Kaiba (カイバ) is a 12 episode sci-fi surrealist romance created and direct by Yuasa Masaaki. The series initially aired on cable TV in Japan in 2008.
The title character Kaiba wakes up on a pile of rubble, no memories intact. Around his neck is a locket with a blurry photo of a girl. Before he knows what is going on he is on the run from machines/biological beings that are attacking people indiscriminately. Kaiba discovers that the world he lives in is filled with the technology to store your memories/personality and then implant them into other people or machines. This ability has created a very real divide between wealth and desperation. The planet he is on is separated physically and economically with the poor relegated to an artificial underworld, while the wealthy live far above them, separated by a cloud of gas that erases memories.
There is a terrorist cell trying to bring down the establishment, while championing a policy forbidding memory backup and transferal. Members of the terrorist cell whisk Kaiba off of the planet as the authorities search for him. Unsure what is happening he goes along with the flow and finds himself a stow away on an interplanetary ship. The ship visits a number of unique planets with Kaiba experiencing various aspects of the reality around him while hazy bits of memory return to him. The snatches of memory are confusing as he is either part of the terrorist group or part of the authorities hunting them. The only constant is the girl in his locket, who is a member of the terrorists. Kaiba strives to meet her, seeing her as the key to unlock his memory and to make all of the events unfolding around him clear.
This is a series that will not gain much fandom from the typical anime fan. The artwork is unusual and amateurish in some regards. But the artwork and the character development is what makes this one of the most interesting and fantastic anime series' I have ever seen. This is the type of show that keeps me wadding through the piles of repetitive and unimaginative anime that continues to be produced and has always been made. The best way to describe the artwork is by calling it the love child of 60's anime and Moebius with some Ren & Stimpy thrown in for good measure. From the beginning the artwork grabbed me as a big nod to 70's French surrealist comic art. There are uncountable sequences that would fit comfortably, stylewise, in Yellow Submarine. In short, Kaiba is a trip.
The story is nothing original. At its core it deals with a person that finds them self starting from nothing and having to work backwards to figure out who they are. It's not too difficult to guess the answers for the plot secrets. You can pretty easily figure out who Kaiba is and a number of the events and triggers leading to his memory loss and his association with the terrorist cell. But it is done fantastically well. The series goes through a few movements, very familiar to those who are versed in Joseph Campbells studies. The first is where Kaiba discovers himself and his humanity by visiting other worlds were reality differs. At the same time the world of the show is also fleshed out, with its core rules and idea's set into place. Once Kaiba begins to get a picture of the world around him the story shifts to fleshing out a few key characters, further solidifying the world and the shows central plots. Flashback work to explain how Kaiba got to the point in the beginning of the series and how he lost his memory. Once that has been laid out the climax takes over as the characters rush head long for the final conflict between the terrorist and the authorities over the future of humanity.
The series is very dark and the artwork belies that. At it's core it deals with questioning individual identity and what one places value on; the individual or the individuals consciousness. What are the societal ramifications when those who can afford it are able to live indefinitely? The class-ism in the series leads to people selling their bodies as a means of survival. But what is survival is you no longer have your body?
I can't stress enough how amazing this series is and how much it represents what I seek in anime. Unique and original story telling with a stylistic approach that makes all of the repetitive titles that line the shelves of Akihabara stores worth it. It also puts a fine point on the dangers the industry is facing in limiting original series' like these from being made. Fewer and fewer original stories are allowed to be produced due to the financial risks involved. Yet, sadly, a series like this, that is pushing story telling in anime to new levels, is hard pressed to find significant popularity to make sponsors to want to make more.
Not surprisingly, Kaiba is not legally available in North America and will probably never be. I am going to take a strong suggestion here and tell you to find it and watch it. It's amazing.
The title character Kaiba wakes up on a pile of rubble, no memories intact. Around his neck is a locket with a blurry photo of a girl. Before he knows what is going on he is on the run from machines/biological beings that are attacking people indiscriminately. Kaiba discovers that the world he lives in is filled with the technology to store your memories/personality and then implant them into other people or machines. This ability has created a very real divide between wealth and desperation. The planet he is on is separated physically and economically with the poor relegated to an artificial underworld, while the wealthy live far above them, separated by a cloud of gas that erases memories.
There is a terrorist cell trying to bring down the establishment, while championing a policy forbidding memory backup and transferal. Members of the terrorist cell whisk Kaiba off of the planet as the authorities search for him. Unsure what is happening he goes along with the flow and finds himself a stow away on an interplanetary ship. The ship visits a number of unique planets with Kaiba experiencing various aspects of the reality around him while hazy bits of memory return to him. The snatches of memory are confusing as he is either part of the terrorist group or part of the authorities hunting them. The only constant is the girl in his locket, who is a member of the terrorists. Kaiba strives to meet her, seeing her as the key to unlock his memory and to make all of the events unfolding around him clear.
This is a series that will not gain much fandom from the typical anime fan. The artwork is unusual and amateurish in some regards. But the artwork and the character development is what makes this one of the most interesting and fantastic anime series' I have ever seen. This is the type of show that keeps me wadding through the piles of repetitive and unimaginative anime that continues to be produced and has always been made. The best way to describe the artwork is by calling it the love child of 60's anime and Moebius with some Ren & Stimpy thrown in for good measure. From the beginning the artwork grabbed me as a big nod to 70's French surrealist comic art. There are uncountable sequences that would fit comfortably, stylewise, in Yellow Submarine. In short, Kaiba is a trip.
The story is nothing original. At its core it deals with a person that finds them self starting from nothing and having to work backwards to figure out who they are. It's not too difficult to guess the answers for the plot secrets. You can pretty easily figure out who Kaiba is and a number of the events and triggers leading to his memory loss and his association with the terrorist cell. But it is done fantastically well. The series goes through a few movements, very familiar to those who are versed in Joseph Campbells studies. The first is where Kaiba discovers himself and his humanity by visiting other worlds were reality differs. At the same time the world of the show is also fleshed out, with its core rules and idea's set into place. Once Kaiba begins to get a picture of the world around him the story shifts to fleshing out a few key characters, further solidifying the world and the shows central plots. Flashback work to explain how Kaiba got to the point in the beginning of the series and how he lost his memory. Once that has been laid out the climax takes over as the characters rush head long for the final conflict between the terrorist and the authorities over the future of humanity.
The series is very dark and the artwork belies that. At it's core it deals with questioning individual identity and what one places value on; the individual or the individuals consciousness. What are the societal ramifications when those who can afford it are able to live indefinitely? The class-ism in the series leads to people selling their bodies as a means of survival. But what is survival is you no longer have your body?
I can't stress enough how amazing this series is and how much it represents what I seek in anime. Unique and original story telling with a stylistic approach that makes all of the repetitive titles that line the shelves of Akihabara stores worth it. It also puts a fine point on the dangers the industry is facing in limiting original series' like these from being made. Fewer and fewer original stories are allowed to be produced due to the financial risks involved. Yet, sadly, a series like this, that is pushing story telling in anime to new levels, is hard pressed to find significant popularity to make sponsors to want to make more.
Not surprisingly, Kaiba is not legally available in North America and will probably never be. I am going to take a strong suggestion here and tell you to find it and watch it. It's amazing.
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