5/5 Fantasy at its Best
  by MoonSabre (Buffalo, The Other Side of NY State, USA)
The Twelve Kingdoms has been my favorite anime since the first DVD releases. The second half of the the series truly showcases Ono-sensei's ability to create a believable fantasy world; along with the production crew which took great care to bring her stories to life on the screen. I'll say this up front: The Twelve Kingdoms is not flashy and is not the typical anime. With that said, I'll head into the specifics.

The story is once again broken into "books." The first arc named "A Thousand Miles of Wind; The Sky at Dawn" (ep 25-39) started in the first set and tells of Yoko's efforts to save her kingdom from corrupt officals. She is joined by two other young women; Suzu a kaikyaku (Japanese people who get sucked into the 12 kingdoms) former servant of a Lady of the Kingdom of Sai, and Shoukei, the exiled princess of the Kingdom of Hou. Suzu and Shoukei are drawn to Yoko for two very different reasons, but each character is explored thoroughly. The second arc "The Sea God of the East; Azure Sky of the West," (eps 41-45) is a flashback to the early years of the King of En's reign. Enki and the King of En must suppress a rebellion that threaten's one of En's provinces. Episode 40 is really a recap of some of the past events in Hou and neatly wraps up Shoukei's storyline.

Character building and plotlines are very, very well done. The main story arc has essentially three main characters and yet the storytelling blends all three plotlines seemlessly, without really trying too hard. Each young woman has a set of weaknesses and strengths with the most glaring weaknesses slowly fading over time. And that's the greatest thing about the Twelve Kingdoms: while each character is flawed, most of the time they know it and they work incredibly hard to fix themselves. For example: Yoko knows that she is ignorant of her new world and it frustrates her to no end. Yet her solution is to actually live in a village and learn from a teacher; not to sulk on her throne. This is just one of the unique ways that characters try to fix themselves. Even if they end up making the wrong choice they take responsibility for the consquences no matter how painful they may be.

Again the music, animation, and voice cast all work wonderfully well together. The animation is beautiful and in some cases, stunning. Character designs are refreshingly normal (with the exception of some character's coloring) with Shoukei and Yoko being my favorite designs. You will see some of evidence of lack of funding though as some scenes show some lack of polish, however its not distracting.

You can tell that MediaWorks cared about making a quality release and it shows in the box again. Its solid and shows off the original artwork from the light novels. I love showing it off next to the best DVD titles on my shelf. This is an under the radar gem and should be on any anime fans shelf.


4/5 Beautiful and engaging but cold - brrr!
  by Tallin (U.S.)
As I noted in my previous review, the lack of human interaction here leaves one numb. On the one hand, the story in very interesting, but it lacks something at a fundamental level that leaves you with a feeling of frustration.
I think I should have cared more about these characters than I did. But like a carnival, it all whirls on by and all that's left is a memory of bright lights and pretty colors and . . . not much else.
I honestly can't even remember anyone's name except Rakushun, and he was the half man/ half rat character that had the most going for him.
This gets four stars for the sheer beauty and quality in each episode. Each is well thought out, the pacing of the plot keeps you watching. But when the end comes it's just not enough, really.
Watch it for the artistic craftsmanship, but If you're looking for a human drama, try any other anime but this one. I mean, even Princess Tutu had more soul, more humanity and half the characters in that were animals for pete's sake!

4/5 Fushigi Yuugi minus the romance plus the politics...
  by Rowena Wendy Lim (Asia)
Judging from what was happening in the first few episodes, I was somewhat expecting The Twelve Kingdoms to be an anime along the lines of the classic girl-taken-to-another-world series "Fushigi Yuugi". Turns out I was half-right. The Twelve Kingdoms is somewhat like "Fushigi Yuugi" -- minus the romance, plus a whole lot of politics.

Youko Nakajima is the quintessential unwilling heroine with zero self-confidence. After being whisked away to the world of the twelve kingdoms, Youko is forced to pick up a sword and defend herself from those who want her dead. But why would anyone want a regular schoolgirl dead? As it turns out, Youko is not as ordinary as she always believed herself to be. She is a taika, originally born in the world of the twelve kingdoms, but was somehow swept away to Japan. What's more, Youko is the chosen one, the next queen of Kei, one of the twelve kingdoms. The man she met is actually a kirin, sort of like the guardian of Kei. Each kingdom has its own kirin and ruler. The kirin chooses the ruler and pledges his/her total loyalty and submission to the ruler. Keiki is Kei's kirin, and he has chosen Youko as the queen of Kei.

If you think terminologies like taika and kirin are confusing, prepare yourself for more of these when watching The Twelve Kingdoms. A very detailed government system exists within the kingdoms, and as Youko comes to accept her destiny as ruler, she is further plunged into the world of political intrigue, betrayal, and deception. Everything is clearly explained however, you just have to make sure you're in the right state of mind when watching -- meaning this is not an anime wherein you can let your mind float off elsewhere and still get it.

One of the things I liked best about The Twelve Kingdoms was the diverse cast of extremely well-developed characters. I was amazed at how the series managed to effectively tackle and expound multiple character-oriented subplots, tying them up neatly in the end. What kept me from giving The Twelve Kingdoms a perfect rating was the non-resolution of the Taiki arc. It was as if the subplot and characters just vanished into thin air after being painstakingly shown, and until now I can't help but feel that there's a vital chunk missing in the series.

The art and animation are pretty impressive. The picturesque settings are like a cross between ancient China and Japan. Character designs are beautiful and distinct, and every scene is packed in such a way that there is virtually nothing irrelevant -- the sheer amount and detail of the events that unfold make it seem as if an episode is longer than it actually is, but you don't get the feeling that it's dragging... except maybe for the first part when Youko is still in denial with regards to her destiny. In terms of the audio aspects, the English dubbing is done nicely and the musical scoring fits perfectly.

The Twelve Kingdoms is overall an excellent and engaging series, one that will keep you popping in disc after disc just to see what's going to happen next. Now if only they would give us some closure regarding the Taiki arc...



5/5 The 2nd half to the finest fantasy anime around
  by J. Le (San Jose, CA)
The Twelve Kingdoms contains some of the finest character development you'll see in any anime, regardless of genre. The development of Yoko, Queen of Kei, from an an awkward and timid girl lacking in self-confidence to a proud and resolute ruler of a kingdom is the highlight of this show. Few will forget Episode 39, where she defeats those who would overthrow her rule and sets in motion changes that will forever change the face of her kingdom at the end of the episode.

The last 6 episodes comprise the final arc of this show, and while the weakest part of this show, do little to blunt the magnificence that is the Twelve Kingdoms.

5/5 Twelve Kingdoms Part 2
  by A&M Junkie (UK)
(May have Spoilers from 1st boxset) The second box-set seamlessly continues the story of our heroine and her role as the queen of Kei. The story also concentrates on two new characters, the first being the girl from Hourai who asked Taiki for help in the first boxset, and the second being the daughter of the executed king of Hou who had disappeared. The stories of all three girls are interwined and all have impact on one another.
The story is as brillant as ever and even more addictive. We are also treated to a sub-story about the King of En in his early days as a ruler. The only downside of the second boxset is that it does not finish the story of King of Tai and Taiki. There were originally meant to be 68 episodes of the series but only 45 were made and it is not certain if the remaining episodes will ever be made. If you, like me, loved Taiki's story and were desperate to find out the mystery behind the King of Tai's disapperence, then you may be disappointed.
However, the story that is continued here is fantastic and if you have watched the first series you really should see this one too.