Now and Then, Here and There (Ima, Soko ni Iru Boku)


One of the greatest things about "instant-watch Netflix" is the discovery of something fantastic you would have never seen otherwise.  Great things can come in all shapes and sizes, with all matter of crappy American dubs.




Now and Then...  is a Japanese episodic story that plays out over a dozen or so 25 min. episodes.  The main character, Shu is a boy from our present-time Earth, who when attempting to befriend a strange, silent young girl, is transported into the distant future.  The harshness of the War-torn time he arrives in is apparent to the kind-hearted Shu immediately -and the series plays with that contrast throughout.


The conquering civilization of the future world controls the technology-  In this case a massive flying battleship/base and a fleet of Armor vehicles and snake robots.


 The action is kept subtle and never goes over the top.  There is a weight to the actions on the battlefield unlike what most animation can produce.  (Especially limited frame cartoons like this)

Stellar writing carries "Now and Then"...  
Even through the cheap, Care-bear American voice dubs, the lines are powerful enough to cut through...  Not so stellar with the writing am I, so I think you'll really like just looking at these pictures:

WOW!  I mean, damn, this was a really great show.

If you are confused about the volumes and episodes, fear not-  this is NOT a show that was canceled and leaves the story arc hanging-  The dozen episodes play back like a single film, and the story is wrapped up nicely in the end.