Feb 17, 2009
Given that the novels were written by the same author as Kino no Tabi, I half expected a series that was far more in-depth but Allison and Lilia has proven to be a surprise (no unpleasantly) for me to watch and quite enjoyable for those of you who would like to watch a series that stirs up some feelings of nostalgia and throwback adventures of a simpler time.
First off to note is the story and overall feel of the series really goes for the old-school, youthful, grand adventure type of plot that I came to expect from summary. Far from the more thought-provoking journey
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from Kino no Tabi, Allison and Lilia keeps the formula of mystery, adventure, and romance simplistic and relatively pure. While this works both for and against it at various times the largest issue with plot is consistency, with the plot often shifting from very strong to poorly executed. This is probably most noticeable in the Lilia portion of the anime where for many viewers the plot may take a significant drop in quality. This bound with the relative "convenience" of some of the mysteries can make the series feel to simplistic at times.
The simple nature of the plot is actually very well complemented by the musical soundtrack which does well to give viewers a feel for the environment and overall pretense of the stories that are occurring. While calling the soundtrack remarkable would be a push for many, it most definitely helped draw viewers to buy into the world of Allison and Lilia.
The core characters for the most part are all very well defined in the series. Though character development is not the strongest point of the series, each of the main protagonists are presented in a manner that is relatively well understood and likable. Among these, Allison shines in her role as the series namesake (and far more so than Lilia on many occasions) and most definitely helps spur viewers sense of adventure as the plot moves onward.
The artistic design and voice acting of the series are all beautifully done keeping in line with the simple and throwback nature of the plot. It strays away from extraordinarily detailed character design but keeps it relatively clean, with particular focus on some of the environment and background scenes. While by no means a masterpiece in its genre, the art and animation does its job well and lends itself in a supportive nature to the pretense of the series.
Overall, Allison and Lilia does have a few bumps on the road to calling it an extraordinary series. Its simple but pure plot may or may not encourage those who are interested in watching this series. However it is undeniable that it does suffer its share of frustrating holes and disappointments. While it is not entirely character driven in terms of development, all the main characters are well defined and wonderful to watch while helping viewers buy into being part of the adventure. For those wishing to watch a series from a simpler time and place, Allison and Lilia will fill that void in your list nicely.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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