is a series of Japanese illustrated short stories written by Sakurako Kimino, which focus on a group of teenage girls attending three affiliated all-girl schools on Astraea Hill.

's first run in Dengeki G's Magazine it was six months before results began to indicate that the series was a success, and that its fans were growing in number;[2] the manga and light novels which followed were a reflection of its popularity.

The original short stories, manga, light novels, and video game used the exclamation mark in the title; the anime excluded it.

When the manga and light novel series were licensed for English language distribution, Seven Seas Entertainment did not use the exclamation mark in the title.

is Astraea Hill (アストラエアの丘, Asutoraea no Oka), a very large hilltop where the three affiliated schools of Miator, Spica and Lulim, are located.

[6] Students living on campus occupy a dormitory referred to as the "Strawberry Dorms" (いちご舎, Ichigo Sha, lit.

The story's main character is Nagisa Aoi, a young girl entering her fourth year at St. Miator after being transferred from another school.

While walking around the grounds trying to work out where she is, Nagisa comes across an older student named Shizuma Hanazono, who happens to be Astraea Hill's Etoile, a very important person who acts as a representative between the different schools and has specific duties that she must fulfill.

's origin was in the October 2003 issue of Dengeki G's Magazine where it was announced after the ending of Sakurako Kimino's previous work Sister Princess that a new reader participation project would start the following month.

[17] At that time popular Girls Love media like Maria-sama ga Miteru were largely published in outlets with a majority female audience like Shueisha's Cobalt Bunko.

In the November 2003 issue, the first batch of characters from St. Miator were introduced (Nagisa, Shizuma, Tamao, and Chiyo) and it was revealed how readers could participate in the project.

Thus, the readers had the ability to influence the coupling formations which would later be written by Kimino as short stories serialized in Dengeki G's Magazine.

In this issue, it was explained that four events were planned for the stories that followed: Easter, Athletic Carnival, Cultural Festival, and Christmas Bazaar.

[21] The reader participation game ended after ten rounds of voting in the February 2005 issue of Dengeki G's Magazine where it was announced that the series would be continued in other forms, such as the light novels and manga that followed.

[22] The original short stories and the poll results of the reader participation game were used as a basis for subsequent releases of Strawberry Panic!.

The second arc's stories, which were longer than the earlier pieces, involved taking one of the three main characters, performing coupling for them with one of the other eleven girls and presenting them in various situations.

After the ending of this short compilation in September 2005, it was decided that the original illustrator, Chitose Maki, would be replaced by Namuchi Takumi for future Strawberry Panic!

manga, written by Sakurako Kimino and illustrated by Namuchi Takumi, was serialized in Dengeki G's Magazine between September 30, 2005, and February 28, 2007, with a new chapter released once a month.

light novel series was to be written based on the original short stories appeared in the April 2005 issue of Dengeki G's Magazine.

The anime focuses on Nagisa Aoi and, to a slightly lesser extent, Hikari Konohana, and the three girls that they each are or become close to at their respective schools; some admire them or wish to be their friend, and others are vying for their affections.

[25] The two opening themes for the anime, "Shōjo Meiro de Tsukamaete" and "Kuchibiru Daydream" were sung by Aki Misato.

[25] The final closing theme in the last episode was a slower remix version of "Shōjo Meiro de Tsukamaete", sung by Aki Misato.

[20] The results from the second round of voting were published in the May 2004 issue of the magazine which included the figures for the sixty-four different combinations between the twelve girls.

The first DVD was declared rental-worthy by ANN, citing the characters as being "a lot of fun" and the series as being a "very laid-back show" that would work well as a relaxing watch over a weekend.

[44] The content, however, was described as getting the series off to a "slow start", with limitations of the first six episodes being the lack in fan service, humor, and that it "struggles to find any other reason to be compelling".

[46] The third DVD, compiling episodes twelve through sixteen, shows "signs of an actual plot" and contains a "sudden explosion of fan service", which are noted as "noteworthy developments" in the review.

[48] In the fifth and final DVD containing the last five episodes, the Hikari and Amane relationship is described as lacking chemistry, although the Nagisa and Shizuma pairing is regarded as satisfying.

was one of the premier titles in the Light Novel and Strawberry (for yuri manga) production lines when it was licensed for English language distribution by Seven Seas Entertainment.

[3] In an interview with Seven Seas Entertainment founder Jason DeAngelis, he was posed the question, "How do you attract a fan base for a novel before its release in English?"

His response was, "We try to choose titles that are already well-known, like Pita-Ten, Shinigami no Ballad or Strawberry Panic!....In terms of attracting a fan base, though, in the end it's all about word-of-mouth.