Broken Thoughts

Utawarerumono is set in feudal Japan where the “humans” have tails and animal-like ears. Hakuro seems to be the only normal human. He is constantly haunted by images of a raging beast, and always finds himself at the center of conflict. The story is full of strong enemies and big battles, with excellent battle scenes. The action is fast-paced and each battle has it’s own nuances which Hakuro must used his wisdom and cunning to overcome the enemy. The story also has a softer side with Elalu and Amaru, his adopted family. Elalu seems to think of Hakuro as a love interest, but Hakuro calls her his little sister. Amaru calls Hakuro daddy. All the greatest warriors find themselves strangely driven to support Hakuro. What is the mystery this man holds behind that mask?

Utawarerumono is a story that begins in a small village where a mysterious man awakens.  He does not remember who he is or where he is, but he has a strange mask on his face that he cannot remove.  He was found and healed by a woman named Lady Tuskaru, a famous healer, and the grandmother of Elalu and Amaru.  He quickly is adopted into their family, and soon discovers that the village they live in is ruled by an oppressive feudal lord.  Hakuro, as Lady Tuskaru names him, stands up against the sound of the lord to defend Elalu.  This boy destroys a shrine, which enrages the goddess of the forest, Mutikapa.  The goddess is a massive white tiger than cannot be harmed.  She first attacks and destroys a nearby village, killing all of them, and then comes to Tuskaru’s village.  Hakuro cannot stand to see the village suffer as the people huddle in their homes and wait to die, so he stands up to Mutikapa.  Just as she is about to kill him, it begins to rain and she runs off.

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Samurai Seven is an anime based on the masterpiece by Akira Kurosawa called Seven Samurai, and is produced in the United States by Funimation.  This anime has it all for the true anime fan; swords, girls in skimpy clothing, guns, and giant robots.  The creators of this anime managed to take Kurosawa’s story and tell it in a new way, yet remain true to the greatness of the legendary film. 

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Last Exile is an anime about Claus and Lavie, who are friends that fly in a vanship for a messenger service.  Their fathers were pilots who flew together in the same profession, but died when trying to cross the Grand Stream, a powerful jet-stream.  The setting is on a world troubled by war, and run by the ruthless Guild, where all technology seems to come from.  Claus and Lavie suddenly find themselves on a very dangerous mission to deliver a young girl named Alvis to a famous pilot, Alex Roe, who is the pilot if the dreaded Silvana.  Alvis is supposedly the key to something mysterious called Exile.  Claus and Lavie’s friendship is tested as the unfolding events cause them to realise different desires.  Clause wishes to become a fighter pilot, while Lavie, unable to withstand the forces involved with battle, wishes only to cross the Grand Stream, and becomes jealous when Claus begins flying with another navigator.  Along the way, the eccentric Dio, brother of the ruler of the Guild, takes an obsessive liking to Claus, who he dubbs “Immelman.”

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