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One can run out of superlatives when discussing this brilliant magical girl/mecha/fantasy hybrid from Shoji Kawamori (Macross)...

One little known factiod about Escaflowne is that it was orginally scripted for 39 episodes, but was chopped by a season down to 26. Astonishingly, this late re-write actually works to the show's benefit, cramming a lot into little bit less space then one might expect of fantasy shows of a similar vintage like Wolf's Rain and Inuyusha. Unfortunatly, Escaflowne, because of a botched tv broadcast by Fox Kids and the generally inferior feature Girl in Gaea, is not as well liked among anime fans as it should be. ... Escaflowne is a classic, but one that doesn't get the respect it deserves.

That being said, the show is not without its flaws. Hitomi has reputation of being one of the most annoying characters in anime, which is not entirely undeserved on a certain level. The 'cramming' of the plot starts to come undone around episode 23, but recovers in time to produce the most beautifully bittersweet ending in anime. The cel animation doesn't hold up as well as Yoko Kanno's (Ghost in the Shell Stand Alone Complex, Macross Plus, Macross Frontier, Cowboy Bebop) brilliant music, but this is to be expected of series well over 10 years old.

A truly great series that demands space in any anime collection, especially fans of mecha and fantasy. Avoid the English dub however.

Romance of Three Kingdoms, for those not versed in Asian cultures, is the Illiad of the East, A giant epic set around the fall of the Han dynasty in 189 A.D...

This particular version of Three Kingdoms is not a straight adaptation of the novel, but a version based upon Sangokushi, a manga by the famed mangaka Yokoyama Mitsuteru (Gigantor, Little Witch Sally, Giant Robo) in a whopping 60 volumes of tankoban between 1981 and 1987. Despite this, the story remains the same, much to the series' benefit. Yokoyama's designs are generally good, if somewhat 'old-fashioned' in comparison to character designs of the period. The characters ... are more archtypes then fully fleshed out people, but this also occurs in the novel. The only bonefide standouts are Cao Cao and Zhuge Liang, who chew screen time with great aplomb. The series becomes a bit of a slog towards the end just before the 'last battle', which hurts on a certain level. Unfortunatly the story is 'unfinished', with this particular anime series ending around chapter 50 of the novel. Yokoyama never finished his manga version of Three Kingdoms anyway, ending it about three-quarters of the way through the novel. A good series that could have been truely great with better execution, the strength of the source material still stands out nonetheless.

An interesting curio for any anime collection, and should be of particular interest to anime fans of Chinese descent. Also provides a distinct cultural flavor as well.

From the same fellow, Ryosuke Takahashi, who brought you Armored Troopers VOTOMS and Silent Service, Gasaraki shares its 'stable-mates' interests in the politics of war and the dilemmas of the soldier, buts adds little bit of a supernatural edge to the proceddings.

The design of the mecha is what makes Gasaraki interesting, but these distinct designs can only just make up for the general lack of action in the series overall. Character development is also fairly weak, but seceral characters are forced to make difficult decisions, which adds to the dramatic elements of the series overall.

Gasaraki is also among the more ethnocentric series available on DVD ... in the US. Noh drama, and the early history of Japan both are key plot points, but most anime fans may not 'get it' because of the general obsurity of these narrative elements.

an interesting curio, but only demends space on the shelf of a dedicated mecha fan.

Eureka Seven is to mecha what Cowboy Bebop was to sci-fi anime: A rich collection of characters and cultural references looking both east and west, while telling a good story in the process of challenging the trivia nerds among us. Eureka and Renton are immensly likable, while Anemone is disturbing on a lot of levels. The rest of ensemble is not as well developed, except for the Beams', Holland, Norb, and Dewey. The characters, mecha, and overall enviroment are all superbly designed, but mechs on 'surfboards' do strain crediability just a bit. The music is excellent, lending a lot to the atmosphere of what is ... already a very atmospheric show. If Eureka Seven has a drawback, its the plotting. The story, epic in many ways, takes nearly 15 episodes to really get going, and doesn't really take off until the half-way point, which can turn off the less paitent anime fan.

A must for mecha fans, and generally recommended for anime fans in general.

A golden oldie, if little seen in the U.S...

This particular mecha series, directed by Ryosuke Takahashi (Gasaraki, Silent Service), was an early pioneer of the 'realistic mecha' sub-genre, coming out right on the heels of Tomino's Gundam tv series, and it features heavily Takahashi's interest in the interior 'realm' of the soldier. Chirico Cuvie is a superb leading character, although the relationship element does feel somewhat forced. Of the four story arces, the weakest is the first, but the middle two, especially 'Dead World Susna' are particularly good. Not as wordy as Takahashi's later Gasaraki, but its still got a brain, which is a refreshing ... change from certain anime that will not be named at this time. The animation holds up fairly well, but does have the limitations of its 'on-the-cheap' age, while three recaps are placed where they don't disrupt the overall story. The sound is generally poor, but this is to be expected of series nearly 30 years old. The mecha designs are classics of 'realistic design', but the character designs are not the greatest.

Highly recommended for fans of sci-fi, mecha and action, but non-mecha fans may not find as much to like.