OP3 Sequence

OP3: 「夢見る世界」 (Yumemiru Sekai) by DOES

「一つの質問」 (Hitotsu no Shitsumon)
“One Question”

I’m sure I don’t need to say this, but Uchuu Kyoudai really has a way with words. It’s one of the few shows of the past couple of seasons I would consider to actually be very clever. It knows what to say, when to say it, and more importantly, when not to say anything at all. Some things cannot, and need not be put into words.

As part of Azuma’s short background we get one of those situations. The view of Earth from outer space cannot be put into words. There’s a sense of wonder to be gained merely from watching that scene in an anime – just imagine how much more powerful it would be to experience it yourself. Pictures probably don’t do it justice either – every part of the experience combines to make it what it is, and it’s something you just have to see for yourself. It’s a pity the large majority of us will never actually get to experience it. But I guess you can never be sure.

The question that gives this episode its title is a big one – ‘Are you prepared to die?’ Certainly not a very nice question to ask someone who’s currently floating in space. In fact, it almost sounds like Brian Jay is some crazy evil guy who’s about to blow everything sky high. But it’s somewhat fitting that this question would first be delivered by him, the astronaut who was forced to face that death and managed to do so with a smile on his face. It’s also not the first time this subject has come up in Uchuu Kyoudai – it could hardly be called a running theme, but Mutta did spend a lot of time worrying over this very question much earlier in the series when he stumbled across Hibito’s wills.

Which brings us to another point – should one really be prepared to die? In this case, no, you should not. Yes, you should be aware of the possibility and have your affairs in order just in case the unfortunate event comes to pass… but being ‘prepared to die’ is a whole different kettle of fish. It almost suggests a willingness to throw in the towel and succumb as it finally advances upon you when what you should be doing is everything in your power to survive. It’s good that Mutta had the balls to retract his initial statement that he was prepared. One thing you almost always know is that someone who’s adamant about that sort of thing is either lying or reckless.

While my suspicions haven’t exactly been confirmed, this episode still does much to suggest that Azuma doesn’t actually bear a grudge. Far from it in fact – why else would he ask Mutta that oh-so-important question that Brian Jay presented him with so many years ago?

tl;dr: @MoombaDS – Even after 27 episodes, #SpaceBros remains one of those few series which actually manage to make me feel and think.

Random thoughts:

  • Well this was an unusual experience! I can’t say I ever expected to see Zidane’s legendary headbutt from a first person perspective!
  • Next week we’ll hopefully see the footage on that disk. Will it reveal the truth behind that UFO from the very beginning of the series? I hope so!
  • Mutta’s parents’ interactions never fail make me laugh. They’re just so silly… and worryingly familiar!
  • Given that the next episode seems to focus on the disk, I wonder if they’re going to put off the launch for a few episodes.
  • The new OP and ED are pretty nice, but I think the first OP remains my favourite!

Full-length images: 03, 07, 34.

 

ED3 Sequence

ED3: 「テテ」 (Tete) by 近藤晃央 (Kondou Akihisa)

Preview

Omake

8 Comments

  1. I was just at the Kennedy Space Center this July and when I was there I was thinking of Uchuu Kyoudai. Now Im actually seeing the stuff I actually saw this summer in anime form…
    From those aligators and bus terminals…its definitely the same 😀 So exciting

    unknown2
  2. i agree with Moomba that the view of earth Azuma had from the outer space was breathtaking, props to the animation team…

    and i think the current OP is the best one so far, though the current ed slightly falls short of the first and the second one’s greatness i think

    with the glorious dedication at the end of the episode as well as his spot-on answer to Azuma’s trick question, Mutta being an astronaut is pretty much a sure thing…can’t wait to see the announcement as to who will get picked as new astronauts in NASA…

    i’m also curious to see how the romance between mutt and serika is gonna develop…i mean all we’ve seen are scenes of Mutta blushing around her….(i don’t want the romance to overwhelm the central theme, but at least give a hint that serika feels the same way)

    kingofconquerors
    1. I liked the last OP and ED better. The songs themselves were better and the animation to go with them fit perfectly.

      Anyone else get the feeling that they overhyped the situation between Azuma and Mutta? They have been playing it up for weeks now and when they actually met and talked it was over in seconds. I was pretty sure Azuma had no hard feelings toward Mutta anyways but I was expecting “more” of their meeting.

      Karmafan
      1. i find myself moving to the OP dance every time i watch it. heck! i also move to it when i hear it on my music player.

        i think many viewers already know that Azuma is not that type of person to hold a grudge. even Hibito vouched for it like 2 episodes back. but it’s still interesting to see the interactions between him and Mutta.

  3. Another dandy episode. But it seems they will prolong the results announcement for quite a few more episodes with more flashbacks. Sounds like mutta is a lock anyway after passing azuma’s test.

    hwighting

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