There is a mystery to Stellvia. It might be that I feel pretty obsessive over little details but every time I look back at this series I discover something new that justifies the many weaknesses from which it suffered. Rather than look UP at the stars Id rather be looking FORWARD at them. 91/100 This is the tagline of our protagonist Shima Katase your typical 24th century teenage dreamer. She has just been granted an opportunity to participate as a candidate pilot with the Space Academy at the Stellvia foundation a massive space station built just outside the perimeter of Earth. As we watch her grow up we also witness Mankinds fight for survival as a catastrophe 189 years prior has united all of mankind against the greatest it has ever faced. One of the most exciting things about this show is how well it stands up in regards to a story line. While it may not have the extended universe of Mobile Suit Gundam and the bajillion spinoff of alternative universes inspired Uchuu no Stellvia keeps its charm by staying simple. While it may not have the fantastic battles of Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu the adrenaline rush of momentssuch as the beloved episode 6keeps Stellvias heroes on par with the legends. It also may not have the intricate realistic detail of Planetes or Uchuu Kyoudai but the imagination and intention of Akizuki Ryo proves a degree of originality that allows the series to compete. Needless to say that Uchuu no Stellvia does take on a teenage romance to some extent. This part of the story isnt really vividly explored but it is offered in samples to us as an opportunity for character and plot development. We begin to see Shimas inner monologue more clearly as more and more difficulties arise for her. It is pleasant to behold a romance avoiding the plague of triangles and power struggles but rather focused on the little things between couples that remind us of our own circumstances. Beware of gushy teenagers and emotionless blobs. 65/100 Shimas great. Really she has a believable personalityup until teenage rage pops into her head. While Uchuu no Stellvia tries to relate to its audience through teenage romance and drama it often times reaches a cheese factor that could rival soap operas. Seriouslytoo many times in this series does a character breakdown result in some sort of incessant pounding into our skulls about how badly we should feel for them. Theres even a FRIGGIN EPISODE dedicated to this crying service the eversohated episode 19 Crybaby Hothead. Perhaps Id always been too old mentally for this undertaking but considering the dwindled fanbase it wouldnt really even matter if I was. 320http://i201.photobucket.com/albums/aa288/reversethieves/Stellvia02.jpg NO LIEZYEP. Which also leads to the point that almost nobody is as believable as Shima and Ayaka in this entire series. Shimas battle with her ego feels real as does Ayaka with her pride. Kouta was an utter disappointment if not almost a sham because of his general dryness. Yayoi Rinna Akira and Arisa are fairly forgettable and interesting ones like JoJo or Pierre arent really explored too greatly. Whats worse is that nearly all the adults are literally one dimensional and the blatant fact that the series couldnt contribute enough focus on them demonstrated how much budget was focused on a target group of potential watchers rather than artful expression. I would normally excuse that a series as vivid as this one didnt have enough time but there was a great deal of this full season anime focused on depicting crybabying and logs. Unfortunately it is the inexcusable fault of tasteless fanservice and poor direction. Space is so pretty in this series. 80/100 Character animation is pretty consistent with its time period. The eye sizes are rather strange and the direction technique is pretty straightforward with little artistic spontaneity. I do feel though that the space feel of this anime is really prevalent. Unlike many series which might focus a bit on looking at pretty pictures of the universe or wasting ENTIRE episodes pasting spaceship battles and planets in the background Uchuu no Stellvia stays conservative of the views of space and inherits its beauty by the nature of life of its characters. Rather than explaining to us in great detail the methods of travel or methods of clothing our characters just simply do these things. They get into gigantic rockets that ship them across the void of space or take turns navigating an obstacle course as though they were in gym class on Earth. Combined with the music this provides some of the strongest appeal of the entire series. Seikou Nagaoka: an unsung hero. 90/100 Hes the same awesomeness that composed the music for Strike Witches Battle Programmer Shirase El Hazard: The Magnificent World and well not my favorite but Kore ga Watashi no Goshujinsama. While many of the franchises he has written for arent all that particularly amazing it is important to say that his background music and compositional style definitely adds to the vigor of every series. While Strike Witches is 99.9 fanservice as it is now it would be 99.9999 fanservice without Nagaoka. In the same light Uchuu no Stellvia would be 1/3 of the science fiction it is without this music. Many an anime fan will rave on about the OP and ED both of which Ive heard for a long time and have grown weary of unfortunately. As proof of lasting quality though there is a particular track that plays during underdog moments its been forever since Ive had the OST so I cant remember but adds a great deal of charm to the first arc of the series. At emotional parts or times of crisis little jingles on the piano aid the atmosphere with a great deal of tonal body and color. During the eyecatchers in between commercial breaks little scifi diddies by Nagaoka remind us that the series is actually about space. Overall its a hell of a package and adds a certain kick of Stellvias OST which could serve as a reminder of the originality when the series gets rebooted someday. A great treat for the new and the old. Just make sure youre mentally prepared for melodrama. 99/100 And that really is all that ever could have been wrong with Uchuu no Stellvia. The depth of storyline and creativity could be well received by most otaku and scifi nerds especially girls who seem to have a particular fascination with space. The title suffered simply from just being too attached to teenage melodrama which turned off a significant portion of its potential fanbase in the process. I suggest this to be a sort of weekender spree when you might have the patience to deal with the poor characters and the strong desire to feel immersed into another universe. With Stellvia its almost like you could live in the future right now.