Final Fantasy: Unlimited

The basic storyline is that Ai and Yu, two twins, are seeking their parents who disappeared in a rift 12 days ago. This rift takes the twins to Wonderland, a series of worlds with one ruler: Duke Tyrant, a cruel child who seeks to be the most powerful of all in Wonderland. Ai and Yu must find their parents and stop this Duke from invading their homeworld with strangers they meet along the way... First of whom, Lisa (a young sorceress) meets the twins on the "Ghost Train" that takes them around Wonderland. There's also Kaze, a strange fighter with amnesia and no charisma whatsoever, who defends the twins and Lisa (unintentionally) from the beasts and bosses of Wonderland using a strange and legendary "Magun" that appears to be permanently attached to his right hand that uses powerful colored bullets he calls "Soil". A wide assortment of other characters also exist...

This is a great introduction to the Final Fantasy series of video games for new players. It introduces the elements that are present in almost all of the games: Cid, the summoned monsters, what opposes which, etc. and it doesn't do it in a stubborn manner, such as Yu-Gi-Oh!, where concepts build upon each other.

Many people look at the recent games, and decide that this anime is inferior to the quality of stories that are present in the recent titles. This isn't geared towards that at all; Final Fantasy and Final Fantasy II/IV were very simple in storyline as well, and are hailed as classics. Could more have been done with this OAV? Sure, but this does have value in of itself in the way it was made.

Of a four star scale, I'd give it two. It has originality and imagination, it could be better, but thankfully it's not the original Final Fantasy series anime. If the introduction was more solid, however, such as clarifying the significance of the Day of Conjunction, and how their parents released a book about it 12 days after the rift opened before disappearing... that would make this a candidate for three stars.

I've seen a lot of bad reviews about this anime from what I like to call "Anime Snobs." As with any product there will be those who refuse to accept any deviation from the tradition (ie Star Wars fans hating the newer prequels coming out). Here is the truth of the matter: Final Fantasy: Unlimited had me excited from beginning to end.

Sure it had a lot of slow moments in the beginning where it was trying to find itself, however the characters suck you in a refuse to let go. If you can get past the animation (which could've been better) and the mix between hand-drawn characters and CGI graphics you'll see FFU for what it is: A Masterpiece!

Rating 10/10

I am an otaku and a fan of the Final Fantasy games. I liked the Final Fantasy movie, but hated the old OVA series. This is in many ways worse than the old series. From the begining this series looks like it might be a somewhat decent and entertaining fantasy, but after a few episodes you will see that this is not much better than Pokemon. The digital cell animation is cutesy and digital-looking. The 3D is blocky and out of place; much worse than the awful 3D in Candidate for Goddess. The characters are one-dimensional, whiney, and annoying. The voice acting, while pretty good, isn't anything particularly special. The story is cliched, much more "like a videogame" than the video games. Deffinately geared towards children. The only redeeming qualities are some surreal landscapes and semi-interesting homages to the games. 3/10

I think it's a very ,very cool oh forget that amazing show ever. I LOVE the show very much and I wish it continues even a couple more seasons perhaps .Sorry I can't help it so what if the show got litte rating that doesn't mean that they should end it besides the rating always takes time and patience. It may take even a couple of years but someone replies. Well anyway is there anything I can do to let the show continue. I may be 1 voice out of a crowded world but even through one voice that means there's still hope for the show. I may be still young ,but love to watch these types of shows if I can't travel into the outside world let me at least make a wonderful dream of it. I still believe there's still hope,and if they can continue the show can it like be a black hole and time traveling were the twins go back in time and save all there friends and allies.

The creators of Final Fantasy: Unlimited made only one mistake, in my opinion, and that is not completing the all 52 episodes.

I must say that it is laughable that, when people hear "Final Fantasy", they expect to see characters from the games. Every installment of the Final Fantasy game series has its own unique plot and characters, and so does the anime series. FF:U does feature all the usuals – including chocobos, moogles and summon creatures – although it doesn't need these elements to make it a great series.

Although the series starts slowly and falls into something of a monster-of-the-day pattern early on, its every character is given special attention and will never cease to entertain you (especially Ai). Every episode packs its fair share of drama, comedy and action. As another reviewer has commented before me, it is when you get to the later episodes that you realize how great FF:U actually was. The plot is imaginative and detailed, and the further you advance into the story, the more exciting it becomes.

It is a shame that FF:U was cut down to 25 episodes, as this stands even more true for the rest of the story that was never told. I speak as one who has read the Japanese books in which the untold parts of the story have been published when I say that the best was yet to come. I think no one has the right to bash Final Fantasy: Unlimited until they know the whole story. Unfortunately, it does not seem as if an English adaption of the After series will ever be made.

Still, though FF:U might not be for everyone, anyone who is willing to watch this series with an open mind is likely to find himself pleasantly surprised.