Synopsis
Martian Successor Nadesico is the story of a spaceship and its somewhat unlikely crew that begins on a journey to Mars, which has been occupied by aliens. Their mission is to discover the fate of the humans that lived there before the invasion and to search for and rescue any possible survivors. Of course, that’s just basic background information. Really, Nadesico is about the crew themselves and their own personal journies and relationships. The main character, Akito, has the most to deal with and the longest to travel, dealing with a frightful past and an uncertain future.

Review
Nadesico is an anime with a lot of genres. It’s mech action, it’s drama, but more than anything else, it’s comedy. The way the characters behave and interact is very fun. Even in the most dramatic moments the comedy is there, which is a double-edged sword. You might say that the comedy cheapens the drama and spoils the serious moments. But on the other hand, the comedy is part of what draws you in towards the beginning of the series when things are more frequently light-hearted. Still, in an anime as funny as this one it is a bit shocking when things go wrong. Almost unbelievable even. A couple events occur that make you think, ‘Did that really happen?’ And then you’re left with this worry in the back of your mind that things aren’t as light-hearted as they seem. But then they are. So it’s a little confusing.

Putting all that aside, Nadesico has a lot of great characters. Akito is an interesting unlikely hero type that the rest of the cast grows attached to. Ruri is a child-prodigy with a mysterious past. Yurika is the Nadesico’s ditzy captain who constantly claims that Akito is in love with her. The list goes on to include the mech pilots and others who are all very interesting.

Then there’s Gekiganger 3, the anime within the anime that has way too much impact on the storyline. It plays an almost rediculous role, especially towards the end of the series. I’ll spare you the details though since I don’t want to spoil anything.

Beyond that is the presentation which is of high quality. Good artwork and animation is complimented by a talented voice cast and decent soundtrack.

When it’s all over, Nadesico doesn’t really follow the path expected of it, but it does manage to remain an entertaining adventure.

The Breakdown
Nadesico is a worthwhile comedy with fun characters and some interesting story elements.