This Ugly Yet Beautiful World

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This Ugly Yet Beautiful World

この醜くも美しい世界 (Kono minikuku mo Utsukushii Sekai)
Genre	Comedy, Drama, Romance, Science Fiction, Shounen, Seinen, Super Sentai
TV anime
Directed by	Saeki Soji
Studio	Gainax
Network	TBS Anime Network
Original run	1 April 2004 – 16 June 2004
No. of episodes	12
Manga
Authored by	Gainax (original creator) Ashita Morimi (art)
Publisher	Hakusensha
Serialized in
Original run	August 27, 2004 –
No. of volumes	3

This Ugly Yet Beautiful World (この醜くも美しい世界, Kono minikuku mo Utsukushii Sekai^?) is an anime and manga series by Gainax, by the same staff team that worked on Mahoromatic. It deals with the mass extinctions that have occurred on earth in the past. It takes this subject and shows a very interesting possibility for how it might happen today, if the basics of the story are to be believed. In doing this it touches at the love we show for others in different forms, from boyfriend-girlfriend to the love within our families. Due to this more or less constant push on relationships, this anime fits best in the moé (cute girls, romance) genre.

1 Story
2 Main characters
3 Supporting Characters
4 Trivia
5 External links

[edit] Story

Two young high school boys, Takeru and Ryo, are struggling through teenage angst when a mysterious light in the woods offers forth a young girl practically out of Takeru's dreams. They are promptly attacked by a strange alien-looking monster, which is defeated when Takeru mysteriously and spontaneously transforms into a powerful and strange looking beast himself. Not much is clear about the girl, who they name Hikari (Light), but she is more than a little bit strange. Without a memory or a past, the girl is integrated into the lives of the two boys and their families. She knows only her love for Takeru. Most of the group live in a type of group home, along with Jennifer Portman, a drunken American super-scientist who can't keep her hands off the boys and has her own theories about what Hikari is. The series follows them as they hang-out, go to school, and take trips, and all the while Hikari, and also later her "sister" Akari, learn about the human condition. They are also joined by a shape-shifting robot called Ioneos, apparently loyal to Hikari, and Kuon, a little floating alien. They also encounter more strange monsters on occasion. The series spirals towards a rather unexpected climax questioning the value of human life, relationships, love, and the spirit of survival shown by all life on Earth.

[edit] Main characters

Takeru - Takemoto Takeru is this series' main character. He appears lazy and unmotivated, but is really just unsure of his place in the world. He was the one to find and name Hikari in the first episode. He can transform into a powerful being with superstrength and sharp appendages. Voiced by: Takahiro Mizushima (Japanese), Braden Hunt (English).
Hikari - Hikari is a girl who Takeru finds in the forest and falls in love with in the first episode. Not much is known about her currently, however. Voiced by: Ayako Kawasumi (Japanese), Cynthia Martinez (English).
Ryo - Ninomiya Ryo is Takeru's best friend and is something of a ladies' man, and is consistently called 'Ro-baby' by Sakurako and Amika. He has some sort of power over the elements. Voiced by: Fujiko Takimoto (Japanese), Quentin Haag (English).
Akari - Akari is a young girl that appears just as mysteriously as Hikari. Ryo finds her and makes her part of his family. Voiced by: Ai Shimizu (Japanese), Jessica Boone (English).
Mari - Nishino Mari is Takeru's cousin. She has a habit of always nagging at Takeru for various reasons, and oftentimes the two are at odd ends. Despite this, she appears to have fallen in love with him, and is very envious of his relationship with Hikari. Voiced by: Asami Sanada (Japanese), Luci Christian (English).

[edit] Supporting Characters

Jennifer Portman - Jennifer Portman is a crazy American super-scientist who came to Japan for reasons yet unknown (most likely due to events in the first episode), and is currently boarding with Takeru, Hikari, and Mari. So far, she has yet to be seen without some kind of alcohol.

Shinichi and Daijirou- Shinichi Asakura and Daijirou Matsumura are two rather strange boys. They seem to always be dreaming up some kind of perverted fantasy, especially once they met Hikari. They even made the rather comical allusion to a 'Sailor Hikari' type scenario.

Sumie and Itchou - Itchou and Sumie Nishino are Takeru's aunt and uncle, and the parents of Mari. They took in Takeru when his mother abandoned him at a young age. Currently, they run two business ventures: One of which is a delivery business for various items, and the other is renting out their place as a boarding service for extended periods of time.

Kuon - Kuon is the name of the little creature that takes care of Akari. He looks like a specter with 2 luminous eyes but no defined body shape, except by his clothing. He is capable of levitation and apparantely has some sharp tentacles, as he is seen carrying a watermelon with these tentacles which he later uses to remove the rind from the watermelon. There is a marked similarity between Kuon and Marie from Please Teacher.

Ioneos - Ioneos is like Kuon's 'Older Brother', as he and Kuon are created from the same type of magical crystal. However, Ioneos' appearance and size are much larger and sleek than Kuon's because he is comprised of an entire crystal, save a small chipped fragment which Kuon is made from. He was sealed inside of one of the School's stone pillars, until Hikari released him during a routine fire drill. The entire school was subsequently demolished after the blast following Ioneos' release. He resides with Takeru, Ryo, Hikari and Mari in Takeru's boarding house. His powers appear to be that of shape shifting and melding with objects, as seen when he appears on the car roof, preventing Hkari from fallng from the speeding vehicle and also acting as a barrier between a natural hot spring that he accidentally uncovered during the group's mountain excursion. Ioneos enjoys drinking, and he sometimes becomes irrational after too many drinks. Jennifer ncknamed him 'Neos', saying that his original name was too long.

[edit] Trivia

In the second episode, a reference is made between Hikari and Mizuho Kazami from Please Teacher both being aliens. Also, there is a resemblance between Kuon and Marie from Please Teacher! Lum in Urusei Yatsura also appears in the episode.

In the closing credits, many of the English voice actors have fake names. For example, Mari (who is voiced by Luci Christian) is listed in the credits as being voiced by "Tabitha Hickey" and the Narrator is listed as "Eileen Dover."