Moonrise

Having gushed over the lavish production values of Moonrise on our First Thoughts Article, it's time to sit down and assess the series in full. I'll keep spoilers on the light side, but there may be a few mentions of characters/situations from the latter stages of the anime.

Firstly, I can confirm that the production values continue throughout all 18 episodes of the show, with the series never looking anything but stunning, with rock-solid freeze frames, beautiful digital effects and some vibrant CGI incorporated into the show. The score continues to impress, and the dub works very well, especially given the series' penchant for Western names like Phil, Bob and Jack. 

Copious use of digital effects root the series in "future" territory and give the whole series a polished look.

The story itself is generally strong, though I have to admit there were elements I found under-explained or drawn out. While the focus is very much on one unit in a wider war, the constant overhead sight of warships raining fire on each other with little resolution just made me wonder if anybody ever hit anything. What does work is the interplay between characters, as friendships are formed, allegiances shift and priorities change for everyone involved. The fact the majority of the squad are convicted criminals (or pending charges) gives the gang a suicide squad vibe, just without the powers or (in recent years) crap writing.

Jack (right) meets the mysterious Mary

The series gives us a set of protagonists and antagonists which are all pretty interesting, and thankfully it doesn't just set the two against each other in a death match, allowing for some growth and better understanding for the internal motivations on both sides. I also like that our strike unit grows and changes over time, giving us some fresh faces that add to the overall texture of the cast.

The series does get violent and often cruel with the war, the civilians on both sides taking the brunt. Some of it I found genuinely upsetting (as one should when dealing with executions and slaughter) but it was never so overwhelming that it became unpalatable, which is more than I can say about the body horror in The Expanse, which took a similar marginalised faction approach to its world building, though far grittier than we find in Moonrise.

The city vistas are gorgeous and very inviting - I'd love to explore them.

Another thing both shows share is razor sharp technical design, crafting believable human habitats in a the vacuum of space. Cities built alongside crashed ships that have been stripped for parts, and the functional essence of the tech is palpable, though the nano-tech of the Engrave technology is a little too close to science-fantasy for my liking - looks cool though I suppose, and being able to switch weapons on a whim makes for some incredible fights. Extending it to the ship/carrier could make for some interesting toys, and incorporating it into the iconic cloaks to give them increased maneuverability allows for some Attack on Titan style aerial combat, perfectly suited to director Masashi Koizuka's keen eye. To say the direction in the series is strong would be a gross understatement.

If there's a weakness it's in some of the narrative execution. The threat being held over the Earth and the weird amoeba creature (you'll know it when you see it) makes the threat hard to understand, as it seems to be attacking people on the moon despite being wielded by the moon children. The army of robots is never fully explained (or I missed it) and the time skips, forward and backward, can be jarring.

Ultimately though, I made it to the end and enjoyed much of what I saw. Given the lush production values I'm at a loss as to why Netflix just dumped and buried this show, it really should have been a weekly release that got fans talking and speculating, it has enough meat to it to create a following, but I get the feeling it's rather flown under a lot of radars and that's a real shame. At a time when the anime industry is struggling to pump out the sort of high-quality content that is now demanded globally, when they do get something this lavish out of the door, it really deserves to be appreciated. The press seems to be pushing it now though, so that's heartening.

As it stands, Moonrise is an enjoyable space opera with a strong cast, stunning visuals and a snappy length that uses it's 18 episodes to the full. Whether or not it'll get seen by enough fans to justify the money that clearly went into it is another story.