Suisei no Gargantia: Meguru Kouro, Haruka – Overview/ Review (with Spoilers)

In a peaceful little fleet on the sea, problems arise as they try to rise a ship from the depths.

Characters & Story

In the Gargautia fleet, things are largely peaceful. War is a distant issue, there is nearly full employment since there is a job for everyone, and pretty much the only worry is resources. Leading to the introduction of Ledo who is amongst the scavengers for the fleet. Someone who finds a massive, but intact, wrecked ship which could not only be useful for parts, but for history as well. However, in pursuit of lifting the ship to the surface, situations happen which lead you to wonder if the almost legendary user of the robot/ AI Chamber may survive. Especially with the fleet’s philosophy on sacrifice.

Praise

Perhaps the best bit of praise which can be given to this program is that it is more than what it seems. For, in the beginning, it seems very cutesy, with a little bit of fan service, but mostly it comes off like a slice of life anime which is going to be dull as a stack of bricks. However, once we learn about Ledo and see what he did in this massive storm which hit the fleet, and wonder if he may be saved when he is in a life or death situation, the OVA gets a bit more complex, and likable. Also, the character of Leema seems to be more than meets the eye, thus creating another jolt which brings life to the anime.

Criticism

Outside of seeming kiddy, and boring at times, the only other issues I can think of is that sometimes I felt like I was overloaded with names, and wasn’t given a firm grasp on who did what, and what was so-and-so’s relationship to someone else. Making it so, outside of Ledo, Leema, and Ledo’s love interest Amy, everyone else was just a random name that, assumingly, you’d have to watch the anime series to get to know better.

Overall: TV Viewing

This isn’t the type of OVA I would say is something I would use to get a friend into anime. Maybe someone young, who is of Disney age, maybe, but certainly not a teenager or adult. For while the life or death situations Ledo has been in make things a bit more lively, mostly the OVA drags a bit and feels like a waste of an hour. What makes it TV Viewing though is those moments in which Ledo is using Chamber or is in harm’s way though. But, I should note, they barely make this worth labeling TV Viewing.