Opening songs
OP 1 - Escape (Hemenway)
OP 2 - Bravblue (Flow)
Ending songs
ED 1 - Stand by me (Stereopony)
ED 2 - Lolite (Joy)
Genre: Adventure, Science fiction
Episodes: 24
I have been watching A LOT of anime, and you can easily see that by the amount of anime reviews I have posted on this blog. You'd probably know that I treat most anime sequels like their predecessors and that I'd recommend fans of an original series to watch its sequel. However, not all the time do sequels rein being as awesome as their originals, and "Eureka Seven AO" is another case of such a situation. Usually I'd say "if you loved the original, you'll love the sequel as well", but unfortunately, not this time. With this sequel, the series has taken a route that I would NEVER expect, and well, in my opinion, it strayed away from what made the original such a unique gem that could not be forgotten.
.jpg) |
| Wait, swimsuit high school girls? IS THIS EVEN "EUREKA SEVEN"?! |
The original had some good songs in it, while the 3rd opening song was horrid. Since its only 24 episodes this time round, we can't have 4 openings, so 2 will suffice. The first opening is "Escape" by Hemenway, and I don't know the band, but the song was not to my liking. A little too "shounen" for me. The first ending is "Stand by me" by Stereopony, and I'll say I miss them already. Being one of their final songs, it wasn't bad, and to be honest, it fit as an ending song.
The 2nd opening however, "Bravblue" by Flow, is a masterpiece of epic proportions. Not only was it a beautifully melodic song to listen to, it brought a complete blast of nostalgia with it sounding somewhat similar to "Days", the first opening of the original "Eureka seven". Brilliant stuff, probably my favorite Flow song as of now. The 2nd ending, "Lolite" by Joy, is a light-hearted happy song that sounds like its sang by a loli. Not bad, it doesn't really sound like something that'll be in "Eureka Seven", but at least its a little bit more on the catchy side.
Rating: 7.5/10
I think it took quite a dip. They tossed so many things out of the window with "Eureka Seven AO" that it just wasn't the same anymore. I speak as someone who loved the original. While this sequel was a pretty good anime on its own, it doesn't stand of the rift that the original once was. There were far less likable and relate-able characters, hell, there aren't even half as many characters in the sequel as there was in the original. Also, I get its a sequel, but many of the characters that we loved from the original, do not show up in the sequel (other than Eureka, which would be freaking obvious). With addition to all of that, the great feeling of seeing the Geckostate fly around being badasses wasn't there anymore, as the new staple group, "Generation Blue", is so much less interesting. Oh, and time travels. How the f**k did they fit that into the universe? What the shit?
.jpg) |
| Err....yeah, you'd never think that this was "Eureka Seven", where official corporation wear look like school uniforms. |
The series takes on a new protagonist for the sequel, and his name is Ao. Ao is 13 years old, and he is the son of Eureka and Renton Thurston. In a distant island of Japan, a woman fell out of the sky one day, and her name was Eureka. She was pregnant with a child, and while she was alienated as a being of destruction by the entire island, she gave birth to her child with the help of a kind doctor who stood by her side. That doctor is now Ao's grandfather and caretaker, as he hides most of the secret of his mother from Ao himself, with the request of Eureka. Eureka left not long after she gave birth to Ao, and for a long time he has been searching for answers. One day, a scub coral emerged on the island, causing a massive stir of panic. Generation Blue, a world known corporation for retrieving scub corals, arrive to the scene, and Ao, thinking that they have answers about his mother, starts to take action.
"Eureka Seven AO" takes on a wholesomely new spin on a plot that nobody ever expected. Overall, the production quality was pretty good, and it was a pretty sweet mecha anime, but it didn't have much of the nostalgia feel that I would expect. "Eureka Seven" and "Eureka Seven AO" are so different that you couldn't tell that they belonged to the same franchise when you put them together (hell, even the mechas look super different!) . Still, if you're a fan of the series, you should give this a go, to see how the series has changed...for better or for worse. The ending left quite a bit to be desired, I wonder if we'll see more...
Peace.
