Grundig? The German domestic appliance manufacturer? Ohh! Grandeek, that is right! Glad to see we will not stray too far from the animation topic. You may as well regard this title as a loose portemanteau of Grandiloquent. "If you reach and seize the hilt... then, you will be able to grasp the suffering etched within the weapon" Lines like these make a fantasy anime's introduction grand-sounding and yet so vacuous. Indeed, Tia, the heroine, does not even need to grab the cursed sword Aihorn (whose name sounds awfully as an Engrish slang for penis, by the way) to casually interact with it, thus making herdidactic quest utterly inconsequential. Past this stage, Grandeek does not exactly improve in terms of scripting, unfortunately. In fact, it falls on a trap many entries of the genre are tempted to bask in: endless, boring infodump. They shape most of the exposition through flatly shot conversations instead of evocative visual storytelling. That is what get them to founder, by the end. Which is sad because despite its short length, it is not as if this OAV started completely doomed. Actually, if it balanced accordingly the self initiatory mission of Tia, a basic murder mystery angle and the swashbuckling composition, it could have ended with very agreeable outcome.
We have already established that the main protagonist's initial aspiration does not matter. So, how about the murder mystery aspect, you would ask? It can be echoed by this other question: was there even one to begin with? Everyone in the cast (except bounty hunter Luke because he is completely alien to Marcleida) already know fully what is responsible of the predicament the place of action got into. No surface investigation to untangle a thick mystery and involve the spectator with his own speculations.
Besides, in Fantasy, spiritual entities are not intrinsically subjected to a well defined set of limitations which could impede their goal and then, giving the intrigue its needed dose of suspense. The object is too sentient, travel freely (in the case of elemental water based Aihorn, pipework wrecking does not accomplish much to keep it from going where it wants), but first and foremost is overpowered (the cursed sword could have flooded the island anytime it wanted, but did not just because it is like a child who enjoys pulling the elytrons off of an insect). Therefore, the odds starts off rigged right away, making for a disengaging progression not amounting to much.
The sword scuffles are not going to help the narrative either due to their scarcity, as evidenced by the verbose nature of the script. It is not like the title benefited of the largesse of a high budget anyway, which is reflected by the strictly functional animation. While competent, Toshiko Baba's artistic direction goes for weird experiments, at times... As Luke and his escort leave the artistic sword smith's house, they head right towards a beam of light at the right which turn them into a draft version of themselves. Did they just walk into the Storyboard dimension? Is it a tribute to A-ha's "Take on me" clip? A simple wish to figure the sketch-like nature of Luke's memories as he reminisces his situation? The last instance is the most probable, but the flashback is staged in such a mislaid way that it is more intrusive than atmospheric. It is even more so odd that the sequence is voiced with delay, during a fade to black moment.
Talking about the sound-design, it could represent another slim saving grace. Yet, it is a trite as it gets. The music barely draw scores in the surface layer of sand before they are washed away by the cortical waves of the viewer... Except Horie Yui, always putting on a commendable effort (even into the anabiosis of a stock character) the rest of the voice cast sounds about as motivated as a contractor who knows that he will sleep for the fifteenth consecutive time in a Mangakissa booth if he does not do the job. Their overall performance is as lifeless as the setting, cruelly lacking in random people going about their urgent errands.
Overall, one hauls out of Grandeek with the unpleasant last impression that nothing really mattered. Even the conclusion, involving the duo formation of Tia and Luke, is telegraphed forcefully. As such, it represents a cautionary tale about how to not screenplay epic fantasy. Unless you are interested to check out in which exact regards it fails to deliver, you absolutely have no reason to watch this over a more thrilling entry as "The Records of Lodoss War". Do yourself a favor by giving it a wide berth.
Praise be unto Sacred Geometry~
..| Colophon |..
This section is dedicated to content indication in order to inform audience in a practical way. On the next paragraph, the buzzwords offer hints about the title's strong suits and drawbacks.
Ketchup meter: Well, it is a fantasy anime whose plot revolves around a vengeful spirit determined to commit an ethnocide. Of course you can expect some violence. Albeit relatively tame, it is definitely present.
xXx meter: One has to wonder if Tia prancing around in high cut leotard would not liven up the drowsy narrative. There is none of visual titillation, so the incorrigible 2D pervert will not even find anything to gawk at.
Fishing scene(s): None. Which is strange given that the setting is an island... No fisherman in sight, who would volunteer to escort back any illegal immigrants to the mainland.
POSITIVE aspects:
+ A tentalizing didactic/crime mystery premise, although left to rot in foot
+ A competent art direction
+ Horie Yui, for the fans of the Seiyuu
+ The cute fencing waifu (can you tell how desperate the house is to find positive?)
NEGATIVE aspects:
- So much to list, so little space.
