First Look Fair: Allison and Lillia

That kinda looks like the Final Fantasy logo...

Ray suggested not too long ago that this might be right up my alley. He was right. We need more anime like this.

It’s not a surprise that this show is running on the public TV network, NHK, who have a history of showing family-friendly yet innovative shows (Nadia: The Secret of Blue Water, where Anno got try out some of his later ideas; Dennou Coil more recently as well as an adaptation of Les Miserables). Well, actually, the title “innovative” might not quite be fitting for Allison and Lillia. There are shades not only of Ghibli, as Ray noted–specifically with Castle in the Sky and Porco Rosso–but also Last Exile without the fantasy elements. The beginning of the story as we see in episodes 1 and 2 is a fairly standard start of an epic, with the promise of a great treasure that will Save The World and the beginnings of a longer journey ahead for the two main characters. (We have yet to find out who the Lillia of the title is; perhaps a girl from the opposing kingdom?)

Fly, fly, fly, my baby gets me high

What makes this show so charming is its carefree, cheery innocence and unabashed sense of fun, especially with the flying scenes. It balances the somewhat more menacing and serious moments well with the sheer thrill of flying in a WWI-era biplane (though what’s that WWII era transport doing?) and taking to the sky. This is of course something that will remind most people of Miyazaki and his love of flying, but here, unlike with Last Exile, it’s all 2D cels rather than CGI. Issues like the behavior of the war widow from the opposing side were also handled with grace and nuance, especially for a show aimed at younger viewers. From this point forward, they could easily complicate or darken the plot with genuine pathos, as in Fullmetal Alchemist, which would complete the sense of epicness that this show seems to want to build from the start. Or, they could do a meandering, pleasant adventure which would honestly be less interesting to me, but at least it would be pleasant to watch. For once it’s nice to watch an anime relatively free of exploitive elements and fan-pandering.

Isn't this technically treason?

Might I add that the OP is beautiful, as well as the backdrops and the early 20th century-like setting. I admit I’m a sucker for these kinds of settings, which you can see in shows like Fullmetal Alchemist and movies like Kiki’s Delivery Service. I find it interesting that some Japanese animators keep returning to that Belle Epoque setting, which is largely regarded as the height not only of European civilization but also imperialism around the world. It’s probably simply a romantic and idyllic-looking setting that, above all, seems safe for children to run about and go forth into the great big world outside.

In fact, that’s what’s so characteristic about this show: nostalgia. It is, I think, key to its appeal. And there ain’t nothing wrong with a little bit of that as long as the stories that are told are entertaining and filled with the kind of wonder this show seems to possess. In the absence of a translated Kaiba, for me, this is the show to watch this season.

Author: gendomike

Michael lives in the Los Angeles area, and has been into anime since he saw Neon Genesis Evangelion in 1999. Some of his favorite shows include Full Metal Alchemist, Honey and Clover, and Welcome to the NHK!. Since 2003 he has gone to at least one anime convention every year. A public radio junkie, which naturally led to podcasting, he now holds a seminary degree and is looking to become Dr. Rev. Otaku Bible Man any day now. Michael can be reached at mike.huang@animediet.net. You can also find his Twitter account at @gendomike.

2 thoughts on “First Look Fair: Allison and Lillia

  1. Most of the airplanes in the show hearken back towards the 1920s-1930s which was the golden age of aviation when barn stormers were active. In that sense its not really odd to see monoplanes and biplanes in the same sky. The trainer that Allison flew was a post WWI by the look of it since it used an inline engine instead of a radial engine.

  2. The anime is based on 2 different series of light novels, “Allison” and “Lillia and Treize”. Both are written by Keiichi Sigsawa, who also created Kino’s Journey. Lillia’s story is set some years after Allison’s books*. Therefore, only the first half of the series will be Allison’s story.

    *BTW, there’s a third series of books set in the same world, it’s called Meg and Seron.

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