Finished this highly underrated series last night and while some people may have thought that the ending was rushed and unsatisfying I think Michiko e Hatchin was one of best series of the last fall/winter season.
A lot of why I liked the series so much is it's reality, well that and honestly Michiko is a Latino hottie and you definitely don't see a "real" hottie in anime that much any more. Since it is Brazil and hot Michiko does give us all a decent amount of lite fanservice in the varied outfits that she wears. Once again it's nice to see characters who change clothes once in a while and Michiko defintely as a nice taste in clothing. In any case I was bored with the moeblobs that have been running rampant through recent anime and this series was a great distraction from that. It also doesn't sugar coat life in Brazil during the 80's or how people would deal with the situations presented to them during that time. If you've ever seen the movie City of God you'd understand.
It isn't just Brazil and it's sordid history that makes this show great far from it. The main shining point in this show though are the characters. Michiko is your average product of the Brazilian slums and gangs a hardened woman prone to violence to solve her problems and out only for herself who busts out of jail so that she can snag the daughter of her former lover and track him down. Hatchin on the other hand is an orphaned Loli with no idea what awaits her when a woman crashes through the window of her abusive family's house. Each one has their own flaws and strong points that through out the show set them at odds yet makes them complement each other. From there the two go on a very twisted violent adventure to track down Hatchin's father for Hatchin it's to find out about her father for Michiko it's to reunite with her one true love.
Through out the twisted adventure we also meet several other interesting characters who seem to come and go (some times peacefully some times not so, like the stripper and her daughter) on a whim but all the time they add to the story. Also something interesting happens during all this adventuring when Michiko and Hatchin start becoming more of a mother and daughter pairing than just a mere woman with a tag along kid. This is especially notable at the end when Michiko gives up her freedom and running from the law so that Hatchin can be with her father. And while that doesn't work out I think that shows just how much she does end up caring more for Hatchin than being with her former lover.
What really sucks though is that due to this series not being a moeblobfest there is hardly any at all fan made art for the series and hardly any official art of it either. Thankfully there is some hope in that the art for the Soundtrack looks awesome and so does the cover art for the DVDs now we just need someone to scan it all in and share it with us all or at least those of us who like the series. I do wish that this series would be picked up for distribution here in the states as I wouldn't mind owning it so that I can show people that anime isn't all moeblobs and annoying lame orange ninjas.
