Mono no aware

Whatever I say about Xam’d: Lost Memories in this post I must stress that I loved watching it each week. Every sunday morning, after taking a leisurely shower and brewing a pot of coffee I’d sit down to catch the latest episode, just as I used to with Macross Frontier (what I’ll replace it with I’m not sure but Code Geass is the most likely candidate in the coming weeks). It was a series that dished out its fair share of surprises but even so it didn’t quite match all of my loftiest expectations; but then my expections were really high to begin with so that doesn’t have to be a bad thing.

Coburn recently suggested that the series is probably best appreciated when either marathoned or watched in bigger chunks, and I feel inclined to agree. This isn’t a monster- or case-of-the-week series: it’s a journey in a physical, spiritual and emotional sense that I think I’d appreciate more if I rewatched it that way. The background details were the only significant disappointment for me really: I felt there was a lot that was hinted at but not followed up, which leaves me thirsty for more. Were there dead ends left unexplained or would a rewatch answer what I saw as missed opportunities?

I guess it’s easy enough to use your imagination to fill in the gaps about the mysticism behind the Hiruko and the Tessik religion and the same goes for the origins of the war that created the whole mess that swept over Sentan. Even so, the way that everything was presented led me to believe that we’d be taken through a richly realised worldview that was clearly the result of a lot of time and effort; all the more reason for me to think it’s a bit of a shame that they were left by the wayside rather than explored more fully.

It is I think a minor issue but I didn’t feel the storytelling did the attention to detail and the wonderful alternate 1940-50s era worldview justice. I was doing little mental Omo-esque gadget checks (the radios had VALVES!) and grinning inwardly at the nuances in the animation and background art because I can’t remember the last time I saw an anime series that took so much time to invent a world that was so familiar-yet-not, from vehicles and flying machines to weapons and light fittings. I’m not saying it needed to be as long as Eureka Seven (which explained almost everything that I wanted it to) but there’s an opportunity for a feature-length studio documentary and accompanying artbook right there.

It’s still a really, really pretty series. The quality of the animation actually exceeds E7: made-for-TV animation should have no business looking as good as this. I prefer to place the efforts of individuals over studios but Bones seem to have a knack for being consistent in that sort of thing, and often get the colour palettes vibrant without being garish. The Xam’ds and other humanforms look organic and quite cartoonish because of the colour and the fluidity of the animation, but the havoc and destruction they can cause is very real indeed. I can only imagine how this would look and sound in HD with surround sound but suffice to say I’d love to see a DVD/Blu Ray release.

I loved the music too. The OP is excellent in terms of matching the kinetic action on-screen with the music but I also liked the end theme; the BGM worked especially well, going from rustic to epic as the scene demanded it (as an aside the talented soundtrack composer in question, Michiru Oshima, doesn’t look her age at all if this is a recent photo). It’s a fine example of how the energetic, youthful vibe of the characters and the striking world they live in is matched perfectly by the sound and visuals; the whole thing just works.

Perhaps the fact that Xam’d was such a treat for my eyes and ears is one reason why I can overlook the areas the story didn’t explore; or perhaps it’s the fact that it felt like a twenty-six episode Miyazaki movie that didn’t pull its punches as he needs to in order to stay family-friendly. The appeal here is perhaps that the Ghibli-esque rose-tinted alternate past, and the way that this serene post-steampunk world is torn asunder by bizarre, alien-looking life forms that don’t look either mechanical nor human, is so powerful. It looks peaceful and quaint; a place you’d want to live in. Then BAM! A bus explodes, a town is bombed, loved ones die. It didn’t feel as angsty or doom-laden as you’d expect from a wartime drama, but the emotional impact is staggeringly effective.

Ultimately I think I can forgive Xam’d for missing out on the little things because it addressed the important things so well: namely the characters and the ways in which these extraordinary events shape their lives and relationships. It’s just as well, and I daresay it was intentional, that the conflict and politics were kept in the background because it goes without saying that warfare is A Bad Thing: to put that into proper perspective all you need to do is show what happens to ordinary families and individuals when they are caught in the crossfire of someone else’s war, protecting who and what are close to them without knowing the rationale behind it all.

Fusa and Ryuuzou are portrayed in a way that’s unusual territory for an anime show: they are an estranged couple whose relationship is awkward but is presented in such an exquisitely lifelike way…and they are just supporting characters! I’m not even going to list my favourites in this show because so many of them have stuck in my memory: you know the character development is outstanding when even the hero’s parents warrant a scene of tearjerking sincerity and pathos. For sure, I’d have liked to have seen some of the others get a bit more screen time (the crew of the Zanbani, and the old Tessik doctor who works alongside Kakisu, for instance) but in the time allowed it still gives the central cast the attention they deserve. That is Nakiami’s sacrifice, if I’m to interpret it that way, and the bond between Haru and Akiyuki.

The latter episodes deliver on the action (the Hiruken emperor’s resemblence to a God Warrior cannot be accidental, right?) but also on the resolution front: the fast-forward could’ve felt like a forced happy-ever-after but to be honest I loved the way it brought things round, some changing while tellingly staying the same. I’m sure there’s symbolism there too in Akiyuki first gaining independence from his family, then returning from a distant land to the woman he loves; I shed a Manly Tear™ at that point and feel no shame in admitting so because this is where Xam’d truly shines. Just as Akiyuki did, it forgot some of the incidentals along the way but in the end kept its promises on the things that really mattered.

Related posts

• Final thoughts on Clannad ~After Story~
• Final thoughts on ef-a Tale of Melodies
• Toradora! halfway thoughts