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Japanese Title: 軒轅剣・蒼き曜

Summary

Xuan Yuan Sword Luminary is TV Tokyo, Softstsar Entertainment and Nada Holdings’ co-production. The title is based on Xuan-Yuan Sword, a role-playing game series by DOMO Studio. Game Xuan-Yuan Sword: The Millennial Destiny, which has been released in 2004, is said to be the basis of this adaptation.

Impressions

Thanasis

From the first seconds of this episode, it’s evident that the series is a co-production. Made in Taiwan and based on a popular Chinese RPG that uses Chinese mythology as inspiration, the anime is set in a steampunk world where an evil empire is using its newfound engineering knowledge to unite the world under its rule. The setting has everything you’d expect from a steampunk and cyberpunk story: cyborgs and artificial limbs and robots. Yet, since it’s based on Chinese mythos, there is an also martial arts and people who can harness the elements. The main drama is played between the two protagonists, a boy and a girl from the same village who feel like siblings but are not blood-related. One day, the evil empire attacks their village. They are separated, the girl leaving with her sister and the boy taken for a slave while believing that his friends are dead. I’ve seen enough of the trope to know that they are going to end up meeting each other on the battlefield.

Design-wise, the anime is solid. The constructs and the magical powers have fluid animations and the characters are distinct. The vistas and backgrounds are awesome when it’s not about blood and fire and mayhem and the CG was not the worst I’ve seen. The problems lie with its mediocre writing and hurried pace. There is potential but I’m not sure if this first episode was enough to bring me back.