Back in June 2013 I had an opportunity to review Tokumi Yuiko’s Bottle Fairy Funbook, containing 144 pages of high quality artwork based on the Binzume Yousei anime series. Granted it has taken me this long to acquire both volumes, I finally have had the opportunity to present this mini-review of Bottle Fairy which was published by the now defunct Geneon Entertainment USA back in the mid-2000’s.
Bottle Fairy follows the tale of four young fairies who travel to the human world in small bottles, with a unified wish to become human themselves. With the guidance of the almost never present Sensei-san and occasional misguidance by his young neighbour Tama-chan, the four begin learning about and “experiencing” the different Japanese cultures and activities that take place during a single calendar year, beginning with April and ending with March. While some months are better than others, the series is a light-hearted romp where the girls often start with good intentions but their imaginations and ideas tend to transcend being educational to a viewer. Consider Bottle Fairy to be more of a comedy than something your children would watch, despite any impressions that the cutesy visuals or cover implies.
The cutesy and comical elements to the storytelling transferred well into the design department, with few other 13-episode anime series I have watched even coming close to the sheer number of costume changes the four fairies undergo during the episodes. While it quickly becomes clear that young kids are not the target audience for this anime, there is nothing that I would consider “fanservice”, with cuteness being the biggest design factor in Bottle Fairy. Good quality character designs and animation are only let down by simplistic backgrounds, although with everything else going on I personally don’t tend to notice this nor consider it a major issue.
While the background music lacks any distinctiveness, both opening/ending themes and English voice acting are above par. There is a single opening theme across all 13 episodes titled “Oshiete Sensei-san” which is performed by the Japanese voice actresses of all four fairies. It is a cutesy song with equally cute animation. Bottle Fairy features a grand total of five ending themes, with each song representing a particular season and performed by a different Japanese VA despite similarities in the backing music. They are enjoyable songs overall, complemented by a unique piece of artwork produced by Tokumi Yuiko representing the episode’s target month. As an example, the piece of artwork at the top of this review represents October (Sports Festival).
Bottle Fairy is a very niche title, and because of that it is unlikely that it will ever be license rescued in North America or anywhere else in the western anime market for that matter. That being said, Rightstuf.com have excess stock of the second volume, whilst the first will be much more challenging to track down.
Despite giving the initial impression of being a show for young children, Bottle Fairy is a charming and enjoyable 13-episode series. It doesn’t overstay its welcome and most probably wouldn’t have lasted much longer after the 12-month plot device ran its course, but what was produced comes packed with plenty of light-hearted moments and quirky comedy that is reminiscent of the experiences presented by Azumanga Daioh or A Little Snow Fairy Sugar.
