Outlaw Star

Summary: >

Gene Starwind always wanted to visit the stars, but remains stuck on a distant frontier planet. With each day his dream of getting away and making a name for himself grows ever more distant. Gene and his friend James finally get into space for a job, only to be attacked by space pirates. The two narrowly escape after boarding a ship known as GXP, which happens to be the most advanced in the galaxy. No obligations, and no one telling them what to do, adventure waits for them in any direction they choose.

Which sounds great until you have to pay for fuel and ship maintenance. Odd jobs lead them through misadventures, and more oddballs join the crew. There's also the question of what purpose the GXP was created for. Hints point towards the Galactic Leyline, although Gene has no clue what it actually is.

Thoughts: >

Original isn't something I'd call Outlaw Star. It's typical for sci-fi adventure anime of the 90s. These days mentioning it gets replies like "oh yeah, I liked that show". It's likable, even if not particularly memorable.

It follows a standard formula, so its quite easy to get bored if tired of those conventions. The beginning is very episodic, but very fun action comedy stuff. The characters are likable enough, and thankfully avoid introducing one (or more) that are completely obnoxious - something old school anime had a problem with. The bigger plot with the GXP and the Galactic Leyline is.. okay. It won't blow your mind, but works well enough.

The science fiction isn't especially deep, but holds up well enough to be thought provoking in spots. My favorite feature of Outlaw Star is the caster used by Gene. A caster is a gun, which utilizes amunition loaded with powerful "magic" which vary in power and effect by types. They're relics from a war generations ago, and hard to obtain, and it's especially hard to find caster shells. It doesn't get in depth about them, but it remains the feature I remember most about this anime.

What Outlaw Star lacks in originality, it compensates for in refinement. It was featured on cartoon network for a time, without the "Hot Springs Planet" episode. Anime without a hot springs episode? A whole planet of women? Yes, DVD is the way to go.

Screen Caps: >