Every ship needs a harbor.
Just finished watching Planetes. It's probably the best anime I've ever seen.
Bad shows are shows that try to make a point with a sledgehammer. Good shows are shows that entertain. Great shows are shows that entertain and that also teach those who are willing to learn. Planetes is a great show.
Here's what I learned from Planetes. Hachimaki, the main character, decides near the midpoint of the series that the only way to achieve his dream of flying to Jupiter is to put it first--before his friends, before his feelings for Tanaka (the other main character), before his humanity. It's kind of an interesting contrast, because Tanaka also puts her ideals before everything else, but she does so because she's an idealist. Kind of like I used to be, but more so.
So Hachimaki goes all-out in his drive to be selected as a crewman on the Von Braun, humanity's first manned mission to Jupiter. There are sacrifices to be made along the way. Sacrifices in the form of "other people." Hachimaki makes them with no regrets, because making those sacrifices is the only way to achieve his dream. As is to be expected, those decisions have an effect on who he is as a person. Hachimaki withdraws further and further into himself, finally deciding that the only path to happiness is complete solitude. Each successive reconfirmation of this decision is accompanied by a greater slip away from sanity and happiness on his part.
A chain of events involving a message from a deceased mentor, a terrorist attack on the Von Braun, and a motorcycle accident finally grant his wish and leave him utterly alone. And it terrifies him. He has something of a near-death experience at that point and sees a vast web of connected people, and instantly draws a connection with outer space. The heavens are filled with stars and planets, but their size and brightness are dwarfed by the vast reaches of empty space between them; despite that, from the perspective of someone on Earth, none of the stars is nearly as important as the constellations they form.
It's all about the connections.
And it's not about how many connections you have in the great social web, it's about how deep and strong they are.
For years now, my goal in life has been to improve myself in every way and to become the best person I can. I never considered that having deep friendships might be an important part of that.
That's what I learned from Planetes.
Bad shows are shows that try to make a point with a sledgehammer. Good shows are shows that entertain. Great shows are shows that entertain and that also teach those who are willing to learn. Planetes is a great show.
Here's what I learned from Planetes. Hachimaki, the main character, decides near the midpoint of the series that the only way to achieve his dream of flying to Jupiter is to put it first--before his friends, before his feelings for Tanaka (the other main character), before his humanity. It's kind of an interesting contrast, because Tanaka also puts her ideals before everything else, but she does so because she's an idealist. Kind of like I used to be, but more so.
So Hachimaki goes all-out in his drive to be selected as a crewman on the Von Braun, humanity's first manned mission to Jupiter. There are sacrifices to be made along the way. Sacrifices in the form of "other people." Hachimaki makes them with no regrets, because making those sacrifices is the only way to achieve his dream. As is to be expected, those decisions have an effect on who he is as a person. Hachimaki withdraws further and further into himself, finally deciding that the only path to happiness is complete solitude. Each successive reconfirmation of this decision is accompanied by a greater slip away from sanity and happiness on his part.
A chain of events involving a message from a deceased mentor, a terrorist attack on the Von Braun, and a motorcycle accident finally grant his wish and leave him utterly alone. And it terrifies him. He has something of a near-death experience at that point and sees a vast web of connected people, and instantly draws a connection with outer space. The heavens are filled with stars and planets, but their size and brightness are dwarfed by the vast reaches of empty space between them; despite that, from the perspective of someone on Earth, none of the stars is nearly as important as the constellations they form.
It's all about the connections.
And it's not about how many connections you have in the great social web, it's about how deep and strong they are.
For years now, my goal in life has been to improve myself in every way and to become the best person I can. I never considered that having deep friendships might be an important part of that.
That's what I learned from Planetes.