Kino no tabi

Definitely a very slow paced anime, if you are looking for action you are at the wrong place.

However, if you are interested in experiencing the elevating joys, the wide arsenal of emotions and artistic features an anime can offer then you have just found what you are looking for.

This piece of art is coming at you with a mixture of sounds, pictures, and dialog like not much other anime out there. Every single episode is a rather complex assessment of the different systems that have existed and exist throughout human history and of the different element of human personality in general.

Our main hero, Kino is a traveler and as such it is not the end point, not the destiny of the journey that is important for her, but the experience she gather while being on the road. Many of the episodes have not much connections to each other, they could be separated from each other and still be meaningful, in other words there are a lots of episodes (in the literature sense).

It was created by the same crew as Serial Experiments Lain, so if you've seen that you should have a good idea what you are in for, however this one is taking a less theoretic approach to the different problems humanity as a whole and an individual is facing. Most importantly, each episode gives you a comprehensive example, that way getting the problem close to you and is looking for practical solutions. Still in the end the Kino takes no active part in the events and is just a bystander, who forms her opinion but does nothing more (maybe with exemption of 1-2 life-death problems she can't stand by).

Summing up, to truly understand this piece you have to do your own part, this show doesn't serve you answers on a silver plate, but rather questions.

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.

This is one of those little gems you discover late one night binge- watching anime. No one has ever mentioned it to you, you have nothing else better to do, and the cover art doesn't remind you of another action-packed vampire love story. That being said, I went into Kino's Journey blind and I came out enlightened. It was like I was a child exploring the world for the first time again.

Along with her talking motorcycle companion, "Hermes", Kino is a traveler who has a rule to never stay in one place for more than 3 days. The world is similar to Earth except that what are considered "countries" are really independent, walled cities that are seemingly very spaced apart. Each episode is self contained as Kino visits one or more country, and just as Kino and Hermes, we experience each place for the first time. The countries have their own unique histories, customs, and cultures. All are interesting; some are dangerous.

There is something so powerful in the quiet storytelling of this series. Kino's Journey really explores the very edges of what it means to be human. We are all flawed, yet it is how we deal with our flaws that defines us. Similar to many other series I have watched, I just wish there was more.

There are only two other anime that I have seen that have mastered the art of quiet storytelling: "Mushishi", and "House of Five Leaves".

As of now (Jan 2014), the English Dubbed version is available on Amazon Prime and Hulu Plus. NOTE: Amazon Prime doesn't have any commercials.

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.

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.