Argento Soma

TV (25 eps)
2000 - 2001
Fall 2000
3.313 out of 5 from 1,315 votes
Rank #10,366

Takuto’s relationship with his girlfriend Maki is on the rocks; she’s devoted to her research and keeps things bottled up inside, leaving their relationship uncertain. Life takes a tragic turn, however, when Takuto visits the source of Maki’s research: a giant metal being named Frank. While running an experiment to awaken Frank, the building collapses – and Takuto is the only survivor. Months later, Takuto awakens in a hospital with vengeance in his heart; and when the mysterious Dr. X offers him a new identity that he can use to bring down Frank, he accepts. With his new name of Ryu Soma and his new position in Funeral, a military organization charged with destroying alien invaders, Takuto sets forth to exact his revenge...

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XxSamuraixX
8.5

STORY:PLOT SUMMARY: In the year 2059, the earth has been plagued by aliens for several years. In an effort to learn more about these aliens, Dr. Noguchi and his assistant Maki Agata try to revive the professor's experiment, a large Bio-Mechanical alien named Frank. During this process the alien comes to 'life' and the lab is subsequently destroyed leaving Takuto the only survivor and the alien disappearing into the wilderness. While Frank roams the wilderness he meets Hattie, an emotionally distressed young girl whose parents are killed in the first 'close encounter' war. Oddly enough she is able to communicate with Frank and soon after they are taken into custody by a secret agency known only as 'Funeral'. Meanwhile, Takuto wakes up in a hospital bed with his life in shambles, and his face disfigured. Motivated by vengeance and heart break, Takuto accepts an offer from the mysterious 'Mr. X' and receives a new identity as a ranking Funeral officer named Ryu Soma.The story is quite simple yet very intriguing....nothing to complain about.ANIMATION: It would be even more fun if this weren't such an ugly-looking production. The animation is a mixed bag, with plenty action sequences, but the design work is terrible. Character designer Shukou Murase, of Gasaraki and Gundam Wing fame, takes his penchant for drawing characters without noses to an extreme, and Argentosoma's players look less like humans and more like some species of alien themselves. The creature known as Frank, or EX-01, resembles nothing so much as a big heap of random geometric shapes. This wouldn't be so bad except the audience is obviously supposed to identify with the creature's feelings, and his lack of a face or anything like one makes it difficult. FUNERAL's requisite transforming fighter planes/robots, known as SARGs, are pretty cool, but the aliens they're sent to fight look straight out of Ultraman. That's probably intentional, but the rest of the show takes itself so seriously that these hokey aliens look decidedly out of place. This is one of the most visually unappealing series this reviewer has ever seen. It's nowhere near as crucial an element as story or character, but a more sensible artistic style would have made an already good show even better.SOUND: The music is wanting as well. Every time there is a dramatic moment or revelation it is accompanied by a ridiculous series of notes that sound like they're being played on a Casio keyboard from 1985. But that's not half as bad as the laughable closing theme: a bouncy, upbeat number that is totally at odds with the series' overriding dark tone. This cheery song about space exploration plays as the credits roll over a picture of a cheesily-grinning astronaut, and it cracks me up every time I see it. No complaints are to be had with the show's vocal casts though.CHARACTERS: College student Takuto Kaneshiro only wants to be with his sweetheart Maki, but she spends most of her time working on a secret government project to revive a giant alien being which crash-landed on Earth recently. So when Maki taps Takuto to help in the experiment, he reluctantly agrees. Unfortunately the attempt to revive “Frank”, as the creature is known, backfires with disastrous results, and Takuto is the only survivor. Frank escapes and forms an unlikely bond with a young Montana girl named Hattie, who bears a striking resemblance to Maki. Hattie and Frank are then taken into the custody of FUNERAL, a military group in charge of defending the planet from alien attacks. Takuto assumes the alias Ryu Soma and joins FUNERAL to get close to Frank and wreak his vengeance on the monster for destroying his life. But when giant aliens show up to ravage the planet, Ryu must team up with Hattie and Frank to save the day.OVERALL: Argentosoma is the latest in a long line of “Secret Military Organization versus Giant Aliens” shows. You'd think after so many years this anime cliché would be dead on its feet, but the creative staff at Sunrise has managed to once again work wonders with the old familiar setup. Argentosoma's premise is nothing new but it is an extraordinarily well put-together show, and there are enough creative spins on the formula to keep things interesting. Aside from some horrendous character designs and a really stupid closing theme, this is solid entertainment.The series skips around quite a bit at first but gradually weaves its separate threads together over the course of these first five episodes. Starting with Takuto's disastrous experiment, the story then jumps to the little girl Hattie and her encounter with the giant Frank. From there we go to the agents of FUNERAL, and then the convergence of the three parties. Along the way there is plenty of characterization, and the audience gets to know who these people are, not just what they do. Takuto/Ryu's quest for revenge is complicated by Hattie's friendship with the monster and soon enough the two are reluctant allies as Hattie's ability to control Frank becomes a key element in staving off further alien attacks. The contrast between the anger-driven Ryu and the innocent girl gives the show a lot of edge, and the supporting cast is great fun, particularly the mysterious Shakespeare-quoting benefactor who gets Ryu into FUNERAL.I was very lucky to come across this series....I found the complete series for only $10...and I couldnt pass it up. Overall this is a truly great series....but not the best.

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