Over the Sky | Image Gallery | Artbooks | Last Exile Aerial Log | 052
IN: On the contrary, since the preview gave a quick overview of the whole world, as soon as it ended lots of questions rose as big as mountains. Looking back at the model sheets, there is so much material that “could not fit in”. I don’t mind it since I eventually came to understand the story, but I feel like some specific details were omitted because of lack of space. For instance, it is not possible to understand the “LAST” thing [of the title] either after two episodes or after five, so I’d like to provide some additional explanation to those people who read this book.
Chigira: I am sorry. Although it may be true that it is not possible to get a clear understanding of everything after watching the show, basically that’s because I tried not to tell everything at once, as I wanted to show the world through Claus’ eyes. What to show of a character, how to show it, how to make him act was based on that assumption, so there are details from the model sheets that were omitted. But the same can be said about Claus, and that made the storytelling more complicated. This is an original story after all, so there is no predefined guideline. We made this choice, although we were not sure it worked… I mean, starting with Claus as an absolutely honest 15-years-old boy who moves through the story till the end.
IN: A pure soul indeed. Most of the adult people have lost sight of justice and of what they should protect, it seems like they do what they do just because they have to.
Chigira: And there comes the part where I wanted to show that the actions of “that” Claus play a key role in this world.
Suzuki: Whereas Lavie had a deep desire for a simple happy life, which I personally liked the most. I think that’s where the Director’s inner conscience appears in the show.
Chigira: The fact that a vanship is a two-seat aircraft is at the core of this story. It is a machine that cannot fly without the two, Claus and Lavie. I wanted not only to show the deep bond between the pilot and the navi, but also the fact that flying in a vanship is not something you can do by yourself but it needs cooperation to achieve what you aim for. To say, the story cannot move forward either with Claus alone, or with Lavie alone.
★ At this point Range Murata shows up. Although he was very busy, he was able to attend [this interview].
IN: In an event in America there were rumors (from GONZO’s staff) about a sequel.
Chigira: Then you should ask Mr. Murata and Mr. Kobayashi for the details, please (laugh).
Murata: But at the moment it is not as developed as you’d expect it to be (laugh).
Chigira: If so, then let’s decide and write down the plot right now (laugh).
IN: Now, let’s go back to the original project. The characters Mr. Murata drew needed to “feel” the wind, so the setting for the story came from that.
Murata: Well, they would not work well in outer space, so I simply said they needed the sky.
Chigira: Mr. Maeda’s initial vanship design had a sealed cockpit because the setting was outer space.
Murata: But when the idea of outer space as the setting was abandoned and the sky replaced it, I could draw inspiration from my favourite Messerschmitt car (Note 2) and put some details from there into the vanship design. Also, with space suits I could elaborate the outfits less, but with flying suits I could bring into their design the ambience of the pre-industrial era. With the sky as the setting, then a character like Claus was needed. If it had been outer space, I believe that Alex would have been sufficient to develop the story.
IN: The industrial equipment is more like industrial-art equipment. When I looked at the precise movement of the needle of the altimeter, I realized “Ah, even without electronics it is still possible to fly”.
Murata: The 8 [hours] endurance [race] was as realistic as possible, so I wonder if even those who are not familiar with mechanics could understand it. Al drawing lots was a gratuitous scene by Chigira, though.
IN: I would like to explain more about the final episode in a dedicated book. For instance I noticed the change of seasons in the middle of the editing (For further details, see the glossary within this book)
IN: Back on topic, I heard that Mr. Murata had decided the character design from the beginning.
Murata: Oh, not really. At first all the details of the story were not fixed yet, so I was told it revolved around Alex and his life devoted to battles. As soon as I created his character design I submitted it, however the scenario for the story had already changed so they hurried me to introduce some corrections.
All the crew members of the Silvana needed more “modern” outfits than those of the people from Anatoray or Disith, so their military uniforms were inspired by the industrial revolution era. They resembled those of the special forces who receive the most advanced equipment, like experimental units. Although I adapted the design - originally intended for the outer space - so that it looked good for the sky, the 3D staff introduced techniques to draw the sky and the clouds that I was not familiar with. Therefore some already finished characters and mecha did not integrate well and had to be redrawn. That’s when I turned to Mr. Chigira for a consultation.
