When love is complicated

Some stories need to be told...anime style.
I found that catchline by Animax particularly apt but never would I have thought it would apply to Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. Last year, Animax broadcasted Romeo X Juliet but I wasn’t drawn to it. I thought it wouldn’t work. Last week however, I stumbled upon an episode of Romeo X Juliet. It seemed interesting. I particularly like the opening song. It was a cover version of “You Raise Me Up” sung by Korean R&B singer Lena Park. I had always liked the Josh Groban version of the song, but somehow Lena’s version reached out to me even more. The gentle arrangement of the song seemed to set the tone of the relationship between Romeo and Juliet.


In the anime, the world they live in is slightly more volatile than the Shakespearan setting. Their story takes place in a floating continent called Neo Verona where pegasuses are a normal sight in the city. Neo Verona was previously ruled by the Capulets but Montague usurped the throne in a bloody coup. Every member of the Capulet clan was killed except for Juliet who, at the time only a toddler, managed to escape with the help of Capulet loyalists. She then had to disguise herself as a boy to avoid being detected by Montague spies. Fourteen years later, we see Juliet as a sword-fighting vigilante who protects Neo Verona’s citizens from the injustices of the Montague regime.
It’s quite different from the Shakespearan setting but the basics are still the same. Montague and Capulet are two clans who hate each other (in this case, for good reason) and the love between Romeo and Juliet is as doomed as ever. And that’s exactly what makes for a captivating story. There’s just something about star-crossed lovers that appeals to the masses, me included. Maybe most of us want to believe that despite all odds and despite all the hate in the world, love will triumph in the end.
The anime started out well but it seemed to lose itself halfway through. There were some inconsistencies with one or two characters and the villain seemed too one-dimensional to me but everything tied nicely in the end. There is a twist towards the second half regarding the Montague/Capulet relationship that would definitely irk Shakespeare purists but this is an adaptation. It’s not supposed to be the same.
As always, with any story I like, the music works itself like magic to bring the story to life. I haven’t heard a good original anime score in a while. It really immerses you in the helplessness felt by the characters as well as their determination to remain hopeful no matter what fate throws at them. This is the closing line from the anime:

Strife, hatred, sorrow, pain...
The one thing that can bring all of those things to an end...
That is love.
The joy of loving someone. That is what you taught us.

Picture courtesy of Riley.