[ Episode 26: The Great Rock and the Girl ]

LET IT DOWN LET IT DOWN

For me, this ending was a bit weird. It was a happy ending for the most part. Mostly everybody got a good end, except for Nakiami IMO. 1000 years? Seriously? Man, I was really excited when Akiyuki and Yango tried to open the Quickening Chamber back up, but they ended up failing. And then I was like “Oh… FFFFFFFFFFFF.” Besides clearing the sky back up and closing the Quickening Chamber so all those crazies don’t commit mass suicide, I feel like her sacrifice should have had a bigger impact, more specifically on the mass gathered at the chamber. It felt like after it was over, they were just like “Oh well. Maybe next millennium.”

Funny how randomly Akiyuki came back. I was actually expecting him to bust out of that rock. That would have been more awesome. Also what was the deal with the real hand lol? Shit must be creepy if he sees everything like that. Liked how nonchalantly Haru acts when she sees her lover after nine years. She was expecting him to come back all along as long as she kept calling his name; which ties back to the beginning scene with Akiyuki as a kid.

I think I get the whole overview of the story and ending. At least I hope so anyways. There are of course a few things that weren’t explained thoroughly and that would probably require a rewatch on a lot of episodes which I’ll pass on. Xam’d is definitely one of those shows where you have to pay close attention to the dialogue and think past all the metaphors and shit.

[ Final Thoughts ]

Xam’d: Lost Memories was one of my more anticipated shows for 2008. With BONES at the reigns along with a respectable staff, I thought to myself “What could go wrong?” Then after finishing the show for myself, I can say that quite a few things went wrong here. But even despite of its shortcomings, I truly enjoyed Xam’d: Lost Memories overall. It wasn’t what I expected it to be, but I still like it for what it is. If you can get pass the slow pacing of the first half, the second half of the show will offer you with a few FFFFFFF, lol wut, and FFFFUCK YEEAAHHH moments.

Story: 7/10
I understand it for the most part. And when I finally did, I was like “Oh that’s it”? It wasn’t extraordinarily deep or anything. At the core, it’s pretty simple, but Xam’d has so many contrived explanations and LOL DEEP metaphors and symbolism that it ends up leaving a good chuck of its audience just confused if they don’t follow along closely. That aside, the story doesn’t bring anything new to the table nor is it presented in way that’s creative or clever. The many subplots that Xam’d has were far more interesting and executed better, but in the end they bring down the overlaying story as a whole because it felt like the writers didn’t know what exactly they wanted to do with all this. One thing that I loved was the whole setting of the Xam’d world. It felt so expansive with all the different cultures and places.

Cast: 7/10
I liked most of the characters for the most part. The best ones were probably Akiyuki’s parents who got the most and best character development. One character I wish the writers would have used better was Furuichi. It felt like they kinda just threw him away after his use. Like they didn’t know what to do with him. I honestly was expecting him to come back randomly because that was definitely one of the most spontaneous character deaths I’ve seen. The Zanbani crew is the weakest part of the whole cast, which is weird since the first third of the show centered around them. Maybe they were trying to go for an Eureka 7 kinda thing where you have this random kid onboard a flying ship. But it ended up falling flat compared to that BONES production.

Animation: 10/10
BONES. Nuff said. No, but seriously lol… even though Xam’d wasn’t as action packed as I thought it was going to be, the animation still shined everywhere. And the action scenes that are in it, just amazing. See this in HD if you can. I didn’t give this show my choice for Best Animation of the year for nothing.

Music: 9/10
I really liked the music in this series. It was powerful when it needed to be, it was somber when needed to be, and etc. The sound work complimented the beautiful animation and scenery hand in hand. The woman behind all this is Oshima Michiru who is probably best known for her music work in Fullmetal Alchemist. Hearing Oshima’s name in the staff list just increased my anticipation for this show, and I wasn’t disappointed.

Enjoyment: 7/10
It was hard for me to consistently enjoy watching Xam’d. It’s like we get an episode or two of awesome, then it slows down really quick and goes in a dull phase for like around four episodes. That stops like in the later half of the show where things finally begin escalating and come together. That’s where the show really grips your attention. But one of the biggest downsides of this show is the bad pacing which makes it hard to enjoy sometimes.

[ Overall series review: 80/100*]

*Note: Not an average. Actually the score does work out to be the average, but that’s a coincidence. D:

[ Episode 25: Nakiami and Sannova ]

FFFFFFUCK YYYEAH BONES

Ahh I waited so long for an episode like this. And I have to say BONES really delivered in the animation department. It was just gorgeous. And the fight was on such an epic scale too which made it even sweeter. I came buckets during one of the last scenes when Akiyuki was working his way up on the Emperor then lands his blade through his heart. Then all of sudden it went all LOL DEEP with the Emperor being “BAWW I have no name.”

When I saw this episode, I didn’t know wtf Sannova was talking about. So after it was done, I went back to see that scene again. She does after all explain the whole fucking point of all this shit that’s happening. And this is what I got:
Sannova bloodline is full of midwives. Current Sannova helped birth the Hiruken Emperor when he was an infant. They planted a Hiruko in him for the Great Pilgrimage to fill the void on the Earth or some shit. Sannova wants to stop the Great Pilgrimage (lol mass suicide), so she sends out the albino brigade to plant Hiruko on random people all over the continent. Then hopefully they will “blossom” in time in order to stop the big cheese. But lol @ Akiyuki ending up being the only one.

Don’t ask me what the purification ritual is or what the hell Nakiami is doing. I just hope this isn’t it for her. That farewell scene was bittersweet.

I have to say after trying to figure that all out, I realized that there are still a lot of gaps on purposes and roles in this show. Like I still don’t know wtf a Tenjo is. Is that like Sannova’s successor or something? Or why the North and the South are fighting in the first place. And what exactly is a main soul? It’s stuff like that they don’t explain at all and just leave it to the audience to guess and assume. Or maybe I’m just really dense and this show is way over my head.

[ Episode 24: Voices from Beyond ]

Somebody hid my shoes again?!

I don’t fully understand the plot nor what’s really happening now, but this episode was simply awesome. Though let me say this, Humanform Midori was fail. Not just design-wise, but I’m disappointed she didn’t really… do anything. Everything was wrapped up as soon as Nakiami showed up and did her magic. I’ll admit Midori’s flashback with her mother was sweet, but the whole thing wasn’t really dramatic even with Haru being eaten up. And everybody knew besides Akiyuki that she was alive. Same shit happened with Furuichi. They built up her being a Humanform for so long and then we get a giant green egg. -_-

The episode lead up to a very exciting and long awaited match up, Xam’d Akiyuki vs the Hiruken Emperor. Jesus, that motherfucker is huge. We’ve been for something like this since the beginning and I know BONES won’t let us down. Then there’s Nakiami and Sannova. I’m looking forward to what’s going to develop between them. Because at this point, I’m not sure if Nakiami’s standing with or against her. Only two episodes left. I hope the remaining two episodes keep up the awesome these last few episodes have maintained to make up for the lackluster first half of the sow.

[ Episode 23: Hiruken Emperor Born ]

Good night, sweet prince.

Good bye, Raigyo. You were definitely one of the better characters in this show. I thought you were going to at least take a shot at the Hiruken Emperor before you bit the dust, but the way you went out made my eyes a bit teary. Even though it was by some random foot soldier. And of course there’s Ishu. I’m guessing she’s dead too. Weird way to go out. Sets up the bombs, then back story, then explosion. That was pretty sudden. Not sure if that was planned from the start or she did that because she was saddened by Raigyo’s death.

Along with Ishu’s backstory, we also got Nakiami’s in this episode as well and where Kobako came from. I always thought that Kobako was one of Yunbo’s kids; it’s easy to see Yunbor as the mother figure on the Zanbani and Kobako has been seen as a sister figure to Hinokimaru. Speaking of which the Zanbani crew is making their way to the frontlines now. Not sure what they can do at this point though I guess they have to do something before the finale.

Everything is finally coming together very nicely: Nakiami heading to the Quickening Chamber where Sannova will be, Humanform Midori about to make her appearance where Akiyuki and Haru are, the Hiruken Emperor awakened, and the Zanbani heading out. The last three episodes will be very exciting without a doubt. I still remember halfway through the show where I was thinking that they would have to have a second season to conclude all on this shit. It’s amazing how much the show has done up from that point on.

[ Episode 22: Tojiro and Ryuzo ]

FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFUCK YEAH

Best episode so far without a doubt. And for me, Ryuzo has quickly become my favorite character in the show. Sorry Nakiami, but unlike you these side characters have actually been doing stuff for the past couple of episodes. But man, that was just an amazing confrontation. And when he first slashed him in the eye I was like FFFFFFFFFFFF. But GARyuzo ain’t a bitch. He only needs one eye to finish this asshole off. And BAM. Just great. And I also loved the scene where his wife was talking about how she wished he would compliment her cooking for once. Then you see Ryuzo eating the scattered onigiri and he goes “umai”. It was just a great way to end the episode.

Why is it that most of the side characters so far have outshone the mains? Are they saving up all the awesome for these last couple of episodes? Since Kakisu is done for, the spotlight will probably slide over back to the Quickening Chamber and the Diamond Tower. That reminds me, I almost forgot about Nakiami. She’s eventually gonna face Sannova and her sister again, so she’s probably heading to the Chamber as well. Idk what’s up with Midori though. Did Kakisu send her to the Quickening Chamber for a mass rape in her Humanform?

The last couple of episodes have been really awesome and I’m glad they finally stepped it up after a very slow first half. Actually more like a slow two-thirds. But I can tell the last four episodes are just going to be a blast.

[ Episode 21: Sanctuary Breached ]

FFFFFFUCK YEAH

Epic episode is epic. I was loving most of what happened throughout the episode. From the infiltration, to Haru’s dad kicking ass, to Akiyuki’s parents finally reuniting. Just great stuff. Especially the reunion, very touching. And yes, I’ll admit I got teary. I liked the subtle touches they put for that build up like that blonde lady’s comment about not knowing why she fell in love.

Kakisu might have his last stand next episode seeing as how he pointed a gun at himself in the preview so it’s more serious business next time. I’m not sure what the deal is with him and his issues, so I hope they delve into that. And it’s cool how the final showdown is between the one who saved him in the war. It’ll be interesting to see how Akiyuki’s dad will handle the situation.

The rescue Midori operation failed so I guess the next time we’ll be seeing her will be as a Humanform. Before I was thinking that Midori would die by the end, but I remember how the dad brought up the whole “I promised my wife I would see them on their wedding days” so I’m not sure anymore.

And I can’t wait to see that old Tessik’s face when he sees his lover in a pool of blood. Heads will be rolling!