As implied in the title, I strongly recommend watching a couple, better yet all of the episodes of the TV series before this movie. Or, of course, read as many episodes of the manga as possible, but the TV series will be easier to acquire. The OVA might also help, of course, especially if you don't want to invest a couple of hours of "preperation" for the movie.Why? First of all, obviously for chronological reasons, because the events in the movie occur ca. two years after the series ended. But more important is the fact that you will lack important background knowledge if you jump into the universe of "Ah! My Goddess" with the movie. For example, you would simply have to accept the fact that a Japanese student lives in a buddhist temple together with three goddesses without further explanation, among many other details (calling heaven via telephone - huh?).One of the strong concepts of the series is that the key characters are slowly and sequentially introduced, allowing the viewer to grow on them. While it might not be necessary to actually watch all episodes of the series or the OVA, I think it is mandatory to watch at least the first ones until Urd and Skuld are introduced. The more, the better...You will get sooo much more out of the movie if you don't have to wonder why the goddesses live on earth under rather mundane circumstances. Watching the romantic relationship between Keiichi and Belledandy being endangered will touch you far deeper if you are already acquainted to the AMG universe and actually watched it grow and blossom in the first place.Imagine watching this latest Star Trek Movie with the young crew (e.g. Kirk and Spock being rivals in a time prior to their deep friendship) without knowing the series or earlier movies. You might enjoy the movie anyway, but will get only a fraction of the experience out of it compared to a trekkie. I hope you get what I mean - watch the series first! :)So far soo good. Well, what will you get out of the movie if you know the manga and/or the anime? In a few words: more than you would have expected! But let's first comment one some missing elements. One would be the lack of near-nudity and (sexually) emberassing situations which would frequently occur in the series as comedic elements. No big deal - I loved them in the series, yet didn't miss them at all in the movie. Notable though, since they were one of the key elements in the series. I guess it's better this way, because the movie can be presented to a broader viewer spectrum.Also I was a bit surprised that some key characters from the series did not appear at all in the movie (Marller, Hild and Sayoko). A new villain is introduced instead, and in a very clever way which makes it impossible to apply black/white thinking.A refreshing element of the plot is that while in the series Keiichi ended up with some naked women, goddesses, even the devil himself in bed every other day, accidentally drank love potions etc, I cannot recall any episode where it was the other way round - and in the movie we actually get exactly this scenario. It is the first time (at least the first I can think of) that Keiichi gets a serious rival. Furthermore, it is the first time since the invasion of the bugs at the very beginning of the series that the AMG universe has a really big problem and the future of the whole world is at stake.There is not really much more to say... If you liked the series or the manga there is no doubt that you will love the movie. It is a worthy sequel for the series (as well as a worthy representative for the manga). The animation is beautiful and elaborate, the soundtrack is awesome. If you have a soft, romantic spot, prepare for it to be touched. If you don't, maybe you can enjoy the great artwork, but probably you will find most of the scenes a bit cheesy.

**** REGARDING SPOILER WARNING... THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO CONSIDER ANY DETAIL BEYOND THE SYNOPSES TO BE A SPOILER... THIS DOES NOT REVEAL PLOT LINES THOUGH **** My wife and I started out with a couple of random episodes on the anime channel, and eventually acquired both seasons (didn't like the OAVs though, so we didn't get them). This movie was the next step. Before we got it, we checked here and saw that even people who hadn't seen the series really liked it.The characters were more human then any anime I have seen before, at least to the extent of their experiences, emotions, responses, etc. being in place with the film. This is a nice change, as my only real hesitation with anime is that the characters are often as exaggerated in personality as they are in pen.The music was beautiful, and when the goddesses sing, it is very much the impression that one might have of an ethereal being.The artwork is fantastic, rivaling the Final Fantasy movies (although each has its own distinctions).Over all, I believe this may be the first movie I have rated as a 10. As a movie buff, I have to say this made my top 10 favorites, among other reasons because the story and the characters were both well above par.

I bought this DVD because I recognised the picture on the cover from an image in a 3D modeling competition.At first, I thought I had bought myself a dud as the story starts off quite slowly. But then the plot thickens as the story starts to unfold.It's difficult to place this movie under a singular genre as it contains a little of everything. The characters (even the more background ones) were developed well and one gets drawn in by both the main characters and the story line. I did not manage to guess what the ending would bring, up to the last few scenes. The music is emotional and lovely. The animation is brilliant and what's truly striking is the attention to detail the artists put into this movie. I cannot say a single bad thing about it.This is a must see!!!!! Definitely worth buying the DVD.

This movie takes place two and a half years after the events chronicled in the original Aa Megamisama video series. As such, the relationships between the main characters (in particular Keiichi and Belldandy) have evolved offscreen to a certain point, and some characters that had been introduced in the manga only now make their first onscreen appearances.However, that doesn't detract from this wonderful film, which, though very much a fantasy, is a story that is sweet, without being boring, and if a touch melodramatic, then not excessively corny.Aa Megamisama the movie seemingly follows two tracks - examining the relationship between the mortal Keiichi and the seemingly submissive goddess Belldandy who has come to live with him - and examining Belldandy's own past, which is not as perfect as one would think. Especially when someone from that past starts a chain of events that could bring down all of Heaven.It might take a while for this movie to be distributed on US shores, but it'll certainly be worth the wait.