Saint Tail is a wonderful and warm-hearted magical girl show that combines Lupin, Sailor Moon, and anything by Clamp into a fun and often funny show. The show is about Meimi, a student by day and a Robin Hood-like thief by night named Saint Tail. Her powers come from a transforming locket and the skills she learned from her mother (once a thief) and father (currently a stage magician). She is aided in her endeavors by Seira, a classmate by day and nun-in-training any other time (and … no, I haven't figured that one out).

People in need and asking God for help come to Seira who informs Meimi of what needs to be done. The rival classmate, and seemingly the male love interest for Saint Tail, is Asuka, Jr., who is determined to capture and unmask the goodly thief. Wacky hijinks ensue.

While the series seems like it could easily fall into a repetitive formula, the first three episodes were incredibly enjoyable. Each was basically a complete story, but the characters continued to grow through each. As well, the stories were actually both fun and, in instances, touching. The character designs are beyond cute, so for those with a saccharine allergy, stay away.

Kaitou Saint Tail earns her name in part from working hand-in-hand with nun-in-training Seira.	Saint Tail includes all of the standard trappings of mahou shoujo, including the genre-defining transformation sequence.

The animation itself is quite acceptable, although below modern standards. While there are some obviously well-done scenes, for a show made in 1995 I would expect slightly more. Of course, some of this may have been the transfer, which will be addressed later in this review. In any case, the animation is more than enough to tell the story with heart and emotion. The music is catchy, but I'm not rushing out to buy the soundtrack just yet. Somehow, the music sounds older than the series actually is, similar to the animation. Once again, let me say this could have something to do with the transfer.

The presentation of the materials is quite nice, with a cute picture of Saint Tail on the cover and a different picture on the DVD. An insert in the package includes the listing of Japanese seiyuu which is a wonderful addition. I wish more companies would print the actors on or in the packaging rather than just in the credits. However, for some reason, the Japanese actors were actually left out of the DVD credits. Most likely, this is the reason for the insert The DVD menu is somewhat blurry and is basically just a still picture. Nothing to write home about, but it is functional. On a plus note, the special edition includes the first Saint Tail manga! Mine, however, came damaged.

Now for the bad, and it is bad. The transfer is horrendous. I rarely catch pixellation and graininess on the majority of American releases. This particular disc forces you to notice. The breakup on the transformation scenes looks like bad computer video from the early 90s. The sound is not very crisp, it actually seems a bit muted, although not overly damaging to the enjoyment of the show.

For purists, the opening and closing songs have been removed and replaced with the instrumental versions. The episodes have been run together, placing a single opening at the beginning of the disc and a single closing at the end. The omake mini-episode (which is cute, and I'm thankful it was included) suddenly just appears after episode 2 with no warning. In other words, TokyoPop who pretty much sells themselves as a fans outlet butchered the original release like Harmony Gold used to in the 80s. Also, there are a few sketchy translations that even I, with my minimal Japanese skills, recognized immediately.

In closing, there are some serious issues with the first disc released in this series, enough to drop the rating down a full letter. However, the story is so much fun and the characters so cute that I'm definitely hooked. If the major flaws are corrected (note: a quick preview of the next disc says the issues have been addressed) this will be a show that fans of magical girl series will have to collect. The first disc, though, is structurally flawed, so let the buyer beware. My personal opinion is that it is still worth the purchase.

Distributor: Tokyo Pop
Creator: TMS Entertainment
Released: 1995

Video Quality: C
Audio Quality: B
Presentation: B-
Content: A
Overall: B