As the series progresses, many of the characters' pasts and motivations, as well as the history of Atlantis and the true nature of the planet Gaea, are revealed. The conflicts are brought about by the Zaibach Empire's quest to revive the legendary power from the ancient city of Atlantis. Hitomi's latent psychic powers are enhanced on Gaea and she quickly becomes embroiled in the conflicts between the Zaibach Empire led by Emperor Isaac Dornkirk and the several peaceful countries that surround it. The series focuses on Hitomi Kanzaki and her adventures after she is transported to the world of Gaea, a mysterious planet where she can see Earth and its moon in the sky. Gaea's size, mass, atmospheric composition, temperature belts, and even seasons are the same as Earth’s, although its gravity is lower, as implied by some of the jumps and acrobatic feats of some of the show's characters. On Gaea, Earth is known as the Mystic Moon.

Gaea is an alternate dimension that was created from the combined wishes of the inhabitants of Atlantis when it started to sink into the ocean. Four CD soundtracks and a drama CD have also been released in relation to the series. A movie adaptation, entitled simply Escaflowne, was released on June 24, 2000, but bears only a basic resemblance to the original series. The story was novelized in a series of six light novels by Yumiko Tsukamoto. In addition, a second shōjo adaptation called Escaflowne - Energist's Memories was released as a single volume in 1997.

While the anime series was in production, two very different manga retellings were also developed and released: a shōnen version of the story entitled The Vision of Escaflowne and a shōjo retelling titled Hitomi - The Vision of Escaflowne. Hitomi's fortune telling powers blossom in Gaea as she becomes the key to awakening Escaflowne and to stopping Zaibach's plans.

Van (King of Fanelia), with aid from Allen (an Asturian Knight), commands his mystical mech Escaflowne in the struggle to stop the Zaibach Empire. In Gaea, she is caught in the middle of a war as the Zaibach Empire attempts to take over Gaea. The series follows a teenage high school girl named Hitomi, who finds herself pulled from Earth to the planet Gaea when a boy named Van appears on the high school track while battling a dragon.

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