Shelf Life

TO For One

Fumihiko Sori's TO is the kind of slow-burning science fiction that harkens back to the day of 50s-era storytelling, where half the wonder is in watching details unfold. It reminded me of Asimov's earliest pulp adventures, which would spend six pages slowly setting up a scenario, then throw a punch on the last page that hit as hard as a full-length novel, because it took the time to make sure readers really cared. This is best illustrated in Elliptical Orbit, the first of the two short films in the TO collection. It spends long, patience-trying minutes on slow (albeit gorgeous) shots of spaceships drifting through space, and lingering stares between characters that seem to last for hours. But even though this eventually gives way to a terrorist plot and a dash to save a moon colony, it saves its emotional zing for the last two minutes.

Of the two shorts, Elliptical Orbit is my favorite, for those two minutes alone. It's a poignant reveal that I don't want to spoil, but it makes the entire film worth it. Without the last few parting shots, the story would still be interesting, but it wouldn't have really meant anything. Basically, in the far distant future, the captain of a ship helps repair a large mining vessel called the Flying Dutchman, which appears every 15 years or so on its long trek back and forth from Alpha Centauri. This time, it's loaded with an energy source that can sustain Earth for at least a decade. However, evil music plays, and we're soon introduced to an African terrorist group that's angry that money and resources are being diverted to space colonies, even while humans are starving on Earth. It's a fairly standard story of human conflict and bravado, but, like I said earlier, it's the last two minutes that really make this story stick.

The second film, Symbiotic Planet, tells the story of two competing international space colonies that are locked in a dispute over water rights on a still yet uninhabited planet. Part love story, part fable about nature's triumph over mankind, it's a charming film, but in my opinion lacks the heartache of the first.

What's fascinating about TO is the timeless and relevant nature of its stories. Based on two shorts from Yokinobu Hoshino's manga space epic, 2001 Nights, both movies feel like they could've been written just this year, with issues that are hot in the news like depleting resources and environmental damage. But considering the manga was published in the 80s, it kind of makes you step back and think about how many years we've been battling the same things.

Of course it's not possible to talk about TO without mentioning the visuals. Mixing CGI and motion capture, the film makes excellent use of technology to render gorgeous backgrounds and mechanical details. For machine geeks, there's plenty to gawk at. No effort was spared on the spaceships and the spacesuits. You can see rust spots on the underside of the ships, patches where paint has flaked off, welding lines where different sheets of metal were used on the hull. The robotic space arms have hinges held together by finely drawn screws. Seriously, this is one good-looking anime. This is especially true on the Blu-Ray, which actually allows viewers to see the fine black lines that make up the detail work. Sadly, a lot of nuances are lost on the DVDs, from the multi-colored spackling in the comet tails, to the lines that separate the characters and the backgrounds. Because of the loss of contrast, at least on my PS3, there's a subtle halo around the characters where lines were lost.

I have to admit that I wasn't a fan of the motion capture. It's good for some things—the technique allows for tiny touches that you wouldn't normally think about. For instance, when characters are standing still, they still shift their weight. And of course, the shading is more fluid and realistic. But because of that, other aspects look goofy in comparison, like the putty-like hair. Just the fact that the characters don't look real makes me feel uncomfortable, like I can't tell if they're moving in a true human-like manner or not. It's extremely distracting. For a good part of the OVA, I kept being reminded of those terrible Charles Schwab commercials, where the cel-shaded folk are incredulous about retirement vineyards.

I'm going to be brutally honest here—TO is beautiful and deliberate, but it's also pretty boring. This is one of those late-night, dim lights, introspective picks that you pop in when you're mentally prepared to sit back and contemplate mankind's blip in the universe. There's a lot of big ideas packed into these two short movies, but it's worth it, if you have the patience to get through them. However, I would recommend popping in the Blus if you have a player, because otherwise, you're missing out on some masterful art.[TOP]

Of course, whether or not the compilation itself is a good thing is up for minor debate. Arguably, The Laughing Man arc was the best part about the first season of Stand Alone Complex. Not only was the ongoing mystery behind the identity of the hacker unpredictable and thrilling, but the series raised a lot of interesting questions about the path of technology and the unreliabilty of digital data. Without the standalone episodes, though, some of those themes are dampened, making the OVA feel like more of a straight thriller. The pacing also feels a bit more rushed, so that by the time Aoi is introduced, it's not as much of an “a-ha!”

One of the greatest features of this Blu-Ray is actually on the Extras. Called the “Stand Alone Complex Archives,” it's a behind-the-scenes look at the making of this compilation, structured around an interview with director Kenji Kamiyama by Atsuko Tanaka, who plays the voice of Major Kusanagi. The interview not only goes through some of the thought processes behind making the compilation, but also shows archive footage of studio time and press events, like the original press conference for the announcement of Stand Alone Complex. Kamiyama says early on that when he was directing the series, he was very serious throughout the project, not only because it was his first TV series, but also because he wanted to do the original film justice. From the OVA, which was also cut by Kamiyama, you can tell that there's a levity to the work now, and there are scenes that were left in which give the OVA the occasional pep.

There's one scene in particular (originally from episode 15) where the Tachikomas are sitting around chatting with each other. They're excited that they may be asked to participate in tasks other than the ones they're programmed to do. While they talk about becoming self-sufficient and independent, the one book-loving Tachikoma nestled in the back solemnly tells a friend that he's reading Flowers for Algernon. In the greater scheme of the OVA, this scene sticks out a bit, but it works with the theme, and it lends the movie some lightness.

Although I think I like the Stand Alone Complex series better, if I were in the mood for some Laughing Man, I would still likely opt for this OVA. I do bemoan its relative shallowness in comparison to the careful scripting and pacing of the series, but when it comes down to it, its shorter runtime is a lot easier to swallow than the 26-episode marathon of the original. And of course, the manageable runtime also makes it a better candidate to lend out to friends, who might not have the patience or time for a 13-hour commitment. Though if anything, watching this just makes me want to pull out my old copy of Nine Stories again.[TOP]