Anime Review: [First Impression] Eureka Seven AO - 1

Noah is the only slow thing about this anime, so far.

——

Many years have passed since the events of the first series, and a lot has changed since then. As of yet, none of the events in the original have been mentioned, though there is a direct connection between both. I’m very interested to see how much, outside of the obvious, will carry over into this new series.

We’re quickly introduced to the principle characters: Ao and Naru. Both of them seem like typical kids, aside from Naru’s apparent illness. Their lives are relatively free of burden and make the events that transpire a lot heavier. I’m interested to see how they develop over the course of the show, but for right now I like both of them. However, neither of them hold a candle to Noah.

The quiet life on the island is forever destroyed with the arrival of Gazelle and his crew. They unwittingly have become a part of a larger and possibly sinister plan, one that brings about the creation of Scub Coral. How this happened, and who caused it isn’t explained, but it seems as though another party is aware that the Japanese military has the Nirvash. I can’t wait to see Team Pied Piper sweep into action to deal with the devastation on Iwadojima. While the original featured LFOs (Light Finding Operations), AO instead features IFOs (Intelligence Flying Objects). The difference between the two has yet to be showcased, and I expect the forth-coming battle will do just that.

The art and animation style will instantly make any fan of the original feel right at home as the character designs have the same look at feel, right down to the costuming. I’ve been a fan of BONES ever since their work on Angelic Layer and it doesn’t look like they have lost touch at all. Everything in terms of the sounds, music and voices sync up great with the visuals and make for a very cohesive finished product. I hope that the plot can keep up with the level of the other elements, and of course live up to the original.

Eureka Seven AO gave just enough information to make me feel as I had a clear understanding of the events that were transpiring, but kept just enough secrets to make me want to continue watching to see what will happen next. As stated before, I am hoping to see more connections between the two series as I thoroughly enjoyed the original. People who jumped into this without seeing the first are probably going to be pretty confused, as the anime doesn’t waste time explaining things like the Scub Coral. I expect there will be a refresher course of sorts in a later episode, but can’t say for sure.