Gundam Wing: The story begins 195 years after humans establish the first space colonies (small self sufficient cities housed within space station like structures). However, the corrupt Earth Sphere Alliance seeks to keep the colonies under control, primarily through the use of Mobile Suits, (basically, large robots that are piloted by humans). In retaliation, the colonies send five special mobile suits called Gundams to earth, in hopes of defeating the ESA, and bringing peace between Earth and outer space. What follows is a surprisingly philosophical 49 episode journey that spends as much time discussing what it means to be a soldier as it does blowing things up (in a spectacular fashion I might add). Though the animation is among the best in any anime, there are some moments when the age of the show manages to make itself known. A number of close-ups in battle scenes are in fact the exact same, only with the time of day, scenery, and weather digitally altered to match the story; there is also the case of some of the "explosions", many of which are just large orange balls of fire (luckily these two problems are gone in the follow-up movie "Endless Waltz"). Also adding to the excitement is that in addition to lasers and machine guns, some of the mobile suits have laser swords, meaning they can duel like gigantic, robotic Jedi. Though any show involving giant robots is going to have to cause one to suspend their sense of disbelief, the show doesn't let itself get away with everything; characters are often shown struggling and/or running out of ammunition, which puts them in a bind. However, Gundam Wing never loses sight of its story, which twists and turns constantly. One moment it's Faction A vs. Faction B, then 6 episodes later Faction A gets usurped by a subsection of itself and must join forces with Faction B and so on. I only have a few other complaints about the show, and while they are significant, they don't keep me from loving this series. The first is that the aforementioned philosophical discussions can suffer from being either repetitive, or from stiff dialogue. The second is one of the primary female characters, named Relena. While her goals are certainly good (an end to all war), she's too naive, stubborn, and preachy, so much so that it's tempting to reach through the TV screen and slap her. The final complaint is that the writers metaphorically bitch-slap the third Gundam pilot (named Trowa), when he gets caught in a rough battle that leaves him with amnesia. This by itself isn't bad, but the fact that the show waits SO long before he gets back into the action, makes fans of Trowa and his Gundam (like me) feel a bit cheated (although he did get plenty to do at the start of the show..but still). All in all, a stellar show with a compelling and constantly surprising story filled with action, philosophy, and moral ambiguity.
Grade: A-
Outlaw Star: While this second series may lack the depth of the previous show, it's probably more enjoyable (and it's actually has comic relief...whew). The story is set WAY in the future, where humans have discovered and co-populated dozens of other planets, some light years apart, thanks to futuristic transportation ships. On the low-key planet Sentinel 3, mechanic and occaisional bounty hunter Gene Starwind and his partner, 12 year old computer genius Jim Hawking, are swept up in a violent quest alongside a renegade pirate. She eventually leads them to a storage hanger and unveils a combat vessel of unparalleled technology, and soon, the three are off on a quest to find a mysterious place/person/"thing" known only as "The Galactic Leyline". Other forces join them on the way, including a cat-like humanoid warrior (the main source of comic relief) and a swift female assassin who wields a wooden sword with deadly precision. The final crew member is the mysterious Melphina, who is part human, part android, and is somehow related to the battle ship (named The Outlaw Star) and the mysterious Galactic Leyline. Combining both futuristic technology, unique designs (the battle ships are like nothing in any other anime; they come equipped with mechanical arms which can be used for combat), a little magic, and gorgeous animation make this an eccentric and kinetic thrill ride. An added bonus is that when the show was aired on Cartoon Network around 2001, I never got to see the final part of the 3-part conclusion, even though they ran through the whole series about 7 times. My only complaint is that near the end, when the episodes should become more focused on the journey to the Galactic Leyline, they seem to become too "individual", and not as coherent as need be for the spectacular three part conclusion (which feels like 2001: A Space Odyssey meets The Matrix). Perhaps just a few more episodes would have helped to flesh it out a little bit more (the whole series is only 26 episodes). However, the sense of fun, slick action, and great characters overcome the minor flaw, and create one of the most compact, yet one of the best anime shows in history.Grade: A
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