Synopsis: "Renton Thurston is a 14-year-old boy who lived with his mechanic grandfather in a backwater town. Every day he dreamed of being with the mercenary "Light Finding Operation (LFO)" aircraft pilot group "Gekkostate" and riding "Trapar" particle waves-- a sport called "reffing"-- with their charismatic leader Holland, especially when faced with his father's acclaimed past or his grandfather's desire to protect him. When a young girl named Eureka riding the original LFO, the "Nirvash typeZERO", asks his grandfather for a tune-up, she inadvertently brings the attention of the military to the garage; as a result, the garage is destroyed and Renton is forced to deliver a new type of interface-- the "Amita Drive"-- to the Nirvash. After a heated fight in which the Nirvash destroys the military LFOs by unleashing an immense amount of power, Renton is invited into Gekkostate. However, he quickly realizes that behind the facade of a traveling group of mercenaries is a very bitter reality." Source
Eureka Seven is one of my new favorite animes. In fact, I'd rate it as my number two anime. The main reason for this is that Eureka Seven finally scratched a big anime "itch" of mine, namely a story with a well-developed romantic relationship. Most animes I have seen stop short of characters actually coming out and saying "I love you." Instead, in anime, if two characters (especially if they are the main characters) are obviously a couple the best you are likely to get is them asserting that the other character is their "most important person" or maybe they just hold hands during the climax of the show. Rarely do we get to see the characters say the three magic words in the middle of the show and actually view them in a relationship outside of a rushed five minute anime ending. There is an entire genre of anime based on Japanese "dating games" that focus exclusively on character relationships, but from what I know about them (no I don't watch these kinds of animes) they tend on the melodramatic side and the personalities of the characters almost always conform to particular archetypes that Japanese dating game fans expect. In short, they are poorly written. Also, I take issues with these shows because I don't just want a love story, I want a love story taking place in a larger world with a larger story. However, political anime political dramas such as Gundam typically just can't make themselves take a romantic relationship anywhere meaningful.
I have my theories about why this is the case. From my understanding of Japanese culture, the Japanese are much more reserved in their relationships, at least in theory. I'm not sure if in real life they are actually reserved about expressing romantic love or if it is just their culture idolizes reserved romantic feelings. This is probably why in Gundam SEED, the two "purest" characters, Kira and Lacus, who obviously harbor feelings for each other and are a perfect match never express their feelings verbally and the only physical expression is a kiss on the cheek and an occasional hug. The Japanese just really appreciate these two "pure" characters being modest and shy in their romantic relationship. Another reason is that in a move to cater to fans, anime writers often like to keep romantic relationships ambiguous so that fans who like to imagine their two favorite characters are romantically involved can do that without the show outright saying that it isn't going to happen. A great recent example of this is Code Geass, where the main character Lelouch has three important potential love interests in his life, but never commits to any of them, despite the fact that he obviously cares about all three of them.
Eureka Seven however doesn't tease us like this. From the beginning of the show the main character, Renton, is open with his feelings about the female lead Eureka. While it starts as puppy love, by midway through the show they and everyone around them acknowledge that they are in the relationship. Because there is still half a show left we actually get to see their ups and downs as Renton and Eureka cope with Eureka's past and role in the larger story. One fault that may or may not bother you is that Eureka Seven chooses not to deal with the more physical side of their relationship. They kiss from time to time, but the show never comes very close to dealing with any sexual pressures between them (except as a joke in a single episode). Personally, that's fine with me, because shows that deal with teenage sex always inevitably love to deal with teenage pregnancy and that's not what Eureak Seven is about, although there is an adult pregnancy by the end. And seriously, who wants to think much about two 14 year olds "getting physical" or having sex?
In all this talk about Renton and Eureka's relationship, I have barely mentioned that there is a larger story going on. It involves the Gekkostate, the organization Renton joins early in the show, which functions as both a group of rebels against the military and a counter-culture group trying to spread the truth of what the Eureka Seven world government is REALLY up to. Many of the mysteries of the show revolve around the leader of Gekkostate, Holland, and why he quit his job as a special forces member and now leads a small rebellion.
I can't say that the larger events that drive Eureka Seven are anything particularly special (although they will keep you guessing a little), but notice that I mentioned how the Gekkostate is a counter-culture group. You often hear counter-culture associated with the 1960's. Eureka Seven is in love with the culture of 1960's and early 1970's. Many of the character and episode names reference this time, in fact the subtitle of this review "Summer of Love" is a historic world-shaking event in Eureka Seven. The clothing and hairstyles occasionally seem to be derived from the time period as well. The Gekkostate itself almost functions as a group of environmentalists standing against an abusive military. It almost sounds like an anime version of Vietnam War protesting.
Eureka Seven is also a mecha show, so there is typically an action sequence in every episode if you are one of those people that has to have pure action from time to time. However, it really just plays second fiddle to the various character relationships in the show. Renton and Eureka aren't the only characters trying to get a grip on their emotions and the show has a large cast.
In the end, Eureka Seven is a show that covers a lot of territory being simultaneously a teenage love story, coming of age story, political drama, mecha, and an anime where there are a lot of older "adult" characters running around coping with pasts that they aren't always proud of. It has something good for everyone to enjoy and if you are an anime fan looking for a show where a meaningful well-written romantic relationship is fully dealt with (minus sex), Eureka Seven is THE show to watch. Maybe if I watch it enough times, it'll replace Gundam SEED as my favorite anime.
Eureka Seven is one of my new favorite animes. In fact, I'd rate it as my number two anime. The main reason for this is that Eureka Seven finally scratched a big anime "itch" of mine, namely a story with a well-developed romantic relationship. Most animes I have seen stop short of characters actually coming out and saying "I love you." Instead, in anime, if two characters (especially if they are the main characters) are obviously a couple the best you are likely to get is them asserting that the other character is their "most important person" or maybe they just hold hands during the climax of the show. Rarely do we get to see the characters say the three magic words in the middle of the show and actually view them in a relationship outside of a rushed five minute anime ending. There is an entire genre of anime based on Japanese "dating games" that focus exclusively on character relationships, but from what I know about them (no I don't watch these kinds of animes) they tend on the melodramatic side and the personalities of the characters almost always conform to particular archetypes that Japanese dating game fans expect. In short, they are poorly written. Also, I take issues with these shows because I don't just want a love story, I want a love story taking place in a larger world with a larger story. However, political anime political dramas such as Gundam typically just can't make themselves take a romantic relationship anywhere meaningful.
I have my theories about why this is the case. From my understanding of Japanese culture, the Japanese are much more reserved in their relationships, at least in theory. I'm not sure if in real life they are actually reserved about expressing romantic love or if it is just their culture idolizes reserved romantic feelings. This is probably why in Gundam SEED, the two "purest" characters, Kira and Lacus, who obviously harbor feelings for each other and are a perfect match never express their feelings verbally and the only physical expression is a kiss on the cheek and an occasional hug. The Japanese just really appreciate these two "pure" characters being modest and shy in their romantic relationship. Another reason is that in a move to cater to fans, anime writers often like to keep romantic relationships ambiguous so that fans who like to imagine their two favorite characters are romantically involved can do that without the show outright saying that it isn't going to happen. A great recent example of this is Code Geass, where the main character Lelouch has three important potential love interests in his life, but never commits to any of them, despite the fact that he obviously cares about all three of them.
Eureka Seven however doesn't tease us like this. From the beginning of the show the main character, Renton, is open with his feelings about the female lead Eureka. While it starts as puppy love, by midway through the show they and everyone around them acknowledge that they are in the relationship. Because there is still half a show left we actually get to see their ups and downs as Renton and Eureka cope with Eureka's past and role in the larger story. One fault that may or may not bother you is that Eureka Seven chooses not to deal with the more physical side of their relationship. They kiss from time to time, but the show never comes very close to dealing with any sexual pressures between them (except as a joke in a single episode). Personally, that's fine with me, because shows that deal with teenage sex always inevitably love to deal with teenage pregnancy and that's not what Eureak Seven is about, although there is an adult pregnancy by the end. And seriously, who wants to think much about two 14 year olds "getting physical" or having sex?
In all this talk about Renton and Eureka's relationship, I have barely mentioned that there is a larger story going on. It involves the Gekkostate, the organization Renton joins early in the show, which functions as both a group of rebels against the military and a counter-culture group trying to spread the truth of what the Eureka Seven world government is REALLY up to. Many of the mysteries of the show revolve around the leader of Gekkostate, Holland, and why he quit his job as a special forces member and now leads a small rebellion.
I can't say that the larger events that drive Eureka Seven are anything particularly special (although they will keep you guessing a little), but notice that I mentioned how the Gekkostate is a counter-culture group. You often hear counter-culture associated with the 1960's. Eureka Seven is in love with the culture of 1960's and early 1970's. Many of the character and episode names reference this time, in fact the subtitle of this review "Summer of Love" is a historic world-shaking event in Eureka Seven. The clothing and hairstyles occasionally seem to be derived from the time period as well. The Gekkostate itself almost functions as a group of environmentalists standing against an abusive military. It almost sounds like an anime version of Vietnam War protesting.
Eureka Seven is also a mecha show, so there is typically an action sequence in every episode if you are one of those people that has to have pure action from time to time. However, it really just plays second fiddle to the various character relationships in the show. Renton and Eureka aren't the only characters trying to get a grip on their emotions and the show has a large cast.
In the end, Eureka Seven is a show that covers a lot of territory being simultaneously a teenage love story, coming of age story, political drama, mecha, and an anime where there are a lot of older "adult" characters running around coping with pasts that they aren't always proud of. It has something good for everyone to enjoy and if you are an anime fan looking for a show where a meaningful well-written romantic relationship is fully dealt with (minus sex), Eureka Seven is THE show to watch. Maybe if I watch it enough times, it'll replace Gundam SEED as my favorite anime.
No comments:
Post a Comment