Anime Review: The Law of Ueki

Captivating...moving... magnum opus (masterpiece)… is a few words that would describe the anime (Japanese cartoon version) “The Law of Ueki” created by the very talents of Tsubasa Fukuchi and the scintillating tunes (opening 2nd theme in particular) of Kumi Koda. The Japanese animation production started in April 4, 2005 and ended in March 27, 2006. It all started with the main character of the anime named “Ueki”. Ueki is just your average middle- senior school student in your everyday society. He meets with Kobasen, a heavenly being (creatures similar to humans, with special powers beyond those of a mere human) that helps him to change as the story progress. The story proceeds with Ueki meeting his “god candidate” and receiving a special power of turning garbage into trees. Ueki then joins a competition where people with special gifts would compete in a tournament. The winner would claim a “blank talent” or in other words to obtain any skill he/she wishes. The “god candidate” will then be promoted as God himself. However, Ueki didn’t realize the mess he gets himself into. As the story persists, he meets with his future rival called Robert Haydn. An 8th grade heavenly being as well, with an intact hatred towards mankind in general. Robert is powerful enough to be feared by all the rest of the contestants. Ueki eventually lost the fight and was helped by Kobasen. Kobasen helped Ueki at the cost of disobeying “God’s laws” and was summoned into hell. Before he left, Kobasen reminded Ueki to stay strong, and to always remember to hold on to morals in life, explicitly to upheld justice towards the world. Kobasen’s message becomes the backbone of the entire anime, as Justice is the main force behind Ueki’s actions. Long story short, Ueki obtains new friends that help him in the tournament, and more importantly sharing the same optimistic idea of changing the world significantly. (Spoilers end here)…

In my opinion, The Law of Ueki is an incomparable masterpiece of anime. This anime is not only entertaining yet it also gives priceless lessons to be learnt. From the upholding message of Justice, to the idea of never giving up, to persevere in the tightest situations, to always keeping a “no one gets left behind” mindset in battles, Ueki’s never ending thought of “sacrifice” for his friends becomes his motivation in his battles. Personally, my favorite message is the belief in a hope or an idealistic idea of the future and not the past, in which we can do anything we set our minds to. How ever high that idea or goal may be, the sky’s the limit.

9.5/10 (52 anime episodes in total)

By: Nicholas Sudharta (Administrator)