Hand Maid May: A retro-encounter with cybernetic romance. [Eng+Spa] Hand Maid May: Un retro-encuentro con el romance cibernético.
(Versión En español más abajo).
Have you ever come across a series that, although simple, leaves a warm and nostalgic mark? That is exactly what happens with Hand Maid May, an anime gem from 2000 that turned 25 years ago a few months ago and that, thanks to the Internet Archive, has returned to circulation (even with a Public Domain mark) and I note that it is with audio dubbed into Spanish, which happens to be my native language.
So I said to myself something like: Yes, you can watch it freely and without regrets!
And that may be something that my old friends wouldn't expect, because they wouldn't imagine that my tastes in series can be that varied.
A romantic comedy with touches of science fiction (but without scientific pretensions).
The story revolves around Saotome Kazuya, a shy and somewhat clumsy young engineer, who receives an unfriendly “gift” from a rival colleague. When installing mysterious software, poof! (without wanting to or understanding how) he places an order with a company from the future: a Cyberdoll called May. Yes, the time jump is not explained. There is no time travel or wormholes: it just… happens. And that's fine. Because Hand Maid May does not seek to convince us with theories, but with tenderness.
A striking detail is that the company that creates the Cyberdolls is called 'Cyberdine', like the company that builds Skynet in the Terminator saga... But don't worry, it is clear that it is another company... But do both stories have time travel by androids? Yes, but in the case of May's series, it is impossible for her to come and kill anyone, she is too naive and a good person for that.
The heart of the series is not technology, but the relationship between Kazuya and May: an android with artificial intelligence in miniature version (1/6 human size), sweet, curious and deeply human in her gestures.
Their romance is not conventional, of course: there are differences of scale, of nature, of existence... but there is also laughter, comic misunderstandings, moments of complicit silence and mutual growth.
Weird romance? Maybe... but getting closer.
Today, with advances in conversational AI, social robots and even androids with emotional expressiveness, the premise no longer sounds so far away. Is it so far-fetched to imagine someone forming an emotional bond with a sentient, albeit non-biological, entity?
Hand Maid May raised it more than two decades ago with lightness and respect, without judgment, without moralizing, only with empathy. It is not an isolated case, because the idea has already been exploited in many series from previous decades, and perhaps this recurring idea has also affected in some way the development of our current technology.
A short series, but with soul.
With only 10 TV episodes and a special DVD episode, the series is easy to consume and perfect for a quiet afternoon.
It does not seek to be epic or revolutionary: it seeks to make you smile, make you think a little and, above all, remind you how nice it can be to discover someone (or something) that sees you, listens to you and, in its own way, chooses you.
Did you see it at its premiere? Do you discover it now? It doesn't matter. The important thing is that it is still alive, accessible and with that retro charm that only time knows how to polish. Internet Archive cataloged it at: https://archive.org/details/hand-maid-may-castellano
So if you need a soft break, with just the right amount of humor, tenderness and a touch of the future past, give Hand Maid May a chance. You don't need to be a fan of romance or science fiction: you just have to want to enjoy a story that, although small, still has a lot to say. And who knows... Maybe, in the end, you'll be left wondering what “connecting” really means.
(English version above).
¿Te has topado alguna vez con una serie que, aunque sencilla, deja una huella cálida y nostálgica? Eso es exactamente lo que pasa con Hand Maid May, una joya anime de 2000 que hace pocos meses cumplió 25 años y que, gracias al Internet Archive, ha vuelto a circular (incluso con marca de Dominio Público) y con audio doblado a Español. ¡Sí, puedes verla libremente y sin remordimientos!
Y puede que eso sea algo que mis viejos amigos no se esperarían, pues no se imaginarían que mis gustos en series puede ser así de variado.
Una comedia romántica con toques de ciencia ficción (pero sin pretensiones científicas).
La historia gira en torno a Saotome Kazuya, un joven ingeniero tímido y algo torpe, que recibe un “regalo” poco amistoso de un colega rival. Al instalar un misterioso software, ¡puf! (sin quererlo ni entender cómo) realiza un pedido a una empresa del futuro: una Cyberdoll llamada May. Sí, el salto temporal no se explica. No hay viajes en el tiempo ni agujeros de gusano: simplemente… ocurre. Y eso está bien. Porque Hand Maid May no busca convencernos con teorías, sino con ternura.
Un detalle llamativo es que la empresa que crea las Cyberdolls se llama ‘Cyberdine’, como la empresa que construye a Skynet en la saga de Terminator… Pero no hay que preocuparse, se aclara que es otra empresa… Pero ¿ambas historias tienen viajes en el tiempo por parte de androides? Si, pero en el caso de la serie de May, es imposible que ella venga a matar a nadie, es demasiado ingenua y buena gente como para eso.
El corazón de la serie no es la tecnología, sino la relación entre Kazuya y May: una androide con inteligencia artificial en versión miniatura (1/6 de tamaño humano), dulce, curiosa y profundamente humana en sus gestos.
Su romance no es convencional, claro: hay diferencias de escala, de naturaleza, de existencia… pero también hay risas, malentendidos cómicos, momentos de silencio cómplice y crecimiento mutuo.
¿Romance raro? Tal vez… pero cada vez más cercano.
Hoy, con los avances en IA conversacional, robots sociales y hasta androides con expresividad emocional, la premisa ya no suena tan lejana. ¿Es tan descabellado imaginar a alguien formando un vínculo afectivo con una entidad sintiente, aunque no biológica?
Hand Maid May lo planteó hace más de dos décadas con ligereza y respeto, sin juicios, sin moralinas, solo con empatía. No es un caso aislado, porque la idea ya ha sido explotada en muchas series y películas desde décadas anteriores. Y quizás esa idea recurrente también ha afectado de alguna manera el desarrollo de nuestra tecnología actual.
Una serie breve, pero con alma.
Con solo 10 episodios de TV y un capítulo especial adicional en el DVD recopilatorio, la serie es ligera de consumir y perfecta para una tarde tranquila.
No busca ser épica ni revolucionaria: busca hacerte sonreír, hacerte pensar un poco y, sobre todo, recordarte lo bonito que puede ser descubrir a alguien (o algo) que te ve, te escucha y, a su manera, te elige.
¿La viste en su estreno? ¿La descubres ahora? Da igual. Lo importante es que sigue viva, accesible y con ese encanto retro que solo el tiempo sabe pulir. Internet Archive la catalogó en: https://archive.org/details/hand-maid-may-castellano
Así que si necesitas una pausa suave, con dosis justas de humor, ternura y un toque de futuro pasado, dale una oportunidad a Hand Maid May. No necesitas ser fanático del romance ni de la ciencia ficción: basta con tener ganas de disfrutar una historia que, aunque pequeña, sigue teniendo mucho que decir. Y quién sabe… Tal vez, al final, te quedes pensando en qué significa, de verdad, “conectar”.
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Parece mentira que los años pasen tan rápido, es algo muy emotivo y relajante para descansar la mente del estrés diario.