View Full Version : Realistic Sci-fi titles
Post your suggestions, feel free to lay on the spoilers, just make sure you use the spoiler code.
Crest of the Stars (second season is Banner of the Stars, third is Banner of the Stars II, most recent OVA is Banner of the Stars III)
The story follows Lafiel, a Princess and Hier to throne of the Abh, a race who proclaims the universe their home. One by one, they have been taking over planets and claiming the space within the universe be their land, and if one wants to travel it, they must join them, if they resist, force will be used.
The Abh is a small twist, while they appear to be your all-powerful army who cannot be defeated, and renegade human colonies are attempting to overthrow it, the Abh themselves are not portrayed as evil. In RPG terms, they would almost be Chaotic Good, but not quite.
That's mostly background stuff. The story revolves around Lafiel and Jinto, who is the ambassador of his home which was forcibly taken by the Abh, and their lives growing up. It's a mix of a love story and science fiction. The battles are pretty awesome.
The obvious "other" would be anything Leiji Matsumoto. While not quite realistic, it is heavy sci-fi and has some very strong characters. Galaxy Railways, Captain Harlock: The Endless Odyssey, Maetel Legend, Interstella 5555, Queen Emereldas, Galaxy Express 999, all come to mind.
Also coming to mind would be Irresponsible Captain Tylor, not quite realistic either, but good fun sci-fi to watch. Captain Tylor is, as the title says, irresponsible, and becomes Captain by sheer luck, wins by sheer luck, everything he does is irresponsible and stupid.
Ah, how could I forget Super Dimensonal Fortress, Macross? Definitely a classic. Not realistic, but a story of sci-fi war that's really touching. There's also the Ghost in the Shell franchise.
I'm sure I can think of some more later.
Sollon Darkmoon
05-08-06, 05:26 PM
Ill second the Crest Of The Stars series....this is prob the best Sci-fi'sih/space drama there is IMO.
Lenilya
05-08-06, 07:12 PM
Last Exile, perhaps? Flying battleships and whatnot, yet not really high-technology unless the Guild gets involved.
I will also comment that Crest of the Stars series is pretty good, they focus a lot of the tatical and political aspects of a war as opposed to the action battles themselves.
I can see how it may get boring for action fans looking for a war anime but I like it for they type of discussions they have. It may seem like all the talking they are going to get themselves blown out of the sky but they way they describe space battles taking several hours is kind of intresting way to do it.
Banner of the Stars if I remember right was more about Lafeil and ... (oh snap, I forgot his name) the male lead specificlly. Its more of a "Get to know the characters" type season. Where as Crest of Stars are about the war.
Last Exile is a great anime and it focuses on the story surrounding the war and the people involved in it as opposed to the war itself. Its filled with great animation and lots of plots going on in the sidelines.
I'm not sure what's meant by 'Realistic Science Fiction'. Do you mean like Elfen Lied, where the main character isn't human but the world the series is set in isn't futuristic?
Then there's Full Metal Panic!, where everyone's normal and the setting isn't futuristic, but they use mechs to battle each other.
I'm still a real anime newbie but I like a lot of the stuff I've seen.
I own Macross and GitS and I like those styles.
Guns, ships, mecha, cool. The more detailed the tactical plans are, the better. Technobabble rocks.
What I mean by 'realistic' is I tend to roll my eyes at stuff like Akira, Advent Children or Dragon Ball. Sorry but people can't fly, crush stuff with their mind or shoot energy blasts out of their eyes.
Exile, Crest of the Stars, check. Thanks for the references - I'll check those out.
Ah, gotcha. I'm suprised Stalk didn't mention Cowboy Bebop, and I also like Bubblegum Crisis Tokyo 2040 (http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=123).
Sollon Darkmoon
05-09-06, 01:59 PM
Ah, gotcha. I'm suprised Stalk didn't mention Cowboy Bebop, and I also like Bubblegum Crisis Tokyo 2040 (http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=123).
lol im more the CB fanboi :P. But I didn't really mention it b/c while it is sci-fi it is more of a drama IMO with little tech background. But it is a great space drama also if you can get over the non tech aspects of it.
It is realistic tho...
Didn't mention Cowboy Bebop because I assumed that by futuristic sci-fi, it was more along the lines of Star Trek sort. But I do recommend it.
Ah- how could I have possibly forgotten? Perhaps the most realistic space sci-fi, and the best as of yet in my humble opinion, Planetes.
Planetes is set in the not too distant future. A tragedy happened when a spaceship coming back from the moon was hit by a small screw going at ultra-high velocities orbiting the planet, which upon impact caused the ship to explode.
After the indicent, a need for a debris clean-up crew was acknowledged. Various agencies created debris cleanup crews, but this story focuses on one group. It is a very inspiring show and gives you a very deep appreciation for space.
A notable character in this series would be Hachimaki, who spent a large part of his life as a garbageman in space, was in a very difficult time of his life, where he lost his dreams. He rediscovers it in the Von Braugh, a ship that boasts being able to go to Jupiter.
The character development is top-notch, you feel a deep appreciation for everyone on the crew, their job, and it allows you to rethink many things about life and the future. It covers many issues, not answering most, but presenting things for you to discover on your own.
As a bonus, the DVD's have interviews with NASA. This show is a HUGE hit within NASA, I'm told that nearly everyone in NASA have seen this show and loved it dearly. Can't get more realistic than that!
It's a definite must-watch for anyone.
Ill second that. Planetes is a Must See. And dont forget to watch the extras on the DVD. Interviews with NASA and all sorts of intresting things about space as it really is right now with debris and such.
Ill second that. Planetes is a Must See. Awesome I'll definitely check this one out!
PsiKoTicK
05-12-06, 07:03 AM
Ok, semi realistic... VanDread for sheer comedic value.
I mean, how awesome is it that men and women live on seperate planets, and consider themselves entirely different species, both procreating through cloning... then female pirates end up with 3 (yes, 3) males on board one of their ships and they have to save the galaxy with the help of a badass robot that can merge with their ships...
I mean, seriously, for sheer fun, it's hard to top. Plus, there's gratuitous groping without any actual hentai action... :D
Gunbuster, by Gainax.
Starts of as a sports' anime parody - but with a mecha pilot academy instead of a sports academy (no, really) - but ends up with galaxy-wide battles and a truly great ending. It's only a six-episode OVA, too.
Oh, and it's one of the few anime that factors time dilation & other relativisitic effects into the plot. It's also sort of based on 'Starship Troopers' (the book, not the film).
It is very earlier Gainax, though so the animation is typical early-mid 90s.
And speaking of time dilation: Voices of a Distant Star.
Zone of the Elders: Dolores... something or other.
It's the whole backstory behind the ZoE game for ps2, and it's a very very science heavy anime.
The Plot
Colony on Mars built a few supertech mech, instead of like earth, building thousands and thousand medium quality mechs. the people native to mars are less durable because of growing up in a lower gravity environment, so the natural thing for earthmen to do is delegate them into second class citizen status... a single punch from an earthling could throw a martian man into a coma.
The story picks up with a space trucker, hauling freight from mars to earth, when he discoveres that it is one of the secret intelligent mech designed by the martians... code named Dolores.
Now, this is one of the coolest ways to attempt to destroy the earth ever, The Space Elevator is a 62,000 mile tower that has a center of mass in orbit... this is why I like this series so much, the physics behind this series is SPOT ON. The martian bad guy wants to use the remaining supermech to destroy the ballast of the space elevator... causing it to fall to earth, accelerating and wrapping around as it crashes down, literally destroying all life on earth. If the space elevator was massive enough, it could happen.
It doesn't require a lot of physics knowledge to watch, but... the physics are pretty accurate, this is what started my obsession with the space elevator.
I think the coolest 'space entry device' I've seen would have to be the Skyhook from Bubblegum Crisis Tokyo 2040. It's pretty much a giant pinwheel that's turning, where one end gets close enough to the ground to pick up things to be taken up to space:
you'd enjoy the space elevator ruccus...
they're actually trying to build one, unlike the space hook the physics work :heart:heart:heart:heart
www.liftport.com for more space elevator information
Are Space Elevators like the name says, a path that goes to space like a road? If so, the coolest one I saw are the stuff in Leiji Matusumoto's universe. In Galaxy Railways, a region-1 licensed title, they have train rails to space! And the ships look like trains! That's awesome.
ZoE: Dolores also had train cars that went up the space elevator... I loved the idea, and now I want to work on it for a career ;).
Content:
(Please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers) Zone of the Enders is based on a video game, but if, like me, you’ve never played it, you won’t miss anything. The first volume contains the “Idolo” OVA, a 50 minute story that’s a prequel to the game. In 2167, the relationship between the people of Mars and Earth has declined to the point that all out war is about to erupt. Martians are tired of the tyrannical rule and racism of the people of Earth against them. Radium Lavans is a pilot of a giant robot that’s been developed by the Martians in secret which, when mass produced, will be powerful enough to drive the “Earthers” out. His fellow pilot is Viola, a darkly beautiful woman with a no-nonsense attitude. Radium is engaged to Dolores, a research assistant who helped develop the robot. The designer of the robot is Dr. Rachel Links. She left her husband, a man from Earth, and their two children, to return to Mars to design the robot. While testing the robot, Lavans undergoes some worrying psychological changes. He begins to lose himself to his hatred of the Earthers, and the robot rejects Viola. When the Earth army learns of the existence of the robot, they launch an assault against the facility, including kidnapping both Dr. Links and Dolores. Lavans takes off in the robot to rescue them for an action-packed ending full of pathos.
For the TV series, the show picks up the story 5 years later. James Links is a former army officer now working as a trucker in space. His wife was declared dead in the battle that took place at the end of the OVA, and he’s hit the bottle just a little too hard. His adult children have rejected him. Leon is a young man moving up in the corporate world, while Noel is a construction site supervisor where she’s well respected. When James accepts a questionable shipping job, he ends up with far more trouble than he ever wanted. His ship is boarded by inspectors, but one of the inspectors kills the other two, and James is framed for the murder. The cargo he’s transporting is a giant robot, who says her name is Dolores and she’s an orbital frame, the same type of robot that Rachel Links was developing when she died 5 years ago. Not only that, but the robot is able to sing a lullaby that his late wife used to sing to their children. Dolores has the personality of a charming young woman, and her mannerisms are hilarious, such as the way her antennae on her head reveal her emotions. Some digging in Dolores reveals a message from his wife telling him not to let anyone else take her. James is now stuck on a trip to Earth with the mysterious people who killed the inspectors as well as the army on his tail, and a doomsday robot with the personality of a teenaged girl to contend with.
Once on Earth, James learns both his son and daughter are falsely implicated in the murders, and now all three of them are on the run. Some of the best comedy in the show comes from the relationship between father, son, daughter, and robot. James originally took the job to go to Earth so he could try to patch things up between him and his children. To help him, he’s brought along a book about parenting which he continually consults. Forced to go back into space, the four of them fight and bicker, but James does his best to be a good father. With so many people after them, Leon’s computer skills and Noel’s construction skills are put to the test over and over in ways they never imagined.
Once back on Mars, they begin to search for Rachel. They are convinced that she’s still alive, since it appears she sent the robot to James specifically. They are confronted by Rebecca, a young woman piloting a giant robot who has been sent to reclaim Dolores by the Martian faction fighting for independence. She’s defeated, but James and Dolores treat her kindly, not at all like the prisoner she considers herself to be. Because she’s been indoctrinated since birth to hate all Earthers, she’s emotionally incapable of accepting that their offers of friendship are genuine. Once returned to her people, she immediately begins plotting to get her revenge against them and regain the respect of her father, an important but shadowy player in Martian independence.
An all-out war erupts on Mars just as James, Leon, Noel and Dolores are reunited with Rachel. Dolores was supposed to be a central part of the plot to overthrown the Earth domination of Mars, but a second robot, perhaps even more powerful than Dolores, is used instead. The new robot is piloted by Napth, the man Rebecca considers her father. The war has moved to Earth’s orbital station, situated at the top of an enormous structure that extends from Earth’s surface to the space station. Napth has a sinister ulterior motive. He intends to destroy the system that keeps the station balanced. When the orbital station falls, it and the pole it sits on are so massive, and will hit with such force, that it will annihilate all life on Earth. Not only that, but because Mars is not yet self-sufficient, if Earth dies, so will life on Mars. James Links must reconcile with his family, clear his name, stop the war, and pilot Dolores into battle with Napth, or humanity will become extinct.
Conclusion:
The OVA episode is dark and heartbreaking, but the TV series is fun and much more upbeat. It’s refreshing to see a giant robot show where the pilot isn’t some angsty teenager, but an actual middle-aged adult. James’s constant referencing of the book on parenting is a gag that works, since it appears the book actually has some good advice in it. Dolores is a hoot, a robot so powerful everyone wants it for themselves, but she’s just a girl who loves her “Uncle” and her “brother” and “sister.” This show’s two themes of racism and the bonds of family are well written and well stated. About the only downside of this release is the lack of any extras. The singles release of Zone of the Enders had some of the most extensive Japanese-related extras seen in the US. Sadly, they’re all removed for this set. Only the actual episodes remain. Fortunately, the show is great fun with a well-executed ending, so the lack of extras doesn’t sting quite so bad.
More complete plot summary from... http://www.animeondvd.com/reviews2/disc_reviews/4826.php
Armitage: Dual-Matrix had the climax of the movie on a space elevator (I've been meaning to get it; I've got Armitage III Polymatrix, but not the sequel).
Jaesin, you just put me out about $100!
The mentioning of the space elevator made me remember that I wanted to buy Armitage Dual Matrix, so I went to a website of a local business and found a 2-pack of Armitage Dual Matrix and Gungrave Volume 1 for $17cdn (I could've gotten just Dual Matrix for $16, but figured Gungrave would be worth a buck), so I was tempted to buy it. But being a cheapskate and not wanting to fork over $7 in shipping for an item under $20, I decided to browse through the rest of their anime for something else I've been meaning to get but slipped my mind.
After sifting through various titles I found the Serial Experiments Lain Box Set and it was only $63, plus I absolutely love Haibane Renmei, so I ended up getting it (meaning Lain; I already have Haibane Renmei) as well.
See? It's all your fault :b