Oh boy, this is an episode I’ve been looking forward to. The penultimate episode of Escaflowne is one of those kinds of episode that does its best to try and wrap up just about every lingering character arc. In a show like Escaflowne where its end is pretty darn definitive, this is both a necessary and proper venture. However, does it go a good job in that regard and we’re left satisfied in the end of it? Well, yes and no. I’ve never been really gaga about this episode, even if I’m aware of the momentous events occurring in it, and even after so many years since my last watch of it, it still remains.
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Otaku Evolution Episode 73 – Macross Plus
I’ve really painted myself into a corner this year with Otaku Evolution, covering so many of my favorite anime (like this one), there’s not a whole lot of the best I can review (or at least not a whole lot I can monetize reviews for). But nevertheless, it was great revisiting Macross Plus and confirming that not only does it completely hold up, but it’s still one of the best mecha anime. But what else could it be with that pedigree? Shinichiro Watanabe, Keiko Nobumoto, Ichiro Itano, Yoko Kanno, and for the English dub, Bryan Cranston! Few other anime could satisfy my need for great anime to review for this year’s Action Channel Month quite like this! It’s so crazy good, you’ll hear “Voices”!
The Vision of Escaflowne Episode 24 – ‘Round the Track Again
When I first watched this I did not think much about why Hitomi returned to the first episode and not at a point on Earth where it matches the time she spent on Gaea. All I knew then was that it was for plot purposes and I guess made sense at the time.
Fast forward to now and thanks to keener observation I can see why it makes a lot of sense for them to do that. Recall if you will Episode 17, where Schezar Sr. wishes to see Granny Kanzaki one more time as he lays dying in the snow. When she reappears, he’s confused as to why she looks the same as she did the last time they met, yet surmises such is the case since the power of Atlantis is the human heart. As such, and given how she is unaware of what has transpired since she left (especially since her mom was kinda sorta not worried), Hitomi goes back to where it all began, a place her heart knows and desires.
The Vision of Escaflowne Episode 23 – Interdimensional Rage Quit
Predictably, Van’s reunion with Folken is met with tepid response by the former. In the latter’s case however, he is met with great success when it comes to being an integral resource for Asturia and other allied Gaean nations in preparation for the inevitable clash with Zaibach.
Yet, even with this setup, Folken moves into the background for the most part this episode. Instead, we are back to Hitomi again, now feeling a further separation between her and the world she inhabits. Van maintains his emotional distance from her with a slight veneer of apathy and an itchy trigger finger, and Allen has become overly protective, scolding Hitomi for venturing out of the palace due to the previous events in the last two episodes. In an unusual volte-face, Hitomi snaps back at her current objet d’rool. Then it gets even worse when Allen finally admits his love for her, and even spills that Chid is his and Marlene’s kid. While this makes for a charming (if short) scene with her and Millerna, reversing the “I have this friend” scene in Episode 15, she comes out of this episode not feeling in the slightest bit close to anybody, everybody seems to be pushing her away.
The Vision of Escaflowne Episode 22 – How to Blame Your Dragon
Damned Dimensional Rift Attuned Gargantuan Organic Neutotypes. Always ruin everything…
Things pick up for this marked improvement over last week’s. I have always remembered this is the episode where Folken officially defects to an actual side of the conflict. However, this is also an episode with a whole slew of other things I noticed I forgot since my last viewing of it. It is disappointing, since it is not just the plot of the episode that is great (never mind the music), but the world building and especially the animation.
Otaku Evolution Episode 71 – Arcade Gamer Fubuki
Stack those quarters up and grab a slice, because we’re gonna get the controls greasy and play… er, I mean watch, a little ecchi comedy called Arcade Gamer Fubuki, about a girl whose panties give her the ability to GIT GUD. Japan, you’re so forward-thinking, a girl gamer who doesn’t mind showing off the goods. Empowered by her underwear, literally! Progress marches ever onward. Also, for some reason, she’s friends with Excel from Excel Saga (or, at least a character played by her).
The Vision of Escaflowne Episode 21 – Elegiac Nekomancy (Or: Don’t Put Your Catgirls in the Fridge)
This is one of the weaker episodes of Escaflowne for me. To be sure, it isn’t TERRIBLE, but after a rather exceptional cliffhanger (which in the original Bandai release bookended Volume 6), it’s underwhelming. Picking up right after her surrender, Murphy’s Law is revived due to Van’s intervention, and messes up Naria and Eriya’s luck, revealing the flaws of the fate alteration experiments. The events of the first few minutes are sortof anticlimactic, not just because of the aforementioned cliffhanger, but also after that Next Episode preview with only one line from Folken: “Why don’t you understand, Van!?”
The Vision of Escaflowne Episode 20 – The Hitching Hour
Ah the great Royal Weddings of our time…
Prince Charles and Lady Diana…
Prince William and What’s-her-face…
Shining Armor and Princess Cadance…
…are couples that will never see “Dryden and Princess Millerna” near their names at any time in the future. Obviously, the wedding does not end up well for them (I mean c’mon, the episode is titled “False Vows”), but it is done in a way that only can happen in the world of Escaflowne. If you have only got here: No, this is not a bad thing.
Otaku Evolution Episode 70 – Heroic Legend of Arslan (OVA) (Episodes 3-4)
Ugh. Do you know how many times I had to tweak “Adagio for Strings” so it wouldn’t be flagged by YouTube? Three times. I guess that specific performance was licensed. Don’t forget folks, that despite classical music being largely public domain, the people who actually perform it tend to have contracts and copyrights and such. I only needed a few seconds, though, FFS.
Anyway, enjoy my second look into the OVAs for The Heroic Legend of Arslan, based on the books by the dude who made Legend of the Galactic Heroes! Surely it is just as good, though, right? Riiiight? (No.)
The Vision of Escaflowne Episode 19 – A ‘Shipper’s Worst Nightmare
Can there be anything worse for somebody who ships two people, especially in real life, than a machine that can alter fate in such a way to put one with ANOTHER person should not be the other’s bae? In my more advanced age where I am aware of the various idiosyncracies of popular w00b culture, be it dating sims or the aforementioned ‘shipping, I cannot help but think playfully in this regard. It is good fortune, however, Escaflowne handles it with quite the serious tone, since Dornkirk is quite aware of Hitomi’s powers. It is also amusing since Dilandau and his Dragonslayers were the first to notice her, yet the former being incapacitated and the latter being all dead put the kibosh on Dornkirk being informed beforehand. Is this ANOTHER element shifted around during the series shortening? Maybe? Who knows, who cares, what we get is still good.