It's hard to exactly sum up what LOTGH is about. It starts off as the Empire and the Alliance battle each other and take control of one another's property. The build up for Iserlohn was good and enjoyable, and judging by how Iserlohn has an important role in the series, the build up was needed. After that the plot just goes in all directions, from betrayals, to politics, corruption, deaths, backstories, more space battles, Terrarians, etc... You get background on why the war started in the first place, how Reinhard came to be in his position, the basis of the politics of each party... It is simply and complexly written, with a lot of info dumping that I felt like my brains were fried multiple times while watching. The fans of the series praise the show for exploring politics from all its perspectives; I don't know if I missed anything, but personally I thought that the series was shoving down your throat the idea that democracy isn't always the best solution, as shown in the Alliance where Truniht did not care for his citizens and doubted Yang, and cared for himself before the citizens. Meanwhile, it shows that an Empire isn't so bad, as we can see Reinhard giving utmost treatment to his people, and with the power lying in his hands, he has no limits to how kind or how evil he can be, but lucky for the Empire, Reinhard chose kindness. I probably missed some politics due to the heavy info dump, but this was the main idea they elaborated on, so I didn't feel like the writer explored all sides of democracy and autocracy, he just studied a case which is very evident in real life (corrupt democracy), and showed another side to autocracy, which I can appreciate, but it was a bit predictable. So you can tell that I'm not really interested in the political side of the series, but I was more hooked to the plot progression and character exploring.
Yang Wen-li is the perfect know-it-all person. Some people hate him for being Jesus, but I just can't bring myself to. His arguments are always convincing, his view of life is very laid-back, and he's just a chill person overall. I thought he needed more fleshing out, but I have yet to see the side stories featuring him. On the other hand, Reinhard was a very well written character, with flaws that make him more human and personally more likable than Yang. He had his childhood with Siegfried and his sister, his devotion to his sister, his determination to become Kaiser, his modesty when addressing people of lower rank, and his kindness towards his nation. He was a very well explored character and truly one of my favorite male characters, and definitely the highlight of the show. Oberstein was mysterious and interesting to look into, but his mysteriousness amounted to nothing in the end.. Reuenthal's presence was manly and following through his journey was exciting until the last arc where his character was destroyed. The way he succumbed to the rumors of him being a traitor just so he wouldn't hurt his honor by letting someone spread rumors about him was unbelievable. I really couldn't believe how dumb a soldier can get.
The art looks very detailed for its time, and while many complain that the art is dated, I find it genuinely appealing and I don't have issues with it, apart from it being inconsistent rarely. The soundtracks are praised as classics, and they were indeed a treat to listen to, but since this is an old anime, the use of soundtracks just remained in the background overshadowed by character's voices, which didn't make them very memorable. But the opening and ending songs are soothing to listen to.
Overall, Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu is a legendary space opera who gets too much credit for being a complex show, but I'm fine with that. It is a great series with flaws, and its complexity makes it hard to enjoy it at all times with how much info it dumps at you. The politics in Persona 5 (game) were more convincing than this but that doesn't bring down the whole show, since I can appreciate the series for what it is not how I interpret it.
