“There are moments when even to the sober eye of reason,
the world of our sad humanity may assume the semblance of Hell. ”
― Edgar Allan Poe
There were times as I watched Martian Successor Nadesico when I honestly began to wonder if I was having some elaborate prank pulled on me. The space opera genre has always been somewhat of a trophy for the anime medium, no other medium seems to do it justice; I mean Starblazers, come on! A classic in every way. But here was this obscure anime from 1996 practically yelling at me during its first dozen episodes: "why the hell do you like anime? If all of this stuff: grandiose spaceships, a crew of highly trained teenagers that are respective prodigies in their fields, and a war across the stars against a vague, menacing and evil alien threat, were actually real... it would f*cking suck."
And it was odd, because as the episodes dragged on towards the inevitable finale, I honestly couldn't decide if I was watching some sort of meta-critique of war, the space opera genre, or maybe even anime in general ... or one gigantic celebration of it. And when it was over, I needed to close my laptop, lean back in my comfy chair, and sip on some cranberry juice for awhile, and do some thinking. Undoubtedly, all the commonalities of the genre were present in Nadesico, but they all seemed mutated into a form that I couldn't comprehend, at least on a level I was used to in anime. But some weeks after the fact, I think I finally have a concrete answer of what Martian Successor Nadesico is, or, at the very least, what it was trying to be.
Hello people of "The Wired", my name is Quan, I hope you're having a positively spiffing day, and welcome, one and all, to a brand new anime review. Today, we take a look at the somewhat forgotten 1996 anime: Martian Successor Nadesico, and try to figure out what the hell it is. So, in other words, buckle up ladies and otakus, there's a lot to talk about. Now then, let's get started.
But before I can get to things such as the plot and the characters, we need to go over some technical jibble-jablle. Nadesico was animated by studio Xebec, quite the veteran studio who have produced many different anime over the years(though actually, Nadesico was their second ever work), though I can't say I've seen much things from them and have been impressed. To wind them down to highlights however, they are most prominently known for their work on MM, To-LOVE-Ru, Love Hina, and of course, Uchuu Senkan Yamato 2199.
The director was Tatsuo Satou, who I can't say has done anything else I particularly care about, but you may know him from his work on Shigofumi and Uchuu no Stellvia. The writing was divided between three people: Hiroyuki Kawasaki, Naruhisa Arakawa and Shou Aikawa. Since neither of us don't want to be here all day, I'll give you an idea for what these three have done over the years, gifting us the scripts for anime such as The Irresponsible Captain Tylor, Jinsei, Eureka Seven AO and Fullmetal Alchemist(2003). Finally, the anime is 26 episodes long, and ran from September 30th 1996 to March 24th 1997.
Story
Akito Tenkawa has never really wanted to fight. He was born on Mars in the midst of the brutal war between the united forces of Earth and the despicable Jovian lizards, a mysterious alien race seemingly intent on completely annihilating the human race, but after the traumatic childhood event of seeing his parents and friends slaughtered before his eyes, he has lost any desire to ever put himself onto the battlefield again. Rather, Akito follows his dream of being a cook, at least until his normal life is interrupted by the sudden reappearance of his old childhood friend on Mars(at least until she was transferred back to Earth by her father): Yurika. Yurika, as it turns out, is the captain of the Nadesico: a new private space-battleship that is possibly humanity's last hope of taking back Mars after its destruction by the Jovian lizards, and maybe, also of avoiding extinction. The last thing Akito wants to do is board the Nadesico, especially since because he has the special nanite implant that makes him one of few people able to pilot mechas, but on the other hand, enlisting on the Nadesico may be the only way to answer some of the many mysteries of his childhood. For instance, what was the real reason his parents were killed? Or, maybe even more important, why, as Akito was about to be slaughtered along with the rest of the population of Mars, was he instantly transported to Earth with absolutely no explanation? Yeah, that's also probably important.
But things on the Nadesico aren't exactly as Akito imagined. The majority of the crew, though experts in their respective fields, are misfits of society by any definition: otakus, ditzes and general weirdos. The mecha pilot: Gai Daigoji is a full-grown man completely obsessed with the anime Gekiganger 3, a mecha anime that Akito also watched while growing up on Mars. The smartest person on the entire ship is a 12 year old girl named Ruri, and the captain and Akito's childhood friend Yurika seems determined to marry Akito by any means possible... for some reason.
But as this eccentric crew bravely sails into the unknown battlefield of space with the hopes of all of mankind on their shoulders, it quickly becomes apparent that things aren't going to go exactly as planned, as the truths about the real nature of the Nadesico's purpose and the entire war are revealed. In an ever darkening limbo of vile secrets and conspiracies, Akito must gather all of his strength and will to push forward, and believe that even in a world that is far cry from the giant robot anime he loved while growing up, somehow, a happy ending is possible.
 |
| Getting ready for the battle he never wanted. |
I watched the dub, as you should too, because the character chemistry between the crew of the Nadesico is pretty amazing to behold. Characters(especially Ruri), are pointing just how stupid the situation is, and the show does its best to parody most of space-opera's genre's tropes, to great effect, as the crew blunder their way through every threat the Jovian lizards lay in their path. It mocks such tropes as the obsessed childhood best friend, the overprotective father, and many more, making the first few episodes or so of the anime feel light, like a party of fun that everyone is invited to. Decent action is also inherent with the mecha battles, which is even more impressive because, remember, this is 1996. Serious moments will fall very unexpectedly occasionally, and could be seen as tonally incoherent, but as I see it, Nadesico was just foreshadowing what it would eventually become. Because, after all, the fun can only last so long.
 |
| A calm before the storm. |
This is where the greatest weakness of Nadesico's plot comes into focus however, as it can't seem to decide which stance it wants to take. It's not a harsh deconstruction of the space opera genre, because for all the serious moments and cliches it rips apart, the comedic tone is too overbearing for that along with the huge amount of cliches that do find their way into the story unaddressed. It's definitely not a straight comedy though, and it doesn't seem too keen on celebrating the genre in general. What you get in the end is a mixture of extremely interesting elements, all of them deluded by how overcrowded it is. Nadesico would have done itself a favor by just playing its cards straight, because while this mixture undoubtedly makes a very good and intriguing anime, it may have been able to accomplish more by simply going one route.
As for the plot itself though, when taken at face level and not trying to decipher whether it was trying to be a deconstruction, or a celebration or whatever, it remains the anime's strongest element. What I appreciate most about it is how it takes its time; Nadesico uses every single one of its 26 episodes to build either the world or build the themes, leading to what I would say is a near perfect blend of episodes focusing on the world, focusing on the characters, or revealing something huge that takes the plot in an entirely new direction. Sure, while you're watching Nadesico, it can admittedly seem a little aimless at times, but make no mistake, nearly everything plays a part in the narrative later, one way, or another. For such an excellent build-up, the ending isn't... great per say, leaving a lot of things out in the open, but it's far from bad. It's just not quite what I was looking for, as for all the playing around Nadesico did with deconstructions and whatnot, it doesn't really go for any of that in the end; playing the last episode more or less straight, like it was from any typical space-opera. And... I just wasn't completely satisfied with that.
Lastly, I don't want to spoil too much, but I would like to touch briefly on the "anime within the anime" Gekiganger 3, which is one of, if not the most important plot point in the entire show(which is why I've made a point to mention before now). I won't tell you why this is, but just know that if you want to fully appreciate just how much thematic density Nadesico has, it's something to keep in mind, though admittedly, during the last couple episodes, that probably won't be that hard to do. The anime is not exactly subtle about it.
 |
| Some of the crew's most important members. |
Characters is where the anime takes its biggest hit. Now, as expected of a space-opera, the cast is extremely large, but this also means that while some characters get ample amounts of development, others are basically ignored. It also seems a little arbitrary who gets this treatment; for example, Ruri is given an entire few episodes to herself, episodes which provide possibly one of the most heart-breaking back-stories I've come across for a great long while. On the other hand, Yurika, who remember, is the main love interest, gets almost nothing in the entirety of 26 episodes, which is a little odd for me. Ultimately, Nadesico is probably a little below average when it comes to characters. Obviously, there's way too many to fully develop the entire cast, but if at the end of 26 episodes only 4 or 5 of them have any real depth to them... that's a problem. Of course, I can't go over those lucky few here, it would take way too much time; but I will spare a moment to talk about our main character.
I wouldn't classify Akito as a particularly great character, but he's not bad for what he is. He has depth, and has a congruent arc that stretches throughout the duration of the anime, but he's annoying hesitant to development. We get to see him grow from a timid and mentally unstable boy into someone ready to fight for what he loves, but the development is extremely choppy, a "two steps forward, one step back" kind of thing. Obviously, to avoid spoilers I can't give details, but often I couldn't quite tell if he was actually growing from the experience or not, as he kept falling into the same habits he had shown at the beginning of the show. I guess what I'm trying to say is that while Akito undoubtedly develops through the 26 episodes, it seems to fluctuate, and is hard to track mentality and the such. It's a little bit sloppy, not really strung to together strongly, but the bonds are there, enough to carry his character from the beginning to the end. I suppose, that's all I should really ask for.
 |
| Well, for 1996.. |
Presentation & Sound
Now, the simple truth is that some people may not be able to look past this part. Nadesico was animated in 1996, and looks pretty mediocre compared to the stuff coming out right now; that's not Xebec's fault, but that's the way it is. However, I'd like to say that actually, when compared to things of its time, Nadesico looks pretty good. I remember watching Trigun(that came out only a year later than Nadesico) a while ago, and being struck by just how bad the animation was, and yeah, I know that's just me being a prick and not understanding the times, but with Nadesico, I never had that problem. The animation is fluid, and the fight scenes engaging, and while colors are dull, the obvious skill and effort that went into drawing this thing more than makes up for whatever bias you have against anime produced before 20XX.
The same can sadly not be said for music. The OST was composed by Takayuki Hattori, who literally has done absolutely nothing I give any amount of craps about, though I have it from a good source that his music in other works has been quite good. All I can judge him for now currently is Nadesico's OST, which while is definitely far from average, isn't exactly something I'd recommended listening to on your own. There's definitely a couple of fun songs that aren't your typical slice-of-life jingles however, the track "Schiaparelli Project" is quite excellent, and there's a orchestra cover of the opening that is pretty awesome. Speaking of the opening "You Get To Burning", is probably the best the anime has to offer music wise, being exciting, catchy, and even really memorable, worthy of any classic space opera anime you could think of.
You Get to Burning
OP Orchestra Cover
Schiaparelli Project
Needless to say, Martian Successor Nadesico is one of the oddest anime I've ever come across. An intriguing mixture of juxtaposing elements, it ultimately forms one of the most under-appreciated anime I've ever seen, and of course, I'll end this review with a recommendation to watch the hell out of it, and while you're at it, spread the word to anyone else you think may enjoy it. But with all of that comes an air of disappointment when it's all over, because though Nadesico was unique, it ultimately chose to be normal in the end. And of course, there's nothing wrong with being normal, normality defines the rules that the media of this world, giving us boundaries to both obey and push, but for an anime to fall into the damp musk of it... a little disappointing in the end. And though it wasn't what I wanted it to be in the end, Nadesico is such a concoction of comedy, drama and bombastic passion that I must say, I would be shocked if anybody could walk away after episode 26 without finding at least a little something to love about the crew of the Nadesico. Maybe that says something. Despite how "out there" Nadesico can seem at times, still managing to use its charm and wit to appeal to nearly everyone; that seems to be an accomplishment if anything. And in the end, regardless if it's being a comedy, or a drama, or a romance, or an action series, or a deconstruction, or a celebration, or a straight-faced retread of a genre through references to its unique culture, there was one thing Nadesico never stopped being. And that... is good.
Final Verdict: 7.5/10
P.S: "JOE! JOE! JOE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Recommended Anime:
Uchuu Senkan Yamato 2199
As I mentioned before, if it's an amalgamation of everything that makes the space opera genre: a wise elderly captain, a mission to save the earth in an arbitrary time frame, and plenty of anime shenanigans to go around, that you seek, this remake of the classic Starblazers anime should do you just fine.
Neon Genesis Evangelion
I'm sure that this, at this point, legendary anime needs no further introduction, but if you're seeking an anime that takes ideas similar to Nadesico's and runs with them in pretty much the complete opposite direction, well, now is as good a time as any to watch Eva and see what all the fuss is about.
Martian Successor Nadesico is, in fact, available for legal streaming on Hulu. Go check it out! Follow the link here.
Goodbye for now guys.
Navigate Elsewhere
Find Me At:
 |
| https://hummingbird.me/users/Quan |
 |
| https://twitter.com/QuanReviews |
 |
Email Me At: quanqreviews@gmail.com
|
No comments:
Post a Comment