Forum - View topicThe Twelve Kingdoms (TV).
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kusanagi-sama
 Posts: 1723 Location: Wichita Falls, TX |
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The Twelve Kingdoms (TV) Genres: adventure, drama, fantasy Themes: demons, other world, politics Plot Summary: Yoko Nakajima, an unhappy high school student, is one day suddenly faced with a strange man who swears allegiance to her. After a battle with demon-like beasts, he then takes her to another world along with two of her classmates. There, her appearance has changed and she can understand the language even though her classmates cannot. But their status as "Kaikyaku" (people who come from Earth) makes them hunted fugitives, so they wander the land of the 12 countries, simply trying to survive and to figure out the reason why they were brought to this world. ---------------------------------- Anime Marathon Discussion (Nov. 6th, 2015 - Nov. 15th, 2015) starts here ---------------------------------- It seems that Twelve Kingdoms is rather popular (about 29.27% of the 123 votes rated it a masterpiece, another 26.83% rated it excellent, and 18.7% rated it very good), according to the statistics it has in the encyclopedia. Therefore I would assume this is something worth while to watch, am I correct? |
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abunai
Old Regular
 Posts: 5463 Location: 露命 |
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Yes and no. Personally, I loved it, and rated it excellent. But I am not blind to the fact that it may not be everybody's cup of tea. On the plus side, this is an anime which takes place in a very detailed cosmos. The parallel world of the twelve kingdoms is cut from whole cloth - you almost feel that it's real. Furthermore, the series is long enough for considerable character development and background to be worked in. On the minus side, it has some slow periods, and because of the length of the series (45 episodes), there is a lot of recap and filler material - but on the other hand, the fillers are very well done. If you like slow-moving stories with a great deal of detail, this is definitely an anime for you. If you prefer action in every episode, you'll be disappointed. - abunai |
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kusanagi-sama
Posts: 1723 Location: Wichita Falls, TX |
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It doesn't matter, short, long, action, and slow moving stories. I usually like it if its good.
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Kelly
Posts: 868 Location: New York City |
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Twelve Kingdoms has caught my attention too, but I'm on the fence since it's rather a large commitment both time and money wise, so I would want to be extremely sure that I would like it. For me, the pros are that I'm predisposed towards fantasy in the first place; and it sounds like it has a mature plot, which appeals to me as an adult. One of the things holding me back a little is that I've read some comments that most of the characters - especially the main characters - are not especially likeable. I would have trouble getting into a series if I didn't care about what happened to the characters. Any comments from those who have seen it?
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abunai
Old Regular
Posts: 5463 Location: 露命 |
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I should say that a predisposition towards historical fiction would probably make for more of an affinity, since that is what Twelve Kingdoms feels like - historical fiction set in a (very) distant region. There are fantasy elements in it, yes, but there's just as much politics.
Now, this is a fair complaint. The characters are deliberately crafted for maximum verisimilitude. This means that the heroes and heroines don't always behave in an heroic fashion. Sometimes, they are downright disagreeable. But it's all part of the character development. There is a growth process taking place, and you get the opportunity to watch the characters evolve over time - a long time. My own favourite characters are some of the major minor characters of the second and third story arcs. There are three major story arcs in the course of the series, each with its set of central characters (although Nakajima Youko, the original protagonist, remains in focus throughout). - abunai |
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SuperOnizuka
 Posts: 421 Location: When I look At the World- New Jersey |
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The character's attitudes toward things are the only things that keep me from loving the story completely. Or at least that is how it was when I watched the first set of episodes on the first two or three DVDs. But they grow on you after watching the series. You actually see them develop, as Abunai said. You then get to see, Youko developing into a naive queen trying very hard to understand Kei's current situation.
Now that DVD eight has been released, it feels as if we are only partially there to see how Youko ends up as a queen. Since the lead artist, or something, fell ill, the tenth DVD is going to be the last...supposively. spoiler[In the current release we see Youko, Suzu, and Shoukei confronting the same conflict, yet different methods. Shoukou and Gaoh are planning on usurping the Youko's position.] But this feels to me as only part of the problem that we get to see Youko deal with. Which really stinks since Twelve Kingdoms pulls you in to wonder how she deals with all of the other problems. However that is only the kingdom issues, but what about the issues surrounding Asano? Will he be sent back? Most likely, but what about Youko's relationships with her friends from Earth? In one of the earlier episodes, she states that over time she has to let go of those attachments for one world to live in the other. I wonder how she will do that. Any news on the novels? |
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Bruce Lee
 Posts: 715 Location: Seattle, Washington |
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Yeah, I'm not so sure about this. My brother (well, his girlfriend, at least) is really into this show, so there's been a bunch of the DVDs lying around at my mom's house. I tried to watch the first disk, but just couldn't get into it - too much little girl bickering and whining. Actually, it reminded me a bit of the Escaflowne TV series, but even more annoying girls. I just couldn't get into it, but it may be up your alley if you're an Escaflowne fan. |
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abunai
Old Regular
Posts: 5463 Location: 露命 |
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Well, that's sort of the point. How do you show somebody growing into maturity, if you don't start out with them being manifestly immature? - abunai |
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ShellBullet
 Posts: 1051 Location: I hit things, with my fist. |
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Yeah, then it will be perfect for me! I have a friend who loooves ju-ni-kouku and I can't wait to see it. The comparisons to Escaflowne only make me more intriged as that is one of my favorite series. |
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Nani?
 Posts: 632 |
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I bought the first two disks, rented disk three, and then traded the first two disks in for a ton of free rentals at an anime specialty store.
I have seen it and yes, Youko Nakajima whines at first. Her main problem though is that she tends to do what she is expected to do too often. She gets over the whining fairly quickly but not not her tendacy to "go along" with situations. This make her matureing proccess much more complicated then say Fushigi Yugi (and no hoards of cute guys) or even Escaflowne. As for the show, I still rent it and will watch the whole thing. Abunai is right in the comparision to historical fiction. I would empathize the type of mythic touch. It feels like something J.R.R. Tolkien might have written had he been born Japanese and studied ancient China. What keeps it on the rental shelf rather then a series I would buy is the that, like Tolkien, it tends to be verbose. It keeps empathising the same points about the kingship and the position of Kaikaku again and again until, teeth cleanched in anger and sarcasm, I was ready to throw the remote at the tv screaming, "I got it now can you please move on." I almost gave up on the series. Fortunately, there is enough there that my anger did subside, and I have enjoyed most of the series. I particularly like the art, and the feel that attitudes are somewhat less "enlightened". All the Best, Nani? |
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Acolyte
 Posts: 100 Location: Searching high and low for my missing waist line. |
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If you're into historical fiction, and don't need action 24/7, then I, too, highly recommend this series. I've seen it up to disc 6, and have, for the most part enjoyed it tremendously. I plan on getting it when it is complete ( for/in america ) and comes out in a box set.
As mentioned before, this is no slapped together world, it has an historical depth to it so deep and diverse that I've had to watch some episodes multiple times in order to grasp it. It's slow at times, and some of the characters can grate on your nerves because of how they act, (I've hucked my foam brick at the TV more than once) however if you just allow the show to move at it's own pace you will discover that it all fits together, and even the filler is there for a reason. On a scale of 1-10 I'd give it a solid 8, based on animation, story-line(s), and character developement; like Nani? posted, it's one down side is the way it tends to linger/review certain aspects: but as I said before, let it move at it's own pace. |
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abunai
Old Regular
Posts: 5463 Location: 露命 |
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Quite so - Youko's self-doubt and lack of confidence is nearly crippling, to begin with. If there's a moral to her tale, it is "proceed with confidence in yourself".
Ah, I like this comparison.
Well, this is to be expected from a series - they have to keep new arrivals informed of what is going on. The filler episodes serve this purpose, too. BTW, I rather liked the way the filler episodes were done in Twelve Kingdoms. Oh, yes, and that should be kaikyaku (海客 - literally, "visitor from the sea"). - abunai |
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Key
Moderator
 Posts: 18458 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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For clarity's sake, Twelve Kingdoms is nothing like Escaflowne. It has only minimal romantic elements that play basically no part in the overall storyline, whereas Escaflowne was very much driven by its romantic entanglements. There's also no mecha in Twelve Kingdoms (which is a big part of Escaflowne) and its world is based off of Chinese mythology, whereas Escflowne is more of a Western-styled fantasy world (except for the mecha). Someone looking for an Escaflowne-styled serious would probably be disappointed with TK. Or, OTOH, they might find an incredible new series of a completely different style. One of the greatest strength of Twelve Kingdoms, aside from the beautiful artistry, lush character designs, and meticulously-structured fantasy world, is its character development. As others have noted, some of the central characters are genuinely unpleasant to watch at times, but the wonder of the series is watching them overcome their foibles and learn from their experiences to become better people. This is especially true of Suzu and Shokei, the two girls who are co-protagonists with Youko in the third story arc (beginning in vol. 6, which starts with ep 23). I also delight in the exploration aspect of the series; only a couple of the twelve kingdoms haven't been visited at least briefly by the end of vol. 8, and it's interesting to see how the leaders and kirin vary from kingdom to kindom. I will agree that the story's slow pacing and overuse of recaps are marks against the series, but they aren't big ones. I'd give the series a 9 out of 10, at least. |
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Dragoonlord1984
Posts: 8 |
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So I just finished buying and watching The Twelve Kingdoms Premium Box 1 and 2, all the way to I believe episode 43...
Does anyone know if they have any plans to continue the series... It seems they sure do leave alot of the story open... maybe i'm missing an episode but they sure did leave the whole thing with Taiki unfinished, as well as the kingdom of Ryuu thing. Plus they have soo many other things that they could stress on and stories they could spin off. |
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sean
Posts: 101 |
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As far as I know, they are not continuing the series, but I am not positive. I am disappointed with that decision seeing as it was a very good series and so much room was left for expansion.
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