With very few exceptions, you will not find an anime fan who doesn't like Kidou Senkan Nadesico. The most basic reason is that the show does not try to break any boundaries, and instead relies on tried and true practice. It is intelligently written and directed, well illustrated and performed, and provides a good mix of humor and drama. It's also a show that promotes its own genre, by including anime as a large part of the plot. This is truly a show for the fans, and a whole greater than the sum of its parts.

Nadesico begins like many space dramas. It is a story about a spaceship (of the same name), and one of its inhabitants, who just happens to be a pilot and the key to the whole story. Akito Tenkawa is that pilot, but he doesn't want to be a pilot. Instead, he wants to be a cook - a desire stemming from his discovery that Earth food was so much better than Mars food. How he arrived on Earth in the first place is a mystery. He was on Mars at the time of its invasion by an alien race (which were later dubbed the "Jovian Lizards"), and during an attack, he passed out and woke up on Earth.

A chance encounter with a childhood friend (Yurika Misumaru, also originally from Mars) brings Akito aboard the Nadesico, as a cook at first. The Nadesico is a privately owned vessel, and its crew are employees of the Nergal Corporation. Yurika is the captain of the ship, and its purpose is in aiding the Lunar and Martian colonies against the invading Jovian Lizards (since the military is too busy defending Earth). When the ship's only pilot (Gai) breaks his leg, and the ship comes under attack, it's up to Akito to fill in (since only a select few are capable of being pilots, and he has undergone the necessary operation). This is where one of the more serious parts of the plot comes in. Those around him recognize his ability as a pilot, but Akito only wants to be a cook.

The typical scene: Ruri-chan watching the other crew members make fools of themselves.	So THAT's where they hid our underwear. The perverts!

The series is primarily a comedy, with a little bit of space drama mixed in. Each character has his or her particular antics: from Yurika's shameless affection for Akito, to Gai's anime-driven robot pilot persona, to Akito's disdain for all the female attention he gets, to Ruri's tendency to label the crew as morons. The comedy in the show is infectious. No one moment is incredibly funny, but you'll find yourself laughing after a few episodes. One of the best comedic devices in the show is the fact that it mocks itself. Gai is the über otaku, when it comes to his favorite show, Gekiganger 3. He is able to sucker Akito into fandom fairly early, and over time, other crew members get sucked in. The best part is that Gekiganger 3 and Nadesico have similar scenes and pilots, almost like the two shows feed off each other. And then there's the irony of being able to relate to the show better because some of its characters are otaku. You might even find yourself a fan of Gekiganger 3, when all is said and done.

The comedy isn't without a downside, though. The show suffers from what I like to call "Tenchi Muyo Syndrome." You have your naíve young male character, and all the female characters which aren't spoken for are inexplicably drawn to him. This type of humor is used far too often, and it's rarely if ever funny.

The serious parts of the story are few and far between, but they are hard-hitting. Akito's general insecurity stems from the fact that he was unable to save a child that he met on Mars, just before he wound up on Earth. Ruri doesn't really know who she is, and so we're treated to a neat side-story involving her. There is a constant power struggle over who controls the Nadesico, and things get even more complicated when the crew makes a discovery about just who the invading army is. Even the serious parts of the story are tied to Gekiganger 3, and there is an interesting contrast between the two shows. The ending of the show resolves one thing, and leaves the rest of the plot threads hanging loose. Whether or not the abrupt ending is deliberate is uncertain, but a good case could be made that it is, and that the other parts of the story aren't as important.

Nadesico's music is unobtrusive and generally not very memorable, with the exception of the opening and closing themes: You Get to Burning, and Watashi Rashiku (True to Myself). The opener is a fast-paced, somewhat 80s style rock song, which begins with a blaring trumpet and the singing almost sounds like something right out of Bubblegum Crisis. The song is performed by Yumi Matsuzawa, who did not have a voice role in the show. The closing song is performed by Houko Kuwashima, who plays Yurika in the show. It's a nice ballad that serves as a compliment to Yurika's personality. A full version of the song is performed in episode 19 of the series.

The character designs for the show were created by Keiji Goto, also known for his work on Gatekeepers. The designs vary wildly from those in the manga by Kia Asamiya (also known for Silent Möbius), but nonetheless are decent. Goto's design of Ruri Hoshino has earned him quite a few fans, even though she's not even a pivotal character in the story. Like most, I found Ruri's design to be far and away the best in the show, followed by Ryoko (a pilot), Gai, and Yurika as a child. It's nice to see that care was taken in the designs of the male characters as well as female, without turning all of them into flaming bishounen. The animation for Nadesico was sufficiently good for showcasing the nice character designs, but did little to stand out on its own. The fact that the show had a TV budget shows, with the recycled footage and shortage of sweeping motions. Scene transitions were done rather nicely, though.

Nadesico is available in a six-disc digipak, or six individual DVDs. ADV really did a nice job on the packaging for each disc, and for the digipak. Extras common in the first four discs are a collection of previews for other ADV shows, biographies for select characters, textless opening and closing sequences, and a Nadesico trailer. The first disc additionally has a set of informative translation notes. The fifth and sixth discs have nothing but the previews for ADV shows.

If I haven't already made it obvious, Nadesico gets a high recommendation from me. The show is fine for children of all ages, and is quite affordable if you snag the Complete Chronicles set from ADV Films. The series has earned a special place in my anime collection, and looks good as a part of anyone's.

Distributor: ADV Films
Creator: Production I.G. (Xebec)
Released: 1996-1997

Plot: B
Character Design: A-
Animation Quality: B
Music: B-
Overall: A-