Despite the excellent track record of Studio BONES, my level of interest in most of their recent productions has been low. In fact, the last BONES show I managed to finish was Scrapped Princess. Before that? Angelic Layer - which aired three years ago.

So, I'm not exactly a BONES junkie.

But, for whatever reason, the premise of this show grabbed my interest, and having watched the first episode, I'm glad it did. For the particulars of the story, see here.

One of the first things I noticed was the similarities in character designs with Planetes. Alas, the character designers are different, but the similarity in style is striking. The animation quality as a whole is about what you'd expect from BONES, with no skimping on the budget. The show isn't particularly flashy - the first episode isn't, at least - but the visuals don't disappoint.

The direction is competent, and even though the first episode is practically split into two halves - one dealing with young Kurau and the other with her adult self - the transition is nicely handled. There are several moments of dramatic climax scattered throughout the episode, but the overall flow doesn't suffer as a result. If anything, it just pulls you in a little more each time, until, the next thing you know, you're paying very close attention to what's going on. Just in time for the big action sequence, of course.

I should also make mention of the music - both the quality itself and, in particular, the editing. There were several points through the episode where the background music became very much a part of the foreground, and it worked perfectly. I love it when a show makes smart use of its background music. As is the case with many first episodes, there wasn't an OP this time around (although, I suspect the song that plays right before the commercial break will be the OP), but I really liked the ED. The show really impresses in the music department.

Obviously, I like enough of what I saw to keep watching. Good stuff.

Does that mean you've never watched RahXephon?

Anyways, the July issue of NewType USA also has a few pages on Kurau that might be of interest. Most of the discussion seems to be events that happen after episode 1 - namely, the appearance of another character.

I haven't gotten a chance to watch the episode myself yet, though.

I watched this series with a friend after seeing that you liked it, since I was a bit bored. I walked away being underwhelmed, though. Phantom Memory seems like a twisted mishmash of Ghost in the Shell, Eva, and other cliches to me. I expected much better execution and imagination from Bones, which was lacking in this show.

I might watch another episode or two, since I am curious to what is going on. It really seems like something else is happening on the outside in Phantom Memory. This is why I brought up the Eva similarities, especially which I saw with the experiment in the beginning of the episode.

Thanks for the recommendation, I think I'll check it out since I loved Planetes, and I like Bones.

I've seen the first 9 episodes of RahXephon. I started buying the DVDs, but stopped after the first two when I had to make some cuts to my DVD budget. I liked what I saw, and I want to finish the series, but I haven't gotten around to it.

Regarding RahXephon, just make sure you get that gorgeous limited edition box for the series+movie when it comes out. ^^;

I'm in budget-mode for all purchases myself, but that DDD coupon combined with the fact that I was starting to get behind on many things I badly wanted made me go a bit crazy and spend yet more money I don't have. =p

I just watched this subbed. Very good, looks to be one of the better shows this season.

Agreed. And don't forget -- Kawasumi Ayako!

the character designs reminds me of the characters from the anime, Gantz. It looks great! :3 I want to watch it! Which voice actors are in?

Can't wait to hear the OP and ED themes! May i know who sung them?