The first episode of what I conssider the best anime ever created can hardly be counted as insignificant. But I'm not romantic, so...hence the mediocre rating.
The story of The Vision of Escaflowne opens with the heroine, Hitomi Kanzaki, on her way to a track time trial. Once there, we meet her best friend and girls track coach Uchida Yukari, and get a glimpse of her crush, upper classmen and star of the boy's track team Amano. (Ick!) During her run, Hitomi is overcome by a strange vision with fighting giants and a strange young man. She passes out on the track, and in comes to with Amano watching over her. Not a pretty sight.
When walking home with Yukari, Hitomi learns that Amano is moving out of the country soon, and decides to tell him how she feels. But, seeing as she's a total wuss, instead of just kissing the guy she asks him to kiss her if she can run teh 100 meter dash in less than 13 seconds. Once again, while running, she sees the strange boy from her vision appar before her in a pillar of light, but once she crases ino him, she figures out this time it's not a vision. The boy warns Hitomi and her friends that a dragon is coming and to run. But of course they don't, until teh dragon begins chasing them. Through an amazing battle filled with amazing animation the boy defeats teh dragon and removes it's heart. The strange jewel-like dragon heart...or energist, as the boy calls it...reacts with Hitomi's good luck pendant and sends them flying into the sky in a pillar of light (Lots of those in this show!). When they land, Hitomi finds herself on a strange planet where the earth and moon hang nt he sky. Gaea.
Cool animation, nice storyline, but Hitomi is just too sappy and Amano is enough to turn any self-respecitng girl's stomach. So...there you have it.
