A Look At Space Bros – AOTY?

Well, it’s pretty far through now and I’ve kept up with it since episode 1 – but I never did post a damn thing about it, and this always happens. My favorite shows I tend to not post much about until later on, hell, I took over a year to review H&C (though I did do episode reviews back then) and Nodame (which even to this day is by far what I consider the most perfectly done anime out there) because both just had such a big impact on me and were such fucking amazing masterpieces that I couldn’t think of the words…course, those reviews are gone now thanks to GoDaddy hosting (yeah, fuck you).

Point is, Space Bros is another one of those for me. This show is so full of some of the most “real” characters I’ve seen in any entertainment, so full of such real and powerful emotions that entirely get across to the viewer in full, and just so fucking full of passion. It’s a beautiful show, that’s really the only word that works to describe it. It’s a lot of things, but in the end, that’s the best word for it. The emotion and passion just get into you so easily, and there’s no fighting it. Mutta and his motivations, Hibito and his motivations, Serika and her motivations, Kenji and his motivations, Apo, Ozzy, that really anime-looking-guy who is chill, that older guy working for JAXA who got Mutta in, and everyone fucking else. Every single character in this show is real, has real motivations, has real worries, real personality, and has a real LIFE. These characters don’t come off as characters at all, they come off as human fucking beings – and not just any human beings, but ones you truly give a shit about and want to see succeed, want to see live happy, want to see achieve their dreams – these aren’t just people to the viewer, they are loved ones and best friends. It’s shows like this that remind me why I love anime so fucking much.

Each and every episode is full of everything you could ask for without making it ever out of place, awkward, or unrealistic. In a single day in real life you’ll go through so many ups and downs and all sorts of other directions – and that’s all here, both for the characters and for the viewers. And one thing every single episode has, without being cheesy, is a moment that entirely gets to you in one way or another. It’ll have you feeling terrible, worrying, laughing your ass off, feeling so fucking excited, proud, motivated as hell, or simply FUCK YEAH’ing at your monitor. And always, above all else, it’s a show that really makes you empathize with the characters on both a conscious and subconscious level. Everything they deal with is so real and something – even if not in these exact situations – we all have gone through, dealt with, or felt before in some way. There’s no getting away from feeling SOMETHING when watching an episode of Space Bros, even on it’s off days.

This show, even though it’s not done, is truly looking to be a masterpiece, and I think it might already be for me. I really love the fact it’s more of a full life story instead of just a “slice” of life as well as we see them develop from childhood to the present (through lots of flashbacks). It’s one of a kind and the execution of every little bit of it, the direction, the pacing, the music, the voice acting, every member of the cast, everything is just so fucking perfectly crafted to do more than just be ‘an anime’ – but to be an EXPERIENCE. It’s almost like you’re a third brother or parent watching these two so closely and intimately achieve their dreams while going through all life has to offer in the bad and the good, you aren’t just some audience member, you feel a real connection to the cast – especially Mutta.

Hell, I want Mutta to succeed almost as badly as I wanted to see my brother become a pilot (which he did), and the show to have such an even just close to as strong connection as I have to my REAL brother is a big fucking deal and not something just any anime could pull off. Maybe my actual connection with my real brother helps make this show even better, because while we don’t share the same dreams or goals, if you flip Mutta and Hibito’s situation, these two are pretty familiar territory. A show that can even make me wonder that maybe it’s making me connect it to my personal life on that level is something really special.

Space Bros is a show I truly do love and one of the only shows in a very long time I cared so deeply about. No matter what your tastes are or how it seems, please check this show out if you haven’t yet, it’s hilarious, it’s sad, it’s moving, it’s everything – and maybe after watching some of it you’ll start to Feel So Moon as well.