Ronia the Robbers Daughter (山賊の娘ローニャ) is a 26 episode anime based on the Swedish
fantasy children's book of the same name by Astrid Lindgren. This anime
adaption was directed by Miyazaki Goro with CG animation by Polygon Pictures.
Ronia is the only daughter of a feared robber chief, Mattis. She is raised by the caring and loving robber clan who live in the hereditary Mattis Keep, in Mattis Woods. They make their living by robbing the nobles that pass through the forest and fighting the rival robber gang, the Borka Robbers. Ronia is a free spirit who has the entire woods as her playground. Left to her own devices she learns the dangers and bounty of the woods, sometimes coming close to death in her escapades. One day she meets a boy around her age who is the son of Borka named Birk. At first she considers him the enemy given who his father is. But as time passes the two become friends and consider each other siblings. Their companionship remains hidden until a winter when the Borka Robbers end up moving into a separate part of the castle. A war is brimming between both robber gangs and the two children decide they want nothing to do with their parent’s lineage and role. Can the leaders of both gangs overcome their inherent hatred for each other for the good of their livelihood and their children's future?
The story is mostly directed at a young audience and focuses on the fantasy world that Ronia lives in where there is little in the way of real conflict and danger. The few times that Ronia's life is threatened are glossed over and she does a small amount of reflection on her luck. The conflict between the robber gangs is mostly for show and there is very little violence. There is a moment when Birk is beaten quite badly that leads to a turning point in the children's lives and helps to establish the closing arc. Over the course of the story you get glimpses into the history of only some of the main characters but no real development occurs. The majority of the characters are there for background and offer a fantastical reality. The idea that 10 or so grimy men can happily live together as criminals is a bit strange. Usually one would expect whores to show up every once and a while as the only women in castle are the wives of both robber gang leaders and Ronia. But, this story is directed at children and creates an entertaining fantasy world filled with interesting personalities and a small if well developed world. The forest contains a hand full of mystical creatures that offer unique experiences for Ronia, particularly the blood thirsty harpies, who have a thing for wanting to kill her that was begun when she was born. The plot progresses smoothly, with quite a few jumps in time. Over all it covers Ronia's live from birth to about 10 or 11 years old.
The character animation is wire frame motion capture cell shade, which Polygon has been making their trademark style (Sidonia no Kishi). The character animation can be jarring but they handle it well and add a surprising amount of life into the character movement, particularly the facial expressions. While CG is not yet to the point of fluid natural movement like cell animation, it’s getting significantly better. The backgrounds are classic Studio Ghibli natural scenery. The forest is lush and all consuming, with a variety of tones and contrasts. The backgrounds do well to smooth out any distaste for the character designs.
This is a fun and enjoyable series that can be enjoyed by children and adults alike. I'm not sure what live lessons kids will ultimately take away from it, as the life the main character lives is quite comfortable and fantastical, but it can't hurt! The opening theme song sounds like it was made on a late 80's Casio though...
No word yet on this series ever being available in North America. The original book is available though.
Ronia is the only daughter of a feared robber chief, Mattis. She is raised by the caring and loving robber clan who live in the hereditary Mattis Keep, in Mattis Woods. They make their living by robbing the nobles that pass through the forest and fighting the rival robber gang, the Borka Robbers. Ronia is a free spirit who has the entire woods as her playground. Left to her own devices she learns the dangers and bounty of the woods, sometimes coming close to death in her escapades. One day she meets a boy around her age who is the son of Borka named Birk. At first she considers him the enemy given who his father is. But as time passes the two become friends and consider each other siblings. Their companionship remains hidden until a winter when the Borka Robbers end up moving into a separate part of the castle. A war is brimming between both robber gangs and the two children decide they want nothing to do with their parent’s lineage and role. Can the leaders of both gangs overcome their inherent hatred for each other for the good of their livelihood and their children's future?
The story is mostly directed at a young audience and focuses on the fantasy world that Ronia lives in where there is little in the way of real conflict and danger. The few times that Ronia's life is threatened are glossed over and she does a small amount of reflection on her luck. The conflict between the robber gangs is mostly for show and there is very little violence. There is a moment when Birk is beaten quite badly that leads to a turning point in the children's lives and helps to establish the closing arc. Over the course of the story you get glimpses into the history of only some of the main characters but no real development occurs. The majority of the characters are there for background and offer a fantastical reality. The idea that 10 or so grimy men can happily live together as criminals is a bit strange. Usually one would expect whores to show up every once and a while as the only women in castle are the wives of both robber gang leaders and Ronia. But, this story is directed at children and creates an entertaining fantasy world filled with interesting personalities and a small if well developed world. The forest contains a hand full of mystical creatures that offer unique experiences for Ronia, particularly the blood thirsty harpies, who have a thing for wanting to kill her that was begun when she was born. The plot progresses smoothly, with quite a few jumps in time. Over all it covers Ronia's live from birth to about 10 or 11 years old.
The character animation is wire frame motion capture cell shade, which Polygon has been making their trademark style (Sidonia no Kishi). The character animation can be jarring but they handle it well and add a surprising amount of life into the character movement, particularly the facial expressions. While CG is not yet to the point of fluid natural movement like cell animation, it’s getting significantly better. The backgrounds are classic Studio Ghibli natural scenery. The forest is lush and all consuming, with a variety of tones and contrasts. The backgrounds do well to smooth out any distaste for the character designs.
This is a fun and enjoyable series that can be enjoyed by children and adults alike. I'm not sure what live lessons kids will ultimately take away from it, as the life the main character lives is quite comfortable and fantastical, but it can't hurt! The opening theme song sounds like it was made on a late 80's Casio though...
No word yet on this series ever being available in North America. The original book is available though.
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