Listeners First Impressions

“That day… What was that thing I heard echoing inside my head?”

Welcome back to Kora’s anime listening hour. Last we left off, we’d taken the time to delve into the life of a soon-to-be shock jock, and this time we’re taking a look at a dreary future that can only be saved by musical mechs… Anime is weird, but I must admit I’m surprised to be reviewing two audio oriented series back-to-back. Listeners is a very different beast from Wave, Listen to Me!, and I can’t deny it’s more my speed. As wacky as the premise is, the show doesn’t rush its development. However, one central realization lies at the heart of Listeners. It’s been nearly 15 years since Eureka Seven aired, and it’s about time people felt nostalgia for it. Dai Sato, the chief writer for Eureka Seven, is also helming this project and his presence is felt throughout. Still, I should clarify that, despite many similarities, Listeners is not just a paint-by-numbers copy of Eureka Seven. It has its own identity and approach, and, despite some vagaries in the premise, it’s gotten me pretty excited for what’s to come.

Our main leads are a boy named Echo Rec, and an amnesiac girl he finds in a pile of garbage. Echo works in the piles of garbage surrounding his town, searching for items of value that can be sold. The town evidently faced devastation years prior at the hands of a “Player,” which seems to be a weird blend of soldier and performer. Players are tasked with fighting off the “Earless,” shadowy monstrosities that will attack cities, by making use of equipment called… “Equipment,” which the Players attach to themselves. The terminology is on the nose, but it ensures that it doesn’t lead to confusion. The episode is more interested in introducing the broad aspects of the world and the characters, so getting into the minutiae would probably work against it. Speaking of the characters, Echo and the amnesiac girl are fun as leads. Their friendship gets advanced a little too rapidly, but the girl, who is given the name Mu (μ) by the end of the episode, has a rather forceful and energetic personality which helps cover for the pacing. Echo has shades of Eureka’s Renton in him, but he’s actually less obnoxious. Echo’s main conceit is that part of him dreams of greater things and wants to use the incomplete Equipment he’s developed to serve a Player, but he crushes those aspirations down and forces himself into a state of acceptance.

Studio MAPPA is leading the production here. I was a little surprised it wasn’t Bones given its stylistic resemblance to Eureka Seven, but MAPPA does a good job of bringing the world to life. Listeners starts off in a worn-down town surrounded by garbage, and while the animation is vibrant, it doesn’t feature the bright palette that Eureka Seven did. Instead, the visuals offer an unusual blend of that series’ aesthetic and that of Megalo Box with its well-worn technology and junk-town settings. There are some details about the show that give me pause. The music probably isn’t as memorable as it should be in a show called Listeners, but I’m willing to reserve judgment and I did enjoy what I suspect to be the OP. Also, while I’m interested in Dai Sato’s involvement as a writer, the director, Hiroaki Ando, has limited experience outside of the Ajin franchise. Still, there didn’t appear to be any significant red flags as far as the production was concerned. Listeners occupies the same vague ground that this season’s Tower of God does. I’m interested to see where they’re going, but it’s difficult to effectively judge their world building and characters based solely on the first episode.

Before I wrap up, a few Notes and Nitpicks:

• The Equipment that Echo built looks like an amp when it isn’t activated. Obviously, the show is aiming to employ audio motifs and terminology, but do all of the Equipment look like that? We see brief images of other Equipment on the television, but they’re already activated.
• The CG used for the Equipment Echo designed is well integrated, even if I’m not in love with the design itself. There isn’t any one element that I take issue with, but it never fully clicked with me, though I may need to just get accustomed to it.
• Wasn’t there another series about mechs fighting with music?… Maybe I’m just thinking of Macross. Pre-90’s anime is something of a blindspot for me.