Please Save My Earth is probably the best example of Shoujo (girls’) anime released in the U.S. It’s a deep love story wrapped in a science fiction plot. Shoujo anime and manga differ from Shounen manga (made for boys) in that they are often written by women and are most likely to focus on the relationships within the story over the plot itself. Please Save My Earth (PSME) is no different; created by Saki Kiwatari, the series ran in Hana to Yume Magazine, and the completed series was published in 21 volumes.

PSME concerns itself with the themes of love, reincarnation, and redemption. The story follows the lives of five teenagers and one seven-year-old as they come to realize that they are the reincarnations of six scientists that died on the moon while studying the Earth. The very adult relationships that they experienced in their previous lives come crashing into their current lives with mixed results - sometimes humorous, sometimes soul-crushing. How does a woman deal with the man she loves if she is reincarnated as a man, too? How does a child who remembers his love for a woman cope with the fact that she is a teenager? This definitely isn’t Nadesico or Slayers - love, hate, and friendship are all very real here. And, the depth of Evangelion can’t compare to the personal depths of PSME. However, even though relationships are the main focus, there are some very cool psychic battles to keep the action flowing.

The plot revolves around the reincarnation of a group of scientists who stood watch over the earth before disaster struck.	Past memories stir up complex predicaments in the present.

The music is perfect for the show. The style is a sort of orchestrated new-age style with the end theme written by the always impressive Yoko Kanno. The Japanese voice actors do an excellent job of catching the personalities of their roles, except for one or two minor characters. The English dub is acceptable, but the changes in characterization from the Japanese version made it difficult for me to form an unbiased opinon.

The production values are very high quality and the animation is very good - smooth motions with bright colors. The character designs are somewhat reminiscent of Here is Greenwood, probably a result of a slight redesign by the animation team as they prepared the manga for production. They are excellent, realistic as befits this sort of show, and able to convey emotions well.

Now for the downside of the series. As was mentioned earlier, the manga series ran 21 volumes. The anime reaches to about volume 10, with the last 5 minutes or so showing a montage of some of the events that occur in the last 11 volumes. To say the least, viewers will not get the whole story, and some issues in the anime are never quite resolved or answered - or worse, answered improperly since early on, several of the characters regularly lie to each other. For example, one character is attempting to gather the others’ passwords to the moonbase. The stated reason is that he wants to destroy the base so that humanity isn’t destroyed by what they find. That’s a lie, but it’s never revealed as one in the series even though it is hinted at. In any case, this is the reason that plot takes a hit in my rankings: not because the plot isn’t good or strong enough, but because it’s not truly completed.

PSME still stands to be highly recommended. Why? Simply because of its wonderful ability to touch the emotions of the viewer. At any given time, there will be at least one character the viewer can identify with and understand why their souls are tortured. The DVD contains all 6 episodes, so you definitely get bang for your buck. As well, part of the DVD extras includes a PSME FAQ that helps explain the series a bit more in-depth. All in all, a highly recommended addition to any anime collection; hopefully we’ll see more quality Shoujo anime translated and released in the U.S.

Distributor: Viz / Pioneer
Creator: Victor Entertainment
Released: 1989

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