Audience reviews
20 · Sample from the first available page, separate from the total number of ratings.
spacenewtype
Talk about a mixed bag. I started with extremely high hopes. I love the character and world designs, the animation, music, and humor were all striking just the right cords. Within the first 7 or so episodes I was thinking "Man, this could be a 9 or even 10/10 if they can stick the landing". Oh, what might have been...
Well, the narrative really stalled after about episode 9 or 10. Then the quality started to dip and it seemed like things just started happening without rhyme or reason. It half turned into an anthology show despite setting it up as a more story-driven entity in the beginning. It's a treasure hunt story that doesn't feel like treasure hunting for roughly half its runtime. The time it wastes not doing lasting character development forces the climax of the story to squeeze it…
Read at the sourceMrChamploo
Outlaw Star is still a 10/10 to me after all these years. Back when I was a kid staying up way too late to catch anime on TV, this show felt different. It had that perfect mix of space western swagger, wild adventures, comedy, and moments that actually hit emotionally. Gene Starwind wasn’t some perfect hero either — he felt real, rough around the edges, and that’s what made the journey memorable.
The ship designs, the soundtrack, the atmosphere… man, they just don’t make anime with this kind of soul anymore. Every episode felt like another story told around a campfire somewhere in deep space. Watching it now just brings me right back to simpler days.
Still one of the greatest space anime ever made.
Read at the sourceChrisDC
Outlaw Star is like an exciting-looking roller coaster with a lacklustre drop.
The first four episodes represent the incline and buildup of that rollercoaster, which is very exciting, as the anime opens quite promisingly with Hilda and the mystery that unfolds around her, which is the highest point this anime will reach.
While the rest of the series represents the boring, annoyingly repetitive drop —and I'm not kidding when I say 'repetitive'.
The episodes after the 4th enter a predictable loop of, "we have no money, we need money, we'll take on jobs for that money, stuff happens, everyone is okay; repeat.
That alone wouldn't make the anime bad, but what makes it bad is that the situations the gang finds themselves in are often overplayed cliches, mixed with binary villains who are just…
Read at the sourceREC3
Outlaw Star is an anime series I watched on Toonami way back in the late 90's. It was one of the series that originally got me interested in Japanese anime. I didn't understand the anime because I saw it in bits and pieces. I liked the series back then, but now I understand it much better.
Outlaw Star has a very diverse crew and cast of characters. By the way the Outlaw Star is the name of the spaceship they travel in. It's interesting as their success depends on each crew member helping each other. I'll avoid spoilers such as, why is it called Future Hero Next Generation? The villains and other characters are as necessary to the story as the crew and well imagined.
Outlaw Star is a fun anime series with interesting concepts. The space race is lots of fun in the middle of the anime. It…
Read at the sourceThatOneBoyo
Finally finished up Outlaw Star after watching it for a couple of months. A little mixed on it as I felt it had a really strong start which transitioned into a bumbling middle and then having what felt like a rushed ending. It lives up to its descriptor as a sort of trashier Cowboy Bebop which I don't necessarily claim as as a bad thing. It has a fun cast of characters and neat world-building coupled with some really gorgeous animated moments and lovely use of colors throughout. There was a string of episodes I ultimately just could not care about especially when the cast had to raise up money again for the 10th time. That being said I still liked the show and is one still worth watching even for the visual elements alone and its cool Taoist influences. It also has a criminally underrated…
Read at the sourceVjestiprime
The first of my 2 series rewatch for January 2023.
Outlaw Star is an interesting case in the excellent world of late 90s anime, a Space-Western arriving in early 1998 from the game changing studio ‘Sunrise’. Plenty of anime fans will know that this is the same year another Space Western anime by sunrise also released; a little show called ‘Cowboy Bebop’, so it’s nothing put fact this is what truly made Outlaw fall under the radar and into the pits of anime obscurity. But without a doubt Outlaw Star is a piece of the Holy Trinity of 1998 Space-Western anime that shaped it to be its greatest year in the history of the medium.
I regard Outlaw Star as a more simplistic alternative to Cowboy Bebop, with a more straight forward tale told through some of the finest narrative pacing I’ve had the…
Read at the sourcebboy_X
Put simply, this show is great, harrowing and so much fun to watch! From the beautiful late 90s visuals/artstyle that I absolutely adore, to its exciting combat, and the batch of unique characters that come and go throughout the series. This show hits so many right notes for me personally. What drew me to Outlaw Star initially was a combination of the character designs/artstyle and the fluidity of the animation. After seeing the gruesome battle in episode 1 at the bar between Gene Starwind and some ruffian, I just knew I had to watch the whole thing. And from that moment on, the entire show becomes a rollercoaster that never slows down. It is not uncommon to get introduced to a character one minute and the next they’re either dead, or just up and leaves never to be seen again. With that sa…
Read at the sourceSgtSalamander
Outlaw Star is one of the great Toonami classics, being part of that lineup which was responsible for introducing a whole generation to anime. Though it lives up to its reputation in many ways, it still falls behind in ways which manage to hold the whole show back. Beginning with the story, it proves itself a solid tale of adventure and mischief throughout which, at its heights, remains enduringly entertaining. The worldbuilding is unique and engaging, and when thinking of it as a space western laden with Chinese influences, I can't help but be reminded of Firefly. Given that Firefly came out so much later, however, I wonder if Outlaw Star played some hand in that eventual creative path. Still, with the inclusion of magic, I am more inclined to call Outlaw Star a space western with the bon…
Read at the sourceYardhouse12
Outlaw Star is probably one of my favorite series of all time. It has a great mixture of comedy, drama, has great character development, an amazing story, and it keeps your attention. The final arch is great and beautifully drawn, the opening theme is an epically bad 90s rock song full of guitar solos, hot sassy girls who kick-ass makeup most of the main cast, the ships computer is amazing, the main character is a creep with a heart of gold, his sidekick is a spunky 12-year old genius. It follows every good anime stereotype in an amazing manner. Do you want a spunky cat girl? BAM! Meet Aisha, a shape shifter who can be super cute and crazy at the same time. Do you want an amazing samurai assassin? BAM! Meet Twilight Suzuka, she can cut a bus in half with a wooden sword with one cut. Do you…
Read at the sourceKryptoLeaf04
Outlaw Star is a classic anime series from the late 90s that follows the adventures of Gene Starwind and his rag-tag crew as they journey through space in their ship, the Outlaw Star. The animation is top-notch and the action scenes are intense and well-choreographed. The story is a mix of sci-fi and fantasy elements, with a healthy dose of humor and drama thrown in. The characters are likable and well-developed, each with their own unique personalities and motivations. The soundtrack is also noteworthy, with a catchy opening theme and fitting background music. Overall, Outlaw Star is a must-watch for any anime fan and is a true gem in the space-faring genre.
Overall Rating: 8
Read at the sourceGrenadeJ
This review contains no spoilers.
First things first, you may be wondering why has someone written a new review on a show that aired over 2 decades ago.
Put simply, I dont particularly expect many readers however for some reason after completing this anime I cant stop thinking about things to say about it, leading to where we are now. Why exactly this is I will try my best to convey to you in the following review.
I did not like this anime. I gave it a 6/10 so I dont hate it, but I cannot by any means say I enjoyed the overall experience either. In fact, it took me a little under a year to even finish all 24 episodes and I have been known to binge 100 episodes of shounen or sports anime within a matter of weeks. I will admit neither 90s anime or Sci-fi shows are particular interests of…
Read at the sourceBigBonobobo
Criminally underrated for the level of quality the show provides. Beautiful fluid animation alongside some awsome retro character designs and concepts make this a joy to watch. Unfortunately, by the time the characters finally have some more natural and nuanced interactions, the show is already over. The show is at its best in the last 8 episodes or so. Besides the slow start and unnecessary romance, the show either delivers or exceeds expectations. I love how both the audience and the main character end up not fully understanding why we are going on this adventure. Though there's some surface level reasons, I feel it's more existential than literal. Overall Outlaw Star is the spunkier, more youthful predecessor to cowboy bepop. Highly recommend if you want to experience peek retro 90s ani…
Read at the sourceggultra2764
Outlaw Star is a sci-fi/ space adventure series set in the far future and focused on Gene Starwind, a young man living on the planet Sentinel III who runs a jack-of-all-trades business with 11-year old computer engineer Jim Hawking. The two find themselves caught up in a conflict between the space outlaw, “Hot Ice” Hilda, and a magic-wielding pirate guild called the Kei Pirates who are trying to gain possession of the bio-android, Melfina, programmed to serve as the navigation unit of an advanced spaceship called the XGP15A-II.
Outlaw Star is a well-known gateway drug for many Western anime fans in that it was perhaps one of the first anime titles that fans may have seen during the early 2000s via Cartoon Network’s Toonami block in a heavily edited version. I’ll be the first to admit that…
Read at the sourceDeltaWDorko
At long last, I have completed the third space western of the unofficial space wester trilogy alongside Cowboy Bebop and Trigun. This is definitely the least popular of the three, but is that deserved?
...Yeah, kinda. However, it's still a good show.
The first part of outlaw star is a very fun science fiction story. There's a solid cast and the art is unique, especially with color. Gene is a man who is both afraid of going to space and committed to travelling the galaxy. Jim is his buddy, and the best way to describe him is just that he's Tails from the Sonic series. There's also this character named Hilda whose cool. She's only present in the beginning, but makes an impression nonetheless. They find this weird girl named Melfina, who is a love interest for Gene. Later, Suzuka and Aisha…
Read at the sourceEnjyu
A lot of potential wasted on this one, nonetheless still a great series.
The art is absolutely gorgeous, and I don't mean in the sense of fantastic sceneries and jaw-dropping BGs, but as a masterpiece of the animators. It's so detailed, compared to a lot of modern works that I can't but appreciate it, little things that make the characters very real, quirky but still close to the viewer on a somewhat personal level, which don't seem to exist in newer series (for many reasons I suppose).
The sound is great, loved the BGM, the VA selection, and most of all, how adequately the characters sounded (excluding one or two). Also, personally I adored Gene's voice
Story, though...for me the first few episodes were a solid 9, so I expected a lot more from this anime. The sotry had so much potentia…
Read at the sourceConsumedAM
Of the space exploration anime, Outlaw Star is among the best ever at crafting a massive, engaging universe that does not overbear the viewer with tedious expository information. OLS strikes this balance by maintaining a consistent tone of "fun" - the episodes are thoroughly focused on action, adventure and character interactions -- more so than narration or some long winded monologue that takes us out of the element.
Now, saying that OLS curbs the exposition isn't to say that the series is without such. What it does is give the viewer background info about a planet, region, species, culture or faction at the very start of episodes prior to the opening song. This information is always pertitent to the theme of an episode, and ensures that the attentive viewer doesn't have any issues follo…
Read at the sourceSkyeAerrow
Sunrise Studio always managed to come up with interesting shows during the early 90's going on up into the early 2000's; Outlaw Star was no exception. The story starts out simple enough at first, with a twenty-one year old chronic flirt named Gene Starwind and the brains of the outfit pal and frustrated kiddo Jim Hawking. I had no idea that the burgeoning story involving one woman's mission to the Galactic Leyline would spurn the story into such a unique and fun adventure though! Throughout the entirety of this 24 episode series you are left to wonder what the end game is to any of what is going on; from people's motives for finding this Leyline to the mystery of the organic android Melfina and her connection to it all.
Story:
I set the story at a 9 simply because I know there was mor…
Read at the sourceB2Reviews
One of those "first wave" titles that got me hooked on anime and made me want to see more. I've even heard some fellow fans prefer it over Bebop, and I can't argue that. The praise and love for Outlaw Star is well deserved.
A great space adventure with a perfect blend of action and humor, a rocking soundtrack, beloved heroes, wicked villains, and a lot of intrigue. The universe we see in Outlaw Star is one we could easily lose ourselves in, space race or grappler battle. A timeless scifi that should be shared with fans and curious alike.
Lastly, Joss Whedon can bs all he wants but Melfina inspired River Tam and we all know it.
Read at the sourceScurra25
When I say I trudged through this show I mean I WWI trench trudged through this show. The characters and most of their designs are great, and they have personalities to match. However, those two things are basically the only good points the show actually has. the animation has whole episodes where characters go off model or have just laughably bad facial structures (if you actually watch the show look out for episode 16, absolutely abhorrent art). the music and sound is ok (except for the OP, As I never once skipped it, straight banger) all the music was meh with them recycling the same EXACT subpar music for every fight or serious moment. Finally the plot. spare yourself the trouble please it is so mind numbingly boring. At first it feels like If Han Solo got his own tv show with a myster…
Read at the sourceUnluckyCat13
Outlaw Star is one of the greatest Anime ever put out. It is easy to argue how something is not perfect, because nothing is perfect. Where some things are bogged down or made up of their flaws though, Outlaw Star puts such loving effort into every single piece of it. The art, the characters, the sound, the story, in such a way that flaws are merely additional character to the production.
There are certainly rough edges to things, particularly due to being a product of its time. There are moments where the art dips in detail, however you can find that in any modern anime production. The fan service can seem a bit much, and fan service in the service of a joke or plot point is still fan service; but it's not really more fan service or more offensive fan service than modern anime. That's es…
Read at the source
