Haibane Renmei was one of those animes that slipped through the cracks. I had heard the name before, but never took the time to read what the story was, who wrote it or which American company planned on picking up the rights for it. I would have completely missed the DVD if it hadn’t of had a display of its own near the entrance. Being the anime fan I am, I picked the DVD up on my way in. The cover was very attractive and was what caught my eye in the first place. The cover had artwork from Akira Takada and looked to be in the style of Serial Experiments Lain. I later found that Yoshitoshi ABe, the creator behind Lain also created Haibane Renmei.
I popped the DVD into my computer and began to watch. The first thing I noticed was the quality of the DVD. Video was flawless, very little cross coloration, if any. Menus were animated, fluid, and vibrant and even contained transitions that fit the theme of the show. Authoring of anime DVDs is definitely improving (as is evident with Columbia Tristar’s handling of the Bebop movie). The extras are decent and contain interviews with the English voice actors, as well as anime previews. After I was done pushing all the lovely menu buttons, I was ready to start the show.
The first thing I learned about Haibane Renmei was that the story involved Angels of some sort. A single unnamed character is falling but is not afraid. The next scene shows women with halos and small wings. A cocoon is in a room and someone is ready to be born. Our unnamed character emerges and is named Rakka. Rakka is new to this land and does not understand what is happening. In a sense, she is the audience. We learn about the Haibane at the same rate she does.
The Haibane are a group of people reborn. They do not remember their previous life. The Haibane live in an old dormitory called Old Home. From the start we are introduced to a large portion of the cast. Nemu, the oldest of the Haibane chats with Reki, the second oldest of the Haibane. We come to understand that the Haibane are named after the dream they had in their cocoon. Rakka dreamed she was falling and was named “Rakka” (meaning falling). The entire first episode is devoted to learning about the Haibane. The live with humans but are only allowed certain privileges. They are treated fine and seem to enjoy their place in society. The Haibane are surrounded by walls and are forbidden to leave. There are two types of Haibane: Old Feathers and New Feathers. The New Feathers are young children and the Old Feathers are teenagers and adults.
The voice acting for these Haibane is superb. Carrie Savage does the voice of Rakka and I really enjoyed her part. My favorite in the show is Zarath Little as Kana. Kana is a tomboyish, tenacious girl who wants to be an engineer. Little really knows how to portray this. Kristy Pape plays Nemu, a motherly figure, and very well I might add. Both the English and Japanese actors exceed in producing realistic and enjoyable roles.
The rest of the DVD also explores life as a Haibane. Rakka tries to settle into a daily routine and experiments with all the jobs the other Old Feathers have. Viewers come to meet the Toga, a mysterious group of people allowed outside of the town gates. The Toga do not talk, but rather communicate through a form of sign language. Rakka is taken to a temple and we learn of the Charcoal Feather Federation, the federation that protects the Haibane. All of these rules and regulations do not seem to bother the Haibane in any way.
Animation within Haibane Renmei is beautiful. The first scene in particular, when Rakka is falling, really grabbed my attention. Some animation is computer generated or at least computer assisted, such as the static electricity in Rakka’s hair, or the fans in the fields. It all blends well and viewers are left to enjoy the other aspects of the show.
This first DVD is excellent. Small portions of story are told and we are given quite a rundown on the history of Haibane. There are a few things I noted during the first DVD: Rakka seems special. She seems to have the hardest time adjusting out of all the Haibane. Her wings grew the fastest and she questions a lot about Haibane life. There are suggestions that she could be “The One” in a sense, but it really is too early to tell. The story talked about the walls surrounding the village many times. Rakka also has questions about these walls. I’m sure that will play an important role later. The crows are also mentioned many times. I’m glad I found this little gem it really is quality entertainment. I can’t wait for the rest of the series.
Tags: haibane renmei