When a new series gets released, there are different reasons why you might decide to start watching it. Maybe it's the storyline that hooks you, or maybe a creator you really like is behind it, and sometimes it boils down to the visual kick you can get from a show featuring stunning animation. Gankutsuou falls into this last category, and then it keeps you aboard with a promising storyline.

Based on Alexandre Dumas' The Count of Monte Cristo, the series is set on a futuristic Earth where the spirit of 19th century France seems to live on. Albert, a young French noble, is in Paris with his friend Franz, looking to find a bit of excitement. They soon encounter a mysterious man, with a very cold touch, who calls himself The Count of Monte Cristo. From then on, a curious relationship begins... But what is sure to catch the attention of anyone flipping through the channels is the originality and lushness of the visuals.

We're all used to the basic look of cel animation, but what is so interesting here is how some of the colors are substituted with various patterns. This is mostly applied to clothing, and in some cases hair, and it comes off looking like nothing else. Also, the patterns - usually tapestry-like, but at times brushed in with pastel colors - do not move with the characters. When a character moves his arms, the pattern remains static. It can come off as a bit jarring at first, but it soon blends in beautifully with the subdued and tasteful palette used in all the backgrounds to make for a gorgeous piece of animated work. It's as if you're watching a painting come to life. To add to this, fashion designer Anna Sui will create clothing to be worn by the characters in the final episode.

It's also worth noting that the show's soundtrack nicely complements the rich visuals. "We Were Lovers," the opening theme by Jean-Jacques Burnel - sounding a lot like Stephen Merrit's The Magnetic Fields - seems like an odd choice at first (classical music would seem to be the logical way to go), but in fact it really goes down well. The same goes for other instances of Burnel's singing that accompany certain scenes. The soundtrack, by Burnel and Koji Kasamatsu, is available for purchase.

Gankutsuou airs every Tuesday on TV Asahi at 26:12, with older shows airing on Animax at 23:00, also on Tuesdays. It's also being released on DVD, with the first volume out now, and monthly releases to follow (12 volumes in all).

Trava - Fist Planet spits in the face of most space adventures. The story follows two very freaky-looking aliens, Trava and Shinkai, in a far-off future on their quest to find jobs that will help finance their mechanized fighter, keeping it combat-ready so that it can be entered in an intergalactic fighting competition.

The real draw here is the dialogue and the approach to animation. This doesn't sound at all like the typical voice acting we've come to expect in anime. Listening to the two main characters interact - along with the lovely Mikiru, whom they rescue en route - you could probably close your eyes and completely forget that you were watching an animated series, as everything sounds more like the type of dialogue you'd find in an indie film.

Well, it turns out that the team responsible for Trava - Fist Planet is the same one behind the animated bits in Katsuhito Ichii's Tarantino-esque Party 7 - and Ishii is also the writer here, with the directorial reins left to Takeshi Koike (Dead Leaves, to be reviewed in next month's column). It makes for a very refreshing take on the genre, with the natural-sounding dialogue immediately endearing us to the admittedly unattractive main characters.

As for the style of animation used, it comes off as very slick, but at the same time isn't particularly fluid, which actually works in its favor. The quick cuts and odd jumps in movement help to produce some visual gags that complement the feel and dialogue quite nicely.

Originally release as part of the Grasshoppa! DVD magazine, Trava - Fist Planet: Episode 1 dates back to 2003 and is available as an OVA - the term used for animated material that is released directly to video. It looks like four episodes had been planned, but no follow-ups were ever released, which is a real shame.

It has been announced that Studio 4C (see last month's column for a review of their Mind Game film) is set to release an animated anthology called Genius Party. A look at some of the creators involved in the project (there will be ten in all) definitely makes this one of the most anticipated releases of the year: Shinichiro Watanabe (Cowboy Bebop, Samurai Champloo), Koji Morimoto (the Animatrix short "Beyond"), Mahiro Maeda (Gankutsuou)... Studio 4C will also be producing Sachiko, set to be Morimoto's first feature film.

And in Ghibli news, Hayao Miyazaki will be receiving the Honorary Golden Lion award at this year's 62nd Venice International Film Festival. Also, Studio Ghibli is set to become an independent entity, breaking off from the Tokuma Shoten publishing company. This new corporation will include Miyazaki along with producer Toshio Suzuki and director Isao Takahata (Grave of the Fireflies, Only Yesterday, My Neighbors the Yamadas), as board members.

With the start of a new TV season fast approaching, it should be interesting to see what new animated series will make it to air. Next month's column will try to cover the ones that seem most promising, but for now, the early buzz suggests that Eureka Seven, from Studio BONES (Fullmetal Alchemist, the Cowboy Bebop movie), will be one to watch. Fans of Tsukasa Hojo's City Hunter will certainly be happy to hear that its spinoff series, Angel Heart, is set to make its animated debut in April.