Rating: 
Summary: Not an Eva Clone
Review: When I first watched the fansub of Rahxephon last summer, I thought "hey... this looks and AWFUL lot like Evangelion.." However, watching later episodes I discovered that it was in no way an Eva clone.. it is something in and of itself. It is more complex than Eva, with even MORE three dimensional characters who actually do develope over time. Though these first 9 episodes are very Eva reminicent, I promise that later episodes will transform into something else entirely. Rahxephon is a complex story with interesting music and breathtaking animation- it should not be disregarded because of Evangelion similarities. My only complaint about this DVD and the one before it is that ADV, its American release company, made some horrible changes. In the first episode on the first DVD, there are some horrible text edits where the Japanese text was simply blurred out in a box and had English superimposed over it. Both DVDs are lacking in extras, and the cover art used tries to sell this series as simply a Mecha program. However, this series actually has heavy character appeal, and the original Japanese DVD covers have beautiful artwork that I wished could have been preserved for the US release. The other complaint I have is nit picky... They subtitle the word "Orin" as "Ollin" with two L's. "Olin" I could live with because there is no distinguishing between L's and R's in Japanese, but the use of two L's is distracting to me as someone who saw the fansubtitled release before this professional DVD release.
Rating:
Summary: Not an Eva Clone
Review: When I first watched the fansub of Rahxephon last summer, I thought "hey... this looks and AWFUL lot like Evangelion.." However, watching later episodes I discovered that it was in no way an Eva clone.. it is something in and of itself. It is more complex than Eva, with even MORE three dimensional characters who actually do develope over time. Though these first 9 episodes are very Eva reminicent, I promise that later episodes will transform into something else entirely. Rahxephon is a complex story with interesting music and breathtaking animation- it should not be disregarded because of Evangelion similarities. My only complaint about this DVD and the one before it is that ADV, its American release company, made some horrible changes. In the first episode on the first DVD, there are some horrible text edits where the Japanese text was simply blurred out in a box and had English superimposed over it. Both DVDs are lacking in extras, and the cover art used tries to sell this series as simply a Mecha program. However, this series actually has heavy character appeal, and the original Japanese DVD covers have beautiful artwork that I wished could have been preserved for the US release. The other complaint I have is nit picky... They subtitle the word "Orin" as "Ollin" with two L's. "Olin" I could live with because there is no distinguishing between L's and R's in Japanese, but the use of two L's is distracting to me as someone who saw the fansubtitled release before this professional DVD release.
Rating:
Summary: Songs within Songs
Review: While this series continues to echo Evangelion it continues to diverge in both plot and focus, carving out its own territory. Ayato, a mature seventeen, finds himself dashed from a supposedly 'normal' existence in Tokyo to a real world where the battle with the alien Mu is ongoing, and Tokyo is really under control of the enemy, isolated by a temporal force field. Ayato becomes part of the battle, the only person who seems able to control RahZephon, a giant monster that might or might not be a robot. Battle is waged using Dolem, constructs who can sing destruction. RahXephon is able to counter the efforts of the Dolem and destroy them, but there is a stead cost to Ayato. Fortunately, the headquarters of TERRA, the Mu opposition force is on the beautiful tropical island of Nirai-Kanai. There Ayato can relax and work his way into the complicated relationships among the cast members. And it is work, for both Ayato and the viewer. RahXephon's cast is large, and the plot moves fast enough to make it hard to keep the characters, and who is on what side, straight in one's mind. Perhaps the most important new character is Quon Kisaragi, who quotes poetry and seems to be watching a different world. She is drawn to Ayato although the attraction seems to be spiritual rather than physical. Another female character, Haruka Shitow, who first appeared in the previous DVD is also showing signs of unexpectedly strong feelings for Ayato, who is 12 years younger. Now should we leave out Reika Mishima, who might be a school friend of Ayato's, or who might be something else entirely. Other relationships fan out from these core characters, and it is still too early to get a clear picture of how everyone will inter-relate. In contrast, Evangelion's character development is almost simplistic. Neither the battle action (which is plentiful) or the character development take a secondary role in the story. Instead they alternate and interweave. And the excellent artwork provides a distraction of its own. Fortunately, the DVD's do include cast booklets, so I expect some order will arise out of what sometimes feels like a chaos of loose ends. There is simply too much of a good thing here right now, and director Yutaka Izubuchi fully intends to get all the key pieces in play before letting patterns emerge. This series has all the ingredients to be a smash success, and I'm looking forward to coming episodes.
Rating:
Summary: Songs within Songs
Review: While this series continues to echo Evangelion it continues to diverge in both plot and focus, carving out its own territory. Ayato, a mature seventeen, finds himself dashed from a supposedly 'normal' existence in Tokyo to a real world where the battle with the alien Mu is ongoing, and Tokyo is really under control of the enemy, isolated by a temporal force field. Ayato becomes part of the battle, the only person who seems able to control RahZephon, a giant monster that might or might not be a robot. Battle is waged using Dolem, constructs who can sing destruction. RahXephon is able to counter the efforts of the Dolem and destroy them, but there is a stead cost to Ayato. Fortunately, the headquarters of TERRA, the Mu opposition force is on the beautiful tropical island of Nirai-Kanai. There Ayato can relax and work his way into the complicated relationships among the cast members. And it is work, for both Ayato and the viewer. RahXephon's cast is large, and the plot moves fast enough to make it hard to keep the characters, and who is on what side, straight in one's mind. Perhaps the most important new character is Quon Kisaragi, who quotes poetry and seems to be watching a different world. She is drawn to Ayato although the attraction seems to be spiritual rather than physical. Another female character, Haruka Shitow, who first appeared in the previous DVD is also showing signs of unexpectedly strong feelings for Ayato, who is 12 years younger. Now should we leave out Reika Mishima, who might be a school friend of Ayato's, or who might be something else entirely. Other relationships fan out from these core characters, and it is still too early to get a clear picture of how everyone will inter-relate. In contrast, Evangelion's character development is almost simplistic. Neither the battle action (which is plentiful) or the character development take a secondary role in the story. Instead they alternate and interweave. And the excellent artwork provides a distraction of its own. Fortunately, the DVD's do include cast booklets, so I expect some order will arise out of what sometimes feels like a chaos of loose ends. There is simply too much of a good thing here right now, and director Yutaka Izubuchi fully intends to get all the key pieces in play before letting patterns emerge. This series has all the ingredients to be a smash success, and I'm looking forward to coming episodes.
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