Escaflowne: Eternal Love

[RobbyB1982]

At long last, the final episode!

https://sfdebris.com/videos/anime/escaflowne26.php

Chuck hits on the fact it feels like the show ended super abruptly. Well... that's because it did.

It WAS planned to be 39 episodes after all... then when they got the budget cut rather than remove anything they just... crunched the whole thing together. It keeps the overall series moving but it does suffer from it at times. Like the ending.

Of course then they got a high budget movie that looked super great.. but was also a hard reboot retelling rather than a follow up.

Also I can't help but think of the Abridged series where the villain's master plan was to get a perfect sandwich, its not really any less absurd than the actual ending. Or where Hitomi points out their world works on Narnia time and she can visit and hang out for weeks during her lunch breaks.

[Cheerilee]

I was kind of waiting for Chuck to realize that Emperor Dornkirk = Isaac Newton.

- Came from Earth.
- Was named "Isaac".
- Discovered a little thing called gravity.
- In the first episode, school offhandedly teaches Hitomi that Isaac Newton was a looney who turned to metaphysics later in life.

I'm not sure what effect any of that really has on the ending.

[AllanO]

I was kind of waiting for Chuck to realize that Emperor Dornkirk = Isaac Newton.

- Came from Earth.
- Was named "Isaac".
- Discovered a little thing called gravity.
- In the first episode, school offhandedly teaches Hitomi that Isaac Newton was a looney who turned to metaphysics later in life.

I'm not sure what effect any of that really has on the ending.

I never finished watching Escaflowne but I had heard this also.

That school lesson was completely inaccurate Newton did not turn to metaphysics or alchemy later in life he was always a loon pursuing weird metaphysics and alchemical experiments involving boiling pots of mercury etc. that's what made him great, he was metal not like your current physicists. The man investigated how the eye works by sticking a bodkin (a big blunt needle) in his eye socket and squeezed his eyeball to see what happens and this was when he was in his 20s I bet Einstein or Stephen Hawking never stuck foreign objects into their eye cavity and we are all poorer for it.

If I wanted to get rid of a centuries old Newton living on a magic moon I would probably just tell him that calculus was now mostly done using a notation more resembling that of Leibniz's than Newton's own fluxions. He would probably die of apoplexy right there "LEIBNIZ!!!!". My head cannon is now that Hitomi did that...

[CrypticMirror]

and nobody mentions how Isaac Newton developed a corps of secret magic cops for the English state either.

[Ordo]

Or where Hitomi points out their world works on Narnia time and she can visit and hang out for weeks during her lunch breaks.

Abridged Quote

Hitome: "If you play your Cards right I can be Queen of Fanelia during passing period and never be late for math."

As far as I'm concerned... that's what actually happened... and the movie... clearly DIDN'T happens since I have NO idea what happened with that beautiful trainwreck.

So.... shall we ask Chuck to review Martian Successor Nadesico next?

[cambiata]

Escaflowne was one of my first major anime. Even though the ending is abrupt, I somehow always sort of liked it? It's one of the things that drew me to anime, that sometimes, like in the real world, things just end, you don't get your "satisfying conclusion."

And I guess as a high school girl at the time that I watched it, it made perfect sense for her to go back to her home at the end, whether she loves Van or not. She still has her parents and her friends at home, she still likely had plans of attending college, getting a career, etc. Like maybe when she's older she might decide to give up everything on earth to live in a pre-plumbing society, but it's a ridiculously huge sacrifice to ask a 15 year old to make.

Also, I always did love that Sir Isaac Newton was the big bad in Escaflowne.

[Hero_Of_Shadows]

I agree with Chuck on all counts, I see no reason for the split (in-universe or thematic) the ending would have been better if they had more screentime available and the music was superb.

[Nevix]

Regarding the ending... when I watched Escaflowne, I never felt cheated by the ending. I thought it wrapped things up pretty well, and ended on a starcrossed lovers who will never forget each other kind of note.

But I do understand why the ending can feel abrupt and truncated. It doesn't specifically wrap up a lot of events, and leaves that offscreen as implied events.

Dornkirk was technically already dead and sustained by the Fate Engine thingy. The armies were less driven to fight without the fate engine, and it's likely that the fighting just stopped, with rebuilding coming afterwards.

I love Escaflowne for the journey, and don't mind the ending being sudden.

Or where Hitomi points out their world works on Narnia time and she can visit and hang out for weeks during her lunch breaks.

Abridged Quote

Hitome: "If you play your Cards right I can be Queen of Fanelia during passing period and never be late for math."

As far as I'm concerned... that's what actually happened... and the movie... clearly DIDN'T happens since I have NO idea what happened with that beautiful trainwreck.

So.... shall we ask Chuck to review Martian Successor Nadesico next?

*Chuckles.* I understand that reference.

It is fun to note that Escaflowne is one of the few series to have both a Shonen and a Shoujo adaptation, where the Shonen focuses more on Vaughn and the battles, and the shoujo version tones that down for a focus on Hitomi, the love triangles, and the relationships.

Also, personally, I want to see more reviews of Fullmetal Alchemist and Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood.

Chuck really enjoyed those, and did a great review of both. I really love seeing when Chuck gets to dig into something that he enjoys.


EDIT:

and nobody mentions how Isaac Newton developed a corps of secret magic cops for the English state either.

Or when Sir Isaac Newton created ward stones that protect against the otherworldly and undead monsters, among other uses for the ward stones.

Or how he's the most deadly SoB in space.

Let's face it, Sir Isaac has gotten a lot done in many a universe. ;D

[Beelzquill]

Or when Sir Isaac Newton created ward stones that protect against the otherworldly and undead monsters, among other uses for the ward stones.

Or how he's the most deadly SoB in space.

Let's face it, Sir Isaac has gotten a lot done in many a universe. ;D

Well, he can calculate the weight and the size and the Shape of the shadow of the mind you're standing in

[Winter]

I will admit that I am disappointed in the ending of Escaflowne and like many I've no idea as to why Hitomi left since everything in the show was pointing to her staying on Gaia. I've actually written up a whole sequel story that has Hitomi return to Gaia, follows the fallout of the Zaibach Empire and brings everything to a more natural conclusion.

Still, love this show and Van and Hitomi remain one of my favorite couples. For all my issues with the ending it's by no means bad and I still watch the show whenever I get the chance. It's not like Mass Effect where the ending was so off putting that I only play the Trilogy when I HAVE to for whatever reason. The ending is only a little disappointing and I still get the warm fuzzy feeling when Van rescues Hitomi and the two fly off.

Still my favorite anime and still a classic In my honest opinion.