3.5 An entertaining ride
Akiyuki Takehara is a high schooler living on the tranquil island of Sentan. He goes to school with his two best friends, Haru and Furuichi, and lives a relatively ordinary life. That all changes when he is accidentally involved in a bus bombing and is bestowed with the dubious power to transform into a strange creature called a Xam'd. The transformation is not without price however, as those that spend to much time in the Xam'd shape start to turn to stone. Saved by a young woman named Nakiami, Akiyuki is rather forcibly removed from his home and employed on a mail ship. Now he must learn to control his new power and try to find a way back home.
This series was weird. It was interesting, then boring, then confusing, then interesting, then confusing, then it ended. The world we are introduced to is interesting and mysterious. Akiyuki was something of an interesting character and he goes through quite a bit of character development. The supporting cast is varied and carry...
A well-told story in a fully thought-out world
Xam'd: Lost Memories has taken the top spot as my favorite anime series, or television series at all for that matter. It's set in a world apparently long at war. Neither faction is innocent, as is the case in reality but so rarely in literature. The people use a mix of futuristic bioengineering, modern weaponry, and religious ritual and magic to accomplish their goals. There are many factions, plotlines, characters, and ideas to understand and keep track of, and if you can follow all of them, it is very much worth the ride. This isn't a simple, straightforward story you can follow along with while you do your other work. It takes some effort to keep up with, and rewards that effort well.
Beautiful, If Not Overdecorated
Others have covered the premise of this story, so I won't waste your time trying to reiterate.
Pros:
All the stuff that makes a good anime are here: artwork; character development; musical score; imaginative setting; interesting conflict; etc...
Cons:
Lots of stuff going on all over the place. Not sure why some of the characters or plot lines were there, other than to be a parable of some sort.
Overall:
Loved it. Every aspect is very high quality. The effort is there. The character development is excellent for some, if not for most of the characters. This story is beautifully complex, but does sometimes feel crowded, like a diamond ring with too many gems in the setting (distracts from the centerpiece's beauty), or a wedding dress with too much lace (think snowbeast). I can see why some reviewers said it was a little confusing at times. I did have to see the last episode's scenes a couple of times to verify if it was a happy...
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