Aka: Now and Then, Here and There
Some of the cast, left to right, Shyu, Lala Ru, Nabuca, and Boo.
The above image is from the Pioneer Animation Homepage section on this series. Click on it to visit that site (Japanese only).
The rest of the images are still frames copied from my laserdisc player.
This is quite a complicated story, but the animation is first rate. In fact, I would say that it has the best animation ever in a animated film, and this is only a TV series! This animation is not the best for it's technical skill. That's not Japanese animation's strong point in general. This show can capture a mood like no other I've ever seen. The people who make this are artists in the highest sense. The ending sequence is particularly moving. After moving to an alternate reality, the ending shows everything that Shyu has left behind, including his bicycle, seen below.
And the street he lives on.
This Anime is brilliant in so many ways. I particularly like how it dramatizes the plight of the child soldier in such an effective way. That's really not a subject that's easily covered. The good news is that, according to what I've heard, it's scheduled for release next year! It's too good not to share with everyone! And now, let's have a look at the characters!
This is Shyu, the main character. Shyu is catapulted into an alternate reality when he climbs a giant industrial smokestack and strikes up a conversation with an odd-looking girl named Lala Ru. The change happens when sinister forces come to retrieve her. Shyu finds himself smack in the middle of an organization that builds up it's army by invading villages, kidnapping young children, and training them. They try to recruit Shyu as well, but they underestimate his spirit and his unbelievable ability to not give in to hate. Shyu is brash and impulsive, but principled, clearly not what his captors expected.
Abellia (on the left) and Lala Ru (on the right) have a discussion. Abellia is an officer in Hamdo's army, the same that kidnaps children from villages. Lala Ru's origins are a mystery. Hamdo desperately wants the pendant that she has, but it has gotten lost due to a series of events that occur in the first volume. This pendant will bring water to the desert land where they are. Lala Ru can control this pendant. However, she almost never speaks or shows emotion, much to the consternation of Abellia and Hamdo.
Here is Hamdo with Lala Ru. Hamdo is completely loony. This is not the guy you would expect to lead a vast army. He makes Hitler look like Mister Rogers under the influence of a horse tranquilizer. Hamdo is given to fits of rage and hysterical screaming where he often ends up killing small animals and even people.
Here is Nabuca and his trainee, Boo. Nabuca and Boo were taken from their families as children and made to serve in this army. Nabuca isn't completely lost to hatred yet and meeting Shyu starts to get him to think about things. Boo, on the other hand, is still only a little child and really doesn't have the stomach for real army things...yet, and this is where the tragedy will eventually unfold.
Finally, here is Sarah. Yes! It's an American character in Anime! Don't get your hopes up though, she only speaks Japanese. Anyway, Sarah and Shyu share a prison cell in the beginning. Sarah eventually escapes after she beats the stuffing out of an officer. Yeah! American girls kick ass!
Shyu, in the beginning, shares a cell with Sarah. Shyu doesn't know what to make of Sarah because she looks so much like Lala Ru. This is, in fact, why she was kidnapped, although she herself doesn't know this.