Nevertheless, there are many works that would fare better after being translated to full motion. Science fiction and fantasy stories would benefit the most in the medium. Even with the new digital technology, good special effects still cost a pretty penny. The bar for viewer satisfaction has risen a ways since the hey day of the original "Star Trek" and Tom Baker's "Doctor Who".The Hollywood adaptation of "Starship Trooper" was scaled back by omitting the powered armor detailed. A line used to represent a spaceship is similar to the line used to draw a Reliant K car. Ditto for magic, dragons, and light sabers. Also, emulating book characters with a separate design and vocal performance is far easier than finding a talented actor with the right looks.
Here are three works that are ripe for the jump to animation.
1. Julian May's "Saga of Pliocene Exile" ("Many Colored Land", "Golden Torc", "Nonborn King", and "Adversary")
The "Pliocene Exile" series starts out on a utopian Earth that was established with the help of several enlightened alien races. The abrupt change to Earth society is too much for some people to assimilate. Some of these misfit and adventurers take a one-way ticket through a time gate to the Pliocene era. In the past, the time travelers encounter a pair of alien races that crash landed on Earth who use them as pawns in their ancient power struggle.
The setting is fresh and dynamic, while the psychic powers spice up the plot. The cast is large, diverse, and come to play an active role in the events. There's Aiken Drum the trickster who adopts a middle finger as his war banner (a symbol of raffish defiance). Mercy the ex-nun is another traveler, who draws the unwelcome attention of the maniacally stronge and psychotic Felice. My favorite is Steiner the Viking berserker wannabe. Also, the olympian Tanu race provide bishounen for the fan-girls. The disparate travelers give a wide range of personalities for the audience to connect with.
The story has a strong mix action and original ideas. Julian May also has an eye for striking scenes. Towards the end of one volume, Aiken duels the ogre-like champion Pallol One-eye. Pallol opens the match with a blast of psychic energy toward the sky. Another scene described a flying Tanu hunt for elasmosaurs over the Atlantic.
The series may be long, but the books have a good start and end point. Books two and three probably could be trimmed and combined; both suffered mildly from middle book syndrome. With a combination of action, big concepts, and cool characters, it's a wonder that this series didn't grab more attention from the RPG, movie, and other creators.
2. Tamora Pierce's "Lioness Quartet" ("Alanna: The First Adventure", "In the Hand of the Goddess", "The Woman Who Rides Like a Man", and "Lioness Rampant")
Japanese cover for book 1 [1]I was surprised when I found out that "Deltora Quest", another western young adult series, beat out the "Lioness Quartet" in becoming anime. Anyway, the "Lioness Quartet" takes place in the medieval fantasy kingdom of Tortall. Young Alanna Trebond is barred from becoming a knight by the rules barring woman. Undaunted, the saucy heroine switches places with her bookish twin brother and undergoes chivalric training while he takes her place at a mystic monastery. Folded between the sword fighting, romance, politics, and sorcery is a journey of growing-up and the story of a woman finding her place in a man's world.
Alanna's honesty and courage could have placed her on the pages of Shounen Jump. As an adolescent cross dressing warrior-mage, she could have followed "Hana Kimi" or "W Juliet" into a shoujo anthology.
A big strength of Pierce's quartet is the strong heroine that she develops in all four dimensions; the fourth dimension is time. Alanna develops from a dreamer to a self-determined woman. She suffers growing pains and loss, but forges on in the name of justice. This is definitely not cringing fodder for another "meido" fantasy.
Oriental Light and Magic proved that they could do sword and sorcery in "Berserk" and were chosen for "Deltora Quest" They would be the front runner to breathe motion and color into the "Lionness Quartet". If the Madhouse crew of the original "Record of the Lodoss War" OAV could be reassembled, they would also be prime candidates.
3. Meredith Ann Pierce's "Dark Angel"
This story was reputedly based on a woman's dream therapy session where she described vampires on the moon. And yes, the story takes place on the moon and the Earth rises daily to bath the lunar landscape in aqueous light. Aeriel is a servant whose mistress is taken by a seraphim with black wings. The girl journeys to the vampire's haven to avenge her mistress and avoid the punishment that she would suffer as the prime suspect in her mistress's disappearance.
Her thirst for revenge is overwhelmed by the dark angel's supernatural power and beauty. She finds out that he must take the souls of twelve maidens to complete his transformation into a truly soulless demon, and tries to save rather than destroy him.
The Dark Angel [2][1] from http://www.tamora-pierce.com/gallery.htm
[2] after http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Darkangel_Trilogy
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