by John Rendace

Created on: July 27, 2009

Outlaw Star is said to be a space western, but it has nothing in common with a series like Trigun. The protagonist, Gene Starwind, is anything but a crusader for peace and love. Instead, the same studio that produced Cowboy Bebop developed Outlaw Star, and in fact there is a minor cross over between the two anime series. Iris, a minor love interest for Gene, is shown in the Cowboy Bebop episode Heavy Metal Queen as a waitress, as impossible as it may be for the shows to actually canonically exchange characters.

The series also shares the habit of setting a music soundtrack directly to action sequences, which gives the series a sense of motion and urgency. Granted, Outlaw Star is packed with action as it is, and therefore this only serves as the frosting on the cake to the swift pace in this series.

The central plot line focuses on the ne'er-do-well Gene Starwind, who shares his open-ended business with his much younger comrade Jim Hawking. Together, the pair offers to do any job for anyone, regardless of the specifics surrounding the tasks. After they take on a job to guard an outlaw, the duo gets well in over their heads and end up discovering a biologically engineered android by the name of Melfina.

Melfina's shady past, and the starship that the individuals end up gaining control of, lead the crew to outlandish adventures involving space and the evil creatures that inhabit it. The black void of the cosmos also gives them an opportunity to expand their crew with the cat-like Aisha Clanclan and the skilled assassin Suzuka. That is, of course, once they all stop trying to kill each other.

Interestingly enough, most episodes actually start off with a narrative that somehow fits the theme of the episode, though usually incorporates some other facet of the story. The disembodied narrator may comment on the vastness of space, man's relentless push for exploration, or what defines life in a world of sentient machines.

The series has a great deal of warfare both on the ground and in space. The concept of grappler ships is rather unique, which much of the space combat uses large robotic arms attacked to interstellar vessels. A combination of science and magic is used in the terrestrial battles, which are often fought with paranormal firearms that are called Caster Guns in the series.

The series has an overarching quest of finding a mysterious point called the Galatic Leyline, but also has a number of minor plotlines throughout the way. Overall, Outlaw Star is an exciting anime with a lot to offer the science fiction fan.

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