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Yohko is nothing but ordinary. Throughout her life she has been considered an outcast, especially with a hair color not native to many in Japan, bright red. Things change for Yohko when a mysterious man named Keiki arrives and claims that she is his empress. Yohko and two friends are then taken through a vortex, and then abandoned.. in a world of demons and magic.
Have you ever been sick and tired of the world we live in? So much, that you've tried any means possible to escape it? Zed shares the same feelings as we all do. In the smog ridden, and sunless world of Calm, people manage to scrape by on the bare minimum. Fed up with living in this hellhole, Zed looks for an outlet to another world. Beating down and smashing every door in his sight, he hopes that if he believes strong enough, his gateway will open -- open to a place beyond his imagination, and where his life will have meaning. After finally being transported to another world full of nature and endless battles, Zed soon comes to realize that his life of purpose has just begun.
These two titles share the interaction of various different - very different - cultures and their respective political offerings. Juuni Kokki is definitely the more mature of the two, yet similarities in magic/monsters/weird people just remind you of the other.
....maybe it's just that both have crazy flying unicorn things..?
Both The Twelve Kingdoms and Kiba have main characters who find themselves in an alternate world from their own. Yohko and Zed find themselves caught up in the politics and conflicts of the seperate nations of the worlds they arrive in. The Twelve Kingdoms is superior to Kiba, but they share similar elements and have complex stories with deep meaning. If you like one you should check out the other.
The war between the monarchical Galactic Empire and the democratic Free Planets Alliance has raged ceaselessly across the galaxy for over a century, with the fleets of both powers having fought countless battles. Currently the conflict revolves around the strategic Iserlohn Corridor, one of only two passages of space through which the two forces can access each other. Here the Empire has built the nigh-impregnable Iserlohn Fortress, whose deadly weaponry has thwarted repeated efforts by the Alliance to capture her. Phezzan, a neutral mercantile state, controls the other corridor. The long war has resulted in an indecisive stalemate, but there are two men from the two worlds who will change everything: Yang Wenli, a gifted strategist from the Alliance who wants nothing more than to retire and be a historian; and Reinhard von Lohengramm, a man from the Empire whose ambition knows no bounds. Their loves, struggles, triumphs and failures play across an interstellar stage of intrigue, war and death.
What does a fantasy series based around a young girl transported to a strange Chinese-style world have in common with an epic space opera about a generational struggle between a democracy and a Germanic empire?
Surprisingly enough, both series have large casts involved in some fairly complicated plotting - far moreso in Legend of the Galactic Heroes where everything is part of its great overarching narrative, although Twelve Kingdoms attempts something similar with its third arc - combined with some serious discussions and analysis of the notion of leadership and statehood.
The two programs, essentially, owe an obvious debt to classic Chinese novels such as Romance of the Three Kingdoms, and consciously aspire to be genre epics that incorporate either the sense of rise and fall of nations (in Galactic Heroes' case) and the Chinese philosophy of governance (the example of Twelve Kingdoms).
Neither show can be adequately judged on their opening episode, either; and Twelve Kingdoms doesn't really begin to get going until its second arc... and while Galactic Heroes provides many breathless climaxes, Twelve Kingdoms has but one and then the series concludes abruptly and incommplete.
Both shows have complex characters whose personalities develop along with the storyline. The political intrigue and the problems of bad governments are splendidly portayed by both shows, each with its own flair.
Those who liked LoGH's epic space battles will also enjoy the battles in 12 Kingdoms.
The most attractive part of both shows and what makes them so worthwhile is the realism. While 12K has demons and immortality, the atmosphere and actions of all the characters feel very real. Both shows have an excellent supporting cast, an intelligent and intricate plot.
I wholeheartedly recommend both shows.
Dr Kenzo Tenma is a genius surgeon working in post-Cold War Germany who has a bright future ahead of him. He is admired by his colleagues, loved by his patients, and due to marry his boss' daughter, the beautiful Eva Heinemann. One day, when two patients in desperate need of emergency surgery are wheeled into his hospital, Tenma faces a terrible choice of saving the orphaned boy who came first or the mayor of Düsseldorf, whose recovery would raise the hospital's profile and boost his own career. Against the demands of his superior, Tenma does what he believes is right and saves the child. However, his decision not only damages his prospects, but unleashes a chain of events so horrific that it might have come from the depths of his worst nightmares. Laden with guilt, Tenma begins a journey across Germany in search of a formidable young man who will challenge his morals, his love for life, and his very sanity.
Juuni Kokki and Monster are obviously both aimed at adults. Not only the story and the characters, but even the atmosphere and setting give off that feeling. In both you'll find serious topics in which politics play their part, yet these series don't end up boring as you'd expect from such a topic.
Two polar opposite series make excellent companions for people who enjoy a more sophisticated and adult show. The character development in both Monster and Twelve Kingdoms has been the main focus, and the rise and struggle with emotions makes for some gripping viewing. I loved that you get to meet characters with real emotions, who reacted like I would in a situation, and not everything has the expected outcome.
If you enjoy something a little more intellectually challenging, realistic where action isn't the only pull, I think you will enjoy both of these shows.
Amidst a beautiful sunset, Shu is violently whisked away to a grim future devoid of water, and empty of hope; a place where children are forced to become soldiers, and kill countless others in the name of King Hamdo. Shu's companion is a mysterious girl named La La Ru, who may hold the key to survival. Now, he must concentrate on the only things that matter: escaping Hellywood, and finding a way home.
Now and Then, Here and There and The Twelve Kingdoms are epic dark fantasies in which the main character is swept away only to become the savior to a land completely different than his/her own. These shows deal with heavy issues such as rape, abortion, xenophobia, racism, poverty, and, most importantly, the effects of war. These shows are very much for a mature viewer more interested in moving storytelling via character development and dialogue, with a smaller emphasis on epic battles.
Both "Now and Then, Here and There" and "The Twelve Kingdoms" deal with characters being transported to a strange land. In both cases, the main characters struggle and suffer in a war-torn land before coming to terms with their situation. Both are epic in scope (though one is sci-fi and the other fantasy), with more emphasis on character development than action scenes.
With the rise of the Iron Age in feudal Japan, man and nature grow increasingly at odds. As mankind infringes more and more into the kingdom of the beasts, many of the elder animal gods begin to succumb to their rage, cursing themselves as they lash out at rural and urban settlements alike. When a young Ashitaka, hero of his village, is imparted with one of these curses after slaying a crazed god, he forces himself into exile to prevent further harm to his village. As he ventures out into the world, however, he discovers just how dire the straights have become - with man and beast ready to break into all out war, his curse becomes the least of his problems. As both sides teeter dangerously on the side of outright slaughter of one another, Ashitaka sets his own problems aside and, using his charisma and honor, seeks to quell the hatred before it gets beyond repair - but will he be in time or is he simply delaying the inevitable?
Both Princess Mononoke and Twelve Kingdoms are beautifully animated tales of fantasy, war, destiny and personal development, told in a way which captivates the viewer and takes them to a magical world.
Both have a similar feel to them, in my opinion. They are both mythical and have a lot of action yet are very much story-driven.
