Kino's Journey

Its a brilliant format to teach a bunch of philosophical concepts. Each country has its own philosophy, and the countries are all small. Kino travels from country to country, while the viewer gains a deeper understanding of the concept. The format is the best format I have ever seen in a TV show and it will always stay in my memories.

Based on a Japanese light novel of the same name, we follow Kino, a traveller, and her talking motorcycle, Hermes, as they ride from country to country in a vast, sudo-futuristic world of many peoples and civilizations. Less of an overarching narrative or large scale world building, the core of Kino's Journey lies in each of its episodic visits to a new country, typically exploring some political or organizational ideal to its extremes, along with the moral lessons or implications we could learn should a society like it exist. The art style is quite strong, with crt scanlines superimposed over all its visuals, watercolour motifs through most of its backgrounds and scenery, especially when in nature, and the foregrounds washed out colours, giving that sort of punk aesthetic. I very much enjoyed it, the characters were all fantastic, although there was the odd bit of eye-rolling at some of the reveals or melodrama. There is also certainly violence and some tackling of heavy themes, so not for children. Definitely on the more grounded end of anime, I would highly recommend if it already seems something of interest, was good.

Animé is known for showcasing characters with super-human powers, or mostly not even human at all. It is known for it's original and bizarre stories and story lines, which seem to fascinate every animation fan. It is a big hit among viewers who enjoy watching the endless possibilities of story making. It is, I believe the very nature of japanimation. But to be honest it is very rare to see an animé much like this one I'm going to review about, called –"Kino No Tabi".

Sometimes called "Kino's Journey" or "Kino's Travels" –"Kino No Tabi" is probably the most artiest and most thought-proving animé I've seen (really!). Based from the sensational novel series by Keiichi Sigsawa that became popular in Japan back in 2000, "Kino No Tabi" is the unique story of a young traveler named Kino, and Kino's traveling companion, a talking motorcycle named Hermes. Together, they travel from country to country, meeting different people, and exploring different cultures. They learn and discover new things as they travel, and thus, making this show a delightful series, because you learn with its characters.

It is likely that you'll be surprised with the series' unconventional stories, and it's unusual characters (that appear in every episode) it may seem slow sometimes since the characters do much talking than anything else, since this is after all the way that this show uplifts itself –through the characters' interactions with one another, especially the conversations with Kino and Hermes. You will marvel at Kino's calmness and rational ways of dealing with matters that most of us don't give a damn about.

Kino is an intelligent, and charming character despite having to act coldly at times. Another unusual thing about "Kino No Tabi" is Kino's gender. It wasn't made clear in the first to third episodes, since some characters in the stories refer to Kino as a boy and some called her "miss". What's even more confusing would be Kino's use of "boku" (a Japanese pronoun used by a male to refer to himself) when speaking. But this will be made clear during the 4th episode. I don't want to give spoilers, but it was a cool concept by the author to make Kino's gender a mystery.

Featuring the voice of Ai Maeda as Kino (she played Shiori Kitano in "Battle Royale 2: Requiem"). Hers is perfect for the character of Kino, since it's quite hard to distinguish her voice (if male or female). As you know, most animé have women do the voice acting for some male characters (especially if the characters are young boys). So it won't be surprising if her character, Kino is a boy –or maybe not.

All I can say, "Kino No Tabi" will not be like any other animé you've seen. It's a brilliant series that uniquely unveils various human philosophies. It's one of those shows you'd be glad you took the time to watch.

From the people behind the shows –"Serial Experiments Lain", "Haibane Renmei", and "Boogiepop Phantom".. "Kino No Tabi" is another show yet to impress you with it's brilliance and it's unique expression of a radical sense of "beauty".

If your reading this, you've probably already read the summary so I'm just gonna go on with my thoughts. My friend, who knows my taste well, introduced me to this anime and it definitely was something I like. I've watched and completed many different ones, but this anime was probably the one that struck me most so far. It's unique comparing to all the others. It will give you a different kind of emotional experience through the eyes of a traveler, and many life lessons along the way. You get to know the complex character of Kino very well as you go on throughout the episodes. Which is another reason why it is different from other clichè anime with simple characters that are very easy to figure out.

This series is quite different to other anime series I've seen; it is neither action packed nor full of laughs although that doesn't mean it is totally lacking in these. The animation has a style of its own too; in some ways it has a simple look but it is stunningly beautiful. The series follows the travels of Kino and her talking 'Motorrad' (motorbike) Hermes as they visit various countries, each of the countries are effectively city states that each have their own unique customs, some are friendly, others less so. As a general rule Kino is just an observer of the countries she visits but occasionally gets involved although that is usually because she has no choice. Just because Kino prefers to avoid conflict does not mean the guns we see in the opening credits don't get used, it did come as a surprise the first time though.

As they are constantly travelling the only regular characters are Kino and Hermes; Kino is an interesting character whose gender is open to question for the first few episodes and is sometimes addressed as a boy and sometimes as a girl in the various countries, Hermes might be a talking motorbike but isn't as silly as that sounds, it looks like a real bike and does not have a face like other animated talking vehicles.

While the stories were gently paced I was never bored, I'd certainly recommend this for anybody looking for something a little different. It is suitable for most ages although one or two scenes might disturb young children; some people and a few rabbits do get shot and we aren't spared the sight of spilt blood.

These comments are based on watching the series in Japanese with English subtitles.