While the TV series wasn't quite perfect, it was a great proof of concept for Kamiyama as an original storyteller, and I was excited to see how he would finish the epic story that the series started. Unfortunately, the first Eden of the East movie, subtitled The King of Eden, stands as proof that getting an original story right takes a lot more than some slick directorial work and clever scripting.

It's been six months since the events of Eden of the East. The "Noblesse Oblige" game, in which 12 unwitting victims (called Seleção) have been burdened with ten billion yen, a concierge that uses that money to carry out their every whim, and an obligation to "save Japan," is still in progress. The remaining Seleção, those who were not killed or otherwised removed from the game during the series, are still trying to track down the "Supporter," the one player among them who supposedly kills each Seleção when their funds run out. Takizawa, the quirky young man who served as our protagonist for the TV series, has gone missing, and his records show that he gave an order to his concierge to turn him into the "King of Japan," an order that apparently involved wiping his memory and giving him a new name (again).

Our story opens with Saki, a recent college graduate whose budding romance with Takizawa flung her into danger during the Eden TV series, trying to track him down in New York City. From the get-go, I was stunned by Kamiyama's attention to detail. New York looks spot-on, from the EZ-Pass toll booths to the NYC Taxi logos to the diffused lights in the windows of apartment buildings. Yusuke Takeda's (Giant Robo, Ghost in the Shell: Stand-Alone Complex, Gankutsuou) art direction strikes a delicate balance, creating scenes that are believable, but not so photorealistic that they're distracting.

It's that sort of delicacy that characterized Kamiyama's work on the TV series as well, and it follows through to the film. Takeda's backgrounds mesh perfectly with Kamiyama's screenplay and Satoru Nakamura's (Ghost in the Shell: Stand-Alone Complex) animation direction, which focus on a sort of slightly cartoonish realism. City streets look like real city streets, characters talk about taxes and politics like real people, and technology works the way real technology works (with some exceptions). There is comedy to be had among the drama, however, and this adds that splash of silliness that keeps the film from going too deep down the rabbit hole.

He may have the execution perfectly mastered, but a flawless genius Kenji Kamiyama is not. While each piece of the story is compelling in its own right, they never really mesh into a cohesive whole. Furthermore, the central conflict is never clear, since the most threatening villains are either off doing things unrelated to the main characters, are shown to be harmless fools, or are turned into good guys! In the end, there's not much to actually be worried about, since the protagonists are never in any real danger.

Look at this! I've gotten six paragraphs into this review without mentioning that amnesia is the most lazy way to start a follow-up to a popular TV series. Once they meet back up, Saki and Takizawa's relationship ends up being essentially the same as it was at the end of the show, so amnesia doesn't even seem to be a way out of some inescapable plot cul-de-sac. Building on the existing character relationships and simply moving ahead with new challenges would have made for a much more interesting film, and I don't really understand why Kamiyama didn't go down that route.

FUNimation's dub is a little overacted at times, as was the case for the original Eden of the East, but some of the more subdued roles, like Saki (Leah Clark), Takizawa (Jason Liebrecht), Hirasawa (J. Michael Tatum), and the sultry concierge Juiz (Stephanie Young) convey the tone of the story quite well. Unfortunately, the occasional odd deliveries mean it's going to be tough for non-anime fan types to take this seriously, despite the very Hollywood-style premise of the series.

The true finale comes in the second movie, so I will reserve my judgment on the entire series until I see it. However, The King of Eden is a weak follow-up to the already somewhat unsatisfying TV series ending. While it continues to prove that Kenji Kamiyama is a competent director who can construct beautiful ambiance and believable character relationships, the movie also seems to pull away the curtain on his seeming inability to tie up a complex, original narrative. Unless you're someone who really loved the TV series, this film's not for you.

Ani-Gamers: Mamoru Oshii was your mentor. As the director of Stand-Alone Complex, what was it like to create such a large-scale follow-up to the Ghost in the Shell film, which is arguably Oshii's most important work?

Kenji Kamiyama: People ask [me] that question a lot, and everyone asks me if I got a huge pressure, but I actually really enjoyed it, and it wasn't stressful at all. It was like making my own style from Oshii's work.

AG: I can't help but notice a lot of American culture reflected in your works. Do you have any favorite American movies or directors?

KK: Star Wars. [The] first American guy's name I remembered was George Lucas. [Also] Steven Spielberg, Ridley Scott (but he's British), [and] James Cameron. I liked Avatar too.

AG: Your works feature characters who are older and deal with a lot more mature issues. Do you think anime featuring these types of characters will gain popularity and help bring more mature viewers to this kind of medium?

KK: Yeah, I think so. I like to make a character something just like you, but also put some hope or something I [want] to be, so you can [feel] a longing [for] the character.

For more AnimeNEXT 2010 coverage, click here!

The story is simple enough. Balsa, an experienced spear-wielding bodyguard, is charged to protect the second prince of a feudal empire, Chagum, who holds inside of him the egg of a water spirit that could summon either rain or drought. As Balsa hides the prince from pursuers from the palace, he is instituted in the school of simple peasant life, becoming his own man. On the way we learn the vast details of this world, a mélange of nearly every Asian culture, from ancient Chinese Dynasties to Shinto/Taoism fusion. It’s a pleasing aesthetic, achieving a sort of visual zen in background art. These details flesh out the world, its countries, landscapes and cultures with magnificent detail, giving the World of Warcraft writers a serious run for their money.

Our main character, Balsa, is unlike any protagonist I’ve ever encountered. For starters, she’s in her thirties. I KNOW, RIGHT?! Second of all, she has no sword. IS THIS ANIME?! And the series goes without flashbacks until five episodes from the end. THAT’S IMPOSSIBLE! The fight scenes (all five of them) are fluid, kinetic, and framed in real-time, making them visceral, gritty and real. They are so brilliantly choreographed and stunning to watch that it’s almost a letdown when they end, like eating the cherry off the sundae before the ice cream gets to melt.

Seieri’s supporting cast is diverse, though distant and dry. Shaman Torogai is old, vulgar yet wise. Her apprentice Tanda is reserved and...that’s about it. He makes herbs. The palace’s master astrologist, Shuga, spends much of the series in research, as we never quite understand every detail to the egg inside Chagum nor what to do with it. The eight assassins sent after Balsa are the most well-coordinated criminal-investigator ninja ever. (Law & Order meets Ninja Scroll). However, the mood of the series and monotonous voice directing take away a lot of the passion and interest from the characters.

With twenty-six episodes to develop this year-long tale, the show spreads itself pretty thin in order to properly cultivate the world and the handful of essential characters, which can be enough for some, but a turn-off for many viewers.

The pacing of Seirei no Moribito is the most prominent element of this series, and it has to be properly addressed. Sluggish at times, comatose at others, it’s hard to watch this series one episode at a time. Many chapters revolve around a single dialogue that will have little or no consequence, or if it does, the subtlety is so intense that you lose track of what you’re watching. Sometimes the pacing simply embellishes the lavish and meticulously-detailed backgrounds, which is needed in order to show off just how beautiful they are. However, there are several stretches of episodes where NOTHING happens; maybe Shuga researches or Chagum delivers a public lecture on game theory, but these episodes are a battle against your eyelids.

Pacing problems set aside, this is a simple tale beautifully animated, and when it decides to be an action series, it’s on par with the fights of Cowboy Bebop and the boss fight from Grenadier. Solid story-telling with a memorable cast.

good.

Eden comes from visionary director Kenji Kamiyama, who writes, directs, and creates the project, and who has had a very impressive career even before Eden. He directed the hit action show Serei no Moribito, is responsible for direction, composition, and script for every non-Oshii Ghost in the Shell production, and worked on script and planning on Blood: The Last Vampire. The relatively young Kamiyama has created a powerful cautionary tale about the tragedy of uncompassionate ambition. Keep an eye on this capable and talented story-teller.

Eden’s narrative keeps you in the dark between two central characters, one who is helpless in the world, and one who can save it. Saki is a young computer science student who discovers Takizawa in front of the White House, and her cheerful innocence becomes our view until the Selecao mystery picks up and she is pushed to the side. We follow both Saki’s coming-to-terms with her generation’s mistreatment and Takizawa’s desire to change that mistreatment.

It is typically rather difficult for a series to create amusing supporting characters who do not subtract from the efforts of the main protagonist. Few characters, save for Saki, are outwardly expressive, which is fine since it doesn’t detract from the excellent dialog. Truthfully, Takizawa’s confidence is addictive if not mesmerizing, though his persistent casualness leaves something to be desired. The character design is smooth, though the single-lined mouths seem to widen the faces almost like frogs.

Aesthetically, this is a beautiful series, layered in its lighting and spacious in its complex panoramic view of Tokyo’s metropolis. The shopping malls lie empty and tomb-like, highways are split apart and abandoned, and somewhere twenty-thousand Japanese nerds are without clothing or cell phones. The narrative glides from decadent hotel rooms to missile craters to amusement parks to backstreet slums, creating a concrete unbalance between scenes backed by power and money... and the rest of society. In short, Kamiyama’s scenery itself is crying out for national salvation, for someone to bring about compromise between the young and the old, the haves and the have-nothings.

The opening animation is sharp and dynamic, emphasizing a dichotomy of masculine teal and feminine hot pink splashes of colorful shapes atop the ruins of Tokyo after the missile attacks of "Careless Monday." It bursts and hard-cuts from scenes of destruction to scenes of Takizawa and Saki, the series’ secondary protagonist, with brilliant control. The visuals only enhance the hopeless and yearning opening theme by Oasis, “Falling Down,” which calls for a savior to rise up, a hero to arms, and for the seed of hope to blossom.

A lot of self-righteous idealism about the value of hope in a nation’s youth combine with a fascinating conspiracy theory, great visuals and an entertaining mystery. All these strengths are going to make Eden of the East a huge hit. Especially since two sequel movies are being released this November, and the cliff-hanger ending left us drooling for more, this journey to save Japan may just be starting its road to greatness. And if that’s the case, then hallelujah! The messiah of anime has come.

excellent.