Tag: Romeo X Juliet

Ani-Mania: ‘Romeo X Juliet’ Part 2

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I hate to give a bad review of anything. I really do. I’ve long been of the opinion that the best way to handle reviews is to emphasize a series’ good points, and whom it might appeal to, rather than to go around bashing things. For example, if I tell you that Higurashi is a fiendishly clever horror story that retells the same terrifying events from several different perspectives (hint on what a future column will be about), then I have done no disservice to anyone. If you like horror stories that take a bit of detective work to decipher, then you know Higurashi might be of interest to you. If you can’t stand horror stories, or can’t enjoy something without a linear plot, well, now you know that Higurashi probably isn’t for you. Either way, everyone is served (and we all know anime is about fanservice, don’t we?)

But in the case of Romeo x Juliet, I feel like it’s only fair to say that the second half of the series just doesn’t quite measure up. It’s not that the second season is bad, but it doesn’t live up to the first season’s promise. Before I say any more, lets take a quick look at where we are.

It’s been a while since we left our two star crossed lovers back at that cliff hanger ending to season one. As the curtain goes up on the second half of Romeo x Juliet, all is not well in fair Neo Verona. Juliet has been captured by the cruel lord Montague, who declares that she will be executed. When Romeo confronts his father on Juliet’s behalf, he too falls prey to the old man’s wrath, and is exiled to a remote mining village. Once again, we are asked, is this truly a love that can never be?

But there are other forces at work. By now, the people of Neo Verona are ready to stand up to Montague’s tyranny, and William Shakespeare foments open revolt by putting on a play which champions the cause of house Capulet. Things have gone far beyond an old feud between two noble families, however. The citizens of Neo Verona want freedom, and they are willing to fight for it. Even as the power of the Montague family wanes, a new threat emerges. Aeschylus, the mysterious tree whose power holds the world together, is dying, and Juliet may be the only one who can save it.

That sounds like a heck of a lot to fit into twelve episodes, but in all honesty, large parts of the second half of this series feel open, and, well, empty. The first four episodes, nearly a third of the second season, are largely spent on Romeo’s exploits in a mining camp, as he gets to know some of the criminals who have been exiled there, and in the process, finds his own place in life. Anime is well known for this kind of character building, “bildungs roman” type of stuff, and when it’s done well, I can’t get enough of it. But here, it comes off as a couple of hours we have to sit through in order to get to the rest of the story, and we all know what happens when Haruhi gets bored, so that is definitely not a good idea.

Things do pick up later on. The episode with Will’s “play within the play” is well done, and a nice touch for Shakespeare fans. The final disc of the two disc set has some pretty intense drama as the story builds towards the climax. The ending is weird, but that’s hardly new territory for anime fans, and the overall production value remains high. But there are still parts of the story, even right at the end, that feel vacant. As I watch Juliet struggle to save Aeschylus (think World Tree. Every show these days seems to have a world tree), I’m left to wonder, how exactly did we get here?

If you’re a fan of the series, you’re probably going to want to see this — it’s still pretty good, even if it’s not great — and if you already bought the first season, you may well end up buying it, since after all, it doesn’t do you much good to have half of the show floating around in your collection. Just be warned, while the first half of the series was really good, the second season is kind of mediocre.

Whether you agree or disagree with me, feel free to post a comment telling us what you think, and why. Next week looks to be very busy here at AniMania. There’s a lot of new releases to talk about, and of course, more misadventures in the world of Otaku. If there’s anything in particular you would like to see, feel free to drop us a line.

Ani-Mania: ‘Romeo X Juliet’

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Love is something you never regret… But you might regret it if you miss this week’s AniMania feature, Funimation’s new release, Romeo X Juliet.

Based — loosely based — on William Shakespeare’s classic tale of star crossed lovers (but this time without the ninjas — read the Basilisk review if you’re confused), Romeo X Juliet provides a new spin on the old tale. Set in a fantasy world of islands in the sky and flying horses, it’s in the city of fair Neo Verona where we lay our scene. Here, citizens are in the grip of the tyrannical Montague regime, which seized power fourteen years ago by assassinating every member of the House of Capulet.

The only one brave enough to stand in the face of these oppressive dictators is the mysterious vigilante known as the Red Whirlwind. But unknown to everyone, even the Whirlwind herself, is that she is actually the last surviving heir to the Capulet family. Even worse, the handsome young boy she has just fallen in love with is from ANOTHER noble family — the Montagues.

If this sounds like a big departure from Shakespeare’s script — it is. Normally I would vigorously protest this kind of thing. But borrowing from the bard is hardly a crime. Shakespeare himself adapted most of his plays from other sources, and given the fact that it would be hard to find anyone in the US, Japan, or anywhere else in the world who doesn’t already know the original story, I don’t begrudge Studio Gonzo for taking creative license. Just know going in that if you want a rendering of the play that sticks closely to Shakespeare’s original, this isn’t it.

What Romeo X Juliet IS, however, is a fanciful re-imagining of a classic tale. It sits somewhere on a continuum between the lush period drama of Chevalier D’Eon, and the bold re-imagining of a literary classic, like Gankutsuo: The Count of Monte Cristo. But unlike either of these works, which are dark in their vision, Romeo X Juliet comes across as very light. There is tragedy, and lots of it, but there is also romance, humor, even a bit of swash buckling. The world itself feels very light and airy. The art has a fairy tale quality to it, which makes for an odd contrast with some of the very dark elements of the story.

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And on the subject of romance, Romeo X Juliet is to be commended for staying the course. Many anime give their subjects a kind of “shonen” treatment, injecting large quantities of violence, or fanservice, or both. Not so here. The show is modest enough for Queen Elizabeth, and while there is action, it is subordinate to the romantic elements. Everything about the show: the plot, the art, the music, the choices for cliff hangers at the episode breaks and lead-ins, is all geared to emphasize the romantic portions of the plot.

While a marked departure, the series does make a genuine effort to bring as much Shakespeare into the story as possible, going beyond the borders of the source play to pull in characters from many of the bard’s other works. Will himself makes an appearance, both as a character, and as the narrator for the previews at the end of each episode. It may not be accurate enough to cheat and use Romeo X Juliet as cliff notes to pass your lit class (though if you try, I want to read your paper), but there’s more than enough here to make a literary student smile.

The cast boasts some worthy stars to be crossed, including Chris Burnett (Big Windup) as Romeo and Brina Palencia (Negima — that’s right, the voice of Yue!) as Juliet. Other notables include Colleen Clinkenbeard (xxxHolic) as Cordelia, Sean Michael Teague (Jyu Oh Sei,) as Benvolio, Eric Vale (Fruits Basket) as Francisco, Robert McCollum (Witchblade) as Curio, Carrie Savage (Solty Rei) as Hermione, and Mike McFarland (Trinity Blood) as one very bad-ass Tybalt. Clearly, Will has a crowded stage to work with.

Production value is high. The art is beautiful, and the music comes courtesy of Final Fantasy VII composer, Hitoshi Sakimoto. The opening theme, Inori, is a Japanese version of “You Raise Me Up” as sung by Lena Park and it sounds every bit as beautiful in translation as it does in the original. The ending, Cyclone, is light J-rock, performed by 12012.

The show is being released in what seems to be the new Funimation standard, the entire season, split into two halves. Part one, dubbed the “Romeo Collection”, contains episodes 1-12 on two discs, in a thin pack. The second part, the “Juliet Collection”, will contain episodes 13-24, and is scheduled to be released on 8/11.

We all know how the play ends, but will our young lovers from Neo Verona meet the same fate? Is this truly a love that cannot be? We’ll have to keep watching to find out.

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