Anime of the Childhood #25: Eureka Seven

交響詩篇エウレカセブン, Kōkyōshihen Eureka Sebun, lit. “Symphonic Psalms Eureka Seven” (Psalms of Planets Eureka Seven)

This Medium post pays tribute to Bob Papenbrook (1955.09.18–2006.03.17), as many of us 90s kids remember his voice in various anime (including the original Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers as well as Big Bad Beetleborgs), as he is the late father of Bryce Papenbrook!

Today, we’re talking about Eureka Seven, a Japanese anime series created by the still-active Bones animation studio. I know that we weren’t allowed to review any anime series that were formerly aired on Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim programming block, but we’re going to let that fly this time. The series was directed by Tomoki Kyoda, with series composition by Dai Satō, character designs by Kenichi Yoshida, and music by Naoki Satō.

Plot and Characters

The series focuses on Renton Thurston, the fourteen-year-old son of Adrock Thurston, a military researcher who died saving the world. He lives what he considers a boring life with his grandfather in a boring town. He loves lifting, a sport similar to surfing but with trapar, a substance abundant throughout the air, as the medium. He dreams of joining the renegade group Gekkostate, led by his idol Holland Novak, a legendary lifter.

An opportunity to do so literally falls into his lap when a large mechanical robot, called the Nirvash type ZERO, and Eureka, its pilot and a member of Gekkostate, crash into Renton’s room. Renton’s grandfather orders him to deliver a special part to the Nirvash called the “Amita Drive”, which releases the immense power dormant within the type ZERO called the “Seven Swell Phenomenon”. Afterward, Renton is invited to join Gekkostate, where he quickly discovers that the behind-the-scenes life of Gekkostate is hardly as glamorous or as interesting as printed in the glossy pages of their magazine, ray=out. Only one thing makes it all worthwhile for him: the presence of Eureka, the mysterious pilot of the Nirvash. Renton, Eureka, and the Gekkostate embark on an adventure that will shape their future and the world’s.

Note: The “please see (XYZ part)” for the Japanese seiyuu and English voice actors/actresses will be used in this post.

• Renton Thurston (v.b. Yuko Sanpei in Japanese, Johnny Yong Bosch in English) is the main protagonist of Eureka Seven. He is the son of Adrock Thurston and co-pilot (later pilot) of the Nirvash TypeZERO. Early in Eureka Seven, he immediately falls in love with Eureka and joins Gekkostate to follow Holland Novak, his idol, and also to be with Eureka. He grows into a responsible adult as the series progresses. He also goes on to become a hero by uniting the humans and Scub Coral and saving the world with Eureka.
• Eureka (v.b. Kaori Nazuka in Japanese, Stephanie Sheh in English) is a young Coralian in human form, who is sent by the sentient Scub Coral to understand and communicate with humans before the beginning of the series. She is the pilot of the Nirvash typeZERO. Although she is the female protagonist of Eureka Seven, she also becomes the mother to the main protagonist of Eureka Seven: AO. Throughout the series, she undergoes many physical changes and suffers from identity problems. Her name is pronounced as “YOO-re-kah.”
• Maurice (v.b. Michiko Neya in Japanese, Mary Elizabeth McGlynn in English), Maeter (v.b. Eriko Kigawa in Japanese), Peggy O’Neal in English), and Linck (v.b. Fumie Mizusawa in Japanese, Kate Higgins in English) are three orphans adopted by Eureka. Before the beginning of the series, they are discovered under a pile of corpses during the massacre at Ciudades del Cielo. They soon join the Gekkostate and are adopted by Eureka. When they first meet Renton, they often play practical jokes on him and were opposed to his relationship with Eureka, whom they think of as their mother. But they eventually accept Renton as their adoptive father.
• Holland Novak (v.b. Keiji Fujiwara in Japanese (deceased), Crispin Freeman in English) is the leader of Gekkostate, captain of the Gekko (Moonlight in the manga) and pilot of the LFO Terminus typeR909. He is also the brother of Dewey Novak. Before meeting Renton, he rescues Eureka and finds out from Norb that there will be a partner who will make Eureka smile. Holland eventually mutinies and organizes the Gekkostate. When he meets Renton, Holland develops a rivalry with the boy due to Renton getting more of Eureka’s attention. Eventually, he reconciles with Renton after realizing that the boy is, in fact, Eureka’s partner, thus fulfilling Norb’s prophecy.
• Talho Yuki (v.b. please see Maurice’s Japanese voice actress, please see Linck’s voice actress in English) is the main helmsman of the Gekko and Holland Novak’s girlfriend. She meets Holland and Dewey when the three of them served together in the military and initially worked in the Information Bureau before being demoted to a spy later on. She is at first jealous of Eureka due to her gaining her attention with Holland.
• Matthieu (v.b. Akio Nakamura in Japanese, Kirk Thornton in English) is the easygoing, afro-haired pilot of the Terminus typeR606 who has a passion for music and seems to be constantly bored. Matthieu gathers information from and maintains contacts with ref boarders and disc jockeys. Matthieu and Hilda often act like husband and wife. Hilda orders Matthieu around as if he is her husband, and Matthieu treats Hilda as if she is his wife.
• Hilda (v.b. Mayumi Asano in Japanese, Megan Hollingshead in English) is the pilot of the Terminus typeR808 and Talho’s best friend who keeps track of the Gekkostate’s provisions and mechanical parts. In this capacity, she is generally in charge of the frequent trips to cities to replenish the organization’s supplies. She also takes care of Maurice, Linck, and Maeter, and is shown to be very good at cooking. Hilda also has a close relationship with Matthieu.
• Stoner (v.b. Yasunori Matsumoto in Japanese, Doug Stone in English) is the photographer and journalist for ray=out, an underground lifter-culture periodical magazine where he denounces the military’s crimes and depicts the daily life of the Gekkostate members to their fans around the world. Stoner is a pacifist and often rides with Matthieu. Stoner is given to expounding on his philosophical ideas at any time and place, including those which may be least appropriate, such as from the back seat of the 606 in the middle of LFO combat. He also likes to take photos mid-flight and often requests Matthieu fly in such a way as to make his pictures come out perfectly, despite the situation.
• Ken-Goh (v.b. Tamio Ōki in Japanese (deceased), Bob Papenbrook (deceased) → Kyle Hebert in English) is both the owner and the chief gunner of the Gekko. Not much was known about his history with Holland, but dialogue implies that he had something to do with the building of or security on board the Gekko. He once stated that “[he] would not have let [Holland] have the Gekko if [he was]…”, cutting off his statement before actually revealing the reason. His marksmanship skills are exceptional and his aim is legendary among the other crew members. Holland refers to him as “Maestro” from time to time. He also enjoys painting and his works are often seen in ray=out.

Music used in the anime’s opening and ending

Eureka Seven uses ten pieces of theme music. The opening themes of Eureka Seven are “Days” by Flow (episodes 1–13), “Shōnen Heart” by Home Made Kazoku (episodes 14–26; the Japanese hip-hop trio is on hiatus since late 2016), “Taiyō no Mannaka e”, by Bivattchee (episodes 27–32, 34–39; disbanded in 2009) and “Sakura” by Nirgilis (episodes 40–49). The ending themes are “Himitsu Kichi” by Kozue Takada (episodes 1–13, 26), “Fly Away”, by Asami Izawa (episodes 14–25), “Tip Taps Tip”, by Halcali (episodes 27–39; split in 2013) and “Canvas”, by Coolon (episodes 40–49; disbanded in 2007). The two insert songs are “Storywriter”, by Supercar and “Niji” (虹, “Rainbow”), by Denki Groove (episode 50). I can’t provide the YouTube links here, even though the images and music on this publication on Medium are used under fair use (with a few exceptions), but you can go to YouTube to listen to the music featured in the anime series.

Eureka Seven was available for online viewing on the Adult Swim Fix, Adult Swim’s online video service before its televised debut on the Adult Swim channel between April 16, 2006, and ended on April 29, 2007. Adult Swim traditionally cut down the opening and ending themes from each episode to fit the series to American television’s time restraints, which resulted in the final episode’s first airing having actual content cut from it as the episode originally had no theme song sequences; it was re-aired properly the following week. In Canada, Eureka Seven premiered on YTV’s Bionix block on September 8, 2006. I remember watching Eureka Seven on Adult Swim late at night, but there were no smartphones or tablets back then, save for the first iPhone in 2007.

Bandai Entertainment and its affiliates distributed the English version of Eureka Seven. It was released in the United States and Canada by Bandai Visual USA, in the United Kingdom by Beez Entertainment, and in Australia by Madman Entertainment. The first translated Region 1 DVD volume of the series was released on April 25, 2006, in the U.S., while the European Region 2 version was released on September 25, 2006. The English version was produced by Bang Zoom! Entertainment in Burbank, California. Following the 2012 closure of Bandai Entertainment, Funimation acquired the rights to the TV series and re-released the series on Blu-ray and DVD in 2014. The anime series was formerly available to stream on Crunchyroll, but it is available to stream on Funimation’s streaming service.