If I had to write in a few sentences why I recommend the new "Legend of the Galactic Heroes", the text from the lead would be one of them. The next ones would relate to an unusual narrative, great characters from old anime, and a bit of a boring beginning that you need to breakthrough. The new version does not have this problem and virtually everything is presented much better. From a slightly more diverse army, ending with changes in certain events (accelerating them, shortening them, or creating a new envelope around them). In general, everything has been refreshed. It was not limited to just painting old, slightly dusty models. First of all, the old history was adapted to today's standards and ideas of the far future. Whatever the old LotGH, some things grew old very quickly. For example, the technology of the far future does not completely match our imaginations today, etc., and combat units practically did not develop throughout the whole anime. "Die Neue These" may not fix all the shortcomings, but it is watched much better than the initial episodes of "Legend of the Galactic Heroes". In the case of a few characters, the changes did not work out for good (Reinhard and above all Oberstein), but all the rest was refreshed on the plus side. At the head of Kircheis, whom I hated in the old series, and here I liked him.
I will start with my favorite change or rather many changes that I can sum up with two words: less pacing. As I said above, some events have been shortened and changed. For example, the solo action of Kircheis in the old anime lasted longer (there was a thread with the so-called Artemis Necklace, the defense system of the local rebel lord). In "Die neue These" it was solved differently, we got an outline of the situation in the form of a briefing, a short battle, and ending. It also seems to me that in the new series they devoted less time to developing the thread of Reinhard, his sister, and Kircheis. I do not feel that these and other, non-listed scenes suffered from any deficiencies or were artificially shortened. Even in cases where a lot of unnecessary fat was cut off and the scene ended quickly. Thanks to these changes, the new series, like FMA: B compared to the first FMA, focuses on other aspects and does not try to copy the old, but only use its best things.
The story of "Legend of the Galactic Heroes" tells us about the war between the Empire ruled by the Goldenbaum dynasty and the Free Planet Alliance. Actually, we are watching the introduction to its key phase, i.e. we are observing a clash between two talented commanders - Reinhard von Lohengramm and Yang Wenli. We watch their career paths, from ordinary commanders to truly important personalities. LotGH is literally Japanese Star Wars. Battles involving millions of soldiers and thousands of spaceships are not unusual here. The series shows war on a military, political and social level. We see the cruelty of war, soldiers leaving orphans, wives and fiancés, as well as the other consequences of a political decision or war.
Some interpret this title as a comparison of democracy and monarchy, with all their pros and cons. In this case, the great conflict and various historical or political references play the role of tools with which the author wants to present his detailed analysis of both systems. It shows how power corrupts, how it affects citizens and their freedoms, and wonders if it can be repaired or an ideal ruler exists. For example, we see the short-sightedness of the Democrats, their limited thinking of up to two terms, which hinders the implementation of far-reaching plans. In turn, if the monarch is not a madman, he wants to leave his country in the best form for his successor. Although Kaiser has its limitations (he must take into account the opinion of the nobility and make sure that not one of them gains too much strength), in my opinion they have less than democratic rule. At least in a prosperous and stable country when it comes to the level of citizen satisfaction. In every, even well-functioning democratic system, there is some paperwork, more officials, a separation of powers or other limiters. The title of the emperor has the advantage that it gives the opportunity to issue orders directly to the unit concerned, bypassing many procedures or unnecessary officials. LotGH democrats claim power and plant pigs to each other, letting themselves be corrupted by Phezzan spies by selling relevant information. An independent (in some respects) dominium operating under the auspices of the Empire. In short, I do not want to spoil too much.
In terms of the number of heroes, this series hardly matches the old LotGH. There are a lot of them, and at the beginning we get some relevant information to learn and characters to learn. The new series seems to be lighter in this respect due to some threads being cut off, but I can think so because I already know this world and associate characters. As I wrote earlier, the main characters of this story are Yang Wenli and Reinhard Lohengramm. The first is a passionate of history, whose character and personality do not really match the warrior, but due to the lack of money he had to decide to haul in mud boots. Reinhard started from a slightly different position, he also joined the army for reasons other than his rival. In addition, the blond speaks in the voice of Light, Lucifer, and Ling Yao, respectively from DN, HxH, and FMA: B, no further comment is needed. As for the rest of the characters, it's quite difficult for me to write something more complex about them than 1, 2 sentences, and I don't want to spoil someone's fun with the next seasons. While the abovementioned were fairly sketched, there was no time to develop the rest. 12 episodes are not too many, and you had to deal with other, more important matters. But cool, after what I've seen this season, I'm not afraid of this aspect in the next episodes.
When it comes to CGI, I know it as badly as it does on the line, drawings - generally drawing and graphic matters. My sense of aesthetics is not particularly high either. I don't feel it and I am aware of it in most of my anime texts. Generally, as long as the line (or other aspects mentioned above) is not unique or somehow gets to me, I do not spend too much time on it, limiting myself to uncomplicated claims. From this perspective, I assess CGI and all lighting effects, explosions, ship designs, space stations as very good. Battle scenes, despite their scale and multitude of combat units, remain legible and do not tire your eyes with an excessive number of colors. It is a pity that there were so few different shots and I hope that in the next seasons there will be more episodes like the final one.
I have some reservations about how a few characters were drawn, but I do not regard it as a big drawback. Well, apart from Oberstein, if I can accept Reinhard's less epic appearance, the deserter's face from Isernholn is too different from "my" version of this hero. He looks like some Jasiu and does not have his aura of mystery (although fortunately at least the voice actor keeps the level). As for the soundtrack, apart from the opening and ending, which I liked less than the old one, it is a bit better. I may expose myself to some LotGH fans here, but I don't think the original has an outstanding soundtrack. Yes, the openings and endings are fantastic, there would probably be some really good songs, but otherwise, it was just okay. "Die Neue These" may not be an outstanding qualitative leap, but I listen to this soundtrack much better. Especially the Dual Serpent Formation piece, which is pure epic.
To sum up, before the premiere of the first episode I was worried about this adaptation. Although later announcements changed my mind, the first teasers were not very optimistic for me. Finally, I got a better series than my predecessor in almost every field. I recommend it to anyone looking for more serious anime content or interested in politics or history. I give it 9/10 because although the creators did a great job and I'm excited about LotGH like never before, they could get more out of these 12 episodes. I can't wait for the next episodes since they've improved IMO's boring start, I don't even dare to speculate what awaits me in the next episodes and movies.
Thank you CCORD, op.com.pl admin for the expertise. I don't remember the old fairy tale well enough, and that the boy recently rewatch, I took the opportunity and asked him a few questions, so I avoided some mistakes. Well, that would be enough. Greetings to these 3 people who asked for a review of this anime at PW :).