The cat was yowling

I'm caught up in this new anime called Terra He, or Towards the Terra. Bad timing I guess, but perhaps I can break the episodes up into separate sequences for periodic break from studies. haha I better do.

Anyway, it is one of the best shows I have watched thus far, with an intelligent plot and good character/plot development. Basically, it is a story of how mankind had succeeded in wasting our Mother Earth and thus, having no other choices, had to enter space and colonize other planets for survival. New life is no longer formed by the traditional way of giving birth, but rather through technology where sperms and eggs are fused (something like IVF), and every child is raised by foster parents who have to be interviewed for the 'job'. At the age of 14, every child has to go through an adulthood test, which basically suppresses all their earlier memories, turning them into 'sheep' with their destinies controlled by a computer (in the case of the protaganists, it's called Mother Eliza). A separate sub-species of Man called Mu possess telekinetic powers and have almost been eradicated.

haha and that is the basic synopsis of the show. Basically, it's a conflict between these two groups of people (Mankind and the Mu), and covers a broad spectrum of issues which remain relevant to us today. Can there be a future without a past? How would it feel to understand the feeling of love, but never being able to remember it? The old seeks to avenge the past while the young wishes to start afresh - can these wishes ever be reconciled? In fact, the strive towards recognition of one race from the other may strike similar parallels to the Israeli's wish for recognition from their Arab counterparts in the beginning of what we now know as the Arab-Israeli conflict.

The role of history can also be examined. Historical animosities prevent the resolution of conflicts; often, personalities plays a far more significant role than we may otherwise think. History is a set of lessons we can learn from, thus we should look towards the past as a guide for the future. But what if the past begins to blight the future?

So many questions to think about... can't wait to continue watching it! This reminds me, I was watching it last night when some neighbourhood cat started yowling. It was quite freaky because I have never realized how similar cat sounds are to human shrieks. It sounded to me as though a young girl is crying out in anguish. With the dark velvet of the night softened by the silence all around, it truly resembles a scene out of a haunting movie. So much pain, so much grief. It went on for a while, and it was with great relieve when I found that the sounds had finally subsidied.

Portfolio, planning, revisions... sigh and it's back to reality again.