Last Exile Volume 1: First Move (Limited Edition Collector's Box)

Imagine a world divided into two warring nations, full of airborne warships, political tangles, and a strange little girl that everyone is trying to get.

"Last Exile Volume 1 - First Move" is a pretty promising opener to this sci-fi/steampunk series, presenting a rather familiar-yet-very-different world where floating battleships filled with Napoleonic-dressed soldiers duke it out in the skies. The gorgeous CGI and solid writing form a pretty good basis for the series, and we get at least one enticing mystery introduced.

Claus Valca and his buddy Lavie Head are messenger couriers -- and in the interest of making enough money to soup up their vanship, they take a message to the Mad Thane commander. Who is in the middle of a battle. Of course, things turn nasty quickly -- Claus and Lavie get in trouble with the Mad Thane's officers, while the Guild just sits by and does nothing.

Later they start dead last in a vanship race, but Claus' superior piloting skills quickly put them in the lead. Then they see a Guild star-ship chasing a dying vanship pilot, who gives them a little blond girl named Alvis to take care of. And though Alvis seems to be an ordinary little girl (whom Claus and Lavie quickly become fond of), she has ties to the most infamous battleship of them all -- the Silvana.

"Last Exile" is one of those series that blurs the lines of genre and style -- it feels like a more ethereal brand of steampunk, complete with 18th/19th-century trappings and advanced airships. It's full of glowing light, vast expanses of cloads and flowing cities, and beautiful mountainous landscapes and clouds that could have come straight from a Hayao Miyazaki movie. Not to mention some brilliant airborne battles between swooping vanships, art-deco star-ships and vast floating warships.

And this is only the first few episodes.

Admittedly, plotwise these episodes don't have much substance yet. They're basically about introducing the primary characters, the elaborate world they live in, and setting up some conflicts for the future. The rather sinister Guild, the mysterious Silvana and the little girl Alvis all hint at future storylines without revealing much as yet, and there are some amazing action sequences (Claus' casual daredeviltry during the race) woven into the plot.

Claus and Lavie make a likable pair of protagonists -- Johnny Yong Bosch plays Claus as mellow, sweet and rather laid-back, while Kari Walgren's Lavie is fiery and easily upset ("I can see your nose hair, Sunny Boy!"), so they end up playing well off each other even at the worst of times. Most of the other characters are as yet unrevealed, but Crispin Freeman's brooding, dark-coated Alex Rowe makes a striking initial impression in the first couple minutes of the series.

"Last Exile Volume 1 - First Move" is a solid intro to this series, and the solid plot is bolstered by a pair of likable heroes and stunning animation. Definitely one to check out.

This anime is a great beginning to the series. It opens up a world of flight, and adventure. If you are a fan of Action/Adventure, this is for you.

Last Exile - First Move is the beginning of an amazing, wonderous tale of truth, deceit, bravery, failure and success. The three main characters, Claus, Lavie and Alvis, are all characters everyone can relate to. They are young, naive, caring and loving, but they must face the real world of back stabbing, betrayal and intrigue.

The series starts off a bit slow, but with each episode you begin to find out more and more about the world these three young people live in. It is a world at war with itself. We know very little about the the "enemy", only that they "fight without honor or chivlary". We begin to realize the real "power" behind all that is happening is the Guild, a race of advanced beings who seem to have fun causing problems for the people of this world.

Claus and Lavie become involved in the war accidentally when the pilot of another Vanship crashes after hitting Claus and Lavie's Vanship during the "big race". That is when we first meet Alvis, or Al, as Claus and Lavie know her. Al is a innocent child who holds a dark secret that the Guild wants. But we are left wondering what that "secret" is.

The animation is first rate and the sound tract is fantastic. I recommend you get the soundtract along with the DVD.

"Last Exile" is a top notch thriller and first rate example of the Japanese of Anime.