Sentou Yousei Yukikaze - anime (2002)

Title: Sentou Yousei Yukikaze, 1-3

Format: anime, OVA

Length: 5 episodes

I've recently discovered this show called Sentou Yousei Yukikaze (i.e. Battle Fairy Yukikaze; or simply, Yukikaze). It's set in the future, with a heavy sci-fi, military setting. The main character, Rei Fukai, is the pilot of B-503 aka: Yukikaze. Secondary main character, James "Jack" Bukhar, is Rei's commanding officer and seemingly only friend. 

To my understanding, this OVA set is actually based off a novel series by Chohei Kambayashi.

When I first saw a trailer of the anime, I wasn't too sure what to expect of it. Since it's only a five episode OVA, I didn't know how they would execute the story. I was under the impression it would be something along the lines of Macross or Gundam, only much shorter and more condensed. 

Upon actually seeing the first episode, I found it to be completely different from what I was expecting. While not quite as brightly colored as Gundam or Macross, or heavily laced with political messages disguised as key plot points, the story is very involved and thought provoking. 

Yukikaze is an AI system built into the B-503 that seems to be almost sentient. The thought of machines gaining a consciousness of their own has been stewed in the backs of many people's minds over many years, so on that basic concept, it's nothing new. But the way Yukikaze reacts to the situation, and takes control during key parts of the story is intriguing. 

I enjoy how Yukikaze is not omnipotent despite its (her? his?) power. I have seen in various other anime or other story platforms where sentient AI are too overpowering. They control too much of the situation and leave little room for human choice to enter the equation. Yukikaze's power is restricted, seeming to focus solely on aiding Rei during critical moments. 

Rei has full power to leave the machine behind and pursue a different course of action. If only his conscience would allow it. Rei's complicated personality and principles make it difficult for him to step away from Yukikaze as others might have long ago. There is a sense of trust there that's almost frightening because of the things that Yukikaze projects and the truths that it reveals throughout the story. 

I haven't finished the series yet, I'm slowly working on it, but I find the relationship between Rei and Yukikaze to be rather fascinating. I can't quite find the words to describe what it is that interests me so about them. I suppose it's the same sort of fascination that draws me to Jack too. 

Rei and Jack seem to also have a complicated relationship. They're friends, but also stand on two different stages of military ranking. There is a subtle history being played throughout the episodes that describe their relationship, and since I haven't quite finished watching, I'm sure I'm missing a few key points that would tie everything together. 

So until I can connect all the plot points and whatnot, I'll talk about the simpler stuff: 

The animation. To note, I've always had this unfair prejudice against animations that rely heavily on CG effects to help in particular action sequences. I've always seemed to prefer a more hand-drawn style, with minimal aid/interference from CG (which is why I love the old Ghibli movies so much; despite being aided by a lot of CG, it still looks drawn).

To be honest, I was anxious about the flight scenes in the show. But as I've immersed myself in the story, and concentrated more on what's going on, and less on how easily I can tell someone used a 3D program to do the jet fights, I actually don't mind that much. There are times when I still get that squirmy, uncomfortable feeling when the blending isn't smooth enough to my liking, but for the most part I've come to ignore them in favor of a more fruitful and enjoyable experience. 

And besides, it's pretty interesting to see how accurately they have animated the projected flight patterns of a F-15 fighter jet. From my understanding, the animators of Gonzo (a company I've come to love for their affinity for obscure plots and unique directive executions) worked with a real Air Force team for their flying scenes. 

The voices, too, are interesting. I've only watched it in Japanese, but from accidentally hearing a few clips in English, I think the translation is palatable. The quality of voice and the inflections of speech seem to follow the original Japanese audio. If I had to guess, I would say it wouldn't be hard to watch this in English as well as Japanese. (some shows have horrible English dubbing but excellent Japanese dubbing, while others are the exact opposite. This series... I think could go either way.)

I'll have to go back and listen to it again to make sure, though. I'm pretty sure even after I watch the last two episodes, I'll want to go back just to recap so I can draw a proper conclusion about the series. I'll just watch it in English the second time around to kill two birds with one stone.

Simply put, this discover has been an unexpected treasure. Fans of military type of shows would probably enjoy this. As would sci-fi fans. People who have watched anime like Macross or Gundam or anything obscure that's a product of Gonzo will probably enjoy this. Granted, it's not for everyone, but I think I really like it. It's a shame I haven't seen more stuff about it on the internet. It seems to be under-appreciated by most audiences. 

Overall: 4 out of 5