Starship Operators finishes the same way it started – a lot of characters meaning a lot of confusion and several sub-plots that happened way too late, but fortunately two characters and a frantic finale manage to make the ending quite satisfying.
What They Say
Onboard the Amaterasu, the Defence University class prepares for the final clash against the Henrietta Alliance to free Planet Kibi from oppression in this sci-fi anime series.
The Review!
Audio:
For this review I listened to the disc in Japanese. Both English and Japanese tracks are in the standard 2.0 format, the audio in both languages however is crystal clear and couldn’t fault any problems within the transition. Like with other MVM releases, you wonder if the extra mile could have been added with some 5.1 however with the reality show elements (even if their own sound effects) the audio does the job of some excellent background effects and gives that element of believability being on a ship in space.
Video:
Starship Operators is a joy to view, in combining the widescreen effect with CGI and colour, the detail in showcasing some of the visuals gives you an idea of what life could be like in the 2200s with the detail to the computer imagery, the battleships, especially on the final disc considering the final battles. The panning/wide screen effect seemed to enhance the video quality on my screen, making it’s a pleasure to view. There was no timing off with the subtitles or with the on-screen signs in English or Japanese making it a very fluid transition to DVD.
Packaging:
No packaging was supplied with this test disc.
Menu:
We start how we finish with a shot of lead girl Sinon in a sad pose with a computer terminal like screen used as a menu which is easy to navigate and quite standard between play/scenes/set up and extras. Short, simple and does its job. None of the screens change from the starry background when selecting but that’s to be expected considering there really isn’t a change of scenery to be had in space. There are pictures of Sinon, Miyuri and Alley on the extra section, probably to signify one of the image songs that the extras has which is quite attractive.
Extras:
To finish off Starship Operators, there are three noteworthy extras here. We start off with the music video for the image song Bravery Wings, sung by the seiyuu of Sinon, Miyuri, Alley and Dita. A second music video for the song Blue Star, a Sinon image song, is also shown. Both songs are compiled with clips from the show – and whilst they are not the full songs it’s definitely a unique and welcome extra to the set. We also get a textless ending to the final episode with the full length song. As no subtitles to the language as the characters talk through it, I recommend watching the show first before clicking this extra as spoilers and not understand what happened is not a good thing. Finally, there are a couple of trailers for FLCL and Black Lagoon 2nd Barrage.
Content:
Starship Operators has been a mixed bag for me. At times, I’ve really enjoyed some episodes whilst others I’ve been very confused by. The final disc is a combination of both as the shows big weakness rears it’s ugly head in a big fashion but thanks to two characters in particular and an excellent ending, the show manages to salvage some love from me which I didn’t think I would be giving after the first disc.
A 5 episode final disc as the series wraps up when we find out the Kingdom’s leader has died and his second in command, Isabelle is introduced as the most likely person to take charge, adding more to the already large cast. The episode is a combination of the command of power of the Kingdom and the effect the Amaterasu is having on the group, especially Sinon as she was a rock to the group throughout but is now beginning to be completely drained. The head engineer, Touki, is there to cheer her up, and eventually confesses he’s in love with her – which immediately brings up the big problem that a character which has had little to do with the main plot suddenly arrives, confesses to the lead and they get involved in a romantic relationship. To say I was surprised, but not impressed, was an understatement.
To make things more absurd, the group get invited to a neutral area named Maryla where they successfully warped to during the last battle when they escaped. Sinon has cheered up and looking forward to the party whilst at the Kingdom, Isabelle recognised Elroy’s skill and dismisses the cockier yes men of the Conquistador to make way for Elroy’s own personal troupe. Her first cause of action is to send a group of commandos after discovering the Amaterasu’s location to try and ambush it. The ambush ultimately fails, but falls to a certain cliché that Touki, one episode ago who came out of nowhere to be Sinon’s partner, is shot and killed. The weakness shows up again as this storyline was way too rushed, and didn’t make me feel bad for Touki or for Sinon’s tears – it was simply too fast and especially considering the lack of screen time Touki has for the previous episodes. In fact, I could say the same for most of the cast as bar Sinon and Dita, no-one else in this disc really had more than a few moments in the spotlight.
Fortunately, the two who do have the spotlight manage to save both their lives and indeed the show. Dita at first was a reporter working on the regard of her sleazy boss just for the ratings – however she has become part of the crew, and is genuinely saddened by the losses – she knew first hand what a thrill it was being part of the group, and now she feels comfortable with them, especially Sinon. She is very reluctant to help her boss out and all in out lies to him a few times especially during the crucial battle which would have given the game away to the Kingdom. However, Sinon is a strong woman and manages to break out of her funk (albeit again, way too quickly) from Touki’s death and arranges a plan to turn a 5 against one battle on it’s head as the Kingdom’s ships led by the Conquistador, thanks to some white lies from Dita and Sinon’s own intelligence. Sinon herself switches from red to green throughout this series, debating whether she can handle her position, the deaths of comrades and partners, yet her friendships with Miyuri and Dita, her allies with Alley and Cisca, she proves time and time again that she’s a strong woman, one who with little experience prior to this, manages to outfox more experience war personal and gain the respect not only of the crew, but of the enemy as Elroy remarks time and time again of his admiration of her.
After a battle which leaves the Amaterasu badly damaged and the Conquistador blind, it looks like the Amaterasu is going to be destroyed, but just as the Conquistador is about to finish it off, it is told by Isabelle to instead capture it, as it appears that Rio’s uncle Mamiya has organised a deal between the Earth Alliance and the Kingdom, bringing several ships to ‘recover’ it. However, it turns out the Alliance themselves have betrayed both the Amaterasu and the Kingdom, trying to become the new Kingdom. The final episode has a lot of sadness and morals question, as slimeball producer Peter redeems himself somewhat, Elroy and Sinon finally get that conversation of respect I’ve wanted since Elroy was introduced, and Sinon manages to escape the coup d’etat with a plan of her own, but not without sacrifice and a final report from Dita to end the Amaterasu’s journey…
It’s a shame that this series wasn’t longer, it definitely would have benefited from it as the amount of characters and the rushing of several sub-plots, some not even mentioned again afterwards (remember that romance in disc 1? Nope? Neither do I as never mentioned again…) and with the exception of a few characters, I could barely remember their names and had to write them down during the credits. And this disc exemplifies that with the additional of Isabelle which doesn’t add much especially when she also gets taken down during the rebellion, and the romance angle was very tacked on, and just as easily removed. However, thankfully, Sinon herself despite being an uneven character, is a worthy lead, and Dita really proves her worth from ditzy reporter to true friend – these two are probably the only characters who truly got the chance to grow and it proved a worthwhile growth as they are the two architects for the finale which causes final victory, although again, the sacrifice that happens seems a bit rushed and didn’t make me feel sorry for the character in question (Yuuki) because his screen time in the series consisted of this episode and the first. The ending overall however was satisfying and the audio/visual work at the end was superb, so there’s still a lot that can be enjoying for sci-fi fans.
Summary:
Starship Operators is a very confusing series and at the end, with the exception of Dita and Sinon, I’m still having trouble recognising characters by face and name. The final disc doesn’t help much with a lot of rush job clichés and plots which end as quickly as they began. However, Sinon and Dita at least provide a thrilling finale with thoughts being questioned by both of them which leads into some brilliant strategy and a fine finale. It’s a shame that the series didn’t expand longer as it would have benefited considering what they crammed into 13 episodes, but those with a head for sci-fi certainly should give it at least a rent.
Features
Japanese 2.0 Language, English 2.0 Language, English Subtitles, Bravery Wing Music Video, Blue Star Music Video, Textless Ending For The Final Episode
Review Equipment
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