Martican Successor Nadesico: Prince of Darkness (1998)
Animation Production: Xebec
Released by: ADV Films
Official Website: ADV's Nadesico: Prince of Darkness Page
By Jeffrey Couto

Introduction

Nadesico is by all definitions a modern “classic”; receiving accolades from not only fans in Japan, who gave it the distinct title of "Best Anime of All Time" through a vote carried out in Animage magazine, but also the anime industry, and fans abroad.

The TV series was indeed a rare treat that took your typical space opera theme and pushed it to a new level of quality that other anime studios now must benchmark. It was on the heels of this success that the film Nadesico: Prince of Darkness came about, but could it live up to the precedent set by the original show?

Story

“Two years have passed since the Great War. Akito and Yurika have vanished. The Jovians and the Earthlings have joined forces and Ruri is now captain of Nadesico B. As the popularity of Boson Jumping grows, a vast transportation network has been developed. Dubbed the Hisago Plan, this network of Chulip portals holds the answers to the mysteries behind Bose particles and their power. If those secrets should fall into the wrong hands, it could mean big trouble.

And big trouble there is. A Martian splinter group has launched an offensive, leaving the United Forces befuddled and desperate. So much so, in fact, that the former crew of the Nadesico is called back to active duty for a special unsanctioned mission—to save us all. Does this menagerie of misfits have what it takes? Who will win the race for the Boson technology? And what the heck happened to Akito and Yirika? The answers lie within—deep within—the NADESICO: Prince of Darkness.” --- ADV’s Nadesico: Prince of Darkness Page.

Review

The movie starts off three years after the events we witnessed on the final episode of the Nadesico TV series as we are taken to a space colony where a heated battle is being waged between the colony's forces and the unknown faction that seems to be in search of some secret research being carried out in these facilities. The scene concludes in a strange appearance that will set off many events into motion..

The battle concluded, we are then taken back to Earth, where we learn that several space colonies around the galaxy are being attacked by these unknown assailants. In order to investigate what is happening the Nadesico B is launched, guided by the leadership of its new captain, Ruri. Once they arrive on the scene they slowly start discovering that not all is as they’ve been told…

Overall I think this is exactly what a movie follow up to a TV series should do; build on the original’s premise, explore new themes and ever-evolving relationships, all while wrapping these elements in a more finely aged and honed package than the original; much like Tenchi Forever and Urusei Yatsura Movie 5: The Final Chapter. This is not to say that Nadesico’s trademark humor is missing, however this time around is not as emphasized. Sadly this also means that we don't get to see much of what at least to me made Nadesico such an unforgetable show, Gekiganger 3! Some references to it are still thrown in for good measure, but no new clips were made for inclusion within the movie itself.

I particularly liked the pace of this movie and how the story unravels throughout. Every scene and character moment feels like an essential block in the overall architecture of the movie, which could have been a disastrous thing it weren’t handled as well as it’s done here (through some smart editing and dialogue scenes). The balance of plot/character development really is to be commended.

Needless to say that the animation in Nadesico: Prince of Darkness is of amazing quality and with a lot of attention to even the most minute of details and like all great animated productions the color palette is bright and colorful. There is a little bit of CGI thrown in for good measure, but overall this is limited only to a couple of scenes and smaller details.

The quality of the audio is also up to par with the film's visuals, featuring some great music pieces from the series and amazing voicework by the actors that voice our favorite Nadesico characters.

The DVD itself is up to ADV's usual high standards, featuring a reversible cover with a lot of colorful artwork and stills from the film, English & Japanese soundtracks, and previews for other ADV Films products. The movie itself is presented in its original widescreen format and I would have to say that the film transfer here is excellent as the image is bright and very sharp.

Final Thoughts

All Nadesico fans should grab themselves a copy of this movie! I also highly recommend it to fans of space opera (Yamato, Harlock, etc.) and/or mecha anime as many of the elements used in this movie will satisfy fans of those genres. If you haven't seen the original Nadesico series, you will still enjoy Prince of Darkness as you will be bought up to speed on what happened in the the TV show through several flashbacks. This helps those unfamiliar with the show understand where the characters came from and what their past relationships and personalities were like.

Great Stuff!!

Jeffrey Couto