Synopsis:
Mama Megami, the mother goddess and ruler of paradise is retiring. Her successor appoints a young mage named Lilith to be one of her guardians. Lilith's first assignment is to recruit two more worthy guardians for the new Mama Megami. Not an easy task, as Stashia, the first candidate on Lilith's short list is not interested. Lilith didn't even have a chance to ask the second person on the list, a warrior named Juliana due to a misunderstanding caused by Stashia's little sister Rurubell. Rurubell wants to be a guardian, but Lilith turned her down due to her very young age and lack of experience. Meanwhile, Paradise is under attack by an evil goddess who wants to dominate it, and it's up to Lilith, Stashia, Rurubell, and Juliana to thwart the attackers.

Review:
Megami Paradise takes place in a world that is populated entirely by gorgeous females. Men, old hags, and plain-looking girls need not apply. While MP is by no means hentai, it is clearly intended as eye candy for red-blooded young men everywhere, with enough glimpses of T&A (t*ts and a*s) to satisfy all but the most rabid young lads (and old men who should know better). There is not much of a story to this OAV -- good girls battle evil girls with predictable results. However, I believe the same can be said of practically any shoujo anime extant, and I have yet to see good girls ultimately losing to evil opponents of any gender.

What makes Megami Paradise worthwhile is the pretty girls, the humor, the pretty girls, the charming characterization, the pretty girls, the cool battle scenes, and of course the pretty girls. If I must gripe, it would be that the very attractive artwork is let down somewhat by less than fluid animation. Character movements seem a little stiff at times. There are also too many gratuitous panty shots which serve no purpose other than to titillate. Yet there is no sexual situation at all in this anime, the characters just prance around in their skimpy clothes as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

The tone of this anime is fairly light. The battles are quite well done, though they are unlikely to impress Arnold Schwarzenegger devotees. The characters are likeable and very beautifully rendered (even the evil ones). I recommend this anime, in spite of its problems, for its entertainment value and superb artwork. If eye-candy could cause tooth decay you would need to call your dentist immediately after watching this anime.

Miscellanies:
Hitoshi Doi, that ever-popular connoisseur of shoujo anime, sums up Megami Paradise as "a place where there are only girls. Really cute ones. Even the bad guys are cute. You got it all: short skirts, panty shots, and slightly ecchi jokes. Have you died and gone to heaven? Well, maybe if you went to Goddess Heaven, which is the literal translation of Megami Paradise."

Screenshots:

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