Uchuu Kyoudai (Space Brothers)

On a fateful summer night in 2006, Mutta Nanba and his younger brother Hibito witness what they believe to be a UFO flying toward the Moon. This impressing and unusual phenomenon leads both siblings vowing to become astronauts, with Hibito aiming for the Moon and Mutta, convinced that the eldest brother has to be one step ahead, for Mars.

Now an adult, life hasn't turned out how Mutta had pictured it: he is diligently working in an automotive company, whereas Hibito is on his way to be the very first Japanese man to step on the Moon. However, after losing his job, Mutta is presented with an unexpected opportunity to catch up to his younger brother when the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency, commonly known as JAXA, accepts his application to participate in the next astronaut selection. Despite self-doubts about his prospects, Mutta is unwilling to waste this chance of a lifetime, and thus embarks on an ambitious journey to fulfill the promise made 19 years ago.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Edit

Background

No background information has been added to this title. Help improve our database by adding background information here.

Episode Videos

Edit

Related Anime

Adaptation:	Uchuu Kyoudai
Side story:	Uchuu Kyoudai: Apo's Dream, Uchuu Kyoudai: Itten no Hikari, Space Dreamers: Uchuu Kyoudai Nanba Mutta ga Yattekita!
Prequel:	Uchuu Kyoudai: Number Zero

More characters

Characters & Voice Actors

Nanba, Mutta

Main

Sawashiro, Miyuki
Japanese

Nanba, Hibito

Main

Sanpei, Yuuko
Japanese

Apo

Supporting

Sawashiro, Miyuki
Japanese

Itou, Serika

Supporting

Sawashiro, Miyuki
Japanese

Makabe, Kenji

Supporting

Katou, Masayuki
Japanese

Young, Deneil

Supporting

Ishida, Tarou
Japanese

Bold, Vincent

Supporting

Tsuda, Kenjirou
Japanese

Nasuda, Shigeo

Supporting

Aoyama, Yutaka
Japanese

Kaneko, Sharon

Supporting

Ikeda, Masako
Japanese

Jay, Brian

Supporting

Ootsuka, Akio
Japanese

More staff

Staff

Nagai, Kouji

Producer, Planning

Watanabe, Ayumu

Director

Kobayashi, Katsuyoshi

Sound Director

Ishii, Toshimasa

Episode Director, Storyboard

Edit

Opening Theme

	1: "Feel So Moon" by Unicorn (eps 1-13)
	2: "Eureka (ユリーカ)" by Sukima Switch (eps 14-26)
	3: "Yume Miru Sekai (夢見る世界)" by DOES (eps 27-38)
	4: "Small World" by Fujifabric (eps 39-51)
	5: "Kienai E (消えない絵)" by Magokoro Brothers (eps 52-64)
	6: "Crater (クレーター)" by Merengue (eps 65-75)
	7: "HALO" by tacica (eps 76-87)
	8: "B.B" by THE Yatou (eps 88-99)

Edit

Ending Theme

	1: "Subarashiki Sekai (素晴らしき世界)" by Rake (eps 1-13)
	2: "Kokuhaku (告白)" by Angela Aki (eps 14-26)
	3: "Tete (テテ)" by Akihisa Kondou (eps 27-38)
	4: "Goodbye Isaac (グッバイ・アイザック)" by Motohiro Hata (eps 39-51)
	5: "BEYOND" by Miho Fukuhara (eps 52-64)
	6: "Yozora no Taiyou (夜空の太陽)" by Flower Companyz (eps 65-75)
	7: "New World" by Kasarinchu (eps 76-87)
	8: "Anata ga Ireba OK!" by Serena (eps 88-99)

Reviews

Feb 10, 2014

xspookydarknessx

Recommended

At first glance Space Brothers seems to be an anime about two brothers that just go space and do astronaut things, but oh ho, dear reader, it is so much more than that. It is a realistic journey delving into one of the most difficult professions ever conceived by man. Now that the series has concluded [for the time being], a proper review is in order. But first, we better shake hands.

STORY:
Space Brothers cleverly depicts the pursuits of Mutta and Hibito, converging their storylines at some times and following them separately at others. This structure is beneficial to the flow and progression, and earns ... top marks from me. It also uses an intriguing method of linking the past to the present, showing the audience how the brothers' upbringing helps them with the challenges on the path toward fulfilling their dreams.

This leads me to the most notable aspect of Space Brothers – its insanely realistic plot. The amount of research that author Koyama Chuuya had to have done is mind-boggling. In fact, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) actually helped out on it, which is noticeable throughout. Plainly stated, you just can't make some of this stuff up! Which brings me to an important question potential viewers always ask: why is it so long?? It takes a lot of time and effort to become an astronaut, and it is quite clearly portrayed in this anime. To condense any of what is shown would be an insult to real astronauts. As a rare "long seinen," I approve.

Additionally, it's difficult to NOT be impressed with immense detail that the mangaka put into the setting. For instance, whenever the main characters travel to the United States, American fans are simply blown away by the accuracy of the places illustrated, such as the John F. Kennedy Space Center in Florida and the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in Texas. Though I've never been to either of these locations, it almost feels like I've been on a virtual tour, just by watching an anime.

This leaves me with the literary brilliance of its themes. As is evident from the title, family plays an important role, and not just the Nanba family; though it is crucial to note that "family" is not limited by blood. Although this is a comedy [and it can be pretty funny at times], it is well balanced by its serious moments. Furthermore, this is an anime about going to space.. which is a very scary place where the consequences of failure are colossal. This anxiety gives the experience an even keener flavor. Of course it deals with moral issues and other difficulties in life as well. Sacrifice and the test of friendship is a prevalent theme as the journey to the top requires leaving many behind – not everyone can be a winner. The anime also tackles psychological and neurological hardships, in addition to exposing the stress put on the families of the astronauts. However, the theme that Space Brothers always comes back to is that hard work and guts [and a lot of luck] will always pay off, even if the immediate results appear unfavorable.

ART:
Though there isn't very much "action" in this anime, A-1 pictures does a great job in the animation department. Movements are fluid and expressions are believable, to say the least. In terms of art style, Space Brothers uses an interesting blend of intrinsic "anime-ness" along with the natural proportions and appearances of.. well.. real life. Something that caught my eye was the attention to heredity. Characters of the same family tended to look like each other and/or their parents, which is an uncommon trait in anime. It's a nice addition to the realism this seinen provides. Hair is also quite interesting. Each character's hair style/color stays within the bounds of reality while still remaining unique from other shows. Bonus points to Serika's hair for somehow making me smile every time she's on screen.

SOUND:
Now, I feel this is the weakest part of the show. Don't get me wrong, it's still good, just less so in comparison to its strengths. The music is used to enforce and empower the displayed emotions and elicit the intended feels from the viewer, but the anime reuses the same songs... over and over. I actually made it a game to see how many episodes it could go without playing the same "feel this now" song. I guess you get used to it after a while, but it is worth mentioning. The last third of the anime gets better at diversifying its music. The OPs and EDs are pretty good though, my favorite being ED5, "BEYOND" by Miho Fukuhara [yea, the same Fukuhara that did Brotherhood ED2].

CHARACTER:
My favorite part of this anime is the incredible characterization! Practically every character is memorable due to the depth in which each is described. Their motivations and actions logically follow the person that they've become. You can easily fall in love with any number of them, and palpably feel heartbroken if things don't go their way. Viewers with weaker hearts be wary, though I never cried myself, I acknowledge that much of the anime can bring you to tears. There are several instances in which a character's reactions and facial expressions deliver far more emotion than any amount of words could. This attribute alone makes Space Brothers stand out from other anime. Simply put, the entire cast is a rainbow of personality. I don't really want to go much further into detail.. that would ruin the magic!

ENJOYMENT:
This is a great show, easily one of my favorites. Whenever I found myself in an anime rut, I just sat back and watched a couple episodes. Another thing that's worth noting is that the anime is very inspirational. Seeing Mutta go through so many tribulations gave me hope for my future, and that my efforts in the present will yield fruit down the road. Maybe that's just me though.

CONCLUSION (TL;DR):
Space Brothers is an excellently constructed anime that combines a heartwarming story with delightful comedy, using realistic characters to show the audience just how difficult it is to become an astronaut.

Oh yea, we can end that handshake now.

Open

Gift

Jun 17, 2016

Jordan_Brown

Mixed Feelings

This anime is great up until around episode 21. After that supporting cast members start having their life stories fleshed out. Most of these episodes are quite boring, the motivations provided are often bland and even when they aren't they feel drawn out.

Around this point is when the tone becomes an issue. I'm sure most anime veterans are used to the same music being used for every "dramatic" or "inspiring" moment in an anime. Sometimes well, sometimes not but it always feels a bit like the creators are cheating a little to add emotion to a scene that doesn't otherwise earn it. This anime ...

Open

Gift

Jun 19, 2022

CHALOKLAM

Not Recommended

Quick review with big super spoil !!

- at the beginning the story evolved quite fast and you'll think "wow 99ep , it's gonna be a wonderful adventure who will end on Mars ... or the Moon at least ... very far from the control room... SIC

- after a very good start, one of the most promising, around ep 21, you'll start to think, " there's way to much the same flashback " but it's ok !
and the story start to spend to much time on support characters, and then more boring drama on support character, if fact you start to ... wonder is the Mutta is the main character of the show and it getting worst and worst. like it getting stuck in mud and literally go nowhere !!! but you keep hope , thinking , it's ok still have 40ep to watch , something satisfying will happened and after all those selection and training and drama, the main story will lead to MARS voyage ... and not voyage with mars1 rocket ... :(

- this show lost it self into disgression and forgot the progression of the main story.
- the possible love relation is a shame , I dunno if we can even mention it, 99 ep and they barely speak each other and touch hand one time.
- I don't remember any show who overuse that much the flashback and use "untold the result of a test" for drama . Later, you'll have a flashback to tell you who won the selection, sometime you don't even know if you are in flashback or in current time.
this 99ep show can fit in 24ep easily in fact it would be much better because so many ep are just there for feeling time.

I had to write my review on this anime because I felt this will go nowhere ! spend many ep on story you don't care and forgot the core and pitch of the 10 first ep
my notation went from a solid 8 to a nice 5 ( I say nice because , day after , when i write the review, i think it' a solid 4 ... )
the last 30 ep, I watched with lot of 10sec jump forward, only way to end it, I was thinking , " no , they'll not do that ?! 99 ep for that !? and even at ep 98, they spend time of support character ... the show will end on next ep and there's no chance to see mutta in space !!! can't believe they'll doing this. this not just unsatisfying, this doesn't fit with core of the story ...

> showing all training, hope , progression , 100x the flashback of the 2 brothers who dream to go to the moon etc ... at the end one in control room and other in an other project ( they could have dev the story of the private nippon space project, asteroid etc ... no no no , the aunt sld or the PD trauma were much better for a space show ... can't Believe the waist of good material with a shitty ending ! it's in my top 3 of shitty ending , so bad it ruins the global perception of the all show
not even a OAV or movie to see mutta in space, or asteroid trip ... it really felt the show was cancelled by surprise, after spending 99 to build a background, it miss all the main story ! not showing mutta flying to space in 99 ep show is a fatal error. he didn't failed the selection , he'll have his moon trip but it's not important to show this ?! it was much better to spend 20 ep on the aunt disease in a show name the space brother ?!

lol, i just realized it worst than i taught , I'll change my notation from 5 TO 3 !!!

now, I understand why mutta wearing only half of a space suit on the picture ... you'll see half of the space show

Open

Gift

More stacks

Interest Stacks

NFSP Cabinet Reccomendations pt 2

by Ailes_Grises

50 Entries · 1 Restacks

Realistic Jobs and Mature Development

by GonXalo

37 Entries · 43 Restacks

Anime About Adults

by WaifuSandwich

18 Entries · 2 Restacks

More recommendations

Recommendations

View All

More news

Recent News

North American Anime & Manga Releases for April

Here are the North American anime & manga releases for April. Week 1: April 5 - 11 Anime Releases Gakuen Alice Complete Collection Garakowa -Restore the World- B...read more

Apr 4, 2016 12:43 PM by Sakana-san | Discuss (7 comments)

North American Anime & Manga Releases for February

Here are the North American anime & manga releases for February Week 1: February 2 - 8 Anime Releases Blade Dance of the Elementalers Complete Collection DVD Bla...read more

Feb 1, 2016 4:37 PM by trebmeg | Discuss (16 comments)

More discussions

Recent Forum Discussion

Poll: Uchuu Kyoudai Episode 99 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 ) Allografter - Mar 22, 2014	151 replies	by basspig »» Oct 7, 10:30 PM
Poll: Uchuu Kyoudai Episode 35 Discussion ( 1 2 ) amginex - Dec 1, 2012	64 replies	by oNephalem »» Aug 22, 8:52 PM
Poll: Uchuu Kyoudai Episode 96 Discussion Phaetons_Folly - Mar 1, 2014	44 replies	by StateofOhayo »» Aug 11, 11:47 AM
Poll: Uchuu Kyoudai Episode 88 Discussion Barion-Zara - Jan 4, 2014	46 replies	by StateofOhayo »» Aug 9, 3:24 PM
Poll: Uchuu Kyoudai Episode 77 Discussion Mestor - Oct 12, 2013	40 replies	by StateofOhayo »» Aug 9, 9:57 AM

Recent Featured Articles

In Numbers: The Best Anime of the Decade

What's the #1 anime of the 2010s? Which year was the best? What studio had the most hits? We have the answers to all these questions and more!

by Shymander

607,943 views

Top 16 Best Space Anime of All Time [Updated]

We all enjoy looking up at the night sky, and watching the stars. And quite often we wonder what exactly is going on...out there in deep space. Fortunately, there's a ton of excellent space anime which will clue us in and make our imaginations run wild!

by MisterD98

486,210 views

Collection

Uchuu Kyoudai

Alternative Titles

Information

Statistics

Available At

Resources

Streaming Platforms

Synopsis

Background

Episode Videos

Visit MALxJapan
MALxJapan -More than just anime-

Related Anime

Characters & Voice Actors

Nanba, Mutta

Nanba, Hibito

Apo

Itou, Serika

Makabe, Kenji

Young, Deneil

Bold, Vincent

Nasuda, Shigeo

Kaneko, Sharon

Jay, Brian

Staff

Opening Theme

Ending Theme

Reviews

Interest Stacks

Recommendations

Recent News

Recent Forum Discussion

Recent Featured Articles

MoreTop Anime

MoreTop Airing Anime

MoreMost Popular Characters

Uchuu Kyoudai

Alternative Titles

Information

Statistics

Available At

Resources

Streaming Platforms

Synopsis

Background

Episode Videos

Visit MALxJapan MALxJapan -More than just anime-

Related Anime

Characters & Voice Actors

Staff

Opening Theme

Ending Theme

Reviews

Interest Stacks

Recommendations

Recent News

Recent Forum Discussion

Recent Featured Articles

MoreTop Anime

MoreTop Airing Anime

MoreMost Popular Characters

Visit MALxJapan
MALxJapan -More than just anime-