Synopsis:
Photon is a quiet young man with a kind heart and incredible superhuman strength. Tasked with going after Aun, the village chief's daughter who had just run away, Photon unwittingly embarks on the craziest adventure of his life! Somewhere along the way, Photon gets engaged to Keyne -- a sexy renegade space pilot. Keyne, in turn, is being pursued by an oversexed megalomaniac named Papacha. But Photon remains unfazed, and all he really wants is a nice meal.

Review:
Photon is like a deranged and acid-trippy version of "Tenchi Muyo". The basic premises are quite similar. We have a nice young man named Photon. He isn't really the dashing nor is he the handsome type, but girls fight over him all the same. There's Aun, his childhood friend who also happens to be the village chief's daughter; Keyne, the sexy and mysterious space pilot to whom he accidentally gets engaged to; Pochi no. 1, a former assistant of the lecherous Papacha. Even the imperial princess Lashara has a soft spot for our hero. One crazy situation after another pops up, and the ball really starts rolling by the second episode. Most of the funny stuff erupt from Aun and Keyne's rivalry (a la Ayeka and Ryoko of "Tenchi Muyo"), and Papacha's blunders in his quest to capture Keyne.

The art and animation are very good. I actually find Photon's character designs better than Tenchi Muyo's. Keyne is cuter than Ryoko, and Aun is funnier and more likeable than Ayeka. Papacha is someone you won't take seriously, and is more of a comic relief than a real villain. Photon himself doesn't talk much, and has this perpetually blank expression on his face. What he often does is eat, sleep, and punch the baddies' lights out. While I wouldn't say he's better than Tenchi himself, he is guaranteed to be one of the weirdest characters you'll ever come across.

Although Photon isn't supposed to be an erotic title, there's a whole lot of fan service (i.e. nudity). You'll see lots of male and female naked bodies running around, taking baths, etc. Boob shots abound in almost every episode, which make Photon somewhat racier than Tenchi Muyo. The English dubbing is okay, but the voices can get irritating at times. Photon is one wild romp -- something you'd watch for the sake of pure, unbridled fun. You may want to skip it if you're after deeper themes, but it's a good title to entertain yourself with.

Miscellanies:
The team behind Tenchi Muyo is responsible for Photon. The DVD release contains all 6 episodes.

Screenshots:

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