After watching Gate Keepers, I needed something to wash my brain out, and My Hime was just the ticket. Especially My Hime 6, which is superb.
I knew from my previous experience with the fansub that these episodes were going to be the shiznat. But nonetheless, I was surprised by how emotional, how powerful this volume really was.
I prefer dubs to subs; I always have, but I don’t think I’ve ever been quite so impressed with the voice work for any anime DVD as I have been for Hime 6. Every note, every word, from every character, seems to convey exactly and precisely the emotion required for this build-up. This is a dramatic change from Hime 1, where many of the most prominent characters sounded like dejected actors that had just failed an audition to get on The OC – same people behind the microphone, completely different performance. Bandai, no doubt the majority of the credit for this change goes to the VAs themselves for figuring out their characters, but I suspect you changed something behind the scenes as well. Whatever it is you did, do more of it – it apparently works.
Getting back to the DVD; it rocks. It’s animorgasmtastic. It’s a stunning reminder of just why Hime is listed as a must-see anime on this site. Everything that makes Hime great starts to move in these three episodes. It’s fairly clear at this point who the Himes have inadvertently placed on the sacrificial table, with a few exceptions. There’s a great deal of subtle dialog here related to the relationships between characters. It’s well worth watching more than once to pick up all of it. The music perfectly, perfectly matches the angst and tension.