ONGOING ANIME: SPACE DANDY EPISODE 9

Easily one of the most bizarre episodes yet, last week’s Space Dandy may have not been very action-oriented, but it was certainly the most complex and layered story we’ve ever seen take place in just under 30 minutes.

Welcome to Planet Planta, a world located in the far reaches of space whose nature and origin is virtually unknown to the outside universe. There is a rare alien rumored to be residing on this planet, commonly referred to as “Code D,” and the adventurous space crew of the Aloha Oe has decided to check it out. Due to the mysterious magnetic field being generated from Planta’s north pole, the crew is forced to use their newly refurbished instant transporter and beam down to the planet. Because this transporter is a piece of crap, Dandy and Meow are split up, with Dandy being sent to the upper hemisphere which is occupied by the Vegims, an advanced and sentient form of plant species. Meanwhile, Meow is found by the Movies, a more barbaric form of plant life that attempts to fatten him up and eat him. Dandy encounters Dr. H, a renegade researcher who is also interested in learning about Code D, and decides to enlist Dandy’s help in order to retrieve the wondrous alien from the north pole. 

And thus begins a journey across the entire planet in order to seek out Code D. There are so many layers upon layers of story and detail packed into this episode that we believe its mythos will be examined by fans for months to come. We are given a brief synopis of Planta’s history as well as its current political status, being a planet that originally allowed for plant life to thrive and flourish spontaneously until in recent years, where it has now become a republic consisting of 18 different states. There is also political tension between these states, and a fight for authority which has resulted in Dr. H’s exile. Aside from the in-depth societal structures, the environment of Planta is simply GORGEOUS. We get to see Dandy travel through all 18 different states, and each area has been terraformed in a unique, exotic fashion. Every scene is filled with enough color to produce sensory overload, and these beautiful backdrops are coupled with a superb instrumental track that creates a tropical mood, fitting for such a planet.

Witnessing all the daily processes that are carried out on Planta while Dandy travels to the north pole is incredible. An entire planet ruled by plants may sound boring, but it looks simple and peaceful. We honestly have to hand it to the series creators and writers for conceiving such a lush world and a concrete way of life to match it; this type of story requires an unbelievable amount of imagination. But above all else, this episode poses some serious philosophical and ethical arguments- in particular, the ending of this episode. Basically, Dandy makes it to the North Pole with the aid of Dr. H and his daughter, and upon discovering that Code D is a meteorite, severs the connections between it and Planta. By doing so, all life on Planta reverts to its original state, free of sentience and rational thought, into regular, ordinary plants. This was Dr. H’s intent all along, as he believed that the evolutionary state Code D had bestowed upon Planta was more of a curse than a gift. Everything on Planta shrinks down to grass, and the passionate world which we’ve just spent the past half hour getting to know eventually disappears into nothing.

At Planta’s newfound desolation, a thousand questions filled our minds. Was it the right thing to do? Was knowledge a curse, and not a blessing? Would everyone have felt the same way about their own lives as Dr. H, or did this mad scientist just strip away the fruit of wisdom from thousands of organisms? What was Code D? Extremists could call it a God to these plants, some could just say it was luck that this meteorite crashed there. By breaking those bonds to Code D, Dandy cut the umbilical cord between it and the planet. And lastly, how different are the beings of Planta from us? Could this story be a metaphor for Earth and humanity’s current state? Have we grown too advanced for our own good? Honestly, there’s some Evangelion shit going up in here the more we get into this.

Let’s just end this off by saying that episode 9 had a LOT going on. Again, this is truly an unexpected amount of story content, development and ethical reflection for just under a half hour. And that’s taking place in a show like Space Dandy, which one usually expects nothing but pure humor from (i.e. Racer Prince from Episode 7 and his apparent homosexuality). Pretty heavy stuff, but that simply makes this show all the more special. Looking forward to this Saturday’s episode, which will feature Meow’s home planet and maybe even provide some real backstory on his character. Hope you’re excited too!

-The A7 Team