Toaru Hikuushi e no Tsuioku (The Princess and the Pilot)

The war between the Levamme Empire and the Amatsukami Imperium has been raging for years. In the midst of this struggle, the prince of the Levamme Empire declares his love for Juana del Moral and vows to end the war in one year, as part of his marriage proposal. When the Amatsukami catch wind of this, they assault the del Moral residence, targeting Juana's life. As a last ditch effort to bring the prince his bride, the San Maltilia Airforce hires a mercenary of mixed blood—a bestado—to fly Juana to the Levamme capital in secret. The pilot, Charles, accepts the mission...but traversing an ocean alone, into enemy territory, proves a much more dangerous ordeal than anyone could have anticipated.

(Source: NIS America)

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Episode 1

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Adaptation:	Toaru Hikuushi e no Tsuioku
Spin-off:	Toaru Hikuushi e no Koiuta

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Characters & Voice Actors

Karino, Charles

Main

Kamiki, Ryunosuke
Japanese

del Moral, Juana

Main

Morohoshi, Sumire
Japanese

Karino, Chise

Supporting

Niizuma, Seiko
Japanese

Tascu, Ramon

Supporting

Hoshino, Mitsuaki
Japanese

Pedro

Supporting

Guerrero, Marcos

Supporting

Chou, Katsumi
Japanese

Joaquin

Supporting

Namikawa, Daisuke
Japanese

del Moral, Diego

Supporting

Terasoma, Masaki
Japanese

Garcia, Domingo

Supporting

Nakano, Yutaka
Japanese

Chijiwa, Takeo

Supporting

Tomizawa, Takeshi
Japanese

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Takahashi, Ryouhei

Producer

Shishido, Jun

Director

Shimizu, Youji

Sound Director

Okudera, Satoko

Script

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Ending Theme

"Toki no Tsubasa (時の翼)" by Seiko Niizuma

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Reviews

Feb 27, 2012

movoning

Recommended

I absolutely loved it. This movie perfectly shows how you can take something really basic and simple and make it into something complete and special. There aren't many stories on piloting, but there are plenty on flying and wars. Of course, with the theme of flying and war comes the theme of freedom, and when you put a woman and a man together, you get romance. This movie isn't any different in those basic ideas, so if you are looking for a genre breaking show, this isn't the right one for you. However, don't skip it just because it's conventional.

This didn't bore me at ...

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Mar 1, 2012

arsonal

Recommended

Tales of forbidden love are common, yet we are constantly drawn to them and empathizing with their characters. Perhaps it is borne from a desire to experience something so simple yet beautiful. Or perhaps it is to remind ourselves of how lucky we are to be able to love without having the world turn against us. "Toaru Hikuushi e no Tsuioku", or "The Princess and the Pilot", can do both of those.

It was originally published as a single volume light novel in 2008 and was considered a runaway success. Although Inumura Koroku was already writing a different novel series at the time, this novel became ... his breakthrough and most well-known work. Inumura left such an impression on his readers that the novel reached tenth place in the annual "Kono Light Novel ga Sugoi!", or "This Light Novel is Amazing!", poll conducted on the Internet. It spawned a subsequent "Hikuushi" series which encompasses two additional spin-off series of the same "Toaru Hikuushi e no" title.

There are a number of predictable formulas for characters involved in forbidden love. In this case, we are introduced to mercenary pilot Charles Karino and Juana del Moral, fiancée of the crown prince of a powerful empire. Their story and the conflict that is in their hearts are set within a greater conflict: relentless warfare between two neighboring empires. The conditions also beg of the question of whether it is right to sacrifice a world's peaceful future for the selfish desires of two people. The juxtaposition of these two elements presents a love story that is timeless and refreshing. While it is something we've read before in stories like "Romeo and Juliet", the tale does not fall into the trap of creating a predictable ending, but rather an inevitable one. In fact, when the reader begins to understand the fate of the two characters, he or she can still be impressed by the way their relationship is developed.

With the story focused on only two noteworthy characters, it can be easy to assume that watching their interaction will boring. On the other hand, one can easily empathize with the strong feelings of the characters. Each time pilot and princess are torn between duty and personal affection, even the reader feels can feel torn as to which decision they should make. One can sense that the two are close in their hearts, yet a gap as wide as an ocean separates their conscience. As both characters begin to open up to the feelings of each other, we become more invested in their relationship.

Madhouse presents its viewers with an artistic presentation that is both appropriate and experimental. Heavy use of the color blue is obvious from the theatrical poster alone as it represents the vastness of both the sky and the ocean. It does not, however, drown out the other colors that are also presented, and certain environmental details make this anime movie as realistic as possible. Madhouse also presents a sound mechanical design for aircraft technology in the film. Aerial combat is presented with great detail in the movement of each airplane as if one were watching a World War II reel, complemented by a rich portfolio of sounds that realistically replicates an propeller airplane's engine.

While the film's soundtrack may not be very memorable, Niizuma Seiko presents us a touching theme song with lyrics that reflect the longing of both characters. As an ending theme, it provides an appropriate closure for a story with mild pacing. Conflicts in the plot came at the appropriate times and keep the viewer interested through a film that could easily have bored viewers if done improperly because of its length.

"The Princess and the Pilot" is a simple story set in a rich universe that shines through the human interaction that is neither exaggerated nor lacking. While it can be enjoyed as a standalone work, reading the novel will also present a richer understanding of the distance that separates Charles and Juana and the affection that binds them.

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May 28, 2013

ZiharkXVI

Mixed Feelings

What to say about this movie. It at once delighted me with a well paced story and gorgeous dogfights. The growth of our two characters was detailed in the moments of downtime. I was sucked in by its premise, and treated to the most superbly done forbidden romance that I've seen in awhile. If my score confuses you, this film committed one cardinal sin, however. It resolved nothing. The story it was telling was certainly not finished, and frankly the ending epilogue was insulting. Understand something. If the theme of the movie was nationalist racist bigotry meant ... to cultivate that turn of the century feeling, we should have spent the movie on that. One downtrodden pilot and a pampered princess cannot carry that story arc unless you make it clear. The princess didn't have to overcome that boundary in the movie. From the get go she was pure and noble in her intentions toward the pilot. Even from childhood it seemed. Her growth was in her own strength of will and experience. She moved from completely dependent to independent. She never once hated the pilot for his race. Likewise, the pilot was overcoming his own feelings of self worth by undertaking this mission. And by the end of it knew he wasn't just a worthless dog out for money. All symbolized in the romance by a girl falling for the boy who taught her to fly and a boy falling for a girl realizing he could be a man worthy of her affection. I absolutely was baffled by him flying off into the sunset and the princess off to marry some idiot prince. The boundaries won! They failed to overcome their respective roles, settling for the most society would allow them. And then the movie tells us the princess worked hard to end discrimination. Big deal. We don't care about this fictional world. We only care about the characters, and the fact that the movie thought it could placate us with a three sentence epilogue was horrendous. This isn't world history. Its a fictional drama. The story was ultimately defeated by its own incompetent ending. I have heard from some that it defies cliche in that regards, but this is not a good thing. Perhaps the only way this could have succeeded is if the two did end up in a relationship, or at least tried. Again, when your story is about these two characters growing, you must show where they grew at the end. The pilots end is much like his beginning and it is doubtful he even changed - always kind, always willing to serve. He still didn't reach out and grab what he wanted, and according to the epilogue just disappears. Wow. Or are we to believe he just wanted to complete his mission? He didn't even do that without the princess! The princess was supposed to take charge, but at the end runs off to marry the prince. And she fights for peace apparently. Does she do that in tea parties I wonder? How pointless. She could very well be doing the same thing after one horrific battle without the pilot. Her stance would have fit if she'd become an independent nation leader. Heck, marry the pilot and put down the warmongers by defying their expectations. Realistic? Not really, but story wise it makes far more sense. And really, do we expect anything to be realistic in this drama of two people from opposite ends of the social strata to undergo a romance? Nothing in this movie is real or even remotely reflects reality so I suggest that the story needs work. The ending ruined this movie.

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Poll: Toaru Hikuushi e no Tsuioku Episode 1 Discussion ( 1 2 3 ) arsonal - Feb 25, 2012	113 replies	by SlammyHammy »» Oct 17, 2022 4:13 PM
Please read the LN instead thresholden - Jun 28, 2013	6 replies	by Neostorm-X »» Oct 10, 2022 5:48 AM
The ending is so stupid,gotta feel for the pilot R_TF - Jul 9, 2016	14 replies	by R_TF »» Dec 4, 2021 5:53 AM
Should I watch this? SojiroUtaite - Mar 1, 2012	14 replies	by ibraheem234 »» Nov 14, 2015 11:53 PM
trailers Kurini - Jan 18, 2012	2 replies	by amc9988 »» Feb 16, 2012 6:45 AM

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Karino, Charles

del Moral, Juana

Karino, Chise

Tascu, Ramon

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Guerrero, Marcos

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Toaru Hikuushi e no Tsuioku

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