Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu (Legend of the Galactic Heroes)

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Alternative Titles

Synonyms: LoGH, LotGH, Gin'eiden, GinEiDen, Heldensagen Vom Kosmosinsel

Japanese: 銀河英雄伝説

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Information

Type: OVA

Episodes: 110

Status: Finished Airing

Aired: Jan 8, 1988 to Mar 17, 1997

Producers: TV Tokyo, Kitty Films, Tokuma Shoten, Tokuma Japan Communications, Wright Staff

Licensors: Sentai Filmworks

Studios: K-Factory, Kitty Film Mitaka Studio

Source: Novel

Genres: Drama, Sci-Fi

Themes: Adult Cast, Military, Space

Duration: 26 min. per ep.

Rating: R - 17+ (violence & profanity)

Statistics

Score: 9.02¹ (scored by 79,211 users)

¹ indicates a weighted score.

Ranked: #10²

² based on the top anime page. Please note that 'Not yet aired' and 'R18+' titles are excluded.

Popularity: #746

Members: 322,075

Favorites: 16,332

Available At

Official Site

Resources

AniDB

ANN

Synopsis

The 150-year-long stalemate between the two interstellar superpowers, the Galactic Empire and the Free Planets Alliance, comes to an end when a new generation of leaders arises: the idealistic military genius Reinhard von Lohengramm, and the FPA's reserved historian, Yang Wenli.

While Reinhard climbs the ranks of the Empire with the aid of his childhood friend, Siegfried Kircheis, he must fight not only the war, but also the remnants of the crumbling Goldenbaum Dynasty in order to free his sister from the Kaiser and unify humanity under one genuine ruler. Meanwhile, on the other side of the galaxy, Yang—a strong supporter of democratic ideals—has to stand firm in his beliefs, despite the struggles of the FPA, and show his pupil, Julian Mintz, that autocracy is not the solution.

As ideologies clash amidst the war's many casualties, the two strategic masterminds must ask themselves what the real reason behind their battle is.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

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Background

Legend of the Galactic Heroes was adapted from a series of ten novels, published 1982–87, by Yoshiki Tanaka. The novels won the Seiun Award for the best long-form Japanese science fiction in 1988.

At the start of its production the anime was distributed through a subscription system in which episodes were mailed to existing fans of the novels. It was made in four separate tranches over nearly a decade, with the production of side-stories continuing for several further years. The main series has the largest voice cast of any anime, with well over 300 voice actors, and it is the longest OVA series ever made.

The novels have also been adapted into a manga, a stage musical by the Takarazuka Revue and a number of games.

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Related Anime

Adaptation:	Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu, Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu
Prequel:	Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu: Arata naru Tatakai no Overture
Side story:	Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu Gaiden, Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu Gaiden (1999)
Alternative version:	Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu: Die Neue These - Kaikou, Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu: Die Neue These - Seiran 1, Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu: Die Neue These - Seiran 2, Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu: Die Neue These - Seiran 3, Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu: Die Neue These - Gekitotsu, Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu: Die Neue These - Sakubou

More characters

Characters & Voice Actors

Yang, Wen-li

Main

Tomiyama, Kei
Japanese

von Lohengramm, Reinhard

Main

Horikawa, Ryo
Japanese

von Reuenthal, Oskar

Main

Wakamoto, Norio
Japanese

von Oberstein, Paul

Main

Shiozawa, Kaneto
Japanese

Kircheis, Siegfried

Main

Hironaka, Masashi
Japanese

von Schönkopf, Walter

Main

Hazama, Michio
Japanese

Mittermeyer, Wolfgang

Main

Mori, Katsuji
Japanese

von Mariendorf, Hildegard

Main

Katsuki, Masako
Japanese

Minci, Julian

Main

Sasaki, Nozomu
Japanese

Attenborough, Dusty

Main

Inoue, Kazuhiko
Japanese

More staff

Staff

Ishiguro, Noboru

Director, Episode Director, Storyboard

Aketagawa, Susumu

Sound Director

Motonaga, Keitarou

Episode Director, Storyboard

Shinohara, Toshiya

Episode Director, Storyboard

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Opening Theme

	1: "Skies of Love" by Michiru Akiyoshi (eps 1-22,24-26)
	2: "I am waiting for you" by Michiru Akiyoshi (eps 27-30,32,34-35,37-38,40,43,45,49,51-52)
	3: "Sea of the Stars" by LISA (eps 55-81,86)
	4: "Must Be Something" by Hitomi Konno (eps 87-106,108-110)

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Ending Theme

	1: "Hikari no Hashi wo koete" by Kei Ogura (eps 1-5,7-13,16-17,19-21,24-26,84)
	2: "Tabidachi no Jyokyoku" by Kei Ogura (eps 27-30,32,35,37-38,40,42-43,45,49,51)
	3: "Kansou no Uta" by Kei Ogura (eps 55-56,58-69,71-81,83,85)
	4: "Uchuu no Kakehashi" by Kei Ogura (eps 87-106,108-110)

Reviews

Apr 28, 2024

3looming

Recommended

Maybe the best anime of all time. I'm not sure what the 10-or-so negative reviewers are smoking, but after you've watched a decent amount of shonen, seinen or shoujo anime, LoTGH comes in as a refreshing change of pace, and is extremely easy to binge. For someone like me who often judges too harshly, too quickly, the beginning definitely left me with doubts. But by the end of the series, I was absolutely ruined that it was over, and in love with many of the characters.

The characters are easily the biggest draw to LotGH. If, like myself, you have a particular itch for ...

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Apr 4, 2024

GrandioseHD

Mixed Feelings

Legend of the Galactic Heroes is a tragedy of high expectations. Over the years, many have come forward to call this anime one of if not the greatest yet made. After completing all 110 episodes, I am left confused as to why they feel this way. For those who haven’t yet watched it, read this spoiler-free review and consider whether your expectations will be met before you start.

The ideologies of the characters are frustratingly cliché. It ranges from feudal autocracy to American-style classical liberalism. You will not come away with a new philosophy on life, or anything like that.

The military strategies are basic and the ... political maneuvering is no better. Battle sequences proceed in the same way each time: the bad guys have a huge numerical advantage, the good guys have a smart plan, the entirety of the plan succeeds, and the good guys achieve their goals against the odds. LoGH favors great-man theory far too much, and as a result comes off incredibly contrived at times. The desired outcomes happen no matter the odds against them, except for in a few heavily foreshadowed moments.

The world-building is unrealistic and malleable. Futuristic technology exists only for space travel, war, and little else. Events occur that could have been prevented using technology that has been widespread since the 1980s. The societies of LoGH are unrealistically backwards for the future, even those of the ‘democratic’ side. This social conservatism isn’t critiqued either. The anime openly approves of the patriarchal tendencies of its societies, and instead focuses on the negatives of political ills only. The main role women play is as support for their husbands/lovers, and those who show signs of independence are reigned in by the end. This is not to mention the self-evidently problematic use of imperialistic German culture. Its only purpose is to wet the whistle of those who fantasize about German militarism. The anime’s given explanation of why every name sounds like Dusseldorf von Shatingflart is ignorant of how human societies operate, and seems to have been added post-facto. Copying a pre-existing imperial society rather than inventing a new one is just plain lazy and gives rise to some unnecessary suspicions. If LoGH had given equal weight to social issues as to the political issues, it may have had the profundity that many claim.

The story flows like one set in the Napoleonic era. Rather than just being set in that time period, it copies that era’s vibes, places them in the future, and adds some fancy tech for flavor. The futuristic setting could be removed and the story would be unchanged. The only plausible reason for the future setting is the greater impact of battles that kill 20 million people rather than 20,000. Maybe this was a intended choice by the original author/creator, or maybe not. As mentioned previously, the ideologies of the protagonists and antagonists also mirror the Napoleonic era, so why not just write a Napoleonic epic? There are great anime/manga stories with political themes set in and around that period, like Rose of Versailles, which are far more compelling.

The budget limitations are noticeable and they significantly hamper many scenes. Space battles are especially dull as a result. Consolidating the series into 50 or so episodes may have been the better move budget wise. The use of classical music for the soundtrack is interesting, but feels a bit pretentious and lazy. Even most low budget OVAs have an original soundtrack. There are other anime that supplement classical music with original score and use it far better. For instance, The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya’s use of Trois Gymnopedies is far more tasteful while being in an anime that takes itself far less seriously. Classical music is cool and all, but I think that its use in LoGH was a budget-minded decision rather than the intention.

The ultimate problem with Legend of the Galactic Heroes isn’t that it's bad, but that it’s only good. Beyond the issues I felt needed to be mentioned, it's above-average. There is an overarching plot that unwinds in an interesting way and it has a cast of some of the most talented voice actors ever assembled. I would even argue that there are some excellent characters in LoGH. The problem is that some people (especially MAL users considering the 9+ score) believe that it is one of the best anime. This is, in my view, not the case. Because of my high expectations, the disappointment was far too great to not leave a bad aftertaste.

Overall, I'd give Legend of the Galactic Heroes a 7/10.

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Jun 15, 2021

Golui

Not Recommended

I have never written a review, but this anime just blew me away so much, I think it's finally time.

TL;DR It was bad.

It was in fact so bad, it almost cured my crippling anime addiction.

I, like many others, was drawn to this anime due to its high rating, and equally high praise. I was in the mood for something a bit more serious, with clever writing, smart characters, political intrigues and conspiracies. I was disappointed in every aspect.

Obligatory "no, it did not get better after 20/60/109 episodes".

At the risk of beating a dead horse, The first sign that something is off was that the battles ... in 3D space were in 2D. Now, sure, it would be hard to write and show these to the reader/audience - but if it that's the case, do not write your epic in a space setting. Heck, I would even ignore it had it not been for the fact that "Oh no, we are surrounded!" is usually a major turning point in the battles.

This show seems to practice the famous doctrine of "tell, not show". There also seems to be an issue with the show runners misunderstanding what "foreshadowing" is. Hint: It is not when the narrator blatantly tells us a fact in an ominous manner, as he tends to do at the end of every second episode.

Then, there were the Replicants. Oh I'm sorry, I mean the Alliance. Long story short, at one point in the story they get defeated multiple times, left with measly numbers, and keep engaging the Empire and winning. This seems ridiculous, as it seems they always have the exact same number of ships left as they had a few battles ago, but we know they have no means of getting new units. Full disclosure, I haven't done the math on that - frankly, because I don't think it's worth my, or anyone's time.

The senior staff of the empire are mostly a bunch of half-wits. Probably the only character I looked up to was Mittermeyer, who actually was mostly reasonable. Some of the major offenders in the idiot department include Bittenfeld and Reuenthal (in the latter part of the series). Oberstein's character also makes no sense. He is portrayed as being a cold-hearted pragmatist. But the problem here is he takes it to the extreme. No compromises whatsoever. Oberstein is implied to be very smart and, being a trickster and manipulator, familiar with human psychology. As such, he should be too smart not to know that his approach will hinder the efficiency of the army. What is more, he knows full well that it will earn him resentment from other senior officers, yet for some reason, he tends to wear this as a badge of honor.

My final gripe is with Reinhard. At first, he is an in-universe tactical mastermind. But then, for no reason, he suddenly isn't? It's not even that he stopped taking active part in battles. He just asks the people around him for advice, and then says "Indeed, please do that". No mention of his own thought process - he just parrots his advisors' orders to the fleet.

To conclude, I did not like this series. There were moments when I had hope and thought to myself "Is this finally when it gets better?" only to be disappointed.

Go watch something else.

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Poll: Legend of the Galactic Heroes Episode 39 Discussion ( 1 2 ) tainteddonut - May 30, 2008	61 replies	by ELuck42 »» 5 minutes ago
Poll: Legend of the Galactic Heroes Episode 110 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) tainteddonut - Jun 7, 2008	604 replies	by Unkrowned »» Apr 30, 12:47 PM
Poll: Legend of the Galactic Heroes Episode 89 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 ) tainteddonut - Jun 4, 2008	160 replies	by Unkrowned »» Apr 29, 1:07 PM
Poll: Legend of the Galactic Heroes Episode 82 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) tainteddonut - Jun 2, 2008	431 replies	by Unkrowned »» Apr 29, 10:46 AM
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Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu

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Characters & Voice Actors

Yang, Wen-li

von Lohengramm, Reinhard

von Reuenthal, Oskar

von Oberstein, Paul

Kircheis, Siegfried

von Schönkopf, Walter

Mittermeyer, Wolfgang

von Mariendorf, Hildegard

Minci, Julian

Attenborough, Dusty

Staff

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Ending Theme

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Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu

Alternative Titles

Information

Statistics

Available At

Resources

Synopsis

Background

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

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