Thread: Why hello there!

Hey there, welcome to the site! Hope you enjoy your stay here, and might I ask, just what is Escaflowne? I've already looked on Wikipedia, but the way things are worded on that site, I just find it easier to ask someone who's actually seen the anime. That way, I'll get a better idea on whether or not I want to check it out.

It's sort of a medieval mecha anime, but the focus is more on the people than the violence (there are some amazing fight scenes from time to time, though). The story follows Hitomi, a Japanese high schooler, who gets transported to the world of Gaia and travels with Van Fanel, the king of the recently destroyed country of Fanelia, and Alan Schezar, a knight of Asturia. From there springs a love triangle, betrayal, the myth of Atlantis, mysterious friends, political intrigue and an all out war for survival that pits every country on the Gaia against the evil Zaibach empire.

I think the show was from the late 90's, so the animation is cell shaded instead of digitally colored, which adds a certain richness and depth of texture to this show. The animation is also extremely smooth, which really stands out in some of the mecha/sword battles. The voice acting is also top notch in both the English and Japanese tracks, although the Japanese version of Van does express emotion in his voice a little better both tracks are truly excellent. The music is great as well and really matches what's playing on the screen.

Overall the production quality of the show is very high and it's definitely worth a watch if you don't mind mechs.