Land of the Lustrous (2017)

Original title

宝石の国

Directed by

Takahiko Kyōgoku

Genre

fantasy anime and manga

Country

Japan

Length

1 season, 12 episodes

Rated

TV-14

Rating

8.0 of 10 from 114 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

Immortal gemstone humanoids defend themselves from celestial beings who want to harvest their bodies. The youngest and most fragile gem, Phosphophyllite, is assigned to create a natural history record because they are too brittle for battle.

thoughtfulvisual spectaclephilosophicalcalm yet tensemelancholicotherworldlyaction-orientedslow-burn

What happens

Land of the Lustrous (Japanese: 宝石の国, Hepburn: Hōseki no Kuni; lit. 'Land of Jewels') is a 2017 Japanese anime television series based on Haruko Ichikawa's manga series of the same name. It is produced by the computer graphics (CG) animation studio Orange and directed and written by Takahiko Kyōgoku and Toshiya Ono, respectively. It follows the Lustrous – immortal humanoid lifeforms who are the embodiments of gemstones – who fight to defend themselves against a celestial humanoid race known as the Lunarians, who seek to harvest their bodies for decorations. Phosphophyllite is the youngest of the Lustrous, and is given the task to assemble a natural history since they are too brittle to fight. Orange created the series with 3D animation as a base, a decision made partially due to the difficulty in depicting translucent gemstones using hand-drawn animation. Yoichi Nishikawa's concept art greatly influenced Kyōgoku's vision for the series, with several shots directly based on Nishikawa's art. While the manga is more ambiguous and subtle, the anime had to be clear on a single viewing, so Phos was given more close-up shots and repeated lines to give them a larger presence and more easily identifiable goals. As Kyōgoku was used to writing teenaged characters with clear motives and desires, he initially had problems with portraying Phos, but his image of the character solidified after hearing Tomoyo Kurosawa's performance as them. The series was well received by critics, frequently called among the best of the 2010s and a turning point for CG anime, and convincing skeptics that an action series could be well done outside of a 2D production. The writing was also positively received, with critics calling the characters and world likable and intriguing. It received several awards and nominations, namely for its visuals. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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