Divergence Eve

Anime Review

Divergence Eve
Genre Adventure, Drama, Science fiction

Summary
The series is a science fiction story set in the far future, incorporating aspects of space opera. The character-driven storyline focuses primarily on the psychology of the main character, her social interactions, her inhuman abilities, and the conspiracy surrounding them. The technology is often secondary to this, but it is not ignored; several aspects, including their means of faster-than-light travel, are explained and loosely based on modern physics.

Background

In the year 2017, a satellite on Earth detects a gravitational imbalance in the direction of Lyra, initially believed to be a black hole. Its suspicious X-ray emissions are subjected to noise removal algorithms, revealing the voice message recorded aboard a fictional future Voyager spacecraft, still in the solar system. Before the cause can be determined, additional identical signals are detected throughout the year from other distant gravity-based phenomena. This is considered proof of faster-than-light travel, and the wormhole responsible is pinpointed to be in the core of Saturn's moon Titan. By temporarily entering a baby universe still in a state of cosmic inflation, the signal was able to bypass the known laws of physics and travel at infinite speed. The wormholes themselves became known as Inflation Holes.

Human travel follows almost two centuries later in 2197. With a tunnel dug into Titan's depths, and a prototype Inflation Drive on board, two astronauts make the first manned faster-than-light voyage, travelling almost 3 parsecs. Further exploration of Inflation Holes finds a planet 10 parsecs away with a wormhole core similar to Titan's, formerly inhabited by an extinct alien species. The planet is in a bizarre "apple core" shape, with all of the equatorial planetary mass consumed by frequent alien use of Inflation Drive technology. Three giant longitudinal rings surround what is dubbed as the Quantum Core, and ruins exist upon the fragmented Core itself, but electromagnetic radiation inside the Core is severely limited, making exploration slow and difficult.

By 2246, a base has been built on the planet and dubbed Watcher's Nest. A 12-member expedition is in progress when an unscheduled arrival is detected by command, but the expedition is already inside the Core and radio signals cannot reach them to deliver the recall order. The expedition team thereby encounters their first Ghoul and are wiped out. Later encounters also follow. Autopsies in 2252 by a group called Alchemy reveal artificial genetic modifications, and these genes become the main focus of research into the Ghoul. When applied to monkeys, the genes expand the scope of the animal's senses, but scientists cannot determine how or why.

After two decades of research, by 2272, one of the lead scientists, Doctor Kessler, is frustrated with the project's slow progress on animals. Believing the gene sequences to be a message from an advanced alien species, he leads the effort to begin creating genetically modified humans, to witness the effect on humans as the Ghoul intended. In 2275, Alchemy objects to the use of human guinea pigs, and officially shuts the project down — but not before at least one test subject and one of the only successful Human/Ghoul hybrids is removed by persons unknown.

Probationary pilots

Misaki Kureha (紅葉みさき^?) Voiced by: Yumi Kakazu (Japanese), Kira Vincent-Davis (English)

Profile

Nationality: Japanese

Rank: Probationary Pilot,Ensign

Age: 18

Size: 162 cm,93-54-84

Special Ability: Cook and eat noodles

Weak Point:

Main character of the series, Misaki is the 18 year old Japanese daughter of a former officer who served and died on Watcher's Nest. Her klutziness and inability to do anything right is the show's main source of comic relief, and her cheery demeanour is one of its primary means of relaxing the tension. She joined the army for lack of a better job, and despite her glaring flaws, she was somehow selected as a Seraphim elite cadet.

At first, Misaki's selection as a cadet seems unlikely or contrived; she seems completely out of place among the other three pilots. She has far less experience, and while she isn't depicted as stupid or even foolish, she simply has very little innate ability and has trouble acquiring it. In the subsequent training, she fails miserably where everyone else succeeds.

This apparent contradiction is quickly resolved, though. It becomes clear that in times of overwhelming fear or pressure, Misaki's latent abilities allow her to succeed where the others fail, including battling the Ghoul head-on. Further, it seems those responsible for selecting and training the pilots knew this all along, and that Misaki is clearly the entire reason they're doing it at all.

Luxandra Frail (ルクサンドラ・フレイル^?) Voiced by: Reiko Takagi (Japanese), Christine Auten (English)

Profile

Nationality: United Mexican States

Rank: Probationary Pilot,Ensign

Age: 23

Size: 170 cm, 95-60-89

Special Ability: Painting

Weak Point: Needles

Luxandra's original goal was to be an astronomer. While working towards this, she found herself caught in a near-deadly encounter when an asteroid struck her passenger ship on route to Jupiter, contaminating it with an unknown virus. She escaped with facial scars, but declined to have them removed as a reminder of her new decision — to become a soldier, one who would put her life on the line to save others, as she herself was saved. She idolises Lyar in this respect. Frail shows immense prowess in combat and is the only one of the primary characters from Misaki's force group to have formal training before coming to Watcher's Nest; as such she is both competent and level-headed. She is incredibly supportive of Misaki to the point of being somewhat motherly; she clearly understands that she was once an inexperienced rookie herself and sympathizes with her.

Suzanna Bluestein (スサーナ・ブルースタイン^?) Voiced by: Sanae Kobayashi (Japanese), Emily Carter-Essex (English)

Profile

Nationality: Great Britain

Rank: Probationary Pilot,Ensign

Age: 18

Size: 163 cm, 90-56-86

Special Ability: Yoga

Weak Point: Ghosts

As the daughter of a British family with a long history in the military, Suzanna was expected to hold up that tradition. For a time, she did: At age 18, she finds herself aboard Watcher's Nest as another of the four pilot candidates. As training and tests continue, her skills make her the primary replacement candidate. However, when first put to the test to determine her compatibility with the Integral System sensor and control interface, she panics and fails. Although not a permanent setback, it prompts her to reconsider her career, and she finally decides to pursue her true calling in engineering rather than the military. Several years of her memory are wiped, and she leaves the series with no recollection of the others. Suzanna reappears later in the series with no memory of the others; she works as a maintenance technician in the civilian wards of Watchers' Nest.

Kiri Marialate (キリ・マリアレーテ^?) Voiced by: Fumie Mizusawa (Japanese), Jessica Boone (English)

Profile

Nationality: New Zealand

Rank: Probationary Pilot,Ensign

Age: 18

Size: 165 cm, 89-54-85

Special Ability: Martial Arts

Weak Point: Insects

Not much is currently known about Kiri except that she's an 18 year old New Zealander with martial arts training. She joined Seraphim in order to become strong and protect the weak. Of the four candidates, she appears the most steady and has the strongest sense of humor.

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