Just finished the last volume of Infinite Ryvius, which cemented its
place as one of my favorite anime. I find it refreshingly free of the
most hackneyed anime cliches, despite the presence of common Sci-Fi
anime plot elements like teens operating giant robots.

I've seen on Ryvius web sites many comparisons to Lord of the Flies,
which is apt, though I'm more inclined to compare it to an earlier
Lord-of-the-Flies-in-space story, "Anvil of Stars" by Greg Bear. If
you're a Ryvius fan, be sure to pick up this late 80s/early 90s SF
novel.

I've watched Ryvius contemporaneously with much more acclaimed SF
anime like Crest/Banner of the Stars and Rahxephon. While recognizing
the excellence of the latter two series, I have to say I enjoyed
Ryvius the most. The large cast is diverse and includes highly
original characters. Even the stock characters like the two leads, the
bad boys, and the slutty girls have special dimensions in their makeup
that set them apart in the anime universe. Koji, for example, might
easily be tossed carelessly into the "Shinji Ikari" bin. Yet his weak
will is realistically balanced by occasional flashes of initiative
that make his climactic show of decisiveness the end of a logical
progression.

Like many SF anime these days, the English dub works pretty well.
There are two exceptions, one huge (the awful overacting of Brade
Swaile) and one minor (the mispronunciation of the name Aoi as
"uh-oy").

I've got a lot moreI'd like to say about Ryvius, but I'd first like to
see if anyone else is interested.

Bolitho