Outlaw Star

Outlaw Star (星方武侠アウトロースター, Seihō Bukyō Autorō Sutā, lit. "Starward Warrior Knight Outlaw Star") is a Japanese anime television series produced by Sunrise and seinen manga series written and illustrated by Takehiko Itō. The series takes place in the "Toward Stars Era" universe in which spacecraft are capable of traveling faster than the speed of light. The plot follows protagonist Gene Starwind and his motley crew of an inherited ship dubbed the Outlaw Star, as they search for a legendary outer space treasure trove called the "Galactic Leyline".

Plot
Gene Starwind dreams of a life as an Outlaw, and fate smiles on him as he seems to suddenly wind up with a great job. But things go awry, and he finds himself the new owner of the fatest, most technologically advanced space ship in the galaxy. Unfortunately, it’s stolen and the owners want it back… Along with his partner Jim and the lovely Melfina, Gene must fight his way across the galaxy battling pirates, aliens, and assassins as he attempts to discover the secrets of the Outlaw Star.

Why It Makes It Out Through the Night

 * 1) Vivid and Amazing animation that feels very lively, and smooth even for 1990 anime standards and has aged like fine wine.
 * 2) Much like Trigun, this show is a amazing mix between a serious tone and a comedic tone, and it get's more serious when the series progress.
 * 3) It is very over the balls top....in the best way possible!, with many zany ideas like the grappler ships and others overtop stuff that really works well.
 * 4) Many likable characters especially the main cast:
 * 5) * Gene Starwind is a rather likable protagonist as he is laid back, jerkish and a bit of a horn dog, but during the later episodes he gets major character development as he starts to grow out of his fear of space (Due to his dad during a space trip with his father sacrificing his life to save Gene) and he becomes a more better person and wanting to protect his friends especially Melfina.
 * 6) *Jim Hawking, despite his young age serves as the straight man of the group and the brains to the Outlaw Star group.
 * 7) *Melfina is a interesting character as despite being a android she has free will and qualities of humans while she is trying to find her purpose and help her remember her past.
 * 8) *Twilight Suzuka is a example of strong Independent women done right as while despite her appearance she is very deadly with her wooden sword.
 * 9) *Aisha ClanClan a fan favorite character is a very funny comic relief and while she can be a nuisance she does help the team out and takes great pride in her race.
 * 10) **Even the villains were awesome especially the MacDoogal Brothers and Hazanko.
 * 11) Pretty top notch voice acting from both Sub and Dub.
 * 12) Awesome action scenes and thanks to the animation feels smooth and exciting especially the Grappler Ship fights.
 * 13) Excellent soundtrack especially the theme song and the ending credits songs.
 * 14) Many hilarious moments throughout the series.
 * 15) During the later half, we get more plot development about the Galactic Layline, Melfina, and it starts to get a little bit more serious
 * 16) Great World building and expansion that feels like it can be on the same levels of Avatar: The Last Airbender
 * 17) Some filler episodes are fun to watch.
 * 18) An excellent finale that ended the series on a high note and the final battle between Hazanko feels satisfying.

Bad Qualities

 * 1) The final episodes were different from the manga this can be excused since the manga had been discontinued and it never have gotten completed.
 * 2) While Lord Hazanko is very intimidating, he does feel like a generic doomsday villain and not as interesting as the MacDoogal Brothers.
 * 3) Some unlikable characters can be found in this show.
 * 4) The animation while well done, hasn’t aged well in some parts and can go way off model in some episode.
 * 5) There could be some pacing issues which could make the show feel slow.
 * 6) While the final episode is awesome, it could feel like a cliffhanger since there was to be a sequel made and had been completed but sadly it was cancelled.

Reception
Critical reception for Outlaw Star has been mostly positive. Many reviewers praised the anime series, particularly its animation style and its balance of dramatic and comedic elements. However, some found fault with the show's pacing, believing that the storyline quality begins to wane after the first few episodes. Sunrise produced a spin-off television series titled Angel Links (星方天使エンジェルリンクス Seihō Tenshi Enjeru Rinkusu?, lit. "Angels of the Stars: Angel Links"), which aired in Japan in 1999. Morning Star Studio made preliminary plans to create a direct sequel OVA (Original Video Animation) series to Outlaw Star, entitled Outlaw Star Sword of the Wind, but production never began.