SON OF A...

AH.

GUH.

You...

You have got to be kidding me.

The last time I talked about Air, I indicated that it was just about as depressing as Grave of the Fireflies. You know, the movie where the happy ending is that the two main characters are both dead. Where relief comes from the knowledge that at least they don't have to live anymore.

Yeah. Well, I think Air is definitely a close match for Grave in the "WHYYYYYYYYY? WHYWHYWHY?" department.

Nothing but PAIN here, folks. Pain and suffering.

But is it any good?

Yeah, it's pretty darn good. It's the usual Kyoto Animation quality, which is to say "excellent." The only weak point in the production is that the story feels somewhat rushed when squeezed into 13 episodes (though I have certainly seen shows that suffered more from this). There are actually three main sections to the story, and told in so short a time they come off as somewhat discombobulated. It's not that they don't make sense, it's just that...

Well, okay, yeah, you're watching three different stories here. The first story is called "Dream," and centers on a guy named Yukito who travels the country making a living doing a little magical puppet show and searching for a girl who flies in the sky. When he meets a girl named Misuzu who has dreams about flying, he's pretty sure he's found a connection to what he's been looking for. This section of the show deals with Yukito's relationship with Misuzu, and what her dreams mean for both of them. There are also two other major story arcs here, but they only get a handful of episodes of time before the plot switches back to Misuzu.

The second story is called "Summer," and takes place one thousand years before the first one. It tells the story of a winged girl named Kanna and the two people sworn to protect her: a woman named Uraha and a samurai named Ryuuya.

Finally, the third story, which is called "Air," jumps back to the present and shows the events of "Dream" from a different point of view, and then continues on to show the final conclusion to Misuzu's story and how it ultimately ties to Kanna's.

The issue here - and I am exaggerating it somewhat - is that there's just so much happening in these 13 episodes that it really does feel like three complete series (or at least three medium-sized OAVs) crammed into one. The show could have really benefited from being 26 episodes, or from being released as three separate products.

However, that's a bit much to expect, and the problem is really more about finances and feasibility than about creative choices. And KyoAni really did the best job they possibly could have with the format they had to work with.

So, how to score it? I'm not sure, actually. The characterization is great, the plot is intricate (though pretty vague in places), and the emotional journeys of the characters are poignant and PAINFUL. I found myself really drawn into the story, and I'm still feeling the hurt even now, after being able to sit and digest the last episode for a while.

On the other hand, there are some technical issues that arise from the shortened format that can't be denied, and the show simply doesn't feel like a single whole when comprised of three such disparate parts.

In the end, I guess I'll say that while you don't have to see it, Air is a powerful experience that will put you through some pretty severe punishment but will also give you a cast of characters you can really care about and feel for. It does have quite an impact, and I know that I'll never forget the story. It's not for everybody, but it is definitely a worthwhile series.

Score: 7/10 (Very Good)