to live off the land. He likes to see the curiosities of the world, and is especially fascinated by the Misago after an encounter with her as a child. Because of Makki's affinity for the Misago and his kamas, he tries to convince her to travel with him as a sort of protégé. Director Alpha The A7M1 prototype of the A7 series, and thus "older sister" to the other A7 robots. Like Alpha Hatsuseno, Director Alpha acquired her given name because she is the initial model, or "alpha-type", of a robot series. She is the director of a stratospheric aircraft called Taapon that circles the Earth without landing, observing the world's changes from above without ever being able to leave. Her surname is Koumi'ishi, the same as Sensei, and she has a pendant with Sensei's logo, indicating a past with her that is never elaborated on, and she never interacts with any of the other major characters. A type A7M3 robot with a prickly personality. She is an artist who lives in Yokohama and works as a waitress and then shopclerk as a day job. She is unusual among robots for having changed her surname to one of her own choosing rather than adopting her owner's. Her given name is pronounced the same as her surname, but spelled in katakana. She likes Kokone and is jealous of Alpha for "taking" her. Nai sometimes sends her sensory impressions, delivered by Kokone, which she uses in her art. Nai An A7 robot of unknown model. He is unusual because for unknown reasons the majority of male robots rarely survive for very long after activation. He runs a delivery service, flying an AT-6 Texan aircraft. Nai is quiet and impassive. Saetta The young daughter of Makki and Takahiro. She is the last character to meet the Misago. Anime voice cast Influences and themes Flying and flight recurs through the series. Alpha herself has repeated visions of flying. Planes that appear include Nai's airplane, the always-flying Taapon, and the model airplane engine that Alpha finds but never flies. The A7 series of robots is named after a Japanese World War II warplane Mitsubishi A7M that never saw production, and the character Saetta's name may be inspired by an Italian World War II warplane built by Aeronautica Macchi. Takahiro leaves ("flies away") to work for Nai. Ayase's kamas is a kind of flying fish. In