When I first watched Stellvia back in the day, I was so hooked on the show that the wait between episodes was always excruciating, even if it was only a week. So, when the show was eventually licensed and released on DVD, I was somewhat reluctant to watch each disc as I bought it. I figured watching the show in tiny batches every couple of months would prove unbearable. But I did it anyway. And, sure enough, I was disappointed. Very disappointed. It was such a bad experience, in fact, that I questioned my love for the show all together. Perhaps Stellvia wasn’t all that great an anime series in the first place?
Stellvia has its flaws, of course. Shima is annoying in the later episodes, that’s for sure. The writing could be a lot tighter. The character designs are weird. The animation is occasionally sloppy. At the same time, Stellvia has many strengths. A colorful cast of interesting characters. Loads of drama. Some nifty action sequences. Stylish mechanical designs. A satisfying conclusion. These are just some of the many reasons why I consider Stellvia a personal favorite.
So, obviously, my sudden disappointment in the show following my second viewing came as a great shock. What happened? Clearly, to find the answer, another rewatch was in order…
Well, it took a year, but I finally got around to doing just that these past few days. And I’m happy to report that, indeed, it’s all in the pacing. Stellvia is a show best marathoned. And I’m also happy to report that I enjoyed the show even more this time around compared to my first viewing. Many of the flaws I mentioned above were of little issue, in fact. Does that mean Stellvia gets better with age? It would seem so.
For example…
Like most sci-fi anime, Stellvia plays fast and loose with science and technology. People walk around mumbling about energy wave patterns and atomic substructures and the like, often just to fill empty spots in the script. It’s all a bunch of technobabble mumbo jumbo, some of which makes sense, some of which doesn’t. Except, this time… it made sense? Actually, it did (to a point). Not in an academic, “Ah, we should discuss this at next week’s club meeting,” manner, mind you, but more in an, “Ah, that incomprehensible conversation back in Episode 16 actually had a point,” sort of way. This was a pleasant discovery, to be honest, as the time wasted discussing things that never seemed to matter was always one of my chief complaints about the show. All this time, I thought it was nothing more than filler. Turns out, it’s one of the show’s more fascinating components.
But, let’s face it, as much as Stellvia is a sci-fi show, it’s even more of a school drama. And, like most school dramas, it has a strong romantic element. Kouta and Shima’s budding relationship is an important facet of the show, obviously. You could argue that it drives the plot throughout the show’s entire second half. The thing is, Kouta and Shima’s relationship has some “interesting” dynamics (they’ve got more issues than National Geographic, basically), and this is often reflected in the plot. In other words, it can be a real head-scratcher at times. And, given Kouta and Shima’s stubborn nature and general inability to get their shit together, the head-scratchers, they just keep a-comin’. It’s frustrating, yeah. I can emphatically empathize with those who come to detest Shima by the end of the show.
Yet, while the two teenage lovers were just as frustrating to watch this time around as they were the first, I think I now understand them a little better. It’s amazing what one can learn from simply paying closer attention to what people are actually saying in the most melodramatic of scenes, you know. Sometimes, you get so swept up in the mood that you miss the point of the scene entirely. Competent translation helps, too… I can’t help but think the fansub translation I watched way back when made an awful mess of a few important scenes (although, as an aside, I should say that the subtitles on Geneon’s DVD release have some of the sloppiest editing and proofreading I’ve ever seen). Either way, I found Kouta and Shima at least a little less annoying than before. They could still use some relationship counseling, though.
But, thankfully, Stellvia has a large cast of interesting characters - a true ensemble cast - and the presence of this cast does a lot to make up for all of the show’s many shortcomings combined. If I were to recommend Stellvia, I would say this: watch not for the drama or suspense, but for the supporting characters, who, by the end of the story, shine as bright, if not brighter, as the two leads themselves. Those supporting characters are the reason I love Stellvia. They make the show memorable.
Of course, you should also watch it for the positive and uplifting ending (consider that this is coming from someone who covets bittersweet endings). I’ll admit, the epilogue is cheesy - as thanks for saving the Solar System, everyone got a coupon for a free haircut, it seems - but, hey, the ending left me wishing for a sequel something terrible. It’s not that a sequel was necessary, mind you. I just really, really wanted one. Like a pony. You can imagine my disappointment when a sequel was announced, only to later be cancelled. What’s Tatsuo Sato up to nowadays, anyway?
Oh, and one final thought…
With the human race facing extinction twice over the course of the show, there must have been a staggering amount of meaningless sex going on behind the scenes. I’ll never look at the Big Four the same way again.
