"In the future, probably in Japan, robots have long been put into practical use, and practical use of androids has just begun."
This cue, white text on a white background, opens Time of Eve.
Time of Eve is a speculative, "near future" science fiction show all about robots, robots, robots... And love? Before your mind journeys south, no, it's not about sex droids, though one episode touches on the subject. If you're all about hot robot action, stick with Ghost in the Shell; Time of Eve has no violence. The anime is more soft-core character driven than hard-core action, a quality intimated by the smooth, soft CGI-enhanced animation style. The show is a six episode series released in 2009 from Studio RIKKA. The first five episodes are roughly fifteen minutes in length, and the latter about twenty-five minutes; a movie covering and expanding upon the first season is supposed to come out in the spring of this year.
Rikuo is a high schooler whose family owns a "houseroid" with artificial intelligence, which they treat as an object; not only is this attitude common, it is normal and even promoted by society at large. Rikuo does not expect his family android to exhibit any type of initiative or personality, and so when he discovers that "Sammy" has been going out on its own, he's both curious and alarmed, and follows the android to a cafe called "Time of Eve." He brings along another high school friend named Masaki, and thw two step into what is clearly for them an alternate world--a cafe where androids and humans are not only treated equally, but where the two can't be told apart! Each episode explores relationships between the characters at Time of Eve cafe and their identities as Rikuo and Masaki try to tell who is human and who is "only" machine.
The central concept of the show handles the topic of humanity--who and what is "human"? Is it a state of being, or a manner of construction? This subject has been handled before (not in the least by Ghost in the Shell), but Time of Eve explores its ideas in an extraordinarily accessible manner. Even viewers who aren't necessarily fans of science fiction will find this series palatable for its emphasis on characters and relationships rather than science (plus the complete omission of guns and mechas). Less science fiction than speculative fiction, Time of Eve is A-class drama, touching, at times hilarious, and always interesting.
If you love art, you will love Time of Eve. The settings are carefully rendered in great detail and expound upon the show's world beyond the brief clips of exposition. Each episode took over a month of production, so the lush animation is to be expected. The character designs are, by contrast, much more simple, but each character is unique without being outlandish or overly designed; they look like people you may share an office or class with (you know, if you were an anime character). No weird hair Lucky Star colors here, nor outrageous fashions. The light and shadow techniques employed in the show create beautiful ambiance and skillfully manipulate each scene to set the tone.
Time of Eve has not been licensed in the U.S. yet and as of this review does not appear to have been dubbed, though a subtitled version is available on CrunchyRoll. The Japanese voice acting is outstanding; each character's voice seems utterly natural (and thankfully, none are annoying--no pitchy girls here) and each line flows easily with appropriate emotion. The music, though sparse, is well done and reminiscent of Susumu Hirasawa's work in Paranoia Agent.
My major complaint is only that the series is too short. With only a little more than an hour and a half, the series really only drops the major conflict bomb in episode 6 and doesn't resolve it. A second season hasn't yet been announced, so whether or not the questions episode 6 brings up will be answered is still up in the air. The un-released movie seems like it will be set in the same style as the first Evangelion movie, so plot resolution is unlikely to arrive from that angle.
Bottom line: watch it online for now, as it hasn't been released in North America. If you get a chance, buy it!
This cue, white text on a white background, opens Time of Eve.
Time of Eve is a speculative, "near future" science fiction show all about robots, robots, robots... And love? Before your mind journeys south, no, it's not about sex droids, though one episode touches on the subject. If you're all about hot robot action, stick with Ghost in the Shell; Time of Eve has no violence. The anime is more soft-core character driven than hard-core action, a quality intimated by the smooth, soft CGI-enhanced animation style. The show is a six episode series released in 2009 from Studio RIKKA. The first five episodes are roughly fifteen minutes in length, and the latter about twenty-five minutes; a movie covering and expanding upon the first season is supposed to come out in the spring of this year.
Rikuo is a high schooler whose family owns a "houseroid" with artificial intelligence, which they treat as an object; not only is this attitude common, it is normal and even promoted by society at large. Rikuo does not expect his family android to exhibit any type of initiative or personality, and so when he discovers that "Sammy" has been going out on its own, he's both curious and alarmed, and follows the android to a cafe called "Time of Eve." He brings along another high school friend named Masaki, and thw two step into what is clearly for them an alternate world--a cafe where androids and humans are not only treated equally, but where the two can't be told apart! Each episode explores relationships between the characters at Time of Eve cafe and their identities as Rikuo and Masaki try to tell who is human and who is "only" machine.
The central concept of the show handles the topic of humanity--who and what is "human"? Is it a state of being, or a manner of construction? This subject has been handled before (not in the least by Ghost in the Shell), but Time of Eve explores its ideas in an extraordinarily accessible manner. Even viewers who aren't necessarily fans of science fiction will find this series palatable for its emphasis on characters and relationships rather than science (plus the complete omission of guns and mechas). Less science fiction than speculative fiction, Time of Eve is A-class drama, touching, at times hilarious, and always interesting.
If you love art, you will love Time of Eve. The settings are carefully rendered in great detail and expound upon the show's world beyond the brief clips of exposition. Each episode took over a month of production, so the lush animation is to be expected. The character designs are, by contrast, much more simple, but each character is unique without being outlandish or overly designed; they look like people you may share an office or class with (you know, if you were an anime character). No weird hair Lucky Star colors here, nor outrageous fashions. The light and shadow techniques employed in the show create beautiful ambiance and skillfully manipulate each scene to set the tone.
Time of Eve has not been licensed in the U.S. yet and as of this review does not appear to have been dubbed, though a subtitled version is available on CrunchyRoll. The Japanese voice acting is outstanding; each character's voice seems utterly natural (and thankfully, none are annoying--no pitchy girls here) and each line flows easily with appropriate emotion. The music, though sparse, is well done and reminiscent of Susumu Hirasawa's work in Paranoia Agent.
My major complaint is only that the series is too short. With only a little more than an hour and a half, the series really only drops the major conflict bomb in episode 6 and doesn't resolve it. A second season hasn't yet been announced, so whether or not the questions episode 6 brings up will be answered is still up in the air. The un-released movie seems like it will be set in the same style as the first Evangelion movie, so plot resolution is unlikely to arrive from that angle.
Bottom line: watch it online for now, as it hasn't been released in North America. If you get a chance, buy it!