Publisher: Panorama (Hong Kong)Format: Region 3 DVD, NTSC, Japanese Dialogue with optional Cantonese dub and English, Chinese (Traditional and Simplified) Subtitles.
Length: 4 Episodes x 28 minutes
Production Date: 2006 – 2007
Currently in Print (as of writing): Yes
Looking back on the little blurb I wrote for the original TV series of this show over a year ago, I said; “the problem with modern (well, stuff made since the 1990's) Leiji Matsumoto stuff is that it doesn't translate very well for the 21st century. A lot of the values and how the characters interact with each other are very 1970's Japan, especially the way men are supposed to act. Because of the emphasis on that in the initial episodes, it was cliché land galore there for a while and I rolled my eyes a lot at what was happening on screen. If this show was made in the late 1970's, I would have probably accepted it, but as it was a 2003 show, I rejected just about everything. It did improve a great deal after a while and was really good by the end, but still it seemed really out of place at times for a show made 7 years ago”. Maybe I was a bit harsh, but generally this is true. I had no plans seeking out either sequels (the OVA or second TV series), however I am a sucker for unusual anime releases in English, particularly if they haven’t been released in the US. This OVA series also got a BD release in Hong Kong. As well as this DVD release.
The story of this OVA series follows on from the original series. In fact it’s meant to serve as a bridge between both TV series. While the initial focus revolves around the SDF Sirius Platoon’s training in which new recruit Kilian Black botches an attempted mock rescue of hostages on a train, the focus soon switches to the Galaxy Express 999, where on the planet Diquette, Maetel and Tetsuro decide to explore the stop over world on their own rather than together. In a bar Tetsuro befriends a group of retiring postal workers. One shows him an undelivered letter he has had for several years which has no address or sender on it. Tetsuro momentarily sees a name on it however the name soon vanishes. Because of this the old postal worker decided to give it to him in the hope that he will find the recipient. Tetsuro boards 999, but can’t find Maetel anywhere. He believes that she has travelled to the nearby planet of Herise and pleads with the conductor to land, but the conductor states that it is forbidden to go there. However Tetsuro is insistent and the conductor agrees to talk with the engine. But a beam is fired from Herise and hits the 999, causing it to seemingly rust and fall, and to crash land on the planet’s surface.
After investigating some very mysterious occurrences where forests, oceans and beaches appear in space in front of Galaxy Railways trains, the SDF Sirius Platoon are ordered to investigate the crash of the 999 and save its occupants. Meanwhile Tetsuro wakes to find he was thrown from the train upon impact. He notices two machine men trying to make off the conductor on a hovering platform, and attempt to stop them. Unfortunately in the ensuing scuffle, Tetsuro falls from a great height off the platform into the forest below. Meanwhile the SDF Sirius Platoon have arrived at the site of the 999 crash. Manabu Yuuki and Kilian search for the passengers (seriously only Maetel and Tetsuro and the conductor are aboard that train) and eventually come across Tetsuro. After some misunderstands which lead Tetsuro to think they are linked with the machine men, the two take him aboard. But the Galaxy Railway’s effective leader, Leila Destiny Shura, orders them to leave as the company has no jurisdiction on the planet. Horrified that the conductor and Maetel will be left on the planet, Tetsuro escapes top same them. He later joins up with Kilian who has also gone AWOL. He has a close connection with the 999 and feels completed to save its occupants. Meanwhile a strange wave called the Tsunami of Time is hurtling towards the planet, seemingly able to erase everything in its wake. Unbeknownst to nearly everyone is that the 999, the abductors of the conductor and Maetel, Kilian and the Tsunami of Time are all interconnected.
As I said before, I think pretty much all of the Leiji Matsumoto anime that has been released since the late 1990’s has been rather disappointing. It’s the general values and attitudes expressed by the characters which seem really out of place in the 21st century. Yet it’s odd as I can watch old stuff like the original 999 movie and it does have that same hokey feeling. In fact it feels more genuine and believable. Why is that? It’s it because of the aged look of the animation that it actually feels right and I can accept it because I immediately know it’s from the late 1970’s? It must be, that’s the only reason why I guess. Like a lot of Matsumoto stuff, there’s this highly unbelievable “space fantasy” stuff going on in the plot which is really absurd. I suppose if you can accept trains roaming in outer space, you can accept disembodied giant female spirits and tsunamis of time. It just seems a little daft to me. Of course like all good Lejjiverse material, the continuity is rather questionable in relation to his other works, but then again I suppose that’s not the point. It’s a fun OVA and in fact I think I might have enjoyed this a lot more than the original TV series. Just don’t expect a coherent or believable resolution to the story. The explanation of who Kilian’s “father” was a little hard to swallow. The subs on this disc are pretty good, but a little Engrishy at times. 6 out of 10.
Remaining Backlog: 27 months (it's much easier this way than listing the number of discs).
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