A Certain Scientific Railgun S, Part One

In this follow-up to A Certain Scientific Railgun, middle school hottie Mikoto Misaka—a high-ranking “esper” (super-powered student) in Academy City—uses her electromagnetic powers to help stop miscreants who are engaged in outrageous criminal activities. While the other female students surrounding Mikoto become involved in all sorts of burlesque-type mishaps—ranging from wet uniforms to ingesting aphrodisiacs—Mikoto stays busy fighting baddies, although her skills could benefit from a little fine-tuning (at one point, she accidentally creates a citywide blackout by damaging a power generator during a duel). Like the original series, this show is a lopsided victory of style over substance: the animation is vibrant and fun, while the outlandish nature of several of the plot twists lead to some genuinely amazing visuals. But the girls-with-superpower angle is spun in numerous directions that seem to be equal parts empowering and demeaning to young women. Still, anime is not the realm for the easily offended, and fans are likely to enjoy this raucous romp. Compiling the first 12 episodes from the 2013 second season in a dual-language set, rated TV-14, DVD extras include audio commentaries. A strong optional purchase. [Note: A Certain Scientific Railgun S, Part Two is also newly available.] (P. Hall)