 |
| 6. Iodine
 
Watase Yu's romance tale may be set in the present day
this time around, but it's still subject to the same supernatural intrusions,
wild plot twists, meaningless deaths, and unending angst as her notorious Fushigi
Yuugi. This time we meet Aya, a girl cursed to be the host body for a vengeful
celestial maiden, Ceres, who bears a serious grudge against Aya's family. Though
the central couple is a little more interesting this time, there is a painful
dearth of good supporting characters and the story is much, much weaker. Sadly,
the show never really manages to deliver any real drama, despite a bang of a beginning,
with too many unfinished subplots and distracting filler episodes. Many of the
later plot developments are so outlandish they're nearly comical, and the ending
is calculatedly depressing. The animation is fine,
with some nice CGI integration, but the stylized character designs don't come
off very well in the the show's more realistic settings. Music, vocal performances,
and some of the central ideas are very good. The production as a whole, however,
suffers from way too many soap-opera dramatics to be entertaining to the average
viewer. |
| 4. Hybrid
Ceres: Celestial Legend is an anime based on the manga
by Yu Watase. Like her previous works like Fushigi Yugi, Ceres:
Celestial Legend is another fantasy tale staring a female lead. The story
of Ceres:Celestial Legend follows a high school girl named Aya, and her
twin brother Aki, who are going to celebrate their sixteenth birthday. However,
this birthday is going to be different from their previous birthdays, as a dark
family secret is revealed to both of them. And thus begins the dark, epic fantasy
story that is Ceres:Celestial Legend. First off, Ceres is a show
that is not for the faint of heart, as the show features a lot of angst, and themes
of incest. But if you put these issues aside, you will be rewarded with a show
with rich character development, fantastic music (OP theme Scarlet is simply beautiful),
and detailed animation. The only weakness I could find with this show is that,
the pacing of the plot is a bit oddly paced, but other than that, this is another
shoujo title that should be missed by any shoujo fans. |
| 3. X-MAN
Ayashi no Ceres is the story of Aya Mikage and her twin
brother Aki, driven apart by the forces of fate. It's the day of there sixteenth
birthday. They are called to the family home to be given a special present. They
expect nothing more then a birthday party. But it turns out nothing like what
they expected. Things get really weird from there. The
title Ayashi no Ceres is a pun, making the title impossible to really translate.
The art is like that of Fushigi Yugi's, but more mature and it is a darker
tale. But this is a pretty good series none the less. The episodes start with
a suspense and end that way. They eps leave off a lot like FY's. Needing
to know what happens next. At least that's how it was for me. Aya is a more three
dimensional character within only a few eps than Miaka is all together. The characters
are developed nicely and are very appealing, especially Yuuhi. Touya is a Tamahome
clone with no personality. Yuu Watase does a great job with the art work.
It looks similar to her FY ova work. The series quickly passed and there
wasn't time for filler. I just wish it could of been a little longer. I feel it
was sort of rushed towards the ending. But I still enjoyed it a whole lot. The
music is really catchy. I love the first ending theme. It's always in my head.
ANC is available on 8 volumes from Viz. It's well worth the money.
|
| 2. Rae'ven
Ayashi no Ceres is another masterpiece coming from the
mind of Yuu Watase. This manga and subsequent anime is a lot different
from Watase-san's other works, including Fushigi Yuugi. What makes
this anime different from the others is the dark theme that runs through the entire
series. The music is absolutely perfect for it, weaving its own tale along with
the images. The art style is impeccable which is another reason why I like it.
But that's secondary. The story of AnC is
centered on a high-school girl named Aya and her twin brother, Aki. Aya loves
to hang out with her friends and hang out at Karaoke bars. Aki just likes to tease
his younger sister. On the eve of their sixteenth birthday, Aya goes to see a
fortuneteller who sees anger, bloodshed, and chaos plaguing Aya's life. This prophecy
comes true. On the day of their sixteenth birthday,
family members die, and a celestial being awakens deep within Aya. Aya's family,
the Mikage, try to kill her, and thus starts the chaos; for deep within Aki, is
another being that awakens. Aya escapes with her
life, and begins the search to find out who Ceres is, and who has her haragomo,
or Celestial Robe. Later in the series we learn the truth, and why Kagami, Aya's
cousin, has been trying to recreate the haragomo deep within his lab. Along
her journey, she falls in love with Toya, and is befriended by Yuhi and Suzami
Aogiri. Many other characters are introduced, and they all flow very nicely throughout
the entire series. This is definitely not an anime
for those that want a happy, fuzzy, feel-good series. It deals with a lot of issues
and there is a high level of angst. But if you can handle that, it is definitely
worth watching. The ending, which I won't give away, is very sad. It left me wanting
to know more, and I wish the series lasted longer. |
| 1. Himiko
Ayashi no Ceres is a anime that is not for the faint
at heart ^^; This anime deals with incredible angst and forms of incest (EWWW!)
Despite these things, AnC comes out very well in my opinion. The angst,
bloodshed, and feeling evoked from this series is one which made me look at anime
in a whole different light. ANC is about a high-school girl named Aya,
and her twin brother, Aki, who are turning 16. On this day, chaos is foretold,
and yep.. it happens. Family members die and the Mikage ---her family--- want
Aya dead because she is a potential threat to their 'clan'. Somehow, Aya escapes
as new powers emerge from her body. Aya later finds out that within her is Tennyo
blood (kinda like a angel/demon's blood) which give her excessive power. Soon,
she is fighting against the one she loves most... her twin brother. Along her
struggle she meets her lover... Tooya... and many others who want to end the 'tennyo
curse'. I won't give anything away but be warned... it is very SAD! Definitely
not to be missed! |
| 
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(4.3)