''Xam'd: Lost Memories'', known in Japan as , is an

anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...

series, conceptualized by Bones and co-developed by

Sony Computer Entertainment Sony Interactive Entertainment LLC (SIE) is an American video game and digital entertainment company that is a major subsidiary of Japanese conglomerate Sony, Sony Group Corporation. It primarily operates the PlayStation brand of video game co ...

Aniplex Aniplex, Inc. (株式会社アニプレックス, ''Kabushiki-gaisha Anipurekkusu'') is a Japanese entertainment company and a subsidiary of Sony, Sony Group Corporation, founded in September 1995 by Sony Music Entertainment Japan. The company fo ...

and

Bones A bone is a rigid organ that constitutes part of the skeleton in most vertebrate animals. Bones protect the various other organs of the body, produce red and white blood cells, store minerals, provide structure and support for the body, an ...

, which made its debut on Sony's inaugural launch of the

PlayStation Network PlayStation Network (PSN) is a digital media entertainment service provided by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Launched in November 2006, PSN was originally conceived for the PlayStation video game consoles, but soon extended to encompass smartp ...

(PSN) video download service at E3 in the United States on July 16, 2008, in Japan on September 24, 2008. Unlike SCE's previous anime series ''

Mars Daybreak is a Japanese science-fiction anime television series created by Sony Computer Entertainment. It aired on TV Tokyo from April 1 to September 23, 2004. It is currently licensed by Bandai Entertainment. is a simulation game based on the conce ...

'', no video game adaptation of the series were ever released.

Plot

Sentan Island exists in a state of dreamlike tranquility, surrounded by the Yuden Sea, cut off from the war between the Northern Government and the Southern Continent Free Zone. Akiyuki Takehara lives on Sentan Island along with his mother Fusa. Despite his mother's strained relationship with his father, Ryuzo, the town doctor, the bond between father and son remains strong. One day the island's tranquility is shattered, when Akiyuki, along with his best friends Haru and Furuichi, are caught up in an explosion on a school bus by a mysterious pale, white haired girl named Nazuna. The explosion produces a mysterious light which enters Akiyuki's arm and a blue gem appears. With no time to understand what has happened, and a brief exchange between Nazuna and Akiyuki is transformed into a creature called Xam'd. As Xam'd, Akiyuki uses his newfound powers to fight off monstrous invading forces to save Haru, only to be stopped by a mysterious girl who offers him a choice: come with her and live, or stay and turn to stone. Accepting her offer, Akiyuki embarks on a journey of discovery that will take him to new lands, and help him understand the connection between himself and the world of Xam'd.

Production

* Original: Bones * Director: Masayuki Miyaji * Main screenwriters: Megumi Shimizu, Yuichi Nomura * Animation director (direction and layout checks): Masashi Okumura * Character design & Chief animation director:

Ayumi Kurashima is a Japanese freelance animator. She was originally part of Daizō Production. She has worked as a key animator, animation director and character designer on several works. She has recently worked on numerous Bones works. Works Anime television ...

* Xam'd mechanical design & Chief animation director: Seiichi Hashimoto * Mechanical design: Kimitoshi Yamane * Humanoid weapons mechanical design: Kenji Mizuhata * Art director: Takashi Aoi * Color settings: Hiroko Umesaki * Cinematographer: Yōhei Miyahara, Tōru Fukushi * Editing: Kumiko Sakamoto * Music:

Michiru Oshima Michiru (満, みちる, ミチル) is a Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, 1970s J-Pop artist *, Japanese composer *, Japanese pop singer and songwriter *, Japanese voice actor *, Japanese anime scriptwriter *, Japane ...

* Music production: Aniplex * Animation production: Bones * Production: Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc., Aniplex, Bones

Media

Anime

The series received its television premiere across Japan on

MBS MBS may refer for: People * Mohammed Ben Sulayem (born 1961), president of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile * Mohammed bin Salman (born 1985), crown prince and prime minister of Saudi Arabia * Mohan Bikram Singh (born 1935), Nepales ...

CBC CBC may refer to: Media * Cadena Baja California or Grupo Cadena, a radio and television broadcaster in Mexico * Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Canada's radio and television public broadcaster ** CBC Television ** CBC Radio One ** CBC Music ** ...

Tokyo MX JOMX-DTV (channel 9), branded as Tokyo MX (officially stylized as TOKYO MX), is an independent station, independent television station in Tokyo, Japan, owned by the . It is the only television station that exclusively serves the city and parts ...

and other Japanese broadcast networks from April 2009, featuring new opening and ending theme sequences. ''Xam'd: Lost Memories'' spanned a total of 26 episodes. On its launch week, its pilot episode was the most downloaded video on the PlayStation Network at E3. On June 24, 2010,

Sentai Filmworks Sentai Filmworks, LLC (or simply Sentai) is an American entertainment company. Located in Houston, the company specializes in the dubbing and distribution of Japanese animation and Asian cinema. Its post-production arm is Sentai Studios. The ...

announced that it had sub-licensed the series for home video distribution across

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

, where the first half season set was released on

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...

and

Blu-ray Disc Blu-ray (Blu-ray Disc or BD) is a Digital media, digital optical disc data storage format designed to supersede the DVD format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released worldwide on June 20, 2006, capable of storing several hours of ...

on September 21, 2010. The second set was released on November 9, 2010, on DVD and Blu-ray.

Manga

The manga adaptation of the series, written by Masahiro Kawanabe, began serialization in ''Ace Assault'' and ''Shōnen Ace'' since December 9, 2008, after it began release on PSN Japan.

Music

The score to the series is composed by

, known for her work on the ''

Godzilla is a fictional monster, or ''kaiju'', that debuted in the eponymous 1954 film, directed and co-written by Ishirō Honda. The character has since become an international pop culture icon, appearing in various media: 33 Japanese films p ...

'' movie franchise and the ''

Fullmetal Alchemist is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hiromu Arakawa. It was serialized in Square Enix's shōnen manga, manga anthology magazine ''Gangan Comics#Monthly Shōnen Gangan, Monthly Shōnen Gangan'' between July 2001 and June ...

'' anime series. For both the 2008 PlayStation Network download distribution and the 2009 television broadcast, the Japanese

electronic rock Electronic rock (also known as electro rock and synth rock) is a music genre that involves a combination of rock music and electronic music, featuring instruments typically found within both genres. It originates from the late 1960s when rock b ...

band

Boom Boom Satellites were a Japanese electronic music duo consisting of guitarist and vocalist Michiyuki Kawashima and bassist and programmer Masayuki Nakano. They were signed to Sony Music Entertainment Japan, with whom they released all of their albums in Japan. ...

performed the opening themes while Japanese-American vocalist Kylee made her debut performing the ending themes. For the PSN distribution, the opening was "Shut Up and Explode" from the Boom Boom Satellites' 2007 album ''

Exposed Expose, exposé, or exposed may refer to: News sources * Exposé (journalism), a form of investigative journalism * '' The Exposé'', a British conspiracist website * '' Exeposé'', a student-run newspaper of the University of Exeter Film and TV ...

'' and the ending was "Vacancy". For the syndicated TV broadcasts, the Boom Boom Satellites' 2009 single " Back on My Feet" was used as an opening theme and Kylee's songs "Just Breathe" and "Over U" were used as ending themes. For the TV broadcasts, both the old PSN and new TV themes were used in different combinations, each with different animation sequences.

References

External links

*
Xam'd: Lost Memories official website
* *
ANN review
{{Monthly Shōnen Ace 2008 anime ONAs Anime with original screenplays Aniplex PlayStation Network Bones (studio) Fantasy anime and manga Kadokawa Shoten manga Mecha anime and manga PlayStation 3 Sentai Filmworks Shōnen manga Sony Interactive Entertainment franchises Sony Interactive Entertainment