So this episode is a more formal introduction of the characters, while the previous episode showed more what the history of the setting was. Again, it has a lot of ingredients that you see in other anime as well, which mostly centred around Lafiel: she’s a young, cute girl of an exotic race that everyone hates.
But the characterization is done so well!
At first this episode took its time to show how Jinto has grown up after the previous episode, and how he kept his nobility secret from the friends that he grew up with. It already added a lot of depth to the guy by showing him close off his childhood, and his anxieties for his future. He’s already someone with his own identity, and who doesn’t have to rely on cheap stereotypes in order to stand out.
And then Lafiel. I really like how direct her questions are. This episode did an excellent job in showing the cultural differences between the humans and the Abh: Jinto has never met one of the Abh, since they hardly ever bother to show themselves among the humans, and at the same time Lafiel has grown up, never meeting a human. This episode portrayed the Abh as a very direct race: it’s common with them to be to the point, to the point where they’ve developed a culture that’s completely void of human laziness.
And again: Lafiel is not just a caricature of this culture. While this episode showed the general traits of the Abh, Lafiel also had her own personality.
It’s also interesting that this series was produced, right at the time where CG became actually possible to include in anime. You can see that there are no 3D models, but the creators do make use of the smaller stuff, like lighting, shadows and some computer screens. It was before companies got too confident and started to overuse it. Turn A Gundam which was produced around the same time as this series showed this as well: it was mostly CG free, though the eye-catch in the middle of each episode experimented with it.
Rating: ** (Excellent)
You’ll like this show it’s a lot like Spice and Wolf but set in a space opera.
I think you’ll see a little more CG or at least digital effects by the time the other two series in this franchise come up, but in the meanwhile…yes, Lafiel and Jinto have a pretty interesting relationship but something I always liked from this show was all the insight into the Abh and their culture.
Now, I would say that the comparison to Spice and Wolf isn’t entirely accurate, their personalities are a bit different for a start, but I can see why the description would make sense.
Very interesting about the inclusion of CG. I didn’t even notice it.
Yeah, it’s a great show, and so are Banner of the Stars. I actually only started and finished the whole series like 4 months ago. Watched it straight through for 3 days. While the story is good, the great thing about this series is the relationship between the two main characters.
star series is pretty nice
although i still felt something missing at the end of it
star series is pretty nice
although i still felt like something was missing at the end of it
My only complaint about this show is that only the story of the Abh is presented. I was waiting the whole time for them to show the other side of the story, i.e. why the rest of the universe hates the Abh. It could have been as epic as Legend of the Galactic Heroes.
@cris: Keep in mind that all the Legend of the Galactic Heroes novels were animated, as far as I know, while the Crest/Banner of the Stars novels aren’t even done yet.
this series is epic, i loved it.
@cris:
As the story reach its (epic) conclusion, more and more reasons of why there was war will be explained. It will be spoilers, so I will refrain myself from talking about it.
Seikai no Senki series is more of a drama than action (legend of galactic heroes), and its pace and characters are the main attraction. It is way more humane and personal than Legend of the galactic heroes, which is why I like it better. Slow, refreshing,romantic, and very clever.
This show is amazing, there is one scene in the last episode of the 3rd season i consider the best scene of anime i ever watched, (over 600 ;))
so full of emotion and tension. the best part is that it is a scene where nothing happens. but you’ll have to see for yourself 😉
@Cris
this is not true. this is a show that doesnt spoonfeed you all the facts though, you have to think for yourself to figure some parts out.
You should watch this dubbed, Jinto. It’s very good, Jinto. I like dubbs, Jinto.
Seikai no xxxxxx is my favorite anime series of all time. The pace of the story and the mix of action is perfect. The Abh history is facinating. But I would definitely recommend people to watch it subbed just like any other anime.
I loved this series, I even ordered the books to read them.
However, I felt that all the series after Crest, while still very good, didn’t have the completeness I felt in Crest.