Ai Tenchi Muyo! Manga Translation

As with many manga with a fair-sized cast, the first two pages give portraits and brief descriptions of each of the main players. Tenchi fans will readily recognize the descriptions of Tenchi Masaki and his companions (Ryoko, Ayeka, Sasami, Washu, and Mihoshi) from their previous incarnations. Notably, Tenchi himself is described as an “ordinary high school student”, who is now mysteriously a “girls-only high school teacher”. This main conceit is the impetus for the hilarity that ensues in the following pages. Likewise, observe that Ryoko’s description mentions that “Tenchi broke the seal that was placed on her”, which is a particular plot point only seen in the original OVA, as opposed to later reimaginings, including Negishi’s own TV series. Moreover, notice that Kiyone Makibi, a character first introduced in Hasegawa’s light novels and prevalent in later incarnations of Tenchi Muyo!, is absent entirely.

The action opens with a space scene where a strange space vessel is being affected by a nearby spatial anomaly. The young pilot, whose eyes are silhouetted but is immediately identified as Beni Kinojyou from the introduction, is at a loss as to what to do. In a monitor, a passenger aboard the ship, a child very reminiscent of Momo Kawanagare also from the introduction, calls for Beni to come with her. Beni addresses her as “princess” and proceeds to jettison the girl toward the planet below, quickly recognized as Earth from the Japanese and Aleutian island chains pictured. Watching over all of this, Washu admits fault and that Tenchi will have to deal with the fallout.

This opening scene is an abridged version of the opening segment of Episode 8 of the anime, though here it serves to implicate Washu’s culpability, as well as the need for someone to intervene. Moreover, this is more chronologically correct, as opposed to the anime, which often alternated between action in the present and action in a feudal time period. The ship’s design and the styles of dress for both child-Momo and Beni are consistent with the anime, as is the spatial anomaly.

The next scene shows a residence in Okayama, notably not the Masaki household from any previous incarnation. Here, Tenchi is being seen off to work by his friends, each bestowing him some foodstuff for lunch. Naturally, Ryoko and Ayeka’s conflicting affections for the young man drive them to fight in trademark fashion, leaving Sasami finally to give him lunch and send him away. As an extra treat, Ayeka’s guardians, Azaka and Kamidake, support their mistress and even get a line of dialogue.

This scene was not in the anime, but feels appropriate, giving the reader a snapshot of familiar characters and familiar actions. The character designs match those from the 2014 anime, which were updated by Suzuhito Yasuda, and the interactions are in tune with previous versions of the characters from the 1995 TV series or other earlier works.

After leaving his friends, Tenchi travels to Junai Academy, becoming lost in the woods outside the school. He then encounters the teenaged Momo Kawanagare, who knocks him over as she escapes Yuki and Rui of the Science Club. They, in turn, are chased away by the rest of the Student Council (Hachiko, Hana, and Tori). At last, Tenchi arrives at work to meet his supervisor, Ukan, who escorts him to his homeroom class to introduce himself.

The end of the chapter essentially mirrors Episode 1 of the 2014 anime, matching story beats and most lines of dialogue. However, unlike the anime, the space scene and house scene give more context into why Tenchi Masaki is present at Junai Academy early on, rather than waiting until Episode 3 to do so. An interesting point is that Ukan is pictured and interacts briefly with Tenchi and the class, but is not named in the story or the cast introduction. Likely, given her role in the anime, this is done to keep her true purpose obscure for the moment.

The art of the book is quite nice and captures the new character designs well. Though I do prefer the moving images of the anime, seeing a slightly different interpretation of the art is appreciated.

In summary, I rather enjoyed this adaptation of the Ai Tenchi Muyo! opening chapter. It remains consistent with the anime, while taking some liberty with the story. In particular, I think that the inclusion of the space scene and the house scene alleviate some common complaints with the anime. Some comments on the early episodes of the 2014 anime criticized not seeing Ryoko and the other original characters until Episode 7. Others wanted to know why Tenchi was at this girls-only school. Having child-Momo and Beni above Earth in the first few pages immediately address the latter issue, while the house scene between Tenchi and his friends sort the former complaint.

Here’s to a good start to this manga adaptation, and to the next chapter.

— Rogue Thoughts

Following his introduction to his homeroom class, Tenchi is guided through the campus by Momo. However, unlike the anime, the pair tour the buildings alone, with the other Student Council members (Hachiko, Hana, and Tori) lurking in the shadows just out of sight. On the other hand, the anime had the Student Council trio tag along with Tenchi and Momo, and some physical comedy follows with Hana cozying up to Tenchi and Hachiko nearly striking Tenchi with her bokken.

While the details are different, both versions of this scene serve the same purpose, to introduce the Student Council Trio. As a static medium, the manga cannot easily or dynamically have Hana saunter into Tenchi or Hachiko wave and thrust with her practice sword. Instead, Hachiko, Hana, and Tori talk amongst themselves, demonstrating their respective personalities and suspicions about Tenchi.

In both the anime and the manga, Washu watches the happenings from her subspace lab via a crab-logo device attached to the walls of Junai Academy. However, unlike the anime, the manga has Ryoko join Washu, where they discuss what incited this situation. Indeed, while Ryoko is more focused on “her” Tenchi “having fun with other girls”, the redheaded genius explains that an experiment with her dimension causality ratio controller resulted in a warp in space. Two people were drawn into the warp, depicted as Beni and child-Momo viewed from behind as to hide their faces. Washu then adds that she sent Tenchi back to help matters, but upon finding the pair in the present, she recalled Tenchi.

Washu’s explanation essentially summarizes the “feudal” episodes of Ai Tenchi Muyo!: Episodes 3, 8, 16, 33, and 37. These episodes depict the fiery-tressed scientist sending Tenchi to an alternate timeline to investigate the aftermath of her faulty experiment, yet she never details what the experiment was or how it went awry. The manga, on the other hand, names the “dimension causality ratio controller” as the inciting device, reminiscent of the dimension tuner from Episodes 11-13 of Negishi’s 1995 series and the time cause/effect controller from his 1996 film.

Returning to Tenchi and Momo, they reach the Student Council office just as they do in the anime, but as the teacher is about to ask a question of his student, the Student Council trio finally step out to confront Tenchi about their suspicions. Hana ties his hands and knocks him to the ground while Hachiko keeps her bokken keenly trained on his neck. Momo protests, but Tenchi then notices the peach logo on her panties, recognizing it from Chapter 1, which spurs Hachiko to strike at him.

This scene is notably changed from the anime. In the anime, Tenchi noticed the peach logo while the group were all walking in the hall, and Hachiko struck at him at that time as well. Also, the anime has Hachiko not only tie Tenchi’s hands, but also muzzle him in a visual allusion to Dr. Hannibal Lecter from Silence of the Lambs. Moreover, Hana collars our hapless hero and places inside an iron maiden, citing her history of cutting open spies to train herself in interrogation. Much like the earlier changes, these seem to simplify the action for the static medium of a manga.

In summary, this is a serviceable second entry into the manga. As with the first chapter, the story is consistent with the anime with a few liberties taken with details. I particularly liked the banter between Ryoko and Washu, much like in the first OVA or the 1995 TV series. Ryoko’s jealous reaction to Tenchi being with other women, particular those clearly younger than herself, seems quite in-line with who she is. Washu’s disregard for others in her scientific pursuits matches her early portrayal in the 1995 TV series, though she does seem to have a twinge of remorse, as she is attempting to repair the situation via Tenchi. I also appreciate giving a bit more detail into what Washu’s folly was, and I wonder if the manga will adapt the feudal episodes in a flashback later.

I did miss the nod to Lecter. However, I think the Student Council trio work better in the manga as they appear far less trusting of Tenchi. They skulk behind him to jump him when he is alone with Momo, rather than calmly walking with him and then jumping him later with little reason.

Likely, the simplified action also serves to address another common complaint with Ai Tenchi Muyo!. Some commenters on the early episodes were bothered by the seeming sadism of the Student Council, Hana in particular, as she overtly flirted with Tenchi and seemed quite ready to dominate and torture him. Notably, the peach panty joke, another element some commenters disliked, is in both the manga and the anime with a minor timing difference.

— Rogue Thoughts

After Hachiko thrust her bokken at Tenchi’s head, barely missing our hapless protagonist, Momo distracts the pugnacious young woman, only to leave the student teacher in Hana’s dubious hands. While she starts to disrobe Tenchi, he is able to wiggle free of the ropes around his wrists and break free. Bolting away, he quickly finds a secluded corner of the campus to replace his attire and regather his wits.

This scene is another extended scene from the anime, which merely has Tenchi break out of the Student Council office in his underwear. Instead, the reader gets more detail into how the provisional teacher makes his escape. Also, Hana seems much more attuned to her anime counterpart here.

Another notable change is that the manga only has Tenchi’s sweater-vest removed and his dress shirt opened, unlike the anime, where he is stripped completely to his boxers. The change does introduce a bit of a problem, considering that it would be far more embarrassing to be dashing about in his boxers as opposed to merely bare-chested. Rather than fully dress again, he could quickly button his shirt and slip on his sweater-vest.

Hiding in a neglected school building, Tenchi explores for a bit before he hears some noise from under the floorboards. Couching down to listen, the floor suddenly gives way, and he tumbles into a dig site managed by the Science Club. Edging closer to investigate, he is noticed and apprehended by Beni and brought before Yuki and Rui. Upon being asked, Yuki explains that their purpose is to uncover a hidden treasure, which will fund the Science Club’s activities.

Here too is a notable departure from the anime. While Tenchi gathering himself and being caught by Beni follows much the same in both versions, the anime has Yuki affixing Tenchi to a torture table, not unlike Hana’s iron maiden in Episode 2. She then has Beni put a ball-gag on him before coldly ripping all of his clothes off and tossing them aside, leaving only his boxers once again. Episode 4 ends with Yuki ordering Beni to remove his boxers. Though Episode 4 does touch on Yuki’s jealousy of the Student Council’s prosperity, Chapter 3 focuses much more on her desire to surpass the Student Council, omitting the torture table entirely. Indeed, Tenchi is never bound again like he is in the anime.

That said, the anime does have a few glimpses of Mihoshi working covertly amongst the Science Club’s members, which the manga lacks.

When Yuki grows suspicious of Tenchi, Momo and the Student Council trio arrive to retake him. They reveal that they had bugged his boxers while he was in their custody and followed him to the dig site. Yuki orders her team to escape, calling upon Beni to handle the Student Council members. With a slam of her metal club, Beni shakes the cavern, knocking Momo from her feet. Alone, the mighty young woman stands against the entire Student Council while Yuki and Rui escape.

Some more liberties are taken here. In Episode 6, the Student Council does arrive to retake Tenchi, but Hachiko threatens the Science Club members, causing all the workers to flee, except Mihoshi. There is a little comedy with Momo trying to climb down the steep walls, and Hachiko helping her. However, Beni then strikes at Momo, who is guarded by Hachiko, spurring a duel between the two fighters.

Admittedly, no hint is given as to how the Student Council bugged Tenchi’s boxers in either the manga or anime, but the anime does have the excuse that Tenchi was stripped to his boxers at least. However, one would think that he would have noticed a bug being placed over his groin. That said, the manga demonstrates Beni’s strength, having the impact of one swing from her club rending all her would-be foes from their footing. Considering also her tiger-striped leggings and bra, she appears as an allusion to the Japanese oni, much like Lum from Urusei Yatsura by Rumiko Takahashi, as well as Ryoko herself.

In summary, I find this chapter more mixed than its previous two predecessors. I like how the manga depicts Tenchi escaping from the Student Council, though I think being stripped to his boxers would be much greater impetus for him to flee and hide as he did. Likewise, not stripping him to his boxers begs the question as to how the tracking device was placed where it was. While I could entertain an argument that the girls-only setting or his own personality might spur him to seek shelter, the issue of the tracker still remains.

While I take issue with that change, I did like that the manga paralleled Yuki less to Hana, and more to Washu. Indeed, the anime itself later depicts Yuki as Washu’s protege, particularly their single mindedness, and the scientific schoolgirl even has some lines like the genius researcher, like using other people as “lab rats”. One could easily make an argument that Yuki and Rui are the high school version of Washu and Mihoshi, respectively. Also, I have always been amused by how Yuki’s glasses react to her emotional state, and I am pleased that the manga kept this property.

And, yes, I am waiting for a certain spider to appear!

I was a little disappointed not to see Mihoshi drawn in the background somewhere, but she will likely turn up like the bad penny that she is to Washu.

Next, I do like that Beni is depicted as immensely strong from the start. This immediately draws attention to her, alongside her “feudal” counterpart shown in Chapters 1 and 2. On the other hand, the anime seems to put more attention on Hachiko, having her threaten the workers, help Momo down the steep incline, and block Beni without consequence. However, Hachiko has had plenty of presence in both the anime and manga by this point, as opposed to Beni who has been barely featured until this moment. This is the moment for the oni to block the heroes’ path, and she has to be imposing.

As a final note, some of the changes seem to address the complaints with the early episodes of Ai Tenchi Muyo!, where the sadism and ecchi angle are played much more overtly.

— Rogue Thoughts

The first major change is the opening of the chapter itself. As Tenchi was not stripped and bound in the previous chapter, Momo and Tori do not have to free him. Instead, the duel between Beni and Hachiko begins in earnest, and the manga shows explicitly that the battle itself is causing the cave to collapse, a point left nebulous in the anime. Indeed, even Beni takes notice and muses to Hachiko if the collapse might be prevented, while the dog-eared enforcer is focused solely on attacking Beni, blaming it all on her and the rest of the Science Club.

Momo then jumps between the two combatants and demands that they stop and save themselves. In so doing, Momo positions herself below some falling debris, and Beni rushes to her side and uses her club to protect them both. In that moment, Beni’s arm wrapped around Momo’s shoulders, which spurs nostalgic feelings to rise in the former, leaving her confused as she escapes with Yuki and Rui.

Here is another change from the anime, where Tenchi was the one to save Momo instead of Beni. Moreover, Momo was busily gathering his clothes from where Beni had ripped them off in Episode 4, rather than interfering in Beni’s bout with Hachiko. Furthermore, the fight in the anime only ends when Hana recalls Hachiko for them all to escape. Considering the past relationship between Beni and Momo, which is revealed later in the anime, the manga’s choice to have Momo interfere in the battle and Beni to save her from the collapsing ceiling seems far more in keeping with the overarching story.

Naturally, the awkward moment of Tenchi holding Momo’s hand at the exit, much to the dismay of Hachiko, remains and serves its purpose. I do miss Tori’s cold and calculating “Data Miracle” statement, however.

Later, Tenchi arrives at his temporary home close to the school, where Ayeka and Sasami meet him. The greetings are far more brief than in the anime, with the entire scene with Washu’s package of riot gear and an obituary entry is omitted. This is likely due to the royal sisters having an introduction in the first chapter alongside Ryoko.

Speaking of the former space pirate, she invades Tenchi’s bath time much the same as she did in the anime. Their interaction is also more brief as Ryoko had a fuller introduction in Chapter 1. That said, Ryoko’s teasing of both Tenchi and Ayeka is nostalgic and in keeping with her nature as the free-spirited troublemaker.

All in all, this manga chapter seems more focused and targeted than its anime counterpart, getting to the point of Momo and Beni’s connection, showing Beni to be physically strong and emotionally confused, while still keeping Tenchi and his friends close at hand. Moreover, the ecchi element has been dramatically reduced, completely rewriting the scene to avoid Tenchi being stripped, gagged, and bound.

— Rogue Thoughts

The chapter opens with Tenchi speaking with Ukan Kurihara, presumably his teaching mentor at Junai Academy. Just as in the anime, they converse briefly about the prince acclimatizing to his student teacher position, and Ukan notices Tenchiken sheathed in a decorative cloth pouch. Naturally, Tenchi fabricates that his signature and namesake weapon is just a talisman or charm from his family’s shrine. However, Ukan insinuates that it is something far different with her dialogue in both the anime and the manga.

The art in the manga seems to depict Tenchi as being more perturbed by her taunts, but the anime shows him merely annoyed by her juvenile humor.

In this scene, Ukan takes Tenchiken in hand and presses its hilt against Tenchi’s face as she needles him. Interestingly, the design of the Juraian key in both is taken from the Tenchi Universe TV series, its pommel much more like a closed flower than the rounded design of the OVA Tenchi Muyo! Ryo-Ohki. Moreover, the sword does not attack Ukan when she holds it, as it did Ryoko and Kagato in the OVA, and even Tenchi when he was to prove himself worthy of it.

Naturally, this does imply that Ai Tenchi is not a continuation from the OVA series, but it is also not a continuation of Tenchi Universe either. Please refer to the first chapter, where Ryoko’s backstory lists her seal being broken by Tenchi as in the OVA, rather than her drunkenly crashing on Earth as Tenchi Universe depicted. Again, as Hiroshi Negishi said, Ai Tenchi is a “celebration of the franchise”, paying homage to most, if not all, incarnations of the characters. Consequently, it will likely not fit nicely into any one continuity.

Ukan then shifts to discussing the Miss Junai contest, suggesting not so subtly that Tenchi himself should participate. As opposed to the anime, where Ukan seems to want to dominate our hapless hero, the manga depicts her more subtle, using backhanded compliments about his beautiful plainness.

There is also a slight discrepancy between the manga and the anime. The manga states that the Miss Junai contest is the 20th, while the anime has it be the 22nd, the same as Tenchi’s age from Episode 1. Recalling that Ai Tenchi Muyo! is a celebration of the franchise, the difference could be explained due to which series one regards as “first”. The first episode of the Tenchi Muyo! Ryo-Ohki OVA series was released on 25 September 1992, which is 22 years before the 2014 release of Ai Tenchi. On the other hand, the TV series Tenchi Muyo!, or Tenchi Universe as it is also known, ran from 2 April to 24 September in 1995, which is nearly 20 years before Ai Tenchi. Considering that Hiroshi Negishi directed both Tenchi Universe and Ai Tenchi, the manga might be paying homage to the director’s involvement in both, rather than the franchise as a whole.

In both media, a rumbling disrupts Ukan’s tormenting of Tenchi, and he takes the moment to escape, and swipe his weapon back from her. Dashing into the hallway, the undercover prince finds Beni and Hachiko dueling once again, with Yuki and Rui cheering on their bodyguard. Tenchi interrupts the fight, incurring Beni’s wrath as she swings a back-fisted strike at him. However, he catches it effortlessly, surprising her.

The manga adds two particular details to this scene. First, as Tenchi approached Beni, the manga has him reach for her shoulder, which could have been interpreted by Beni as aggression, resulting in her attack. Second, Beni wonders how Tenchi could have blocked her punch, given that she has knocked people from their feet and leveled a cave in the previous two chapters. As a test, she punches a nearby wall, leaving a fair-sized hole, much to Tenchi’s exasperation. Realizing that her strength had not diminished, Beni seems more curious in Tenchi’s abilities.

The latter of these two details is clearly a homage to the episode “Hello, Ryo-Ohki” from the first OVA series of Tenchi Muyo! Ryo-Ohki. Here, Ryoko exaggerated her woe over Tenchi giving his namesake sword to Ayeka, along with Ryoko’s coveted gems of power. In so doing, she walked backward into Katsuhito, Tenchi’s grandfather, who groped her breasts. Furious, Ryoko spun to punch the shrine priest, who blocked her effortlessly with a single open hand. The space pirate was perplexed and proceeded to punch the nearby stairs to test her strength, demolishing them.

Here is where the anime and the manga have a notable difference. The anime has Rui and Yuki pleading with Hachiko to give them some materials, even just a little book. However, Hachiko barks back about “making light of some great crime”. When Tenchi arrives, Rui and Yuki both grab Tenchi’s ankles and claim that the Student Council is bullying them. Transitioning to the Student Council office, Hana and Tori both address the matter as a “crime”, or at least planning to commit one. Yuki retorts, stating that the Student Council is biased against them, while Rui nearly lets slip that they were hoping to unveil their “treasure” at the coming festival. The argument gets heated, and Beni and Hachiko nearly come to blows again, only being stopped by Ukan. Even after the Science Club leaves, the Student Council discusses “forgiving” them. When Tenchi inquires, his questions are disregarded, and Ukan orders that he not discuss the matter in class. Her reasoning is that speaking out would give the Science Club the ability to take over the school. Instead, Tori says that they want to find proof of their rivals’ crimes, a task Hachiko gladly accepts. Tenchi, the kind soul that he is, volunteers to join her.

On the other hand, the manga again has Rui and Yuki pleading with Hachiko to have some materials, while Hachiko retorts that all materials will be used for the upcoming cultural festival. Tenchi scolds Yuki and Rui as Beni tests her strength. Transitioning to the Student Council office, the Science Club do not attend the meeting. Here, Hana and Tori discuss a request of materials from the Drama Club, which they accept. Tenchi points out that this is unfair to the Science Club, but Hana substantiates her claim by saying that the Science Club has not adequately explained their club’s purpose. Tori seconds this by stating that one of the roles of the Student Council is to allocate materials without being wasteful. Momo interjects that they are out of materials, so Hachiko volunteers to head to the warehouse to acquire more. As above, Tenchi volunteers to join her on her noble quest.

The manga handles this scene far better, having Hana and Tori explain their reasons for not allocating materials and funds to the Science Club, rather than making some nebulous claim of criminal conspiracy. Indeed, the anime seems to depict the Student Council as very biased against the Science Club, particularly as the club is not shown to have committed a crime. Indeed, Tenchi’s helpful attitude about assisting Hachiko seems far more natural than him helping her find proof of a nebulous claim. Moreover, Ukan’s order for Tenchi to keep quiet on the matter only seems to show conspiracy on the part of the Student Council.

This chapter seems to be much tighter and focused than its anime counterpart, streamlining the plot and making it flow better. I also very much enjoyed Beni’s homage of Ryoko, especially given what is to come in this story.

— Rogue Thoughts

The chapter opens with Tenchi and Hachiko entering an enormous warehouse on the grounds of Junai Academy. The first page depicting the interior of the warehouse sets the scene, a faithful recreation of the final scene from Raiders of the Lost Ark. The Indiana Jones imagery continues throughout the chapter: the Student Council guidebook like the grail journal, an idol that triggers a series of traps, a rope along a great chasm, and a massive rolling boulder. Tenchi himself even comments that he feels like he is on the set of an action-adventure film.

The manga includes several lines of dialogue between Tenchi and Hachiko, where the latter is criticizing the former. In particular, Hachiko scoffs at him, claiming that this should be “no big deal for a man”. Much like Beni before her, these lines serve to establish that Hachiko feels superior to Tenchi in anticipation for a role reversal.

Meanwhile, the Science Club has sneaked into the warehouse behind them and are making their way through the treacherous building. Their goal, as in the previous chapter, is to obtain materials of their own for the festival. The manga sadly omits two scenes from the anime, where the Science Club get lost and, ironically, find a cache of manga. In the latter scene, Rui pulls a volume loose, which causes the iron boulder to be released and chase them into Tenchi and Hachiko. Without this scene, the manga just has the trio appear being chased by the boulder without a fixed cause.

Also, the anime has a certain spider arrive for the first time!

When the two groups meet and are chased by the iron ball, Beni bashes it with her club, but is overwhelmed by the ball’s sheer size and mass. The floor gives way under her, and the ball knocks her aside like a rag doll. A minor difference between the manga and the anime is that Beni’s strike against the boulder happened before the two groups meet.

However, another more notable difference occurs next. In the anime, Tenchi grabs Hachiko’s hand, causing her to blush, as they run to a crevice, where they dodge the boulder. Of course, this seems to imply that Hachiko develops some affection for her teacher.

The manga, on the other hand, has Tenchi and Hachiko running independent of one another. Tenchi frets about Yuki and Rui’s safety before realizing that Hachiko also cannot outrun the boulder. Thus, he apologizes for what he chooses to do: grabbing her by her waist and leaping over stacks of crates to safety. With no visible gratitude, Hachiko immediately becomes suspicious of Tenchi from his strength and agility, but Tenchi just laughs and claims that he is just ordinary, that maybe his work in the fields has made him a little stronger than average.

Shortly after their escape from certain death, Tenchi and Hachiko find Beni’s unconscious body. The teacher determines that she is not hurt badly, but unfortunately, the excitement caused Hachiko to lose the guidebook. Thus, they are now lost in this labyrinthine warehouse.

In all, I like Hachiko’s character, as she is stronger and more independent. Also, I enjoyed more hints at Tenchi’s identity. Furthermore, the reason for the Science Club even to be present are more reasonable. However, I will say that I am sad to see the scenes with the Science Club, and our favorite spider, cut for time.

— Rogue Thoughts

The chapter opens with Beni dreaming of a child crying, quickly identified as the child version of Momo from Chapter 1. She sees a felled tree behind the child and muses if the girl is crying because of the tree. Then, Hachiko steps into frame and blames the child’s tears on the ogre-like high-schooler. Beni just yells back for her to “shut up” repeatedly until she wakes, grabbing Tenchi’s shirt and yelling in his face.

As one might imagine, this scene is establishing Beni’s subconscious connection back to the opening scene, where she was seemingly depicted as the child’s guardian and chauffeur. Naturally, in the high-school setting, Hachiko has now taken that role, clashing with Beni’s previous incarnation.

This tension leads to an interesting rivalry between the two young women, both having filled the role of the child’s guardian, but in different ways. Hachiko is the more traditional loyal samurai, while Beni, in her current incarnation, seems more like a ronin or a yojimbo, a masterless or dishonored knight. The chapter continues this rivalry by having both Hachiko and Beni insult or condescend to one another, very reminiscent of the barbs thrown by Ayeka and Ryoko. Indeed, Hachiko’s arrogance and status could be easily compared to Ayeka’s, while the unrefined and blunt persona of Beni greatly parallels Ryoko. The anime lacks this verbal sparring, which is a shame.

After awaking, Beni tosses Tenchi aside before he and Hachiko explain their predicament. The manga adds that Tenchi also went out of his way to retrieve Beni’s iron club, which is a nice touch and gives Beni a reason to trust him. However, her leg is still injured from her collision with the iron boulder in the last chapter. Tenchi offers to help her, but she smacks his hand away, showing her defiance and self-reliance.

Since losing the guidebook, Hachiko thinks she knows the general location of the exit, a slight deviation from the anime, where she suggests following the sound of the school festival. As they proceed, Hachiko throws some shade toward the Science Club, to which Beni takes exception. The two ready to duel once again, and Tenchi interrupts them, again like he would halt arguments between Ryoko and Ayeka.

Eventually, the trio reach an impasse, a collapsed wall of crates. Beni steps forward and bashes through the blockage with her iron club, proudly declaring her ease at clearing the obstacle. To her surprise, her attack awoke a sleeping giant, the Science Club’s prototype robot Goriki, which had been put into storage after rampaging across campus. It shoots out a fork-shaped hand, knocking Beni away, and the chapter ends with Tenchi and Hachiko facing down their mechanical opponent.

While this chapter clung fairly faithfully to the anime, the additional banter between Beni and Hachiko served to contrast the two, as well as allude back to the classic rivalry between Ryoko and Ayeka, with our hapless hero still trapped between them. I am also glad to see Goriki finally arrive on the scene, ready to throw down with Tenchi and Hachiko.

— Rogue Thoughts

Continuing from the last chapter, Tenchi and Hachiko were facing the massive robot Goriki, which blocked their escape from the treacherous warehouse. Having seen the powerful Beni tossed aside, Hachiko wonders if she can have any effect on the adversary, when her mild-mannered teacher steps forward. Igniting Tenchiken, the prince takes the machine down in two strikes.

As an artistic note, not only is the Tenchiken’s design taken from Tenchi Universe, but also the imagery depicting the sword’s blade appearing is also taken directly from Tenchi Universe and its film sequel Tenchi Muyo! in Love 2. Oddly, Tenchi Muyo! in Love, the interquel between the TV series and the second film, uses a different animation for the appearance of the blade, much more like a florescent light than a rounded aura.

The battle was far shorter in the manga than the anime. The anime pads the fight in two ways. First, Goriki takes Hachiko’s sword, revealing a psychological tick, where Hachiko’s mental state reverts to a crying child when her weapon is taken away. This leaves her defenseless and at the mercy of Goriki. Second, Beni attempts to reenter the fight, despite now having taken two heavy hits: one from Goriki and one from the iron ball. In the fight, Hachiko acquires a broom as her new weapon, and the two girls briefly fight side-by-side until they are both incapacitated. The extra scenes demonstrate that Goriki is a major threat and provide more character to Beni and Hachiko.

On the other hand, the manga includes a moment, where Beni catches a glimpse of Tenchiken and has a burst of images fill her mind. She sees a similar sword in the obi of the child from the previous chapter. She sees herself holding hands with the child, kneeling at her bedside, standing before a grand tree. The images confuse Beni, but inspire her to get back her memories, to find the “real” her. Tenchi later confirms that, indeed, Beni was the young woman from the alien vessel and has seemingly lost her memory.

After the battle, Hachiko confronts Tenchi about his skills, but he deflects by asking Beni if she is alright. The anime extends this denouement with one final scene with Tenchi, Hachiko, and Beni outside the warehouse. Here, they watch Yuki and Rui confiscating some materials and running away, Yuki using a certain spider to startle Rui into sprinting away. Beni also punches Tenchi, finally testing her strength, and his. Lastly, Beni mocks Hachiko’s “scared” personality as the episode fades to black.

The chapter continues into what would be Episode 14 of the anime, where Tenchi returns home from his second day at work. However, rather than a lighthearted comedic scene about Ryoko’s cooking like the anime, the manga has Tenchi talking with Ryoko, Ayeka, Sasami, and Washu about who Momo and Beni truly are, much more like Episode 37. This scene condenses much of the information divulged in the disjointed Episodes 3, 8, 16, 33, and 37 of the anime, the so-called “feudal episodes”.

As Tenchi explains, Washu sent him back 1300 years to search for the survivors of the dimensional tear from Chapter 1. In his mission, he found Beni within some escape unit, as well as the small child who shares the same facial structure as Momo. He adds that Beni was definitely extraterrestrial in origin, and Washu expounds that they seem to be related to the Jurai royal family, explaining why Beni addressed little Momo as “princess” in Chapter 1.

Tenchi narrates that in the past, he had found both of them, but that a second rip in spacetime separated them. Feeling responsible for failing to save them, he decides that he must help them now. This is a nice character moment for Tenchi, giving him some agency and emotional direction in this story.

In the midst of these revelations, Ryoko misconstrues Tenchi’s concern for the two girls as something deeper, perhaps even indecent. Naturally, Ayeka comes to Tenchi’s defense, flaring a confrontation between the two rivals for his affections. The verbal sparring seems well in keeping with the pair’s history. As one might expect, Sasami tries to intervene with Washu seconding her.

Then, Ryoko argues that Washu should be more active in this rescue, to which the genius argues that her fame would cause problems if she were to become directly involved. Considering what is revealed later in the anime, this comment is well-timed as Washu’s crimes will likely mount soon.

The chapter then concludes with a brief version of Episode 17, where the cultural festival has begun. Momo grabs Tenchi’s hand and asks where they should start, while Beni muses on a terraced rooftop. The anime extends this scene, having some comedy with the other high-schoolers interacting with Ryoko and Ayeka. Indeed, “maid” Ayeka and “bouncer” Ryoko are omitted from the manga. The anime also has Washu bump Momo into Tenchi, spurring Ukan to lecture and torment our hapless hero.

In summary, Chapter 8 is very strong, moving the plot forward in a concise way. Beni and Tenchi both get a good bit of characterization, and Ryoko and Ayeka get a moment to banter. I do, however, think the chapter suffers due to the compression, particularly the fight with Goriki and the interaction between the new and classic cast.

That said, I do like that the link with Jurai is made plain here, while the fragmented structure of the anime makes piecing the clues together more taxing. Indeed, I like that the anime gives more development in the feudal episodes, but they are scattered almost randomly throughout the “present” episodes, sometimes interrupting the action of the present. The manga’s use of flashbacks and narration seems far more focused.

— Rogue Thoughts

Resuming from Chapter 8, Momo leads Tenchi to the arm wrestling booth, telling him that she wants to make memories with him that will last a lifetime. Her words have a sadly tragic ring to them, considering Momo’s eventual fate in the anime.

At the arm wrestling booth, Beni effortlessly wins every match presented to her and seems quite bored as a result. Interestingly, she appears to be quite popular among the other students, despite her aloof demeanor. Momo herself challenges Beni in order to have a moment to speak to the ogre-like high-schooler Beni is taken aback by Momo’s forwardness and desire to be friends, so much so that she has a flashback to holding little Momo’s hand and nearly losing the arm wrestling match. Although, Beni regains her wits and easily dispatches Momo.

While the arm wrestling competition is taken from Episode 18, Momo and Beni’s conversation is taken from the more ridiculous “butt wrestling” contest from Episode 27, where Tenchi served as referee.

After defeating Momo, Beni notices Tenchi. The anime has Beni directly challenge him, but the manga simply has the prince laugh that he would be easily beaten. In both media, Ryoko pulls Tenchi away and takes the challenge for herself, though the manga does not show the conclusion of the bout.

To the anime’s credit, Ryoko and Beni are shown on a even keel, the two straining and eventually destroying the arm wrestling table entirely. The competition then continues in Episode 19, where they take turns bending metal bars like balloons to demonstrate their strength and control.

The manga then has a page referencing some of the other events of the cultural festival: the maid cafe lead by Ayeka, Sasami sneaking into the festivities in a school uniform, and the play performed by Hachiko and the Drama Club. Sadly, due to the story’s compression at this point, the comedic adventures of the cultural festival are greatly abridged. The anime gives this story arc more time to breathe, letting it expand over eleven 4-minute episodes, roughly equivalent to two 22-minute episodes of a more conventional anime. The subplots interweave, as Tenchi is thrown by Ryoko from the arm wrestling booth to a rebuilt Goriki, who then tosses him into a coffin being used by the Drama Club’s play. Subsequently, he is forced into the Ms. Junai Contest by Ukan, before another day of athletic competition. All of these segments have a nice dose of comedy and action, as well as time to develop the characters and give them chances to interact with the classic cast of Tenchi Muyo!.

Afterward, Tenchi remarks, “Time flew by so quickly,” as Momo falls asleep on his shoulder, just as she does in Episode 28. As she sleeps, she dreams about her child form and Beni meeting the ship Toshika, bestowed upon them by the head of the Jurai royal family. The dialogue here seems taken from Episode 33, illustrating that Momo too shares some memory of the events 1300 years prior.

It is also notable that Momo also addresses the ship Toshika herself. A point established in both Tenchi Muyo! Ryo-Ohki and Tenchi Universe is that the trees of Jurai share some symbiotic relationship with the Jurai royal family, giving them great power, formidable capital ships, and ultimately their massive space empire. Indeed, the trees of Jurai are regarded as sentient beings in the OVA and can choose their masters in a system not unlike marriage. Consequently, Toshika is also a character in this scene, though in a nonspeaking role, and she plays an important role late in the anime.

Another point here is that Momo has some assigned duty to leave Jurai, and Beni serves as her guardian on this journey with Toshika. The dialogue here and in Episode 33 does not elucidate what this duty is, or why they happened to reach Earth when the dimensional rift occurred.

Waking from the dream, teenage Momo awkwardly bids Tenchi farewell as she leaves to ponder the dream she just experienced. Upon her departure, Beni confronts Tenchi, revealing her suspicions as she did in Episode 34 of the anime. This deviates from the anime in that it was Tenchi who approached Beni in the anime. The change puts Beni as the proactive party, wanting to understand who Tenchi is, and who she is. She seems far more sensible and thoughtful than her anime counterpart, who just attacks Tenchi to force him to reveal his true colors.

That said, the anime does have two interesting features to this scene. First, Beni sitting on the roof and looking at the stars is very reminiscent of Ryoko doing the same, again alluding to the parallels between the two. Second, as Beni is attacking Tenchi, Momo arrives and interferes just when Beni swings one last time with all her might. In that moment, a green light emerges and protects Tenchi and Momo from the impact, though they are tossed from the roof. The green light is very similar to the barrier used by little Momo in Episode 8 to fend off a parallel universe version of Ryoko. While left somewhat ambiguous, this is possibly a hint at Momo’s true identity.

As with the last chapter, I find this chapter very tight and focused on moving the plot forward. I certainly like the development of Beni to this point, as well as the shift of attention to Momo’s true identity. Sadly, however, the compression does mean many humorous moments and poignant allusions are lost for the sake of that tight and concise flow.

— Rogue Thoughts

The chapter opens with Momo pondering the meaning of her dream from the previous chapter, debating what to do. Embarrassed to confide in her friends, she decides instead to speak with Tenchi, thinking that since he is a teacher, he should be more understanding.

I do have a little problem here, as Momo’s relationship to Tenchi has suffered from the story’s compression. Indeed, the anime spends several episodes endearing our hapless hero to her, but most of that development falls into the few panels of the last chapter during the cultural festival. Compare this to Beni’s relationship to Tenchi, where she has had multiple chapters to fight alongside him, confront him, and now ask for his help.

In that vein, as Momo exits the classroom to find Tenchi, she immediately sees Beni with Tenchi as they head to the old schoolhouse, beneath which was the excavation from Chapters 3 and 4. At the excavation site are Ryoko, Ayeka, Sasami, Yuki, and Rui, all of whom are recruited to find the “treasure” beneath the school. According to Yuki, the treasure is likely a “cold sleep” system, likely some form of statis. The day previous shows that Washu confirms that they may be looking for some key, which Beni assumes is herself.

While brief, this scene does give Yuki a moment to flaunt her personality some like she did in Chapter 3. Again, she draws many parallels to Washu: explaining scientific notions, taking an interest in watching people, using others for her benefit. Yuki even has her own foil in Rui, just as Washu has Mihoshi in the original OVA.

Beni is touched that everyone is there to help, but the moment is interrupted when Momo stumbles onto their gathering. The student council president is crawling down the steep slope of the excavation, much the same way she did in Episode 6 of the anime. However, unlike the anime, the slope is steeper, and her handhold gives way. Without hesitation, Beni rushes forward and catches Momo, much like she did in Chapter 4. Having overheard the entire exchange, Momo volunteers to help Beni in her quest.

Speaking of Mihoshi, she finally appears, and her costume is blatantly modeled after the attire of a Playboy Bunny: a corset teddy, pantyhose, collar, cuffs, and a cottontail with only the bunny ears replaced by her service hat. In Tenchi Muyo! Ryo-Ohki and Tenchi Universe, her uniform seemed much more sensible: a collared jacket with slack pants, not unlike a real police uniform. Admittedly, Tenchi in Tokyo changed her uniform to a bodysuit with an oversized jacket, but not as overtly suggestive as what is demonstrated here. Now, this is likely not the fault of the manga artist as this was also the design used for the anime. Instead, blame resides rather plainly with the concept designer for the series.

Tenchi acknowledges that he knows her, and Yuki and Rui state that she has helped them in the past. When asked about her purpose, Mihoshi openly admits that she is searching for evidence of tampering with spacetime, which immediately sets the others on the back foot. Fortunately, the bubbleheaded officer doubts she will find such proof, so she is really just there to search for treasure. She too joins the dig effort, rounding out the involved cast.

Despite her ridiculous costume, Mihoshi’s personality seems intact, her talkative nature and well-meaning naivety consistent with her previous appearances. Her dialogue is nearly identical to her explanation in Episode 39. On a somber note, the 2014 anime was the last time Yuko Mizutani portrayed Mihoshi before her death in 2016 due to breast cancer. I am very happy that she got this last chance to play the role, as well as to foil Washu’s schemes one more time.

Soon after the digging commences, Momo uncovers a very familiar artifact, a sword key of Jurai like Tenchiken. Beni reaches for it, and the device reacts. Momo pushes her peer out of the way and is seemingly enveloped in an explosion of light that frees her memories. The chapter ends with Tenchi running toward the scene.

The events here differ fairly heavily from the anime. Episode 38 has Washu scolding the Science Club members for not finding the treasure fast enough. Beni decides to recruit Tenchi into their number, while Ukan reveals Tenchi’s change in allegiance to Hana and Hachiko. The next episode has the two gather Momo and Tori to assault the old schoolhouse in force, disrupting the excavation. Yuki and Rui reveal a cellular phone Tenchi lost in his mission 1300 years ago. The following installment depicts a brief battle between a rebuilt Goriki and the team of Hachiko and Hana, before the two girls face Ryoko and Ayeka, respectively. Elsewhere, Momo and Beni hold the phone and allow it to detect where the treasure is buried. Episode 42 finishes the battles in the old schoolhouse while the sword key is uncovered by Beni. Here, both Beni and Momo reach for the item when it reacts, awakening the Juraian ship deep below them. The resulting earthquake swallows the key before Beni can snatch it.

While a bit contrived in the anime, the battles offered Ryoko and Ayeka a chance to shine, demonstrating their respective powers in modern animation. In particular, Ayeka actually showed an ability not present in other incarnations, firing beams of energy from her mini-guardians like turrets. Further, the contrast between the new characters and the classic cast was shown visually as the combat progressed. Also, Goriki himself essentially becomes the muscle of the Science Club after his reappearance in Episode 18.

Moreover, the anime has several visual allusions to other series. The black monolith is likely an homage to the Seele monoliths in Neon Genesis Evangelion. Hana declares in Episode 41 that their battle with Goriki is “punishment” while posing exactly like Usagi Tsukino from Sailor Moon. When the earthquake swallows the key, Momo is holding Beni as she is reaching for the artifact, just like Henry Jones and his son in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.

Sadly, I think this is a casualty of the compression of the story, which is my main issue with the work as a whole.

That said, the chapter served to move the plot forward, seemingly into the endgame. Indeed, Momo’s envelopment by the explosion of light is very similar to the ending of Episode 55. Also, the emphasis on Beni being proactive, sensible, and protective of Momo is quite welcomed. Contrast Beni’s depiction in this chapter to her desperation in Episode 42.

— Rogue Thoughts