This Anime About Space Garbage Should Be Your New Sci-Fi Obsession

(Welcome to Ani-Time Ani-WhereA regular chronicle dedicated to helping the uninitiated to understand and appreciate the world of anime.)

Throughout the many entries of this chronicle, I have expressed several times how much I admire when an anime spectacle stands out from the middle of the medium secondary and dares to tell a more mature story on adults – as The phenomenal psychological thriller “monster”. Admittedly, the anime is more than Shonen Action animates on guys with superpowers in the fantastic worlds. It can also include dramas of life, novels, sitcoms and even a show on people whose work consists in collecting debris in space.

This is the premise for the animated series 2003-2004 “Planettes”, which is based on the manga of the same name of Makoto Yukimura (Who also created the excellent “Vinland Saga”). The show takes place in 2075, an era when spatial exploration is common but is now hampered by debris surrounding the earth, which can cause disasters. At the heart of the series are the members of the section of space debris (itself part of a giant conglomerate), which spend their days eliminating said debris in order to make people both entering and leaving the ‘Atmosphere of our planet.

At first, “Planettes” begins as a work drama on interpersonal relationships of workers in the space debris section. However, it quickly became a spectacle on the isolation of space, capitalism at an advanced stage, the challenges of labor for massive companies that do not care about you and the ways that companies and governments could exploit Traveling in the space for profit (just as they ruined the environment of our original planet for their own advantage). The result is simply one of the best science fiction stories of all time.

“Planettes” was directed by Goro Taniguchi 20 years before directing the fantastic “One Piece Film: Red” and written by Ichiro Okouchi, who then wrote “Devilman Crybaby” and “Mobile follows Gundam: The Witch of Mercury.” C ‘That is to say that the spectacle is not only magnificent, but also has a great balance between the interpersonal drama and the high concepts of the narration focused on science fiction.

Indeed, this anime looks fantastic. Fans of an old-fashioned detailed mechanical animation should find many appetizing visuals in “planets”, which is filled with analog science fiction goodness such as hand-drawn spacecrafts, computers, hundreds of pimples, Switzers, detailed space combinations – and have I mentioned how good the ships are? There is something really unique and satisfactory in the conception of space to the earth and gravelly in this show, how real things are and full of weight. Studio Sunrise (“Cowboy Bebop”, “Gundam”) animated “Planets”, which has a futuristic style distinctly from the turn of the century. Consequently, the universe of the show is completely devoid of smartphones and has remuneration phones for video calls everywhere. There are also portable game devices (although multiplayer requires a cable to play) and everyone still uses disk storage.

Rather than feeling dated, watching “planets” in 2025 permeates the aesthetics of the series with a completely different meaning. The absence of “modern” technology makes it clearer how much the section of space debris is underfalling is really (as long as they still use floppy disks in 2075). Likewise, “Planettes” is a fairly relatable and timely office story concerning the drama of people stuck together thousands of kilometers from someone else and who fights to get out. Consequently, the main characters form disorderly romantic relationships while an assistant director constantly harassing them for trying to do the right thing (when everything he wants to do is get an increase).

However, it is not all the misfortune and sadness. We also get an exciting but funny episode on a woman while trying desperately to find a place to smoke a cigarette when each smoking room has become the location of a terrorist attack. Consider the “planets” as the Grittier, more cousin more anchored from “pulled on Mars”.

A bit like “for all humanity”, “ “Planets” has a real affection for space despite its many dangers. The series shows the effect of long -standing exposure to radiation in space on veteran astronauts, who frequently obtain cancer or have fatal accidents at work. And yet, the spectacle always pleads for the incredibly attractive mystery of the final border and how easy it is to fall in love with space. At the same time, when a character is briefly left behind during a solar rocket incident, he leads them to develop a psychological condition known as “disorder of loss of space”, which leads to A nuanced and captivating scenario.

Where “for all humanity” is full of optimism that space will ultimately lead to the resolution of its problems, “planets” maintains that the treatment of space like any other place to exploit is, well , not good. It is a series of anime full of deeper comments in general. Take the bureaucracy distressing the main characters and how the space debris section is constantly underestimated, mocked or threatened with budget cuts by those who believe that its employees simply do a subordinate job. The program also addresses the question of nepotism and depicts the hints of the company which is driving the violation of the Geneva Convention.

Then there is the comment on the class and how those of lower means are constantly highlighted, even in space. Take the episode that focuses on a group of blue passes that was blocked on the moon following a work visa scam. Meanwhile, employees of the space debris section are unable to climb the scale despite years of work, they therefore spend their days buying countless lottery tickets in the hope of winning a check for more important pay. Worse still, there is even an episode which shows that life insurance companies went down on the main characters such as locusts while they are trying to take advantage of the dangers of their work to tackle the most vulnerable workers and more desperate from the company.

It is the political commentary of the program that allows the “planets” to shine the most. Although some of these elements are also present in the original manga, the animated series strongly develops its source equipment with regard to political disorders surrounding the section of space debris and its workers. The show constantly claims that allowing the same societies and the same governments that currently ruin our planet to suddenly access space not only a terrible idea, but that would also aggravate things for everyone. Indeed they then monopolize its resources, preventing anyone from taking advantage.

In, the response of the program in the United States (at least in manga; it is more a United Nations in the “Planets” anime), even manufactures terrorist threats to obtain defense contracts in space. He also places mines in space clandestine to dissuade his enemies from going there too.

The policy of the series is better illustrated in the episode of El Tanika, which focuses on a small South American country confronted with discrimination and the group of scientists hoping desperately to make their house a player in the exploration game Spatial by building a space combination. Unfortunately, the guy who represents the group and the competition of offers in space are expelled after invading El Tanika and begins to expel any citizen who is outside the country (including, yes, space).

As dark as the spectacle obtains, “Planettes” is always based on a manga by the author of “Vinland Saga”, himself a resolutely dark and violent spectacle that nevertheless pleads for peace every round. Here too, “planets” finds hope in small gestures of good will towards humanity, like the minor actions that people can do that echo a group of friends or even a community. In space, everything may seem separate and alone, but everything is connected in one way or another.

“Planettes” is a show for those who want to see a more banal version and anchored with a story in space. It is an anime that depicts the wonders of the colonized moon, Mars being made accessible to humanity, and even Jupiter becoming our next border, all without avoiding recognizing injustices, inequalities and other disasters waiting for Perform when you give powerful people access another area to exploit.

As a work drama, there are enough characters to love and root on “Planets”, as well as many small sub -intments which accumulate slowly to an exciting central story. The more realistic look and artistic style also make the spectacle more accessible to those which are new on the medium or which are not wild on the most exaggerated designs found in the anime. Finally, with what is a series intended for adults, it lacks the type of juvenile humor and fans of fans often found in the anime targeting young viewers. Instead, “planets” treats his characters as real people, which makes their dilemmas feel relatable and recognizable. It is simply a science fiction masterpiece.

Look at this if you like: “For all humanity,” “gravity”, “star trek: lower decks”

“Planettes” is currently broadcast on Crunchyroll.