(L) Kurau: Phantom Memory

[brightman]

Originally Posted by Kai-Lapis

I'm glad some people liked Kurau 01.

The series is 20+ episodes long, according to the interview here. I hope it continues to be a good series.

Yeah, BONES never makes shows that are less than 24 episodes long... So I expect this to be the same (probably 24 episodes since that seems to be the standard length for TV Asahi shows)

But the first ep was indeed excellent. I doubt it'll maintain this excellence for long too, but hopefully it will continue to be worthwhile.

[RaistlinMajereFS]

Our GA releases have been in all caps too

I'll raise the font size for next ep, sorry to those of you who found it too small.

[EfrainMan]

This is really an exceptional show. I love the character designs. They have races! Yeah! They're not just a bunch of weird hair-colored people! You can tell she's half-japanese half-white. Plus they look and move so realistically (where applicable ) and the music is adds without distracting. The entire episode was nothing but premise, and was still great. I can't wait until the plot is revealed! I enjoyed it more than I've enjoyed some other recent stuff (even better than Samurai 7). Heck, I might even get my broke ass to buy it when it's localized.

[Za Paper]

Originally Posted by EfrainMan

This is really an exceptional show. I love the character designs. They have races! Yeah! They're not just a bunch of weird hair-colored people! You can tell she's half-japanese half-white. Plus they look and move so realistically (where applicable ) and the music is adds without distracting. The entire episode was nothing but premise, and was still great. I can't wait until the plot is revealed! I enjoyed it more than I've enjoyed some other recent stuff (even better than Samurai 7). Heck, I might even get my broke ass to buy it when it's localized.

I dont think you can tell she is half-japanese just based on the character designs, but thats just me. The character designs remind me of Planet-ES actually.

[RobertM]

I was reading a Japanese blog on this show and the writer said something that hit a chord. I think the first episode would have been a lot more effective if last half was shown before the first.

Spoiler:

I would have re-edited the episode in this order. Sombre beginning, starting with Kurau answering the call in the grocery store, but without that BGM, through the entire second half, up to the shot of the mysterious man observing from the distance, then fade-out.

Done this way, we would have been thrown right into the life that the adult Kurau leads. The impact on the audience would have been that much greater, when we see her numerous abilities (phasing through matter, transforming into energy, superhuman strength, flight,) all without any explanation. (Personally, I think she can punt Miss Deep into the next district with what she's shown us so far.) Insert commercial break here.

Next, I would have flashbacked to "10 years earlier, 2100," and gone straight to the family breakfast scene. After seeing the adult Kurau in action, now seeing how she came to be what she is, would have had more emotional weight. I would have gone all the way to the emotional reconciliation scene in the sunlit room, cue the BGM of the OP for the first time, and THAT would have been the real climax of the first episode.

Now a short pause, and then flashforward to the denoument, building on the emotional momentum of the reconciliation scene, but sadder now, starting with Kurau depositing the chip at the office, then cycling home, then alone at night, in flight, and the end, with the introduction of her "other."

Oh I love this show. Yet when I read that blog entry, I found myself nodding in agreement. It just shows I'm thinking about this show more than I normally do, because I'm more emotionally involved with it already than I normally would be. I'm hoping that this show delves into issues of personal identity. Who is Kurau? Who is Rynax? How are they one, and how are they separate? How does one define the self?

[ZeppelinJ0]

Wow! What an impressive first epsiode, I almost instantly fell in love with Kurau, she is great!! The voice acting was superb, especially for the child. (The VA is the voice for Mahoro, Hikari from Konomini, and Megumi from Rah Xephon, some of my faves!

I really can't wait to see more of this, we may be in for a nice treat

[Melty Snow]

So we have an original 24 ish episode series... Sounds good. Made for TV, so I'm gonna be super hyper deluxe optomistic and hope each episode counts and that theres no filler .

Kurau has her mother's eyes.. but besides that i dont think she looks mixed. Actually I thought she was a man in the beginning. She surely does not look/act the kawaii lolita character found anime.

Spoiler:

That slot is probably reserved for her pair.

Kurau has more personality than that . Love how different her bland voice is from her excited voice (especially the preview one).

Good point, sticking the teary fuzzy wuzzy parts together would've been a little better, never thought about it

its going to be a goooood summer

[gmackenz]

Very intriguing new show, seems very promising. Very enjoyable soundtrack and ending song for a change [for me anyways].

AH's choice of font for the sub was causing me get off my couch and stare real close to the screen. As a Graphic Designer, I beg that all fansub groups please restrain their "creative" urges and refrain from using all caps or to "fancy" a font [AH is not alone in getting a little "precious" in their font choices]. Useing an elegant traditional serif (or if you absolutely must, a sans-serif font) is the most legible to the most eyes.

It certainly was way too small a size, and made the viewing experience a bit of a strain. All caps is never a good design decision, except when you (like in chatting online) want to make point by its use. Reading it for too long is extremely taxing to the average reader. It's not designed for reading body text any document. Look at me ramble on.

Still wonderful promising start to a new season of Anime.

[StarCreator]

I have to agree - the use of an all caps font is just plain amateurish and shows they're not catering to readability, but only catering to some misguided effort to make themselves look better. I thought it was basic knowledge that something like that should never be done, for the reasons you already described.

You only happened to post about it first because I opted to go to sleep first. =p Though, I also haven't seen the fonts in question; I'm just commenting on what others have said about it. (I'm not really sure I -want- to see it...)

[TronDD]

In my opinion, such an interesting concept couldn't have been more boringly presented.

The story has a lot of potential but the first episode did nothing to grab me. It would have been a lot better if told in that alternate order RobertM mentioned.

Right now I don't hold up much hope for the potential to be used properly but I'll give it a chance since most of the other shows that have started this season so far are worse.

EDIT: Oh, my only problem with the subbing was that some lines were not displayed long enough. When the character said something short and quick, they only displayed the subtitle in the time the character actually spoke. If my eyes weren't already at the bottom of the screen, by the time they got there, the sub was gone.

[EfrainMan]

Originally Posted by Za Paper

I dont think you can tell she is half-japanese just based on the character designs, but thats just me. The character designs remind me of Planet-ES actually.

I think what I meant was that she didn't have blue eyes just because, but because she had a gringa mother (that's white to you, buddy ). I dunno, I like little things, attention to details like that. It makes me like this show just that much more.

But the order of events was pretty good for me, I liked the flow used better that what that guy's blog described. I liked that the mystery of the second person was kinda separated by the action. Plus, it was nice to see the slivers of the little girl that used to be in the grown-up girl. And it gave more mystery about there being other events between then and now (like, where's daddy?). My 2¢.

[hunterx]

here is my question, so she takes over kurau's body and lives in it for a while.. looks like 10years at least. In the previews it seems her other half wakes up and instantly has a body without taking over anyone?

[dreamless]

I think Rynax didn't "take over" Kurau's body, instead they merged, into one single inseparable being.

Yup I agree AH needs to change their fonts... it really hurts the eye to see those fancy fonts in caps...

[Budweineken]

The first episode was incredible.... I really loved the transition from a girl really exited about expiriencing life... to a woman that seems fed up with life... I wonder what impact the partner will bring in the series.... will we have two Kurau's or what?

[hunterx]

Originally Posted by dreamless

I think Rynax didn't "take over" Kurau's body, instead they merged, into one single inseparable being.

didn't rynax promise she would leave when her partner was strong enough?

[Yogo_Pogo]

This episode was too great to be true...
i hope they will keep the quality.
Drawings, music, animation 10/10

Rynax said that she will leave the body of Kurau but she did not. But the episode ended with the "sleeping one" finally awaken. Maybe Rynax will have a problem and then she will be obligated to stay in Kurau's body.

[-AR-]

Originally Posted by hunterx

didn't rynax promise she would leave when her partner was strong enough?

From what I understood, (haven't seen the subs though) Rynax promised to leave Kurau's body if Kurau's father finds a way to let Rynax exist with its pair.
Before that Rynax said it doesn't even know how to leave Kurau's body.

[RobertM]

Just saw episode 2 raw, and because it's the OP, I guess it's not really a spoiler, but oh well, just in case, I'll use the spoiler tags, because I was totally surprised by all this. And being surprised was fun.

Spoiler:

I did not expect such a overly girly, flowery, cute, and overtly shoujo-ai OP sequence. So, if the relationship between Kurau and Christmas becomes something more, could one define it as lesbian incest? ^^;

Also, re. Kurau's personality,

Spoiler:

all the speculations I was entertaining about Kurau being a pseudo-Spock, with a world-weary, ennui-type of personality went out the window. It seems that with the appearance of her "other half," whom she has named "Christmas," Kurau has turned into a giddy young woman, whose demeanor is such that those around her would swear that she must be in love. I suppose that over the last ten years, Rynax has been more thoroughly assimilated into Kurau's personality. She seems less alien, more human now.

I like being surprised. This series has not been predictable so far, at least for me. I am enjoying this.

[Secca]

I cried at the end of episode 2. >_< I'm lost at words how to desrcribe this show. Really exceptional. And her father is just an amazing person.

[Melty Snow]

Originally Posted by Secca

I cried at the end of episode 2. >_< I'm lost at words how to desrcribe this show. Really exceptional. And her father is just an amazing person.

If that means...

Spoiler:

that Kurau's father gets to see older Kurau and her pair in ep 2, then I'm watching the first fansub that comes out. I've never looked this forward to watching a grown man cry.