MAHO-dou - Ojamajo wa Koko ni Iru (おジャ魔女はココにいる)

First of all, I would like to once again congratulate "Kayo Kyoku Plus" for its 10th anniversary. I have been part of a fraction of those years, starting by commenting some posts as I was beginning to venture into Showa era music, a couple years before the City Pop boom in the West. I ended up being invited to collaborate and I am very thankful to J-Canuck and my fellow collaborators for making this blog what it is today. This blog helped me cultivate the passion of talking about Japanese music. Here's to another 10!

Lately, it has been interesting to look back at how I was before entering school and how I am right now, fresh out of university. There is one peculiar thing in common and that is the anime Ojamajo Doremi. This series was part of the Portuguese TV programming while I was a kid. It is a very particular magical girl anime which has more in common with the origins of the genre in the 60's or 70's and the "majokko" trope. It is also a journey of growth with the characters as they are kids, painted by tales of friendship, empathy, and the responsibility that comes with being a magic user but also a human. The story has even continued in the light novel form with the characters reaching their 20's. Constant reruns of the first two seasons were the highlights of my days. A few months ago, I went back to the series after high praise by some of my anime buddies and it has once again become the highlight of my days as an adult.

The second season is called Ojamajo Doremi Sharp and is the one that impacted me the most as a kid. No spoilers here, but the final episodes were both traumatic and deeply touching, both then and now. Although I am critical of the implications of 9-year-olds taking care of a newborn, it makes for a charming story that never gets boring after almost 50 episodes.

I really enjoy the opening for the season, "Ojamajo wa Koko ni Iru." It features the voice actress of the four main characters, collectively called MAHO-dou (MAHO堂), the name of the magical shop the girls help at. It is a very catchy song with tropical vibes and I particularly like the way the visuals coordinate with the song for the TV-size version.

The lyrics are work of Shota Namikawa with Keiichi Oku composing and arranging the song. The latter is also the author of the series' soundtrack which is particularly charming and fits the mood of the series very well. He has also authored other soundtracks for works by Toei Animation and has been awarded for his work for "Ashita no Nadja," another anime I watched as a kid.

This cover of the song by utaite Hanatan is also a favorite of mine as the arrangement is even more reminiscing of genres such as bossa nova.

I am now watching the third season of Ojamajo Doremi which I had been unable to catch on TV as a kid, as it aired a few years later. It feels symbolic to revisit a series which had been so dear to me but going beyond what I had experienced in the past. The little girl that watched anime back then keeps on living and growing.