Oh My Goddess!
Kōsuke Fujishima began work on Oh My Goddess! in September 1988, marking a shift from his previous series You're Under Arrest!. The manga appeared in Kodansha's Monthly Afternoon magazine and ran for twenty-five years until the 25th of April 2014. Before this project, Fujishima created the character Miyuki Kobayakawa, who later appeared as a goddess in a four-panel gag strip within the new series. This early connection suggests that Oh My Goddess! might be viewed as a spin-off of his earlier work. The concept of a goddess working as a job interested the author deeply enough to launch the serialization. Kodansha collected the 308 individual chapters into forty-eight volumes released between the 23rd of August 1989, and the 23rd of July 2014.
College sophomore Keiichi Morisato accidentally calls the Goddess Help Line one evening. The goddess Belldandy materializes immediately to grant him a single wish. He believes he is being pranked but wishes for her to stay with him forever. His wish is granted instantly by the system. Since male-only dorms prohibit cohabitation, they seek shelter in an old Buddhist temple instead. A young monk living there leaves on a pilgrimage to India after seeing Belldandy's intrinsic goodness. They are allowed to stay indefinitely. Her elder sister Urd and younger sister Skuld move in shortly after. Their arrival makes life even more hectic for Keiichi. A series of adventures ensues as his relationship with Belldandy develops over time.
Three worlds exist within the universe: Heaven known as Valhalla, Hell called Niflheim, and Earth. An enormous computer system named Yggdrasil controls reality itself. First Class goddesses like Belldandy face stricter standards regarding the prohibition to lie compared to others. Each goddess receives a specific class, category, and set of restrictions upon assignment. Limited and Unlimited restrictions define boundaries on permitted actions. Goddesses wear power limiters usually in the form of jewelry to control their abilities. Demons possess a similar system named Nidhogg that mirrors Yggdrasil. A seal exists between the demon world and Earth called the Gate to the Netherworld. It was created by the gods and can only be broken by an instrument of the gods. Demons require a catalyst to manifest on Earth.
Anime International Company produced a five-episode original video animation starting the 21st of February 1993. The final episode arrived the 17th of May 1994, distributed by Pony Canyon. A second TV iteration titled Ah! My Goddess aired from the 6th of January 2005, to the 7th of July 2005. This series followed the manga closely under director Hiroaki Gōda. Another season titled Ah! My Goddess: Everyone Has Wings premiered the 6th of April 2006, and concluded the 14th of September 2006. A film premiered in Japan in 2000 with the return of the main cast. An animated special commemorating the twentieth anniversary aired the 9th of December 2007. Companies developed thousands of types of merchandise including video games and light novels. AnimEigo licensed the OVA for North American release while Geneon Entertainment handled the film distribution.
Translating the original Japanese title proved problematic for international audiences. Fred Patten noted fans were still debating whether to use Oh My Goddess! or Ah! My Goddess fifteen years after publication began. AnimEigo chose Oh My Goddess! when obtaining rights to the original video animation. Toren Smith and Dark Horse Comics followed this approach for the manga translation released in 1994. Smith stated he saw the title as a play on Oh my god! Kodansha's bilingual release used Ah! My Goddess instead. Pioneer's North American release of the film also adopted that version. Media Blasters's 2005 DVD release of the TV series continued the discrepancy. Fujishima confirmed his preference for Oh but acknowledged titles should make sense within each country.
As of June 2020, the manga had over 25 million copies in circulation worldwide. This figure makes it one of the best-selling manga series ever produced. In 2009, Oh My Goddess! won the thirty-third Kodansha Manga Award for the general category. Volume forty-one ranked tenth among best-selling manga in Japan upon its release week according to Oricon charts. The film placed number twenty-eight on Wizard's Anime Magazine list of top fifty anime released in North America. The anime series received a nomination for Best Comedy Anime at the American Anime Awards in 2007. It lost to FLCL despite the strong showing. Sales figures continue to grow with new omnibus editions appearing regularly since 2015.
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Common questions
When did Kōsuke Fujishima begin work on Oh My Goddess?
Kōsuke Fujishima began work on Oh My Goddess! in September 1988. The manga ran for twenty-five years until the 25th of April 2014.
Who are the main characters introduced in Oh My Goddess?
College sophomore Keiichi Morisato accidentally calls the Goddess Help Line and is joined by the goddess Belldandy. Her elder sister Urd and younger sister Skuld move in shortly after to create a hectic life for Keiichi.
What computer system controls reality in the universe of Oh My Goddess?
An enormous computer system named Yggdrasil controls reality itself within the three worlds of Heaven, Hell, and Earth. Demons possess a similar system named Nidhogg that mirrors Yggdrasil.
When was the first anime adaptation of Oh My Goddess released?
Anime International Company produced a five-episode original video animation starting the 21st of February 1993. The final episode arrived the 17th of May 1994, distributed by Pony Canyon.
How many copies of Oh My Goddess were sold worldwide as of June 2020?
As of June 2020, the manga had over 25 million copies in circulation worldwide. This figure makes it one of the best-selling manga series ever produced.