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41 of 43 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Not the most original, but some of the best nonetheless, May 27, 2002
This review is from: Escaflowne - The Series (Limited Edition Boxed Set) (DVD)
Do I really need to ring Escaflowne's praises for you? Most everyone who is into anime has already seen this series but for those of you who are not but may have seen and like movies like Princess Mononoke this is the series to pick up. It is by far the most accessible of any anime series I have seen and is perfect for a budding anime guru. In fact this is the very series I will show to my friends who have yet to see any anime they think is worth watching. Visually, Escaflowne is pretty remarkable for a TV series that shows obvious signs of extremely high production values. The story may not be the most intricate in the world of anime but it more than suffices. What is most impressive about Escaflowne is the characters. Van and Hitomi are some of my favorite characters ever and are both completely believable in their respective places; Hitomi as the fish out of water teenager and Van as the young kind thirsting for revenge. I also enjoyed many of the supporting characters such as Dilandu and Folken; even the bad guys were given a proper history and motivations rather than simple blind obedience to whatever evil scheme might be in style. In fact evil itself is somewhat grayed as no character is truly evil, only misguided doing what they believe is right and just. I would recommend Escaflowne to anyone and everyone; it is a series that can have appeal to the very young and old alike. Truly masterful work. Note that anyone who has seen this series on Fox Kids has been watching a kiddied down version of a show that wasn't really meant for children to begin with. Don't let that Escaflowne-lite ruin your opinion of the show.
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23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An Anime For Otakus, September 2, 2002
This review is from: Escaflowne - The Series (Limited Edition Boxed Set) (DVD)
I am doing a premature review of this product seeing that I have only watched episodes contained on discs 1-4 of this 8 disc set. Escaflowne is a well-thought out story with excellent animation and character development. I love the music by fabu-musician Yoko Kanno too. Her use of strings really sets the mood for the dramatic moments. Escaflowne begins (to whet your appeitite for more) one fateful day when high school sprinter Hitomi Kanzaki experiences a disturbing vision of another world and discovers from her best friend that Amano (the track team star she has a crush on) is about to go abroad. On an impulse, she asks him the next day for her first kiss -- if, she can sprint 100 meters in thirteen seconds. But then, a young warrior prince and a dragon appears before Hitomi during the run ... that's when Hitomi's world gets turned upside down as she is transported to the warrior prince's homeworld of Gaia! This Limited Edition Boxed Set comes with a beautiful Black Escaflowne figurine and tons of special features. Dialogue is offered in both English and original Japanese with English Subtitles. This is an anime series not to be missed by an Otaku of any level of experience.
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Vision of Escaflowne, May 6, 2002
By A Customer
This review is from: Escaflowne - The Series (Limited Edition Boxed Set) (DVD)
An astounding series brought to us by some of the top talents in anime, Escaflowne is in fact a story about the discovery of the lost city, Atlantis', secret and about the consequences of Isaac Newton's reactions to this discovery. On the somewhat atypical surface, however, Escaflowne is about a young Japanese girl's romantic involvements with the other main characters.A medieval setting allows for an all new and original interpretation on traditional mecha, as the behemoth battle armors, or "Guymelefs," are composed primarily of gears and use swords, as opposed the Gundam type servos and beams. Nevertheless, the animators found ample opportunity to include some flashy digital effects, stealth cloaking will impress you.Although I found Hitomi Kanzaki, our main character, difficult to relate to, Van Fanel and Allen Schezar, a descendant of Atlantis and a royal knight respectively, steal the show. Thier efforts against a powerful military regime known as Zaibach Empire, who seek not only control over the planet, but over the laws of casaulity (fate) itself, are truly a sight to behold. A seemless blend of science fiction and medieval fantasy produce some of the most memorable anime characters and scenes you'll ever set eyes on. A superb musical score and acceptable dubbing round out this awesome package.Unfairly labeled a "girl's cartoon" in some sects, Escaflowne is some of Japan's very best anime and is truly deserving of this fantastic box set edition (thanks bandai). Episodic anime just doesn't get any better than this!
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