Last Exile - Fam, The Silver Wing is a sequel to the 2003 series Last Exile. Featuring Gonzo’s terrible CGI and Range Murata’s iconic character designs, the original went onto become beloved by many. Fam, The Silver Wing takes place after the original with a few direct ties. The synopsis from the Last Exile wiki, To the Sky…
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Set as a sequel to the original Last Exile that aired in 2003, Last Exile -Fam, The Silver Wing- (ラストエグザイル～銀翼のファム～, Rasuto Eguzairu Ginyoku no Famu) is a story about great air battles with flying machines, powerful armies, and mysterious organizations. The main character is Fam Fan Fan, a fifteen-year-old girl who gets caught up in a war between two nations. Ades, the antagonist, wants the princess of Turan dead. With the help of Dio Eraclea, Fam and her friend Giselle Collette try to thwart the efforts of Ades. |
So how does Fam look after three episodes?
It’s been a long while since I’ve watched the original Last Exile, Fam may be the catalyst that gets me to dust off the box set. One thing I remember is that the story wasn’t exactly the simplest things to follow. As I understand it, the series takes place on a giant space colony meant to house the inhabitants of Earth while it rejuvenates. Certain elements on the colony seek access to Exile, which turns out to be a large spaceship meant to ferry folks from this space colony back to Earth. Fam, as far as I can tell, takes place further in the future where Earth has once again become populated by those who left (and they’re at war with those who stayed). Up in the night sky they can see five crescent shaped moons, which are apparently other exiles, including the original (which is apparently still making round trips).
Okay, pretty straightforward, right? I’ve got this, I think. Well, at least until I start thinking about it too much. Why do the exiles look different? How is there still some sort of grand stream? Why, with all of their technology, still rely on light based signals? According to the show the Turanians (who may or may not be the group from the original series) returned 118 years ago. If they are decedent, how is it that Dio is still alive?
Yes, Dio is alive. I thought he had a fitting end in the original series but I guess lucrative characters are hard to kill. With regard to the characters in Fam, thus far into the series we’ve been given an introduction into the main ones like Fam, Giselle, and the princesses. We’ve also been giving very brief introductions into some of the supporting cast. When I say brief, I mean zero backstory and only the most basic explanation of their role. Luckily the writers found the time to shoehorn their names into the dialog so we at least know who they are.
Animation wise, the CGI hasn’t improved much. I look back at the original Last Exile with a sense of nostalgia so the CGI in Fam doesn’t bother me much. What gets to me is that explosions still look terribly out of place. Really though, this much is to be expected from Gonzo. The ship designs in themselves don’t seem to have received much attention either. It’s hard to believe but they’re even less practical in terms of design and far more awkward than menacing.
The character animation is pretty basic, almost uninterested, but not horrendous. If not as detailed as Range Murata’s illustrations they ooze his style. I suspect many enjoy the show just for them. A majority of them are young females too which Murata’s demographic will enjoy as well.
So, should you give Fam, The Silver Wing a try? That’s an easy one: did you enjoy the original Last Exile? If so, then give Fam a shot. If you didn’t enjoy the original then this isn’t for you. It’s more of the same elements, and at three episodes, slightly watered down. If you haven’t even seen the original, shame. You should give that a go before even contemplating getting into this spin off.
