|
This review was taken from our old reviews system and was originally submitted by Mangafanatic.
Main Review:
The synopsis I just gave doesn't even begin to give you an idea of what AIR is really about. Honestly, it's nearly impossible for me to condense this anime into a few paragraphs. What I gave there is merely a hint of AIR.
I gotta admit, I didn't really see the plot for AIR coming. I was just sitting there thinking "My, what a nice little spice of life anime this is--" and then it hit me: "This is no spice of life anime."
A fan of AIR once said that this anime was a "fairy tale for grown ups," and I think that describes it pretty well. AIR is a well told story about relationships, pain, loss, and fate, set against a background which is somehow both realistic and still fantasy.
What I appreciated about AIR was, first, the characters. For every person you meet in this enjoyable little anime, there's so much story. Every character in this anime feels real and unique, and one can't help but care for each of the individuals that are introduced. Any person viewing this anime will be able to see the care that the writers must have put into creating the history that drives each character.
In addition to the story, the art is really beautiful. Character design, backgrounds-- everything is so appealing.
Downsides? Well, a few of subplots don't have a very strong tie into the main plot, and that took away from the strength of the story overall, in my opinion.
Overall, I enjoyed AIR a lot, and I recommend it to anyone who can handle the content listed in the body of the review.
Music
The music for AIR was very appropriate and pleasant.
Sub vs Dub
This review was based on a subtitled version - at the time of writing the review, there is no official dub of AIR TV. [goldy's note: There is now a Funimation dub now with the official US release.]
Manga:
There is a related manga by the same name.
Related Movies:
Air the movie premiered early this year in Japan. It is slated for DVD release in August. [The Air movie was released in the US in 2007]
Additionally, a related anime which will explore one of the subplot of AIR TV is scheduled to premiere later this year. This anime will be called "AIR summer," if I'm not mistaken. [goldy's note: This set of two episode has already aired since thie review. "AIR in Summer" was released in 2008, and is simply an elaboration of the summer arc in the anime.]
Violence Details:
There are a few slapstick tussles, an attempted strangling, and a non-graphic suicide. The only real violence is limited to the very brief slashing of limbs or blood splatters. Such violence is confined to one or two short scenes.
Language Details
There were three uses of the word "Da--."
Nudity Details:
As an exception to the general rule, there is one instance, during what might be compared to a magical girl transformation sequence, when a shot pans down the back of the winged girl, and we see a little of her rear briefly. Likewise, there a slow-motion shot in which we see this characters bust, backlit by the moon. Briefly, one character changes and we see a side view of her breastfor a split second (yes, it's that brief.). Lastly, we see the butt of a male character for a few seconds.
Sexual Content Details:
Several times in the anime and once in the opening song, we see a winged figure who is nude. 98% of the time, hair, arms, a very bright light, or some other object eclipse or obscure anything which would be explicit. Think about the picture books of Adam and Eve in the garden or a more detailed magical girl transformation, and you'll have a pretty good idea of how scenes which contain this character play out.
Haruko makes less than admirable choices in her wardrobe. Several times towards the end of the series, she wears some VERY short boxer shorts. Also, in general, Haruko (and a few other characters on occasions) wear clothing that clings, and this form of fanservice is more pronounced towards the end. There is also some cleavage at various times.
A young girl steals one of a main characters possessions in hope that he'll chase her. As a taunt, she turns and shakes her butt at him. It wasn't particularly provocative, but I prefer to err of the side of caution.
At one point, we overhear a conversation between an older sister, who is a physician, and her younger sister, who is being examined. The older sister says something like "You're developing nicely," and the younger sister replies "Hey! Watch what your touching!". After one or two more similar exchanges, the conversation ends.
More than once, Haruko becomes drunk and declares that it's time for "Erotic confession corner!" This exclamation always prompts Yukito to call her a pervert, and the scenes then end.
Ryuuya touches a female character's rear, but it's not obvious if the act is intention or accident.
One of the possibly more questionable and troubling portions of the plot is an agreement between two characters to produce an offspring. The conversation that leads to this agreement is very vague, and therefore it's hard to tell whether they mean inside or outside of the bounds of marriage. With that said, it's quite possible that they fornicate.
One character is said to be an illegitimate child.
Religious Material Details:
One character can make a puppet dance by "magic", and another character claims she'll be able to use magic when she's older.
Festivals, temples, and worship of pagan gods or creatures occur in this anime. Also, conversation concerning gods, means by which they may be pleased, ect. occur. At one point, a character assumes that a certain item is a gift from the gods. A priest of these same pagan gods wants to offer a child as a sacrifice.
One religious element, which should be taken into consideration before watching this anime, is the theme of reincarnation, which somewhat necessary to the plot.
Two characters perform a ceremony in which they call forth a spirit. Also, a group of monks attempt to put a curse on a character.
A character concludes that, because misfortune befalls her, there cannot be a God.
|
