Maid to Order

The romantic comedy Hand Maid May feels like pieces of Oh My Goddess, Tenchi Muyo, El Hazard, and Steel Angel Kurumi cobbled together. The premise is no more improbable, the characters no sillier, the holes in the plot no more egregious than in those comedies, but the elements never quite gel, and the show plays like a rerun, even on the first viewing. Kazuya is a computer nerd, trying to create a squid version of the famous robot-cat Doraemon. When a virus zaps his system, he inadvertently orders a Hyperdoll--a girl one-sixth normal size. May tries to perform a maid's duties despite her diminutive stature, and the inevitable mismatched attraction arises. When Kazuya can't pay the $1. 45 million bill, May is repossessed by the Cyberdyne Corp. But a kindly robot offers to provide him with a replacement--free of charge. A full-sized version of May appears and they pick up where they left off. But Kazuya's kindness attracts other beautiful Hyperdolls. The predictable contretemps include the jealousy of Nanbara, Kazuya's self-proclaimed best friend and worst enemy. Things take a weird turn when Kazuya's and Nanbara's descendants arrive from the future and begin messing with the story line. The low-key romance is juxtaposed with jiggle shots and risqué jokes. The original series ran 10 episodes--a pointless 11th OAV has been added--and the episodes stretched over three discs. The fourth contains supplemental material. (Rated 13 and older: brief nudity, minor profanity, violence, risqué humor, alcohol use) --Charles Solomon