Martian Successor Nadesico
| Martian Successor Nadesico | |
|---|---|
 Yes - she's the Captain. | |
| Original Manga | Asamiya Kia |
| Character Design | Goto Keiji |
| Director | Tatsuo Sato |
| Format | Anime (TV} |
| Made By | XEBEC |
| US Distribution | ADV Films |
| Original Air Dates | 1 October 1996 – 24 March 1997 |
| Episode Length | 23 Minutes |
| # of Episodes | 26 |
Contents
Genre
Sum it up in a Sentence:
A ship full of misfits and crazy people have to defend the Earth from the Jovian threat. While not taking itself seriously, Nadesico manages to tell a good story while making you laugh your ass off.
Main Description
Plot Synopsis
When Akito is teleported unexpectedly off of Mars where he grew up, he somehow ends up on Earth - confused and a bit shell-shocked, but he moves on, becoming a cook in a local shop. One evening after being let go, he meets a girl that seems familiar - and chases her down to a spaceport where he finds that she is the Captain of Earth's newest non-military controlled battleship, the Nadesico - as well as remembering that she was a childhood friend, and she also recalls her love for him.
Now, lest you start yawning now, this would be a good time for aliens to attack, so they do - sending Akito out in an Aestivalis (mecha) and he somehow manages to give the Nadesico time to finish powering up and they head into space.
The rest of the series sees relationships form, unravel, and sometimes even explode and implode at the same time, in a hilarious mix of styles and nods to other anime series. The show does *not* take itself seriously for long, and even though silliness is prevalent throughout the show, you come to care for the characters - even the rat-faced ones you love to hate.
Sequel
| Prince of Darkness | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
There was actually a movie-sequel to Nadesico, called "Martian Successor Nadesico: The Motion Picture – Prince of Darkness" which takes place three years after the anime. Akito and Yurkia are gone (presumed dead, actually) and Ruri is the Captain of the new ship, the Nadesico-B. There is a new threat to the peace that has been formed since the end of the original series, and she and her rebuilt (and almost completely new) crea to solve the mystery. The movie was (compared to the series) almost deadly serious, and was actually supposed to be tied to a game for the Sega Saturn - one that was never released outside of Japan. Though members of the original crew are brought together and reassembled, the movie really has almost none of the redeeming qualities of the series - it's more to be watched by those who want to see everything the series has to offer.
Trivia
- As of 2006, Nadesico was still listed in the top 100 favorite Anime series of all time (for the japanese) in a survey conducted by TV Ashai in Japan. Nadesico came in 89th.
- Nadesico is a parody of various animes, including Evangelion, Gundam, Macross and many more.
- Ruri's continual use of the term "Baka" or "Idiots" inspired legions of otaku fanboys to start interspersing "Baka" into their own day to day speech.
- The show actually has an anime within the anime - Gekigangar III - which seems very much a takeoff of old Voltron / Gundam shows. However, Akito and the rest of the crew spend a lot of time watching this anime!
- There were rumors of a sequel, but in 2005 that rumor was firmly quashed by the supposed-director.
If You Liked This, You Might Like...
- Excel Saga
- Stellvia of the Universe
- Galaxy Angel
- Irresponsible Captain Tylor
- Neon Genesis Evangelion
- Vandread
Personal Opinions
Food Court Druid
This show is interesting to compare with Evangelion, because both take aim at the same target -- giant robot anime -- but do it in very different ways and with very different end products. Nadesico is a boisterous comedy in a very classic anime style -- an ensemble cast of larger-than-life characters, and a more serious side that emerges in the later half. It's been a while since I watched it, but as far as I can remember this was very enjoyable and definitely worth a watch.
Kenderama
Nadesico was actually the first anime I ever experienced - brought on a VHS tape back in the late 1990's. Nadesico's cast of characters are wide and varied, ranging from the main character who you sometimes want to strangle to the slightly manic Mecha pilot, the airheaded girl-Captain, and the overly-serious and far too cute for her own good computer officer. The animation was quite good for the time, and although dated by today's standards, still is completely watchable. If you like harem, mecha, comedy, sci-fi anime that has no problem shattering the 4th Wall - then Martian Successor Nadesico is for you.
