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[Categories: Anime Reviews]

Kino’s Journey episodes 8-10

Posted by Martin  [Tags: Kino's Journey]

Three more episodes of Kino's Journey and three more reasons why I think it's so special...it's a pretty varied assortment this time around, showing the series at its most pretentious cryptic but also at its most dazzling.

The opening episode is one of my favourites from the series so far. It is told mostly from the perspective of Nimya, a young woman who lives in one of the countries Kino visits; Kino and Hermes don't make an appearance until partway through. This is an unusual setup by the show's standards because the lead and supporting character roles appear to be reversed, but once Nimya's (and her country's) situation is explained the reason for this decision becomes clear. What results is the most effective use of running time of any episode in the series: I'm even reluctant to give much away plot-wise because it is such rewarding viewing if you sit down and watch it for yourself. It's a truly inspirational tale of how one determined individual overcomes the unfair hardships life has dealt her in order to chase her dream but is also a rare occasion when Kino and Hermes become actively involved in the affairs of the people they meet. but I doubt anyone could sit idly by and watch Nimya struggle, after all. An absolutely spectacular episode.

The next instalment didn't work quite as well for me. I think I got the general message but the storytelling seemed to get bogged down in constantly nudging the viewer into questioning what was real and what wasn't - it's one of the more demanding episodes in terms of trying to follow what's going on. That underlying 'take home' message was clear however: with the best of intentions, those in authority can do untold harm to a society through clumsy attempts at protecting the populace from what they consider to be 'harmful'. Here in the UK hardly a week passes when the media are rolling out the concept of the 'nanny state' but the issue of censorship and its relative merits is probably universal - I won't go into any political discussion here but this episode highlights how ludicrous it is to hide people away from the truths of the world. I suspect a repeat viewing is required to get used to the innovative approach to telling the story, with all its twists and turns.

The final outing is another strange one: this time Kino cannot find a whole country but stumbles upon a house with a robotic maid and a decidedly strange family. The odd behaviour of these people flags up possibilities as to what is really happening but the ending is quite surprising - it turns out to be quite a tragic story in some ways, but neatly fits a theme normally associated with science fiction tales such as Blade Runner and Ghost in the Shell into Kino's idyllic rural setting.

This was yet another inventive but varied selection of episodes which runs us through a whole array of emotions and trains of thought. The only real disappointment is that there are only three episodes to go after this...Kino's Journey is a delightfully odd series that I doubt I could ever become bored with.

[Filed under Anime Reviews]  [Tags: Kino's Journey]

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