RahXephon

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RahXephon
ラーゼフォン (RahXephon)
Genre	Drama, Mecha, Mystery, Psychological, Romance, Science fiction
TV anime
Directed by	Yutaka Izubuchi
Studio	BONES
Network	Fuji TV Other networks: Bandai Channel Anime Network, G4 TV Game One Cuatro Locomotion Animax
Original run	21 January 2002 – 10 September 2002
No. of episodes	26
Manga
Authored by	Takeaki Momose
Publisher	Shogakukan Other publishers: VIZ Media Chuang Yi (English) Madman Entertainment Panini Comics Norma Editorial Haksan Publishing M&C Comics
Serialized in	Monthly Sunday Gene-X
Original run	19 September 2001 – 19 November 2002
No. of volumes	3
Novel
Authored by	Hiroshi Ohnogi
Publisher	Media Factory DrMaster
Publish date	July 2002 – February 2003
No. of volumes	5
Movie: RahXephon: Pluralitas Concentio
ラーゼフォン 多元変奏曲 (RahXephon Multitude of Musical Variations[1])
Directed by	Tomoki Kyoda
Studio	BONES
Released	2003, 19 April (TV) 25 September (DVD) 20 July 2004 (DVD)
Runtime	120 min
Game
Developer
Publisher	Bandai
Genre	Adventure, Action
Rating	CERO : 12
Platform	PlayStation 2
Released	7 August 2003
OVA: Her and Herself (彼女と彼女自身と) / Thatness and Thereness
Directed by	Tomoki Kyoda
Studio	BONES
No. of episodes	1
Released	7 August 2003
Runtime

RahXephon (ラーゼフォン, Rāzefon^?) is a popular science fiction anime television series about 17 year old Ayato Kamina, his ability to control a godlike mecha that is known as the RahXephon, and his inner journey to find a place with the world around him. The story begins during the early 21st century in Japan with a seemingly peaceful Tokyo suddenly being attacked by invaders while a mysterious woman stalks Ayato.

Music, time, mystery and personal intrigues are central elements of RahXephon's plot. The series shows clear influences from philosophy, Japanese folklore and western literature — and in particular from the writings of James Churchward. Mesoamerican and other Pre-Columbian civilizations have a prominent place in the cultural background of the series.

The 26 episode television series was the first directed by Yutaka Izubuchi. It was produced by BONES and aired in Japan from January to September 2002. The series was subsequently translated, released internationally on DVD and aired in several countries. An alternative movie version was released in 2003, comprised mostly of scenes adapted from the TV episodes but also featuring several new scenes. Also created were novels, an extra OVA episode, an audio drama, computer games, illustration books and a somewhat tweaked manga adaptation.

Izubuchi said RahXephon was his attempt to set a new standard for mecha anime, as well as to bring back aspects of 1970s mecha shows like Brave Raideen. The result was generally well received by English-language reviewers. While some reviewers only judged the show on its own merits, others compared it with varying favour against shows such as Brain Powerd, Megazone 23 and Neon Genesis Evangelion.

Contents 1 Characters and plot 1.1 Background 1.2 Characters 1.3 Central plot 2 Production and media 2.1 TV series 2.2 Movie 2.3 OVA 2.4 Manga 2.5 Other media 3 Influences 3.1 Civilizations and creation stories 3.2 Post-classical literature 3.3 Visual arts and colours 3.4 Music 3.5 Japanese culture 4 Reception 4.1 TV series reviews 4.2 Movie reviews 4.3 Manga reviews 5 Comparisons with other Anime 5.1 Raideen the Brave 5.2 Neon Genesis Evangelion 5.3 Infinite Ryvius 5.4 Other anime 6 Legacy 7 See also 8 Notes and references 9 External links

[edit] Characters and plot

[edit] Background

The premise of RahXephon is the fight between normal Humans, and pan-dimensional invaders known as the Mulians, short Mu (IPA pronunciation: [muː] Katakana: ムウ). The Mu appear to be human; the only noticeable physical difference seems to be their blue blood.

Although RahXephon is usually placed in the mecha genre of anime, its "mechas" are not fully mechanical. The mechas used by the Mu are referred to as Dolems. Dolems are made of clay, like golems, and are animated by a musical force resembling magic. Further, each Dolem is bound to a controlling Mulian; so when a Dolem is destroyed, the Mulian piloting it is killed as well.

The overarching theme of RahXephon is one of music changing the world. A Dolem attacks while singing, and sometimes the attack is the song itself. The RahXephon can also attack by having its pilot — the "instrumentalist" — sing a note. This in turn unleashes powerful forces (such as light-energy blasts or heat waves) that cause destruction on an apocalyptic scale. Each of the Mulian Dolems has an Italian name which references musical notation, such as Allegretto, Falsetto, or Vivace. The ultimate goal of the RahXephon is to "tune the world". The show's creators composed the name RahXephon of Rah, which according to Churchward is the Mulian sun-god and origin of the Egyptian Ra; X for the X factor (the unknown); and -ephon as a suffix for instrument (-phone).^[2]

[edit] Characters

Main article: Characters in RahXephon

This section represents the story as told in the television series. The manga and movie are different in several respects, including cutting and merging characters. Character names are in western order.

At the beginning of RahXephon Ayato Kamina is a modest 17 year old living in Tokyo. Not exactly a model student, he is shown to enjoy painting and being with his class mates Hiroko Asahina and Mamoru Torigai. Ayato's mother Maya spends a lot of her time at work, making his relationship with her rather distant, though still loving.

During an attack on Tokyo, Ayato hears the singing of another class mate, Reika Mishima. She leads him to a giant egg containing the RahXephon. Haruka Shitow, an agent of the defense research agency TERRA, takes Ayato and the RahXephon to TERRA's base.

Ayato moves in with professor Rikudoh, Haruka's uncle, and pilots the RahXephon for TERRA. Quon Kisaragi, a girl living with TERRA's chief researcher Itsuki, seems to share some of Ayato's abilities — she is a musician.

Ernst von Bähbem of the Bähbem Foundation sponsors the work of TERRA through the Federation, the successor of the United Nations.

While having introduced most characters by the end of episode 7, RahXephon continues to develop the characters and reveal their mysteries and relationships, making heavy use of foreshadowing.

[edit] Central plot

The unusual relationship between Ayato Kamina and Haruka Shitow is one of the most important plotlines of the series. Although Haruka appears to be a stranger to Ayato, the series reveals that Haruka and Ayato know each other from before the beginning of the story.

Ayato, a boy conceived with the help of the Bähbem Foundation, was living in Tokyo with his adoptive mother, Maya Kamina. His twin brother, Itsuki Kisaragi, was being raised at the Bähbem Manor at the same time. Ayato met Haruka on a trip outside Tokyo, and they continued seeing each other when they returned to school in Tokyo. Haruka's family name was Mishima.

In the story it is revealed that in December 2012, two floating cities appeared above Tokyo and Sendai. The ensuing conflict with humans escalated to nuclear war and the Mu enveloped the entire city of Tokyo and some outlying suburbs within a trans-dimensional sphere resembling Jupiter. The sphere is thus referred to as "Tokyo Jupiter" ("Tōkyō Jupita"). This "absolute barrier" is generally considered impassable, although it is revealed that advanced technology makes it possible to cross and even destroy it. The Mu control Tokyo; its citizens are completely isolated from the outside world and are led to believe that the rest of the Earth has been destroyed by "invaders". The barrier has a dilatory effect on time, with time inside Tokyo-Jupiter passing about one-sixth as fast as the outside time.

During the Tokyo Jupiter incident, Haruka Mishima and her pregnant mother were away from Tokyo on a holiday trip while Ayato remained inside. Some years after the incident Haruka's mother re-married and their family name became Shitow. In the meantime, Haruka had a short relationship with Itsuki Kisaragi, influenced by his physical similarity to Ayato, and she began wearing her hair shorter.

Maya modified Ayato's memories to make him forget Haruka. The series makes clear that the entire population of Tokyo Jupiter is subject to the same kind of mental control. Though Ayato has mostly forgotten Haruka, visions of her continue to haunt him, as manifested in his art. Ixtli, RahXephon's soul, also adopts Haruka's appearance and family name (Mishima) but takes a different given name, Reika.

By the time of the first episode of the series, when Haruka infiltrates Tokyo Jupiter and meets Ayato again, time dilation has made her and Itsuki considerably older than those who remained inside. Despite his original mistrust, Ayato is shown to gradually re-discover his love for Haruka.

At the end of the series, Ayato merges with the RahXephon and loses control of it. Haruka flies to be with Ayato, and the RahXephon's energy beams, aimed at Quon, destroys Haruka's fighter jet instead. After Ayato's RahXephon merges with Quon's, he "re-tunes the world" (i.e. modifies the past) so that he and Haruka would not have been separated. In the final shots of the series, adult Ayato (who can now easily be mistaken for Dr. Kisaragi) is seen with his wife Haruka and their daughter Quon.

[edit] Production and media

See also: List of RahXephon media

[edit] TV series

Yutaka Izubuchi was a successful anime supervisor and designer focusing on costume, character and mechanical design, notably in the Gundam and Patlabor series. His drinking buddy and former Sunrise colleague Minami Masahiko, producer and president of BONES, had suggested that Izubuchi direct something.^[3] Izubuchi finally took Minami up on the offer and RahXephon became his first directing job. Izubuchi returned to the classic mecha shows of the 1970s and 1980s, and wanted to make a show of that type updated with advances in anime production as well as injecting his own personal ideas. He wanted to "set a new standard in the field" of mecha anime,^[3] or rather to show his "own standard" and capabilities as a creator-showrunner.^[4] After planning the story and designing characters and locations, a core group of staff was expanded to a full production staff that completed the show — many of them working on the same floor.^[5]

The original music, except for the opening theme, is composed by Ichiko Hashimoto; she was initially approached to compose some of the score and replied that she wanted to compose all of it.^[5] She was also offered and accepted the role of Maya and performs the closing theme together with her sister Mayumi. The opening theme "Hemisphere" is sung by Maaya Sakamoto, who plays Reika.^[6]

[edit] Movie

Tomoki Kyoda, who had directed three episodes of the TV series, directed a television movie version of RahXephon, called Pluralitas Concentio. Izubuchi acted as Chief Director on this movie, but was not heavily involved in its production.

The movie has some new scenes, and most of them are found at the beginning and at the end. The beginning of the movie contains a prologue showing previously unshown events, as well as some exposition. More significant story changes were added towards the end of the film. The movie ends on an epilogue, set several decades after the end of the TV series. The rest of the movie consists mainly of abridged scenes from the series, sometimes with characters replaced or with different motivations and dialogue. The movie more firmly establishes the link between Kamina and Mishima prior to the Tokyo Jupiter incident, and while its overall storyline is the same as that of the TV series, it focuses primarily on their relationship, with other storylines that were prominent in the series either taking a lesser role or being absent altogether.

[edit] OVA

The special Plusculus edition of the RahXephon video game contains a bonus OVA episode called RahXephon Interlude: "Thatness and Thereness" (ラーゼフォン間奏曲「彼女と彼女自身と」, RahXephon Interlude: "Thatness and Thereness"^?)/"Her and Herself". This episode shows Quon Kisaragi's dialogue with her other self as a series of dream sequences. By the end of the episode, Quon remembers something crucial about her past and makes a decision for the future.

[edit] Manga

See also: List of RahXephon media#Manga volumes

The manga was written and drawn by Takeaki Momose, loosely based on the plot provided by Izubuchi and BONES.^[4] Momose was one of the candidates for character designer on the series,^[7] but Izubuchi wanted Akihiro Yamada to do the original designs,^[8] and Hiroki Kanno got the job of adapting them for animation. With the manga Momose got the opportunity to re-design the characters into his own style and make changes in characterization and story,^[7] as well as adding "fan service".^[9]

The manga adaptation of RahXephon presents the same overall scenario as the anime but features some differences, ranging from significant to minor. In the anime series, Reika is a mysterious and distant figure, while the manga Reika is portrayed as a more comical figure that grew up as Ayato's adoptive sister. Even so, the manga Reika has a darker origin. The anime series shows Megumi competing with Haruka for Ayato's affections, while this role is taken by Reika in the manga. The rate of time dilation is also different in the manga version, as the year outside Tokyo is 2033 instead of 2027.

[edit] Other media

Main article: List of RahXephon media

A RahXephon audio drama, novelizations, art books and guide books were created. Characters, mecha and story from RahXephon were featured in two PlayStation 2 video games. Sound track albums and singles were also released.

[edit] Influences

In addition to its musical theme, RahXephon has many explicit references to ancient history and myth, literature, art and culture.

[edit] Civilizations and creation stories

RahXephon has many references to the Mayan culture. December 21, 2012 is the end of the 5-vigesimal Mayan Long Count calendar and the transition from one Mayan age into the the next. In RahXephon the Mu re-appear one week after this date. Characters listen to a song called "Fate of Katun"; a Katun is a measurement of time in the Mayan Calendar. The dolem control system is worn as a helmet shaped like a face from a Mayan sculpture,^[10] and the cities of the Mu contain artwork inspired by Mayan and other Mesoamerican art.^[11] Even the leader of the Mu in Tokyo is named Maya.

This is not coincidental, since the series draws many of its references from James Churchward's books about the Mu — an advanced ancient race from a large island in the South Pacific which had sunk, like the legendary continent of Atlantis. Churchward claimed that the Maya, and other ancient civilizations, were remnants of Mu colonies. RahXephon's main character Ayato is shown to know about Churchward's theories.

The language of the Mu is based on Nahuatl, a classical form of which was spoken not by the Mayas but by the Aztecs further north. The series shows a dolem carving shapes into the earth; these shapes are referred to as "Nazca Lines" after lines made by a pre-Incan culture between 200 BC and 600 AD. Step pyramids of American design are shown, and the TERRA headquarters itself is shaped like a regular pyramid with the angle and tip of Mount Fuji.^[11]

The tuning of the world resembles the idea of creation by song, found in creation mythologies like that of the Hopi^[12] and fictional mythologies like J. R. R. Tolkien's Music of the Ainur and the creation story of C. S. Lewis's Narnia. Another symbolic element is that of the golems, creatures made from clay, recalling Biblical imagery from Genesis as well as more recent stories in Jewish kabbalism and folklore.

[edit] Post-classical literature

Izubuchi found^[4] the basis for the relationship between Ayato and Haruka in Robert F. Young's short story The Dandelion Girl. In Young's story the protagonist encounters a girl standing on a hill in a dress, the breeze blowing in her hair; this girl comes from the future, while the girl in RahXephon comes from the past. The Dandelion Girl is also the title of the "Coda" appearing after the credits of episode 26. Izubuchi later realized^[4] that another story, Portrait of Jennie, had been an additional influence for the relationship.

The summary movie shows Haruka and Ayato sharing the book Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll; the series itself does not mention this book, but they have commonalities: Both use mirrors and reflections, and both feature the stopping and reversal of time. In the manga version of RahXephon, the choice of literature is different: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum. This book appears only briefly in the anime series, but several of the characters in the manga note how their situation is similar to Oz; the last manga chapter is named "Over the Rainbow". In a reversal of Dorothy's experience Ayato is whisked away from the constructed world of Tokyo Jupiter into the "real" world.

The series also references the works of writers who have won the Nobel Prize for Literature. "Macondo Four" a codename used at the beginning of the show, takes its name from Gabriel Garcia Marquez's fictional hometown Macondo, featured prominently in One Hundred Years of Solitude. "Yoknapatawpha", another codename, is the name of William Faulkner's fictional home Yoknapatawpha County used as a setting for such novels as The Sound and the Fury. These serve as codenames for the special teams who attempt to maintain the artificial world of Tokyo Jupiter for Ayato's benefit.

The final episode contains a quotation from Octavio Paz's prose poem "The Obsidian Butterfly" from the collection Aguila O Sol/Eagle or Sun? that plays upon Aztec mythology and the coming of a new era. "The Obsidian Butterfly" is a reference to the Aztec goddess Itzpapalotl; the character of Quon becomes a representation of this goddess, particularly Paz's usage of the goddess in his poem.

RahXephon uses blue flowers as symbols of the Mu. This concept was used by the philosopher Novalis, who wrote about Heinrich — a young man yearning for a "blue flower" that he once saw in a dream. Novalis wrote that "the world becomes a dream, and the dream becomes reality". RahXephon has several references to dreaming, and features dreamlike sequences that are shown to represent reality.

Michiru, the blue bird which the character Kunugi keeps, is named after his daughter. As well as being a Japanese given name, "Michiru" is the Japanese name for "Mytyl", a character in The Blue Bird. In the last two episodes blue birds come to symbolize Haruka.

[edit] Visual arts and colours

The RahXephon system consists of a white RahXephon and a black RahXephon, with eggs, wings and feathers coloured accordingly. The Mu are shown to have blue blood while humans have red blood; in the RahXephon universe, the idea that the nobility has blue blood is thus a holdover from the period of Mu dominance.

A reoccurring significant image in the anime is a modified version of noted Surrealist artist René Magritte's Le Grande Famille, showing a sky through the silhouette of a dove.

The anime makes many other references to the French Surrealist movement, from the dreamlike sequences associated with some Dolems, to all the references to retuning and reworking the world and the desires of man. Surrealists said that artists should express the subconscious uninhibited by conscious thought and reason, and that the dream world of the subconscious was more real than the real world — surreal. They held that the world should be re-shaped to fit the subconscious, some of them promoting political revolution. Because of this, the retuning of the world, based on the desires of a young man, fulfills a surrealist ideal.

The opening sequence features dream art with surrealist qualities. One image in particular shows a dreamscape with clocks, some broken and others moving at different speeds, recalling the "soft watches" paintings^[13] by Salvador Dalí as well as the television cliché of clocks flying by when traveling through time.

[edit] Music

In addition to the prevalence of terms from music, classical musical works are used in the show: The overture to Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg opens the first episode, hinting to the musical contests between "normal" Humans and the Mu where the RahXephon is one of the instruments. The motif Quon sings or hums repeatedly is a theme from Polovetsian Dances in the opera Prince Igor, about a warrior prince. The melody is also used in the musical Kismet about love between two people of different worlds, here with new lyrics and titled "Stranger in Paradise".

[edit] Japanese culture

Two Japanese folk tales are explicitly mentioned in the series: Ayato compares himself to Urashima Tarō,^[14] and professor Rikudoh compares Maya to Princess Kaguya.^[15] The idea of Tokyo Jupiter is explicitly compared to Sayonara Jupiter and The Capital Vanishes by the veteran science fiction writer Sakyo Komatsu.^[14]

TERRA is based on Nirai Island, a fictional addition to the Satsunan Islands, situated just north of the Ryukyu Islands. The base itself is located in Kanai city, built on reclaimed land adjacent to the natural island. Nirai and Kanai have been named as a pun on Nirai-kanai. In traditional Ryukyu beliefs "Nirai kanai", also called "Nira-hara" or "Niraasuku", is the place out at sea where the gods live. These gods are believed to visit the islands of humans during certain religious festivals.^[16] In RahXephon, Mu is suggested to be the real-world basis of the Nirai-kanai legend. The "Shrine of Time" looks like a Ryukyan family tomb. RahXephon's Nirai, Kanai, and the bay between them are roughly shaped like commas, a shape shared with magatama and common Taijitu symbols. Mount Fuji appears in the show, both directly depicted and as a design inspiration; this mountain has a special spiritual significance in Shinto.

The religious foundations of the TV series are Ryukyan and Mesoamerican. Beyond Ryukyuan beliefs and Confucianism the TV series has few prominent references to traditional Eastern religion. The character Yagumo is shown in a kimono performing a Shinto New Year ritural, but other religious worship is not shown. The characters celebrate Christmas, though without religious elements, and a pivotal encounter takes place in a church. The character Kunugi visits a cemetery which appears to be Christian. The show thus reflects the variations of Japanese religious practice.

Although Eastern religion only has a minor role in the TV series, the movie version references Buddhism. The epilogue shows a Butsudan where a plaque bearing Ayato's posthumous name is standing. Beyond this, near the end of the movie there is a scene by a lake in which Ayato explains the situation of the "re-tuning" to Haruka. He explains how he cannot remain with her in the world as they know it and that now he, in fact, somehow has transcended his human state, i.e. Enlightenment. In the manga version of the story Reika is a Mu miko who was unprepared for a ritual involving the RahXephon and is trapped in a cycle of reincarnation.

[edit] Reception

The anime series originally aired on Fuji Television in a 2 AM time slot.^[17] According to its distributor it "captivated millions in Japan" and "[drew] in viewers by the tens of thousands."^[18] The series won the award for best TV anime at the 7th Animation Kobe fair.^[19] It was considered popular enough that a TV movie version was commissioned and aired.

The series was translated and released on DVD video by ADV Films in the United States around the U.S. theatrical release of another BONES production, Cowboy Bebop: The Movie. ADV claimed that RahXephon was met with "strong sales and extraordinary critical response in the U.S."^[20] The DVDs were released in several other countries, subtitled or dubbed. The DVDs were sold individually with comprehensive liner notes, with an optional box, and in "thin" box collections without the liner notes. The series was purchased for airing by several television stations and was made available on video on demand services.

[edit] TV series reviews

Protoculture Addicts editor Claude J. Pelletier chose RahXephon as one of the top 3 anime TV series of 2002,^[21] and Mioko Matsuda agreed, noting mystery, technology and romance.^[22] Christian Nutt of Anime Jump offered a contrary opinion: "RahXephon's characters fell flat and the grind of its scenario didn't inspire much curiosity, despite some initially awesome ideas"^[23] En Hong, on the other hand, found the characters believable: "small nuances in their lives are developed so skillfully that we can believe these characters are self-conscious entities and not just parts to be filled for the story to progress."^[24] Charles Solomon described the characters as "engaging".^[25]

Mike Toole of Anime Jump was impressed by the music, animation and character design.^[26] Solomon noted the "strikingly original mecha designs"^[25] Anime Boredom's John Huxley noted the "unusual yet elegant" mecha and "fluid computer-enhanced" animation "(no CGI models here)".^[27] Protoculture's Martin Ouellette also lauded the designs and the sound track.^[28]

RahXephon's approach to humor went over well with Huxley: "Comic moments are brief but not unwelcome, and I generally found there were enough to tide me over."^[29] Huxley found the romance underplayed "a million miles away from the cheery antics of Love Hina or Ranma 1/2" and "for the most part thoroughly believable".^[27]

Cris Beveridge of Anime on DVD found the final episodes beautiful "Not only in the story itself, but the way it’s told visually with the colors and style. (...) With the look and the raw emotions coming out of it, in both languages no less,..."^[30] Huxley also liked the conclusion: "Despite falling short of the mark in a few areas this is a satisfying conclusion to a good series."^[27] On the issue of plot resolution he wrote that RahXephon "keeps the audience guessing right up until the final credits and beyond" but that "the clues are all there" for the viewer to piece together.^[27] Anime News Network columnist Zac Bertschy called RahXephon a "paragon of responsible storytelling (...) No loose strings are left; we see the conclusion of every character’s storyline."^[31]

[edit] Movie reviews

The TV movie had a more mixed reception than the TV series. Christian Nutt was not excited about the TV series but found the movie to be better: Despite "too much cutting and chopping" he wrote that "the creators have done the best they can with the material." He added: "the last scene is very touching. It's a big improvement over the TV show."^[23] Efrain Diaz Jr. of IGN called the movie a "valiant effort", but preferred the TV series and asked "why even bother with the movie? At the very most, we only get a handful of all new and never before seen footage."^[32]

Carlo Santos, writing for Anime News Network, recommended the movie both as an "endcap to a remarkable series" and as a sampler for those yet to watch it.^[33] While Chris Beveridge also recommended the movie as an addition to the series, he did not recommend it as a sample for newcommers: "I'm not sure that this is a good way to see if you'd want to get into the series since some of the best revelations are given away so quickly..."^[34]

Indeed, reviewers who were not familiar with the series complained about the movie's lack of coherence, though not necessarily rating it down. Mitchell Hattaway of DVD Verdict "got lost about ten minutes in", considered the movie a waste of money for anybody but RahXephon completists and wrote that "Bones Animation Studio is guilty of contempt for its audience."^[35] Janet Crocker of Animefringe was confused by the plot as well, but was less confused on the second viewing and looked forward to watching the TV series. She called the movie "intellectually refreshing and visually beautiful" and recommended it "even to non-mecha people like me".^[36]

[edit] Manga reviews

Eduardo M. Chavez of Anime on DVD was not impressed by the first volume of the RahXephon manga, especially when compared to the TV series: "Izubuchi's complex drama has been turned into a romance comedy that leans on etchi scenes and fan service instead of a deep sci-fi story with drama, subtle comedy and character growth."^[9] After the disappointment of volume one, Chavez was positively surprised by the story in volume two,^[37] and after reading volume three he gave it a positive rating and called it a "story that grew up with its characters".^[38]

[edit] Comparisons with other Anime

Some reviewers, as well as the director, have compared RahXephon with other mecha and romance anime shows. Some of these shows also have staff in common.

[edit] Raideen the Brave

The director of RahXephon has said this series is meant to be a sort of modern-day Raideen.^[4][8] As such there are many similarities between Raideen and RahXephon, particularly having to do with the titular "robots".

• Akira Hibiki and Ayato Kamina both have mothers who are from a race called the "Mu". This in turn means that both Akira and Ayato have Mu blood.
• Akira and Ayato both "meld" into a surface in order to enter the cockpit of their respective robot. Akira enters via Reideen's forehead; Ayato can enter the RahXephon both directly and through a portal that is separate from the body of the RahXephon.
• The Raideen and the RahXephon both are portrayed as intelligent, sentient beings and possess similar general aesthetics, particularly the human-like face that is covered on the sides. Both can attack with their voices, and can form a bow with arrows as well as a sword that protrudes out of their right arms.

[edit] Neon Genesis Evangelion

While some English-language reviewers did not mention the popular mecha anime Neon Genesis Evangelion in their reviews of RahXephon,^{[25][26][33][34][35][39]} others focused on whether or not the shows were very similar to each other and whether one was better than the other. Some reviewers noted similarities in the respective protagonists and in the style and execution of events.^[24][40] John Huxley noted an episode with "soul searching" sequences reminiscent of NGE with a "hint of Twin Peaks".^[41]

After reviewing the first five episodes, Mike Pinsky of DVD Verdict wrote that much of RahXephon was "ripped off completely" from NGE and although finding it to be a good show he ruled that "This Evangelion Lite tastes good enough, but is much less filling."^[40] Christian Nutt of Anime Jump had seen the entire show when he wrote that "One of my least favorite aspects of RahXephon is its aping of Evangelion".^[23] In Protoculture Addicts Mioko Matsuda agreed on the shows being similar, but compared in RahXephon's favour: "it is very similar to Evangelion, but in many ways more original and exotic."^[22] In the same magazine, Martin Ouellette went as far as calling RahXephon an NGE "imitation", but was so impressed that he exclaimed "the imitation has surpassed the original!"^[28]

Some reviewers favoured RahXephon because of its more active protagonist^[24] and clearer ending: "Like Evangelion, you have to bend and warp your brain around this thing, but unlike Evangelion, if you think about it, it all makes sense" wrote Zac Bertschy.^[31] Huxley praised RahXephon for including action sequences in the ending, providing "a more balanced experience".^[27] RahXephon's story and complex relationships were planned and written early in the production cycle. In contrast, NGE's director stated that he did not know how the show would end,^[42] and production was influenced by the reactions that TV executives and viewers had to previous episodes.^[43] Although John Oppliger suggested stronger candidates for similarities than NGE, he thought the similarities with NGE were intentional:^[44]

‹ The template below has been proposed for deletion. See templates for deletion to help reach a consensus on what to do. › RahXephon actually borrows far more heavily from Megazone 23 than it does Evangelion, and even Evangelion could be said to be heavily influenced by Megazone 23. I think that in its effort to be purely artistic entertainment, RahXephon knowingly pays homage to both Megazone 23 and Evangelion in the same way Evangelion re-uses the concept of a boy piloting his father's giant robot that was used 20 years before in Mobile Suit Gundam, which itself borrowed the idea from even older shows like Tetsujin 28 and Mazinger.

John Huxley found "several similarities" with NGE but wrote that there were "many, more significant differences",^[45] and concluded that RahXephon "deserves to be recognised outside of its comparisons to a certain Hideaki Anno animation."^[27]

Production connections

• Mitsuo Iso who was a writer and key animator on NGE also wrote and directed RahXephon episode 15 "Child Hood's End". Yoji Enokido wrote the screenplay for episode 20 "Interested Parties" and for NGE episode 11 "The Day Tokyo-3 Stood Still".
• Although no regular roles had common seiyū in Japan, both shows were dubbed into English and released by ADV Films. As a result, Allison Keith and Tiffany Grant voice regular roles in both shows.
• Anno and Izubuchi, the chief directors of each show, both designed mecha appearing in Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack (1988) and they worked together on the Cutie Honey live action movie (2004). They appeared together in the RahXephon Complete^[46] guide book.

[edit] Infinite Ryvius

In Infinite Ryvius, another show that Izubuchi worked on, each Vaia ship shares with its mecha an incarnation that interacts with the human characters. The RahXephon has an incarnation called "Ixtli" (commonly translated as "Ishtori"); the Ryvius' is called "Neeya". In both shows, the incarnation takes the form of a person familiar to one of the human characters. The incarnations feel the pain of and express the will of the vessels. The dolems establish a psychic link to a given person; they both control and are controlled by this individual. The Vaia establish a similar link to a ship's captain, but also — to a lesser degree — to other crewmembers. This idea of a bond is fairly common in mecha shows, though not in the traditional shows where mecha were portrayed as lifeless machines.

[edit] Other anime

• AnimeNation's John Oppliger noted influences from Escaflowne, Evangelion, Revolutionary Girl Utena and "especially Megazone 23"^[47][48]
• Charles Solomon compared the premise of RahXephon with that of Dual! Parallel Trouble Adventure, but found RahXephon to be "better plotted and executed".^[25]
• Grey: Huxley found the Dolems to be "the star of the show with their bizarre, slightly disturbing designs" reminiscent of Grey.^[45]
• Brain Powerd: Anime Jump reviewer Mike Toole compared RahXephon with Brain Powerd on account of the "excellent music", design and a "frustratingly large cast and Byzantine plot" but found RahXephon "more focused".^[26] He thus disagreed with his colleague, Christian Nutt, who wrote that "[Brain Powerd] may not be as sexy, but it features a more heartfelt and original story".^[23]
• Earth Girl Arjuna: Ayato becomes the "Watcher of Time" and Arjuna becomes the "Avatar of Time"; this title is also used for a character in the Discworld novels. Arjuna gets a glowing bow, also like the RahXephon. Hiroshi Ohnogi, one of the episode writers from RahXephon, was a head writer on Arjuna.
• Ouran High School Host Club, another BONES production: The character of Renge cosplays as Quon. When asked who she is dressed as, she utters "La-la", Quon's standard expression; LaLa is also the name of the magazine where Ouran first appeared. Like Quon, Renge wears "French" style clothes.

[edit] Legacy

When asked whether robot anime following RahXephon had "lived up to the new era" Izubuchi answered "Partially yes and partially no" and regretted the focus being on financially safer remakes instead of on new creations.^[8]

[edit] See also

• Litvyak, Lydia : The namesake of the aircraft carrier Lilia Litvyak
• OOPArt : an out-of-place artifact, a term used for the Mu artefacts
• Pocky : The snack sticks often offered at Rikudo Shougo's residence.
• Ramune : The soft drink that Ayato is unfamiliar with but encounters after joining TERRA.
• Shodo : Japanese calligraphy
• Shogi : Japanese chess
• Yolteotl : a Central American spiritual concept

[edit] Notes and references

[edit] External links

• (Japanese) Official Japanese website
• (English) Official English website
• (Japanese) Official video game website
• (English) RahXephon (anime) at Anime News Network's Encyclopedia
• (English) RahXephon at the Internet Movie Database
• (English) RahXephon sites at the Anime Web Turnpike

RahXephon
Main: RahXephon | Characters | Dolem | Episodes and media
Music: "Hemisphere" | O.S.T. 1 | O.S.T. 2 | O.S.T. 3 | "Tune the Rainbow" | Movie O.S.T.