Anime Review – Astra: Lost in Space

In the year 2063, travelling through space has become commonplace. Eight students from Caird High School, along with one child, set out for a school camp on a nearby planet. However, the students are then mysteriously transported 5,000 light years away from home, with no way to call for help. Aboard an abandoned spaceship they call the Astra, these nine students slowly try to make their way back and figure out why they were transported in the first place. – ANN

Streaming: Funimation and Hulu

Episodes: 12 (episodes 1 and 12 are double-length episodes)

Source: Manga

Read my first impressions here!

Review: Note – This review may contain minor plot spoilers for the series. Because this show presents major revelations in its second half, I’ve done my best to only speak as generally as possible.

Despite the fact that many fans my age were introduced to anime through the iconic science fiction titles that trickled their way over to the West in the early years, it feels as though it’s been quite a while since the sci-fi genre has really been front-and-center. While the surge in slice-of-life anime in the early 2000’s has certainly provided me with many favorite series, and the current popularity of isekai stories is starting to bear more fruit for fans of my tastes, sometimes I just get nostalgic for stories about space travel and the intrepid spirit of humanity. Astra: Lost in Space, a recently-concluded series from this Summer, does a real bang-up job of scratching that itch.

The story begins in the not-so-distant future, after space travel has become much more mainstream and accessible. A group of high school students, as well as one of the student’s younger siblings, are attending a space survival camp established by their school. They arrive on the uninhabited planet McPa and are tasked with surviving for a week, after which point they’ll be picked up and taken home. Not long after they’re left to their own devices, however, a mysterious gateway appears and swallows them up, depositing them in space in orbit around an unfamiliar planet. It’s only by chance that there happens to be an abandoned ship near enough for them to reach using the propellants on their space suits, and by some miracle the ship is operational. What they discover soon afterward, though, is that they’re more than 5,000 light years from home, and that making their way back will entail landing on several unfamiliar and potentially dangerous planets in order to maintain their food and water stores.

Much of the early part of the series revolves around the technical aspects of the group’s survival – things like finding edible food, interacting safely with native plants and animals, and ensuring that they can make it safely to their next destination. As the characters interact more and start to develop their relationships with one-another, they begin to realize that there are some interesting, potentially troubling links and commonalities between them. All the students are particularly talented in one field or another – for example, Kanata, the de-facto leader, has trained as a decathlete and exhibits almost superhuman strength and physical ability, whereas Aries (whose POV we follow in the early moments of the first episode) has a photographic memory, a ton of curiosity, and a talent for bringing people together. Their group dynamics, especially in this survival scenario, seem almost too convenient, and it’s the search for answers related to their current situation that creates the bulk of the drama in the second half of the series.

I found the depth of the plot to be a pleasant surprise. I’d classify the series as an all-ages show (especially considering the fact that Funimation provided an English simul-dub alongside the subtitled simulcast), but it definitely touches on some heavy subject matter, including genetics, adoption, brainwashing, government cover-up and information tampering, sex and gender… there’s a lot to unpack in this relatively short series, and that’s only the stuff that’s unfolding in plain view. I think perhaps the most meaningful thing I took away from the series was its discussion of “nature versus nurture,” as there’s a great deal of discussion regarding the fulfillment of genetic destiny and how the characters, having existed as individuals with their own likes, dislikes, and talents, are able to subvert the heavy expectations placed upon them by their parents and guardians. As our own society begins to learn more about DNA and its implications on the type of people we become, it’s stories like this which allow us to (hopefully!) talk through and avoid potential ethical and moral mistakes.

While personally I find the story-craft part of an anime series to be its most important aspect, this series has some interesting visual tricks up it sleeve as well. As should be evident from the included screen shots, certain scenes make use of additional letter-boxing, creating a visual tension between scenes that fill the frame and those which feel more enclosed by the visual landscape. It actually took me until partway through the first episode to realize what was going on, so the effect isn’t overly-blatant in my opinion. On the other hand, this series suffers from the same issue that many space-faring fiction does, in that none of the places or creatures feel entirely “alien.” Instead, they’re all variations on plants, animals, and landscapes that can be found on Earth. That said, I believe coming up with something entirely visually unique has to be nearly-impossible, as we only have a very limited frame of reference to the doubtlessly infinite variation of life that could exist in the universe, so this is a very small complaint.

There are some parts of the series that definitely require mentioning as they’re presented in ways that end up being a little bit complicated. Because of the family situations of the characters, there’s a lot of talk about adoption. There are several references to characters’ “real parents,” referring to their biological parents. I believe the preferred terminology is “biological parents” and “adoptive parents,” as “real” parents implies that adoptive parents are somehow “less-than” biological parents. I hope that Funimation updates that language before releasing the series on disc as I think it could pose a problem for some viewers. It’s also revealed later on that one of the characters is intersex (has physical traits/primary and secondary sex characteristics associated with both sexes). While I’m pleasantly surprised that the character’s situation didn’t mark them as a gag character (though once they reveal their secret, they do tease some of the other characters occasionally), I think there are some more complicated ways to unpack this that I might not be familiar with as someone who isn’t intersex. The Chatty AF Podcast has some more meaty discussion about this, though be aware that they do talk about the character specifically so if you’d rather not be spoiled it might be best to wait until after watching the series.

There are, I’m a bit disappointed to say, also some fanservicey moments, although they’re pretty mild in the grand scheme of things. There’s a “beach episode” where there are some bodily comparisons between the girls, and there are a couple of shower scenes sprinkled into the earlier episodes. The characters’ space suits (for both genders) are also a bit body-conscious in a way I found unnecessary. It’s not overwhelming by any means, but I think it bears repeating that these are high school children, and despite their precocious intellects probably shouldn’t be made victim to the ever-present creeping anime camera POV. If you’re watching this with younger folks, this is the one major aspect that I think might be surface-level uncomfortable and require some discussion going into the series.

There are perhaps arguments to be made that the frequency and extreme nature of some of the late-game reveals might be a little bit out-there; as someone who prefers to let stories unfold rather than analyze things in the heat of the moment, I can’t say that it bothered me all that much. In fact, since much of the story seemed to be in service of a greater level of social commentary than I would have expected going into the series, I was willing to forgive material that otherwise would have seemed over-the-top. For me, the real measure of the show’s quality is the amount of time dedicated to events after the story’s climax. The final episode is nearly 50 minutes long and provides decent closure to the majority of the characters’ stories, also implying that their actions throughout the series managed to have far-reaching positive consequences to society. In a time where we’re seeing first-hand the impact that young people can have on the ideals and direction of society, I think this is a great aspect to focus on.

Some folks may argue that art shouldn’t be political, but I’d counter that decades of literary and screen science fiction (and many other genres) have demonstrated otherwise. While Astra: Lost in Space might be considered more of a light-weight in this sense, in the grand tradition of this style of storytelling it still manages to have plenty to say from within its brightly-colored, occasionally comedic, and very modern animated box. I found the series to be not only entertaining, but also satisfying in the way its story unfolds.

Pros: The series has a good balance between its entertaining plot and its commentary on several social issues. Overall a very solid all-ages anime series.

Cons: It makes a few missteps with underage fanservice and the translation of certain adoption-related terminology. Some of the plot reveals may be too “convenient” for some viewers.

Content Warnings: Mild underage nudity. Some perilous situations. Insensitive discussion of adoption. Depictions of verbal abuse. Brief gun-related violence.

Grade: A-