Towanoquon: Eternal Quon · review
Spoiler warning
This review may discuss plot details.
Okay, I will talk about the overall series in other words spoiler warning. Let me start with the positives: - animation: it was made by bones so of course it looks fantastic, if you put style over substance you will probably like it - good world-building: the first parts set up the world nicely with everything we need to know at the time and later on finding out that people at first were all born with these powers and due to a mutation, the population consists mostly of people without powers. - the soundtrack was good too, fitting to the atmosphere (I am scratching the bottom ofthe barrel now...)
Okay enough, lets get to the negatives:
- the characters: most of the characters felt undercooked like the teleportation guy suddenly starts to talk about missing his mum in the fifth movie after not mentioning her once before aaaand of course that was only to make him betray the group and be completely irrational not thinking for a single nanosecond. (I was annoyed) Next up Quon himself didn't really get much of a character apart from being guilt-ridden (yeah, I think that's all) knowing that he lived for over a thousand years this one motivation isn't enough to call him a well-developed character. Oh yeah, and there was this scientist guy who seemed so important to the cyborgs but served no purpose at the end and was just forgotten by the plot.
- the women: yes extra category, because clearly the show-makers didn't see them as people either. We get introduced to Kiri in the first two episodes and she is completely forgotten about after that instead her struggles with having to connect to the children is just resolved and it feels more like "she woman, she good with children" even though none of the kids liked her at first.
Then there is Tei whom I really liked but, yeah, there isn't anything to say she can read minds and was born in the countryside. Other than that she woman.
Athletics girl is supposed to be a love interest for Quon, I think? There is no chemistry between them at all. If her powers were given to a man they would've probably done more fighting scenes with her but noooo.
Last but not least is Delta (I think that was her), she protected Shun and disobeyed because she loved him, or something. The love was not strong enough to release herself before the finale, so of course she dead.
- I don't know where to put this but the sudden introduction of the shadowy organisation Ordo really rubbed me the wrong way. The fact that you get in there by either birthright or election by those in the group is weird. They aren't part of any government but above every law, even allowed to torture people. It sounds like antisemitism to me, these conspiracies already existed before Jesus was born and if there is a Japanese equivalent minority, it's probably supposed to represent them. Especially because they were introduced out of nowhere and with seemingly no purpose other then "to create peace".
Finally the story: 1. I don't understand why they suddenly go from episodic rescue missions to overarching narrative in the final three movies, to me, it felt draining.
2. The third episode was just shit, terribly executed and only the visuals that were fun.
3. We are being thrown into a part of these peoples story and at the end (other than Quon not being immortal anymore) nothing changed. If you would tell me that Ordo set up a new base the next week to hunt down our group, I would believe you.
4. the story also never really explains the powers and why some people have seemingly more of them than others, for example, Yuuma could make protective shields and destructive bubbles while athletic girl is just fast.
Damn I can't believe I wrote so much, fuck me I guess...
yeah, I think some people might like it, I didn't really at the end.
Okay, bye