Gekkostate vs. The United Federation of Predgio Towers

Dear Followers,


You all knew this was coming. On the very first day that this blog was created I noted that I would be reviewing anime here. So why not start with one of my favorites? Before we start though let me talk about what this show means to me.


In middle school I had locked up my love for anime, looking down upon my memories of watching Toonami late at night as a childish phase. At the end of 9th grade I went through a "renaissance" in anime, rediscovering my love for the art form. Through a coincidental chain of events I was talked into watching Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion by Evan Chen. (We were having a singing contest that required we sing in Japanese and things developed from there). I was instantly hooked.


From that moment onwards I started downloading and watching any anime I could get my hands on when I found Psalms of Planets: Eurkea Seven. I remember one late night in 5th grade switching through the channels until I eventually landed on Adult Swim's run of what I understood to be "Yu-ri-ka Seven." The blood and robots that appeared before my eyes had me instantly hooked, but after that day I could never find the show on television again. This was my chance to see what I had missed.

Perhaps I am not the person to be writing this review. A year and a half after watching the show, my views are twisted and my reactions to the show have changed with time. In any case, here are my thoughts:


Review - Psalms of Planets: Eureka Seven


Story: 7/10


I am not going to try and fool you, Eureka Seven makes no sense. I could not even try to come up with a coherent way of describing what is going on in this show if I had wanted to. From "compac drives" to "scub coral," there are so many obscure references in this show that you will have to learn to let things slide or keep the Wikipedia page open when you watch.


The beginning of this show is what draws so many people away. The first 10 episodes of this show are BORING. I only found myself hanging on because of my perfectionist need to complete every episode of an anime. However, this long introduction is deceptive. Once you get past this first section the show really picks up. You will be thrown into groupings of abstract scenes that will leave you feeling disturbed and hungry for more. A lot of the scenes dealing with "dreams" were some of the most creative I have ever seen.

Perhaps the greatest problem with Eureka Seven is pacing. At some points this show develops questions that force the view to wonder about what will happen next. How the show goes about actually answering these questions is the problem. Eureka Seven has a habit of going off on tangents, introducing and dismissing pointless new characters until you are forced to wonder what even happened in the previous episode.


The reason why these small details disturb me is because Eureka Seven is a show capable of brilliance. The fighting in this show is beautiful. Robots spin across the scene performing aerobatic maneuvers while smoking missiles hone in from every angle. If there is one thing that Studio Bones does well, it is missile animation. Some of the scenes between Renton and Eureka brought tears to my eyes where others made me want to through my laptop on the ground.

My comments here serve as a forewarning, but they may distort how you perceive my opinion of the show. Eureka Seven is complicated. The story elements require the viewer to go deeper than most animes and sometimes you will be presented with truly controversial material that will leave you feeling offended. Eureka Seven is constantly making statements about topics war, society, our relationship with nature, human action, love, and dehumanization. For these reasons I love Eureka Seven. If you are a lighter anime viewer I would not recommend this show for you.


Characters: 8.5/10


One of Eureka Seven's most redeeming qualities is how it treats characters. The amount of time spent in developing every character's story helps build full fledged personalities that will not disappoint. The character development is simply phenomenal. The way that characters interact with one another and interact with situations is completely believable and the whole ride it was easy for me to identify with the characters.

What Eureka Seven portrays best in my mind is love. While many shows will develop love as a simple entity with the classic boy meets girl algorithm, Eureka Seven takes that one step forward. Relationships like that between Talho and Holland, and Eureka and Renton,are developed in such a way that we get multiple angles. The fact that the show focuses on the hardships caused by love most of the time allow the moments when the beauties of love are shown to stand out that much more. All I could ask for is more information on some of the minor characters. I have no idea why Stoner looks like Che Guevara, and never will.


Animation/Sound: 9.5/10


This show has a top-notch soundtrack. Everything from the OP and ED themes to the background music give you a collection of some of the best music I have ever heard in an anime, second only to Code Geass. The musical timing in Eureka Seven helps establish the mood, easily making up for scenes when the characters and plot cannot deliver.

In terms of animation, let me just say Studio Bones has done it again. Highly imaginative craft and captivating scenes make up Eureka Seven. The amount of detail that goes into every "amita drive" or "Seven Swell Phenomenon" are marvelous to behold. The character design is truly unique. Every character has a distinct feel and shape to them that is hard to find nowadays when many anime characters are cookie-cutter models.


Goodnight, Sleep Tight Young Lovers,
Noel