Planetes (Ancient Greek for wanderers, planets) most likely is the most realistic space anime of all time. For me, that was the point that initially sold me to watch this series, especially after the first episodes didn't make much of an expression.
So, taking care of the negative first, those first six episodes are probably the only thing that isn't excellent about Planetes. They're not necessarily bad, just fairly trivial and silly. Nevertheless, these episodes introduce most of the important and recurring characters, like the two protagonists Ai Tanabe and Hachirota "Hachimaki" Hoshino, and the other members of the "Debris Section" they work for. Some of these first episodes aren't all that bad either, though I personally loathe the sixth one ("The Lunar Flying Squirrels").
From that low point, the quality in narrative content steadily increases. An overarching plot line starts develop and comes into full effect around episode twelve ("A Modest Request"), though it isn't until episode sixteen or seventeen that the episodes stop being episodical and instead tell a continuous story. The last few episodes feature a very strong narrative with a surprising amount of tension that I never would've expected from the series' beginning.
Like many reviewers highlight, the shining star of Planetes is the faithful depiction of space flight. There're no Faster Than Light or Artificial Gravity gizmos, just what can be explained with our current understanding of physics and extrapolated from current technologies. I'm sure a layperson could learn a lot about space travel from the series alone without being bogged down by dry explanations; as an astrophysicist I was giddy throughout the series whenever Planetes took something into account that most other series and movies would just gloss over.
The production value of Planetes is also fairly high. I loved the visuals (especially those of space stations and space ships), the soundtrack is very good, and even the English voice actors range from pretty good to excellent. Admittedly, for that last point it is noticeable that the dubbing budget wasn't extensive; all the characters sound pretty US-American, even though the characters come from all over the world. Then again, it's probably a boon that we don't have to fight through Russian and South American and Japanese accents all the time.
Another thing that's an immense plus in my eye is the lack of fan service. The sexiest thing you'll encounter is normal people wearing normal clothes with normal camera angles. No out-of-nowhere nudity, no boob shots, no eroticism at all. While the humour feels at times a bit forced and overdone (especially in that infamous episode six), Planetes clearly isn't a show specifically targeted at horny teenagers but highly enjoyable even for the "traditional grandparent" type of person.
So, taking care of the negative first, those first six episodes are probably the only thing that isn't excellent about Planetes. They're not necessarily bad, just fairly trivial and silly. Nevertheless, these episodes introduce most of the important and recurring characters, like the two protagonists Ai Tanabe and Hachirota "Hachimaki" Hoshino, and the other members of the "Debris Section" they work for. Some of these first episodes aren't all that bad either, though I personally loathe the sixth one ("The Lunar Flying Squirrels").
From that low point, the quality in narrative content steadily increases. An overarching plot line starts develop and comes into full effect around episode twelve ("A Modest Request"), though it isn't until episode sixteen or seventeen that the episodes stop being episodical and instead tell a continuous story. The last few episodes feature a very strong narrative with a surprising amount of tension that I never would've expected from the series' beginning.
Like many reviewers highlight, the shining star of Planetes is the faithful depiction of space flight. There're no Faster Than Light or Artificial Gravity gizmos, just what can be explained with our current understanding of physics and extrapolated from current technologies. I'm sure a layperson could learn a lot about space travel from the series alone without being bogged down by dry explanations; as an astrophysicist I was giddy throughout the series whenever Planetes took something into account that most other series and movies would just gloss over.
The production value of Planetes is also fairly high. I loved the visuals (especially those of space stations and space ships), the soundtrack is very good, and even the English voice actors range from pretty good to excellent. Admittedly, for that last point it is noticeable that the dubbing budget wasn't extensive; all the characters sound pretty US-American, even though the characters come from all over the world. Then again, it's probably a boon that we don't have to fight through Russian and South American and Japanese accents all the time.
Another thing that's an immense plus in my eye is the lack of fan service. The sexiest thing you'll encounter is normal people wearing normal clothes with normal camera angles. No out-of-nowhere nudity, no boob shots, no eroticism at all. While the humour feels at times a bit forced and overdone (especially in that infamous episode six), Planetes clearly isn't a show specifically targeted at horny teenagers but highly enjoyable even for the "traditional grandparent" type of person.