Space Pirate Captain Harlock Discussion Thread

[Vicserr]

It's time to give this site some old school education using one of the greatest space operas of the late 70's... 1978 Space Pirate Captain Harlock, created by Leiji Matsumoto (Space BattleShip Yamato, Galaxy Express 999)

Official Site (http://www.toei-anim.co.jp/lineup/tv/captain_h/)
ANN (http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=1238)

Ok, I see you're wondering how I'll be able to watch this great classic legally...

You can visit Funimation.com (http://www4.funimation.com/video/?page=show&b=278) or Crunchyroll.com (http://www.crunchyroll.com/library/Captain_Harlock)


Note (borrowed from Shikieiki Yamaxanadu)
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[Vicserr]

The year is 2977, Earth is a prosperous planet, it's filled by ppl full of apathy and only thinking about fulfilling their needs as television is filled with subliminal messages to keep the populace docile, it's food grown on farm planets and brought to Earth, the few ppl that want to go beyond the status quo and go to the sea of stars are branded as bandits, the Greatest of them all is Captain Harlock.

The Star Ship Arcadia intercepts a cargo ship full of food, jewels and booze from a farm planet, taking the food and spacing the rest of the cargo... to the chagrin of Dr Zero (who like all Matsumoto's doctors, is a Boozehead) Astronomers are being murdered as a strange object is heading toward Earth and our valiant space pirate returns to Earth to celebrate the birthday of a good friend's Daughter, the cute girl named Mayu, with the entire Earth Defense Force wanting to capture him.

[Vicserr]

A resource fleet from one of the farm planets in route to Earth is destroyed by unidentified forces, Commander Kirita of course thinks is was Harlock, the Arcadia intercepts and destroys the UFO, Harlock and the famous astronomer Prof. Daiba are worried that the object approaching Earth is something more than a mere meteor, Kirita and the School headmistress try to force Mayu to contact Harlock, and the Arcadia makes a last ditch effort to destroy the black sphere.

[Vicserr]

The Black Sphere has impacted Earth, Prof. Daiba is trying desperately to make the Higher Ups of the Government see that the sphere is the harbringer of an alien invasion as a shadowy figure follows him and his son. As Prof Daiba takes his results to the Central research center, he's murdered by the Black cloaked woman, who also tries to eliminate Tadashi Daiba but is saved by Harlock and her body burns, and they both learn the origins of the Black Sphere and we get the guided tour of the Space Pirate Ship Arcadia as it faces the first Assault wave of Mazone ships.

[Gundamhead]

Hey! Aren't you only supposed to do one episode per week? I wouldn't mind participating in this, but I don't want to watch that fast!

[Vicserr]

Hey! Aren't you only supposed to do one episode per week? I wouldn't mind participating in this, but I don't want to watch that fast!

Sorry, just building some lead time ;)
I'll let the feet off the gas :sweat: but I'm excited because this will be my first full viewing since my youth in the 80's.

[Daniel_Perales]

Hey! Aren't you only supposed to do one episode per week? I wouldn't mind participating in this, but I don't want to watch that fast!

Sorry, just building some lead time ;)
I'll let the feet off the gas :sweat: but I'm excited because this will be my first full viewing since my youth in the 80's.

Funny you should mention that.:catgirl:

I just finished watching the entire show about 3 weeks ago (the very first time that I've seen the whole thing in it's entirety).

I remember discovering this show when it was being broadcast on a local UHF station here in NYC at around 1979 or 80, sub-titled, too. This was also the very first time that I was exposed to Leiji Matsumoto's work as well ("Star Blazers" came soon right after).

Great show.


Danny

[Garasharp K7]

Heh. Harlock is not a show where you can watch just one episode and then leave it for a day, let alone a week. :) I went through half the series last weekend. It's got that 'just one more ep' vibe that keeps you coming back each time. Trouble is, one ep isn't enough...
I was fortunate that the show was run three times a week back when I first saw it in the late '80s. (and with a repeat omnibus on weekends too) I didn't have to wait too long for my fix back then. :)
I never saw Star Blazers growing up, so Harlock was my first exposure to Matsumoto's works as well.

[Garasharp K7]

The Black Sphere has impacted Earth, Prof. Daiba is trying desperately to make the Higher Ups of the Government see that the sphere is the harbringer of an alien invasion as a shadowy figure follows him and his son. As Prof Daiba takes his results to the Central research center, he's murdered by the Black cloaked woman, who also tries to eliminate Tadashi Daiba but is saved by Harlock and her body burns, and they both learn the origins of the Black Sphere and we get the guided tour of the Space Pirate Ship Arcadia as it faces the first Assault wave of Mazone ships.

Bah! what feckless morons these earthlings are! A great sphere descends from the heavens, crushing an entire city, presumably killing thousands - and do they do anything about it? Do they think there's something amiss? Well, no. Not really. As long as they've got their dog races and golf courses, then it's all good right? Ya have to wonder whether Earth is worth saving at all....

Anyway, I reckon we all have a good few memorable anime moments that stick with us over the years - those scenes that stay etched in our brains from the first time we see them; Professor Daiba's assassination and the gaunt spectral Mazone hiding in the shadows is one such scene for me. Can't forget her bursting into flames either. The show had loads of other memorable scenes, but I'll comment on those when more eps are discussed later.

[Isuzu Inugami]

The Star Ship Arcadia intercepts a cargo ship full of food, jewels and booze from a farm planet, taking the food and spacing the rest of the cargo... to the chagrin of Dr Zero (who like all Matsumoto's doctors, is a Boozehead)

Heh, everyone on the Arcadia is a boozehead! I especially love it when Mime looks a little flushed.

our valiant space pirate returns to Earth to celebrate the birthday of a good friend's Daughter, the cute girl named Mayu, with the entire Earth Defense Force wanting to capture him.

This is insane, which is why I love it. He busts through the defense forces just to wish her a happy birthday.

Also, Mayu comes from an strange earlier era in which panty shots were entirely innocent.

[Vicserr]

Tadashi Daiba returns to Earth, Harlock gives him a beacon to call them if he ever wants to come back to Arcadia, Commander Kiruta tries to capture Harlock, but the entire defense force is on Holiday :rolleyes: ... Tadashi tries once again with the help of Prof Kusko to make the goverment see the Mazone threat. The Mazone eliminate Prof Kusko just outside the Earth Goverment building just as Tadashi is arrested by Kiruta, after pleading with the President for an escort for Prof Kusko, on charges of being a Harlock Collaborator, he escapes and is attacked by a Mazone agent, Tadashi makes a decision that will change his life forever.

[Vicserr]

Tadashi Daiba has joined Captain Harlock's crusade to defend Earth but finds out that being part of the crew of a Space Pirate Ship is not what he thought it would be, we get more insight in the tragedy that took the life of Tadashi's mother, Kiruta tries again to destroy Harlock, we get a peek at human relations, Harlock Style and how to become A MAN!!! and we witness first contact with the enemy.

[Vicserr]

Tadashi goes to flight school, Harlock style. The crew take a rest on an asteroid base, but the Mazone aren't far behind them, we see how Harlock keeps contact with Mayu and how he met Miime as the Mazone lay a trap.

[Vicserr]

The Planet Earth looks strange from space, a strange disturbance off the coast of Bermuda is the cause, The Arcadia descends to investigate and discover an ancient pyramid under the sea with the same writing as the Black Sphere, they also discover the level of Mazone infiltration on Earth and do something about it.

[Vicserr]

Energy Wawes are emanatting from the Black Sphere and the Under Water Pyramid, Harlock located the Mazone main fleet, A Mazone Messenger asks Harlock to return to Earth, She is captured and let go, but Tadashi desides to pursue her in his quest for revenge, and shock and some oxygen depravation can play some nasty stuff in your mind as a Mazone fleet tempts Harlock to attack it on the egde of the galaxy.

[Vicserr]

After Defeating the Mazone Advance fleet, the Arcadia returns to Earth, Dr. Zero discovers that the Mazone are plant life forms and that large concentrations of them are scattered around ancient ruins across the world, Harlock sends Daiba, Yuki, Yattran and Wawa the robot to pick up an ancient artifact to study the relationship between the Mazone and Earth.