Tenkuu no Escaflowne is one of the first anime series I ever saw subtitled, and it has remained one of my favorites. The story is intriguing and fun, and the characters are very involving. One of the things that really caught my attention was the amount of detail put into the different places Hitomi goes. Every kingdom has a distinct feel and design to it.

The interesting thing about the story is how it combines several different types of storytelling. It isn’t just a series of events. It isn’t always action. A good portion of the time is spent in developing the characters and the relationships between the characters, as well as the the world of Gaia itself. The story moves along while still managing to bring in these other elements and have them as a primary focus of the overall story.

I think what impresses me the most, however, is the characterization. Every character in the story has some sort of history, even though we don’t always get to see them. There are multiple facets to their personalities, whether they be major character or minor characters. The ‘good guys’ have their flaws, and the ‘bad guys’ have their redeeming qualities. None of the characters are truly ‘good’ or ‘evil’. They are people, and as such are a mixture of bad and good. To this end, I have to say my favorite characters are Van, Hitomi, Folken and Allen.

Many people seem to have a real problem with the ending of the series, and while I sometimes wish it ended in a different way, I can see why it ends the way it does. It’s a very different way of ending a series, and it may throw people for a loop. In some ways, though, I think it’s more accurate to end the story the way it was. It’s truer to the way things really work. Very rarely will there be a perfectly happy ending to anything in real life, and I think the ending to Escaflowne portrays this admirably.