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| Not all conspiracies are theories. |
A number of years ago, I was watching Fullmetal Alchemist on DVD. At the front of the DVDs was a preview. It looked intriguing and something I thought of giving a try. On a whim, and because I had the cash, I decided to buy the series. I watched it in four days and was absolutely hooked on it from beginning to end. While I look back now, perhaps it isn't perfect, or everyone's cup of tea, but I thought it was a great series.
That series was Eden of the East.
To give a quick preview: Eden of the East is a thriller, mystery and romance, among other things. The story starts when a girl, Saki Morimi, sees a naked guy holding a gun outside the White House. This guy is Akira Takizawa, someone with no memory and 10 Billion Yen to use in funds, and a phone that can fulfill any request in order to save the country of Japan. Only...he's not alone. He's up against 11 others, and if you fail, you are eliminated. If you're interested in hearing more, read below!
In order to discuss the series, it's important to keep in mind that Eden of the East is an 11 episode series, combined with 2 movies (King of Eden and Paradise Lost). This review aims to look at all three things together for the whole series, since without it, the story is incomplete; this also includes some slight spoilers. I'll be using the same criteria and categories that I've used in my past two reviews: characters, storytelling, animation, music, themes and voice acting. So, let's do this!
1) Characters
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| Saki and Takizawa at the beginning |
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| Saki and Takizawa at the end |
Like any other good series, there needs to be a good character base, or development, to tell a great story. So, how does Eden of the East's cast stack up?
Simple answer: they're strong.
There's not a huge cast for this story, with the main cast essentially consisting of the 2 leads, their group of 5 friends and the 5 or 6 villains that litter the story. That's really just a cast of 12 or 13. Yet each one of them is distinct, and while some are introduced with an air of mystery to their characters, the series wastes no time in setting up who they are, even if some of their motivations aren't revealed until later.
Perhaps the most stark of this are Saki and Takizawa, the two leads. From the moment we meet them, you get the measure of who they are. Saki: shy, meek, likes to travel, fretful. Takizawa: bold, kind, chivalrous, not afraid to do what's necessary. And this is within the first 5 minutes of the first episode.
The same is done for every other character. Kuroha is introduced as a serial killer that cuts off men's "johnnies" (you can imagine what the euphemism is for). Panties is introduced and seen as a hermit. Mononobe is easily introduced as crafty and out to win...and this is with maybe two lines of dialogue. If there is one thing that Eden so expertly excels at, its their own characters. Each one has a distinctiveness to them, despite all but Saki and Kuroha looking pretty normal (and even with Saki, I'm stretching it).
Of course, I couldn't give praise to the characters if they remained the same throughout the story. Naturally, some of these characters, namely those that are Kasuga, Sis, Hirasawa (members of Eden) and Mononobe, remain roughly the same, but that's all right, when everything else is at play around them. Because the main characters do develop. Saki goes from shy and meek to eventually taking Takizawa's hand and kissing him, and act that he had been the one to initiate earlier in the series. Panties leaves his house. Osugi, while still carrying his torch, is able to step aside. Even Kuroha gives up her killing ways.
These kinds of developments build the backbone for the characters and what makes them excel. You may notice, of course, that I've yet to mention Takizawa in the development category. He, as a character, is different. Mostly because Takizawa remains the same at the end as he does at the beginning, just with a better idea of the problem that plagues Japan. How he develops is by the series filling in his past and showing us even more of who he is and the current that runs beneath him. It's a different way to develop a character, but no less effective.
Overall, the characters and their development is where Eden of the East excels over anything else.
2) Storytelling
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| Part of the story, particularly concerning Takizawa, which everything had built up to at that point |
Obviously, I've established that the characters are well developed, so the next question is how the story is then handled by the characters.
The answer: well...the characters are stronger.
Now don't get me wrong. Eden boasts a very good story that builds to its end point, if in three acts (series, Movie 1, Movie 2). It's pacing is remarkably strong, as well. There's never a point in the series that you feel bored, unless you were bored from the beginning of course. It's measured and works well and perfectly. Even the films, sitting at an hour and a half each, never lag or slow. This is a credit to the story in a great way.
Where Eden does have issues with the story is some of the holes that exist. Namely in the films. The series itself is solid, with nary an issue, other than the dangling plot threads introduced but never solved (who is the supporter? Mr. Outside? The other Selecao?). Those plot threads are resolved in the films, albeit with two confusing messes such as part of the ending to the first movie and a moment during a flashback with Takizawa that feels weirdly placed given a revelation a few minutes later.
But those are really its only major failings.
Other than that, Eden boasts strong storytelling with a well-conceived plot that is carried through from episode 1 to the finale of Paradise Lost. Sure, we don't meet every Selecao, but every single one is discussed for why or why not and all of it is built in to the message and theme that is told. Perhaps the two biggest acts of brilliancy within the story are those at the end of the series and the second movie. I won't spoil them here, but the fridge brilliance behind them makes all the events that preceded them suddenly give the series rewatch value.
So, overall, if I had to really sum up the story is that it's strong, but it has its foibles and failings that drag it down. Thankfully, these are made up by the strong characters and developments, making those slip ups easier to miss in the long run.
3) Themes
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| The old and the young, working hand in hand |
Eden builds towards a singular theme that runs the backbone of the story's plot: that the older people in charge of business and running the country need to step aside for the younger generation, and that younger generation needs to take responsibility for their future.
It's a universal message, when you think about it. While the story is very centralized in Japan, and focusing on Japan's problems, there is no denying that this issue can speak to any number of people, especially any NEETs or just people struggling to get a job in today's society. It resonates for everyone, I think, that would watch it, especially its target audience.
Sadly, there isn't so much I could say without spoiling things majorly, but it's this theme that builds the main characters actions and puts a contrast between Takizawa and Mononobe: one values the ability for the younger generation to lead the country to a brighter future with the help of the older generation, while the other thinks they should just be controlled and can't change anything. Their way of approaching these issues and resolving them is what creates their characters and answers the question of what must be done to save Japan.
But like I said, the issue of the younger generation needing to take their responsibility (in a positive way) and working with the older generation for a brighter future can really apply to any country. In fact, the commentary on the English dub discusses just this. It's a resonant theme, and one that, in my opinion, makes Eden worth watching. Beyond that, I encourage you to watch to answer that question for yourself and see if it resonates with you.
4) Animation
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| These are backgrounds consistent through the whole series. (Note: You can also see an example of it above) |
Eden is very different from most series I've watched in terms of animation. There aren't super heavy action scenes, so there's no need for this animation to be constantly fluid and such. However, what Eden excels at is consistency. Even with the gag faces, the characters look like themselves and their designs are solid through every action...even with the censor bubbles that cover the naked people's johnnies (and there are a lot of them).
What Eden excels at the most, however, is its backgrounds. All you need to do is look at the image above to tell that. Everything is meticulously crafted to look like the real world and there's never a moment that the series resorts to a stock background, or even a stock animation to my memory. It's a thing of beauty. Especially when you see New York and the White House rendered in such loving detail and accuracy! This kind of backgrounds really puts you in the world of the series.
Beyond that, the basic animation for any slight action sequences (there's an incident with a tanker and a motorcycle) is still good, animated well and realistically. In the same vein, the way that the series uses this grainy effect for flashbacks that you don't quite realize are flashbacks works really well just the same.
The openings for the series and two movies are different than the rest of the series' animation, using quite a bit of CGI. They're not phenomenal animation, but what they lack in that, they make up for in the little hints of the plot to come. Pay enough attention and you will actually figure some plot points out, though it moves so fast that you'd have to freeze frame to catch it all.
In any case, the animation has beautiful backgrounds and consistent animation, with no drop in quality or stiffness.
5) Music
When it comes to music, Eden has a soundtrack that doesn't necessarily stand out from the pack. You might not find yourself humming more than a song or two at best. In some sense, that isn't what the music is for. Instead, the score, composed by Kenji Kawai, sets a background for the series in an ambient way. When it's mysterious, it feels mysterious. Light and airy? We got some trumpets for you. Things are about to get real? Ominous vocals. The score isn't standout necessarily, but damn if it doesn't get the job done.
What the real standout is, however, is the song above, though. This song plays four times through the whole series and while it is a Gospel song in English, when you listen, it fits perfectly with the story and what Takizawa is seen to many of the characters in the series, and even the massive amount of NEETs. It's an example of great music setting the tone that this series excels at.
Then there are the openings. The first opening, by American band OASIS, is a strong opener...I only wish it would have stayed in the English versions. I mean, don't get me wrong, the replacement song, sung by Saki's Japanese VA and written by Kawai, is strong and it syncs with the OP, but it does carry far less energy than the original song. However, all of the songs for the movies are pretty catchy, as is the ending theme by school food punishment. Those can be pretty catchy and upbeat, making them a joy to listen to and watch on the screen. In other words, if you're going to watch, be prepared for the slightly boring OP in the English version.
In summary, the music is not a standout performance that blows other scores out of the water, but it does the exact thing its meant to: set the scene.
6) Voice Acting
The dub is solid, with a lot of mainstays from Funimation being the main cast. Jason Liebrecht voices Takizawa while Leah Clark voices Saki. These two have a very nice chemistry with one another that works, though they're just the tip of the iceberg. The entire Eden group really works well together vocally, with particular praise given to Lydia Mackay as Sis. She carried humor, manic personality and seriousness all in one character without missing a beat. Even so, the entire main group has an effortless chemistry that keeps things going and never takes you out.
There is never a moment that you feel the dub sucks, in other words. It's a little more staid than something like FMA, but it's not like this is a fantasy world, and everything works well.
In particular, three standout performances, to me, at least, are Newton Pittman as Panties, John Gremillion as Mononobe and Grant James as Mr. Outside. These three really own their characters, and even if two of the three have very distinctive voices from other works, they still make these their own. Newton Pittman adds a certain nasally tone to Panties, without making him annoying. John Gremillion sounds completely unlike anything else I've heard him in, almost natural, while still keep Mononobe's shrewdness and cunning in every syllable. In particular, a speech towards the end has this contempt he holds outright dripping from his voice. And Grant James...well...I don't know if I have the words to describe his vocal performance.
To sum up, the voice acting for the dub is very good, if not on the level of FMA. Definitely worth a watch.
Conclusion
Eden of the East is a strong series with a consistent message and tone throughout. One I would wholeheartedly recommend. Of course, I can understand if it's not the viewer's cup of tea. If you don't like it in the first 3 episodes, I say to drop it. If you do, however, watch until the end, and that includes the films. You won't regret it.
It boasts strong characters that enliven its story, further held up by the great background animation and animation in general. The theme can resonate with anyone in the world, particularly those outside of the workforce, and the music helps to set that theme perfectly. Not to mention the dub is solid.
So, that said, I hope you'll take my suggestion and watch Eden of the East as soon as you can!
Dare to Be Silly,
Epicocity
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