I often wonder if the problem I have with alternate retelling-type stories is shared by other people: that of my difficulty in holding onto and drawing meaning from what’s retained in case it’s indended to be taken in a different context, while at the same time trying to ‘un-learn’ what I knew in order to accept the new material. This is especially true for a complex and powerful story such as that of Eureka Seven: the attachment I had for the characters and conclusions I drew were deeply embedded in my mind. Perhaps that’s why I find the mixture of new and familiar disorientating.
What is it with Studio Bones and magical flowers?!
If I understand A Pocketful of Rainbows correctly, these events take place in a parallel universe after those of the series so it’s both a sequel and an alternative timeline. The progression of Eureka’s and Renton’s relationship still forms the core of the story but otherwise the original plot is completely reshuffled with familiar faces taking on different roles. This I think is where I fell out with the movie’s approach: a lot of what made the series special for me was lost on the cutting-room floor but what’s left for existing fans to get a handle on is barely recognisable. Even when it remembers love.
It’s interesting to see Dominic as schoolteacher and mentor to a young Eureka and Renton – hell, it was a neat re-imagining of their situation in the first place. Setting them up as childhood friends separated then reunited shakes up their dynamic nicely and puts an effective spin on what is essentially the heart of the E7 concept overall; fortunately it’s enough to make up for time constraints dropping some supporting characters. Anemone’s portrayal as not in the least bit mentally deranged was a welcome re-write too because it felt to me as though she was granted the inner peace denied to her until the final act of the TV series.
Some of the altered backgrounds are refreshing and work well but sadly the other changes cast aside some pretty fundamental concepts, such as the broader messages of universal harmony and understanding; the hip counter-culture status of the Gekkostate is lost in favour of a more straightforward role as a military unit which is nowhere near as meaningful or satisfying. Disappointingly, it gets worse: I actually started to wonder if it was written by the same people!
A sane Anemone is fine too. Seriously
The redefined roles extend to marked changes in personality and motives, but sadly not all are as beneficial as Dominic’s and Anemone’s. Hap and Stoner are, from the point of view of this E7 devotee, shockingly out-of-character and their reasoning nonsensical: their behaviour might not seem odd to someone unfamiliar with the series but for me, watching characters I know and love acting in this way left an unpleasant taste in my mouth (don’t even get me started on the lolicon Dewey). The TV series was harsh and occasionally brutal of course but this was helped by juxtaposing it with levity and humour; sometimes these more jovial moments felt like filler but when stripped out as they are here the end result is darker…but it’s less fun.
The portrayal of Nirvash and TheEnd had me aghast though. Again, if you’re a newcomer who hasn’t seen them in their full, Shoji-Kawamori-designed glory, the sight of a cat-sized blob that squeaks “Mokyuu~!” continually won’t present a problem to you. Granted, it’s cute in a Kirby/Mokona kind of way and if it appeared in an omake spin-off I’d probably find it adorable. It’s just that in a piece as serious as this, a chibi-fied Nirvash feels inappropriate beyond words…like watching an episode of Knight Rider in which the Hoff is reduced to a bicycle, or a retelling of The Matrix in which Agent Smith is eaten by Pac-Man. It just feels wrong and saps the gravity from scenes that relied on pathos and seriousness to be effective.
This
All this is a shame because the visuals are, as you’d expect, spectacular; especially in the aerial combat and the epic moments of pretty-shiny shimmering lights. The soundtrack is excellent too: I found the shoegazey feel and vocal style of the end theme familiar and sure enough it turns out that the song Space Rock is the product of iLL, the new project from ex-Supercar frontman Koji Nakamura. Good to hear that familiar sound I associated with the show has been retained, despite the career change.
I do wonder whether newcomers to the Eureka Seven universe would be in a situation in which ignorance is bliss: I believe it was meant to be able to stand on its own but it’s sad to think that the best way for audiences to enjoy this movie is to be unaware of how much better the ‘other’ version was. I admit the TV series wasn’t perfect: it dragged a bit on occasion and left room for side-stories but it’s disappointing to see how many of the things that made it so good were thrown out along with the less necessary aspects, such as supporting characters and lengthier explanations about the antagonists.
I don’t think I’d have been be as happy as I was about the reinforced Eureka/Renton relationship if I were completely against the idea of retelling the story; that at least was quite moving so I certainly don’t think the idea behind the film was a bad one. The problem was with the way it was handled; I think it would’ve benefited from Dai Sato’s influence here. The Image are after all basically analogues of the Coralians so the roles of Eureka and Anemone are similar, and the romance is as Manly Tear-inducing as it always was. I ought to add that a rewatch helps understand the condensed storyline but it was such hard work to sit through – I was worried about getting past the halfway mark on my first viewing because we were running out of booze. Never a good sign.
So this is a film, not a series? Well, there’s the big problem. The series was LONG. It could take its time building up that character and that story, so when things got interesting they had a huge backlog of characters and backstory at their command. It didn’t always work, but the creators knew enough to rely on some winning tropes to get you on board when they wanted it (For me, the beats they played before and during a battle scene always got my blood going). There’s no way they could create a new mythos that large in so short a time, even if they did tuck it into the original.
It sounds like the changes they made were more machinic than organic, changing roles and relationships in a way that feels jarring and forced. I think a good example of re-inventing a story is Utena the movie. It changes how characters look and how they behave too (particularly Utena and Anthy), and the Ohtoro Academy has been totally re-worked into a bizarre beast of arcs, steels and moving platforms. But it does so in a way that works in its own universe without being chained to the original Utena universe. If watching E7 series hinders one’s appreciation of Pocketful of Rainbows then maybe that is its limitation as an inferior off-spring, not the fault of viewer.
I was so excited about this at first, but to read about “a chibi-fied Nirvash” and the rest dampens my mood, even still, it’s nice that Koji Nakamura’s iLL makes a strong impression! I’ve managed to get my hands on their/his first two albums and it’s honestly like Supercar never went away.
@Peter S: the problem of the running time is something the film has to address straight away, so it’s not surprising that the nature of the Image is simpler and more straightforward than that of the Coralians. I expected the new mythos to suffer from this, but as it turns out it was the least of my worries in the end.
@gaguri: the fact that I enjoyedthe series so much was a large part of the proble, I think. I basically had to make a conscious effort to forget what I saw in the series in order to appreciate the film on its own terms, which was prety difficult. I’m not familiar with either version of Utena though I’m afraid – which would you recommend?
@Bateszi: I’d say approach this film with caution! The visuals are worth your time but you really do need to be prepared to be disappointed with what they did to the story (and the characters). The end tune is excellent though – up there with not just Storywriter but many of Supercar’s finest moments. I’ll have to hunt down iLL’s albums now you’ve mentioned them!
The most ideal approach to Utena anime franchise would be, I think, TV series first then the movie. But you know, TV series is 39 episodes long…although it is one of the timeless classics. It’s possible to just watch the amazing movie version (since watching the TV series is not necessary), and I know Shadowmage (who sometimes comment on my blog) chose to simply watch the movie without having seen the series. I suppose it depends on whether you want to fully fall into the Utena franchise or not.
I’ve been eyeing this post since since you first put it up, but avoided reading it until I finished both Eureka Seven and the movie. Now that I’m at liberty to think about what you said, I have a lot of the same problems with the movie that you did. The movie goes out of its way to point out to fans of the original that, “Hey, this is new and different and totally not what you think it is!” Which I’m not against if they could do it convincingly, but then they use the same set-ups and relationships and whole scenes of animation from the TV series, that the mental detective work we have to do to set straight what is and what isn’t transplanted from the old timeline to this new one would frustrate any returning fan.
I think we’ve more or less come to the same conclusion that they tried to do way too much with just one movie outing. Long stretches of expositing and shoehorning in side-characters that didn’t serve a purpose (other than to show just how different everyone is than they were in the series) should have been cut. They really should have kept it a much simpler story of Eureka, Renton, and the Gekko State. The finale was gorgeous and the Eureka/Renton plotline was emotionally satisfying, but that just may be me trying to latch onto something positive at the end.
Heed these words of wisdom from someone who was introduced to the Utena franchise by the movie first and then saw the series later: watch the TV series first. The movie is the super-concentrated essence of Utena, but a frightening and stupefying experience for those uninitiated to the Utena-verse. Not that the series won’t have its own fair share of bewildering moments, but the movie is so rapid-paced, even more stylistically exaggerated, and throws the characters and themes at you so hard and fast, I was left with my head spinning. In retrospect, it works better as a complementary piece; unlike the Eureka Seven movie, knowledge of the TV series works with and enhances the aims of the Utena film.
I have to agree, I loved the series, but the movie made me all confused. There are some bits and pieces of the movie that are great, but the series are a whole lot of better! Also, the “Mukyuu” from nirvash sounds very similar to something more profane in the movie, I think you can guess what I mean…