Last Exile - The Complete Series

For as long as human beings have existed, we have prided ourselves in being a species of innovation and success, and out successes have led us to imagine reaching more prestigious accomplishments than before; eventually, our dreams not surprisingly ventured into the skies. Since the dawn of time, humans gazed upward at the birds gliding under the clouds and we desperately desired to soar as well. In ancient Greece, one of the most enduring myths from that time is the tale of Icarus, who attempted escaping prison with his father by donning a pair of wings. In Italy during the Renaissance, the famous Leonardo da Vinci crafted elaborate designs for aviation but hid them for years, fearing that influential people would have corrupt uses for them. In the 1800s, an African-American folk tale surfaced throughout the Deep South titled “All God’s Chillun Had Wings”, which revolved around black slaves floating away from the oppressive white owners and returning to their homeland Africa. All of these ideas and more eventually culminated in the Wright Brothers inventing the first airplane during the early 1900s. This creation served as the catalyst for films like Porco Rosso, Red Tails, and (of course) Soul Plane. However, before the 2000s, there were no anime series representing that category. Then, in the spring of 2003, the world was introduced to a 26-episode series known as Last Exile, the 10th anniversary product of Studio Gonzo, humankind’s ultimate celebration of our adventures in the sky. Established on the Earth-like planet called Prester are two vastly different nations (Anatoray and Disith), locked in a neverending war of chivalry, elitism, and death in order to attain control of the skies. Fully immersed into this Cold War parallel (with Anatoray’s guys in blue being the USA and Disith’s soldiers in red coats being, of course, the Soviet Union) is a mysterious cult-ish organization known as the Guild, headed by the infamous Maestro Delphine, who supplies advanced airplanes, funds, and weaponry to both Anatoray and Disith, who both countries regard with intense suspicion, and who represent the corrupt companies that have bought into, promoted, and benefited from war over the centuries. Like Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood (what I consider to be the anime’s anime), Exile’s background is inspired by the apex of the Industrial Revolution in the late 1800s/early 1900s, its genre heavily leaning towards the retrofuturistic dieselpunk. This ultimately helps the series inject a lovably throwback feel to it, and this influence flows into other aspects of Exile, like the animation. More often than not, anime series tend to rely on computer graphics (CG for short) in order to make their characters and backgrounds look more realistic than the creators can on their own. More often than not, the creators completely shoot themselves in the foot in the animation category because the CG looks and feels utterly out-of-place in their series. However, Last Exile is among the rare series that manage to not only display picture-perfect CG but also to flawlessly integrate it into the animation. It is so smoothly blended into Exile that, for the most part, the CG use isn’t blatantly obvious. Among the most apparent CG uses in Exile is during in-battle aerial attacks, where it is used to emphasize the whispery blue and gray explosion smoke. In every scene, there’s a faded tint present in the animation that causes this series to feel seasoned but appear brand-new; this tint also contributes to strengthening Exile’s aforementioned throwback feel. The impact of Last Exile’s animation on the series overall, already brilliantly jaw-dropping as it is, increases when it journeys into the cinematic. In episode 13, the sound of gunfire is used to guide the transition from one dramatic still shot to another. There’s a stunning scene in episode 18, where blood-red rose petals are slowly drifting from the sky to signal the beginning of Maestro Delphine’s active involvement in the series. In episode 22, there’s beautifully back lighting of Delphine’s face as she presents herself in front of her followers. This scene emanates a strong hint of majestic malevolence thanks to the haunting, mysterious chimes that are showcased here, which leads to another aspect Last Exile excels at: its soundtrack. The conventional method of producing an anime soundtrack is giving one person the authority to decide what fits and what doesn’t, what sounds complement the series and what doesn’t, and what the music’s tone will be overall. For Cowboy Bebop, it was Yoko Kanno. For Gurren Lagann, it was Taku Iwasaki. For Afro Samurai, it was Robert Diggs (aka The RZA). The implied consensus is that more than one person composing an anime OST is a recipe for disaster. However, Last Exile has three people lording over the soundtrack (the call themselves “Dolce Triade”) and it still manages to be spectacular. First of all, the theme song (Shuntara Okino’s “Cloud Age Symphony”), and ending theme (Hitomi Kuroishi’s “Over the Sky”) are both phenomenally performed and composed. This show absorbs you into it and makes you feel like you’re in the sky with its excellent, atmospheric soundtrack. During fights, it’s mostly grandiose, Hans Zimmer-esque orchestral music used to craft a gung-ho mood; only in the most action-packed sequences are passionate violin solos in attendance. A vague presence of somber jazz is occasionally woven into the soundtrack while complex compositions of piano and drums appear in Exile’s more relaxed scenes. The soundtrack would’ve been my favorite aspect of this series, if not for the characters.“The success or failure of this operations hinges on the efforts of the entire crew,” – Sophia Forrester (episode 19) Unlike a lot of anime series, Last Exile’s cast is, for the most part, one filled with real people, with real emotions, with real aspirations, and with real idiosyncrasies. The characters’ relationships and interactions with each other is the crème de la crème of this series. The All-Star voiceover crew that contribute their talents to Last Exile help immensely with the characterization overall, big names like Steve Blum, Michelle Ruff, Crispin Freeman, and Johnny Yong Bosch dropping by here. As a result, more than a few characters are able to establish themselves as unforgettable figures in Exile. Dio Eraclea is Exile’s comic relief, a wildly unpredictable eccentric often in a playful mood (Lucciola, Dio’s absurdly quiet companion, serves as a stark contrast to this free spirit) but later on his sanity spirals downward until his former self is completely gone. Mullen is a soldier in the Anatoray/Disith War and, while he would’ve been forgettable in any other anime, he shines as a particularly immortal supporting character; Mullen is the embodiment of the Everyday Man with a purpose in life that helps drive the series forward. Lavie Head is one of the two protagonists of this series (Claus Valca is the other; I’ll get to him later), the heart and soul of Last Exile. At the start of the series, Lavie can be best described as a fiery soul (extremely common among anime’s other red-headed chicks), a mechanic of exuberance and passion yet hardened by the very personal effects of the War. As Last Exile progresses, Lavie’s enthusiasm mellows out, revealing a character that’s more self-reflective and soft-hearted than before (She occasionally dips her toes into philosophy). From beginning to end, Lavie is among the series’ most likable characters (as well as one of my favorites). Maestro Delphine is the antagonist of Exile; she is the aforementioned ruler of the Guild, utterly unquestioned in her authority, single-minded in her elitist worldview. In her role as Delphine, Karen Strassman delivers her distinctly soft and sexy whisper of a voice yet there’s a razor-sharp coldness to her gentleness that hasn’t been present in any of her previous voiceovers. In what’s arguably the greatest performance of her career, Strassman strides into her role, emphasizing the mystique, the snobbery, and the sadism that serve as this character’s most defining traits. There are more than a few unexplained aspects involving Delphine; however, she is still an enjoyably arrogant villainess but unfortunately not the most unforgettable character. Maestro Delphine, instead, will have to settle for second place, surpassed only by my favorite character: the man, the myth, and the legend, Alex Freaking Row.“If I don’t come into this willing to sink him, then I won’t be able to defeat Alex Row,” – Vincent Alzay (Episode 12) In a series for which characterization is a calling card, Alex Row stands out. In a series celebrating the virtues of the spectacular, Alex Row stands out. In a medium that glorifies the dark and brooding, Alex Row stands out. He is the fearsome captain of the infamous Silvana, a man whose name is regarded with uneasy respect due to his unrivaled in-battle accomplishments; it is also due to his personality essentially being a complex jigsaw puzzle. Row is a man of mystery whose all-black character design causes him to appear as a nightmarish specter when blended into the shadows. Like a ghost, Row doesn’t walk but glides, vanishing from sight almost immediately after he materializes. With the aid of his blank, almost serene visage, Row’s bored yet ice-cold gaze causes more than a few characters to wilt in intimidation; he simply obliterates people with his stare. Unlike the punch-drunk brawlers that have for years invaded the anime world, the sophisticated Silvana captain is a man of strategy, often planning much farther ahead of his opponents, sparing no sentimental notions in his pursuit of victory (Of course, he is also an excellent chess player on the side). When not in battle, Row keeps to himself, a liquor bottle at his side, contemplating his past and drowning his woes in alcohol in order to avoid confessing his sins of long ago. Throughout the duration of Exile, Row is concealing a heartbreaking backstory involving Delphine and is harboring a deep-seated hatred for her. In his epic years-long quest for revenge, Row cruelly pushes away anyone attempting to get close to him (occasionally, this includes Sophia, the person who cares about him the most). Row has effectively sealed his true feelings in a cage inside his heart (like Paul D in Toni Morrison’s Beloved) while maintaining an exterior of morally questionable motives, withering remarks, and unsettling coldness. At some point in this series, I was no longer a member of the Alex Row Fan Club. Don’t get me wrong; he was still a well-written character and an intriguing one at that. You respected Row but I’m not sure you truly sympathized with him. Ultimately, it was easy to assume that he was establishing a legacy as an unsatisfying character, and that he would have no further involvement in Exile. What happened? Late in the series (episode 21 of 26, in fact), Delphine and her Guild capture the Silvana and are searching around the ship for the captain. They eventually give up and are just about to depart the Silvana when Alex Freaking Row materializes out of nowhere, rapidly firing bullet after bullet at the attacking Guild members with a pair of gunknives. (Like, who does that?). After this magnificent comeback, Delphine imprisons and poisons Row, slowly decomposing his body away by the second. As before, I held my doubts that Row would re-emerge into the spotlight but, in the end, he does it in such a thrilling and climatic fashion that the whole sequence is a spoiler I won’t ruin. The message, as always: don’t underestimate Alex Freaking Row. He is a Byronic Hero of epic proportions, voyaging across the skies for redemption. He is a man of 007-esque coolness (In one scene, Row even steals an immortal line from GoldenEye while talking to Sophia as he says, “It’s [revenge] is what keeps me alive,”) but is more than capable of unleashing raw outbursts of fury. He is a warrior of almost-mythical formidability but displays strokes of vulnerability more often than not. He is, above all else, what all anime antiheroes should aspire to be, the Batman of this medium. It’s no wonder that the brain trust behind Last Exile originally intended for Alex Freaking Row to be the main character.Then, what caused this same brain trust to ultimately choose Claus Valca over Row?“Up in these skies, I was nothing but… a spectator,” – Claus Valca (episode 25) During Claus’ first experience inside the Guild’s lair, he refers to the zomibified Dio as “an empty, soulless shell.” Claus’ evaluation of Dio is deliciously ironic in that Dio 2.0 isn’t the only blank slate in Exile. It’s downright shocking that, in a series overflowing with realistic, well-written characters, the protagonist is yet another walking cliché, yet another subpar self-insert leading man. Watching Claus, who receives the most screen time by far, trek through Last Exile is a thoroughly frustrating experience for several reasons. This guy has one job to do, to one-up his dead daddy by crossing a particularly treacherous section of the sky known as the Grand Stream, but for a lengthy stretch of the series couldn’t manage that without getting sidetracked. First, Claus wants to protect a shy loli named Alvis (entrusted to him and Lavie early on), who by the way is secured on the Silvana (often dubbed “the safest place in the world”). (Alvis doesn’t need protecting, you idiot!) Then, Claus decides to forsake his lifelong mission while claiming the Silvana as his residence in order to “know what’s going on in the skies”, a truly brainless move that made me and Lavie pissed off. (You can do that while looking for the Grand Stream!) As you can probably tell, I’ve been irritated at Claus’ existence virtually from the start but what marginal sympathy I held for him was utterly expunged in episodes 14 to 16 or as I like to label it “the Harem King Arc”. From the very beginning, Lavie and Gale (the Silvana’s homosexual mechanic) have obviously had a thing for Claus. Then, he suddenly becomes the object of sexual obsession for the kuudere pilot Tatiana. To top it all off, Claus receives a kiss from none other than a princess (Seriously, when did this guy become Mr. Steal Your Girl?). It’s pathetic that a series as phenomenal as this attempts convincing you that this forgettable, monotonous, almost-robotic kid with the personality of a stuffed animal is actually a ladies’ man. More than anything else, what causes the Harem King Arc to embody the very worst of this classic is that it’s never discussed, mentioned, or referenced again. It pains me to criticize Claus Valca like this because his voice actor is the legendary Johnny Yong Bosch (the same man who wonderfully exuded an easygoing façade while masking a volatile whirlwind of fear, sorrow, and indignation in his role as Trigun’s Vash the Stampede), and I expected Bosch to dominate here like he did in Trigun but that never happened. Speaking of disappointment, the grand finale of Last Exile can be best described as… rushed. There are several unintroduced plot elements that just sucker-punch you without warning, leaving the finale’s events to feel thrown together. In this episode, a beloved character dies needlessly and pathetically (though I heard he somehow re-emerges for the sequel) while another fan favorite, this one tragically killed, abruptly pops in during the time skip alive and well (Seeing this guy’s grinning face rise from the cornfield almost gave me a heart attack). In spite of my thoughts on Claus and the series finale, Last Exile still earns my respect for exploring a unique genre in anime, for thriving as the rare series that didn’t originate from a manga, and for an excellent representation of the joys of aviation.

Right off let me say that this is about the perfect mix of being an anime that is cool, action packed, and something adults can enjoy while at the same time kid friendly with very little bad language and what is there is PG rated, no sexually inappropriate material, violence while there isn’t over the top. Really the first anime that I’ve found that is fit for a younger audience while still just as entertaining for older audiences. The militaristic/naval vocabulary and all the scenes in battle of the bridge is amazing and seems pretty realistic. The characters are all great, at first I really hated Dio, but once I figured him out I grew to like him. Vincent is probably my favorite minor character, there was just something about him. There really isn’t much to criticize as far as characters go. The animation varies. I do not like CGI animation, but it actually looks really really good at times, but other times it clashes. The more traditional animation looks great. It was just hit or miss though throughout the entire show whether I would find the animation great or distracting. The story is also very good with one big caveat. It felt like someone was writing a 30 page A+ paper for an English class then the bell rang and they had to skip the last couple paragraphs and write a conclusion. It was a very anticlimactic ending but that’s ok, not everything has to have this huge battle at the end, but again it felt like the skipped to the end and when you get to the end you are asking yourself, “ok, who are those people?” “What is that thing?” “Where are they?” “How in the world did that person all the sudden show back up?” “How much time has passed?” If you’ve seen it I’m sure you understand, if you haven’t don’t worry it’s not enough to dissuade you from watching. Overall it’s fantastic and had the potential to be one of the best if it would have just executed until the end and not checked up right at the finish line. Some questions may have been left up to the viewers own interpretation on purpose but a lot of things just could have been explained to really tie everything together. I will also say it can be confusing understanding exactly who everyone is and what side and all the ins and outs but it comes together as you go and the 2nd watch through everything will make sense.

A fantastic anime, and one that doesn't deal with over-exposition: Last Exile is a show that prefers to explain things through visuals and story events rather than by stopping and speaking for minutes. Many animes are guilty of unnecessary exposition, so this is a nice change of pace.The universe of the show is fascinating, and I could only wish that there were more episodes to expand on it. Really, this deserves to be seen as a classic in Japanese animation. Quite honestly, only the CGI looks dated here, and it really doesn't matter: this looks great.Only sad thing with Last Exile is that the "second season" of the show never lived up to it and never expanded on it in a true way.This deserves its 5/5, and would deserve a Blu-ray release (but apparently we only get DVD so we'll live with it).

Esta versión está remasterizada y tiene una calidad muy bonita, tal vez no en HD por el año en que fue hecha. La recomiendo muchísimo, solo que esta versión en inglés solo se pueden reproducir en DVDs multiregión. Pensé que venía con algún booklet pero no, solo viene los 4 discos.

One all the family can watch. No swearing or limbs being severed. An alternative world of steam powered ships in the sky.

It had a good story, and some good action.

First I want to say that anime like any movie genre is subjective!!!This is one of my favorite anime of all time. The animation is beautiful, the story isn't too long nor too short and is well written (26 episodes/1 season, in addition the characters are captivating. The story starts off a little slow, you wonder "where are they going with this?" but if you stick with it you won't be disappointed.I would recommend this movie to anymore who likes unconventional story lines or for people who have a passion for airplanes.