Fantastic Children

STORY At first glance, this looks like some weird story about kids, targeted at kids. But don't be fooled by the simple character design or the title. This series is actually quite intense, with a memorable and complex plot and good storytelling that will draw older viewers waiting with bated breath for what happens next. It is definitely not a series just for children. The story revolves around a group of mysterious children who appear every once in a while throughout Europe. Who are they, where are they from, and why do they keep on reappearing? These are some of the questions that are being answered bitby bit throughout the series. At the same time, the story also follows another group of children who have run away from the local orphanage, and are searching for a place they want to go. At first, it seems that these two main plots have nothing to do with each other, but at the middle of the series, the two plots converge, and the viewer discovers that they are closely connected after all. There are also a couple of sidestories with a few adults involving something almost supernatural. Although these sidestories seem off-track, they are related to the main plot in one way or another, and are tied together in the last few episodes. The plot is fairly complex and quite involved, but not to a point where it's confusing. The story is told in a way that it's pretty understandable if you pay attention to it. The story is full of surprises, twists, and secrets that will keep the viewer guessing and wondering what happens next. The tone of the series is mostly serious. But there is room for some bits of humour and lighthearted fun. There are also a few philosophical questions subtlely being looked at, such as what makes us who we are as humans, is it our souls or our current selves? In terms of love, there are many types being explored: romantic, family, friendships, unrequited, and broken. CHARACTERS Even though it doesn't look like it at first, each character is connected to one another in one way or another, and that connection is revealed piece by piece throughout the series. The Children of Belfort: This is the name given to seven mysterious white-haired, blue-eyed children who have appeared for 21 times in the last couple of centuries. They'd gather and run away from their homes when they turn 5, and never live past the age of 11. They search desperately for something before their time is up. The way they talk and act make them more like adults than children. At first, they seem cold and distant, and even perhaps malevonant. But as their stories and pasts are revealed, the viewer comes to feel compassion for them, and their mission. Each person has their own stories and own unique personalities that will touch the viewers' hearts. Dumas: The mysterious white-haired boy who appears a few times at the beginning of the series. Appearance-wise, he seems to be one of the Children of Belfort, but he doesn't seem to be working with them. Who he is and his background story will be revealed later in the series. Helga: She is an orphan who is kind, but seems to be always lonely. She keeps on drawing pictures of a mysterious place that she wants to go, and she would run away from the orphanage to search for the place in her memory. Her friend Chitto is determined to help her get there. At first she seems meek and timid and always in a daze, but as the series progresses, her inner strength is slowly unveiled. Thoma: He grew up around the Islands, and knows them well. He meets Chitto and Helga by chance, and is drawn to help Helga get to the place she wants to go. He is a determined young boy who is open and shows emotions easily. Little does he know, he's more closely connected to the Children of Belfort and Helga than he realises. Dr. Gherta: She is the director and doctor of the mysterious and suspicious organization Ged Group. A brilliant scientist, she's somewhat single-minded and almost obsessive with her project, which, for most of the series, is unclear and even almost malicious. But the viewer gradually sympathizes with her plight, especially towards the end when she has a few secrets of her own to unravel. Detective Cooks: A detective who has been investigating the disappearance of these children, he got interested in them because his grandfather was involved with the children during his lifetime, and Cooks became curious of his grandfather's findings. As more of a spectator, his sidestory gives the viewer some background information and history to the Children of Belfort. All of the characters are pretty human, and although they main characters are only children, the circumstances that they're involved in and how they react make them seem older, and thus even an older audience can relate to them. By the end of the series, the viewer is able to sympathize with all of the characters, even if at first they may seem unlikable or malicious. ART The character design and art style is certainly unique, though not the prettiest; in fact, the designs could be said to be boring and quite simple. The children are designed more or less short and a bit stubby, and not a lot of details is given in the eye or hair area. The clothing design is also a bit boring, though it has a country-style flavour to it. However, the expressions for the characters are mostly well-done. The background art is very beautiful, with lots of lush forests and unexplored islands. The setting has a sort of semi-tropical or Central/South American feel to it (the ruins of temples and statues remind me of the Aztec or Mayan ruins, but also has a sort of exotic island feel), or maybe with a dash of exotic Asian feeling too (with some of the statues looking a bit like Buddhist statues, and the colourful and busy marketplace of Middle East). The cities though, take on a more 19th century European flavour (even though the story is set in 2012), with cobble-stone streets and stocky buildings. In general, the art is just different, and may take some getting used to. Instead of following the latest trend of shiny backgrounds, brightly coloured and detailed character designs, this series is going against the grain by looking back to the style of the older animes. The general colour palette of the series is kind of dark, with mostly grays and greens and blues, with a lot of scenes taking place during storms or at night; it's not neccessarily drab, but it's certainly not brightly coloured. There are a few exceptions with the scenes taking place in the forest on the islands, where the colours are contrasted sharply with the darker scences, using lots of bright greens and yellows. But I think this lack of shiny backgrounds and special effects, and simple character design does add to the sadness and longing feeling of the story. And rather focusing on the character designs (and fanservice), the simple art makes the viewer able to pay more attention to the story and character development. VOICES The voices for this series is okay. It doesn't really stand out anywhere, but it is mostly ear-pleasing and suitable for the characters. And most of the actors do a good enough job bringing out the emotions, especially towards the end, the viewers can almost feel the characters sorrow or joy. MUSIC The music is one of the strengths of this series. The opening song "Voyage" by Inori, is dramatic and uplifting, but also gentle and calming, a perfect opening for the series. It is also used as an insert song for one of the episodes, but with a slightly different arrangement, it's slower, with piano and cello in the background, and adds a sense of sadness to the scene. The ending song, "Mizu no Madoromi" by ORIGA (who sang both of GiTS openings) is sad and nostalgic, as if longing for something, and very fitting to the theme of the series. I would definately recommend getting the opening and ending singles (it's one of the best I've heard). The background music uses a combination of piano, cello, and a bit of flute. The theme for the Belfort Children is very memorable (with piano and cello), and a bit sad, like the fate of these children. The only downside is that this theme is a bit overused, being played in almost every episode. Helga's theme (which is mostly flute and cello) is also gentle and pretty, and suits her character well. The background music is mostly soft and sad, with a few upbeat songs for the tenser scenes. It uses raw traditional instrumental sounds rather then edited sound effects, which works well. And I'd recommend getting the OST "Memory of Greecia" as well. PRESENTATION The first half of the series takes place in the current world at the current time, mostly following the adventures of Helga, Thoma, and Chitto, as well as that of the Children of Belfort and the people around them. Then the next couple of episodes focus on the background story and history of the series. Then that last ten or so episodes brings the characters and sidestories from the beginning of the series and tie everything together. The pace may seem a bit slow for those who are used to action right away and in every episode. Many of the episodes are used to tell the story and advance the plot, or explain the history and background rather than pure action. And because of the complex plot and how everything is weaved together, some parts of the plot may take some time to develop. But I found it interesting enough that it's not a boring explaination, and it does help to understand the plot much better. And worry not, there are plenty of action interspersed throughout. Personally, I find the pace okay, it's just that there's so much to take in and explain that it takes time. I find the plot to be interesting, and not too confusing to understand, and it did leave me wanting to know more after every episode. And in the end, all of the questions that I wanted to ask have been answered, so I find the ending to be satisfying. Overall, it is an enjoyable series, and I'd recommend it. In fact, I think this series needs more love and attention.

Things go pretty slowly for a while, but if you're watching and wondering if things eventually pick up, well, yes, they do, around ep. 11, and most of what happens is explained, although it's not really anything as complex and sophisticated as Stand Alone Complex and there are certainly a few loose ends and deus ex machinii. (Not as complex as Stand Alone Complex? Just call me Unrealistic Expectations Man.) Normally I drop a show 2 eps in if it doesn't catch my interest, but this is a favorite of one of my friends here, so I kept watching. What do I think? I think itcould have used a bigger animation budget and could have been cut down from 26 to 22 or even 20 episodes. Animation is kind of low budget. Fantastic Children looks and feels like it was made in the '80s. The color palette should have at least been more vibrant. I mean, sure, you have only so much money for your budget. But if you look at, say, Noir, or Requiem from the Darkness, they managed to have some interesting animation without spending a ton of money on it. What if everything looked like the paintings in the ED? OK, maybe that's impractical, but it's still possible to look interesting on a budget. There is way too much time spent on shots of people just standing around, or extended close-ups of people looking surprised. There are a few things where a situation is first explained, then shown. It would have been better if it had just been shown. And, in general, the pacing is just a bit too slow for me. It's not that I don't appreciate Mushishi or Kino's, but that's not the style of this series. You can almost but not quite just skip a couple of the early episodes. Just don't watch eps 1-10 when you feel like watching something where lots of stuff is happening. There are a few pretty silly things. The guys with hats, for example. It's also a bit disappointing how not all of the characters that a lot of time is spent with get to actually do much. Voice acting is good. (The characters get intense towards the end, which is tough to do.) Some of the music, like in the last parts of ep 18, is alright too. (Yes I like the ep 18 Russian version of the ED better. So sue me.) The ED is mizu no madoromi, sung by Origa, by the way. But why oh why did they have to have some of the characters try to sing? So is it worth watching? Does the ending deliver? Overall I'd give it a 7, which means worth watching but not worth buying, and I'd say it's better than or but worse than or . The drama and action pick up continuously towards the end, so the second half is better than the first. If you haven't seen, say, Gankutsuou, I'd suggest watching that before this, but Fantastic Children isn't *bad* and I don't regret watching it. The characters aren't cardboard cutouts, and there's not anything else like that to make me *dislike* it. There are just better series out there. I guess I'd suggest watching it if you like puzzle series and Final Fantasy. Especially Final Fantasy. I'd say it reminds me most of El Hazard the Magnificent World, minus comedy and with somewhat better characters and somewhat slower paced and a bit less coherent and most importantly minus the awesomeness of cat-based armor technology. Well, I hope this review can help someone decide whether to watch Fantastic Children, but I somewhat doubt it.

Just... wow. I just finished it and I'm blown away. I haven't cried this hard at an anime since I was on the last episodes of Clannad After - FC hit strings I didn't even know I have. From the moment Gretha remembered she was Mel, to Helga and Duma's little bonding session - and Thoma, oh god, Thoma. Just - I was sobbing and still feel like crying when I think about it. Sakamoto Maaya as Mel was fantastic. This is the second time I've ever cried for a side character - the first time was Shiroe from Terra e, and even Shiroe was setup as a main character for two episodes. Her voice brought so many feelings to life in her. I've never held her as the voice acting goddess her reputation holds her, but now suddenly I'm not sure anymore. But the biggest star in this anime was Junko Minagawa as Thoma. When Thoma started bawling, it was impossible not to be pulled in along with him. Crying is often annoying, agonized tearful screams mostly unremarkable after a few hundred anime, but that - that- ... The theme songs, those beautiful, heatwrenching theme-songs, they couldn't have chosen better ones. Having Aghi sing the ending in some of the episodes was also a stroke of genius - especially because he had no singing voice to speak of. Of course, this anime had bad sides too. Heaps of them. The directing was almost amateur and the script was somewhat cheesy. Unsurprisingly, the director wrote the script too, along with one other guy, and also unsurprisingly neither of them had anything remarkable on their resume - except for this. I was never sure what the series composition guys were for what exactly animation directors are for, but after watching this, I think I understand. This anime is their work alone. Checking their resumes on ANN, it becomes even more evident - only one of the three series composition guys doesn't have several good series listed; the other two, Hiroshi Fukutomi - storyboard on LoGH and Law of Ueki, and Katsumi Terahigashi, who worked on seven episodes of Durarara and several of Cardcaptor Sakura and Umineko (which again had script trouble). I want to say more here, but I don't know how to explain it - something about the series, something they must have done, because you can feel it strongly, saved it from the bad directing, and so well that you just stop caring about it and just enjoy. The script is salvaged by the excellent use of music. I'm planning to hunt down the OST after I write this, but it wasn't the music itself that did the trick (some parts of Kara no Kyoukai still bored me out despite Kajiura Yuki's score) - it was the use of the music; it underlined every single line spoken and made it jump out and grab you, pulling you in. In some places it was overpowering, reminiscent of .hack//SIGN, in others it was rather subtle, but it always felt perfect. Also, on the art: it's not perfect, but it's wonderfully haunting after it grows on you. Greecia is just plain beautiful. Still, it's not the best ever seen and the series could have benefited possibly from more budget here - to compensate, it has a definite character. I'm not sure whether I can even give the director points for the original story, since it's eerily reminiscent of Please Save My Earth. It lacked some of the dilemmas that made PSME worth reading, but, on the other hand, at least it handled the ones it had very well. I'm glad Soran wasn't an abusive ass, I'm glad Love Rival #1 for once wasn't a dick towards everyone and that his bottled up emotions erupted realistically, and furthermore I'm glad that they didn't spend much screentime angsting over the local Yamato Nadeshiko and made her have a personality beyond that. And it was sher genius to have Thoma not be [X], but [Y]. (Spoiler?) And nobody had tragic pasts beyond what the plot required them to! Ok, Soran did, for, like, half a minute. Fantastic Children is what I wanted Please Save My Earth to be, but I wasn't expecting that when I started watching (I was seriously expecting a vampire series), and it went above and beyond that. I gave this one of my rare (maybe not so much these days that I have an idea of what to seek out) 10 ratings. In spite of its misgivings, it deserves it, in heaps.

A surprisingly disappointing show. It is impossible to do a meaningful review of this show without spoilers, so I will keep this bare bones. Story 3/10: The story is incredibly convoluted. I don't mean that it was hard to understand, because they did give relatively clear explanations for the events. The problem is just the sheer complexity of the plot, while managing to lack in substance. The story attempted to tell a lot, but many of the plot points were unnecessary, anti-climatic, and gimmicky. Characters 3/10: I had a huge complaint about multiple characters (in-fact, my biggest complaint about the show), but I cannot even brush on the reasonwhy without huge spoilers. Tone 7/10: I did like the tone throughout much of the show. They didn't try to force comedy, romance, etc. in places that didn't call for it. They let the serious scenes be serious and the lighthearted scenes lighthearted. It wasn't fantastic, but it refrained from significant faults. Setting: At times I liked it, at others I didn't. That's as much as I am willing to say in fear of spoilers. Art 6/10: The art style itself is nothing to behold. The animation is fine but in no way superb. There are a select few scenes that stood out particularly well though. Not in the details or fantastic action scenes, but instead in capturing significant meaning in a single shot with well placed and scaled objects and 'camera' (so to speak). Sound 6/10: Not much to say one way or the other. Fairly repetitive soundtrack, but usually fitting. The voice acting was fine, but was hurt by annoying dialogue (specifically, the large amount of times they screamed each other's names during higher action scenes. It's nitpicky, but got to me in a couple of episodes). Enjoyment 5/10: As I said with the art section, there where a few particular scenes that were done wonderfully. So much so, that despite being bored for a majority of the show, I'm still glad I watched it. Overall 5/10: I think my reasoning is clear. There isn't a single aspect this show excels in, and it undoubtedly has it's flaws. To be entertained by this show, you need to enjoy lots of plot turns. I don't mean plot twists (where they take what you thought you knew and change it), but pure turns. The plot likes to stop at certain points, and just move on to something utterly new with no relation to previous events. These plots do not get intertwined, instead they simply get mashed together. Sometimes, they altogether annihilate the importance of previous plot-lines. It's a pass for anyone who does not care for a fantasy/sci-fi for complexity of plot alone.

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