ven before the accident that destroys his life, Argentosoma star Takuto Kaneshiro is not a particularly friendly or emotive person; his cold, off-putting attitude causes his fellow Space Engineering majors to hold him in contempt, and his girlfriend, Maki Agata, cringes and goes silent in the face of his frequent rages. He is both attentive and devoted to her, but her refusal to express her own feelings infuriates him, and when she starts spending more time with the professor she works for than with her boyfriend, Takuto clearly feels bitterly resentful. Even when the professor enlists his
aid in dealing with the project that's taking up so much of Maki's time—a downed and damaged giant alien robot similar to the ones at war with Earth—Takuto is aggressively nasty to everyone around him.
Then the alien robot (which has been dubbed "Frank," for Frankenstein's monster) is revived and escapes the university's lab, accidentally crushing the professor and Maki under the rubble as it breaks free. Takuto is the only survivor, and the military—particularly the self-styled "squad of
specialized alien police" called "Funeral"—takes an interest in him and the professor's work. But Takuto is only interested in revenge on Frank.
Meanwhile, Frank has escaped to the woods, where it hides until its path accidentally crosses that of a whimsically top-hatted young blond girl. In a scene straight out of The Iron Giant, child and super-robot eventually come to terms and form a special bond. Thanks to the teachings of her forceful, eccentric grandfather, the girl—Harriet Bartholomew—decides her new friend is an elf, and comes to trust him implicitly. And later, when a more malevolent alien lands and begins killing all the humans in the area, Harriet's "Mr. Elf" rewards that trust. When Funeral eventually arrives and takes "Mr. Elf" into custody, Harriet is taken along. But Takuto, having been given a new identity by a mysterious, shadowy figure that seems to be supporting his revenge schemes, soon joins Funeral, putting both Harriet and Frank in danger.
Odd images but intriguing implications
A few things about Argentosoma don't really make sense—especially the fact that Harriet's permitted to stay with her dangerous alien pal in a series of what are presumably high-security, top-secret military bases, especially after Frank wrecks the first one and they flee together. Harriet's a personable kid, but also young, naive and a bit delusional, and it's hard to swallow the idea that the military would let her hang out with its captured 10-story-tall mega-weapon. Weirder yet is Takuto's transformation into a Two-Face-like half-elf monstrosity with one round red eye and one angular blue one. The symbolism is clear, but the imagery is just odd.
The same could be said of most of the series. Shukou Murase's character designs look like parodies of early-anime tropes: one-eye-concealing bouffants are common, and many of the angular, rake-thin characters have noses only in profile. Only Harriet looks like a relatively normal human instead of a collection of sharp edges, though the alien robot designs—while reminiscent of those seen in Neon Genesis Evangelion—are notable, and Frank's asymmetrical, bulky body, which mixes elements of sleek futurism and clumsy retro design, is particularly visually engaging.
Story-wise, Argentosoma has yet to really prove itself. Harriet's relationship with her giant alien friend is sweet and a bit sad, and she's an inherently appealing and slightly frightening character, with her hopeful delusions about heading off to Elfland and escaping the scary real world. Takuto is hardly a sympathetic character, but the mystery surrounding him is intriguing, and it's easy to get involved in wondering who's manipulating him and what he'll do next. The Funeral team members, in spite of their quirks, just seem generic and cartoonish, and the nature and extent of their organization and their battles with invading aliens are still up in the air. A lot has yet to be revealed about the world of Argentosoma, and while the series so far has a basic allure, it's a good ways off from breathtaking. Still, there are a variety of reasons to keep tuning in, with a great deal left to resolve.
Argentosoma's episode names follow an interesting convention—each one begins with the word that ended the last one, forming a word chain stretching back to the first episode: "Rebirth and Death" is followed by "Death and the Maiden," "The Maiden and the Meeting," "The Meeting and Hatred" and so forth. This affectation leads to a clever visual device in the "Next time on Argentosoma" teasers, as the camera swoops in on the common word in the old title, then swoops out to reveal the new title. It's a minor touch, but a neat one.
— Tasha
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