Land of the Lustrous | |
宝石の国 (Hōseki no Kuni) | |
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Genre | |
Anime television series | |
Directed by | Takahiko Kyōgoku |
Produced by |
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Written by | Toshiya Ōno |
Music by | Yoshiaki Fujisawa |
Studio | Orange |
Licensed by | |
Original network | AT-X, Tokyo MX, BS11, MBS |
English network | |
Original run | October 7, 2017 – December 23, 2017 |
Episodes | 12 |
Land of the Lustrous (Japanese: 宝石の国, Hepburn: Hōseki no Kuni, lit. 'Country of Jewels') is a 2017 anime television series based on Haruko Ichikawa's manga series of the same name. It is produced by the computer graphics (CG) animation studio Orange and directed and written by Takahiko Kyōgoku and Toshiya Ono, respectively. It follows the Lustrous – immortal humanoid life forms who are the embodiments of gemstones – who defend themselves against the Lunarians, who seek to harvest their bodies for decorations. Phosphophyllite is the youngest of the Lustrous, and is given the task to assemble a natural history since they are too brittle to fight.
Orange created the series with 3D animation as a base, a decision made partially due to the difficulty in depicting translucent gemstones using hand-drawn animation. Yoichi Nishikawa's concept art greatly influenced Kyōgoku's vision for the series, with several shots directly based on Nishikawa's art. While the manga is more ambiguous and subtle, the anime had to be clear on a single viewing, so Phos was given more close-up shots and repeated lines to give them a larger presence and more easily identifiable goals. As Kyōgoku was used to writing teenaged characters with clear motives and desires, he initially had problems with portraying Phos, but his image of the character solidified after hearing Tomoyo Kurosawa's performance as them.
The series was well received by critics, frequently called among the best of the 2010s and a turning point for CG anime, and convincing skeptics that an action series could be well done outside of a 2D production. The writing was also positively received, with critics calling the characters and world likable and intriguing. It received several awards and nominations, namely for its visuals.
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