Magical Play
Summary
Padudu leaves her home, Sea Heaven, in attempt to go to earth and become a magical girl. She travels with her two companions in an attempt to gain flower points, which will allow her to become a magical girl.
Review
Magical Play is comprised of a thirty minute 3D CG episode and twenty 5 minute animated episodes. The 3D episode isn't nearly as good as the 2D episodes, and it ends as if they were planning on making more to continue it. The CG is cell shaded and a couple scenes looked impressive, but most of it wasn't all that great. It isn't as funny as the 2D episodes either. However, it is quite interesting comparing the 3D CG and the 2D versions.
The 2D episodes on the other hand are a blast. They aren't really connected to the CG episode, have a larger cast of characters, and are a lot funnier. There isn't much in the way of a story, but I was so busy enjoying the show that I didn't really care. While the episodes are only 5 minutes long, they do manage to cram a lot into them. Some episodes are a continuation of previous episodes, but for the most part the episodes are self contained.
Padudu and her friends usually end up fighting eachother for a flower point, since they all want to be magical girls. And even though they possess the ability to use magic, they don't use it all that much. Also worth noting is how the clothing the magical girls wear resembles different animals. For instance, Padudu wears a fish suit, and her magical wand is in the form of a fish skeleton. A couple episodes are more serious, revealing the past of certain characters, but the lack of a real story leaves them feeling rather unnecessary.
While most of it is animated, there is some CG at times and even one of the 5-minute episodes done almost entirely in CG. The animation isn't as good as you might expect from an OVA, since there isn't anything really flashy, but it's good enough. The backgrounds look as if they were made using water colors. The opening and ending themes are really good and catchy.
This show is just a whole lot of fun. The only thing missing besides transformation sequences is a conclusion. But it doesn't really follow a story anyways so it didn't bother me. Magical Play gets my recommendation.
The 2D episodes on the other hand are a blast. They aren't really connected to the CG episode, have a larger cast of characters, and are a lot funnier. There isn't much in the way of a story, but I was so busy enjoying the show that I didn't really care. While the episodes are only 5 minutes long, they do manage to cram a lot into them. Some episodes are a continuation of previous episodes, but for the most part the episodes are self contained.
Padudu and her friends usually end up fighting eachother for a flower point, since they all want to be magical girls. And even though they possess the ability to use magic, they don't use it all that much. Also worth noting is how the clothing the magical girls wear resembles different animals. For instance, Padudu wears a fish suit, and her magical wand is in the form of a fish skeleton. A couple episodes are more serious, revealing the past of certain characters, but the lack of a real story leaves them feeling rather unnecessary.
While most of it is animated, there is some CG at times and even one of the 5-minute episodes done almost entirely in CG. The animation isn't as good as you might expect from an OVA, since there isn't anything really flashy, but it's good enough. The backgrounds look as if they were made using water colors. The opening and ending themes are really good and catchy.
This show is just a whole lot of fun. The only thing missing besides transformation sequences is a conclusion. But it doesn't really follow a story anyways so it didn't bother me. Magical Play gets my recommendation.
Score:
Written by Marc Frost on
Content 
Nothing offensive.
Violence
Nothing to worry about.
Sex
Very brief undetailed nudity. Skimpy outfits.