RahXephon

The ordinary life of high school student Ayato Kamina is turned upside down when Tokyo is suddenly invaded by futuristic fighter jets. Amidst the chaos, he encounters a woman called Haruka Shitow who claims to be from a government organization called TERRA. She reveals that he has been living in a time bubble named "Tokyo Jupiter" that was put in place by the Mulians—humanoids from another dimension—in an attempt to isolate and take over Tokyo. TERRA has been trying to break through the barrier surrounding the city ever since.

Unable to process the revelation, Ayato panics and flees. He runs into his classmate Reika Mishima who leads him to a place called "The Shrine of Xephon" where a large egg slumbers. She starts to sing and an unknown power awakens within Ayato, connecting him to a being called RahXephon that breaks out of the egg. Shortly after, Haruka finds him again and tries to make him join her cause of fighting against the Mulians.

Caught between the crosshairs of the Mulians and TERRA, Ayato begins to question his purpose, navigating altered memories and ultimately his very identity in this chaotic new world.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

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Adaptation:	RahXephon, RahXephon
Side story:	RahXephon: Kansoukyoku/Kanojo to Kanojo Jishin to - Thatness and Thereness
Alternative version:	RahXephon: Tagen Hensoukyoku
Summary:	RahXephon Specials

Tanaka, Atsuko
Japanese

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Staff

Minami, Masahiko

Producer

Greenfield, Matt

Producer, Script, ADR Director

Sasaki, Shirou

Producer

Izubuchi, Yutaka

Director, Script, Storyboard, Creator, Mechanical Design, Screenplay

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Opening Theme

	1: "Hemisphere" by Maaya Sakamoto (eps 2-3,5-25)
	2: "Hemisphere (Instrumental)" by Maaya Sakamoto (eps 4)

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Ending Theme

	1: "Yume no Tamago" ("Fledgling Dream" English version) by Ichiko and Mayumi Hashimoto (ep 1, 5, 15-16, 19, 25)
	2: "Yume no Tamago" by Ichiko Hashimoto and Mayumi Hashimoto (eps 2-4,6-14,17-18,20-24)
	3: "Before You Know" by Ichiko Hashimoto (eps 26)

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Reviews

Aug 18, 2008

jagabond

Recommended

To start off, I'm going to say I am not a big mecha fan. All I knew when I started this series was that it was a mecha/sci-fi/action anime that some of my friends looked down upon due to its unfavorable comparisons to Neon Genesis Evangaleon (which I haven't seen). Other than that, I had no idea what I was in for, and that's how I like it. What I got, in short, was a surprisingly great show, well made, that really grew on me very quickly.

STORY: The story can be the weakest part for some people, it isn't simple or linear, but, I think, ... it's not too, too complicated. You are in Ayato's shoes at the start, and it's very understandable to be confused as to what's going on. With a little faith and some brain power, keep going forward and it'll all be revealed if you keep your eyes open. The story is woven well and, without giving much away, I'll say that it's about Ayato's journey to learn about: the world he's in, the real world, who he is/was, who the giant flying robots are, and what his purpose is in relation to the people around him. Vague, right? I know, this area is pretty sketchy, and intentionally so. The story is deep, the story is more than slightly convoluted, and the story is good. Give it a chance. 8/10.

ART: One of the things I instantly liked about this show was the art. I knew this anime hadn't come out yesterday and, despite being a guy who just has to have what's new and now, I really liked the animation. The colors are great, everything is well drawn, with special detail to the mechas (which, surprisingly, some mecha animes overlook, go figure). I didn't find anything that really stood out as bland and there were few- if any- weak points in the animation. It didn't feel dated at all despite having come out 6 years ago. 9/10.

SOUND: The Opening/Ending to RahXephon really caught my ears, just like the art caught my eye. The ending theme is beautiful, and sent me to sleep (in a good way) more than once while watching the episodes back to back. The music always fits the mood, the sound effects are great, and a lot of the tracks are lovable. Indeed, one of the 'themes' of the show is about sound, and there's a bit about singing, which I won't get into unless I want to get into spoiler-land, but Sound is definitely one of RahXephon's strong points. The voice acting is top notch, if you're someone like me who always wonders whether to bother with the dub, well I loved it. Ayato's voice was great, the supporting character's were pretty good, and Vic Mignogna was... well, he's Vic Mignogna. 10/10.

CHARACTER: Second to Sound, here's where the series shines the most. And yet it gets an 8- why? Because of the unavoidable connections between Character and Story. The complexities of the Story mixed with the large cast of characters sometimes made it hard to keep track of who was who, something I found really disappointing. Also, aside from Ayato and the main, let's say other two, it was difficult to tell who the main characters really were. This could be a good thing or a bad thing, but the ambiguity, imo, could have been handled a little better. Nonetheless, the characters themselves, once you've gotten to know them, will blow you away. I really connected with Ayato and many of the supporting cast. A lot of them are deep and, over the course of the series go through so many intense emotional periods, the most passionate parts of their lives. You see them at their best and their worst, really getting to know them, and though it can get kind of tricky keeping track of them all, you'll definitely have an opinion of them if nothing else. 8/10.

ENJOYMENT: I really don't know what it was. Could it have been the 'artsy' undertones? The score, the production, the characterization? Or maybe I'm just a mecha fan underneath who hasn't come out of his shell, I don't know, but what I do know is: I really, really liked RahXephon, and I put it up there in my top 3 favorite animes ever. I forget how I stumbled across it, really, but I'm glad I did. What began as a way to kill time ended as really something of an experience. I understand this series has many parallels to NGE (see above), and after watching this I started to understand why NGE fans so vigorously shoved it into my face, for I was doing the same with RahXephon. You COULD say having to watch the series a second time to understand everything counts as replay value, maybe, but who knows? I know I didn't fully get everything on the first go around (which is really what keeps this thing from truly, truly being perfect). 9/10.

OVERALL (aka: tl;dr version):
STORY: Ayato's journey of self discovery takes him into his own mind and places far beyond. Well written, but very complex; worth giving your full attention. 8/10.
ART: Fluid, beautifully done, smooth and nicely drawn animations that keep your attention. 9/10.
SOUND: Amazing English dubbing, and the japanese voices are nothing short of what you'd expect either. Spectacular music, OP/ED, and overall great OST/sound effects. 10/10.
CHARACTER: A (perhaps too) large and real cast of characters, very real, very human, that may or may not make or break the series for you. 8/10.
ENJOYMENT: I'm not sure on this one. Watch the first, let's say 6 or 7 episodes, wait for things to really get rolling, and if you don't like it/are totally lost/absolutely hate it, don't watch it. I for one could not stop watching this anime. 9/10.

So how do two 8's, two 9's, and a 10 average out to an overall 10? I have no idea, but I cannot recommend this anime strongly enough. It truly is a work of art.

[This was my first review; if you did not find it helpful, please let me know. I'm always happy to talk about this series!]

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Oct 18, 2009

Maur

Recommended

Overall/Enjoyment:
Where to begin. First the disclaimer: RahXephon is definitely not for everyone. It's usually best to have little to no expectations so as to not contaminate the experience. With RX there are some things you should, and a lot of things you should NOT, expect.

I would be remiss if I didn't mention how significantly challenging of a show it is to get into. You certainly have to be in the right mood/mindset for it. It is easy to label this show as an action, drama, sci-fi mecha romance (or whatever), but what does any of that mean? If you've seen Neon Genesis Evangelion, expect this ...

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Dec 24, 2007

Master10K

Recommended

RahXephon is a Shounen, Sci-fi, Mecha, Romance, Drama about a high school boy Ayato Kamina, who believes in the reality that is present before him. However everything changes once he discovers the truth about the world, that humanity is at war.

From the very beginning you will be thrown right into the thick of it, knowing very little about the plot, story and overall premise. However as the show goes on it slowly reveals, bit by bit, what it is all about, which is about humanity's struggle against some weird invaders. The story is told well because everything is straight forward and you won’t feel overwhelmed ...

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Why do people like Rahxephon? ( 1 2 ) jazzlsx - Apr 10, 2008	53 replies	by Baytamata »» May 17, 11:30 AM
Poll: RahXephon Episode 15 Discussion Veethorn - Jul 9, 2010	16 replies	by SteelingMax »» Feb 22, 9:24 AM
Poll: RahXephon Episode 26 Discussion ( 1 2 ) Leeonidas - Dec 17, 2008	98 replies	by Rain_Machika »» Jul 23, 2022 5:35 PM
Poll: RahXephon Episode 21 Discussion Stark700 - Apr 4, 2013	11 replies	by Rain_Machika »» Jul 17, 2022 3:29 AM
Poll: RahXephon Episode 19 Discussion Veethorn - Jul 13, 2010	45 replies	by Rain_Machika »» Jul 16, 2022 5:54 AM

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