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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Chaos Still Reigns..., July 15, 2004
This review is from: Kino's Journey - Emerging Lanes (Vol. 2) (DVD)
Once again we find Kino and Hermes on the road. This disc features three episodes. The first is a set of small travels, begining with a trek along a railroad. They encounter a series of men along the rails, one cleaning them for use, the next dismantling the old track that has fallen into disuse, and the third rebuilding the tracks for future use. Kino relates a story of a country where people no longer have to work, but do in order to maintain essential stress. Then they come to a nation that has pushed the law of majority rules to a horrid conclusion. This also features a two-part story, with Kino wandering into a nightmarish land where travelers are forced into a series of gladiatorial games by a cruel and insane king. This is the first time that we see Kino take a proactive stance in a country that she is visiting, and it is a powerful act at that. There are those who decry this series as being empty and useless. Some of them have even reached for their thesauruses in an effort to sound superior and important. They accuse devotes of this show of following the crowd and jumping on the bandwagon. As for myself, I had read no reviews, been told nothing by anyone, and had no preconcieved notions when I first encountered this series. I first discovered it due to a promotional insert in Newtype magazine featuring the first episode, and I was immediately hooked by the soft narrative style. And for the record, of the dozens of free inserts that I have recieved with Newtype, I have only been moved to buy two of the series they've previewed. This was one of them. Kino's Journey is not for everyone. It isn't fast paced action and mindless pyrotechnics. It's a character driven peice, and if that doesn't appeal to you, you'd be best leaving this alone.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Philosophy and the Art of Motorrad Maintenance, April 14, 2004
By A Customer
This review is from: Kino's Journey - Emerging Lanes (Vol. 2) (DVD)
The second disc of Kino's Journey continues much in the same way as the 1st disc, save a small twist. In many ways, you know what to expect: Kino and Hermes travel to different countries and spend three days there. This time, Kino comes across three workers on a railroad, each with a task they have spent their lives involved with. Next, Kino is tricked into a duel where people are forced to fight to the death to gain citizenship to a country. Both stories (the latter spread over 2 episodes) deal with the kind of morality plays that the first disc had, but with a little dealings with Kino's character and abilities as a marksman. This is a quiet, thought-provoking show. There is a subtle tone to the series, one that boarders on disturbing at times. Hermes, the talking "motorrad" (motorcycle), provides a bit of comic relief, but in general there is a quiet feel that may require some thought afterwards. At times it comes off as a little self-indulgant (Kino seems a little too calm, collected and mature for the supposed age we are to assume Kino is) Those who are fans of calm series like Haibane Renmei, or mental exercises like Boogiepop Phantom or Lain may really find something to enjoy here. Personally, I see this as a combination of the slow going Yokohama Shopping Log, and the surreal Serial Experiments Lain.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Whoa! Violence, politics, and social commentary, May 10, 2004
This review is from: Kino's Journey - Emerging Lanes (Vol. 2) (DVD)
When my friend Troy spoke to me today, he said, "I will *NEVER* challenge your taste in anime again". He was talking about the first volume of Kino's Journey. This one is similar in quality, but slightly different structurally, mainly because the second story, "Coliseum", is split over two episodes. "Coliseum" is the better one, because it takes what could be a Ray Bradbury short and twists it into the contextual fabric of the rest of the series. "Coliseum" is, in part, about choices-- hard ones-- and how to deal with them. It could have been done clumsily, in the vein of American film blockbusters like Deathrace 2000 or The Running Man, but the writing, direction, and visual choices in this version come together to make a subtle commentary about what we value in entertainment and government. In conclusion, I have one eensy nit to pick. Kino's gender is already known, since Episode 4 of Vol. 1, Idle adventurer; why, then, is it still necessary to keep the mystery alive (in "Coliseum", some refer to Kino as "Missy", "Miss Kino", etc., but the fight announcer consistently says things like, "Mr. Kino-- you're up!")?
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