Customer Reviews

Mahoromatic: Automatic Maiden, Volume 1

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Call Mahoromatic Automatic Maiden a cross between Ai Yori Aoshi and Chobits, but this features another cute and kind girl who becomes not only a maid to a young boy, but also somewhat of a girlfriend/surrogate mother. Recently orphaned, teenager Suguru Misato decides to hire a maid to clean up the spacious house he lives in. On his way back, the bus he's riding on is hijacked by some thugs for some unspecified motive. These nasties order the women to undress, including a cute girl in a maid's uniform, and the usually timid Suguru is angered at the way she is treated and mouths back to the hijackers. The girl herself is shot at, only to deftly catch the bullets inbetween her fingers and thwarting the baddies.

After the ordeal, Suguru returns home to find that same maid working in his flower bed. Turns out that she is Mahoro, sent by Vesper Housecleaning Services to work for him, and that she is actually an android, albeit a former combat android who fought aliens attempting to take over Earth. Upon being informed that her life expectancy would give her a lifespan of 37 days-presumably from a particularly nasty battle or years of wear and tear, she was given a choice of lighter duties that would extend that limited life to 398 days.

Not only does she clean house excellently, she's also a great cook, and when Suguru brings her home-made lunches to school, he becomes the envy of his classmates, not only for the food. When she arrives at school to deliver her master's dessert and tells his inquiring friends "I am committed to Suguru-san with every fiber of my being," visions swim in their heads of Mahoro being his bedmate, and of Suguru whipping her. Eager to clear up any misunderstandings his friends might have, Suguru invites them over, where they are won over by Mahoro's great cooking and friendliness.

However, his homeroom teacher, 25-year old Saori Shikijou, who is incredibly stacked, is somewhat of a lech. Ever heard of Van Halen's song "Hot For Teacher?" In Saori's case, it's "Hot For Student," and that student is Suguru. Mahoro's presence inflames her, and she sees the android as a gold-digger. Mahoro in turn is irked that Saori tries to interfere with her duties and becomes protective of her master. She refers to Saori as that "ecchi sensei [teacher]" while Saori refers to Mahoro as "that sl-t wh-re maid."

Mahoro soft-spoken, kind, observant, and organized, and she does have a bit of an old-fashioned streak, as she tells her master that she doesn't approve of his collection of ecchi magazines (porn mags), but at least she doesn't throw them away. Yet she's unaware of some of society's morals. She unhesitatingly joins Suguru in his bath, to wash his back for him, seeing that as part of her duty as a maid. And it goes without saying that she has made his lonely life brighter. "She wakes me up every morning, makes me a delicious breakfast, takes baths with me, and the house has never been cleaner since she's taken over."

However, each chapter ends with the message "Mahoro's functions will cease in <XXX> days," reminding the reader that her time is limited. And there is a connection between her and the death of Suguru's parents that he's unaware of.

This manga yielded an anime that lasted two seasons, plus a summer special. Think of Mahoro as an android version of Aoi Sakuraba of Ai Yori Aoshi, full of kindness and service, but without the shyness of Aoi-chan.

Sure, the robotic girl that falls on a single guy may be an over done genre (Like Chobits, Saber Marionette J, AI Love You... ect.) But if you did like those mangas, this may be an interesting read.

However, the countdown at the end of each chapter makes the ending a little bit predictabe. (I'm hoping they will add a twist to the end.) Also, the fan service *wink* is a bit overdone, even for an Otaku like me.