I just watched all 26 episodes on blu-ray - buy quick while it's still reasonably priced. Mikie Hara is great as Honey - beautiful, upbeat, and fills out the costume as you would expect one to do if they are playing Cutie Honey. I liked Eriko Sato as Honey in the 2004 movie better and I liked that movie better overall; however, this series obviously gives more depth to the characters being 26 episodes versus the 90-some-minute film.
I like the addition of the "sisters" here. There is a good dynamic here and it gives Honey something and someone to work off of here rather than just villains. Nat is more of a minor character here. I liked her, but they could have done more with her. Seiji, the detective best friend, started off OK, but became annoying very quickly. He is really the only one who over-acts. Sure, the action is over-the-top and rediculous most of the time. The girls are all fine actors and do a good job carrying the series despite Seiji's terrible performances. Maybe he's a good actor and we have to blame the director and writers - I don't know.
There is some lazy writing to be found here. Some weak story lines where the characters have to be stupid to make the story work - existance tax, really?! And there was another story with a problem that could have been solved by the characters just talking to each other. The computerized effects are weak, but the make-up and practical stunts are good for the most part.
I found myself liking the dynamic between the "sisters" a lot and that is the best part about this series. Mikie Hara is great as I said, but I found myself liking Miki's (Ayame Misaki) character best. She is quite different than Honey and that is a good contrast. She was a more downbeat and dark person, and probably more relatable.
The ending was OK... I won't spoil it here, but I was hoping for a different ending. I predicted some of how it ended, but not all. I would recommend this; however, I would recommend watching the 2004 movie first. I like Honey much better in live action and would like seeing a higher budget, more serious adaptation of this material. Of course, we still need a happy-go-lucky Honey.
