RahXephon (ラーゼフォン Razefon) is a popular Japanese science fiction series about 17-year-old Ayato Kamina, his ability to control a godlike mecha known as the RahXephon, and his inner journey to find a place in the world around him. His peaceful life as a student and artist in Tokyo is suddenly interrupted by a mysterious woman who appears to be stalking him, strange machines invading the city, and even stranger machines fighting back.
The original 26-episode anime television series was aired on Fuji TV from January to September 2002. It was created and directed by Yutaka Izubuchi and made by Bones. The series received critical acclaim and was subsequently translated, released on DVD and aired in several other countries, including the United States. An adapted movie, with plot changes and a few new scenes, was released in 2003. Novels, an extra OVA episode, an audio drama, computer games, illustration books, and a somewhat tweaked manga adaptation by manga artist Takeaki Momose were also created.
Music, time, mystery, intrigues and romance are central elements of RahXephon's plot. The series shows clear influences from philosophy and Japanese folklore, and from Western literature such as the work of James Churchward. Mesoamerican and other Pre-Columbian civilizations have a prominent place in the cultural background of the series.
Izubuchi said RahXephon was his attempt to set a new standard for mecha anime, as well as to bring back aspects of 1970s mecha shows like Brave Raideen. The result was generally well received by English-language reviewers. While some reviewers only judged the show on its own merits, others compared it with varying favour against shows such as Brain Powerd, Megazone 23 and Neon Genesis Evangelion.
A television movie version of RahXephon called Pluralitas Concentio was directed by Tomoki Kyoda, who had directed three episodes of the TV series. Izubuchi acted as Chief Director on this movie, but was not heavily involved in its production.
The movie quickly reveals mysteries that were developed slowly in the TV series and makes changes to the plot. It begins with a prologue showing previously un-shown events, followed by a couple of expository scenes. The final 30 minutes have the most plot changes and new scenes, and they end with a new epilogue. The rest of the movie consists mainly of abridged scenes from the series, sometimes with characters replaced or with different motivations and dialogue. The plot establishes the link between the Kamina and Mishima families, and other story-lines that were prominent in the TV series were reduced or removed. One prominent distributor promoted the movie as an "encore" — an extra performance at the end of the series, rather than as a replacement.
From
Wikipedia