Texhnolyze Vol. 1

Texhnolyze is yet another stunning and highly unique series created by Yoshitoshi Abe known for Serial Experiments Lain and Haibane Ranmei. To say this series is completely different from his otherworks, is telling a lie. It’s safe to say I did not enjoy his other works listed above that is to say I found S.E. Lain pissed me off completely, and Haibane Ranmei simply confused me. Texhnolyze promises the same level of headfuckery, but at least gives me time to adapt and enjoy what is going on, if enjoy is the right word to use.

Not a lot can be said for the story at this point in time. Instead the first volume introduces you to the ideas and small chunks that will form part of an overall much bigger picture. You are led into a world which is of two halves. There are the haves and have nots. The haves are the people known as Texhnolyze are essentially technologically enhanced humans. The have nots are those who don’t have any augmentations and are left to live their lives with bodies with reduced repair capacity and shorter lifespan. Power struggles ensure, gunfights and plenty of violence come with this story. The bigger picture overall is still unknown.

As for characters, you meet plenty. You see them fight, get to know each other, and even hear some nice history about them. All of this is a luxury. You soon find out that in the entirety of the volume, you won’t know the names of most of them! I personally find it hard to even begin to know or miss a character if I don’t know who they are, apart from the Sage, who is a little creepy in her own way, I don’t yet feel for any of the characters, a fact I hope will change as the series progresses.

The artwork and animation is simply fabulous. The sheer quality and detail did blow me away, especially during the opening sequence when I heard the incredible track Guardian Angel, which can be found as Track 1 on Juno Reactor’s Beyond the Infinite album. I simply love Juno Reactor and I was extremely surprised and happy to hear their music on an anime series. Unfortunately this was the musical peak for me. Atmospheric music does not feature highly in this series, and combined with perhaps a lifeless yet accurate dub, it leaves me feeling a bit disappointed on the ears, especially when my eyes have been treated so nicely. The DVD has been brought into this country by MVM who tend to be responsible for most of the Geneon productions and a good job has been done!

At the current point in the series, you know to little to make any judgement about either the story or the characters. The series is highly fragmented at this point, yet everything that does happen should be retained for future reference. You do have to be awake while your brain is being raped, a sorry state of affairs I know, but I know some of you get off on it!

I want more. I do want to see what happens, what comes up, and how the characters and story evolves. There has to be something to get me teeth into!