This anime was one of the best I have ever watched, mainly because of the friendship between the characters and the soundtrack (the character's songs were so beautiful that I can't stop listening to them).
1. Story: 9.8/10
This story is about Miaka, a 15 years old girl that is transported into a book set in ancient China when she went to a library with her friend, Yui. The protagonist ends up being the Priestess of Suzaku (Suzako no Miko), while her friend turns out to be Miaka's enemy, the Priestess of Seiryuu (Seiryuu no Miko).
There, Miaka has to find all 7 Celestial Warriors to summon Suzaku in exchange of three wishes.
For the story, I give 9.8/10, not a 10 mainly because it is not a very original premise. Nevertheless, the story was what interested me in the beginning and what kept me watching, because of all the plot twists and all the drama - I love a good dramatic story - that made me think to myself "What's going to happen in the next episode?" and be completely hooked.
2. Characters: 9.8/10
Miaka is constantly receiving hate by the Fushigi Yuugi watchers, but I think she does not deserve that. It is true that she is useless in battles and does not have any excellent quality, but you must remember that she is a teenager (15 years old) and that she is in a completely new world and didn't know anyone at the beginning, so it was obvious that she was going to cling into the only person she met there and that saved her (Tamahome). However, I think that there should have had some character development, mainly because, when she started doing what she thought was right, she always made some mess and had to be saved. Without thinking about that, I consider Miaka a courageous girl, always ready to help her friends!The friendship the Suzaku Warriors have between them and Miaka is one of the best in all of the anime I have seen! They were always ready to risk their life to protect their friends and had always each other's back!
All of the Suzaku warriors are perfect but my heart has a soft spot for Hotohori. He has waited for Miaka to appear since he was a child and would do everything for her happiness, even risking his own life. He never did anything to make her cry and was always worrying about her. In the end, a good friend!Overall, the character's and their emotions were very well portrayed, but I would have liked to see more of the background story of each one of them instead of short mentions about it in an episode.
3. Romance: 9.7/10
I absolutely loved the romance between the main characters. They loved each other more than anything in the world and remained strong even when they went through hardships and people wanting to tear apart their relationship. On the other hand, they went through a very dramatic relationship, switching between being together, being apart, not wanting to be apart, couldn't be together, etc..., what caused it very hard for them to finally be together, but drama is always good to watch!
There was a love triangle but it did not last for too long, which is a shame to me (as I enjoy watching love triangles). However, throughout the anime, there are many characters that fall in love with her (obviously all one-sided, as she loves the one and only Tamahome).
4. Soundtrack: 10/10
Loved. The. Soundtrack.
The character's songs? Pure Beauty.
The opening and ending songs? Nostalgic.
The music through the episodes? Put me in the feels.
It's hard to choose my favorite track, but one of them would probably be this one:
To sum up, I give Fushigi Yuugi a 99/100. I enjoyed watching it very much and I am planning to rewatch it in the future!
I recommend this anime to people who like romance, fantasy and drama, as it centers mainly around these genres!