ESCAFLOWNE's most obvious distinction among its peers in television anime is its pervasive use of computer graphics and Kanno Yoko's awe-invoking music that permeate every episode without distracting the viewers from the story and characters. What is less known is its distinction as the only animated series to have inspired both a shounen and a shoujo manga series from the same publisher. Attribute this to ESCAFLOWNE's cross-gender appeal or Kadokawa Shoten's hopes of doubling its marketing opportunities; either way, this writer is glad for Yashiro Yuzuru's shoujo version that appeals to a decided different target audience than Katsu-Aki's rather underwhelming version.
[Even though Katsu-Aki's shounen manga version of ESCAFLOWNE was released in October 1994, a full year and a half before the anime's release, it is not the original parent work. Kawamori Shouji and Sunrise had been developing the anime version for about five years when Kadokawa began searching for stories to place in its new monthly shounen manga magazine. Kadokawa approached them about using their basic story to inspire a manga for SHOUNEN ACE's premiere issue.]
If you were disappointed by the service shots and the emphasis on mecha fighting in Katsu-Aki's version in SHOUNEN ACE, the Fantasy DX version may be a welcome surprise. Here the focus is on the characters (admittedly, more so than on the slowly unfolding story) and the art is more subtle and less forced. Indeed, as of the most recent installment in the December issue, neither the ESCAFLOWNE nor any other Guymelef has yet to be seen.
Although the basic story of a girl transporting from Earth to the fantasy world Gaea runs through all three versions, the anime is as different from the shoujo manga as it is from the shounen manga. The disparity begins with the main character whose name is Hoshino Hitomi in the both manga series -- as opposed to Kanzaki Hitomi in the anime. The anime's Hitomi is in the track and field team, while the shounen manga's Hitomi is in the drama club and the shoujo manga's Hitomi is not in any club described or depicted. Yuuki Nobuteru's honey-blonde short-haired anime incarnation of Hitomi stands in stark contrast to Yashiro's Hitomi with long flowing brown hair in the shoujo manga. (ESCAFLOWNE anime director Akane Hiroki claims credit for insisting on Hitomi having short hair in the final anime designs as opposed to long hair in the preliminary designs that the manga are based on.)
The difference extends to the story and the other main characters as well. Whereas the anime's Van Fanel was slaying a dragon as part of his coronation ritual when he transported unexpectedly to the Illusive Moon Earth, the shoujo manga's Van deliberately travels to the Illusive Moon to seek the key to unsealing the Escaflowne, the guardian deity. (Indeed, he is not the only one who travels to the Illusive Moon from Gaea ...) While the anime's Folken is a tragically noble figure drawn to the Zaibach Empire's promise of creating a brave new world, Yashiro's Folken is a malevolent Machiavellian character who considers Van an obstacle to his ambitions. Gadeth is a devil-may-care AWOL Zaibach soldier instead of Allen's lieutenant aboard the airship Crusade. And Dilandau openly flaunts a feminine side instead of being mysteriously androgynous. The cast is considerably smaller early on, although a spunky young girl by the name of Norie was introduced in the fourth installment.
Confused yet? Despite all these bewildering differences, readers willing to accept more than one variation on the Esca story will be treated with one more exquisite retelling of Hitomi and Van's adventures. Hitomi, a high school student who dabbles in tarot cards and dowsing, once again encounters Van and transports back with him to Gaea, where Zaibach has ravaged Van's country of Fanelia. Van and Allen of Asturia (Asutoria) separately seek the key to unseal the Escaflowne, the guardian deity of Fanelia. The key happens to be the pendant Hitomi's grandmother gave to her....
The artwork and layout are beautiful, but not innovative, especially when compared to the stark yet haunting images in X, CLAMP's current work in Asuka's flagship magazine. ESCAFLOWNE is Yashiro's first serialized manga to be compiled after she won Asuka's amateur manga contest for her own original work, and her nascent yet promising style is evident. Neither the story nor the character development have had much time in the nine installments released thus far to evolve. Nevertheless, Yashiro's work offers promise that Katsu-Aki's version too soon dashes.
If The VISION OF ESCAFLOWNE anime enthralled you and you seek more stories to satiate your interest, Yashiro has an engaging manga to offer. If you were disappointed by Katsu-Aki's manga version, the shoujo version just might intrigue you. If anything, it's worth a look to see Van in blue jeans.

MESSIAH KNIGHT: The Vision of Escaflowne
BY YASHIRO YUZURU
BASED ON AN ORIGINAL STORY BY
HAJIME/KAWAMORU SHOUJI (Studio Nue)
MONTHLY ASUKA FANTASY DX
18 APRIL 1996 (May 1996 cover date) - ongoing
Compiled in tankoubon series entitled Hitomi: The Vision of Escaflowne
By Yashiro Yuzuru
Asuka Comics DX
1 October 1996 (Volume 1)
520 yen