Anime Review: Harlock saga
Review Harlock saga
In the distant future Alberech is hatching a scheme to gain revenge and control the universe. This starts out with an entire city being destroyed to find the location of a gold ingot. This is not any ordinary gold however, this the Rhein gold and it has the power to unmake the universe. Captain Harlock and the Arcadia are brought into this plot by the fact that the ship's navigator, Meeme is Alberech's sister. This adventure promises to be the biggest that Harlock has been involved in, since not only does it determine the fate of the universe, but Harlock will also confront the god of gods, Wotan.
Based on Richard Wagner's Ring of Niebelung, Harlock saga is a Space Opera on more than one level. While I have never personally seen the Ring of the Niebelung, from what I can tell Harlock saga tries to follow the original Opera the best it can given it's space setting. The biggest problem with this Oav is that the beginning of the story moves rather slowly. Harlock saga is an interesting enough tale if you have the patience to get to the climax of the story. The other potential problem is that Harlock saga requires that you know the characters of the Leiji Matusmoto Universe beforehand or some of the cameos will throw you for a loop. If you get the DVD version of Harlock saga this problem is mitigated by the character profiles section in the option menu.
The animation for Harlock saga is an interesting contradiction. While Harlock saga is the product of newer animation techniques it still manages to stay true to the character designs that have been used since the early seventies. The other thing to mention is that since this Oav is based off of a famous opera you will find some of it's works in the Oav. Some people say that "the ride of the valkeries" overused but when it is done to highlight the battle between Wotan and Alberech it deserves to be used.
Harlock saga a different Oav then most, do to it's Opera connection. It is also a good example of what the work of Leiji Matsumoto have to offer. Despite it's minor flaws I have found Harlock saga to be an enjoyable show well worth renting and buying if you have to. I give Harlock saga a rating of good/ very good.