While literary influences in animation are common, it's not very often that you will come across a work of animation that has the same flavor as a work of literature. The world of Spirit of Wonder is one where ordinary people do amazing things that are not possible in this world, but their own system of logic allows for it. The 45-minute OVA, "Miss China's Ring" is the story of three residents of the Tenkai restaraunt and boarding house in the town of Bristol, and of a gift of epic proportions.

"China-san," as they call her, runs a little restaraunt by herself and is landlord to a crazy scientist who can't seem to pay his rent on time. His name is Dr. Breckenridge, and he has a habit of using that rent money to buy parts for his inventions. His assistant Jim has a day job as a watchmaker's apprentice, and is usually the one to sneak new parts past China's watchful eye and into Breckenridge's room.

The gadget they've come up with this time supposedly enables one to travel to the moon. But as the first potential customers make some nasty comments when they leave the restaraunt, Breckenridge realizes that it'll take some proof to sway the skeptics. Meanwhile, China's birthday has come around! Jim decides to use the new invention to get a gift for her. They apparently like each other, even though she suspects that he's sweet on the lady at the flower shop instead. The rest of the story is reminiscent of a tall tale. Unbelievable things happen, and the people in the town certainly take notice but don't seem to give it much thought.

China has a heck of a time getting Breckenridge to pay up.	So, she hits up Jim for the rent money - also to no avail.

"Miss China's Ring" is a warm and lovable tale. Like many classic stories, it takes us away to a place where true romance and marvelous feats are possible. It is also a simpler place - devoid of great failures, and where noone bears ill will toward another. You won't find juicy politics or complex emotions here. What you will find is an expression of the simplest of joys.

The music for this OVA was composed by Kouhei Tanaka, and you really can tell. The background music has that same unobtrusive yet alluring feel that can be experienced in the Sakura Taisen video games. The ending theme, Yume no Tobira (Dream's Door) adds the flavor of the orient to an otherwise ordinary ballad. The singer (Noriko Hidaka) also adds in a pinch of sugar to sweeten up the tune. Hidaka also plays China-san in the film, and is fairly well known for her role as Jean in Fushigi no Umi no Nadia, among other roles.

Miss China's Ring was made in the early 90s, and is among the more polished works of animation that you'll come across. Colors are used very wisely throughout, bringing the viewer's attention always to the object of interest at the moment. The backgrounds and character designs have an antiquated feel, though, as the town of Bristol resembles the more quaint harbor towns of the early 1900s. This works well for the story, because the accomplishments of Breckenridge seem all the more fantastic from this perspective.

The film was released in America on DVD, in the year 2000. Sadly, the license for the title has lapsed and it is currently out of print. AnimEigo is uncertain whether they will seek a renewal, so this title can be difficult to find. If you can manage to find it, somehow, it makes a great companion to Bandai's recent release of the additional Spirit of Wonder OVAs.

Distributor: AnimEigo
Creator: Kenji Tsuruta / Toshiba EMI
Released: 1992

Plot: B
Character Design: B+
Animation Quality: B+
Music: A
Overall: B+