In Space No One Can Hear You Clean - Planetes Simulwatch (Episode 26 - Finale)

D1tchd1gger

D1tchd1gger

Shrine Maiden
Planetes is a 2003 anime series from the studio behind Gundam, Sunrise. It was directed by Gorou Taniguchi (Code Geass, Back Arrow) and adapted by writer Ichirou Ookouchi (Code Geass and Devilman Crybaby) from the 4 volume manga by Makoto Yukimura (Vinland Saga).

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Box art for the Japanese Blu-ray release

Planetes_manga_vol_1.jpg

Cover of volume 1 of the manga​

Synopsis
In 2075, space travel is no longer just a dream, but an everyday reality for mankind. Advancements in science and technology have led to the colonization of the moon, the commercialization of outer space, and the formation of large space corporations. Ai Tanabe, an upbeat woman whose interests lie in the cosmos, joins Technora Corporation as a member of their Debris Section, a department dedicated to the removal of dangerous space junk between the orbits of the Earth and Moon.

However, Ai soon discovers how unappreciated her job is. As the laughingstock of Technora, the Debris Section is severely understaffed, poorly funded, and is forced to use a dilapidated spaceship nicknamed the "Toy Box" for debris retrieval. Undeterred, Ai perseveres and gradually becomes acquainted with the strange personalities that make up the Debris Section's staff, such as the bumbling but good-natured chief clerk Philippe Myers; the mysterious and tight-lipped temp worker Edelgard Rivera; and the hotheaded and passionate Hachirouta Hoshino, who longs for a spaceship to call his own.

Planetes is an unconventional sci-fi series that portrays the vastness of space as a backdrop for the personal lives of ordinary people—people who may have been born on Earth, but whose hopes and dreams lie amongst the stars.

myanimelist.net

Planetes

In 2075, space travel is no longer just a dream, but an everyday reality for mankind. Advancements in science and technology have led to the colonization of the moon, the commercialization of outer space, and the formation of large space corporations. Ai Tanabe, an upbeat woman whose interests...
myanimelist.net myanimelist.net
myanimelist.net

Planetes

Haunted by a space flight accident that claimed the life of his beloved wife, Yuri finds himself six years later as part of a team of debris cleaners on a vessel called the Toy Box charged with clearing space junk from space flight paths. The team consists of Hachimaki, a hot shot debris-man...
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There are 26 episodes in the series and we'll be watching one episode a day in 4 blocks with the following schedule:
EpisodeDate
1May 12
2May 13
3May 14
4May 15
5May 16
6May 17
BreakMay 18
7May 19
8May 20
9May 21
10May 22
11May 23
12May 24
BreakMay 25
13May 26
14May 27
15May 28
16May 29
17May 30
18May 31
BreakJune 1
19June 2
20June 3
21June 4
22June 5
23June 6
24June 7
25June 8
26June 9

So grab your spacesuits and prepare for launch!
 
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I'll likely not be watching the show this time, but I do have fond memories of Planetes, so I'll try to follow the thread to see what folk think of it.

At the risk of casual backseatting, it could be worth spoiler tagging that MAL synopsis for the manga though. I've never gotten around to reading it, but I think it foregrounds Yuri a lot more than the show does, so that description might be a minor spoiler for the anime.
 
Professor Irony said:
MAL synopsis
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It's literally the opening scene in both, I guess that's why it's in the synopsis, but as a lot of people haven't watched and want to be fresh I think you're right.

The manga focuses a lot more on Hachi than I remember from the anime, which I seem to remember focuses more on Ai.
 
Episode 1
The opening sets up the reason why the cleaning up of the space debris is so important with the showing of an accident with a space airliner. The year is 2068, so they seemed have picked a decent year as space passenger flight is only now getting closer to reality now over 20 years after the first chapter came out. The cleaning of space junk is also coming close to being a thing, but later than passenger flights, let's hope that the accident doesn't also come true!
Manga note: This first scene is from the first few pages of the manga, which goes on to expand much more on the aftermath of the incident in the first chapter and I can't remember if the anime goes back to it, so I'll blank the rest. The man seen leaving the passenger compartment is Yuri and the woman with the necklace (a compass) is his wife who dies as a result of the accident. Yuri being in a different part of the aircraft survives and 6 years later goes back with the crew of the Toy Box and retrieves the necklace.

The rest of the first half of the episode is quite comical and sets up Ai as a bit of an airhead at first, but also a bit of a by the book attitude, it also shows that whilst it's an important job it doesn't make money so the staff have to make do and mend, much like many important jobs back down here on Earth!
Manga note: These scenes are entirely anime original (We don't even meet Ai till chapter 7 when Ai is a rookie on her first space walk).
After taking a quick flick through, I think the 2 managers and the temp are anime original too. Whilst there's funny moments in the manga it never goes straight up comedy like some of the scenes in this half.

Time for Ai's first space walk and it's sink or swim. The show takes a more serious turn with the talk of peace and war, and showing Ai's nievety and Hachi's matter of factness.
Manga note: The scene is fairly similar with Ai's speechifying, but about a different subject and her lack of control in the suit. There's a nice nod to a scene from the manga not shown when Hachi asks Ai if she has her sick bag as she pukes on him in the manga after her first space walk is over 😂

Overall a nice introduction to the crew and their job.
 
Episode 1
Great introduction to the show, story and characters. The spinning screw reminded me of 2001: A Space Odyssey. It's kinda funny to think how our trash can extend beyond the physical planet. I've come into this show blind, but from the opening scene, I could tell it was a 2000's show (2003 to be exact). 'Diaper Girl' is eager to get going, and put with the 'misfits' at the literal bottom, let's see how she handles this situation.

The one thing that made me smile instantly was the idea of using the earth's atmosphere as a furnace, genius. I'm looking forward to the rest of the show, the character interactions and ideas that can come from cleaning up trash in space.
 
Planetes(Sub)- First timer
Episode 1
First time I‘m watching this series and I’m loving the premise of it cleaning up rubbish in space.Learned stuff too. Found the interaction between Ai and Hachi both very interesting and hilarious.The rest of the characters looking interesting and I’m liking the realistic atmosphere here. Looking forward to seeing how this goes! This series has got me intrigued and interested to see how the character development goes.
 
Episode 1
First time viewer

I really need to see where this goes, I am not a huge fan of whacky comedy so I hope that doesn't become too much of a feature with the half-section crew, strange or eccentric as they might be, I do prefer my cast to be more serious.

I am going to withhold much commentary until I've had a chance to gel with it for at least 2-3 episodes.
 
Lordhippos said:
Episode 1
First time viewer

I really need to see where this goes, I am not a huge fan of whacky comedy so I hope that doesn't become too much of a feature with the half-section crew, strange or eccentric as they might be, I do prefer my cast to be more serious.

I am going to withhold much commentary until I've had a chance to gel with it for at least 2-3 episodes.
Click to expand...

You'll be OK then, there's a couple of clown characters, of course but it becomes mostly about relationships between characters. It's pretty good.
 
Episode 1

Really enjoyed the first half of the epsiode which did a great job of setting the scene and placing our misfit heros firmly at the bottom of the pile. The team dynamic and general lowly status whilst doing a very important job kind of reminded me of shows like Patlabor.

The second half started to really grate on me though. When the main character started getting all preachy about the right and wrongs of space junk I got very annoyed. Surely personality tests would have stopped someone like her ever becoming a debris astronaut? It just doesn't make sense to me. I'm glad she backed down and did the job shes supposed too (sort of, she just sat there and did nothing) but it would packed more weight if it had still been a meaningful plaque. I'm definitely liking the rest of the cast far more than her at the moment. Its life or death out there you cant be acting like a self entitled prima donna in space.

The animation is great and some of those visuals were awesome. I really like the design work too. The space suits look so functional!
 
Episode 1
Another first time viewer here. Liking the concept of the series so far with the clean-up of space debris, not so much the preaching from the main character, as @WMD discusses above. Will hold further more extensive thoughts until I’ve watched a few episodes to get a feel for the series.
 
D1tchd1gger said:
Episode 1
The man seen leaving the passenger compartment is Yuri and the woman with the necklace (a compass) is his wife who dies as a result of the accident. Yuri being in a different part of the aircraft survives and 6 years later goes back with the crew of the Toy Box and retrieves the necklace.
Click to expand...

This is definitely in the anime, yeah.
 
Episode 2
The training arc!
More of a look into Hachi in this episode and his original motivation to go into space. His friend getting a promotion puts a bit of a dent in his confidence, but he saves the day by finishing the job from his first mission.
Manga note: Pretty much all original here apart from Hachi wanting to buy a ship and his first mission slightly echoing Ai's in that she hits the side of the Toy Box whilst spinning out of control, but it's more of a comical thing than the seriousness in the anime. Also the line about finding the centre of gravity both to and then from Hachi is a line used in the manga.

WMD said:
When the main character started getting all preachy about the right and wrongs of space junk I got very annoyed. Surely personality tests would have stopped someone like her ever becoming a debris astronaut
Click to expand...
I think it's just to show how nieve and idealist she is, but she's also a bit aimless when it comes to her career so far with just a vague idea of "pushing herself" as a reason for joining up, but then coming bottom of the class. She then gets shoved into the debris section because of this, showing how little value the company perceive the section is worth.

Hachi seems to be the complete opposite, he had a clear dream, but the 3 years working in the debris section has turned him into much more of a pragmatist.
 
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