Review of Emma (2005)
A mild-mannered maid falls in love with a visiting man of the gentry in Victorian England.
The maid was one of the more tragic stereotypes of contemporary nerd anime. It is normally used to create situations where blissfully subservient, uniformed women attend to a man in obviously narcissistic and sexually objectifying ways. In much the same way as Mobile Suit Gundam (1979) broke new ground simply by taking humanoid vehicles somewhat seriously, Emma takes maids seriously, positioning them in their historical context. Absolutely no porn, action, or magic, just a period drama. No relation to Austen’s Emma (1815).