Legend of the Galactic Heroes

It offers rich commentary on war, politics, government, history, corruption, good and evil, etc.; the list goes on and on.

It would take too long to explain the social commentary going on in this series, but one thing that stands above the rest is how tyrants come to power. Is it through the people (democratic rule of the many over the few), or government control (aristocratic rule of the few over the many)? Does the goal of a perfect system begin as a good dream that becomes tainted, or is the dream already tainted? How long does it take a system to grow corrupt? Is the system at fault or are the people who run it? It asks a lot of these questions by setting up a corrupt (or rather decadent) democracy that is fighting a growing benevolent aristocracy that has just overthrown a tyrannical government. Of course, it addresses the problems of a single monarch's rule versus representative democracy; there are good things and bad things attached to each system.

The show creates political and moral problems and the characters on both sides must find solutions. The story itself remains very nuanced to allow the audience to make up their minds about the issues presented. There are advantages and disadvantages to all forms of government presented. That is, the story is not a one-sided narrative that forces its audience to choose a certain side. It is a complex and intelligent social commentary, which forces its audience to think about all kinds of things. I also really like how classical music forms the soundtrack; that is, classical pieces are the only music in the show-Bach, Beethoven, Handel, Mozart, Brahms, Schubert, Wagner, etc.

It is a masterpiece, but it can be very slow at times. It is basically the War and Peace of anime.

Gundam has been described as being to Japan what Star Trek is to the USA.

That would make Legend of Galactic Heroes (LOGH) like the Babylon 5 among anime! Word of this series is spread by showing at anime clubs, conventions and word of mouth by fans.

The break down is it's the story of the struggle between two empires and the two heroes at the center of it all, each fighting for their own reasons. On the Empire side there is Reinhard Von Lohengram, military ace and nexus point to bring about change within the Empire and do away with the corrupt nobles. On the side of the Free Planets there's Yang Wen-Li, who joined the military just to pay his tuition to be a historian. This makes him well versed in past military tactics and a genius in his own rights. Yang to wishes an end to the corruption in the so called democracy of his government.

The differences are the two characters approach, Lohengram wants more power to effect that change and Yang wants none. If you look at these two characters they want the same thing for their people, you think they could have been friends if the situations were different.

The series is epic in scope and legendary in it's execution. Making it one of the best anime series that hardly any one has ever seen. Which is why I liken it to the Babylon 5 of anime.

The series may never be brought to the US dubbed because of it's length, although the task of it would not be impossible seeing as the Urusei Yatsura fans have gotten the last DVD box set of that series. But with so many anime series now that are like a flavor of the month, a licensed release of LOGH seems like it will never happen.

8.4.2007 I have finally watched the last episode of this OVA series, and WOW! just doesn't seem to cover it.

Legend of the galactic heroes (LOGH) is a massive space drama that is being set in a small section of space. This anime is almost unmatched in any media, there is not many shows that have these many locations, characters, topics, side plots and intricately strategic battles and have all of them written not only well, but exceptionally.

It is a sprawling epic with many dynamic and interesting characters that have their own philosophy and thoughts on extremely complex topics, and they represent the many facets of these topics without presenting one inherently above the other and instead showing the natural progression of certain philosophies and belief and what they would lead to.

I won't mince words here, forget star ratings and all the 9.3213/10 or whatever ratings you see here. It isn't possible to convey thoughts on a topic/show/movie with a simple rating, what I can tell you is that you should do yourself a favor, if you have any interest in politically dense, philosophical, and detailed world then give this anime a shot, there is almost nothing like it.

One of best series I've seen in a long long time. This space opera is without equal. Words fall short of praising this creation.

Great character development in this anime. Its evident that a tremendous amount of effort was put into the production of this anime, with detailed background info on most characters as well as locations, history, art, culture and the scenery.

Each episode will leave you wanting for more. Stories have been carefully designed not to show any bias to any particular political view. Impartiality is the motto of this anime.

The animation is good, considering the anime is from the late eighties. But, animation is not at all the defining aspect of this anime. Its the story and the characters.

The soundtrack is exemplary. The tracks clearly voice the thoughts of some of the characters in the sage. Beautiful to listen to.

Overall, this anime is a true masterpiece. Comparing this with other creations from this genre would be a disservice to this anime.

I've always been of the opinion that great works of fiction almost exclusively belong to literature. This is even more true in the realm of Science Fiction. There are some SciFi shows or movies I've seen with shades of brilliance, but none really compare to the works of the my favorite writers of the genre(Isaac Asimov, Ursula K. Le Guin, Frank Herbert, etc.).

Not that something has to be truly great for me to enjoy, I watch several shows and animes over and over for pure enjoyment, even if there are obvious faults. There are just so many things that seem to go wrong in shows and animes. Too short, too long, poor character depth or development, weak pacing, unnecessary fan service, the list goes on and on, and I very rarely find shows that don't fail in some way, even if they are otherwise wonderful.

This show not only succeeded in every aspect I look for but it excelled. I'm writing this review purely, because I want to talk about it and have no one to discuss it with.

The style had me intrigued from the word go. A space opera written in the style of a 19th century epic!? Star Wars meets War and Peace?! It didn't take me long to get a sense of the show, and I was hooked within the first few episodes.

Animation was the only thing that could have limited this show, as it's a product of the time it was made. Yet, the creators made it work, focusing on the things they could do well and finding ways to work with the things beyond their capabilities. The narrative was never limited by the limited animation, and that was a feat in itself for something so grand in scope.

For a show with so many major characters, they were all remarkably well thought out and portrayed. Every single character, from the two main protagonists, to characters who only showed up for an episode or two were fleshed out. Character development for the major characters was so well done and thorough, that it almost made it hard to remember what they were once like at the beginning of the show.

The pacing was flawless. Even the slower episodes had a purpose and drove the story forward. The universe of this anime was so large and intricate, with such a long backstory, that it seems like it'd have been impossible to build our understanding naturally over the course of the show. Yet, this was accomplished without ever making me feel bored or confused.

The fleet battles were my favorite aspect of the show, and I feel like the limited animation actually increased my enjoyment. Instead of focusing on the vivid explosions and ship design, strategy and maneuvering were the central focus. Every battle was intricate, and I was extremely happy with the frequency they occurred.

That's not to say that every other aspect of the show wasn't absolutely magnificent as well. The political intrigue, conspiracies, moral and political philosophies, dialogue, friendships, and even the handful of romances were all woven into the show masterfully.

I attempted to tell one of my clients about it(A huge Star Wars and Star Trek) buff, and when I told him that I enjoyed it more than either The Next Generation or The Empire Strikes Back(my two favorite installations of these franchises) he scoffed at me. As though an anime could hardly compare to Western Film and TV which is a shame. This is without a doubt the best show I've seen, and one of the best pieces of fiction I've had the opportunity to enjoy.