Animation- 9/10
Don't be turned of by the screencaps and whatnot. I myself was reluctant for many years to commit to 110 episodes mostly because I was turned off by the dated artstyle. The screencaps don't give this series any justice. The animation although 20 years old is beautiful and flawless for its time. The space fights presented in the anime are both believable and timeless pieces of art. Even frequent drawn out discussions between characters are dynamic with hair fluttering and characters expressing themselves in different ways, not like in modern anime by only mouth flapping.
Sound - 8/10
Voice actors did a really good job for this one. although 90% of the anime contains character discussions and more often than not we can hear narrator explaining what is going on it is always a quality performance and you can hear the heart that have been put in their work. Every character voice is distinct and fits perfectly for their personality and character design. Musically, this anime brings nothing new. Most of the music that can be heard in the anime are old classical pieces. The openings and endings contains mostly of soft singing more often than not in English and is nothing amazing but it fits perfectly the show premise. The sound effects like space explosions or laser-blaster gunshots are both believable and perfectly timed and give the show more realistic feel.
Characters - 10/10
This show has enormous cast of characters. Every character has well defined personality and ambitions. The story features diverse cast from corrupted nobles through religious fanatics and space pilots with limitless libido to lazy admirals and proud and dedicated army individuals. Each character has its own individuality presented not only by his voice and character design but also by his name and title witch on the empires side are German names or names that remind the viewer of nobility and on the republic side where names have more of a common ring to them.
Story - 10/10
It is an epic story that deserves to be put on the same pedestal(or even higher one) with famous western space odysseys like Star Wars or Star Trek. The story tries to be believable and explains every little detail it never brings in supernatural element into the mix. It is obvious that author's based their work on events from history and viewer can notice some similarities or tactics used in both WWI and WWII. The story is never stagnant and always leads to something. Watching this I found myself more often than not fully captivated by the episode.
Enjoyment - 10/10
For 110 episodes long show IMHO it sure is worth the time. I was captivated by both the story and characters. The characters are likeable and easy to relate with and the story is amazing, it will make you mad, it will make you laugh and it will make you cry, just give it a chance.
Overall- 10/10
The show starts kinda slow but give it 5 episodes and you will be hooked. If you enjoyed anime like Monster or Death Note or even Code Geass give it a go, its amazing.
