Kono Minikuku mo Utsukushii Sekai
| Kono Minikuku mo Utsukushii Sekai | |
|---|---|
| Original title | こ の 醜 く も 美 し い 世界 |
| genre | Comedy , science fiction , drama |
| Television series | |
| Country of production | Japan |
| original language | Japanese |
| year | 2004 |
| length | 24 minutes |
| Episodes | 12 |
| Theme music | Yōko Takahashi - metamorphosis |
| music | Yoshikazu Iwanami |
| First broadcast | April 1, 2004 (Japan) on TBS |
| Manga | |
| country |
 Japan
|
| author | Ashita Morimi |
| publishing company | Hakusensha |
| magazine | Young Animal |
| First publication | August 2004 - July 2005 |
| expenditure | 3 |
Kono Minikuku mo Utsukushii Sekai ( Japanese こ の 醜 く も 美 し い 世界 , Eng. "This ugly, but also beautiful world") is an anime series released in 2004 by Studio Gainax and Shaft . Despite some humor, the series has a more profound and serious character and belongs to his genre. In addition to some clear Etchi and violence scenes , this can also be seen in the fact that values such as love and solidarity, as well as apocalyptic ideas, are dealt with in a parodying way and, in the end, these values are radically put to the test.
Based on the action a manga, which was also created by Ashita Morimi was illustrated and in the magazine Young Animal of Hakusensha appeared.
action
The series begins with an introductory speech that tells of humanity and the many events that led it to the brink of annihilation. She concludes by saying that the worst is yet to come.
initial situation
On one of their delivery trips, friends Takeru Takemoto ( 竹 本 タ ケ ル , Takemoto Takeru ) and Ryo Nimoniya ( 二 ノ 宮 リ ョ ウ , Nimoniya Ryō ) saw a bright ray of light in the sky that hit the ground in the woods. At the point of impact, the two find a naked girl who develops out of the light and immediately feels connected to Takeru, because he is their first person and, as you learn later, she was created as a person based on his wishes and ideas. But with the girl, a monster appears, a huge beast that looks like a fusion of a giant beetle and a dinosaur. While trying to protect the girl, Takeru manages to transform in an initially inexplicable way and thus gains supernatural powers to defeat the monster. He calls the girl Hikari ( ヒ カ リ ) and always swears to protect her. Then he brings her home with him, where it turns out to his family and friends and roommates that she comes from outer space, but has no memories. All she knows is a deep love for Takeru. From now on she lives with him and gets to know the good and bad sides of life step by step, whereby she is always a happy person and Takeru wants to make her happy.
A few days later. Ryo, who also discovers certain, albeit passive, powers in himself (they are not shown in detail) meets a girl in the forest who, wearing only a loose, short dress, lives alone with a small, unknown phantom creature named Kwan . It turns out that she was part of Hikari's ray of light, but she is far more innocent and ignorant than them. Ryo calls her Akari ( ア カ リ ) and lets her live with him. From now on, Hikari and Akari see each other as sisters and Ryo develops a bond with Akari similar to that of Takeru with Hikari.
Life on earth
When Hikari visits school with Takeru and the others for the first time, she realizes that it is much more boring there than she thought. During a fire drill, Hikari's character (and her eyes) turn into a kind of demonic being. She intends to demolish the school, holds a hand on the wall inside the building and the building implodes. When Takeru, who is outside because of the exercise with the others, searches for Hikari (who is "normal" again and has no memories of what she did) in the rubble, she is embraced by a large robot that calls itself 'Ioneus' and calls itself spend your protectors and servants. Its existence, like that of Kwan, is tied to a blue crystal. Then Hikari experiences some of the good and bad sides of life again: Takeru really wants to make her happy and gives her a lot of fun, but after an excursion she is still sad because beautiful moments end at some point. Days later, she sees people kissing on TV, but Takeru is shy and she doesn't feel loved by him the way she does. At this point your demonic self sets in again and another giant monster appears. Then it is shown how Hikari has settled in the city and how everyone likes her, but after a festival she finds her lovely chirping beetle dead, which fills her with great sadness - even if beetles don't live long. In a vision her other I speaks to her, which announces her destiny: to extinguish life on earth, as she has done many times before. The thought scares her, but her memories awaken. While Takeru imagines ideas for the future, Hikari suddenly finds little fun in life. Meanwhile, a less complex, idyllic bond develops between Akari and Ryo.
The apocalypse looms
Hikari and Akari, who are one being, consult and decide that the earth is a beautiful place, but Hikari cannot escape her destiny because her vision causes her great discomfort. When Takeru's old friend finally declares war on her (with regard to Takeru's love), and then she also beats Hikari when she doesn't understand her in her naive innocence, her demonic self awakens again. At this moment another monster appears, which Hikari completely destroys with a single burst of energy. Jessy, a roommate of Takeru, who works in a secret research institute and spies on Hikari, reveals: The monsters are a protective reaction of the earth to defend themselves against the impending apocalypse, including Takeru's transformation. So his powers are there to destroy Hikari, whom he loves and wanted to protect. Ioneus is an assistant to Hikari who welcomes her final awakening. Hikari sees herself now as the " goddess of death " and sees Takeru's love only as a general courtesy, his care only as a method so that he is not bothered by her crying - it would be all for himself and he was fooling others. Then she looks into his painful past: rejected by his mother and with a life without having experienced love, he could never love himself. Takerus 'powers awaken and through the psychological pain his instinct tells him to kill her, while Akari also wants to intervene, but Ryo's own powers awaken and he invades Takerus' psyche and soothes both. Takeru is now determined to stop Hikari, but without violence. He wants to convince her of the sincerity of his love and thus also of the value of the people on earth. While Ioneus begins with the destruction of the earth, Takeru kisses Hikari (albeit more "forcibly") and their two personalities merge - the awareness of their duty and the love for Takeru and the people. Meanwhile, a huge swarm of red butterflies is forming - life that is waiting for its place on earth after imminent extinction. Hikari and Takeru as well as Akari and Ryo now have to say a sad farewell, because even if they want to stay on earth, they have to lead this new life to another world.
Origin and publications
Anime
The 12 episode anime was created as a collaboration between the Gainax and Shaft studios . In Japan, it was shown weekly on television on TV channels such as TBS , BS-i and Animex from April 1, 2004 to June 17 of the same year . The series, which is distributed on six DVDs, has been published every month since June 4, 2004. As a director, Shōji Saeki , who also worked on the production of FLCL , Mahoromatic , Neon Genesis Evangelion: The End of Evangelion and Tengen Toppa Gurren-Lagann , was also responsible for the plot.
In the United States , the anime was licensed by ADV Films and released with English dubbing. The first of the three DVDs appeared in two versions (normal DVD and collector's box) and was available from July 4, 2006. It was subtitled Falling Star , while the series itself was referred to as This Ugly Yet Beautiful World . The subtitles of the following DVDs were Eye of the Beholder and Red Swarm . From September 18, 2007, the series was also offered as a Complete Collection , which contains the complete series on three DVDs.
There was also a Spanish localization. The anime has not yet appeared in Germany.
synchronization
| role | Japanese speaker ( seiyū ) |
|---|---|
| Akari | Ai Shimizu |
| Hikari | Ayako Kawasumi |
| Ryō Ninomiya | Fujiko Takimoto |
| Takeru Takemoto | Takahiro Mizushima |
music
The music for the anime was composed by the composer Yoshikazu Iwanami , who has worked on many other well-known works. The title Metamorphosis for the opening credits comes from Yōko Takahashi , while the credits used Natsuiro no Kakera by Yōko Ishida .
Manga
A manga of the same name based on the anime has been published by Hakusensha in Young Animal magazine since August 27, 2004 . The drawings are from the pen of Ashita Morimi . The manga was later published in the form of three tankōbon and also published in France by Glénat .
reception
"It isn't a great series, and does not stand as Gainax's best effort since Neon Genesis Evangelion, but it is a better one than it might appear to be at first."
"It's not a great series, nor is it GAINAX's best work since Neon Genesis Evangelion, but it's better than it first seems."
Although the plot contains very typical elements for a standard anime series, in the eyes of the critics the series is more profound than initially assumed. For this they blame the studio GAINAX and the fact that it is a release for the 20th anniversary of the studio.
Other critics, however, considered the series to be one of the worst GAINAX series ever and said that the series was created for the anniversary, only shows that there can be ups and downs in the existence of a studio.
“I try not to be the kind of fan that only enjoys the early works of a studio and then holds that as the barometer for everything else, but even the weak series of Mahoromatic stands far above this one. Gainax has disappointed me in the past but in looking back at this one as a whole, they've never disappointed me like this. "
“I'm not trying to be the kind of fan who just likes the early work of a studio and then uses that as the benchmark for everything else, but even Mahoromatic's weak streak is way above this. Gainax has disappointed me in the past, but never as much as with this series. "
The animation quality should lag behind that of other studios such as Gonzo , Bones or Production IG . GAINAX is said to have placed the focus more on the plot anyway, so that this does not matter. This difference is particularly evident in the conversations between the characters, which were animated much more easily than is the case with other titles. The backgrounds, on the other hand, are very successful, even if the characters do not stand out clearly enough, especially in the first episodes.
The background music was very successful and Yoshikazu Iwanami understood how to accompany the scenes with very coherent and appropriate melodies. The closing title was said to be an ordinary J-Pop number, while the theme song was really something special. In connection with the scenes shown, this should have a much stronger effect than the music alone could do. The title is said to be on par with the highly acclaimed opening credits of Neon Genesis Evangelion , Cruel Angel's Thesis , which is also by Yōko Takahashi .
The seiyū of the original were not particularly emphasized, but the English dubbing had significant flaws, as the speakers would not find the right accent to convey the right feeling, as did the Japanese speakers.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c Theron Martin: This Ugly Yet Beautiful World DVD 1 - Review. Anime News Network, June 29, 2006, accessed June 12, 2008 .
- ↑ Disc Reviews - This Ugly Yet Beautiful World Vol. # 3. (No longer available online.) Anime on DVD, October 19, 2006, archived from the original on November 1, 2006 ; accessed on June 12, 2008 .
- ↑ a b Theron Martin: This Ugly Yet Beautiful World DVD 2 - Review. Anime News Network, September 19, 2006, accessed June 12, 2008 .
- ↑ a b Carl Kimlinger: This Ugly Yet Beautiful World DVD 3 - Review. Anime News Network, November 26, 2006, accessed June 12, 2008 .
Web links
- Official website for the anime by GAINAX (Japanese)
- Official website for the anime ( Memento from December 10, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) by ADV Films (English, Flash)
- Kono Sekai Minikukumo Utsukushii in the Encyclopedia of Anime News Network (English)