Princess Tutu
I know what you’re thinking: “You’re subjecting us to yet another fluffy shoujo anime?” Though it looks like the girliest mahou shoujo anime this side of Tokyo Mew-Mew, trust me, it’s not. Princess Tutu takes the archetypal magical-girl formula, sets it in a ballet academy in an ambiguously German town and has its heroine heal people through the power of emotional expression. This particular magical-girl plot has an unusual twist; our heroine is a duck who, when given a magic pendant, can transform into a girl who can in turn transform into Princess Tutu. She yearns to restore the heart of Mytho, the mysterious but gifted dancer and BMOC at the ballet academy. But Mytho’s childhood friend, Fakir, and Mytho’s girlfriend, Rue, are determined not to let Mytho’s heart become whole again and fight against Tutu. But do any of these characters act of their own free will, or are they simply cogs in a greater plan? Imagine if Kafka rewrote the Grimms’ canon; that’s the most succinct way I can think of to describe Princess Tutu. more »
