Les héros de la galaxie

Tis during the winter of lockdowns, and all was silent.

For I watched this opera with great interest, In the lasers and the explosions, And I enjoyed it.

Was life so simple then.

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.

Introduction:

Legend of the Galactic Heroes is one of the best anime ever made. An excellently written space opera, with interesting characters, and one of most original science fiction shows. And if you're getting started with anime, I recommend this as a start.

The Narrative & Characters:

This show has some of the best writing of any TV show. Why? Well let me tell you.

The show centers around a war between The Alliance and The Empire. And the show doesn't portray either side as evil. The Alliance may be a democracy, but it's still incredibly flawed and filled with corruption.

And while the other is a dictator ship. It gets things done better than the democracy. And has less corruption, however, there are more limits in freedom. Both presenting arguments, and asking the audience to choose. Like a good war story should do.

I can't praise this series enough, it also had interesting characters on each side. Some in the Alliance are evil, and some are descent people. And the same goes for the Empire. This is honestly the most realistic space opera ever written. As it feels like a real war, it just happens to be in space.

The series raises questions and gives us interesting characters to follow.

The Animation:

This is a weaker aspect of the show. The animation, it's only okay, and just kind of low quality. And I don't mind so much, because the writing makes up for that, but it's an anime. And I just expect a little more.

Conclusion:

Legend of the Galactic Heroes is an anime that should be watched by more people. It might be long, with 110 episodes, and there may not be a dub, but it's still worth a watch.

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.

Whilst the mentions of Babylon 5 aren't far off the mark, I'd say this is more akin to what Game of Thrones would want to be once it grew up - and was set mainly in space.

I recommend Failsafe to anyone with control of nuclear weapons, and this series to anyone who is in or intends to go into government-it covers timeless questions concerning power and how those in charge manipulate others, and themselves, and the justifications they use. A much more nuanced look than the 'evil vs good' plots dominating Western media - both fictional and in reality.