The Melody of Oblivion
忘却の旋律A great war occurred in the 20th century between humans and monsters. Since that time, the monsters rule the world in fear but keep relatively hidden from public view. A boy named Bokka ponders the past and wonders what became of the Meros Warriors who defended the world so bravely against the demons. He soon meets Kurofune and learns of the power of the Meros and the I-bar machines they ride in battle. Warriors are the only ones who can see and hear the Melody of Oblivion, a phantom girl hidden away waiting to be rescued and be the savior of mankind. During a battle between Kurofune and a demon, Bokka discovers something only his wildest dreams could possibly imagine...he too can hear that melody. Throughout his journeys, Bokka meets many monsters and their agents, friends, and companions as he discovers the true extent of his new powers. He must continue to battle evil in the hope of releasing Boukyaku no Senritsu and free a world that has forgotten its once beautiful melody. (Source: ANN)
Reviews
ernser.tevin - 2014-01-28 01:13:29
This anime deserves more credit...It was descent....
rosie.wisozk - 2013-07-16 09:56:55
Y'know what happens when you don't allow your genius child to grow properly to become better at utilizing his/her skills, abilities, and imagination?It ALL goes to waste... It may glimmer or sparkle a bit during it's life, but... without mature guidance, patient growth, and firm, bold inventing, all of the power that "could've been" quickly flickers out and becomes forever blinked out of a recognizable existence....You get a feel as to how famous people who committed suicide leave a sour taste in your mouth by merely mentioning them.Yes, that's right. Melody of Oblivion, believe it or not, had a level of potential that could've raised eyebrows, dropped jaws, and otherwise made us utter that 3-letter word:"Wow...".Instead, we say "Ugh..."Proper anime fans will instantly connect the visuals and mood to it's distant cousin Utena.Same scriptwriter, same studio, same art style, heck, similar enough endeavor!Yoji Enokido, what with his amazing legendary success with the artistic Utena, and the symbolic FLCL, must've thought "I'm on a roll!" and decided to invent yet another ambitious work.Thing is, before he was doing it for effort and passion, now he's doing it for fame and a headrush.The Result? We get flair and awe, but the effect is brittle and shortlived.The setting could be a dead ringer for Berserk! The world is at a stage where monsters rule the world with deviousness, guile, seduction, and underhanded cruelty.Even if you do picture the first few chapters of Berserk/1st episode, this concept still might intrigue you because the inherit philosophy that's bundled with it is amazing alone.Highschool student Bocca has a rather opaque life; he lives in the shadow of his brother, is talented in areas unimportant to his life, has a hollow superficial relationship with a hottie, his parents reluctantly fight his battles, and otherwise remains unaware of his actual world.All these curses do come with a nice trade-off though: In exchange for an easy life he can see things that others can't. He can see the truth.And the beginning convinces us that this show will primarily be about a psychological/philosophical/surrealist adventure. Which it is, but you couldn't picture a more simplistic handling. If you thought NGE should've been lighter and more clear, when you finish this, doubtless that desire will fade indefinitely.The show cleanly divides it's "messages in an arc" into 7 sagas. In them, we come across a gaggle of characters, some often shocking/appeasing allegories, and pretty satisfying combat.But you can tell Yoji is more concerned with presence than impact, and all we ultimately feel is..... nothing.The ending reflects this entirely; In the middle of it's final arc, we encounter a NGE-style ending that almost immediately self-destructs the show.Those who've seen Ghost Hound's abrupt and alarming transition will know EXACTLY what I'm talking about!Yoji, at this point, officially vetoed his visionary project to be shutdown..... as artistically acceptable as possible.Then we come to the most horrifying realization of all: That the show was always just a glamorous shell with nothing inside.This was produced when the transition from traditional animation to digital was complete.When Utena was presented the art looked more archaically mystifying, because the rugged, pasty feeling notched up the feel of the show.It was tasteful, endearing, and honest work!It didn't seem to work very well here though..., When everything is translated, the characters are translated into bubbly figures, women almost always have lemon-shaped knockers, and flat, cookie-cutter expressions...It totally reversed the intention; it's now soulless, transparent, and laughably superficial.Remember those badly made shows that were so haphazardly constructed you couldn't help but chuckle when they were blatantly stupid? Well, depending on how lenient you are, you'll find Melody to be the biggest failure of consistent atmosphere, or the most puzzling piece of work in recent memory.Good news though!The above mentioned scenario only occurs when you don't see beyond this problem; basically, once you read this, you're safe!Looking beyond the emptiness(as difficult and pointless as it sounds), is the key to enjoying all of the colorful and interesting art!It may be museum of arrogant creative venting, but it's still art.The machines, backgrounds, and animation are lovingly and carefully represented by JC Staff on a Sunrise/Madhouse level.There's no need to worry about quality dips here!Surprise! Another similarity to Utena! The musical scoring is atypical of anime.Orchestra, simple piano, and simple strings make this the most effective part of Melody's atmosphere, as well as the best part of the show.It's not only the least superficial element of the show, it's also utilized the most professional.OP singer, lisa, would be the perfect choice to insist that Melody means serious business.O' won't you be irritated to hear that glorious theme every time only to roll your eyes later at the truth that the REAL Melody of Oblivion doesn't nearly sound as good(okay, bad pun).END singer, Minawo, showcases her only other anime collaboration besides D.N. Angel.And, like before(or after since this was made before chronologically speaking), it's gentle, soft, and sweet.I guess the best thing I can say about this department is that when at the peak of your stress, close your eyes and go to the parts where there's less dialogue.... and more music.It'll directly serve as healing rather than supporting.Speaking of dialogue...I would normally give a 6 to this cast, because its an element that had great potential and showed signs of improving well!Bocca, the main character, is the least interesting characte; he has written all over him "Avatar lead"! Upfront, I'll say that nothing about him, physically or personally, that's inspiring or fulfilling.One could call him a Jil(from Tower of Druaga) in that he has the same level of humor, but not the same level of enjoyment.You.... could care less about him.Mostly because, typical of avatar leads, they are flip-floppers in romance...His "main" romance is Sayoko. And she's the safest claim of being the sturdiest character; she's genuinely likable, has behavior patterns that aren't as annoying as they could've been, falls for Bocca more naturally then he to her, and, even though she doesn't provide the meat of the action, might as well be more awesome than all of fighters combined!His "secondary" romantic interest is Koko... but she might as well be called "Cuckoo"!Impulsive, petite, strong-willed, and "more than she appears", Koko serves as the guilty pleasure of the show. It's easy to be charmed by her placid guile and direct nature. Think of her as the "Haruhi" of the show.The "tertiary"(means third) heroine isn't around enough to matter as much, and therefore her impact and impression is virtually zero.Now use this heroine's treatment as a template for the rest of the cast, and I've literally said it all!Basically, because of the plug being pulled, the output of the quality absurdly dips into abysmal levels.If you're more forgiving of this simple fact, then you can up the rating to 6 or even 7 if you want!I, however, dislike unwarranted unprofessional decision making.The show moves at a good fast pace................and that's the most enjoyable thing about the show.....But seriously, even though the ending is what destroys the potential of the show, it's not biring, but it needs to be appreciated separately.One could, if they really liked the show, pretend to isolate the first 22 eps from the remaining 2 and... simply call that the extras.The ending does tell you what you need to know, but the "NGE" factor of it will be an instant turn off.I beg people to give it a fair shake though, because even though the means of the icing the cake are questionable, it still tastes good.The ending aside, the pace of the show is akin to Escaflowne and Gankutsuou. Fast, controlled, fun, with ease and grace.This show also makes use of fanservice in the most awkwardly conceived manners possible.Never before has fanservice made us unconsciously mutter Scooby-Doo's trademark puzzled groan "R-oh?".Rarely does it serve traditional fanservice motives, and totally becomes detrimental.A mature mind that struggles to maintain order with his preferences might tear his or her mind apart to truly know where this show stands with them.It's kind of like a friend you playfully argue and fight with all the time, but when you get tired, they might not share your sentiment and the nature of the playing becomes more and more warped to the point it's unhealthy.Granted, Melody shouldn't be matched up with this, but the potential it had does.An earlier review of mine, Twelve Kingdoms, talked about how it succeeded at showing it's best, thereby enabling it to be called a true classic despite all of the self-evident flaws.Melody simply becomes defeated by them.Thus, the ill-raised child prodigy, becomes an attention demanding, pity seeking, martyr that begs forgiveness for it's slip-ups.And even though we outwardly show concern and woe, we don't really mean it.All we can do for this helpless sap is remind him of when he shone the brightest.Good thing Melody wasn't my baby! I'd have made sure to not let it piss itself down the toilet!Letter Grading Time(LGT)Story: BArt: B-Sound: B+Animation: B-Characters: CEnjoyment: C+Overall: C++ Easy, clean, and solid artistic entertainment. Has plenty of ideas and succeeds at demonstrating ability and technique. Creates and maintains it's atmosphere more so than not; mostly due to it's music. Ending's a different flavor but it has the same nutrients.- Self-destructs; characters, depth, storylines, all lose it's carbonation and becomes flat and impotent. Infamous use of piss poor fanservice. It's much saner to award it purple hearts than the Medal of Honor!