Kino no Tabi: The Beautiful World - Byouki no Kuni - For You

Title: Kino no Tabi: Byoku no Kuni -For You- Movie: Kino no Tabi: Byoku no Kuni -For You- was premiered at the Dengekibunko Movie Festival in April of 2007, and started running in theatres on April 21st, 2007. It was animated by Studio SHAFT (famous for their work on REC and Sayonara Zetsubo-Sensei) and directed by Ryutaro Nakamura (famous for his work on the Kino no Tabi series and Serial Experiments Lain). It has yet to be licensed Stateside. Story: Kino (who's grown up a bit and filled out o.O) and Hermes make a stop in a country where the majority of the citizens are sealed in a germ-free bubble, and the minority are out in the wastelands, reclaiming the land. They meet a girl who has the one disease (that sounds kind of like cancer to me) that they haven't been able to cure, and is currently the subject of pharmaceutical research. She asks them to deliver a little trinket to a boy out in the reclamation who she's been writing back and forth with. But when they go out to deliver the trinket, they discover the truth about the reclamation... (What, you thought I was going to give it away? :P) This felt like a Kino no Tabi episode. This is what the other movie was missing. While the other movie was good, and it did explain more about Kino, it just didn't feel like the series did. This movie, however, could have very easily fit anywhere in the series. It was apparently adapted from later in the novel series (whereas the show only stuck to the first few volumes), which renews my wish for more Kino. They've got the source material and the fan base (I think) that they could probably do it. Art: There's a bit more CG this time around than there was in the series, but while it is distracting at times, it blends very well with the animation, which is in the same style as the series (even though it was done by a different studio). Music: There's the same themes from the series from what I noticed of the background music, and the new ED wasn't all that noteworthy. Seiyuu: Same seiyuu as the series, so nothing to add here. Length: Like the other movie, it's a half-hour, but this time, I don't feel so cheated because of it. Overall: A good story that would've made a fine episode in the series. Now hurry up and do a second season already! Story: 9/10 Art: 9/10 Music: 8/10 Seiyuu: 8/10 Length: 9/10 Overall: 43/50; 86% (B )

An unpredictable, yet familiar story unfolds in a calm and deliberate fashion, this 'movie' is can easily pass as another episode of the series, albeit with far superior production values. Those who are disappointed at the paltry 28 minute run time, rest assured that the story was not rushed or truncated in any way. There is no need to watch the series in order to appreciate the story, as it is fairly straightforward, yet profound. The character artistic design is adequate, and you will find no deviation from the series. Kino is as enigmatic as ever, although Hermes seems just a bit more immature and inept than usual. The backgrounds were much more detailed and the enhanced production budget shows here. Although the integration of CGI was not seamless nor flawless, it did not detract from the overall experience. 'The Land of Sickness' is every bit as enjoyable as any other story in the franchise, and remains true to the original concept of gimmick-free story telling, using violence only to advance the plot. Add the requisite subtle invitation to examine human nature, and you get one of my favorite stories of the franchise, following the travels of the most underestimated 'tough guy' in anime. I will definitely watch this again, in a few years.

Part of the beauty of Kino’s Journey is that Kino doesn’t just visit interesting places; she interacts with the people, who believe in their ways of life, however strange or vulgar they might seem to us. In highlighting the many ways in which people can live, Kino’s Journey gives life to the phrase “the world is not beautiful; therefore it is.” At first glance, For You seems to fit this mold. Unlike Life Goes On, it’s essentially another episode, following the standard formula of focusing on a unique set of customs for contemplation. Compared to other episodes, though, it’s pretty lackluster. Instead of developing the philosophical/cultural aspect, most of the story is about Kino driving around the city and talking to a single person, a young girl who embodies the system but lacks the maturity to embrace or rationalize it. It isn’t until the climactic finale that the cultural aspect comes to the foreground, but even this is rushed and underdeveloped, leaving us with a superficial analysis of a custom that wasn’t too novel to begin with. As a Kino’s Journey fan I still enjoyed For You, but it would have benefited from more time reflecting upon the country’s culture and less time telling the girl’s story. Or it could have shortened the “Country of Illness” story and added in one or two other journeys. As it stands, there just isn’t much of substance to show for dedicating a half hour to a single country. On the bright side, the soundtrack and voice cast are the same great stuff from the series. The new animation style is pretty, but it’s harder to gauge. The crisper, higher quality give the film a sharp look, but it also loses the storybook feel. If more Kino’s Journey is ever made, hopefully they’ll improve the classic style (as Life Goes On did) rather than discard it for something more mainstream. For You is a decent continuation to the series, but this journey doesn’t possess the magic or depth of the rest. Even Life Goes On gave me more to think about. If you want more Kino, this is one of your only options, but it’s also the weakest.

Byouki no Kino: For You was released almost half a decade after the original series had finished. Given the long time gap, it makes one wonder whether or not a new addition to the Kino's Journey series will be as high quality as the original series. With Shaft as the new production company, it's almost guaranteed to be different. Byouki no Kuni begins like most episodes do in the original series; Kino arrives at a new country and starts exploring. Soon though, one of the main differences is noticeable; the art style. The level of detail in each shot has increased. Kino herself now has blue-ish hair and for some reason isn't wearing her treasured coat after the first five minutes. They have also added some camera techniques and CGI to some scenes. While this is more aesthetically pleasing, it takes away from the charm and feel that the original series had. This is especially noticeable when it comes to Kino's design since there was no need to ever change it. Nevertheless, this isn't much of an issue overall and shouldn't detract from the viewing experience. The story in this short film is slightly different to usual. The beginning of the episode is similar to the original series where Kino enters a new country, however after that it adopts a different tone. In most of Kino's Journey's episodes, a theme would be the central focus. In Byouki no Kuni however, it appears that the central focus is Inertia, a young girl suffering from a chronic illness. The issue with this is that it lacks the philosophical exploration that Kino's Journey is known for. Instead Byouki no Kuni has replaced the philosophy with a depressing story that is somewhat thought-provoking. Kino's Journey has a reputation for leaving you with a feeling of wonder. Byouki no Kuni, however, doesn't achieve this. Kino and Hermes themselves still behave the same and the soundtrack is just as good as the original series. But the other aspects of the show are not as high quality. Still, I believe that most people would enjoy watching this short film and I do recommend this to anyone who has seen Kino's Journey and want to see more.

Kino’s Journey – The Land of Sickness: For You, serves as a sort of one-off reboot of the original Kino’s Journey series. It is longer than the average episodes we are used to, clocking in at around 28 minutes. This, unlike the other Kino’s Journey movie, actually feels like a normal, yet remarkable, Kino’s Journey episode, which is always appreciated. Firstly, it is important to note that this has not been created by A.C.G.T, the studio which worked on the previous Kino's Journey adaptation, but has been handed over to Shaft. Subsequently, this created a familiar but different art style, which feels more modernised. The animation budget has clearly increased, as interesting camera techniques and more detailed backgrounds are used multiple times, which one would not usually expect from Kino. However, this has also led to the introduction of CGI, which can be distracting at times, but it generally works well with the art style. What I do feel the need to mention is Kino’s slight design alterations. Even though she has not been changed drastically, and her great personality remains intact, one differing aspect becomes very stark. Kino has been given breasts; hefty breasts at that. Why? Isn’t it a reoccurring reference surrounding her character that people aren’t sure if she’s male or female? This is made obnoxiously apparent, seen as we see her nude silhouette and cleavage (SFW) when she is forced into a cleansing session to enter this new country. It just seems rather redundant, as she is clearly written to be androgynous. So why make her more feminine? It doesn’t even seem like it’s done for fanservice; it’s just there, which is slightly annoying. Even still, this really doesn’t degrade the overall quality of the movie at all. There’s not really much more to say. The story is just as impeccably written as ever. It’s very philosophical, but still enjoyable. I’m unable to discuss it here without spoiling, but I will say that I was confused by the ending. It felt out of character and only there to have a cool action scene. To conclude, I highly recommend that all who have seen the original Kino’s Journeys series watches this. There’s no real reason not to.

This third special for Kino's Journey is an above-average episode of Kino's Journey. It's not as good as the best of the best episodes; we're talking episodes 2, 10 and 13. But, it's right below that. It's hard to review Kino's Journey things without spoiling everything as everything depends a lot on a huge plot twist in the end. In my previous reviews it wasn't too prevalent that I spoil them, but this one I don't want to spoil. What little I can say about this without spoiling it would be that its execution is immaculate. The directing, voice acting, animation, the color pallet, everything falls in perfectly. That's why this has a 7 in art and the main series got a 4 in art. The art style was utilized a lot more effectively here, as well as in some main series episodes. The reason the main series got a 4 is that it flopped for some episodes very hard. Regardless, it's very good. It's a deep study in philosophy and psychology, executed to a tee. Again, I can't discuss the philosophy and psychology in the special without spoiling it so just watch it. It's 28 minutes.

This episode shows a more adult Kino than the one in the series, it showed at a glance even some parts of her breasts, now grown, I think they should have left her in the main series at a more advanced age of 18 years +, oh there would be no strangeness with her skills and not with her personality, in fact in this episode Kino seemed much more human than in the series, her personality was much better. Man honestly for me this movie was better than the series and the other movie is special, but it's still not good enough for me to give it a grade higher than 7, I felt that this story really was something more down to earth than the ones presented previously. One detail that I noticed reading the comments is that I was really right, the people only give this series a high rating because it contains a veneer of intellectuality and not because it is really good, this was the best episode of this series so far, both in terms of characters, story and graphic quality but people complained about all this, if the whole series was like this it probably would have gotten an 8/10 out of me. PT-BR Esse episodio mostra um Kino mais adulta que a da série, mostrou de relance até umas partes dos seios dela, agora crescidos, acho que deveriam ter deixado ela na série principal com uma idade mais avançada de 18 anos + ,ai não teria a estranheza com as habilidades dela e nem com a personalidade,na verdade nesse episódio a Kino parecia muito mais humana que na série,sua personalidade estava muito melhor. Cara sinceramente pra mim esse filme foi melhor do que a serie e o outro filme e especial, mas ainda não é bom o suficiente para eu dar uma nota maior que 7,senti que essa historia realmente era algo mais pé no chão do que as apresentadas anteriormente. Um detalhe que eu percebi lendo os comentários é que realmente eu estava certo, o pessoal só da nota alta para essa serie por ela conter um verniz de intelectualidade e não por ser realmente boa, esse foi o melhor episodio até aqui dessa série, tanto em personagens, história e qualidade gráfica mas as pessoas reclamaram de tudo isso, se a serie inteira fosse assim provavelmente ela teria conseguido arrancar um 8/10 de mim.

Remember when SHAFT took on the task of animating a story from the Kino no Tabi light novels for the Dengeki Bunko Movie Festival back in 2007? I can’t say I was around for it, but yep, this is that movie. This movie was actually directed by Ryutaro Nakamura too, who you may remember as the guy who directed the 2003 TV Series. While I have to say that I prefer the TV Series over this film, I couldn’t help but feel excited about what this conglomeration of weirdos would produce. The end result isn’t as weird and otherworldly as you might expect from this studio or this director, but it’s certainly unique. I don’t think there’s a story more fitting to this film’s anemic colour pallette than the Country of Illness. It’s the very first thing you notice if you watch this right after you watched the 2003 series; the art is not as vibrant or as full of energy as before, but it’s certainly beautiful. The same can be said for the country itself. SHAFT has done a fantastic job in crafting a strange and unique atmosphere, and even incorporates some CGI elements without distracting the viewer too much. It has only been 4 years since the first series was animated, but there is a world of difference in the quality. Accompanying the story are some familiar overtures, along with new tracks. I believe I heard a few tracks remastered. In many ways, this film feels just like an unreleased episode from the original series. The direction feels the same as before, if more focused. SHAFT’s influence isn’t felt very heavily, but there are moments when the camera adds drama to a scene by sweeping sideways or even vertically. SHAFT’s strange angles are alive and well, if not as prominent, in this incarnation of Kino’s Journey. The Country of Illness is like many countries Kino has visited; a place you can feel empathy, pity, and anger toward. A place that is ugly and beautiful at the same time. It’s a country filled with both kind and well-meaning people. The people’s ideals are noble. The story is not particularly unique, and neither are the characters. There are only a few significant characters in this film, and only two we get to know intimately. It isn’t the characters themselves that are interesting but the relationship they have with each other, which is what informs the message of this story. It’s the ominous atmosphere that keeps your interest until then. The pace is a bit slower than it ought to be, but it managed to hold my interest until more interesting things started happening. You can’t help but feel that SHAFT just wanted to spend some time showing off how much better they are at animating the series than the studio that animated the original series. And while I’m not disagreeing with them, there’s a difference between building atmosphere and padding out the length of the film by repeatedly showing scene-establishing shots that always last just a bit too long. That said, this country certainly feels more real and tangible than some in the original series because of that effort. And while there’s nothing especially different about this country when compared to all the others Kino visited in the original series, it’s the direction and animation that makes it feel different. And isn’t that what Kino’s Journey is all about – wanting to see something a bit different, even if it doesn’t all work out the way you wanted it to? This country is just another stop on Kino’s Journey, but this feels like one last send-off for Kino – like we’re not going to see her again, at least for a while. And it isn’t that this country is not memorable in itself, but that in a sea of unique countries, this one stands out not for its story or its characters, but for its presentation, and for being the last journey that Ryutaro Nakamura had the chance to direct. And all the same, it’s a journey I didn’t want to come to an end so quickly.

I watched this shortly after finishing the mainline series from 2003. One of my main complaints about that series, which I nonetheless enjoyed quite highly, was its brevity. An episodic show like Kino no Tabi would really benefit from more screentime, hence my excitement to see this movie, which is essentially another episode. KnT: Country of Illness stacks up well when compared to the mainline series. The pacing is not as cut up as some of the original series' episodes were by title cards and text blocks and as an episode length movie, the story remained focused on one major topic for a half hour, which is welcome considering how many 7-or-so-minute sidetracks would cut into the main stories in some KnT episodes. It focuses intuitively enough on a land whose focus is perserving their health and the costs the folks of the country must shoulder for their particular type of utopia. I wouldn't say it beats the best KnT episodes, but it fits comfortably between the median and top in terms of quality. What most disappointed me though was to see the strains of an old-school series adopting flashier visual elements either due to having come out a few years later or perhaps by being better funded as a movie rather than as one of a season's episodes. Some foreground, background, or vehicular elements were unfortunately rendered in 3d and not very subtly at that. These elements don't steal the focus from the KnT visuals you're accustomed to, but in pretty much any shot they were present, the scene felt the lesser for it. Additionally, there was some camera swoops and other cinematic flairs that didn't translate well to the artstyle. This would cause kind of jarring changes in proportion and perspective that made the whole thing look choppy rather than making an old show do new tricks. I don't regret having watched Country of Illness, however I feel it confirmed a few fears I had regarding fidelity to the original series in subsequent works. It stood well enough on its own aside from the hiccups where they deviated from the formula of the original such that it scratched the itch for more episodes of Kino and Hermes rolling into town, indulging the locals in braggadocio about their country being the best, and moving on, which is all I can really ask for from a movie to a series that wasn't picked up for a second season.

Unlike the first "movie" this one distinguishes itself much more clearly from the TV show, despite having a 30-minute runtime. Character designs and color palettes are notably different, Kino looks a bit more grown-up, and the (in)famous grain filter of the TV series is nowhere to be found. The story structure is the same as usual: Kino visits a mysterious country, becomes acquainted with his ways, and then uncovers the dark secret behind it. I didn't find this story to be particularly outstanding next to the TV series, but it does have some memorable moments, like Hermes trying to strike up conversation with an inanimate motorbike, or Kino having a gunfight in a room full of surveillance screens. The titular "country" is also one of the most visually interesting in the series, though the story itself is a bit on-the-nose. (The little girl is called "Inertia," really?) Anyway, this doesn't feel so "essential" for fans of the TV show as the first movie, since it's more of its own thing, but it's certainly worth watching and it's not like there's a ton of Kino out there, either.