Ranked #303

Outlaw Star

This anime is a rare piece of genius, across 26 episodes it ranges from light-hearted humour to dark philosophical questioning, with neither ever seeming out of place. The premise is a young man, Gene Starwind, and his friend and business partner Jim Hawking, who run a business best described as a jack-of-all-trades operation, including bounty hunting, bodyguard work, anything that will pay. At the arrival on their planet of Hilda, a mysterious outlaw who frees Melfina, an amnesiac girl, from the clutches of pirates, they get caught up in events far beyond their understanding, and Gene chooses to follow his dream of freedom as an outlaw, and to solve the mystery of Melfina and the Galactic Leyline that Hilda and the pirates were searching for.

Each of the major charachters were written and portrayed perfectly. Gene, seemingly a selfish and arrogant ass, surprises you again and again with displays of his softer side, especially when it comes to Melfina. Jim, while only 11 often seems more mature than Gene, and tends to be the voice of reason trying to keep Gene's impulsive nature under control, yet despite that still has a lot of growing up to do, and was my favourite charachter in the show. The charachter of Melfina mostly remains undeveloped until the final few episodes, as her lack of knowledge of who she is is essential to the plot, yet it is not a bad thing that for most of the series she remains the nervous and innocent girl who only wants to find out who or what she is, as this brings out a lot of the hidden qualities of Gene and Jim. Finally, Gilliam, the Outlaw Star's computer, who one would expect to just be a functional machine, stands out as a charachter in his own right, showing bonds with Gene, Jim and Melfina that one wouldn't expect from a machine, and sometimes a hint of sarcasm in his voice as he complies with Gene's "brilliant" orders.

The story itself moves at a decent pace, never too fast to keep up, yet in places does have the occaisional filler episode, which either serves to entertain in breaks in the serious plot, or to highlight a certain plot point. While the series would be no worse without them, they were entertaining and enjoyable, and the two that spring to mind both provide background information to the universe that wasn't necessary, but still interesting to know. The universe is a wildly varied setting perfect for such an adventure, with a combination of science fiction technology and ancient eastern mysticism. The technology never gets in the way of the plot, and the mystic powers driving some events keep the show from becoming hardcore science fiction. Combined with Gene's very down to earth way of dealing with the unknown, this mix keeps the plot moving rather than letting it get bogged down in pointless explanation. That's not to say that nothing is explained, everything relevant to the plot is, but in an interesting way that doesn't just becoming a drone of dull facts, technobabble and nonsense that can often be the downfall of science fiction.

Overall, this show is incredibly enjoyable and has something for everyone. It's an adventure of the kind you used to dream of as a kid, yet it also asks what makes us human. It has it's funny moments, and also it's touching moments. It combines human (/alien/bio-mechanoid/machine/etc) drama with awesome space battles and gunfights, and even leaves this fan of explosions and lasers unsure which he enjoyed more. Watch it, you will not be disappointed. read more

So I started watching Outlaw Star again, and I'm glad I did.

First off I'd say, right away, Outlaw Star does a fantastic job of painting a beautiful world of good vs. evil and those inbetween, the outlaws. The characters are all solid, but I particularly love that the main character is so... human. He's morally complex (and sexually deviant). I find something about his character so... believable, if not relatable. I hate it when characters, main ones in particular, are so pristine or so caught up in idyllic optimism that they just come across as naively romantic. In that sense, I guess I prefer realistic, flawed characters to symbolic ones.

In fact, I'd say I like how the show deals with sexuality in general. Gene with his harmless, if sleazy, perversions and even with the way it humorously flirts with homosexuality. I find something very "mature" about this and I think it sends a good message, that it's ok and perfectly natural to be sexual, of any orientation. So things like this help give the show a feel of more "realism" because these are real issues that are part of people's lives one way or another.

Secondly, I'd say the show has real style. Particularly I like the way the story is told. The prologue that sets up each ep is always informative and almost profound. It's not always a lead up to what's going to happen in the episode, sometimes it's just insight into the Outlaw Star universe or some insightful message. So this style of storytelling is pervasive throughout the whole series, though usually more subtle.

Once you get through the first half of the series where the background, characters and plot are all being set up, then the show really starts to go beyond the basics and delve into more substance. Themes start to get more pronounced, like how Gene is gradually influenced by his experiences, his memories of Hilda, what he learned from Leifong, and even that run in with the old man. You start to get a sense that Gene starts to really get an idea not only what it means to be an outlaw, but also an idea of who he is, and what he really wants out of life.

There's also Melfina and her excellent supporting role. Her inner conflict of coming to terms with her existence are an integral theme to the story. She's new to the world and trying to figure out all the who's and what's of it, and at the same time, asking the same of herself. And in a story where the question of "what is human" is prevalent, is there any question more human than that? We all ask ourselves the same thing at some point in our lives.

The plot also starts to become more concentrated as the mystery of the Galactic Leyline, the confrontation with the Kei Pirates, and the conflict with the MacDougal brothers all come to a head. The show has almost everything, and the cast has all bases covered. A strong fighter werewolf, a sword wielding assassin, a gun shooting bounty hunter, a tech savvy kid, and a high tech bio android. The only thing this show was missing was a ninja. Also, the soundtrack rocks. So overall, I did enjoy rewatching this series, the ending was climactic and sweet and leaves an impression. Everything was pretty much resolved, with the exception of maybe the MacDougals, but I suppose it's not going too far to leave a little room for the imagination or to fantasize about a sequel/movie.

So I tried to rewatch this once before, but I guess I wasn't in the right mood for it. Rewatching things is tricky. Time and nostalgia work in funny ways, often conflicting with one another. The first time I tried to rewatch it it wasn't really grabbing me. That's the problem with rewatching shows, once it's had a significant effect on you, its difficult to replicate that same sense of awe and mesmerization. But, determined, I tried again. I've successfully managed to get back into the show and started to remember all the subtle nuances that made me fall in love with it the first time around. The rewatch value can vary wildly from person to person, but overall, definitely worth watching at the very least once. read more