Dragonaut: The Resonance

Lore & Background

Twenty years before the story, an asteroid heading for Earth destroys Pluto and becomes stagnant in Pluto's orbit, dubbed Thanatos. The International Solarsystem Development Agency (ISDA) works on the 'D-Project,' secretly creating weapons called Dragons after finding a dragon egg under the ocean. They soon discover that powerful, destructive dragons from Thanatos appear on Earth. Jin Kamishina, an 18-year-old boy who lost his family in a shuttle accident two years prior, witnesses what looks like a murder by a strange creature and becomes involved with the ISDA. He is helped by Toa, a mysterious girl who saves him from falling to his death. As they explore the mysteries of the dragons, they encounter new friends and enemies and develop a closer relationship.

Reader's Guide

Dragonaut: The Resonance represents a mid-2000s anime production that combined traditional 2D animation with 3D computer graphics for its dragon battle sequences, a stylistic choice made by director Manabu Ono to best express high-speed character movements in 2D. The series was co-produced by Gonzo and NAS, with Konami Digital Entertainment as a subsidiary partner. Its broadcast on TV Tokyo spanned six months, and the series was later licensed in North America by Funimation, which released an English dub. The reception, as reflected in reviews of the North American DVD collections, ranged from average to above average, with critics like Chris Beveridge and Theron Martin giving grades from 'C+' to 'B+' for various aspects. The series also spawned a manga adaptation by Satoshi Kinoshita, serialized in Jump Square, and an internet radio show hosted by Onsen. Its legacy lies in its attempt to blend genres—sci-fi, action, and romance—within a framework of planetary threat and dragon mythology, though it did not achieve standout critical acclaim.

Did You Know?

• The opening theme 'perfect blue' was performed by Jazzin' Park with guest vocal ATSUMI, and it was the first single ever released by Jazzin' Park.
• The manga adaptation by Satoshi Kinoshita ran for six chapters in Jump Square from November 2007 to April 2008 and was collected in a single tankōbon volume.
• An internet radio broadcast called Dragonaut Station ISDA Information Agency began on September 5, 2007, hosted by voice actors Yukari Fukui, Yū Kobayashi, and Chise Nakamura.
• The series' director Manabu Ono expected the series to continue being developed even after it began broadcast in October 2007.