume that one female having affection or love for another female is automatically a lesbian, it's a know fact that females have a strong bond for each female before they show that bond towards males, some females express it stronger than others. View a playground and watch as females gather in close groups while the males are sparse, this is something most females understand.
Posted by : Kimmie-chan
Posted on : 2006-12-05
~Gokigenyo~
Just gotta love those A-S banners, I discovered Maria-sama ga Miteru that way ^^.
This title was definately something different from what I usually watch, where comedy wasn't the main focus. Even comical faces were at a minimum in this anime. This anime was beautiful in terms of animation and character design.I loved the colours, it was so soft and easy on the eye. The overall atmosphere of anime seemed really delicate... lol although I was expecting the school to be more 'wealthier' but I think that's just too much Ouran for me XD
Knowing this was a shoujo-ai title, I was expecting a lot of skinship between the girls, however Marimite is a very G-rated shojo-ai series >.< lol
The opening and closing were just instrumental music, both were slow and soothing and a little sad, which I think sets off the perfect atmosphere for the anime. The background music was orchestral stuff but it suited the anime very well.
Well at an all-girls-school it has a large cast of girls, and I didn't find any particular character annoying, they are all so lovable and all the girls are very polite and soft spoken.I personally really like the seiyuu of Shimako.
What really interested me about the anime was the Souer system, where an older/senior student chooses a junoir student to be the petite souer (little sister). And the three leaders of the student council have the title of Rosa Chinensis, Rosa Gigantea, Rosa Foetida. Lol I just had a lot of fun saying those names~
Well finally as great as this anime is, its not for everyone. But check it out if you want something different, or are want to try out a shoujo-ai title.
~Gokigenyo~
Posted by : Yuun
Posted on : 2006-02-14
How do I get to know about this series?
Many of my friends (Female) were all into this series and somehow I just tag along with the conversation. Base on their description and their high comment about Maria-sama ga Miteru, I decided to give this “Shoujo-Ai” series a try. Before this I was let down with many “Shoujo-Ai” series like Kannaduki no Miko and etc. However Maria-sama ga Miteru show me another different aspect of how beautiful is a female world.
I never really thought that such anime could have won a guys heart… my heart… ^^
Animation:
First of all, audience may realize that the coloring that being used in making of Maria-sama ga Miteru is pastel type which you seldom see in anime out there. However please allow me to assure you that this does not degrade the animation quality at all. In fact, I think it is rather unique and brings off the classical atmosphere which is really romantic. The animation fit the story line and blend them so perfectly well that it gives off the amazing aura of 4 season, you can feel the surrounding so well while watching the anime.
Such rare satisfaction is hard to find even watching a real life movie. I can feel the spring in the anime and winter as well. The amazing artwork is simply beyond words can describe. Ahh~~
Story Line:
At first I never really put high hopes in the story line… I did mention the reason above right? Well… simply put, I was astounded by how amazing could a “Shoujo-Ai” story unfold itself in this series. Everything flow so well that you may realize that it is slow but at the same time it can never bored you. I was kept interested every episode until I was surprise that I finish the entire 13 episodes without even realizing it.
This may be a Shoujo-Ai series but I’m glad that they didn’t forget the importance of “Male” to balance the world. I know I didn’t sound supportive since there’s only 2 male characters existed and they show up at most in 3 episode and didn’t even take up more than 10min in the entire series. Well, I’m grateful actually… because; they don’t really need any “Male” in this series at all to begin with. Infact their presence is unnecessary and that you can just cast them away and you’ll still got the “full course meal” and the same satisfaction.
The Maiden who assemble in the Virgin Mary’s garden… Have such Angelic Smile… today, too, they pass through the tall gate… Their pure bodies and minds are wrapped in dark-colored school uniforms. The pleats on their skirts shouldn’t be noticeable. Their white sailor collars should always be tidy. Walking slowly is preferred here. The Lillian Girl’s School, is a garden for Maidens.
This quote that comes before the opening theme is what really explains a lot about the school they’re in. Though I’m pretty sure that their purpose for introducing this “Petit Soeurs” relationship is not to encourage Shoujo-Ai with the name of Virgin Mary and that it is very positive idea if we think of it in the positive way.
I was amaze on how Shoujo-Ai relationship could ever develop in such elegant and beautiful ways. I’m a hardcore fan of romance anime and yet Maria-sama ga Miteru shown me something new in another aspect of Romance had to offer. Maiden’s tears, beautiful and elegant flowers symbolize the maidens, amazing twist of fate, and the ups and downs of a Shoujo-Ai romance which have been consider a TABOO even now. I can’t express the greatness of this series when it comes to story telling accept for one sentence. Maria-sama ga Miteru is indeed a Master Piece of what it’s made for.
Characters:
Holy Christ… I thought I saw Angels… well, sincerely… I think all the girls in this series were simply much too beautiful to express into words. The characters are portrayed in such detail that their personality is shown at the very first glance. All the characters are so different and loveable to the extend that I can’t help fallen for every each of them.
Character development was so well written that not single characters (Even the Support Character) were fully developed. There’s not a single episode that gone to waste and every single episode enable audience to understand more of each girls. I was really content and further than just satisfied with how the characters were portrayed and developed. All emotions of the characters were clearly shown and I was really absorb into the movie that I could somehow felt the pain as well as happiness and other complicated feelings along with the characters.
Music:
Oh… the melody of the opening and ending is simply Grand Appetizer for the main course. It really gives off the amazing melodrama mood to the series and furthermore I’m a classical freak so of course something like this in an anime could never please me more. “Ave Maria” was sung gracefully by Kanina Shizuka in the anime was simply breath taking. The BGM is so fitting to the series that it really brings up the mood in the series making it a much enjoyable series.
Overall:
This series is indeed a amazing blend of artwork, music, story plot, and not to forget the Character design. This anime is beyond my expectation and have won a great deal of my interest as well as place in my heart. It is a truly great anime if you don’t mind about some “Shoujo-Ai” scenes. A must watch for all Romance Fan be it girl or a guy. I recommend it to everyone that thinks they’re mature enough and capable of being open minded enough not to think negatively about this series.
Maria-sama ga Miteru is truly a great anime of its own genre provided if you could enjoy it the right way and appreciate it for what it is made for.
Posted by : minako366
Posted on : 2005-12-28
I have to say, this is one of my favorite anime series. The artwork and music are fantastic. It has love, heartache, and drama. As you watch you follow the life of a high school girl, Yumi. It allows you to see into the mind of what the character is feeling. I would definately recommend this to anyone who likes love and drama and if you like this you should see its sequel; Maria-sama ga Miteru~Haru. It has more development between Yumi and her onee-sama, Sachiko. It's worth watching in my opinion.
Posted by : KKSlover9
Posted on : 2005-09-19
Maria-sama ga Miteru is the perfect anime for the shojo-ai lover. The show is about a girl called Yumi, who attends the catholic Lillian's Girls School. Here each girl can take a younger girl to be here souer, french for sister. Yumi's onee-sama (older sister) happens to be the Rosa Chinesis en bouton, the next in line to be a head of the student council, the yamiyurikai. Yumi struggles as she tries to understand her onee-sama and have her onee-sama understand her. This anime has a particularly slow story line and is not for the action lover. This anime is definitely for those who appreciate to the girl love side of anime.
Posted by : jsy3k
Posted on : 2005-08-24
Introduction
At first, I thought I just want to download this series to check out the quality of one subber is since the subber is quite young and yeah, which one that I am talking about is actually A-Source when they subbed this series. I thought just want to see how good the quality is. After that, I thought I want to delete it since I am not really fond of shoujo-ai back then, but after watching the anime, I was immediately interested in the anime and in the end, watched the whole series. I was in complete awe of how the story develops overtime and it becomes one of my favourite and ever since onwards, I do not mind shoujo-ai animes :p
Genre: Romance(Shoujo-Ai), Schoolgirls, Drama
Storyline: Very Positive!!
The storyline appears flatlines and it actually is, but for certain reason, I do not mind the flatlines. I cannot sense any climax in the series and for certain reason, the story just goes on very straight. But the character development, story progress and the deep emotions are surprisingly catchy and interesting.
Graphics and Animation: Above Average!!
Some people despise the art of Maria Sama because it is coloured with pastels, which is a turn off for some people. As for me, it is one unique art that most anime can't achieve. The colourings and the overall graphics of the anime are drawn surprisingly detailed and good-looking. Animation is pretty normal since there are no complicated animations in the anime since it is more of a drama type anime. There are rarely any jerks for the animation.
Sound: Good!!
I can say that I just loved the song from this anime. Nearly all of the songs here are classical type of music and it fits really nicely into the anime that really emphasizes a lot of women's elegance and charm. The opening and ending theme are also both classical music.
Opinion: Very Positive!!
Wow, this is the first time that I like yuri series and in the end, never regretted watching the anime. This may be a turn off for most males as there is some shoujo-ai, but it is definitely one of my favourite. I really recommend this anime to all girls and some boys who do not mind some shoujo-ai.
Rating: 9/10
Posted by : Himitsu
Posted on : 2004-08-16
Although Maria-sama ga Miteru is a yuri series, it might very well not be appealing to the male audience with its lack of action, pastel-coloured animation, and non-ecchi situations. Instead, Maria-sama ga Miteru introduces honest romance between girls, soft animation, and soft music - which corresponds well with the series. This is a very mellow and calming series. The opening and ending songs are very soothing and spirited, not something to dance around to.
I really liked the character designs. Each is distinguished in personality and physical appearance. The eyes are very nice and pop out at you with the fine details, the hair is also very beautiful. Geez, everyone is beautiful. However, the necks seem to be unnaturally long, making them seem a little thin.
The story itself is bland. "Dramatic" situations are overly exaggerated, they made a big deal out of the smallest things and thus did not entertain me significantly throughout the series. More focus was on character development, and was done very well in fact.
In summary; Maria-sama ga Miteru was a soft, soothing series which introduces soft romance. The plot is quite slow and is not action-packed like Kimi ga Nozomu Eien's romance, but then watching the characters' development is most enjoyable. Also, there are hints of shoujo-ai, but it is not overwhelming.
Posted by : fre3styl3r
Posted on : 2004-07-21
I agree after all with the review in the above. It has a very typical plot where the main characters are all ladies in school.
The series might not appeal to guys that like action anime. But being that it was my 1st Shoujou anime, I was very impressed with the characterizations. The girls in it are all girlfriend material, since they're all very lady like. Even my girlfriend was impressed by their civility.
Midway through the series, the lesbian aspects of the series turned me off, but it still reflected a strong friendship bond among the senior and the jr students in the school.
The setting of the series almost made me think that it was a typical Shoujo anime. The characters are all given their time, and in the end, we don't even know who is the main character.
This is a good series to watch if you dream about having civilized girlfriends like that. Also a good series to let your girlfriends watch so that they can see what ladies are really like.
I give it an 8, hoping that the second season will be better and have a more concentrated love story, but not one where it's Shoujo-ai or Yuri or Yaoi or whatever. If it has a good romance story in the next one, this is worthy of a 10.
Posted by : anne_elise
Posted on : 2004-07-12
This is an example of shoujo-ai romance done right. Not as meaningless fanservice for the throngs of hentai obsessed fanboys out there, but a true romance that focuses on the subtle nature and inner thoughts that go on in a relationship and it is so well done that I get shivers just thinking about it. Here's a list of the things that make this anime fantastic:
First and foremost, the art is superb! From the background and setting of the school, to the details on the characters, to the scene of Sei in the thorns in her mind, the art is just fantastic. It was almost to the point that I was so drunk in the beauty of it that I was forgetting to read the subtitles.
Secondly, the music fit perfectly! A wonderful symphonic score that concluded near the end of the series with the most beautiful rendition of Ave Maria, I was actually crying when that hit.
Thirdly, the voice acting is just amazing. Even not knowing Japanese vocal inflections, I was able to pick up on the subtleties between the characters not solely based on their words, but on their tones and inflections.
Finally, every part of the story was just wonderful. The plot and the written dialogue was great and left so much to the imagination! God I loved it all so much!
The only potential problem with this series is that there is nothing here for people who don't like shoujo-ai... and I mean nothing... you can count the number of lines that men have in the series on 2 hands... I think that this is wonderful... some people might be turned off by it. Anyway... loved it! It's a dream romance!
Posted by : everlution
Posted on : 2004-07-07
Can't say this is worth watching. The first noticeable flaw--it's boring. Extremely boring. I like slow, sweet anime, but this just does nothing.
Maria-sama ga Miteru took too many elements from Revolutionary Girl Utena--the French influence, the rose symbolism, even revolution. Not to mention the shoujo-ai style relationships. Also, the eye-catch music should be noted. It sounds suspiciously like Utena's eye-catch; same melody.
There are a few redeeming qualities: the music and the character designs/animation. The music is soft and sweet-sounding, perfect for the series. Watching the opening credits (no matter how boring they were) gave me a feeling of serenity and peace. The characters are just beautiful. Pretty hair, pretty eyes. Pretty everything. The story does relate to highschool girls in love [with each other] so of course they're pretty! There's no problem with the girl/girl relationships, they're adorable, really.
Overall...if you like insanely cute things, and have loads of patience to spare, then check out this series.
Posted by : Reeder5002
Posted on : 2004-06-09
I really didnt think i would be entertained by this anime. Its not at all my type and i just didnt find the premise to be that entertaining. Anyway it was subbed by a-source so i figured id check it out. After the first episode i still wasnt impressed. Once i got around the third or fourth ep though, I realized it wasnt actually that bad and that i was enjoying myself. While by the end i was entertained, the show was not without flaws. The first two or three eps took a little getting used to. The eps are all running with classical violin in the backround and at first Mary plays a big role. I guess i needed to acclimate to the different style. I also thought the art was a little different but it wasnt bad or anything. One big thing was it seemed like they were gonna through some yuri stuff in there. They touched upon it a little, but i guess since its about the mother of jesus they restrained themselves from anything much. Its pretty touching. The greatest thing i can say about it is that it has amazing charecter development. Tells a good story. Its not one for everyone and im willing to bet money that many who watch just wont like it. But I liked it so it got a nine
Posted by : kendokendokendo
Posted on : 2004-06-09
Maria-Sama Ga Miteru rocks my world!!!
PLOT
It's not an action-packed plot full of stunning visual displays of physical strength. Fukuzawa Yumi attends an all-girls private high school, Lilian Gakuen, and finds herself being one of the many first-years who admire the Rosa Chinensis en Bouton, Ogasawara Sachiko. Yumi eventually becomes her "soeur" (kind of like a girlfriend) and is accepted into the school's student council, the Yamayurikai. The rest of the episodes focus on relationships between the Yamayurikai members and a few other girls in the school (they play pretty minor roles). The plot is carried out almost entirely by verbal communication between the characters. Aside from the whole rosary-giving ceremony, there is no symbolism anywhere. It's pretty bare-bones and easy to comprehend. This might make it slow for some people. I thought it would make it slow for me too as I prefer faster-paced shows but all the discussions and details really worked for this anime.
It also features some shoujo-ai elements. They are very underplayed, and the couples seem more like good friends than lovers. There are no displays of physical affection save for some handholding and Satou Sei (she mildly gropes almost everybody).
ART
The artwork was really solid. The character designs were perfectly reproduced every episode. Every girl had unique facial features and hairstyles and it was impossible to confuse one for the other. The backgrounds of the school and such were very beautiful - lots of nice pastel colors etc. possibly to show how pure this school was. The animation of the characters was very smooth and natural, there were few unnatural movements or body positions. Their lips annunciated every syllable. There was a lot of attention paid to the design and animation of this anime.
MUSIC
There's not a lot of music in it, and you come to recognize the few songs as being love or affection themes or a song for despair or whatever. The instrumentation is mostly strings and pianos, very baroque era type music, which fits well with the general mood of this anime. Music plays a bit of a center focus to the anime - the school song, "Maria-Sama No Kokoro," and the Bach/Gonoud version of Ave Maria are featured a few times. The latter in particular is important because it signifies growing affection and respect between two characters.
FINAL THOUGHTS
If you absolutely hate any hinting of girl/girl relationships, no matter how mild they may be, don't watch this anime. If you want a little more fanservice like intense physical connections between the girls, you won't find it here. This anime is in general slower than most, and though I really liked it, I do admit there were a couple sequences that were dragged out too long. If you like your plots to be driven by character interactions and you like cute girl stories that make you feel warm and fuzzy inside, definitely check this anime out.
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