Land of the Lustrous

Very, very different to anything I’ve experienced before. Watching it felt more like watching an RPG’s cinematic sequences than an anime. It was captivating, multi-layered, and so beautifully crafted I was in sheer awe throughout the majority of the show.

The anime felt strangely tranquil, even throughout its action scenes, even as the mystery was built up. After it was over it left me pondering for quite a while.

The story was incredibly unique; I was enthralled from the get-go. There was very little context to go on, which matched the character’s lack of understanding about their world perfectly. All we received was a short backstory about the history of their world, which was as original as it was fantastical. Most of the story revolved around getting to know and understand the gems’ way of life and mentalities, with the mystery elements – what are the lunarians? Why do they really want the gems? What is their relationship to Sensei? – not being explored until near the end of the series.

Each aspect of the Gems’ world was interesting: their different jobs, their home, their hierarchy (which used the hardness and age of each gem to determine their place), and their interactions with the rest of their mainly desolate world. There were some similarities to the way human society works, yet there were far more differences, and this is what made watching it so fascinating. The differences were mainly due to the lifespan of the gems; an immortal views existence differently to those who have death at the end of their road. For an immortal it is all about finding something to give eternity meaning, finding a reason to want to live, and not just exist. Humans have that too, but not to the same extent.

As the anime compellingly puts it ‘death takes everything, but in return it gives meaning to life’. A profound quote, and one that made me stop and think about life and death in general. However I didn’t really feel the existential dread one would expect throughout this anime. To the contrary I felt…peaceful. Serene. There were a few cleverly done tense parts in the story, but they didn’t negate the overall tone.
The pacing was also perfect, neither too fast nor too slow. I felt there was enough time given to absorb each new detail without feeling either overloaded or bored.

The art and animation were phenomenal. The colours were vibrant, with shades of green, blue and pink I’ve never before seen in an anime. And as for the use of CGI, let me put it like this: this anime better be the winner of the best CGI category in the awards this year, because it beats everything else hands down. Each pane was flawless. Even the characters’ hair was a work of art.

The sound was unusual, yet fitting. the op was…jerky, for lack of a better way to describe it. It took some getting used to, but I did come to see how it matched the overall tranquil tone of the series. The ed was very nice; that’s about all I can say about it.

The characters were loveable. The character with by far the most development was Phos – as expected from the MC. His/her development, though, was wonderful. Starting out as a virtually helpless, perpetually restless, and irritatingly spoiled child, by the end of the series (s)he had grown to understand the world, to look beyond his/herself and his/her own desires and actually think in a mature way. The transition was smooth; (s)he didn’t change overnight. Rather each event impacted his/her psyche a little more, culminating after a particular incident about two thirds of the way through the series. It was remarkably executed, and evident that the underlying Phos was the same, no matter his/her changes.

The other characters had varying degrees of development. The most intriguing of the secondary characters was probably Antarctictite, whose interactions with Phos contributed to both their developments – they rubbed off on each other and both came away the better for it. The others were mainly defined by how they contributed to the community – they were developed more as different features of the community were explored. Diamond, Bort, Cinnabar, Rutile, Jade and King were noteworthy characters, but more because of their role in Phos’ development than on their own merit. Regardless, they were all splendid to watch - Diamond in particular had some superb action scenes that also helped flesh out the story.

Conclusion: it’s the world-building that wins it for me. That, and the overall tone of the series. I couldn’t find a single reason to give it less than a perfect score except for the sudden ending (I would have liked to see one or two of the burning questions answered). And thus, a perfect score was what I gave it. A work of art that thoroughly deserves its praises.

NB: I’d recommend this series to deep thinkers or anyone looking for something new and creative (adults and kids alike). I wouldn’t, however, recommend this series to people looking for a fast-paced comedy with lots of romance, because this story doesn’t have that. (Thankfully it doesn’t have any fanservice either). It’s a fantastical coming of age story, and should be viewed with an open mind.
That said, go and watch it! I hope you’ll like it just as much as I did.