Summary: >

On the world of Prester there are two nations. Anatoray is a nation parched to the point where water is considered a delicacy. Disith is a nation where the freezing snows are driving them to the point where they can no longer live. Between them lies the turbulent storm known as the Grand Stream which is nearly impassable, and more ominously contains the thing known as Exile which is powerful enough to control the world. Acting as a police force are the ones known as the Guild. They not only have superior technology, but control the units at the heart of all large airships which allows them to fly.

Airships are not the only things seen in the sky, planes known as vanships also do various tasks on Prester. Claus and Lavie are pilot and navigator for a vanship which is used to courier messages back and forth. After a chance encounter they get the most dangerous message yet to deliver; a little girl who the Guild is after.

Swearing to deliver the message, Claus and Lavie manage to board the airship named Silvana. Silvana is different from other ships though, because she's not under the control of the Guild and thus the ship does as it pleases. Claus and Lavie end up becoming a part of the crew and the heart of a conflict which will decide the fate of their world. Uniting enemies to throw of the yolk of the Guild, and uncovering the truth behind the power known as Exile. But what can a young pilot and his navigator really contribute in all of this?

Thoughts: >

If there is one stand out point of Last Exile, it's the fantastic imaginative designs. Lots of super cool high end technology all themed with an unusual streamline/art deco concept. Logos, airships, even uniforms all seem to be really well thought out. By merits of imagination alone, Last Exile is probably worth seeing.

The characters are another strong point of Last Exile. Claus and Lavie are central characters, but with the crew of the Silvana the cast ends up being quite large. But even with so many characters none of them end up being particularly weak, even Alvis who I was sure would end up the sort of bratty / cute kid that plagues anime, but turned out to be likable in her own right. Another stand out character is the over the top antagonist: Delphine. She's aloof and completely out of touch with ... well everything, yet utterly sadistic. These villains are a dime a dozen in anime but Dalphine manages to pull it off quite well.

If Last Exile has one shortcoming; it's the story. It's not bad, it's just inconsistently paced with too much filler in some places, and not enough details in others. The story begins focused on Claus and Lavie. About mid way the focus shifts to the overall conflict on Prestor, but it does so in a way that you feel like the two are conspicuously left behind, until they re-emerge as main characters towards the end. The fundamentals of the fighting between the two nations (and the guild) is not well explained. For that matter, nearly all parts of the story/history have gaps you'll have to fill in. While not hard to figure out, I had the feeling that I would have preferred things explained better from the beginning as I put the pieces together.

Relationships are an odd point of this anime, and in particular Claus and Lavie's relationship is pretty ambiguous. It took me a while to figure out they weren't even brother and sister, and even by the end I wasn't sure how far their partnership went beyond friendship or if it ever will. It's not only them. There are many would be romances that I was sure were going somewhere but didn't. It's an unusual stance for anime but one I can't totally disagree with. I'm a sucker for romance sure, but too often it ends up inserted where it doesn't belong or derailing a story where it's not the main focus.

Last but not least I suppose I should mention the ending. Some of the earlier episodes were dragged out while others felt too compact. As the end loomed in this 26 part series, I started to wonder not only how it was going to end but how they were going to manage to tie everything up. By the end of episode 25 (of 26) just about all of the loose ends were still hanging! It didn't seem possible that this could conclude in a way that would be satisfactory and finish everything. But then it did. Make no mistake Last Exile has the elite swat team of endings. It kicks down the doors, whoops ass, and gets the job done. I know a lot of people didn't like how aggressive that was, but if Lord of the Rings taught me one thing, it's that dragging out a conclusion can be torture in its own right - especially when you really have to pee.

As a whole I liked Last Exile a lot, yet it doesn't quite qualify as being an exceptional title either. The imagination in this series is a rare quality to see even in anime today. The theme of finding your path, but not forgetting who you really are resonated well with me. Awesome designs, good animation, great characters; the only drawback is that the story stumbles in a few places and could have been elaborated some key points better. Worth the watch and highly recommended.