Space Pirate Captain Harlock Anime Movie Review

Harlock: Space Pirate
Uchu Kaizoku Kyaputen Harokku
Ketchup
Movie - 115 minutes
$20.99 (2015)
ISBN 037117040391
Japanese/English Audio - English Subtitles
Director - Shinji Aramaki
Studio - Toei Animation

Synopsis: In the far future humankind has spread throughout the galaxy and number 500 billion souls.  None of the worlds colonized by humans ever lived up to the standard of Earth and a mass migration back to the home planet sparked a devastating conflict called the "Homecoming War".  The Gaia Coalition, the human universal government, now holds the planet as sacred and forbidden for anyone to set foot on.  A group of space pirates headed by Captain Harlock refuse to leave the Earth alone and fight to regain it for access by the greater humanity.

Logan is the latest recruit to join the Arcadia

Harlock captains the elusive vessel the Arcadia, known as a Deathshadow-Class ship, with his crew of space pirates.  They fight the Gaia Coalition at every chance and have garnered a mythical reputation after a full 100 years as rogues.  How is it possible that Harlock has captained the Arcadia for 100 years without aging?  Is the pirate ship a supernatural force in space?

The Arcadia is a seemingly unbeatable ship powered by dark matter engines

The main crew of the Arcadia are:

•  Kei Yuuki - beautiful and fierce female space pirate
• Yullian ("Yattaran") - tough-talking first mate who wields a powerful hammer during melee combat
• Mimay - member of the mysterious Nibelung alien race and expert at controlling the dark matter engines of the Arcadia
• Logan ("Yama") - the Arcadia's newest recruit, he bears an uncanny resemblance to Harlock (merely coincidental?), and understands the Captain's pursuit of interstellar freedom

The main crew of the Arcadia (from left) - Yullian, Mimay, Harlock,
Logan, and Kei

The Gaia Coalition have unleashed a task force to take down the Arcadia once and for all.  It's led by a man named Ezra who is wheelchair-bound.  What is Ezra's shocking link to Logan and who is Nami?  Harlock's plans are to retake the Earth, but why is he collecting massive detonators and placing them at key points in the galaxy?  The famed space pirate is much more than he seems and his mission far more sinister.  Will Logan fall under Harlock's spell and embrace the pirate's lifestyle?  Can the Earth survive another conflict?  Get ready for epic space battle as you've never seen it!

The Gaia Coalition's forces led by Isola hunt Harlock and his pirates

Pros: Beautiful full CG rendering with incredible detail, killer character designs which look retro-futuristic, exciting space battles with guns blazing, some really cool scenes and interactions, a lot of the mystery behind Harlock is presented (his link to the Arcadia), Harlock actually gets into the action and shows his stuff (instead of just sitting around), Japanese voice acting is top notch

Harlock captains from the bridge with Mimay by his side

Cons: CG character animation is incredibly stiff and unrealistic, plot is all over the place and kinda bad, character allegiances seem to switch back and forth pretty quickly, space pirates in their shiny battle suits are invincible one minute and then cannon fodder the next, Harlock never really has a personality and overall character development of the cast is weak, major wrench thrown into Harlock's motivations and backstory, they kept the cartoon-looking 'Mister Bird' (Tori-San), English dub is not great, subtitles take some liberties with names and meanings

Yullian offers some comedy relief to balance the stoic Harlock

Mike Tells It Straight: This film is based on the manga Space Pirate Captain Harlock by famed creator Leiji Matsumoto (Space Battleship Yamato aka Starblazers, Galaxy Express 999, many more).  There was a 1970s anime television series (42 episodes) based on the manga and currently available with English subtitles.  This film originally shared the same title and I think it was changed for the domestic release to avoid copyright issues (a different company owns the licensing rights to the television series) or to at least differentiate it for the Western audience.  It's a visually stunning CG film with amazing textures and an exciting story.  Obviously a labor of love for the creators and contains serious artistic effort.

Kei is as tough as she is beautiful

Beautiful visuals aside I found the story to be rather haphazard.  The crew of the Arcadia don armored suits and are seemingly invincible when they board another vessel for hand-to-hand combat.  Then later in the series they get their asses handed to them in a similar situation.  It's inconsistent and there were several other instances which had me scratching my head (like the Gaia Coalition's 'grand cannon').  There's a major plot twist involving Harlock which really throws a wrench into his established character.  Either genius by the writers/director (for making this an original work) or abject suicide by alienating the established fan-base.  The body movements for the character animation weren't fluid (wrists are horribly awkward) which is a common problem with CG works (reminded me of the Final Fantasy CG movies).

Harlock unleashes his true power against the Gaia Coalition

One thing I liked in this film is the connection between Harlock and the Arcadia.  Both seem downright supernatural at times and each had some great action sequences to reinforce their otherworldly might.  Harlock is rarely seen in actual combat and it was refreshing (usually he's a chair jockey on the Arcadia's bridge).  The film is faithful to Matsumoto's work with classic scenes (Logan and Harlock with guns locked on each other).  The space battles were great and I really liked the plasma cannon fire lancing through the black void.  The Arcadia's dark matter effect (black smoke emanating from the ship) was pretty spooky and looked neat.

Mimay offers her advice to Harlock as he questions his motives

I'm not usually a fan of CG films (much prefer hand-drawn animation mixed with CG backgrounds/effects), but Harlock showcases the latest Japan has to offer.  It wasn't a critical success and garnered a lot of negative reviews from critics.  It cost $30 million and didn't make it back at the box office - that's a critical failure.  I'm kind of surprised it didn't do as well in Japan considering the fan-base, but there's hope the film will make it's budget with the DVD release.  Still a big disappointment after all the hype surrounding its release.

Kei talks to Harlock 

Love it or hate it, this film is a big budget version of Harlock.  It's visually stunning and has some great action sequences.  For these alone it's probably worth a watch.  The plot is filled with holes like swiss cheese, but what did you expect?  I could definitely see hardcore Harlock fans getting offended by some of the plot twists in the film.  Overall it's a passable sci-fi movie and has some cool space battles.

Logan and Harlock have a familiar standoff

TO BUY and Recommendations:

Fooly Cooly (FLCL) Anime Review

Fooly Cooly (FLCL)
Furi Kuri
Funimation
Complete Collection - 1 disc
150 mins. - 6 episodes
$39.98 (2011)
$44.98 (2011) Blu-Ray
$69.95 (2007) Ultimate Edition
ISBN 704400052415
Japanese/English Audio - English Subtitles
Director - Kazuya Tsurumaki
Studio - Gainax/Production I.G

Synopsis: Naota has always been in his older brother's shadow, but now his older brother has left to play baseball in America and Naota just feels lost.  He hangs out with Mamimi, his older brother's ex-girlfriend who smokes and constantly ditches school.  She got dumped, left behind, and is in worse shape than Naota.  They live in a depressing town with a huge factory shaped like a giant iron (like for ironing clothes) owned by Medical Mechanica.  Every day at the same time a huge cloud of steam is released from the factory covering the town in a hazy glow.

Beware crazy pink-haired girls riding Vespas!

The two are walking home one day when Naota is run over by a crazy pink-haired girl riding a Vespa scooter. She stops to hit him in the head with her electric guitar.  Miraculously he survives, but now has a big oddly-shaped lump sticking out of his head.  The crazy girl says her name is Haruko Haruhara and becomes the live-in housekeeper at Naota's house.  She is obsessed with the lump on his head and naturally his dad bunks her in Naota's room (on the top bunk).

Haruko brains poor unsuspecting Naota with her guitar

Weird things start to happen.  A full-on robot battle erupts from the lump on Naota's head and Haruko is there to finish it with a choice bash from her trusty guitar.  One of the robots moves in with Naota and becomes a servant doing chores for the family.  Naota's grandfather has the robot pick up nudie mags from the drug store for him.  It gets weirder.

Then she just shows up at his house eating dinner!

More robots and some Space Pirate King erupt from Naota's head.  The earth is in danger and Haruko (if that's her real name) seems to be in the center of it all.  A special agent from the Bureau for Interstellar Immigration is hellbent on stopping her.  Naota won't admit it, but he's got a major crush on her.  How's a teenager to cope alongside all the raging hormones?

Yep, that left a mark

Pros: Creative and fun, highly imaginative and off-beat humor, literally made me laugh out loud, energetic (almost spastic at times), doesn't take itself too seriously, great music and soundtrack, very good dub, unique coming-of-age story for both Naota and Mamimi, aged well after a decade

Grandpa, two school buddies, Dad, Canti, Haruko, Naota, Ninamori, Mamimi

Cons: Bit pricey for only six episodes, blu-ray version is not perfect due to original 4:3 aspect ratio of show, random over-the-top humor aspect of this show can turn some people off as can the animation style jumps

Hanging out with Haruko = get ready for more trouble!

Mike Tells It Straight: FLCL (aka Fooly Cooly, Furi Kuri [kinda love thang]) knocked me on the floor when I first watched it.  It was hilarious, had great action scenes, felt sexually deviant (like every teenager does when the topic of sex flashes across their minds), and contained some poignant moments.  Definitely not for the kiddies due to the sexual innuendo and a bit of mindless violence.

Canti can be pretty badass when he wants to be

It's a manic ride and filled with cultural/genre parody in-jokes.  May be hard to follow at times, but tied together by a simple coming-of-age story as Naota finally emerges from his brother's shadow.  The deep moments were rare and a bit out of place.  The animation style was varied with a little bit of everything thrown in and you can't beat this show for range of visual styles.

Now what is she really up to?

Gainax was responsible for Neon Genesis Evangelion which is an anime classic (it turned mecha on its ear).  I like the idea of them putting out a wacky show like FLCL to free themselves from the darkness of Evangelion.  Another Gainax nut-fest is Magical Shopping Arcade Abenobashi which I also enjoyed and thought was similar, but with 13 episodes the craziness made my head hurt.

Yeah, this just about sums it up

The original FLCL dvds were scarce/expensive until 2007 when they were re-released, but I was excited to see Funimation put out a new version in 2011 on one disc.  Little did I know the aspect ratio couldn't be changed (from 4:3 to widescreen 16:9 for current televisions) and the SD didn't translate as well to HD.  I don't recommend putting a premium on the blu-ray version - it's not remastered and lacks any improvements to the visuals.  Got the dvd set already?  Keep it, this new version doesn't really enhance the experience enough to justify a repurchase.

Naota gets to swing the bat

I consider FLCL to be another classic anime and well worth checking out.  If you can't take the wild tangents and jokes then it won't be for you.  Watching the show again after many years was great - I noticed a few more aspects of the plot and it made a bit more sense (plus the cool visual tricks Gainax pioneered which have shown up in shows since).  The humor was still there after all those years and it felt kinda uplifting (like after I watched Gurren Lagann).  Go for it!


TO BUY and Recommendations:

Tenchi Muyo! GXP Anime Review

Tenchi Muyo! GXP
Funimation
Complete Collection - 8 discs
650 mins. - 26 episodes
$89.98 (2006)
$49.98 (2007) Viridian
$39.98 (2010) Viridian
$29.98 (2012) S.A.V.E.
ISBN 704400076008
Japanese/English Audio - English Subtitles
Director - Shinichi Watanabe
Studio - AIC

Synopsis: Seina Yamada's bad luck has legendary status - if it can possibly go wrong then it'll happen to him.  Shunned by the general social populace Seina only has a small number of friends willing to risk bodily injury by being within two feet of him.  One of them is Tenchi Masaki and one day Seina accidentally crashes his bike near Tenchi's house.  Incredibly a spaceship lands and a beautiful girl appears to give him an application to join the Galaxy Police.  He fills out the application and is whisked off to the Galaxy Police cadet academy.

Where can I sign up for the Galaxy Police!?

It soon becomes apparent to his instructors that Seina is unlucky.  He also has a lot of determination and heart.  Making it through the first grueling trials of cadet training Seina goes through body enhancement (where he becomes super-strong and resistant to harm) which comes in handy for someone suffering constant bad luck injuries. 

His first assignment brings him in contact with space pirates led by the beautiful Ryoko (different Ryoko) where he proves his bravery and resourcefulness.  It seems Seina's bad luck makes him a magnet for space pirate attacks and the GP higher ups make him captain of a ship in the 'decoy fleet'. 

Two highly skilled (and very lovely) GP officers, Amane and Kiriko, become his crew on the Kamidake - which is powered by a 'cabbit' named Fuku created by Washu (from Tenchi Muyo! Ryo-Ohki).  Now he's armed with a powerful ship and able (hot!) crew, but must fight off all the pirates in the universe and withstand the combined onslaught of an ever-growing legion of jealous women!

Cast of characters:

• Seina Yamada - the unluckiest (or possibly the luckiest) 15-year-old in the galaxy, despite his luck he possesses a valiant heart and quick wits, accidentally offered enrollment in the Galaxy Police
• Amane Kaunaq - successful GP officer and former galaxy-renowned super-model, she is the cause of Seina joining the GP, gets demoted to become his instructor and crew member on the Kamidake, her family is incredibly rich, gorgeous blonde who can also kick butt, develops feelings for Seina
• Kiriko Masaki - native to Earth and big sister to Seina's best friend, secretly a GP officer and protective of Seina, also demoted to serve as his crew member on the Kamidake, develops feelings for him and competes with Amane for his attention
• Ryoko Balta - lovely pirate captain in the Daluma Guild, impressed with Seina as a foe and develops a major crush on him after his courageous exploits during their battles
• Neju Na Melmas - two-thousand-year-old priestess of Melmas in a twelve-year-old body, has powerful telepathic or spiritual powers, she plays up her youthful appearance and adopts Seina as a 'big brother' as much as playfully telling the other girls she will marry him one day
• Fuku - cabbit derived from Ryo-Ohki, created by Washu, power source for Kamidake II, infantile development stage and highly sensitive to stressful situations, comfortable around Seina



Seiryo - Seina's nemesis is a fancy-lad

• Seto Kamiki Jurai - the 'Devil Princess of Jurai' is a high-ranking member of the Jurai royal family, notorious match-maker, politically backs Seina providing his wonderful toys (i.e. Kamidake I and II, crew members Amane and Kiriko), undying control freak
• Elma - Wau (feline or canine hominid species) scientist who happens to show affection for Seina during his academy training days (despite the species gap), notorious subject of 'furries' doujinshi
• Seiryo Tennan - Seina's physical education instructor before his body enhancement, thinks Seina is a washout, ends up being his first captain, neon pink hair (seriously?), becomes Seina's nemesis (that's a plot twist), monumentally incompetent
• NB - helper robot issued to Seina, Amane modifies it for additional surveillance and accidentally turns it into a voyeuristic pervert 'bot
• Tarant Shank - feared space pirate, member of the Daluma Guild, sadistic and personal enemy of Seina, not a guy you want to cross

Pros: Some tame fan-service, cameo appearances by all of the Tenchi characters, loved the episode where Seina finds/uses the mecha robot, great opening and ending theme songs, the whole 'Unko' thing was hilarious, longer episode count for the series allowed for more explanations of politics/relationships = better than Tenchi Muyo! Ryo-Ohki, had a decent ending

Amane, Ryoko, and Kiriko - three lovely sharks eyeing Seina

Cons: A plethora of slapstick silliness (which may not be your cup of tea, unless it's your cup of tea), typical harem show with shy nerd protagonist miraculously surrounded by beautiful women, simple animation style, 8 discs - way to milk it Funimation!

Mike Tells It Straight: I loved the first Tenchi Muyo! OVA episodes back in the '90s, but watched the finale for the series (check out my Tenchi Muyo! Ryo-Ohki review) and was left scratching my head a little bit. My expectations were pretty low for GXP and I was ready for the worst - meaning a cheap knock-off of the main story.  Boy, was I wrong!  After finishing the series I was surprised to have enjoyed it more than Ryo-Ohki.  

Tenchi and Seina talk harem

The biggest benefit to GXP is the 26-episode length which allows for a better explanation/experience of characters/politics/relationships.  It's a side story to Ryo-Ohki and guest stars the entire core Tenchi cast in a couple episodes.  Seina's journey is different than Tenchi's (they look practically identical, but I guess they're neighbors) and he ends up being a worthy protagonist. 

GXP is still a harem anime and the overall tone is juvenile slapstick, but it ends up being quite endearing.  The ending worked and I wish the same could be said for Ryo-Ohki.  I really enjoyed the last five or so episodes.  You absolutely must have watched the first Tenchi Muyo! OVA before watching this series, but I would say watch GXP first and then Ryo-Ohki.  Seto's character was particularly jarring in the final episodes of Tenchi, but she and several other characters' origins are explained in GXP. 

Pleasantly surprised by GXP - if you love Tenchi and especially if you were disappointed with some of the myriad offerings (Tenchi in Tokyo, Ryo-Ohki, movies) then you'll dig this series.  I wish Tenchi could have used Seina's ending! 

TO BUY and Recommendations:
   

Sol Bianca: The Legacy Anime Review

Sol Bianca: The Legacy
Geneon (Pioneer)
Complete Collection - 6 episodes
180 minutes - 3 discs
$59.98 (2003)
ISBN 013023208193
English/Japanese Audio - English Subtitles
Director - Hiroyuki Ochi
Studio - AIC

Synopsis: April captains the Sol Bianca with her all-female crew of space pirates. They run across the Terra Force, a military group representing the Earthians who regard Earth as sacred ground and are gathering its artifacts scattered throughout the cosmos.  The Earthian commander considers the pirate ship a priceless holy treasure and attempts to acquire it at all costs. 

Sol Bianca crew members:

• April - captain and crack shot
• Feb - thief and enjoys the finer things in life (like shopping and drinking wine)
• Janni - brooding bodybuilder and heavy weapons expert
• Jun - computer and tech expert
• Meiyo - young stowaway

Pros: Opening theme is a good '90s techno song, 3D graphics are decent if not a little dated by today's standards

Cons: Plot is fast and loose, characters are not overly likable or particularly deep, Sol Bianca special attack is a giant image of a woman firing a bow which seems completely impractical

Mike Tells It Straight: Completely rewritten from the early '90s OVA this short series was a step forward for anime 3D graphics. Although the story itself was kinda vague it had lots of action and some interesting space/ground battles.  It's utterly forgettable and overall just so-so as a recommendation.

TO BUY and Recommendations:
   

Space Pirate Captain Herlock Anime Review

Space Pirate Captain Herlock: The Endless Odyssey: Outside Legend

Uchu Kaizoku Kyaputen Harokku
Geneon

Complete Collection - 13 episodes

405 mins. - 5 discs (including bonus features disc)

$44.98 (2006)

ISBN 013023253797

English/Japanese Audio - English Subtitles

Director: Taro Rin (aka Rintaro)

Studio: Madhouse

Synopsis: Humanity has settled among the stars and the space pirates are almost gone.  Those who gave inspiration to the universe with their fierce independence are all dead or imprisoned by the united space government.  Harlock's crew disbanded years ago and has gone their separate ways.  The man himself has been missing ever since, while Kei Yuki captains her own ship the Jolly Roger with many of his former crew (including first mate Yattaran).

The return of Captain Harlock!  Ahem, "Herlock" (for copyright purposes)

Tadashi Daiba lives on the Planet of the Rubbish Heaps with his father.  Professor Daiba is a revered scientist obsessed with researching an ancient mystery.  When Tadashi comes home to find his father murdered and four demonic corpses floating outside of his window he vows revenge!  He encounters Captain Harlock who tells him "If you want to become a real man, come aboard my ship."

Tadashi's father warns him about the evil, extra-dimensional Noo

They must reunite the crew of the Arcadia and solve the universe-threatening mystery of Tadashi's father.  On a research mission five years ago the Professor and his scientist colleagues awakened an evil from before the universe began.  Commandeering the Fata Morgana research vessel and apparently the bodies of Daiba's colleagues, the Noo are unstoppable and like unto fear itself.  Can Harlock and crew prevail or will the Noo return the universe to unending chaos? 

The Noo want to enter our dimension and torture all sentient life

Pros: Original story and a damn good one, seamless blend of CGI graphics and regular 2D animation (after the utter crap CGI of Harlock Saga, seriously, watch it again to appreciate this), bonus features disc with storyboards and creator/director interviews (Leiji Matsumoto interview is awesome, he explained where the name Harlock came from), Kei naked in the first five minutes = awesome

The beautiful Kei takes a bath

Cons: The Noo were some pretty badass villains and I would have liked them to be tougher to beat by Harlock & crew, more main characters should have died or at least gotten scars (all the pirates and common folk seem to have gnarly scars), Kei with a knife wandering the Arcadia would have done more damage (at least kill one of the random pirate extras!)

The Arcadia comes knocking with a huge bayonet!

Mike Tells It Straight: This show is an instant classic!  Fear not faithful otaku - Captain Herlock is the same Captain Harlock we've known for years.  Apparently the translation from Japanese to English is interchangeable and actual pronunciation could be between the two letters (a and e) to make it sound more exotic.  The most frustrating and fascinating aspect of the Harlock stories is their constant reinvention by Matsumoto.  Everything is the same yet nothing meshes perfectly against one another.

Tochiro returns to the Arcadia once more

This show finally gives us a full-length Harlock tale with the perfect blend of 2D/3D graphics.  A surprising mix of horror and suspense permeates an otherwise epic space opera.  Those veteran anime watchers who grew up with Harlock will love the nostalgic treat of seeing their old favorites in a new story.  New viewers get an awesome introduction to these legendary characters. 

Tadashi Daiba reluctantly joins Harlock to seek revenge for his father's death

TO BUY and Recommendations: