Plot: What’s it about?
Kazuya wants to build a walking, talking robot, but even with his skills, he hasn’t been able to break through the wall to success. He is just an engineering student, but he is quite talented and in this case, he has a prototype, though little else. Well, he does have an arch nemesis in Nanbara, but he isn’t aware of that fact, so I suppose it doesn’t count. But Nanbara plans to throw Kazuya off the path via a special website, where one can order a cyberdoll. In Kazuya’s case, he ordered May and while she is a very skilled maid, she also has a lot of surprises. She has all the functions of a normal person, as she can even talk and think, which sometimes scares Kazuya. But he continues to push forward on his project and May even helps when she can, to get the prototype project up to the next level of performance. Not all is well however, as the bill for May stands at $1.5 million and since he has no funds, Kazuya has no real chance to make good on the debt. Has Nanbara’s scheme worked after all, or will Kazuya hatch some kind of plan, perhaps with May’s assistance? In either case, it’s bound to make for a wild, fun ride…
I loved the second volume of Hand Maid May, so I went back to check out these first four episodes and of course, I was quite pleased. This disc from Pioneer holds four total episodes and in my opinion, there’s not a runt in this litter in terms of content. The story is a cool one and the characters have real potential, so I was never bored in the least here. The pace is brisk and the humor is always present, via either the characters or situations. The main reason to watch this is for the girls to be sure, with a number of well drawn, well endowed females, all complete with enough fanservice to make you blush. I was surprised to find more shower scenes and breast focus than I expected, but the series is more reliant on humor than sex. This is by no means a serious series even for a second, as laughs can be had even in the most emotional moments, which I think is a positive in this case. If you’re into silly anime and tons of panty shots, then Hand Maid May is very recommended, as this is a great start to a very fun series.
Video: How does it look?
The episodes are presented in full frame transfers, as intended. The visual effort here is terrific, which is good, as this series has some simple, but very enjoyable visuals to soak in. The colors are very intense and rich, but I noted no smears or other errors, which is very impressive with this kind of material. The black levels are spot on also, with deep shadow presence and no obscuration of detail at all. The image is clean in terms of source print also, which leaves me to score this one high, very high in fact.
Audio: How does it sound?
As per usual for Pioneer, this one holds the original Japanese soundtrack, as well as an English dub option. I chose the Japanese track for obvious reasons, but I scanned both tracks and found both to be quite solid. The audio comes through quite well and never seems out of balance, as the elements seem in fine form. The dialogue is crisp, clean, and always at a proper volume level, while the sound effects are clear and never sound harsh. I heard no problems with the musical score either, which leaves me to score both tracks as more than effective. This disc also includes optional English subtitles.
Supplements: What are the extras?
This disc contains some character introduction, which aren’t that substantial, but still a worthwhile inclusion.
