Trees are wild. There are individual trees that have lived for 5,000 years. Giant sequoias qualify as the largest living organism on the planet. Redwoods can grow over 100 meters tall. Baobabs have trunks wide enough to host a reasonably sized wine cellar in their hollow. And in many cases, you can walk up and touch these things. Now, I’m not here to stun you with tree trivia I’ve acquired over many a sleepless night on Wikipedia. I’m here to write about anime. However, if there’s a single unifying creative impetus to Kaina of the Great Snow Sea, it is a fascination and affection for these titanic pillars of breathing wood.
It’s no surprise either, considering the pedigree of the series’ creator, Tsutomu Nihei. The mangaka behind Blame! and Knights of Sidonia constantly grapples with physical scales that dwarf his characters. In Kaina,…
